Gerald Eugene Stano, born Paul Zeininger, was a suspected American serial killer. Abandoned by his birth mother and deemed "unadoptable" at six months old due to severe neglect, he was eventually adopted by Norma Stano, a nurse, who renamed him. Despite a loving upbringing, Stano exhibited behavioral problems throughout his life, struggled academically, and engaged in compulsive lying and petty theft. He confessed to beginning his killing spree in his early 20s, though he claimed to have started earlier. Officially, he admitted to killing 41 women in Florida, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey between 1969 and 1980, though some believe the actual number may be much higher. His victims were primarily prostitutes, hitchhikers, and runaway teenagers, whom he lured into his car before killing them via stabbing, choking, or shooting. Stano's case is shrouded in controversy, as some believe he was a "serial confessor" who admitted to crimes he did not commit.

Stano was arrested in 1980 for assaulting a prostitute. During interrogation, he confessed to the murder of Mary Carol Maher, whose body had been found weeks earlier. He subsequently confessed to numerous other murders, leading investigators to believe he was responsible for a string of unsolved cases. However, a lack of physical evidence and concerns about coerced confessions cast doubt on many of Stano's admissions. His arresting officer, Detective James Gadberry, and other law enforcement officials claimed that the lead detective on the case, Paul Crow, had "spoon-fed" Stano details of unsolved homicides, which Stano then repeated in his confessions. Crow was later removed from office due to corruption allegations. Despite confessing to 41 murders, Stano was only ever tried for one: the murder of Cathy Lee Scharf. Even then, prosecutors relied on the questionable testimony of a jailhouse informant to secure a conviction. An FBI lab report, which surfaced after Stano's execution in 1998, indicated that he could not have been the source of pubic hairs found on Scharf's body, further raising questions about his guilt.