Today in History: May 8, ‘Son of Sam’ killer pleads guilty

This day is Thursday May the th day of There are days left in the year In the current era in history On May David R Berkowitz pleaded guilty in a Brooklyn courtroom to murder attempted murder and assault in connection with the Son of Sam shootings that claimed six lives and terrified New Yorkers Berkowitz was sentenced to six consecutive life prison terms Also on this date In Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto reached the Mississippi River the first recorded European to do so Related Articles What to know about the air traffic controller shortage Federal Reserve leaves key rate unchanged flags a peril of higher prices and unemployment former Memphis officers acquitted in fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after he fled a traffic stop th US state now facing a measles outbreak Here s what to know Less farmland is going for organic crops as costs and other issues take root In U S forces led by Gen Zachary Taylor defeated Mexican forces near modern-day Brownsville Texas in the first major battle of the Mexican-American War In the first serving of Coca-Cola which contained cocaine was sold at a pharmacy in Atlanta Georgia The drink became fully cocaine-free in In President Harry S Truman informed in a radio address that Nazi Germany s forces had surrendered stating that the flags of freedom fly all over Europe on V-E Accomplishment in Europe Day In members of the American Indian Movement and the Oglala Lakota tribe who had occupied the South Dakota hamlet of Wounded Knee for weeks surrendered to federal officials In the Soviet Union revealed it would boycott the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles In U S unemployment surged to a level last seen when the country was in the throes of the Great Depression the regime released that more than million Americans had lost their jobs in April amid the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic Currently s Birthdays Biologist TV presenter David Attenborough is Poet Gary Snyder is Singer Toni Tennille is Pianist Keith Jarrett is Singer Philip Bailey Earth Wind and Fire is Rock musician Chris Frantz Talking Heads is Rock musician Alex Van Halen is Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Cowher is Football Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott is Filmmaker Michel Gondry is Actor Melissa Gilbert is Singer Enrique Iglesias is Musician Joe Bonamassa is Actor Domhnall Gleeson is