JOSEPHINE GRAY, KNOWN AS “THE BLACK WIDOW,” RE-SENTENCED
TO 40 YEARS IN INSURANCE FRAUD CASE
Caused the Deaths of A Husband and Lover to Collect Life Insurance Proceeds
GREENBELT, Maryland - Josephine V. Gray, age 60, of Wheaton, Maryland was resentenced
 to 40 years in prison arising from her 2002 convictions for mail and wire fraud
stemming from the homicides of two men, announced United States Attorney for the District of
Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. Gray was convicted on August 16, 2002 of intentionally causing the
death of William Robert Gray and Clarence Goode, making it illegal for her to profit from those
crimes by filing claims for their life insurance benefits.
Gray appealed her original 40 year sentence based on the Supreme Court’s 2005 decision
in United States v. Booker finding that the mandatory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines were
unconstitutional. At her original sentencing hearing U.S. District Court Judge Deborah K. Chasanow
held that since Gray committed premeditated murder, she should be sentenced using the guidelines
for first degree murder rather than fraud. Under the advisory Sentencing Guidelines currently in
place, Judge Chasanow reinforced her original ruling and resentenced Gray to 40 years.
According to trial testimony, on March 3, 1974 Norman Stribbling, Gray’s husband at that
time, was found murdered. He died of a single gunshot wound to the right side of his head. Gray
was suspected in that murder and two witnesses testified that Gray had solicited them, on separate
occasions, to murder Norman Stribbling. Nevertheless, Gray was not convicted of his murder and
received $16,000 from Stribbling’s life insurance.
According to trial testimony, Gray married William Robert Gray in November, 1975 with
whom she had been having an affair for several years. Josephine and William Gray separated in
August of 1990. At the time, Josephine Gray was having an affair with Clarence Goode and a coworker.
Witnesses at trial testified that William Gray stated on numerous occasions that his
estranged wife was trying to kill him and that she had assaulted him. From August through October
1990, William Gray changed several of his life insurance policies to remove Josephine Gray as
beneficiary. On November 9, 1990, Mr. Gray was discovered shot to death in his apartment.
Josephine Gray’s co-worker boyfriend testified at trial that Gray admitted to being involved in the
murder. Despite being a suspect in this murder, Josephine Gray collected over $54,000 from Mr.
Gray’s life insurance policies.
From 1990 to 1996 Clarence Good and Josephine Gray lived together. In March, 1996
Goode applied for a $100,000 life insurance policy, naming Josephine Gray as the sole beneficiary.
On June 21, 1996 Goode’s body was discovered in the trunk of his car in Baltimore. He had been
shot in the head. A search warrant executed at Josephine Gray’s home several weeks after the
murder found a large stain on the concrete floor of the garage which tested positive for blood. Next
to the stain was a commercial vacuum cleaner and small amounts of possible blood was recovered
from inside. State charges were never brought against Gray and the insurance company paid Gray
$90,000. They paid Mr. Goode’s minor son the remaining $10,000.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Montgomery County Police Department and Baltimore City Police Department for their
investigative work performed in this case. Mr. Rosenstein also praised Assistant United States
Attorneys Sandra Wilkinson and James Trusty who prosecuted the case.