Ernest Scherer III

Ernest Scherer III is from the United States and resides in Los Angeles, California. He is a professional poker player. his live tournament career earnings total $313,880. In WSOP series events, he has accumulated 8 cashes for a total of $102,163, with three final table appearances but no bracelet or ring.

His best live result came from the 2006 WSOP Event #7: $3,000 Limit Hold'em, where he finished 8th for $34,362. Additionally, he placed runner-up in the 2006 WSOP Circuit Grand Casino Tunica $500 Omaha Hi-Lo event ($30,420) and finished 4th in another $500 Limit Hold'em event ($15,360). Other WSOP cash records include:

• 2007 WSOP Event #44: $2,000 Omaha Hi-Lo (18th, $7,775)
• 2007 WSOP Event #27: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em (142nd, $3,792)
• 2007 WSOP Event #9: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better (47th, $3,956)
• 2006 WSOP Event #22: $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em (80th, $4,311)
• 2006 WSOP Event #4: $1,500 Limit Hold'em (91st, $2,187)

Scherer ranks 5,205th in all-time earnings in the United States and 1,014th in California.

Around March 7, 2008, Scherer killed his parents at their home in the Castlewood Country Club in Pleasanton, California. His father, Ernest Scherer Jr. (60, a real estate investor), and mother, Charlene Abendroth (57, an accounting lecturer at California State University, East Bay), were beaten with a baseball bat and had their throats cut. The scene was staged to look like a robbery. Police found cash still in the home, ruling out theft as a motive.

Scherer was arrested in Las Vegas on February 23, 2009. On March 23, 2011, a jury found him guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, also finding special circumstances of financial gain and multiple murders. In May 2011, he was sentenced to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. Prosecutors noted that Scherer faced financial pressure from gambling debts, a loan for an $880,000 house purchase (of which $616,000 was owed to his parents), and an extravagant lifestyle (including multiple extramarital affairs). He killed his parents to inherit over $2 million.

Scherer appealed, but the California Court of Appeal upheld the conviction in 2013. In the appeal, his lawyers argued jury selection errors, improper admission of evidence regarding extramarital affairs, and prosecutorial misconduct, but all were rejected. Only one issue concerning a $10,000 fine was overturned. Scherer continues to serve his sentence without the possibility of parole.

• During the trial, Scherer did not plead guilty or apologize. Instead, he questioned the sufficiency of the evidence and revealed that a female juror had corresponded with him after the verdict.
• His aunt, Caroline Oesterle, described his lifestyle in court as "sick, selfish," while his sister Catherine stated that her parents' death made her "lose almost all of her living family."
• The case was widely reported in the media and became a rare violent crime example in the poker community, sparking discussions about player psychology and financial management.