Henry Lee Lucas was an American criminal known for his confessions to numerous murders, many of which he later recanted. Born on August 23, 1936, in Virginia, he had a troubled childhood and became a drifter. In 1983, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, where he claimed to have killed hundreds of people. Lucas's confessions raised questions about their validity, as law enforcement officials found inconsistencies in his stories. His case highlighted issues in criminal justice, particularly regarding false confessions and the reliability of eyewitness testimony. He died in prison on March 12, 2001.