The Fourteen Year Old Who Saved Her Mother | Death of Johnny Stompanato

At 14-years-old Cheryl’s mother, actress Lana Turner, was in a domestic struggle when her daughter stabbed her lover to death to save her life, at least according to the court records.

In the spring of 1957, while filming her romantic comedy movie, The Lady Takes a Flyer, American actress Lana Turner began receiving phone calls and flowers delivered to her on set. The presents would become more lavish as the gifter began aggressively pursuing a relationship with Lana. The gifts were signed by a John Steele, an alasis of Johnny Stompanato, an ex-Marine and gangster known as the bodyguard and enforcer for Mickey Cohen; Lana would later claim to have no knowledge of the association to the Los Angeles underworld. Eventually, Stompanato won Lana over, and the two began to casually date.

The following months of their relationship were filled with abusive, often violent arguments. The physical abuse was inflicted on Lana by Stompanato, but after the fights, the couple would reconcile, usually through lavish gifts and vacations. Lana claimed that on one occasion, Stompanato drugged her and took pictures of her nude body while she was unconscious to use as blackmail against her.

In September 1957, Lana was filming Another Time, Another Place in London, when Stompanato disrupted the…