There is a new book titled "Sudden Terror." The book is about the unknown California serial killer known as The Original Night Stalker.

As you know, the Original Night Stalker had previously committed a series of rapes during the 1970s and was known as the East Area Rapist. He then committed at least six confirmed murders during the 1980s, the last of which was in May 1986. It wasn't until a number of years later when DNA testing proved that the East Area Rapist and the Original Night Stalker were one and the same. Most of his killings predated - and were similar to - those of the killings commited by "Night Stalker" Richard Ramierz. Hence the nickname "Original Night Stalker."

Also, as you probably remember, UM did a segment on the Original Night Stalker, which was originally broadcast in 2002. The segment, however, never specifically mentions the killer by that nickname.

Larry Crompton, the author of "Sudden Terror", was one of the detectives who investigated the East Area rapes in the '70s. He wrote the book in the hope that it will lead to a resolution to the serial murder case.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/08/prweb4220564.htm

I bought my copy after reading the oress release in the Sacramento Bee last Saturday. I'm about 100 pages away from being done (its 481 pages) and man oh man is there a lot of never-before-released info. There are some shocking revelations in there about how the EAr offended and the things he said and did.

Each chapter is a different rape/attack. The who, whats, whens, and wheres are recounted for each attack. Its most definitely written by a policeman as it has a policemans grim sense of humor throughout, and is obviously not the work of a professional writer. But so what really? The things that make him a good cop don't necessarily have to make him a sensitive person or a spectacular author.

So far whats really struck me is the lack of description of the events surrounding each attack, what the EA must have been doing ro how he got around the neighborhoods. It really goes a long way to illustrate just how there is no clue as to the guy is. None. They don't even have suspects. They haven't figured out whether he was a student (brought up), where he might have worked, if he'd done time (brought up), or have a sure idea of what he even looks like. Its crazy.

I bought my copy after reading the oress release in the Sacramento Bee last Saturday. I'm about 100 pages away from being done (its 481 pages) and man oh man is there a lot of never-before-released info. There are some shocking revelations in there about how the EAr offended and the things he said and did.

Each chapter is a different rape/attack. The who, whats, whens, and wheres are recounted for each attack. Its most definitely written by a policeman as it has a policemans grim sense of humor throughout, and is obviously not the work of a professional writer. But so what really? The things that make him a good cop don't necessarily have to make him a sensitive person or a spectacular author.

So far whats really struck me is the lack of description of the events surrounding each attack, what the EA must have been doing ro how he got around the neighborhoods. It really goes a long way to illustrate just how there is no clue as to the guy is. None. They don't even have suspects. They haven't figured out whether he was a student (brought up), where he might have worked, if he'd done time (brought up), or have a sure idea of what he even looks like. Its crazy.Sounds like it's worthwhile reading. I think it's eerie that this guy is still possibly in everyday society. He could be anyone's next door neighbor. It's amazing to think about the amount of people he terrorized, yet there's still no solid clue to who he is.

Sounds like it's worthwhile reading. I think it's eerie that this guy is still possibly in everyday society. He could be anyone's next door neighbor. It's amazing to think about the amount of people he terrorized, yet there's still no solid clue to who he is.

I am considering getting that book at some point. It didn't surprise me to learn that it contains information that was never released before, which means there is a lot of info that was unavailable to UM or any other show that has featured the case (i.e., Cold Case Files and E! THS Investigates).

I've given consideration to the possibility that there are certain aspects of the writing and publishing of this book done with the intention of perhaps coaxing EAR into bringing himself out. Similar to the way BTK was "challenged" and eventually nabbed.

Such things include but are not limited to:

This book is put out through a website for self-publishers. To buy the book you have to give your name, address, birth date, and credit card information. Maybe they're hopeful EAR gets curious?? They can check a list of purchasers against old interviewees/suspects formerly ruled out.
Almost every victim is quoted as remarking at how small and skinnyEAR's penis is (this is repeated ad nauseum throughout the book) and how he was unable to maintain an erection several times.
EAR apparently "sobbed" at various attacks, going into a corner to cry (convincingly to the victims), and repeat over and over "Mommy...mommy...I don't want to do this any more" or some varitation of that lament.**
There are several psych profiles which reference he is almost certainly afraid of his domineering mother and had zero assertive male presence in his formative years.
There's a brief anecdote of one woman who bought a .357, certain that EAR was going to hit her home. She sat on her kitchen floor every night...waiting. Sure enough one night her window slides open and a man in a ski mask starts noiselessly making his way inside. She fired off a shot, intentionally missing the intruder because she was afraid of getting in trouble. The masked intruder slinked back out the window slowly smelling like he **** his pants. Was this brief mention of a hertofor unknown story thrown in to potentiallly embarass EAR?


Kane, Zlatko, I highly recommend this book. If for no other reason than an in-depth look at such a bizarre series of crimes.


** one victim thinks he said "Bonnie". He ALWAYS spoke through clenched teeth and whispered so perhaps this was a misunderstanding. The whole "sobbing" (victims words) routine might be just one piece of an elaborate system of ruses, however. It bears mentioning that EAR apparently played games with the LE's by giving several bits of "disinformation" to his victims. He would brag about having a camp along the river, say he just moved from LA, talk about being kicked out of the armed forces, say he drove a van, etc. Several consistent, and several inconsistent, statements most likely left with the voctims to give LE's and lead them on a wild goose chase.

I've given consideration to the possibility that there are certain aspects of the writing and publishing of this book done with the intention of perhaps coaxing EAR into bringing himself out. Similar to the way BTK was "challenged" and eventually nabbed.

Such things include but are not limited to:

This book is put out through a website for self-publishers. To buy the book you have to give your name, address, birth date, and credit card information. Maybe they're hopeful EAR gets curious?? They can check a list of purchasers against old interviewees/suspects formerly ruled out.
Almost every victim is quoted as remarking at how small and skinnyEAR's penis is (this is repeated ad nauseum throughout the book) and how he was unable to maintain an erection several times.
EAR apparently "sobbed" at various attacks, going into a corner to cry (convincingly to the victims), and repeat over and over "Mommy...mommy...I don't want to do this any more" or some varitation of that lament.**
There are several psych profiles which reference he is almost certainly afraid of his domineering mother and had zero assertive male presence in his formative years.
There's a brief anecdote of one woman who bought a .357, certain that EAR was going to hit her home. She sat on her kitchen floor every night...waiting. Sure enough one night her window slides open and a man in a ski mask starts noiselessly making his way inside. She fired off a shot, intentionally missing the intruder because she was afraid of getting in trouble. The masked intruder slinked back out the window slowly smelling like he **** his pants. Was this brief mention of a hertofor unknown story thrown in to potentiallly embarass EAR?


Kane, Zlatko, I highly recommend this book. If for no other reason than an in-depth look at such a bizarre series of crimes.


** one victim thinks he said "Bonnie". He ALWAYS spoke through clenched teeth and whispered so perhaps this was a misunderstanding. The whole "sobbing" (victims words) routine might be just one piece of an elaborate system of ruses, however. It bears mentioning that EAR apparently played games with the LE's by giving several bits of "disinformation" to his victims. He would brag about having a camp along the river, say he just moved from LA, talk about being kicked out of the armed forces, say he drove a van, etc. Several consistent, and several inconsistent, statements most likely left with the voctims to give LE's and lead them on a wild goose chase.Thanks for the information, Corky. Wow, if the masked intruder was in fact the EAR, imagine all the people that have been spared if the woman had shot the guy. I don't think the author would lie about such an account.

I recall watching the E Special on the EAR. It mentioned that a woman claimed to have seen the EAR roaming around her neighbor's house but she was too afraid to call the cops. Corky, does the book mention anything about this account?

Kane, Zlatko, I highly recommend this book. If for no other reason than an in-depth look at such a bizarre series of crimes.

Not only do I intend to get Sudden Terror, but a few months ago I wrote to America's Most Wanted, suggesting they do a segment on the case.

A sincerely interesting case, but one that I doubt will ever be solved unless this guy gets popped for a lesser/unrelated charge and his DNA profile matches what they have.

I mean, he could be goaded out due to them challenging his manhood in the book etc, but honestly, I don't think he'd take the bait unless he was intellectually petty(which he possibly could be), but considering how long he's been free would lead one to believe that he probably isn't going to take the bait at something so obviously poking at the bushes.

I would love to study the geographic profile of his attacks, because I've been studying that in school last semester and really believe that that style of criminology offers some interesting insights.

I recently watched a doco on this lunatic and was shocked at the brutality of some of his crimes. Had I been living in these areas during his reign of terror I would have been absolutely petrified. :confused:

The problem is, all the so called 'composites' of this guy all look wildly different. The wild eyes, the normal looking guy, they are all different. My guess is, the EAR would be a guy, if you stood next to him in line at a supermarket, he would not act or look creepy at all. He in fact would be the guy you would least suspect of being a serial rapist and murderer. If he is still alive, my guess is he probably has not done state prison time, certainly not recently when DNA came into the picture and my guess is also while he acts one way with his victims, with people in his day to day life he acts very different. He either acts charismatic and charming or he at least does not make waves and might even come off as introspective and quiet, hence why no one that knew him ever suspected that he would have anything to do with this. BTK was the same way, a seemingly normal family man and church goer who was a good worker and good neighbor and didn't make waves and no one suspected him of having done his crimes until he outed himself.

My guess on the EAR is contrary to the common profile reports, I do NOT think this guy acted the way with people in his day to day life that he acted like with the victims. My guess is the EAR's family and friends saw a very different person than we see. The EAR obviously had/has a very dark side that his family and friends and day to day acquaintances knew nothing about and would not connect with him.

Also, I find Corky's theory interesting, that the book was written perhaps with the intention of getting the EAR if he still amongst us to want to try to do something that might without his knowledge, end up catching himself. However there are differences between EAR and BTK in this regard too. BTK had contacted the media back in the 70's and 80's albeit by letter whereas EAR to my knowledge never did this. Thus while EAR certainly followed the coverage of his crimes via the media he never felt a strong urge to actually contact them or interject himself in the investigation. The only reaching out I can tell EAR did was to contact his victims in the years sometimes decades after the attacks and rub their noses in it, in terms of what he did to them.

My guess on the EAR is contrary to the common profile reports, I do NOT think this guy acted the way with people in his day to day life that he acted like with the victims. My guess is the EAR's family and friends saw a very different person than we see. The EAR obviously had/has a very dark side that his family and friends and day to day acquaintances knew nothing about and would not connect with him.

I agree. I think the EAR/ONS lived a very compatmentalized life, as many violent criminals (and almost always intelligent ones) often do. And that is perhaps the main reason why he was never caught, as is unfortunately all too often the case.

Also, I find Corky's theory interesting, that the book was written perhaps with the intention of getting the EAR if he still amongst us to want to try to do something that might without his knowledge, end up catching himself. However there are differences between EAR and BTK in this regard too. BTK had contacted the media back in the 70's and 80's albeit by letter whereas EAR to my knowledge never did this. Thus while EAR certainly followed the coverage of his crimes via the media he never felt a strong urge to actually contact them or interject himself in the investigation. The only reaching out I can tell EAR did was to contact his victims in the years sometimes decades after the attacks and rub their noses in it, in terms of what he did to them.
Agreed on all accounts, but what he DID do was contact at least one of his victims after the crime. This leads me to think that he might try to contact the victims who revealed his...uh...inadequacies. I'm not sure if I would go so far as to say this is an irresponsible move on the author's part, but it's always a risk if he is still out there.

I would love to read this book, I'm just not sure if would be able to sleep at night! I might have to give it a try, though....

Agreed on all accounts, but what he DID do was contact at least one of his victims after the crime. This leads me to think that he might try to contact the victims who revealed his...uh...inadequacies. I'm not sure if I would go so far as to say this is an irresponsible move on the author's part, but it's always a risk if he is still out there.


A very good point, since he contacted the victim years after the attack. If he was keeping tabs on her, there's all likelihood that he was also keeping track of other victims (or their surviving family members).

I think there's a high possibility that this guy is still alive (he might not even have a criminal record, or one as a juvenile for burglary) and possibly has a family that has no idea of his crimes.

I recall watching the E Special on the EAR. It mentioned that a woman claimed to have seen the EAR roaming around her neighbor's house but she was too afraid to call the cops. Corky, does the book mention anything about this account?

@Zlatko: Sorry for not responding sooner, I didn't notice your question.

I haven't seen the E! "Behind the Rapist" Special about EAR so I'm not sure of the specific instance you mention was covered, however there is a an instance of a couple noticing a prowler in their neighbor's backyard, then lights on in their house, but they didn't call police and report the incident because they knew their neighbors were on vacation. I guess they figure no harm done since the couple wasn't there. The HELL?!? It wasn't common knowledge amongst the public at that time but EAR would commonly prowl around neighborhoods for weeks, often setting up houses before his attacks. He would break in and leave commonly locked garage and side doors unlocked, gambling that the family wouldn't check that nigth before going to bed and he'd have easy access. There's a story related in the book of a family finding strips of bindings left under a couch pillow and there was no reason they should be there. The police were contacted and hid in the house for the next few nights hoping to catch EAR coming back. H eneevr did.

Forgive me for repeating myself but I find it absolutely terrifying that LE has NO IDEA AT ALL WHO THE GUY IS!! They don't even know for sure what he looks like. They can't figure out why the guy would be able to patrol neighborhoods and commmit crimes during the hours, and with the regularity, he did. They have a few assumptions on the car he drove but there were so many conflicting accounts of "suspicious" cars in the neighborhoods that noone can say for sure what EAR was driving at any given time.

One complaint I have with the author is how he criticizes the public for not reporting prolwers or "suspicious activity" in the neighborhood. I know the above example was egregious and those folks should be criticized but Larry Crompton takes it a little too far with blaming the public for lethargy. Especially when he very often ridicules the reports that did come in. Also the public cannot be held responsible when some of the tales recounted in the book illustrating LEs bumbling are almost literally unbelievable. One example is an attack in Rancho Cordova upon a mother and her daughter, while the other daughter was sleeping in her room, that got out of EAR's control. The mother runs out the front door, with EAR right behind her, followed by the youngest daughter, as the next door nieghbor is out on his lawn yelling for the girls to come to his house and a woman across the street watches the whole thing. She sees the victims run right while EAR runs to her left. She thinks EAR is wearing shorts but realizes that he's naked from the waist down. He runs to the bushes on her side of the street and crouches behind them watching the victims go into the neighbor's house. He then stands up and casually walks away down the street. Police, who are 2 blocks away, arrive on the scene in 1 minute. The fail to find a half naked, ski masked & gloved man hiding in the neighborhood or trying to get into his car. They fail to find his pants anywhere in the house. Either he arrived naked from the waist down or he managed to hide them somewhere once the attack went awry.

I've said on other EAR websites (and those sites are doozies let me tell you...the people there are nucking futs), I don't think the EAR was compartmentalized in his day to day life because I don't think he's the type of offender who could be. He expressed such vitriolic hatred for his victims, women especially, that IMO he must have come off that same way with the people unfortunate enough to know him in his "regular life". I think family, schoolmates, tertiary firends, any girlfriends he might have had (although I agree with the profile consensus that he wouldn't be successful at keeping relationships) would all consider him a loner type with some very odd and strongly held opinions. Victim reports that he smelled, that he sometimes stuttered and spoke in a high pitched voice when excited, he spoke through clenched teeth, his complicated and recognizable m.o., and the things he said all lead me to believe that he couldn't ingratiate himself well into normal society.

I disagree with a lot of the above opinion. Largely because, well, define 'normal'. You ask 10 different people what the word 'normal' means to them and you will get 10 different answers. It is possible your opinion is right but the fact that you complete disregard the fact that he could have been a jekyll and hyde is what I feel law enforcement did and that is why they haven't found him.

But then again, look at Dennis Rader, BTK, he never was on law enforcement's radar screen either until he inadvertently ended up handing himself to them on a silver platter. Rader had his issues yes, but it was issues that his family did not know anything about. Rader did abuse animals as a child but his family was not aware he was doing that. He went to and graduated high school, served an honorable tour in the U.S. Air Force, and also graduated from community college and from Wichita State University. Rader held several jobs including one as an assembler, a husband and wife that were murdered by him worked for the same company but Rader was never viewed as a suspect or even interviewed in that case. He worked for ADT Home Security from 1974 until 1988 when he was fired and that is how he is believed to have learned how to beat home security systems. The reasons for his firing remain unclear.

Now in other regards Rader would have seemed a 'normal' member of society. He attended Church, was in leadership positions at his church, was a Cub Scout leader, served on several local government boards, as I said before, had held several jobs for lengthy periods of time, had been married for 34 years, had two children that he evidently had good relationships with.

Now of course like anyone that is like Rader, he did have his slip ups but it seems he was able to either because he was so smart or just through pure chance, the incidents where he slipped up did not appear to seriously affect him, in terms of his image. In his job as supervisor for the Park City Compliance Department, he had been reported once for killing a dog when it was deemed not necessary but the complaint went no where. He was also thought of by residents as going out of his way to write residents up and came off as overbearing. Rader had also had restraining orders filed against him, two in the 1980's and one in the 1990's. However it appears he was never prosecuted officially for the crimes, as at the time, stalking laws were much more lax. Rader, while he was in the Air Force, served at stations in Texas, Alabama, Japan, Turkey, Greece and South Korea but no murders in those areas that occurred while he was in the area have been attributed to him.

Anyway, sorry for the long thing on Rader, just that Rader, like EAR could be a person that has his slip ups but overall appears to be normal. It is possible, and Rader was never known to be a suspect or even on law enforcement's radar screen until 2005, so the same could be true of EAR who while I have no evidence but I believe that EAR also was probably in the U.S. Air Force.

Despite the common believe that serial killers and thus according to many people sociopaths cannot adjust to situations that deal with authority, this is not true. Dennis Rader did it in the Air Force during his time there from 1966 to 1970 and was discharged honorably. David Berkowitz aka Son of Sam served in the U.S. Army from 1971 to 1974 and also was honorably discharged. Jeffrey Dahmer served in the U.S. Army as well from 1978 to 1981. Dahmer was given only a general discharge as he was discharged largely due to his alcoholism. William Bonin 'the Freeway Killer' served in the U.S. Air Force from 1965 to 1968, serving in Vietnam as a tail gunner and winning decorations and was honorably discharged. Roy Norris who along with Lawrence Wittaker also terrorized southern California in the late 1970's, Norris served in the U.S. Navy from 1965 to 1969 and was honorably discharged. Charles Cullen the so called 'killer nurse' in New Jersey and Pennsylvania served in the U.S. Navy from 1978 to 1984 and was honorably discharged. Leonard Lake of the sick duo of Leonard Lake and Charles Ng, Lake served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1965 to 1971 including two tours of duty in Vietnam. Gary Ridgeway, the Green River Killer served in the U.S. Navy from 1967 to 1971. Arthur Shawcross served in the U.S. Army from 1965 to 1969 and was honorably discharged. Michael Swango served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1972 to 1980. Robert Yates served in the U.S. Army from 1976 to 1995.

I managed to get the book and I'm almost finished reading it. It's quite an interesting book. Here are some of my observations.

1. I really do think the EAR thrived during a time when the technology didn't connect communities. The nut job went from attacking people from Sacramento to Danville to So-Cal. People probably didn't know this guy was on the loose in distant communities. I'm sure if he tried to pull the things he was doing today, he'd likely be caught.

2. It intrigues me that the guy always managed to strike homes with either a woman alone or a couple. Never did he enter a home with just a male. One would infer that he was constantly looking into homes trying to see if there was a female present. I wonder if more people noticed this guy looking into their houses.

3. I think Corky mentioned this but it's been said that the EAR would start to talk about his mom during the times he was ransacking homes. He'd start saying "Mommy, please, I don't want to do it" and weird stuff like that. Also, he told one of the victims that people made fun of him and that something happened to his face. Either way, the EAR struck me as someone who had a massive chip on his shoulder. It makes me think that he'd have a hard time just blending into society.

Edit 4. I find it interesting how the EAR became more violent as the years went by. The murders he committed in Southern California were quite violent. Why did he stop? One might assume he would have continued his rampage since he was more violent by then.

A very good point, since he contacted the victim years after the attack. If he was keeping tabs on her, there's all likelihood that he was also keeping track of other victims (or their surviving family members).

I think there's a high possibility that this guy is still alive (he might not even have a criminal record, or one as a juvenile for burglary) and possibly has a family that has no idea of his crimes.This is the big question about the EAR. I have a feeling that something might have happened to him. (Died possibly?) From what I read about the EAR, he came off as a very emotionally disturbed person. It'd probably be difficult for him to act normal in society.

I wonder if anyone close to him possibly knew about his identity but didn't say anything to the authorities.

The fact that this monster is STILL on death row in California proves just how horribly ridiculous the criminal justice system is there. Of all the people who deserve to die, and to think he gets to sit in jail and flash female prison guards (which apparently he does quite often), get fan mail from very disturbed women, and even get married to an even more disturbed woman makes me sick. The scary part is that his "wife" even refuses to admit he's guilty on message boards. I don't know what is more disturbing: That this type of man exists, or that people are desperate enough to admire him. Arggghh.

Who are you talking about Matt? Richard Ramirez? Well to me, Ramirez is a guy really not worth wasting emotion on. The fact of the matter he is alive and it is what it is. He isn't going anywhere and yes California's system is a mess, if they had done away with the death penalty a long time ago, at least people wouldn't have all this hope that someone will be executed someday to satisfy some need for 'justice' that they won't feel even when the person is dead. Ramirez's appeal I believe is only before the U.S. District Court, so he will be alive at least another 5 years before his appeals run out. Basically everyone on California's death row is serving LWOP. Supposedly some guy sentenced to death in 1980, whose appeals ran out just this year, had a death warrant issued and will be executed September 29th but I would be shocked if it was actually allowed to happen. Out of the over 700 people on California's death row, only 9 or 10 of them are actually completely out of appeals.

The fact that this monster is STILL on death row in California proves just how horribly ridiculous the criminal justice system is there. Of all the people who deserve to die, and to think he gets to sit in jail and flash female prison guards (which apparently he does quite often), get fan mail from very disturbed women, and even get married to an even more disturbed woman makes me sick. The scary part is that his "wife" even refuses to admit he's guilty on message boards. I don't know what is more disturbing: That this type of man exists, or that people are desperate enough to admire him. Arggghh.

I don't blame you for your disgust, Mattc. Those "very disturbed women" are probably the kind of people who feel like they don't "fit in" anywhere, so they try to compensate for that by sending fan mail to murderous degenerates. At least, that's how I see it.

Hey, sorry Kadrmas.. I should have read the thread more thoroughly to know that the book was referring to another night stalker. I agree with you that he's not worth much emotional thought, but as Kane said, it's just really frustrating to continually see people like him (and other particularly heinous criminals) get so much positive attention from "fans." Really disturbing.

Well the thing is, as disturbing as it may be, those women have the Constitutional right to write to Ramirez and he has the right to respond to them via written communication and if they choose to meet him in person, that way too. I personally tend not to focus or really get all disgusted about certain groupies writing to a person that I do not really spend any emotional energy concentrating on. I have written many prisoners myself and still do although the difference between me and these groupies, is I was never writing to a prisoner for 'kicks' or because I felt that I needed some emotional attention or that I was a fan of a confessed killer. Rather I wrote and write to people I feel are actually innocent.

That said, the whole groupie thing is really very common in the more bigger names, Ramirez is hardly the only one. Charles Manson, Juan Carona, Doug Clark, Randy Craft, Charles Ng, Tommy Lynn Sells, Bobby Joe Long, David Gore, Kenneth Bianchi, Lawrence Bittaker, so many serial killers both on death row and doing life have similar followings, it is just the way it is. Manson and Carona are doing life in California, Clark, Craft, Ng, Bittaker and Ramirez among others are on death row in California, Sells is on death row in Texas, Long and Gore are on death row in Florida, Bianchi is doing life in Washington State while serving concurrent life sentences in California but he is officially doing his time in Washington State.

E! "Behind the Rapist" Special

Is it wrong that I cracked up over this? I'm pretty sure it's very very wrong.

Is it wrong that I cracked up over this? I'm pretty sure it's very very wrong.


lol...sorry. i didn't know the real name.

Well the thing is, as disturbing as it may be, those women have the Constitutional right to write to Ramirez and he has the right to respond to them via written communication and if they choose to meet him in person, that way too. I personally tend not to focus or really get all disgusted about certain groupies writing to a person that I do not really spend any emotional energy concentrating on. I have written many prisoners myself and still do although the difference between me and these groupies, is I was never writing to a prisoner for 'kicks' or because I felt that I needed some emotional attention or that I was a fan of a confessed killer. Rather I wrote and write to people I feel are actually innocent.

That said, the whole groupie thing is really very common in the more bigger names, Ramirez is hardly the only one. Charles Manson, Juan Carona, Doug Clark, Randy Craft, Charles Ng, Tommy Lynn Sells, Bobby Joe Long, David Gore, Kenneth Bianchi, Lawrence Bittaker, so many serial killers both on death row and doing life have similar followings, it is just the way it is. Manson and Carona are doing life in California, Clark, Craft, Ng, Bittaker and Ramirez among others are on death row in California, Sells is on death row in Texas, Long and Gore are on death row in Florida, Bianchi is doing life in Washington State while serving concurrent life sentences in California but he is officially doing his time in Washington State.

Yeah, I know what you mean. I have written to a couple of prisoners as well, not because I thought they were innocent, but b/c I was interested in their psychological profile. That being said, I don't think there is anything wrong with inmates getting and writing letters, but I really worry about them being turned into folk heroes and icons. As you know, I'm an attorney, and I see the grief that these victims' families feel, and the victims are often left out of the picture. I guess it is just a sick byproduct of human nature for people to be so intrigued by serial killers; intrigued is fine, but when they start to become heroes and their innocence is questioned, I really get pissed. You are very textbook about all of this, whereas I think I'm coming at the topic from an emotional standpoint. All I know is that if I were a victim's family member, and I saw that the killer of my loved one was getting "fan mail" from groupies, I'd be sick.

Well, I will say, if you want to blame anyone for them being turned into 'folk heroes' blame the media and also blame the cops who love to seek attention for these cases despite full well knowing it will also bring a lot of attention to the person they arrested. Yes I do know that newspaper, radio, tv, internet do have an obligation to report basic details and basic facts. But when they plaster these guys faces all over the newspapers with big pictures and big letter headlines or when they plaster their faces all over the television, yeah I would think it would glorify the prisoner and the prisoner is not even the one making them do it.

The reason I am textbook about the whole thing, is quite simple. It is because I am not a victim, I don't like thinking of myself as the victim of anything really. I was not victimized by any of these people nor do I know anyone who was. I do not blame people that were for being sickened by it or being mad about it. It is just something I do not get sickened or mad over. I feel like my emotional energy is better wasted on something than else than being ticked off because some guy I don't know, don't write, that really doesn't have any relevance to me other than me knowing who he is, receives letters from certain people who may be disturbed.

Clearly someone that worships or at least acts like they worship say Richard Ramirez or Charles Manson or people of this nature, yeah, let's say might be missing a few dots on their dominoes. It is very obvious that is the case if someone worships a person like Ramirez or Manson and it is sad and pathetic. But it is their lives and if their lives are that lacking to where they need to glorify such people, that is their choice to make.

Sure, we all know what pain victims go through. I am not speaking from experience or claiming to truly know what they go through but I imagine it would be the worst feeling and the worst experience and the worst time of anyone's life and in particular with murder or other violent crime, I am sure that feeling never goes away.

But I think folks need to remember, that defense attorneys are not the bad guys. I think there is a tendency in our society, especially these days to view defense attorney's as the bad guys and to view prosecutors and cops as the 'heroes' when truth be told, most prosecutors and most cops are just like most defense attorney's, it is not about doing justice or doing right, it is about winning cases. A lot of these prosecutors and cops really don't give a crap about the victims or their families anymore than the defense attorney does, the only difference is the defense attorney gets tarred and feathered for doing their job because they are 'not doing justice' yet the prosecutors and cops get rewarded even if they break their own laws in order to win or do other shady things. I guess that it is why it is hard for me to really have a whole lot of respect for either cops or prosecutors as a group as so many think of them as 'the good guys' and it just isn't true.

Well, I will say, if you want to blame anyone for them being turned into 'folk heroes' blame the media and also blame the cops who love to seek attention for these cases despite full well knowing it will also bring a lot of attention to the person they arrested. Yes I do know that newspaper, radio, tv, internet do have an obligation to report basic details and basic facts. But when they plaster these guys faces all over the newspapers with big pictures and big letter headlines or when they plaster their faces all over the television, yeah I would think it would glorify the prisoner and the prisoner is not even the one making them do it.

The reason I am textbook about the whole thing, is quite simple. It is because I am not a victim, I don't like thinking of myself as the victim of anything really. I was not victimized by any of these people nor do I know anyone who was. I do not blame people that were for being sickened by it or being mad about it. It is just something I do not get sickened or mad over. I feel like my emotional energy is better wasted on something than else than being ticked off because some guy I don't know, don't write, that really doesn't have any relevance to me other than me knowing who he is, receives letters from certain people who may be disturbed.

Clearly someone that worships or at least acts like they worship say Richard Ramirez or Charles Manson or people of this nature, yeah, let's say might be missing a few dots on their dominoes. It is very obvious that is the case if someone worships a person like Ramirez or Manson and it is sad and pathetic. But it is their lives and if their lives are that lacking to where they need to glorify such people, that is their choice to make.

Sure, we all know what pain victims go through. I am not speaking from experience or claiming to truly know what they go through but I imagine it would be the worst feeling and the worst experience and the worst time of anyone's life and in particular with murder or other violent crime, I am sure that feeling never goes away.

But I think folks need to remember, that defense attorneys are not the bad guys. I think there is a tendency in our society, especially these days to view defense attorney's as the bad guys and to view prosecutors and cops as the 'heroes' when truth be told, most prosecutors and most cops are just like most defense attorney's, it is not about doing justice or doing right, it is about winning cases. A lot of these prosecutors and cops really don't give a crap about the victims or their families anymore than the defense attorney does, the only difference is the defense attorney gets tarred and feathered for doing their job because they are 'not doing justice' yet the prosecutors and cops get rewarded even if they break their own laws in order to win or do other shady things. I guess that it is why it is hard for me to really have a whole lot of respect for either cops or prosecutors as a group as so many think of them as 'the good guys' and it just isn't true.

This. I am in full agreement with everything that's been said here. Thumbs up.

Also, "missing a few dots on their dominoes" is something I will definitely be incorporating into my personal vocabulary.

I just watched the E! special on EAR/ONS again, and had some questions for those of you who read the book. I still haven't read it myself...

It was mentioned upthread that the EAR/ONS didn't contact the media like BTK or Zodiac, but the E! special mentioned that he did send a poem to LE. Any mention of the poem/its contents in the book?

ETA: I found the poem (on Facebook, of all places). I still would like to know if the author talked about the poem or if there were any other attempts at contacting LE or the media.

Excitement's Crave

All those mortal's surviving birth
Upon facing maturity,
Take inventory of their worth
To prevailing society.

Choosing values becomes a task;
Oneself must seek satisfaction.
The selected route will unmask
Character when plans take action

Accepting some work to perform
At fixed pay, but promise for more,
Is a recognized social norm,
As is decorum, seeking lore.

Achieving while others lifting
Should be cause for deserving fame.
Leisure tempts excitement seeking,
What's right and expected seems tame.

"Jessie James" has been seen by all,
And "Son of Sam" has an author.
Others now feel temptations call.
Sacramento should make an offer.

To make a movie of my life
That will pay for my planned exile.
Just now I'd like to add the wife
Of a Mafia lord to my file.

Your East Area Rapist
And deserving pest
See you in the press or on T.V.

(Written to police (in Sacramento) by the
East Area Rapist / Original Night Stalker circa 1977)

nohwheregirl, I do believe the poem was in the book. However, Larry Crompton did not talk about it all that much. Really, most of the book seems like a giant chronology of the crimes committed by the EAR. Crompton doesn't go into specific details about the evidence; much to the detriment of the book IMO.

I have been obsessed with this case for years, since seeing the Cold Case Files episode. This guy is the single most prolific offender in American history, perhaps, yet he is largely unknown to the general public. Puzzling.

Something another poster mentioned about one of the rapes in (I think Contra Costa) where the police were literally 1 minute away and the mother realized EAR-ONS was naked from the waste down... but he was seemingly able to disappear into thin air. It makes me wonder, has anyone ever considered that EAR-ONS was a member of the law enforcement community?

@nowheregirl: the poem is printed in full and there's a brief mention of it, however its never been proven to come from the EAR/ONS. Whoever wrote it displays a highly intelligent and creative mind, imo.

@soundandvision: I agree that I wish the book could have been more than just a chronology of the attacks. The problem is I don't think there could be much more to say than that. I mean, there is no idea who this guy is. All this time and all the manpower later and law enforcement agencies have no clue who EAR/ONS IS/WAS. Noone has talked. To me thats the most astounding aspect. There has been no ex girlfriend or ex-wife, friend, neighbor, family member, cell mate, stool pigeon....NOBODY to come forward and give the guy up.

Also I don't want to seem like I'm complaining about what the book is, I am so glad Larry Crompton wrote it and I was very glad to learn new aspects of the crimes I hadn't known before. ((That sounds like an odd thing to be glad about but well...))


Something another poster mentioned about one of the rapes in (I think Contra Costa) where the police were literally 1 minute away and the mother realized EAR-ONS was naked from the waste down... but he was seemingly able to disappear into thin air. It makes me wonder, has anyone ever considered that EAR-ONS was a member of the law enforcement community?

That was in Rancho Cordova, the town EAR/ONS started in and the town I grew up in.

Amazing isn't it that he was able to flee buck naked from the waist down, the police pull up literally within minutes, and he still escapes arrest? Absotively posilutely amazing.


I have been obsessed with this case for years,


I have as well. Ever since I stumbled upon that very detailed website earons.com and saw photographs of street signs and houses I saw every day as a child. When I saw those photos I got the clicje "hair standing up on the back of my neck". It was just so creepy to think he had prowled the areas I played in. He had terrorized people I saw every day.

After finishing (devouring is a better term) the book in about 3 days I started talking to random people I met aeround town. People aged 50+. I have had lengthy discussion, mostly with women who were late teens/early twenties in the mid 70s, on the train, at the market, at the library, regarding that time here in Sacramento. Its fascinating to hear their stories. I've talked to a woman, who still lives in the same house near the Orangevale attack, and who's house is the proto-typical corner house with plenty of park/country cover, who saw him(?) staring into her sliding glass door/window while she and her husband lay in bed together. She saw a tightly drawn sweatshirt hood around a white face watching her. Staring straight into each others eyes they had locked contact for probably no longer than a quarter of a minute but she said it felt like forever. She said he silently moved back into the darkness as she started waking her husband. Said hubby went out into the backyard with his pistol but there was no trace. Their neighbor's dog, who barked at any and all visitors, didn't make a peep until her husband went into the yard.

I talked with a close family friend who lived on Aramon Dr. in Rancho Cordova, the last house on the street that had a rainwater ditch run along the back and large soccer field behind that. Again, these are EAR/ONS hallmarks. Some night around Christmas of 75 or 76 he was sleeping in his family's "rec room" and he woke up to see a hooded man walking through the unexpectedly opened sliding glass door, make a beeline for the fireplace where he lit several matches and rummaged through the presents under the tree. He said the intruder didn't once make a noise and had looked over several times at him: a frightened, wide-eyed, kid laying on the couch. He watched him go back out and go out the back fence gate.

There's a bunch more.

Its fascinating to hear their stories...
There's a bunch more...

Uh, Corky, THIS is why I will probably never be able to read the book. Your post scared the crap out of me! :eek:

Does anyone else find it amazing/disturbing that this detective had to SELF PUBLISH his book? There's no true crime writer out there willing to partner up with him? No major publishing house interested in this story? COME. ON.

C'mon Corky, what you said is a tease. :D Do you have any other interesting accounts of the EAR?

I've talked to a woman, who still lives in the same house near the Orangevale attack, and who's house is the proto-typical corner house with plenty of park/country cover, who saw him(?) staring into her sliding glass door/window while she and her husband lay in bed together. She saw a tightly drawn sweatshirt hood around a white face watching her. Staring straight into each others eyes they had locked contact for probably no longer than a quarter of a minute but she said it felt like forever. She said he silently moved back into the darkness as she started waking her husband. Said hubby went out into the backyard with his pistol but there was no trace. Their neighbor's dog, who barked at any and all visitors, didn't make a peep until her husband went into the yard.


Seeing the composite sketch on page one, I can absolutely understand why, that sketch is mesmerizingly frightening and it made me shiver down my spine just like in the good'ole days of watching UM on TV. :eek:

Really, there should have been a forward warning, because that's one composite I did not want to see.

C'mon Corky, what you said is a tease. :D Do you have any other interesting accounts of the EAR?

hahaha. did those creep you out? listening to those stories when they're told is amazing. you can see how these things have stuick with these people and they were the lucky ones!!

I do have some written and two recorded on video. I'm going to try to do a Google Earth thingey showing you the houses in the two stories above, forgive me if I fail at it. But I reall think it will help to illustrate how this offender was able to slip in and around Easteren Sac county so easily. I'm of the opinion the 1st canonical ear/ons attacks weren't his first. I'd like to compare the geography of Rancho Cordova, East Sac (city), Citrus Heights, & Orangevale with Los Gatos, Goleta, & the areas he hit in Contra Costa. See if the bike trails connecting the communities exist. See if tyhere's an extensive ditch and rainwater runoff system he could have traveled through. And see the layout of the neighborhood cul de sacs with open fields/playgrounds.

hahaha. did those creep you out? listening to those stories when they're told is amazing. you can see how these things have stuick with these people and they were the lucky ones!!

I do have some written and two recorded on video. I'm going to try to do a Google Earth thingey showing you the houses in the two stories above, forgive me if I fail at it. But I reall think it will help to illustrate how this offender was able to slip in and around Easteren Sac county so easily. I'm of the opinion the 1st canonical ear/ons attacks weren't his first. I'd like to compare the geography of Rancho Cordova, East Sac (city), Citrus Heights, & Orangevale with Los Gatos, Goleta, & the areas he hit in Contra Costa. See if the bike trails connecting the communities exist. See if tyhere's an extensive ditch and rainwater runoff system he could have traveled through. And see the layout of the neighborhood cul de sacs with open fields/playgrounds.Yeah, the account is pretty creepy. Do you plan uploading the two videos on youtube? I'd love to hear more about the locals' accounts.

As for what you said, I grew up in Contra Costa County (Orinda to be specific) and yes, I can imagine how the EAR could have gotten away with his crime. A lot of Contra Costa County is sprawling suburbs, this includes Danville. He could strike at random in any area and just hide. As I recall, parts of Sacramento are just like Contra Costa County. Nothing but sprawling suburbs.

It's eerie now that I think about; my parents never even heard of the EAR, yet they've lived in the Bay Area most of their lives. This just shows how the lack of information given from county to county.

Got the book for Xmas...about 60 pages in....

One quick question, the book casually mentions the EAS shot a teenager male, and thus the police knew he was capable of murder. There is no back story given to this and it is (so far) not touched on again.

Any more on this from anywhere?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visalia_ransacker

A long line of burglaries lead to a murfer and attempted kidnapping... Suspect never caught, but may have became EAR - ONS

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visalia_ransacker

A long line of burglaries lead to a murfer and attempted kidnapping... Suspect never caught, but may have became EAR - ONS

This case sounds very odd. I'm surprised that this guy could break into that number of homes (none of which apparently had alarm systems and/or dogs) and not be apprehended. I think that the police may have an idea w/ looking for people either in prison for hot prowl burglaries or rapes or looking prowlers that were killed by homeowners as being the fate of the EARS/ONS.

This case sounds very odd. I'm surprised that this guy could break into that number of homes (none of which apparently had alarm systems and/or dogs) and not be apprehended. I think that the police may have an idea w/ looking for people either in prison for hot prowl burglaries or rapes or looking prowlers that were killed by homeowners as being the fate of the EARS/ONS.

The only catch being he stopped in 81 (IIRC), Had one more credited to him in 86 and called a victim in 91 (IIRC) So if he got shot it may have not been til 91....or there were copycats

To answer my own question - The teen that the EAR shot heard him run into his Dad's "smoker" outside of their place, the kid gave chase and followed EAR over a fence where he was shot in the belly.

Now 200 pages in and the book is great! I have been experiencing legit heart skipping a beat moments. One case had a woman see a masked man walking/prowling while she is stopped at a intersection at like 2 am. She looks one way to check for traffic, when she turns back EAR is TAPPING ON HER CAR WINDOW WITH A KNIFE! She roared off and EAR gave chase briefly w/ a bike.

Another story had a EAR patrol stop a car right after a rape occured - the man had lube on his front seat and weapons in his trunk. They questioned him at length and never cleared him as a suspect.

Another story had a EAR patrol stop a car right after a rape occured - the man had lube on his front seat and weapons in his trunk. They questioned him at length and never cleared him as a suspect.

WOW. I can't imagine many people driving around late at night with that ensemble in their car. Sounds like our guy. I wonder if this suspect's dna has ever been compared to the known sample(s).

More freaky Stories...

EAR attacked a woman w/ a teen daughter - after tying her up he acted erratic as a group of teens were messing around outside on the street and the woman had back scar that EAR did not see while spying on her, after he raised her shirt he stared at her back for 3-4 mins, while pulling her waist band, finally after the mins passed, he snapped the elastic and never raped her. (The teens might be a different attack, it was either the teens outside or her daughter's alarm that bugged him combined)

Another attack had a babysitter get attacked, but the house phone rang (EAR had not cut the lines as he often did) after 2 sets of 10+ rings, he let the girl say "Hello" and hung up the phone - the phone rang AGAIN and he got flustered and took her outside, where minutes later her parents pulled into the yard and scared him off - he ran to a river and was seen running by a fisher woman.

Another sighting had EAR climbing out of a dumpster at 6:30 am outside a business woman's work.

The EAR did a lot of scouting - may have posed as a realator and a different charity, and wore costumes. A very frustrating book to read as every 3 or 4 pages another attack occurs and the cops relate how all these neighbors heard, saw and experienced wierd things in the weeks leading to the attacks and mostly reporting nothing to police. One couple heard him break into their neighbor's house, but since they knew the neighbor was vacationing in Europe, they did not call the police - IIRC the EAR attacked the family when they returned home.

More stuff:

EAR was actually caught at least once (I'm nearing the end of the book) he broke into a house and was ransacking it, and he got to the bedroom and the man awoke and watched him put his mask on while clutching shoe laces (his favorite binding tool... The man jumped out of bed and corned EAR screaming at him as his girlfriend ran downstairs (as they had practiced in event of an EAR attack) and called for help, instead of keeping EAR cornered the man ran off too and despite the woman and neighbors being outside no one saw EAR leave, but when the cops checked minutes later EAR was gone.

EAR didn't outright rape all of his victims, forwhatever reason he seemed to just kind of plunge his male protuberance into the girl and pull out almost right away sometimes.

One of the EAR's victim's ended up ENJOYING the rape as she was into kinky sex and she sounded more turned on than emotionally fractured by her attack when cops interviewed her.

One really strange suspect they cleared had a childhood of forced incest, and parents who wore ski caps and flashlights to scare there kids, and even bound the children for sexual purposes, so fitting the EAR's MO to a tee almost, but I believe blood cleared him.

More:

In most cases the EAR seemed uninterested in playing with the women's breasts, he would rape them and some got anal rape and licked the woman's privates, many were also forced to giving oral sex to EAR...Almost, if not all of the victim's were also forced to stroke his penis w/ bound hands behind their backs, one woman started stroking him before ordered and EAR seemed excited an actually played w/ her breasts after this.

There is a theory that the Goleta Murders are not EAR's doing, since in 2 of the murder's a big German shepard was involved at the crime scene, brought by the Perp. Also in at least 2 of the murder's the Perp lost control of the male and had a struggle before the murder. And in the 1st murder the MALE was anally raped and then castrated. All are not a part of EAR's MO...Some suspect that these were another perp attempted to emulate EAR in order to cover the crimes, and there is some evidence to suggest a mob involvement...this was not in the book, but from another website dealing with the EAR... I believe DNA links EAR to these murders...

The murder's were not reported to Larry Crompton and the EAR Task force as the local police did not want word getting out, since President Reagan owned a house in the area.

There is a theory that the Goleta Murders are not EAR's doing... in the 1st murder the MALE was anally raped and then castrated.

WHOA!!! Where did you hear this? Was this from the other websites?



All are not a part of EAR's MO...Some suspect that these were another perp attempted to emulate EAR in order to cover the crimes, and there is some evidence to suggest a mob involvement...this was not in the book, but from another website dealing with the EAR... I believe DNA links EAR to these murders...

I thought it was impossible to get DNA evdience from the Goleta crime scenes as all of that evidence has been destroyed.

I really am up in the air on the Goleta attacks. Enough is different in both the MO and signature of an offender who had a very unique combination of the two to give me pause for doubt. However, enough is similar in MO and signature (reportedly what the Goleta offender was saying to the couple that lived is quite similar to what EAR victims report hearing) that it can be noone else BUT him. I think looking at the time lime lines of the crimes is the a big clue. I just haven't made up my mind which way the clue points.






You know he'll never be identified don't you???

EAR didn't outright rape all of his victims, forwhatever reason he seemed to just kind of plunge his male protuberance into the girl and pull out almost right away sometimes.
I think we should all just be clear that this is still rape. He just didn't "finish."

WHOA!!! Where did you hear this? Was this from the other websites?

I thought it was impossible to get DNA evdience from the Goleta crime scenes as all of that evidence has been destroyed.

I really am up in the air on the Goleta attacks. Enough is different in both the MO and signature of an offender who had a very unique combination of the two to give me pause for doubt. However, enough is similar in MO and signature (reportedly what the Goleta offender was saying to the couple that lived is quite similar to what EAR victims report hearing) that it can be noone else BUT him. I think looking at the time lime lines of the crimes is the a big clue. I just haven't made up my mind which way the clue points.


You know he'll never be identified don't you???

DNA linked EAR to ONS as of 1998 IIRC

As of 2010 there is still at least one detective cross checking "person's of interest" based on a list of inmates, sex offender's etc, he started with 4000 names and is down to 100's. Det. Larry Crompton believes EAR to be on the list and thinks this Detective may find him yet.

The rape and castration of the male is from the book as Det Crompton says it confirmed his and others beliefs that EAR had homosexual tendencies...

Final book notes:

There was one final unconfirmed EAR attack in 1987 - the woman was attacked in bed by a perp with a log who fractured her skull but she lived...Nothing but the murder method and location links this to EAR.

In the 90's, the Sacramento Police threw away a lot of EAR notes and evidence - per their commanding officier's wishes. Larry Crompton personally saved a lot of it from the junk heap, including the only known (possible) hand print of EAR. When the Sacremento D.A. found out Det. Crompton took the files a few years later, he ordered them returned - Crompton did not comply, as everything but one sheet was a mere copy of the original.

The handprint is a photo copy and is nearly useless now in matching due to years of age and lack of ability to get a good copy made from it.

Det. Larry Pool who took charge of the EAR cold case in 98ish (and can be seen in E!'s EAR special, is actually the same cop who started the imfamous OJ white Bronco chase apparently after spotting OJ going to Nicole's grave site.

In the 90's, the Sacramento Police threw away a lot of EAR notes and evidence - per their commanding officier's wishes. Larry Crompton personally saved a lot of it from the junk heap, including the only known (possible) hand print of EAR. When the Sacremento D.A. found out Det. Crompton took the files a few years later, he ordered them returned - Crompton did not comply, as everything but one sheet was a mere copy of the original.

The handprint is a photo copy and is nearly useless now in matching due to years of age and lack of ability to get a good copy made from it.


Huh? Why?! As the case is still open and the investigation is still ongoing they would be exempt from scheduled destruction, but be preserved in police archives! There is no justification for destroying evidence and notes taken by previous investigators. :confused:

I just finished the book today, and I have to say it wasn't what I was hoping for. But I give Larry Crompton a lot of slack because he's a police officer and not a writer. (Except for this book, of course.) Anyway, I have several points to make.

First off, it's really disturbing to me that this guy has never been identified. I'm not saying that to slight the police, just to say that it freaks me out that he could still be out there somewhere. And why did he stop? From what I've read of this type of offender, it's highly unlikely he was able to just stop. Is he dead? In prison? Or is he still active?

Second, as to the woman who took a shot at him... well, hindsight is always 20/20, and I can talk smart because I've never been in a situation like that, but would any jury really have convicted her of a serious crime? Heck, even if she'd have been fined, I imagine the cops would've offered to pay it themselves.

Third, I was surprised that the book barely mentions the Maggiorie (sp?) homicide, while the website strongly suggests it was the work of EAR/ONS. At the same time, however, the book goes into detail about the teenager who was apparently shot by EAR/ONS, even though it's in the "Possibly Related" list. But I'm sure Crompton has his reasons.

As to whether EAR/ONS would seem "normal" in everyday life, that's a good question. On the one hand you'd have to think someone with that much anger towards women would stick out. On the other hand, how else do you explain that from all of the tips that came in, he was never identified except that he didn't appear so disturbed to people who knew him?

One other thing - I read on one website that EAR/ONS was believed to have been at one of the public forums about him, because a man stood up and ridiculed the other men there for letting their wives be raped in their own homes like that... and not long after, that same man's wife became one of the victims. There is no mention of this in the book, does anyone know if that's true?

One other thing - I read on one website that EAR/ONS was believed to have been at one of the public forums about him, because a man stood up and ridiculed the other men there for letting their wives be raped in their own homes like that... and not long after, that same man's wife became one of the victims. There is no mention of this in the book, does anyone know if that's true?

It was mentioned on E!'s special w/ Crompton for sure

Hey everybody,
Truecrimediary.com has an audio interview with the author/investigator Larry Crompton. (http://www.truecrimediary.com/index.cfm?page=podcast)

I have not read the book, but I thought it was a really interesting interview. She asked if he thought the crying and "mommy mommy!" stuff was real or a game, and he thought that it was a ruse: the EAR-ONS was totally in control and all of that stuff was planned.

He also talks about how once he targeted a victim, he compulsively followed through. He gave an example of how he targeted a victim at a particular house, got sidetracked and attacked a teenage girl who was babysitting at a house next door (she wouldn't normally be around), but then went back and attacked the original intended victim.

Crompton also said that he is "very very optimistic" that this case will be solved. Woah. Obviously, he knows some stuff about the current investigation that we don't, and he thinks that they are getting very close.

I sure hope they're on the verge of capturing him. It just bothers me that he's never been caught.

http://www4.picturepush.com/photo/a/6205612/img/Picture-Box/COMPilation.jpg

One case had a woman see a masked man walking/prowling while she is stopped at a intersection at like 2 am. She looks one way to check for traffic, when she turns back EAR is TAPPING ON HER CAR WINDOW WITH A KNIFE! She roared off and EAR gave chase briefly w/ a bike.



That just taught me a lesson about looking on here while procrastinating!!!! :eek: Tapping on the window is one thing but chasing her down on a bike?! Holy moly, I would have had a heart attack! These composites are also terrifying.

Thanks a lot for those composite sketches, Arnold OldSchool. I will have nightmares tonight. :(

It's amazing how different they all look. WHO THE HECK IS THIS GUY?

Ewww! :/ this guy is totally creepy!!! Nowheregirl I'm right there with you. :/ I got creeped out looking thru this thread.

They prolly look different because every witness sees things differently. hindsight and all that jazz.

Holy cow! That's some really in depth info I never heard while reading about EAR.

For those interested, the San Jose Mercury News has an article in regards to the EAR. One of the victims discusses her memories. She's certainly a strong person.

http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_18496431

For those interested, the San Jose Mercury News has an article in regards to the EAR. One of the victims discusses her memories. She's certainly a strong person.

http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_18496431

That you for the article. "Missy" sounds like an incredibly strong woman. Just 13 and having to endure something so brutal? I'm glad that she has a family now and had such strong community support.

I'm wondering a few things about EAR after reading this thread.
1) Could he possibly have been motivated by his small genital size to want such domination? Maybe someone mocked him and he got angry and wanted to punish women (then later, men).
2) He didn't use condoms (I presume) if they got all the DNA evidence. This may be a silly question, but anyone wondering about possible STDs he could have contracted/passed along after attacking so many people? I'm sure that would have been noted by investigators and they would have tried to sift through medical records of people in the area with said disease though.

That you for the article. "Missy" sounds like an incredibly strong woman. Just 13 and having to endure something so brutal? I'm glad that she has a family now and had such strong community support.

I'm wondering a few things about EAR after reading this thread.
1) Could he possibly have been motivated by his small genital size to want such domination? Maybe someone mocked him and he got angry and wanted to punish women (then later, men).
2) He didn't use condoms (I presume) if they got all the DNA evidence. This may be a silly question, but anyone wondering about possible STDs he could have contracted/passed along after attacking so many people? I'm sure that would have been noted by investigators and they would have tried to sift through medical records of people in the area with said disease though.
1 - Yes, there is a good chance that the EAR, well, suffered from a size complex. If my memory is correct, some investigators suggested that he was possibly mocked by girls in his youth for his small genitals. Perhaps he was about to get intimate with some girl and ended up being laughed at. Although, I've also heard some suggest that he suffered from 'mommy issues.' I do think he probably enjoyed showing his dominance to both female and male alike. By that, I mean he liked terrorizing the husband by raping the wife.

2- So far from all I've learned about the EAR, the subject of STDs hasn't come up. The investigators certainly should look into it.

As I do every so often, typically on weekends while watching the kids, I peruse the web looking for new info on EAR/ONS. This weekend I came across a rather interesting tidbit. It appears there is an independent film being made about the life (and death) of EAR/ONS last known victim, Janelle Cruz.

More information can be found here: Bird with a Broken Wing (http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/46588/two-teaser-trailers-bird-broken-wing)

The teaser trailer (showing actual home movies) really does humanize Ms. Cruz in a way that truly touched me. I'm not sure if this film will get any kind of film festival release or if it's straight to DVD or what. Hard to tell. {edit: it appears that the director is seeking financing}

Inspired by finding this bit of news, I went looking for something on the web (anything really) about the Janelle Cruz homicide. And found this (http://community.aetv.com/service/displayDiscussionThreads.kickAction?as=119137&w=278284&d=562865).

Perhaps the most compelling account I came across in the old forums was [allegedly] posted by the boyfriend of Janelle Cruz at the time of her death.

His post reported of an encounter with Janelle at a neighborhood pool approximately a week before death. He wrote of the presence of another man at the swimming pool whose gaze upon Janelle had a "sexually predatory" manner about it, and how the man offered to drop by her home to show her some kittens for the purpose of her possibly adopting them.

If this account is correct, the probability is good that the "kitten man" was EAR-ONS.

Now, it would seem that the filmmaker behind Bird With A Broken Wing had intimate access to the footage used for the teaser trailer. So perhaps he knows of the person that is behind the information from the above quote or would have access to her family and be able to deduce who was close to her and may have witnessed this incident.

Two things I have read in the last year that really piqued my interest back into this case:

1. A law enforcement official (I think from Contra Costa) said they were looking into the possibility of the common link to many of the early rapes was one of the local hospitals. That some of the victims had worked/stayed or knew of someone that worked/stayed there. Something like that, I probably don't have my facts 100% on that.

2. This tidbit about the man that was ogling Ms. Cruz by the pool in her neighborhood shortly before her murder.

This case is solvable. Now, whether or not EAR/ONS is dead or not, who knows. But, someone out there holds the key to this.

Last night, by accident, I found the UM segment on EAR/ONS on YouTube. I had tried looking for it in the past but no one had it uploaded with the name "Original Night Stalker", it's listed only as "Serial Rapist/Murderer." For the record, it had a recreation of the public meeting where the man criticized the husbands who didn't try to stop EAR/ONS.

Also one thing that caught my attention - they showed EAR/ONS walking on the second floor of a home on the outside, i.e. walking on the roof over a porch or deck. Did he actually do this? I thought he always got in through windows or doors at ground level.

Last night, by accident, I found the UM segment on EAR/ONS on YouTube. I had tried looking for it in the past but no one had it uploaded with the name "Original Night Stalker", it's listed only as "Serial Rapist/Murderer." For the record, it had a recreation of the public meeting where the man criticized the husbands who didn't try to stop EAR/ONS.

Also one thing that caught my attention - they showed EAR/ONS walking on the second floor of a home on the outside, i.e. walking on the roof over a porch or deck. Did he actually do this? I thought he always got in through windows or doors at ground level.

Thanks much for the tip that the UM segment has been upped to YT. I had *never* seen it and always wanted to. The Cold Case Files & THS Investigates episodes are absolutely chilling true crime, at its finest.

I've always found this case fascinating.

But one thing thats always puzzled me is that no crimes DNA wise have been linked to EAR after 1986. Guys like that usually don't stop. However, he was reported to have made threatening phone calls to women in the early
90's.

What I wonder is if EAR's DNA profile has ever been entered into the national database? Because this would be a way of finding out if he left California, if you could link other crimes to him in other parts of the country it might be a way of finding out if the crimes stopped because he moved.

I think its important that this guy is identified and if still alive caught, even though he has to be in his late 50's or early 60's.

I've always found this case fascinating.

But one thing thats always puzzled me is that no crimes DNA wise have been linked to EAR after 1986. Guys like that usually don't stop. However, he was reported to have made threatening phone calls to women in the early
90's.

I've heard that too and those reports are pretty credible since they came from previous victims. I'm not entirely sure but I think the audio recording used in the Cold Case Files episode is actually from such a call from the early 1990's.

What I wonder is if EAR's DNA profile has ever been entered into the national database? Because this would be a way of finding out if he left California, if you could link other crimes to him in other parts of the country it might be a way of finding out if the crimes stopped because he moved.

I obviously have no direct insight on this but I strongly assume that Larry Pool and the other authorities have made sure the DNA string is in CODIS. And it probably routinely gets re-run against the national database. Again, one would assume.


I think its important that this guy is identified and if still alive caught, even though he has to be in his late 50's or early 60's.

Absolutely. In 1976, he was described as between 19 and 28 years of age. For grins, let's assume (if he was also the Visalia Ransacker, and I think he was) that he started acting out around the age of 18 or 19 in 1974 as the VR, that would put his age closer to mid-50's. Relatively young still, by contemporary standards anyway.

The common thought for a long time seemed to be that he died after the murder of Ms. Cruz in 1986 or was in prison for a totally unrelated crime (a crime where DNA extraction wouldn't make sense, for authorities..burglary perhaps). However, when you think about it, his silence makes deafening sense, upon re-examination. Between 1981 and 1986 he was totally dormant, or so authorities think. Then in 1986 he murders Janelle Cruz and suddenly stops completely. The period of halting his activity between Domingo/Sanchez and then Cruz is the key. What happened in his life? Marriage? Kids? Was Cruz one last murder for old times sake; his perfection of what he wanted the crime to be?

Both Gary Ridgway (Green River Killer) and Dennis Radar (BTK Killer) ceased activity for a number of years before resuming their activities. Both men were married with children I believe. In Radar's case he couldn't help himself from reliving his crimes by taunting police. In the case of EAR/ONS, I wonder if perhaps the advances in science and more awareness of his crimes caused him to halt abruptly after 1986. With only the taunting calls from the early 90's to help relive the terror. These are all things that I think make sense, who knows if they are true or not.

What I believe in my core though is this. He's still out there in suburbia, living as a someone's next door neighbor. And I think this case will eventually be solved the more minute details are brought out with time. Or maybe a wife will stumble across her husbands secret stash of mementos from the crime scenes (a box of drivers licenses of women, something like that).

What I believe in my core though is this. He's still out there in suburbia, living as a someone's next door neighbor. And I think this case will eventually be solved the more minute details are brought out with time. Or maybe a wife will stumble across her husbands secret stash of mementos from the crime scenes (a box of drivers licenses of women, something like that).This is what makes the EAR creepy. No one really knows what happened to the guy. He could be deceased or possibly living in some isolated town in Northern California. The possibilities are endless. What I also wonder is if anyone close to him know his secrets. Possibly a wife, parents, or children.

It's eerie to think the guy could be one's run-of-the-mill neighbor as well. For some reason, I think he'd seem like a normal guy in person.

It physically creeps me out and makes me ill to think this guy is most likely still alive. is prolly someone's friend or neighbor. maybe married with kids. and no one would have any idea. :/ I mean could you guys imagine?? I hope someday this case is solved.

It physically creeps me out and makes me ill to think this guy is most likely still alive. is prolly someone's friend or neighbor. maybe married with kids. and no one would have any idea. :/ I mean could you guys imagine?? I hope someday this case is solved.

Interestingly, there is a theory that the EAR may have stopped because he was married and simply couldn't go out at night without being noticed anymore. This was bolstered by the fact that supposedly during one of his threatening phone calls a woman and children could be heard in the background.

Although I think thats a stretch that that alone proves he has one. He could have been in a public place at a phone booth, or even at a friends house.

Still its an interesting theory.

Still, whats so dangerous about this guy is that he clearly IMO had the mental capacity to change his MO. Several times during his reign from 1976-1986 he started doing things differently to throw off law enforcement.

For all we know, this guy could have been luring women into his home and killing them, or perhaps even hiding bodies of women he rapes and kills, hence no DNA surfacing. He might not have stopped killing, but may have merely stopped home invasions and started stalking women elsewhere. Its a scary thought for sure.

On the other hand, he may have mellowed out and become a born again Christian. Who knows? But either way, he definitely must be identified and caught, he has roamed way to long. If he is still alive that is.

With his attitude toward women, I have to wonder if he would be able to sustain a marriage, especially enough to respect his wife and stop. Then again, several of these serial killers have been found to be married.

With his attitude toward women, I have to wonder if he would be able to sustain a marriage,

I was thinking about this, and I think casual misogyny is so common that yeah, he could probably get away with it. I work in a DV shelter and I can assure you, the men who beat these women are generally pretty popular guys. I've seen women's own mothers side with the abuser. I've seen whole communities come together to hide the abuser so he can't get served with a restraining order. Think that town in Texas who called that 11 year old girl who got gang-raped a "slut" and cried police injustice when the rapists got arrested. I bet pretty much anyone can think of some really awful stuff men they know have done to or said about women, guys you may otherwise like. The sheer number of rape jokes or "just get her drunk" jokes many people make is staggering.

Thinking in my own life, I know a guy who heard his ex (a next door neighbor) getting beaten by her current boyfriend and told the story like it was a joke, a guy who thinks "ugly" women should be grateful for sexual harassment who also broke into his ex's apartment to steal back a present he bought her 8 months before they broke up, and a guy who held a female friend of mine against a wall because she turned him down for a date. I can think of plenty of other stuff, but it would turn into a novel. These guys all have friends, long-term relationships, etc. They're not piriahs or considered generally "bad," just guys who maybe get carried away, or were hurt by a woman and therefore bitter so it makes sense that they'd be that angry. Hell, just look at this thread - there is a ton of "He's probably raping ladies because some woman made fun of his wang when he was young," which is so ridiculous as to not be funny. I mean, obviously being mocked doesn't actually turn you into a serial rapist (even if it is a woman who does the mocking) but an actual cop is floating that theory.

Seeing this type of behavior makes people uncomfortable, yeah, but we're all pretty well socialized not to rock the boat and to give people the benefit of the doubt. Misogynists, racists, homophobes - they get away with a TON in day-to-day life when you think about it. So yeah, I have no doubt that his hatred of women won't prevent him from having friends and lovers, and I am positive that alone wouldn't inspire someone to suggest his name to the cops.

That's how our Society views things. "It's none of my business." "Just ignore it." augh... it's no wonder people end up getting murdered or in abusive relationships. :/ it makes me sick.

I was thinking about this, and I think casual misogyny is so common that yeah, he could probably get away with it. I work in a DV shelter and I can assure you, the men who beat these women are generally pretty popular guys. I've seen women's own mothers side with the abuser. I've seen whole communities come together to hide the abuser so he can't get served with a restraining order. Think that town in Texas who called that 11 year old girl who got gang-raped a "slut" and cried police injustice when the rapists got arrested. I bet pretty much anyone can think of some really awful stuff men they know have done to or said about women, guys you may otherwise like. The sheer number of rape jokes or "just get her drunk" jokes many people make is staggering.

Thinking in my own life, I know a guy who heard his ex (a next door neighbor) getting beaten by her current boyfriend and told the story like it was a joke, a guy who thinks "ugly" women should be grateful for sexual harassment who also broke into his ex's apartment to steal back a present he bought her 8 months before they broke up, and a guy who held a female friend of mine against a wall because she turned him down for a date. I can think of plenty of other stuff, but it would turn into a novel. These guys all have friends, long-term relationships, etc. They're not piriahs or considered generally "bad," just guys who maybe get carried away, or were hurt by a woman and therefore bitter so it makes sense that they'd be that angry. Hell, just look at this thread - there is a ton of "He's probably raping ladies because some woman made fun of his wang when he was young," which is so ridiculous as to not be funny. I mean, obviously being mocked doesn't actually turn you into a serial rapist (even if it is a woman who does the mocking) but an actual cop is floating that theory.

Seeing this type of behavior makes people uncomfortable, yeah, but we're all pretty well socialized not to rock the boat and to give people the benefit of the doubt. Misogynists, racists, homophobes - they get away with a TON in day-to-day life when you think about it. So yeah, I have no doubt that his hatred of women won't prevent him from having friends and lovers, and I am positive that alone wouldn't inspire someone to suggest his name to the cops.IMO, 'misogynist' doesn't even describe the East Area Rapist. He was a full blown woman hater to the extreme. The amount of women he raped is simply sickening. I have a hard time believing this nutjob could even ask a woman out on a date. Though, he's probably seems normal to his guy friends.

If he ever did have a girlfriend or wife, I would think they would take notice of his strange behavior towards women.

I agree with you NellieBlyArmy. I just want to clarify, though, that when I mentioned the theory that he may have started this behavior because of his small penis, I meant it seriously. I think being mocked by women (or even other men, such as in a locker room situation) perhaps caused a great seed of anger and rage, and the desire to hurt and be dominant. But I also believe this- if it is true- would not have been the only reason.

I just want to clarify, though, that when I mentioned the theory that he may have started this behavior because of his small penis, I meant it seriously. I think being mocked by women (or even other men, such as in a locker room situation) perhaps caused a great seed of anger and rage, and the desire to hurt and be dominant. But I also believe this- if it is true- would not have been the only reason.

For the record, your post didn't bug me. I was more squicked by Zlatko's description of some investigators' theory (not Zlatko personally) - that a specific girl laughed at him during a sexual encounter and that set him off. Sorry I wasn't all that clear about that.

That said, I do agree that he could have issues with his penis (it sounds pretty indisputable that it was small), and I appreciate you adding that it could've been a locker room situation. The idea that he was massively insecure about his worth as a man, attached that to penis size, and decided to use violence to feel better makes sense to me.

I didn't think about it until now but it's worth pointing out that penis size is much more of a male obsession. What I mean to say is I doubt penis size is a topic of discussion for women. Men, on the other hand, tend to obsess over it. So, it seems less likely that a woman would point out his inadequacy. Though, it could be possible.

I think it's worth exploring if EAR had mother issues or something. Maybe he had a domineering mother and a father who didn't care for him.

I posted this in another thread before seeing this one, but perhaps this is a more appropriate location:

So I was watching Dateline last Friday on the case of Gary Hilton. I noticed his piercing blue eyes at one point, and one of his older pictures showed pretty beefy thighs/legs for a shorter man like him. Any idea where Gary Hilton was in the 1970s and 1980s? Because he seems like a potential fit for the Original Night Stalker. The Dateline segment said he was 61, but spoke almost nothing of what Hilton was up to prior to working on a film circa 1995. The only reference they made was that Hilton was a conman who posed as raising funds for charities from 1973-1993 when he actually just pocketed any contributions he received.

I posted this in another thread before seeing this one, but perhaps this is a more appropriate location:

So I was watching Dateline last Friday on the case of Gary Hilton. I noticed his piercing blue eyes at one point, and one of his older pictures showed pretty beefy thighs/legs for a shorter man like him. Any idea where Gary Hilton was in the 1970s and 1980s? Because he seems like a potential fit for the Original Night Stalker. The Dateline segment said he was 61, but spoke almost nothing of what Hilton was up to prior to working on a film circa 1995. The only reference they made was that Hilton was a conman who posed as raising funds for charities from 1973-1993 when he actually just pocketed any contributions he received.

You may have to elaborate with a little more information to make a case for what makes you think its this guy. Con men are typically far different psychologically from serial killers and rapists.

I didn't think about it until now but it's worth pointing out that penis size is much more of a male obsession. What I mean to say is I doubt penis size is a topic of discussion for women. Men, on the other hand, tend to obsess over it. So, it seems less likely that a woman would point out his inadequacy. Though, it could be possible.

I think it's worth exploring if EAR had mother issues or something. Maybe he had a domineering mother and a father who didn't care for him.

I don't think its as prevalent, but there are very superficial women out there.

I was thinking about this, and I think casual misogyny is so common that yeah, he could probably get away with it. I work in a DV shelter and I can assure you, the men who beat these women are generally pretty popular guys. I've seen women's own mothers side with the abuser. I've seen whole communities come together to hide the abuser so he can't get served with a restraining order. Think that town in Texas who called that 11 year old girl who got gang-raped a "slut" and cried police injustice when the rapists got arrested. I bet pretty much anyone can think of some really awful stuff men they know have done to or said about women, guys you may otherwise like. The sheer number of rape jokes or "just get her drunk" jokes many people make is staggering.

Thinking in my own life, I know a guy who heard his ex (a next door neighbor) getting beaten by her current boyfriend and told the story like it was a joke, a guy who thinks "ugly" women should be grateful for sexual harassment who also broke into his ex's apartment to steal back a present he bought her 8 months before they broke up, and a guy who held a female friend of mine against a wall because she turned him down for a date. I can think of plenty of other stuff, but it would turn into a novel. These guys all have friends, long-term relationships, etc. They're not piriahs or considered generally "bad," just guys who maybe get carried away, or were hurt by a woman and therefore bitter so it makes sense that they'd be that angry. Hell, just look at this thread - there is a ton of "He's probably raping ladies because some woman made fun of his wang when he was young," which is so ridiculous as to not be funny. I mean, obviously being mocked doesn't actually turn you into a serial rapist (even if it is a woman who does the mocking) but an actual cop is floating that theory.

Seeing this type of behavior makes people uncomfortable, yeah, but we're all pretty well socialized not to rock the boat and to give people the benefit of the doubt. Misogynists, racists, homophobes - they get away with a TON in day-to-day life when you think about it. So yeah, I have no doubt that his hatred of women won't prevent him from having friends and lovers, and I am positive that alone wouldn't inspire someone to suggest his name to the cops.

Great post. Thank you. :clap :clap :clap :clap :clap

I didn't think about it until now but it's worth pointing out that penis size is much more of a male obsession. What I mean to say is I doubt penis size is a topic of discussion for women. Men, on the other hand, tend to obsess over it. So, it seems less likely that a woman would point out his inadequacy. Though, it could be possible.

I think it's worth exploring if EAR had mother issues or something. Maybe he had a domineering mother and a father who didn't care for him.

Women may talk about it a little amongst themselves, but I'd be afraid I would be beaten or killed if I ever criticized a man's "size" to his face. I'm not exaggerating here. I think men tend to forget how truly vulnerable women are. I think this an overly simplistic explanation.

Also, the "domineering mother" thing is considered passe...not really something experts take seriously anymore, although it kinda hangs around as a theory. It's been used to explain everything from serial killers to homosexuality. It's one of those things where psychologists in the 1950s and 60s tended to blame everything on the mother. Well, psychology is an evolving field, and they got a lot wrong back then. Another overly simplistic explanation.

That's how our Society views things. "It's none of my business." "Just ignore it." augh... it's no wonder people end up getting murdered or in abusive relationships. :/ it makes me sick.

I think you are generalizing a bit. Not everyone in our society views it that way.

But in defense of those who do, I think there are some things to keep in mind. Many times women who are victims of domestic violence often bring some of it on themselves, by refusing to go to the police themselves or even defending their partner's actions, or lying for them.

So reporting actions of domestic violence can sometimes be tricky. Cause you never really know how an abused female is going to treat the situation, its entirely possible if you do report such a thing the victim may turn on you in defense of their partner. As sickening as that is it does happen.

The important thing to remember is, there is help out there for abused women, but ultimately its up to them to seek it. Because for those who refuse and want to tolerate these scumbags in their life, there is really only so much you can do, unless they are caught in the act by law enforcement. You might report something, the wife may deny the whole thing then all of the sudden you and YOUR credibility are attacked.

Now rape on the other hand, there is absoloutely no excuse to ignore that. But you have to be careful to if you witness it and make sure what you are witnessing is rape and not some form of kinky sex, or that can get you in trouble as well. Because there is little way of distorting rape, an unwilling sexual partner is an unwilling sexual partner.

Women may talk about it a little amongst themselves, but I'd be afraid I would be beaten or killed if I ever criticized a man's "size" to his face. I'm not exaggerating here. I think men tend to forget how truly vulnerable women are. I think this an overly simplistic explanation.

Also, the "domineering mother" thing is considered passe...not really something experts take seriously anymore, although it kinda hangs around as a theory. It's been used to explain everything from serial killers to homosexuality. It's one of those things where psychologists in the 1950s and 60s tended to blame everything on the mother. Well, psychology is an evolving field, and they got a lot wrong back then. Another overly simplistic explanation.Well, if a woman really wanted to shatter a man's self image, making fun of his unit would be the easiest way to do so. Strange as it may sound, men are often conscious of that part of their body as women can be conscious about their looks. Like I said, a lot of men obsess over it. It's possible the EAR was made aware of his 'inadequacy' by males as well. Sexual domination over women possibly made him feel more masculine, as warped as it may sound.

I don't think we could rule out the idea he had a domineering mother. But it's also possible he was rejected all together by both parents. Regardless, I think the EAR had at least one parent who wasn't exactly loving towards him.

Oh, ok NellieBly, just wanted to be sure :)

I'm really sorry to hear of these things you've witnessed. It's sad that such behavior is so prevalent in our society. I haven't seen anything that extreme, but I've heard plenty of "just get her drunk" type of jokes that are NOT ok in my opinion. Or people who treat assault as something to make humor out of. Not cool.

So I do totally understand that this guy could be married and even if he is openly misogynistic in the ways you've described, hard to track down. It's just frightening to think about, but a very open possibility.

As a female I can't speak personally over phallic consciousness, but I understand the connection you're making to females being self-conscious about their looks, Zlatko. Sometimes parts of our bodies can make us ashamed or overly worried about others' opinions. If he was provoked by taunting, then it would be even more likely to lead to anger. If a woman taunted him or he was rejected by multiple women, perhaps that's why he decided to exercise force, a way to gain domination, and control. If any males taunted him, he certainly inflicted enough pain on men alone by torturing them with the plates trick and assaulting their wives and girlfriends. Maybe I'm going to far with the phallic angle, but I think he was definitely either taunted for that or simply rejected by others.

And I especially like the idea of parental issues being thrown out there. It seems very possible.

EAR-ONS took a three-toed dog (known as 'Woofy') with him to a few of the crime scenes.

A local hoodlum called Brett Glasby apparently also used 'Woofy' as a guard dog when he went to raid marijuana 'farms'.

One of EAR-ONS' victims was a Dr. Offerman.

Glasby was a patient of Offerman, and was convicted of a serious violent assault on Dr. Offerman's janitor.

Glasby was 'killed' in Mexico in 1982 (so couldn't have been EAR-ONS who was still murdering in 1986) although I would like to see Glasby's 'death' officially confirmed, as the circumstances surrounding it are somewhat mysterious...

I am fairly convinced that Glasby and EAR-ONS knew each other (or at least knew of each other) due to the 'Woofy' and Offerman links.

The three-toed dog lead (pardon the pun!) has IMHO never been fully examined.

There are other aspects of the crimes involving the dog which lead me to suspect that EAR-ONS possibly had family living in Goleta.

Found on a different forum

I think you are generalizing a bit. Not everyone in our society views it that way.

But in defense of those who do, I think there are some things to keep in mind. Many times women who are victims of domestic violence often bring some of it on themselves, by refusing to go to the police themselves or even defending their partner's actions, or lying for them.

So reporting actions of domestic violence can sometimes be tricky. Cause you never really know how an abused female is going to treat the situation, its entirely possible if you do report such a thing the victim may turn on you in defense of their partner. As sickening as that is it does happen.

The important thing to remember is, there is help out there for abused women, but ultimately its up to them to seek it.


Recently, I just learned this first hand and it was quite shocking to me. I started seeing a former coworker socially and found out half way through that she was still in a relationship with her abusive boyfriend. Not long after hearing this he beat her up. She told me and I just asked her is that is what she wanted. She said she didn't know. A few days later she justified the beating as being ok due to they were both blackout drunk. My heart sank right then and there because I knew 1, she would never leave him and 2, it would probably end up killing her and she was fine with that.

It's terrible to see these women get stuck in a fear cycle where they are too afraid to say anything or even women rationiszing that they on some level deserve it. It's sickening.

I think you are generalizing a bit. Not everyone in our society views it that way.

But in defense of those who do, I think there are some things to keep in mind. Many times women who are victims of domestic violence often bring some of it on themselves, by refusing to go to the police themselves or even defending their partner's actions, or lying for them.

So reporting actions of domestic violence can sometimes be tricky. Cause you never really know how an abused female is going to treat the situation, its entirely possible if you do report such a thing the victim may turn on you in defense of their partner. As sickening as that is it does happen.

The important thing to remember is, there is help out there for abused women, but ultimately its up to them to seek it. Because for those who refuse and want to tolerate these scumbags in their life, there is really only so much you can do, unless they are caught in the act by law enforcement. You might report something, the wife may deny the whole thing then all of the sudden you and YOUR credibility are attacked.

Now rape on the other hand, there is absoloutely no excuse to ignore that. But you have to be careful to if you witness it and make sure what you are witnessing is rape and not some form of kinky sex, or that can get you in trouble as well. Because there is little way of distorting rape, an unwilling sexual partner is an unwilling sexual partner.
OT but I think it's important to avoid any sort of victim blame. For outsiders, it's easy for anyone to say, "Oh, why doesn't she just call the authorities?" However, people in abusive relationships are often simply too frightened to go to the authorities. The abuser may have beaten them down, emotionally and physically, to the point that they feel helpless. The abuser may even threaten the victim's loved ones. (mother, father, etc.) I tend to think that the abusive lover feels the need for power over their victim.

It would not surprise me if the original night stalker was an abusive individual.

It's terrible to see these women get stuck in a fear cycle where they are too afraid to say anything or even women rationiszing that they on some level deserve it. It's sickening.

I think this is a great deal of it and something that's generally very difficult for many people to wrap their minds around. The self-esteem of every woman that endures this kind of abuse is nil. For some, the very concept of self is nil. It's diseased thinking. It takes a literal rewiring of the brain--breaking thought patterns, and in turn, breaking behavior patterns.

I'm angry and sad this is happening to someone you know. It should never, ever happen to anyone, ever.

OT but I think it's important to avoid any sort of victim blame. For outsiders, it's easy for anyone to say, "Oh, why doesn't she just call the authorities?" However, people in abusive relationships are often simply too frightened to go to the authorities. The abuser may have beaten them down, emotionally and physically, to the point that they feel helpless. The abuser may even threaten the victim's loved ones. (mother, father, etc.) I tend to think that the abusive lover feels the need for power over their victim.

Agreed. It's not a matter of hearing "I Will Survive" on the radio, having some sort of Hollywood-esque epiphany, and turning your car in the direction of the police station. It takes an enormous amount of psychological re-tooling and effort.

Also, this is the legitimately scariest thread I have seen on the board in a long time. I couldn't even read through it at night over the weekend.

I think this is a great deal of it and something that's generally very difficult for many people to wrap their minds around. The self-esteem of every woman that endures this kind of abuse is nil. For some, the very concept of self is nil. It's diseased thinking. It takes a literal rewiring of the brain--breaking thought patterns, and in turn, breaking behavior patterns.

I'm angry and sad this is happening to someone you know. It should never, ever happen to anyone, ever.



Agreed. It's not a matter of hearing "I Will Survive" on the radio, having some sort of Hollywood-esque epiphany, and turning your car in the direction of the police station. It takes an enormous amount of psychological re-tooling and effort.


It's very tough when you care for her on a higher emotional level. It's a shame, really.

It's very tough when you care for her on a higher emotional level. It's a shame, really.

I feel your pain. My advice is don't give up, keep showing her she can do better, maybe someday she will find the strength to get out of that situation.

Here I am, thousands of miles from the California where I used to live, and I will probably not sleep well tonight because I studied up more on this case. I found some interesting articles on the A&E forums and new theories. One of the murder victims in Southern California, Janelle Cruz, was just 18 years old and her family happened to be out of town just then. A male friend had been at her apartment before the murder and thought that he heard scratching noises, which Janelle dismissed as the washing machine being noisy. Unfortunately, that was more than likely the ONS himself, having watched her. Later, it was allegedly reported that a man had been seen looking at Janelle in a disturbing manner before her murder in a "sexually predatory" manner and had offered to let her look at some kittens to potentially adopt. There's a theory that this man was EARS/ONS himself. It seems he was definitely stalking her prior to the murder, as fit his MO, regardless of whether he was the "kitten man" or not. The posters here debate over it, but it's an interesting discussion. http://community.aetv.com/service/displayDiscussionThreads.kickAction?as=119137&w=278284&d=562865

Ok I have some theories that I want to throw out there after reading about these cases for a while. First off let me say these are just theories because I have an air force background. I have no other knowledge of the EAR/ONS other than what I've read online. I have not read that book.


I believe this person was in the US Air Force or the armed forces. The fact that he uttered being kicked out of the AF at one point(referenced in the book) was very eerie for me because his traits and the circumstances of the events seem to fit like a glove. This individual may have been in the US Air Force Reserve which would explain his ability to stay in the State of California over a long period of time. I think he was likely from Southern California or lived there permanently.

If you start at Travis AFB, the location he would have likely been stationed permanently or temporarily, it would explain the proximity to the Northern California cities where the EAR were committed. In fact if you connect the dots on a map they sort of make a circle.

Airmen are trained on paying attention to detail and being thorough. This person also seems to be very intelligent(another trait of most airmen enlisted or officer...although he is very sick and mentally unstable). it would explain a lot of the unstable behavior...yet ability to think things through and remain in control in most cases. The fact is that this person knew things that enabled him to remain free. He committed crimes in different jurisdictions. He seemed to follow or somehow know his victims on worked on their fears to keep them quiet or distract them from identifying him. I don't know the facts, but it almost seems as if he may have known the victims(more than just a peeping tom) and chose them before he committed the rapes. On the "Dark Minds" series the rape victim states that he told her that he saw her in her military uniform. Her husband was also working on a military base. What base? Travis? Travis AFB historically employs thousands of active duty, reservists, and civilians. Reservists can live far away from the base because they work part time. Active would tend to live on or near the base because they work full time. Either way he could have perhaps worked with some of these victims?

Being in the Air Force would have provided this person the shield that he needed to remain free of being a suspect. It also explains to me how thorough he was and how he was able to go from place to place without being recognized or known. Out of uniform most airmen fit the "middle to upper class profile" to a T. They ride bikes, they walk dogs, they go to the park, etc, etc, and they are very intelligent. They do all of the things that everyone else does. If he was a reservist that lived in Southern California he would have never been suspected by anyone of these crimes. In fact outside of being apprehended in the process of a crime, it would have been darn near impossible to be caught...which is what happened.

This just makes sense to me because he started in Northern California with rapes(close to the base and far from home). He progressed over the years to couples, then murders in Southern California as he got more comfortable(perhaps closer to where he lived permanently). He fit the air force physique to a T(swimmer's build).

There is also a cowerdly trait to this person. It's as if his crimes were him acting out in fantasy. Perhaps he did come from an abusive home. A lot of people focused on his mom being abusive, but what if his dad treated his mom like that in front of him for years? It may have been something that he fantasized about and could not do on his own in his personal life. Perhaps it all started with one victim and it just progressed from there.

The air force would have provided the cover. As he got older I believe that he got married and had kids which would explain the long break between 1981 and 1986 and then stopping from that point on. He may have simply realized that he was close to being caught and stopped. This person clearly was terrified of being caught and that fear propelled him to be so thorough with his actions. That fear could have led him to the realization that he had to stop as well. Interestingly the last victim was apparantly raped by someone that was in the military? I don't know if that is true or not....

From there I'm wondering if this person had law enforcment training in the air force due to the way he apprehended his victims.


Sorry for the long winded comments, but I feel like this is very possible.

Despite the common believe that serial killers and thus according to many people sociopaths cannot adjust to situations that deal with authority, this is not true. Dennis Rader did it in the Air Force during his time there from 1966 to 1970 and was discharged honorably. David Berkowitz aka Son of Sam served in the U.S. Army from 1971 to 1974 and also was honorably discharged. Jeffrey Dahmer served in the U.S. Army as well from 1978 to 1981. Dahmer was given only a general discharge as he was discharged largely due to his alcoholism. William Bonin 'the Freeway Killer' served in the U.S. Air Force from 1965 to 1968, serving in Vietnam as a tail gunner and winning decorations and was honorably discharged. Roy Norris who along with Lawrence Wittaker also terrorized southern California in the late 1970's, Norris served in the U.S. Navy from 1965 to 1969 and was honorably discharged. Charles Cullen the so called 'killer nurse' in New Jersey and Pennsylvania served in the U.S. Navy from 1978 to 1984 and was honorably discharged. Leonard Lake of the sick duo of Leonard Lake and Charles Ng, Lake served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1965 to 1971 including two tours of duty in Vietnam. Gary Ridgeway, the Green River Killer served in the U.S. Navy from 1967 to 1971. Arthur Shawcross served in the U.S. Army from 1965 to 1969 and was honorably discharged. Michael Swango served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1972 to 1980. Robert Yates served in the U.S. Army from 1976 to 1995.
that is a great post. The military provides the stability that so many people long for. These serial killers do not represent 99.9 percent of the military who are all great people. Unfortunatley there is a disconnect with the military and american society. Military members are simply a reflection of american society. they come from all different backgrounds, education levels, socio-economic, religion, etc. I think many people from all backgrounds tend to flock to the military because they desire to make something of their lives, but their issues from the past or their desires to do something out of the ordinary never go away. Out of the ordinary in most cases is good, but for the small crazies like these guys above out of the ordinary was really bad. Also many troops that see fierce combat(that aren't cut out for it) struggle to deal with it when they move on in their lives. This was especially difficult for the Vietnam Vet that probably dealt with the worst combat trauma and never received the recognition that they deserved. Many of the vietnam vets simply moved on with their lives and became great citizens and bottled up their emotions. But a few of them continued to kill people (like possibly the New England Serial Killer)and it gave everyone a bad rap.

Today's military is very different than the old days. If EAR/ONS was in the military like I think he was...there would be no way he could get away with that type of crime now. They do DNA extractions on all members today. This was not something that would have been done back then. Also today's military(especially air force) does a lot more screening on anyone who serves. Sadly most american youth do not qualify for the Air Force/and other branches out of high school because they are so strict on the type of applicant that they want.

I just finished watching E's version of this case and am about to watch Investigation Discovery's version. The E special had so much more information that I wasn't aware of before.

I have to say that the police work in this case is fantastic, and I'm not being sarcastic. They really put out so many efforts trying to nail this guy, including nighttime stakeouts and phone-tapping and he STILL has managed to evade detection. It bothers me so much that he hasn't been caught and we can only hope he really has not attacked since 1986. I think something happened to him and that if he's not incarcerated, he's dead or unable to commit crimes of this caliber any longer. I just don't believe someone who committed so many assaults then whose rage escalated to extremely brutal bludgeoning murders would stop unless he was forced to. The E special noted that his bludgeoning murders were so violent that the victims literally could not be recognized. I wonder if something happened in EAR's personal life that made him shift from being sadistic and slowly staying in homes but not killing to actually beating and killing his victims in a rage? I have to wonder what would cause that change. We also have to take into account the double homicide by gunfire he did up in Northern California, which doesn't fit the MO of any of his other crimes.

Just have to say that the death of the more well-known Night Stalker, Richard Ramirez, has me wondering if the ONS is still alive out there somewhere or if he too is dead. Will we ever know?

I just finished watching E's version of this case and am about to watch Investigation Discovery's version. The E special had so much more information that I wasn't aware of before.

I have to say that the police work in this case is fantastic, and I'm not being sarcastic. They really put out so many efforts trying to nail this guy, including nighttime stakeouts and phone-tapping and he STILL has managed to evade detection. It bothers me so much that he hasn't been caught and we can only hope he really has not attacked since 1986. I think something happened to him and that if he's not incarcerated, he's dead or unable to commit crimes of this caliber any longer. I just don't believe someone who committed so many assaults then whose rage escalated to extremely brutal bludgeoning murders would stop unless he was forced to. The E special noted that his bludgeoning murders were so violent that the victims literally could not be recognized. I wonder if something happened in EAR's personal life that made him shift from being sadistic and slowly staying in homes but not killing to actually beating and killing his victims in a rage? I have to wonder what would cause that change. We also have to take into account the double homicide by gunfire he did up in Northern California, which doesn't fit the MO of any of his other crimes.

I just watched the e special as well. I had no idea that he killed an Air Force cop and his significant other.

Bump!

It's a very unsettling thought that EAR/ONS could still be out there. If he continued offending after his last known murder, he may have changed him MO, particularly due to the advance in DNA technology.

I personally feel (and hope!) that something happened to him and he became unable to keep offending. I believe he is either dead or incarcerated (since DNA being extracted from felons in California is not compulsory). I hope one day there will be answers revealing his identity, mainly for the sake of his 50+ rape victims and the families and friends of the people he murdered.

I amend my earlier view that he was unlikely to be married/ a family man. As we all know, Dennis Rader (BTK) and Gary Ridgeway (The Green River Killer) were both married and able to kill many times without their spouses realizing what they were doing.

[QUOTE= her. Later, it was allegedly reported that a man had been seen looking at Janelle in a disturbing manner before her murder in a "sexually predatory" manner and had offered to let her look at some kittens to potentially adopt. There's a theory that this man was EARS/ONS himself. [/QUOTE]

I have had more than a few spooky nights reading up on this case too late at night. Every noise outside alerts you.

But there is a lot of flotsam in it. For example, the poster who related the "kitten man" story (which he originally posted on the anniversary of the murder) proved to be as a minimum unreliable. He claimed the police had never interviewed him but the lead police investigator did in fact interview him two days after the murder (I talked to him on the phone and he quoted from the transcript of the interview) and the kitten man was not mentioned.

Do people remember better after two days or 20 years? {The guy later also said his father was a murderer who was never caught!]

Things such as this are why message boards will never replace good police work.
In this case the killer has managed to ensure that his DNA has not been tagged with his name on it. This pretty much precludes more recent rapes (and probably murders as well as he could not guarantee he wouldn't somehow leave DNA at a murder) after 1986. I think the killer, at least in his mature form, tried hard to ensure his crimes were not linked because they gave a trail of places he had lived or worked. That's why I think the two Irvine murders were singles not couples. Even though they were only several blocks apart (although several years apart in time), the crimes were not linked until done so by DNA. That area had had a bunch of murders called the "Bedroom Basher" crimes right before (one guy was imprisoned wrongly for one of those crimes-- I think that was on UM). The real basher wasn't caught until the 90s (he was a convict and formerly a Marine stationed at Tustin).

However, the unsolved case resulted in a law in California (after a convict who wasn't a good suspect in the case but was from Irvine had refused) that directs the taking of DNA from all convicts. The targetted convict who would have been 15 years old during the earlierst crimes, did not match.
But since that law was enacted, numerous unsolveds have been solved, including several from UM. The most famous one was the case where a couple were murdered in northern VA and then later a woman (think her name was Veronica Jefferson) kidnapped from a popular supermarket (a cop saw her in her car at a light with the kidnapper) at Bailey's Crossroads in VA. The DNA matched for the two crimes but a few years ago it also was matched with a murderer in prison in CA. The killer was never a suspect.

I just watched the e special as well. I had no idea that he killed an Air Force cop and his significant other.

the Air Force murders happened near the rapes but there has never been a proven connection. the two victims were chased through several back yards so the killer really wanted to kill them.

A ton of documents about this case can be found online, although not updated for several years. Google "Bedroom Killer"

I would only conject that the EAR was in the military because the earliest crimes were committed right outside the gate of Mather AFB near Sacramento. Otherwise I'd think a person such as the EAR would probably not survive very long in the military in most cases and did not otherwise display any particular military knowledge.

There was a drug ring on Mather at the time, eventually resulting in a bunch of arrests. it was in the MP unit on the post, the same unit in which the airman who was murdered with his wife on a Rancho Cordova street belonged. Whether these murders and the EAR crimes were linked to the ring has never been proven. One would presume that would have been a lead the police would have pursued.

several new books on this case have recently been released:

Hunting a Psycopath by Richard Shelby, one of the EAr investigators,
and
Hot Prowl by Jack Gray

both have e-books

>>>If you start at Travis AFB, the location he would have likely been stationed permanently or temporarily, it would explain the proximity to the Northern California cities where the EAR were committed. <<<

The earliest crimes were committed right outside the gate of Mather AFB in Rancho Cordova. If the rapist were an airman, much more likely he was stationed there. Could also have been a dependent of some sort.

I posted this in another thread before seeing this one, but perhaps this is a more appropriate location:

So I was watching Dateline last Friday on the case of Gary Hilton. I noticed his piercing blue eyes at one point, and one of his older pictures showed pretty beefy thighs/legs for a shorter man like him. Any idea where Gary Hilton was in the 1970s and 1980s? Because he seems like a potential fit for the Original Night Stalker. The Dateline segment said he was 61, but spoke almost nothing of what Hilton was up to prior to working on a film circa 1995. The only reference they made was that Hilton was a conman who posed as raising funds for charities from 1973-1993 when he actually just pocketed any contributions he received.


Funny the connections people make on this case...One person thought Steve Sax, the 1980s baseball player, was the killer. He was from Sacramento and played for the Dodgers for a few years. And the person knew his ex who talked bad about him (as most exes do). However, all other considerations aside, he was playing in the minor leagues in South Carolina during at least some of the crimes.

As for Hilton, they must have his DNA, which, in this case, is the great equalizer as to a match. A guy who killed three women in Tampa Bay in 1989 and was executed by FL a few years ago was just matched by DNA with a 1990 murder so as DNA techniques improve, even dead guys can be discovered guilty of additional crimes.

>>Yes, there is a good chance that the EAR, well, suffered from a size complex. If my memory is correct, some investigators suggested that he was possibly mocked by girls in his youth for his small genitals.<<<

there is no evidence of this one way or another. I think one of the Sac cops did try to bait the rapist by saying such a comment in an interview. It did not work, obviously.

Huh? Why?! As the case is still open and the investigation is still ongoing they would be exempt from scheduled destruction, but be preserved in police archives! There is no justification for destroying evidence and notes taken by previous investigators. :confused:

Statute of Limitations on the rapes is why they probably destroyed the evidence. No statute on murder. If they ever caught him the DNA match would be enough alone to get a conviction.

I read this book several years ago. A few aspects stand out. One, the author was heavily connected to the early years in Sacramento so there are tons of details regarding those rapes.

In one case, a lady waited seated in the dark in her kitchen, worried she would be targeted. Indeed, she saw someone entering through a small sliding window. She hesitated, afraid that she might be charged with a crime if she killed the intruder. So she intentionally altered her aim, narrowly missing him. It startled the guy but did not injure him, at least not seriously. He fled and escaped. The author either quoted someone, or said himself, that far from being charged the lady would have been honored with a parade if she'd killed EAR-ONS.

The murders are treated in significantly less detail.

IMO, by far the most valuable and astute segment of the book was somewhere in midstream, a psychological profile. The conclusion was that the highlight for EAR by far was the preparation, not the acts themselves. That's why he sometimes almost seemed to get bored during the crimes, not always taking it as far as the victims expected. It varied quite a bit. Then he would wander around and stay on the premises because he had planned and anticipated that aspect also, while scoping the house and often breaking in beforehand. He looked forward to the escape because that route had already been scoped.

I stopped and read those pages far more than any others. It rang true to me because I have experienced the same dynamic among gamblers in Las Vegas. The conventional wisdom is that gamblers can't stop. Baloney. I've seen countless ones stop, guys whose entire lives revolved around it. But the common denominator is they wanted to remain involved in the preparation, even if they no longer were actually trading money over the counter.

About 10 years ago I had one older lifelong gambler ask if he could make the daily rounds with me, the same type of thing he did in his heyday when he relentlessly walked the Strip, looking for the best numbers. I agreed, since I knew him a little bit and my friend really admired him, gaining some knowledge that he had passed on to me. Anyway, this old guy carried every type of sheet and related paperwork, writing down all the numbers and telling me what he prioritized as a bettor. He no longer could move around very fast so I had to make concessions. Slowed down my routine. Still, it wasn't much of a bother until the guy started asking me to change my preferred route and switch to the one he had used. No thank you. I initially altered it a bit, but once he demanded a complete change I had to put my foot down and part ways. This lasted maybe 3 weeks.

At the end of the afternoon that guy would plop in a sportsbook chair at the Hilton and root in his "mind" bets, never actually investing his monthly stipends that he now depended on exclusively. But he knew what all the best numbers were on his games, and when they came through he still exulted. I still see that guy from time to time when I'm in town. We have patched our friendship after the awkward departure of a decade ago.

When I read Sudden Terror and the psychological profile I immediately thought of that old gambler, and how he still loved the preparation but didn't really care that he wasn't experiencing the full exhausting and risky aspects. That could easily be the case with EAR and other infamous criminals. I'm convinced that much of the conventional wisdom ("can't stop") is in its infancy and largely garbage.

BTW, jjmcgr is easily recognizable as a long time researcher on this case. I remember him from the related A&E forum and his own site. Tons of time invested, with materials discovered and provided. Much appreciated. I didn't always agree with everything, like the EAR A and EAR B theory, but that's par for the course regarding true crime. Everybody has their own angles.

yes I recognize you Awsi. Thanks for the comments. I got too busy to spend a lot of time on this case and a lot of the stuff on boards was either repetitious (which is why I made a website with all the info on it) or had become cliquey or otherwise wheel spinning. there is a new board I noticed that has a lot of posts to it because some woman has written articles about the case under the new name Golden State Killer (she must hate the confusing "Original" Night Stalker name as much as I do).

I still think that if the police were connecting the EAR crimes only by MO then there were probably two main offenders, one real sloppy, the other much more efficient (and a later murderer).
The context of crimes is often ignored when we look at them later on. In the mid 70s Sac had the highest rape rate in its history.

The reason I think there were two is that you would expect the rapist to improve his performance of his crimes as he gained more experience but a review of the crimes in the official canon shows they often alternated between competence (ie complete control of the situation) and borderline incompetence (such as attacks in driveways, a lack of awareness of who was in the home ahead of time). In fact the last attack in Sacramento was perhaps the worst performance by the rapist. He attacked a babysitter whose parents were rushing to her and even dragged her outside.

You and apparently Crompton view preparation as a quality of the EAR. But in about half the attacks, there seems to have been little or no preparation
marked by attacks on people who were not normally home at the time or even lived there, or the attacker did not bring a weapon (in one case used an ax from the garage), didn't know a man didn't live at the home (initiated attack when he tried to leave as he really wanted to attack a couple because the cops said he couldn't)
(the sloppy and neat crimes are outlined here: https://sites.google.com/site/jjmcgr/WildEARAttacks.doc)

Supporting this theory is the fact that the Irvine killer seems to have attacked single women instead of couples to get his crimes blamed on the Bedroom Basher, a previous series of unsolveds in the same area which have since been solved. So if he would copycat then, maybe he did before in Sacramento-- copying the sloppy rapist. Only the two of them would know what was happening (recently that was the plot of a cop show) with efficient waiting for sloppy to do something before he would. When sloppy stopped, efficient went to Modesto...

Anyway without all that the police know we can only have guessy theories at best. But I think such things are worthy of discussion for insight reasons alone. Maybe the offender was on drugs every other attack (but I'd have expected if so he'd have been caught for something and his DNA tagged). And then he got off the drugs in Orange County.

I also think all the EAR sightings and claims of extensive casing of future crime scenes simply cannot be true because with the community and cops alerted if it were true the offender would have been caught. He was not supernatural like Big Foot.

I didn't read Sudden Terror because I had a low opinion of Crompton from comments he had made in newspaper stories years ago. To me the Contra Costa crimes seem a lot different than most of the EAR attacks and the later murders, so I would like to see what crimes were linked by DNA to the murders. I do have a copy of the book and will read it someday.

Shelby had always been vocal about the case and even predicted where the next rape would take place and it took place only a few blocks away. I hope he tells how they linked the crimes. They had another rapist called the Early Morning Rapist who had a spree right before the EAR and I've always wondered how they differentiated between the two as their MOs were similar. I noticed Shelby has a chapter on that specific point. So I will read him and the other new book, Hot Prowl. Hope to get more info on the "town hall meeting" as the legend of that really did not fit the chronology of the case (particularly the part about the next attack).

random thoughts:
Janelle Cruz the last victim was featured in a newspaper article a month or two before she was murdered (copy online at Bedroom Killer website)... did this cause the killer, then on a five year sabbatical, to target her? The story was an upbeat one about how Cruz turned her life around by joining the Job Corps.

also in the Cruz case some guy who beat up his girlfriend confessed to the crime and was only eventually ruled out (like 6 months later) when his DNA didn't match.

Finally a guy posts a story about the "kitten man" on a message board and I still see it mentioned even on this board when the person who told the story seems to have no credibility as he lied about being interviewed by the police (somewhere along the line he gave his real name so I was able to check with Pool-- he claimed he was Cruz's pal but was never interviewed by the cops but he was interviewed two days after the crime and never mentioned a kitten man) and later on accused his father of being an uncaught murderer. But once something gets on the true crime board, especially if it is alluring (like a clue in the Cruz case), it is forever!

some woman has written articles about the case under the new name Golden State Killer (she must hate the confusing "Original" Night Stalker name as much as I do).

I apologize as this is probably a stupid thing to debate on, but he will always be the Original Night Stalker to me. I refuse to call him by that other name.

That lady has no right to come up with a new nickname decades after his last crime was committed. All she is doing is confusing people who have long known him by the Original Night Stalker moniker.

There is nothing confusing about the Original Night Stalker name. They gave Richard Ramirez the Night Stalker nickname, then learned ONS had committed somewhat similar attacks earlier, hence the name Original Night Stalker.

"Golden State Killer" is completely bland. It's as if she's implying there's only been one serial killer in all of vast California in its history, and we know that is not true.

I can go halfway and tolerate the "East Area Rapist" nickname, but I refuse to take part in any attempt to rename him Golden State Killer after all these years.

Agreed, wiseguy! I will always think of him as EAR/ONS (both together-the ONS part being most vital). Golden State Killer is just ridiculous. If she wants to make up a nickname for a killer, she can go write fiction.

But jjmcgr, thanks for all this information! I had no idea the kitten man story was likely fabricated by an "eyewitness." I've seen it preached on other forums as though it's the facts. Like you said, once on a board, it just lasts!

I apologize as this is probably a stupid thing to debate on, but he will always be the Original Night Stalker to me. I refuse to call him by that other name.

That lady has no right to come up with a new nickname decades after his last crime was committed.



I undertand where you are coming from 100% - it is extremely arrogant and presumptuous of this lady to start re-naming notorious criminals, particularly given that she has no claim to fame other than a curiousity about his crimes ... Though, if she'd managed to solve the case I'd forgive her!

several new books on this case have recently been released:

Hunting a Psycopath by Richard Shelby, one of the EAr investigators,
and
Hot Prowl by Jack Gray

both have e-books
I know you like to stick to the facts, and facts only on this case, which Sudden Terror did not completely do, which is why I must ask have you read these yet? Which one is a better read? Also isn't their another book out written by a victim?

That is very interesting. In fact, I read in the book that he called one of the rape victims sometime in the 80s or 90s - almost twenty years later - to terrorize one of the victims, and the sounds of children were heard in the background as well as a woman's voice. He is probably married with children! I think this is the most fascinating serial killer case that goes largely unmentioned. I recommend the book highly!

That is very interesting. In fact, I read in the book that he called one of the rape victims sometime in the 80s or 90s - almost twenty years later - to terrorize one of the victims, and the sounds of children were heard in the background as well as a woman's voice. He is probably married with children! I think this is the most fascinating serial killer case that goes largely unmentioned. I recommend the book highly!

I find the phone calls to be one of the most fascinating aspects of this case. The one I'm greatly familiar with was the one that aired on Cold Case Files. He breathes heavily into the phone, then starts chanting to the victim: "Gonna kill you." 3 or 4 times, followed by an equal number of expletives. He does it in a whispery voice. You can faintly here other people talking in the background. Some theorized that, because of those things, there were other people around him at the time, but I think it's probably just a movie or something. There's been a lot of attempts to identify the movie or t.v. show or whatever, but nothing's ever come of that and I doubt it ever will.

I do vaguely recall the "Is Ray there?" call and listened to it (must have been on one of the ONS/EAR message boards), but don't remember much else about it. You have to wonder if he knew he was being recorded. I'd be interested in finding out about and listening to the other calls.

There have also been reports of him calling the victim's neighbors, and I wonder what the heck that's about.

Finally bought the book. I'm only about 20 pages in and already find it pretty terrifying. flytrapp, I blame you. :P But seriously, I'm glad I finally got the book. I can tell it's going to be a very good, detailed read.

What's mind-boggling about this case is that there are no apparent suspects, especially shocking considering the number of crimes he committed were well into the dozens. At least 5 dozen victims, as a matter of fact.

One thing I've always thought was weird is that, based on the composites anyways, ONS/EAR seemed to be a reasonably young, fairly handsome guy and I just have to wonder why he would resort to this level.

I know there's been a little discussion about the other message board(s) on ONS/EAR and let me say, they are a tremendous resource. I briefly check them out from time to time, and the posters there have covered every aspect of this case in painstaking detail. You could learn all you wanted to about this case and then some from reading those boards. One of the more fascinating nuggets I learned was that some suspected he is/might have been British due to his use of the word "twinge". His other vocabulary includes "Lookie, lookie, looking for money."

One thing I've always thought was weird is that, based on the composites anyways, ONS/EAR seemed to be a reasonably young, fairly handsome guy and I just have to wonder why he would resort to this level.

Ted Bundy was like that too.

Who committed more rapes, ONS/EAR or Bill Cosby?

One thing I've always thought was weird is that, based on the composites anyways, ONS/EAR seemed to be a reasonably young, fairly handsome guy and I just have to wonder why he would resort to this level.
Because rape is about power, not just sex. IIRC, EAR/ONS couldn't even "finish" during most of these assaults. Somehow, this person's sexual gratification became tied up with total control over someone and probably also causing pain and fear in women. The standard BDSM scenario doesn't do it for this person because there's not any REAL fear or power differential between the 2 people. It's all consesual.

You mentioned Bill Cosby above. Given that these accusations are true (I personally believe they probably are), it falls under the same weird/sick logic. He is a rich, powerful celebrity who could probably have as many consensual partners as he wanted, but he didn't just want sex. He drugged them so they he could have absolute power over their bodies. Psycho.

I mentioned several pages back that EAR's small penis could be relevant. I think he could have been taunted by sexual partners or by men (like in a locker room situation, for example) and this could have led to some of his rage and desire to "get even," control, and terrorize.

As for why EAR became the ONS, I think it's possible that:

1) He decided to leave the area so that police wouldn't connect any attacks he committed down south up to his stomping grounds in the north. Because of how much he terrorized Northern California, it likely became more difficult for him to break into homes and he realized that there were likely more households obtaining guns (such as the woman who shot at him).

2) I think he experienced a breakup or divorce in his personal life. Something drove him to develop absolute rage, particularly against married couples. Perhaps he was jealous things didn't work out for him. Perhaps he decided terror without ending lives wasn't enough for him. All of the murder victims were either married or in a serious relationship with their partner present at the scene, except for Janelle Cruz, the final victim (but she did have a male friend over at her house just before the murder). Manuela Whithun, who was married, just happened to be home alone that night because her husband was in the hospital. When EAR became the ONS, he seemed determined to snuff out couples.

ONS/EAR having a small penis was the one thing all of his victims agreed on. It was said he was a master at giving people false perceptions about himself.

Wishful, one of the shows that profiled this case said that he started attacking couples after it was reported he went after just single women. Anytime they would report in the press that he hadn't done something yet, the next attack he would do that very thing.

I also heard that the lady who shot at him caused him to poop his pants? Not sure if that is actually true.

Somebody posted a picture on another message board from that community forum or whatever that was where they were talking about the night stalker. (the one where the guy claimed there was no way he would allow that to happen to his wife, they were the next ones attacked). Anyways, it was theorized ONS/EAR was in the audience, and there was a guy in the audience that looked like one of the composites. I'll see if I can post it.

I always thought the attack on Janelle Cruz in 1986 was a weird outlier. All of his other known attacks were in the 70's and early 80's. His next to last attack was on Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez, and it was theorized that Mr. Sanchez managed to do some damage on him before he and his wife perished. I think, most of his prior victims (if not all) were white. Being that Sanchez is a Hispanic name and assuming that ONS was injured during that attack, do you think he developed a hatred for Hispanic persons? I say that because the only other attack after that was Cruz, which is also a Hispanic name, although I believe Janelle was white?

Just a wild theory, but what do y'all think?

Also, here's that pic I was talking about. Look at the guy in the lower right. Not only does he look like some of the composites, but my perception is that he is out of place here. Most of the rest of the audience is females. What few males you do see seem to be with other women who are presumably their wives. He seems to be the odd man out, and you really have to wonder.

That's eerie, wiseguy - he DOES look like the sketches!

I apologize as this is probably a stupid thing to debate on, but he will always be the Original Night Stalker to me. I refuse to call him by that other name.

That lady has no right to come up with a new nickname decades after his last crime was committed. All she is doing is confusing people who have long known him by the Original Night Stalker moniker.

There is nothing confusing about the Original Night Stalker name. They gave Richard Ramirez the Night Stalker nickname, then learned ONS had committed somewhat similar attacks earlier, hence the name Original Night Stalker.

"Golden State Killer" is completely bland. It's as if she's implying there's only been one serial killer in all of vast California in its history, and we know that is not true.

I can go halfway and tolerate the "East Area Rapist" nickname, but I refuse to take part in any attempt to rename him Golden State Killer after all these years.

Yeah, I hate to be mean about it, but this lame 'Golden State Killer' name smacks of an attempt by the author to 'own' the case. When they released some TON related audio under the GSK name all it did was confuse me. The main Original Night Stalker message board even added GSK to the url of their site, but in my opinion we shouldn't be dignifying the 'Golden State Killer' name in any way.

I always thought the attack on Janelle Cruz in 1986 was a weird outlier. All of his other known attacks were in the 70's and early 80's. His next to last attack was on Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez, and it was theorized that Mr. Sanchez managed to do some damage on him before he and his wife perished. I think, most of his prior victims (if not all) were white. Being that Sanchez is a Hispanic name and assuming that ONS was injured during that attack, do you think he developed a hatred for Hispanic persons? I say that because the only other attack after that was Cruz, which is also a Hispanic name, although I believe Janelle was white?



Both Janelle and Sanchez were white (although Sanchez is a little bit darker than the brown haired Cruz). Also, several of his rape victims in Sacramento were Asian - a couple of the works on him mention this but don't say which rape victims, probably to help hide their identities. I don't think race had anything to do with his attacks.

I also dislike the Golden State Killer moniker. It just doesn't make sense to me.

However, I really like the writer (Michelle from TrueCrimeDiary.com (http://truecrimediary.com/index.cfm?page=cases&id=231)) who came up with it. She is writing a book on him. IIRC, she came up with the name because she didn't think the case was getting enough attention with the confusing EAR\ONS moniker - which is really only known by the online crime-buff community - and she thinks public attention is our best chance to catch the killer.

Very interesting Wiseguy. He does look out of place. Like you said, it's a group of mostly women and the men who are there appear to be with their partner.

IMO, he looks a lot like this updated sketch on the left:

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u58/dmlg_2007/original%20night%20stalker/sketches2.jpg?t=1204381917

Interesting thought about racial targeting, wiseguy. I think Janelle may have been half-Hispanic because her family was in Mexico at the time of the murder (and I thought that I read they were visiting relatives). He does appear to have struck all of the map, but being severely injured by a Hispanic man could have led to anger against that group.

That photo is quite creepy. I agree the man looks out of place. It's not the best quality and angle, but he seems almost bored/vacant. Everyone else seems to be listening intently.

Isn't that the meeting where they said that guy stood up and trashed the other men for not protecting their wives, and boasted that if he ever got hit he'd shoot the EAR or something, and then he was the next one to get hit?

Way to big a coincidence. He almost had to be there in attendance. That was brazen. Amazing to me with a DNA profile and all they got to go on they haven't been able to zero in on a suspect after all these years. If EAR is that man in the photo, surely they could track someone down sooner or later.

Isn't that the meeting where they said that guy stood up and trashed the other men for not protecting their wives, and boasted that if he ever got hit he'd shoot the EAR or something, and then he was the next one to get hit?

Way to big a coincidence. He almost had to be there in attendance. That was brazen. Amazing to me with a DNA profile and all they got to go on they haven't been able to zero in on a suspect after all these years. If EAR is that man in the photo, surely they could track someone down sooner or later.
That is the meeting in question. Basically, one of the men said he would be prepared if EAR came to his house. I also think EAR had to have been there and almost certainly followed the couple home from the meeting.

Identifying the man in the photo is probably a long shot after 30+ years, but perhaps someone would say, "Hey that's X looking like he did back in the 70s!" It appears like he's not with other people at the meeting and perhaps no one there knew him at all, but perhaps one of his neighbors of friends from back in the day could identify him. Then it would be up to LE to question him and try to prove if he's the perp.

Golden State Killer is a dreadful name. Nicknames are not a specialty of this era, as evidenced by all the sporting applications of, "The Play," "The Catch," "The Drive," and so forth. I'm surprised she didn't use, "The Killer."

The odds of that guy in the picture being EAR are next to nothing. Apparently we have one surviving photo of that meeting so naturally there's a desperation to make it more meaningful than it ever was. The idea that we see mostly women in the picture and therefore one of the few guys stands out as unusual is similar to creative prosecutors who are so desperate to lazily solve a case that all of a sudden anything becomes suspicious, even perfectly normal variables like life insurance. Last night I watched a Forensic Files episode of a black guy who lost 5.5 years of his life simply because he happened to ride his bicycle in front of a recent crime scene late at night. A simpleton police officer pulled him over and naturally a creative prosecutor found reason to suspect him and eventually charge him.

I always thought the attack on Janelle Cruz in 1986 was a weird outlier. All of his other known attacks were in the 70's and early 80's. His next to last attack was on Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez, and it was theorized that Mr. Sanchez managed to do some damage on him before he and his wife perished. I think, most of his prior victims (if not all) were white. Being that Sanchez is a Hispanic name and assuming that ONS was injured during that attack, do you think he developed a hatred for Hispanic persons? I say that because the only other attack after that was Cruz, which is also a Hispanic name, although I believe Janelle was white?

Just a wild theory, but what do y'all think?

Also, here's that pic I was talking about. Look at the guy in the lower right. Not only does he look like some of the composites, but my perception is that he is out of place here. Most of the rest of the audience is females. What few males you do see seem to be with other women who are presumably their wives. He seems to be the odd man out, and you really have to wonder.

Whereabouts was this photo taken? :eek:

The odds of that guy in the picture being EAR are next to nothing. Apparently we have one surviving photo of that meeting so naturally there's a desperation to make it more meaningful than it ever was. The idea that we see mostly women in the picture and therefore one of the few guys stands out as unusual is similar to creative prosecutors who are so desperate to lazily solve a case that all of a sudden anything becomes suspicious, even perfectly normal variables like life insurance. Last night I watched a Forensic Files episode of a black guy who lost 5.5 years of his life simply because he happened to ride his bicycle in front of a recent crime scene late at night. A simpleton police officer pulled him over and naturally a creative prosecutor found reason to suspect him and eventually charge him.

Oh, shut the hell up Awsi.

Considering that police believe he was actually in the audience that night (which is where that picture was from) the odds are a lot greater than you think. Notice your opinion is in the minority? Think about that.

I swear to God, if you weren't allowed to mention Las Vegas, gambling and "odds" in your posts, your post count would be about 12.

Want to know what's desperate? Comparing me to a prosecutor and police officer who helped wrongfully imprison a guy for 5 years.

Dude, your heyday was a long time ago. Perhaps 8 years ago, you could have made a stupid joke on the forum and people would suck it up like a sponge, but those days have LONG since past. Notice your return here as gone largely unheralded? Get a clue.

And by the way, regarding your ABSURD (not to mention disrespectful) post on Ronald Reagan and how unlikely it was he kept track of how many lives he saved: it's called a running tally. Look into it. People do it all the time. Perhaps your post would get better mileage on Democratic Underground, where crazy conspiracy theories are the norm there.

EPIC FAIL!

Awsi, I don't think the likelihood is really so low. LE is pretty confident that EAR was in the audience and that he followed the man who claimed he would be ready for a home intruder home from that meeting. If the man in the picture was ever identified, he would certainly have his DNA tested rather than simply thrown into jail right away because of his presence at the meeting. Considering how cold this case is, no stone should be left unturned. LE is nearly certain he was there and we have a photograph of a man who seems to be alone and out of place at that same location. Does that make him guilty? Of course not. A possible person of interest? Yes. If they can find this man and prove he's not EAR, fine. But at least the possibility will have been ruled out by way of evidence rather than by dismissal because of unlikelihood.

Oh, shut the hell up Awsi...
Oh, come on. It's the holidays. Can you kiss and make up already? This feud is really tiresome. If you really hate him that much, you can block him. I blocked cocytus back in the day and it did wonders for my blood pressure. Look into it!

FWIW, if there are 500 people at the meeting, 50% of them men, and if we assume EAR/ONS was there - which I believe he was - that's a one in 250 chance that any given guy at the meeting is the perp. That's a .004 chance. If we had photos of the entire crowd, the chance would never approach zero - but it's still pretty small.

I think there are too many disparate composites to make a definite identification, and you'd need good old fashioned police work to make it happen. I personally think tracking down the people at the meeting is one of the best shots we have at finding the killer, but it would also take a ton of work, and therefore, the chances don't look very good. We'd need better luck in this case!

Okay, who wants to join hands and sing Kumbayah with me?

Anyone? :)

Interesting theories by all. I will have to read this book. For now, I'm staying silent. Shocking, I know. But I agree with nohwheregirl... it's Christmas, y'all! (Unless there's trolls around. Then I can't promise to keep the peace. ;) )

One amusing aspect I remember about this book is that the author was quite old for a first time author, and therefore he hadn't previously exhausted all of his biases in earlier works. That's a normal tendency among all writers. If you have something to say you get it out there early, your political slant, etc.

This guy was so determined to catch up in that regard that he threw in invented dialog from the old days in chapter after chapter. I was turning the page in anticipation of the next pot shot at the ACLU, or similar. He seldom let me down.

Let me emphasize there's nothing wrong with that. Very typical in general writings. It was merely out of place for a writer of that age, and in a true crime book.

BTW, I was being extremely conservative when I estimated that the odds of that guy in the picture being EAR were next to nothing. If we found ten more pictures of that meeting there would be at least 10 more potential suspects, all of them resembling one sketch or another. Everybody is desperate to solve these things, as opposed to more valuable slicing of the logical suspect pool in half, and then in half again...

Okay, who wants to join hands and sing Kumbayah with me?

Anyone? :)

Interesting theories by all. I will have to read this book. For now, I'm staying silent. Shocking, I know. But I agree with nohwheregirl... it's Christmas, y'all! (Unless there's trolls around. Then I can't promise to keep the peace. ;) )

Maybe EAR/ONS was actually a poltergeist. :crazy:

Maybe EAR/ONS was actually a poltergeist. :crazy:

The search for EAR/ONS makes me think of this little gem. I loved that RS didn't take himself TOO seriously.

Granted, since that photo is from the area and in real time, it does hold greater chance to contain the EAR's likeness than let's say a current photo of a Burger King crowd in Rhode Island.

If we're talking about a Walmart in Rhode Island, I go with Walmart.

For some reason this topic reminds me of the old classic TV series, "The Fugitive." Gerard would have Kimble cornered in some small dusty town. But as soon as Kimble scampered around the corner and was briefly out of sight, Gerard would shout in frustration, stop in his tracks, give up, and go back to sitting behind his desk. Apparently there was greater capture potential by awaiting the next call than by continuing to pursue around that corner.

FWIW, if there are 500 people at the meeting, 50% of them men, and if we assume EAR/ONS was there - which I believe he was - that's a one in 250 chance that any given guy at the meeting is the perp. That's a .004 chance. If we had photos of the entire crowd, the chance would never approach zero - but it's still pretty small.

I think there are too many disparate composites to make a definite identification, and you'd need good old fashioned police work to make it happen. I personally think tracking down the people at the meeting is one of the best shots we have at finding the killer, but it would also take a ton of work, and therefore, the chances don't look very good. We'd need better luck in this case!

If you study the photo closely, it's pretty obvious well over half of the people in the photo are women. Which makes sense since all of his victims up to that point were women.

I feel that the composite sketches closely resemble one another. None of them look exactly alike, but they're all relatively close. Young guy, blonde hair, reasonably attractive, etc., which matches the guy in the photo.

I'm not too concerned with odds. The odds of people winning the lottery are like one in millions, but people do win the lottery. Happens all the time. Basically put: the guy in the photo I was talking about may not be ONS/EAR. Or he could be.

Perhaps an even better example would be supposed statistics guru Nate Silver. This is the man that gave Harry Reid a 14% chance of winning his last senate race (this was on the morning of the election) and Heidi Heitkamp an even lesser chance of winning her contest. Both of them won. And yet, there are still a large number of people that will gladly lick his boots. My predictions: Last month, I nailed every race but one, an annoying small loss in New Hampshire. But I remain unknown while everyone bows before Nate Silver.

Such is life.

I always thought the attack on Janelle Cruz in 1986 was a weird outlier. All of his other known attacks were in the 70's and early 80's. His next to last attack was on Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez, and it was theorized that Mr. Sanchez managed to do some damage on him before he and his wife perished. I think, most of his prior victims (if not all) were white. Being that Sanchez is a Hispanic name and assuming that ONS was injured during that attack, do you think he developed a hatred for Hispanic persons? I say that because the only other attack after that was Cruz, which is also a Hispanic name, although I believe Janelle was white?

Just a wild theory, but what do y'all think?

Also, here's that pic I was talking about. Look at the guy in the lower right. Not only does he look like some of the composites, but my perception is that he is out of place here. Most of the rest of the audience is females. What few males you do see seem to be with other women who are presumably their wives. He seems to be the odd man out, and you really have to wonder.

You're clueless. That picture was NOT of the infamous Town Hall meeting in which EAR followed his next victims home. There is NO picture of that particular meeting in existence. Awsi is correct. There's about as good a chance as finding EAR-ONS in a Burger King in Rhode Island as there is in searching random photos taken during the 70's.

Re: Sanchez and Domingo, they were NOT married. Further, there is NO evidence whatsoever that EAR-ONS was injured by Sanchez in any way, shape, or form. NOT one piece of forensic evidence turned up to give that theory any credence.

Your "Hispanic" theory is just plain ridiculous. Not even worth talking about.

Perhaps you should bone up on this case before you start criticizing others because you know dick about the crimes committed by the unidentified serial rapist/killer East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker.

Oh, shut the hell up Awsi.

Considering that police believe he was actually in the audience that night (which is where that picture was from) the odds are a lot greater than you think. Notice your opinion is in the minority? Think about that.

I swear to God, if you weren't allowed to mention Las Vegas, gambling and "odds" in your posts, your post count would be about 12.

Want to know what's desperate? Comparing me to a prosecutor and police officer who helped wrongfully imprison a guy for 5 years.

Dude, your heyday was a long time ago. Perhaps 8 years ago, you could have made a stupid joke on the forum and people would suck it up like a sponge, but those days have LONG since past. Notice your return here as gone largely unheralded? Get a clue.

And by the way, regarding your ABSURD (not to mention disrespectful) post on Ronald Reagan and how unlikely it was he kept track of how many lives he saved: it's called a running tally. Look into it. People do it all the time. Perhaps your post would get better mileage on Democratic Underground, where crazy conspiracy theories are the norm there.

EPIC FAIL!

It's amazing somebody as ignorant as yourself can be so critical of others.

Re: gambling...it's the finest thing a man can do IF HE'S GOOD AT IT. And Awsi is one of the best. You have no idea. Super skilled guy. He's a SHARK. And you are the ultimate fish.

It's amazing somebody as ignorant as yourself can be so critical of others.

Re: gambling...it's the finest thing a man can do IF HE'S GOOD AT IT. And Awsi is one of the best. You have no idea. Super skilled guy. He's a SHARK. And you are the ultimate fish.

well you're two peas in a pod.

Yes, gambling is performed by all the great pillars of society. :rolleyes:

You're clueless. That picture was NOT of the infamous Town Hall meeting in which EAR followed his next victims home. There is NO picture of that particular meeting in existence. Awsi is correct. There's about as good a chance as finding EAR-ONS in a Burger King in Rhode Island as there is in searching random photos taken during the 70's.

Re: Sanchez and Domingo, they were NOT married. Further, there is NO evidence whatsoever that EAR-ONS was injured by Sanchez in any way, shape, or form. NOT one piece of forensic evidence turned up to give that theory any credence.

Your "Hispanic" theory is just plain ridiculous. Not even worth talking about.

Perhaps you should bone up on this case before you start criticizing others because you know dick about the crimes committed by the unidentified serial rapist/killer East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker.

If you're so educated on this case, prove me wrong then.

If you're so educated on this case, prove me wrong then.

I already did. Or do you not understand English?

My ignore list is growing. Some people just have nothing useful to contribute.

Very interesting Wiseguy. He does look out of place. Like you said, it's a group of mostly women and the men who are there appear to be with their partner.

IMO, he looks a lot like this updated sketch on the left:

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u58/dmlg_2007/original%20night%20stalker/sketches2.jpg?t=1204381917


Wow, the only sketch I have ever seen was with the damn ski mask. Where have I been??!:eek:

Okay....so is it or is it not a photo from the very night the man made the comment???

Ever watched the special on Dark Minds? They interviewed the lady raped while her 4 year old son lay beside her. He made a comment that she looked good at he party. It was reference to some military ball. She also said he had an incredibly small penis.

From every special I have watched on the EAR, it was believed he was in the military, teased because he had a very small penis and I have only heard this part once: was forced to have sexual relations with his mother.

and women do judge a mans size...we may not be mean about it, but will tell a girlfriend. Some women may have been down right cruel to him..so we have a 5'8 short man with a small penis and mommy issues who was in the military.

Many ask why isn't he still raping...um...he already had issues getting it up. he is likely 70 now!! Even more issues.

About this picture of the town hall meeting....it is true there was one taken, but NOT of the meeting in question.
That guy does seem to be sitting kind of by himself, but we also can't really see who is sitting beside him because they aren't in the shot.
About the meeting where the man said he'd be prepared, it's been widely assumed that EAR had to have been there and heard it followed the guy home, but that's not necessarily the case. For example, let's say EAR's sister was at the meeting and later told her brother "Yeah, I went to that meeting. Remember loud-mouth Bill from high school that we hated? Yeah, he was there saying he'd be ready for the guy. What an idiot. Still the same 10 years later". Ya know, some dialogue to that effect. Most people come home and talk to their family or friends about their day. However, that theory would mean that EAR had to know the victims of that particular attack in some way...which also means that could be a very, very small lead. I don't know, just throwing ideas out there lol.
Not sure about the Hispanic theory, but I suppose every theory should be explored. Janelle's father was indeed Hispanic. I can't help but think there had to be other attacks between the last known murder and Janelle because of the long period of time, but maybe EAR was in jail or maybe had to relocate for work (military?) and DID commit crimes before returning to CA and no one has made the connection yet.

Can someone here please post the photo from the town meeting? Or provide a link? Cheers. :)

I posted the photo awhile back, it is post #126. And yes, it is a photo from the night in question.

I've been poking around the newer earonsgskproboards site and its getting as nutty as the old A&E site was. This case, and Zodiac, brings out the kooks.

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm241/portofleith-2008/miraloma_zps3278e6b2.jpg

Above is a copy of a newspaper article (I hope I did it right so all can see it!) from November 1977. It is the town hall meeting held at Mira Loma high school.

Detective Shelby said the man who spoke at the town hall meeting (she said the man was Italian) spoke out at a meeting in November of 1976, a completely different meeting. I forget the location of that meeting, but it doesn't matter, because the attack on the out-spoken man and his wife was in May of 1977, a full six months prior to the meeting held at Mira Loma HS, where the picture was confirmed to have been taken. Does this rule out that EAR was not in the picture? Nope! The brazen bastard may have been at this meeting as well...or none at all...or every single one of them. Doesn't look like we're going to know all the moving parts and pieces until the case is solved (if it ever is...fingers crossed that it will be!).

There seems to be a lot of "lore" with this case as well. For example, is there any confirmation of the supposed dog with three legs?
Or even thinking about what I just wrote above, the press made it sound like after the guy spoke out at the meeting like he and his wife were the next targets. Meanwhile, it was seven months later.
Another example is the supposed "challenge" that the press gave EAR by printing an article that says he only targets women living alone. In fact, the press made a mistake! They printed this article on April 15, 1977, but EAR's first attack on a couple was April 1, 1977. Because of this error, speculation began that EAR was "challenged" by this article, and that's why be began targeting couples....meanwhile, he'd already started that two weeks before any assumed "challenge" was ever presented. There's a lot of weird stuff with this case.

What's this 3 legged dog thing all about? :eek:

What's this 3 legged dog thing all about? :eek:

Don't quote me on this, because I don't remember where I read/heard it or if it is or isn't from Crompton's book.....but apparently a victim reported a dog and LE found dog prints in the house after one attack. The prints indicated that the dog only had three legs. But again, don't quote me, I really don't remember where I read this, I'd have to do some digging. It may have even been from one of the Visalia Ransacker incidents.

Don't quote me on this, because I don't remember where I read/heard it or if it is or isn't from Crompton's book.....but apparently a victim reported a dog and LE found dog prints in the house after one attack. The prints indicated that the dog only had three legs. But again, don't quote me, I really don't remember where I read this, I'd have to do some digging. It may have even been from one of the Visalia Ransacker incidents.

No you're right. They found dog footprints that they concluded came from a dog with only 3 legs. It was at one of the murder sites I think...

According to Wikipedia, he brought his dog, which they say is a white German Shepherd with a missing toe, to two of the attacks and that he also used a bicycle to get to and from some of the homes. There's so many things involving this case that we don't know what's true and what's myth. I wonder if police investigated the neighborhoods to find who had a three legged dog with a missing toe. That's something you don't see everyday.

Another myth/fact about the 3 toed dog is that a local Goleta drug dealer by the name of Glasby owned a 3 toed German Shepard. Glasby passed away before the conclusion os the EAR/ONS rapes/murders thereby clearing him as a suspect. A possibility is that ONS took Glasby's dog for a walk to blend into the neighborhood while stalking his victims.

I have also heard Glasby did not own such a dog, but how many 3 toed German Sheppard's were in Goleta in 1979-80? Too many "factual myths" and confusion from Law Enforcement in this case.

About this picture of the town hall meeting....it is true there was one taken, but NOT of the meeting in question.


Darn. I was really hoping it was taken on that night. If there's even an ounce of a chance that he was there and photographed, it could help identify him. If only that particular meeting had been recorded/photographed extensively. You would think that there would be something, considering how much the local media focused on the case. But you're right that he could have been at other meetings, or even not at any meeting. As likely as it seems that he followed the outspoken man and his wife home, it also could have been a total coincidence. If they happened to live in the prowling area, they could have been the reason they were victimized.

I spoke about this earlier in the thread, but I definitely think that EAR's small size could very well be one of his sources of rage. If a woman or other men mocked him for it (such as in a locker room), he could have decided to lash out and humiliate and degrade other people. Something made him change after he migrated to Southern California. I wonder why he started killing (excluding the northern shootings). Could it be he was just determined to make sure he was never identified? Thought his MO changing would make people think it wasn't him? That did work for quite a while...the EAR wasn't confirmed to be ONS for many years. Or I wonder if his rage built up and assault wasn't enough for him anymore. He decided that he had to kill, perhaps as a source of victory or something.

I don't know if it's different elsewhere, but when and where I grew up, there was no teasing about small size in the guys locker room, because if you did that, you would have been accused of looking, which came with its own set of problems.

It's something that should be private (pardon the pun). I found it incredibly tacky when Jessica Simpson (who was already one of my least favorite celebs) was talking about Nick Lachey's size or lack thereof. Jesus, that's not something you tell the world. Of course, this is the same woman who can't tell the difference between chicken and tuna, so, you know.

[QUOTE=wiseguy182]I don't know if it's different elsewhere, but when and where I grew up, there was no teasing about small size in the guys locker room, because if you did that, you would have been accused of looking, which came with its own set of problems.QUOTE]

Yep, I agree. I don't rule out the possibility that a guy or two (or more) made EAR feel insecure, but if he WAS insecure about his penis size, it's more likely that the insecurity came from a woman (her reaction or remarks). Also, a lot of guys are "growers not showers", so it's hard (no pun intended) to see who is packing what until one is fully excited. If EAR was that "little", it's more likely to have been noticed during intercourse when he was erect, and his girl/date was like "um, you're not in" and he says "yes I am!" LOL.

Haha, I guess you guys are right that it would be unlikely that a man would tease in a locker room. It would be far more likely that a woman commented on it (or perhaps he was insecure seeing others' sizes, but I digress). That "I'm not in" scenario was explored in a Sex and the City episode, by the way :lol: "Put it in!" "It is in." *cue disappointment*

But in all seriousness, I do wonder if this triggered some of his anger. Insecurity, jealousy (of other men), fury about comments..sounds plausible. Of course, we have no idea what other factors in his life made him feel compelled to lash out this way. It's fascinating to speculate. I definitely wonder about his upbringing and childhood. For the record, I think his "Mommy, mommy" episode was just an intentional red herring. He knew that everything he said and did would be noted.

A great resource on the EAR/ONS, he has every attack is broken down. Under his "update" section he has claimed he is 99% certain he has found the identity of the EAR/ONS, we will see what plays out.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/night_predator_files_--_case_o1.html

A great resource on the EAR/ONS, he has every attack is broken down. Under his "update" section he has claimed he is 99% certain he has found the identity of the EAR/ONS, we will see what plays out.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/night_predator_files_--_case_o1.html


This is fascinating!

Ok.......lol where is the update section?? I must be blind!

Ok.......lol where is the update section?? I must be blind!
Here is the link to Quester's personal investigation updates

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/html/update_--_the_case_of_the_ear_.html

A great resource on the EAR/ONS, he has every attack is broken down. Under his "update" section he has claimed he is 99% certain he has found the identity of the EAR/ONS, we will see what plays out.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/night_predator_files_--_case_o1.html
Hmmmm...he starts unveiling about a week from now. I hope it's at least something interesting/plausible and not a huge let-down!

From Quester...
April 7, 2015

I am now 99 percent sure that I have identified EAR. He is dead. On the whole his family lived near Manzanita Blvd, near where he grew up. He worked in Rancho Cordova, where he also had relatives close to Moraine Circle. He dropped out of High School. He worked the family business. He left the area and returned, owned the business he grew up in, and then died relatively young. I will proceed under the assumption that he had an accomplice on occasion and that this accomplice is my POI in Lake County, whom I’m relatively sure knew Brian Maggiore. By Force of Reasoning, I will detail the connections in Portrait of Terror, and then continue in detail, if appropriate, in a suspect page. I am working on it daily. I hope to have it up soon. The delay is caused by the graphics, attempting an icon of EAR as he looked at each attack. Pictures will show the work area, maps will show family homes in relation to attacks . . . and, yes, he could bike from Whitney and Mission (No. 26) to home.

[QUOTE=nohwheregirl]Hmmmm...he starts unveiling about a week from now. I hope it's at least something interesting/plausible and not a huge let-down!

I know! I was reading that page on his/her site this afternoon. Spooky! I, too, am hoping it's not a big ole let down. I'd love to see this creep unmasked.

A great resource on the EAR/ONS, he has every attack is broken down. Under his "update" section he has claimed he is 99% certain he has found the identity of the EAR/ONS, we will see what plays out.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/night_predator_files_--_case_o1.html

thanks for that, what a tremendous resource. Very detailed. Some of it is definitely horrifying to read, the part from the first attack where he woke up the victim by tapping on the windows was definitely creepy.

I'm continuing reading today...no victim every became pregnant? I mean, he never wore a condom did he? I wonder if this is a clue...somehow. He couldn't have kids?

interesting that he might have had an accomplice on some occasions. Perhaps that was the lookout person?

I honestly think the ransackings of the house did have a "purpose": he was biding his time until he could go back and rape the victim again (shudders). He used that to kill time until he could get aroused again.

So far, I've read about the first 7 incidents.

I'm continuing reading today...no victim every became pregnant? I mean, he never wore a condom did he? I wonder if this is a clue...somehow. He couldn't have kids?

This is a popular question on the "official" EAR/ONS message board http://earonsgsk.proboards.com I'm no so sure he ever "finished" in a victim, he had trouble actually carrying out many of the rapes.

"Sudden Terror" is considered the "bible" of the EAR/ONS case, but I found Detective Richard Shelby's "Hunting a Psychopath" to be very informative and did no include any faux police dialogue like Crompton's "Sudden Terror".

I'm continuing reading today...no victim every became pregnant? I mean, he never wore a condom did he? I wonder if this is a clue...somehow. He couldn't have kids?

This is a popular question on the "official" EAR/ONS message board http://earonsgsk.proboards.com I'm no so sure he ever "finished" in a victim, he had trouble actually carrying out many of the rapes.

"Sudden Terror" is considered the "bible" of the EAR/ONS case, but I found Detective Richard Shelby's "Hunting a Psychopath" to be very informative and did no include any faux police dialogue like Crompton's "Sudden Terror".

thanks for that, what a tremendous resource. Very detailed. Some of it is definitely horrifying to read, the part from the first attack where he woke up the victim by tapping on the windows was definitely creepy.

Yes, I've just finished reading the first part with Victim #1 and I'm already horrified. This creature certainly messed with his victims minds as well as violating them physically. It would've been a terrifying time to live in that neighbourhood when all this was going on.

Wow, on #35....I find #27 victims response to be unintentionally funny! wake up! No! I don't want too! Ugh, leave me alone! that girl wasn't playing around she was the youngest and had an older mother. From what I gather, they did not want to cooperate with police...also...the Asian lady who said he was bigger than her husband...I felt bad for her husband:eek:

interesting that he might have had an accomplice on some occasions. Perhaps that was the lookout person?

I honestly think the ransackings of the house did have a "purpose": he was biding his time until he could go back and rape the victim again (shudders). He used that to kill time until he could get aroused again.

So far, I've read about the first 7 incidents.

I'm just starting #7 now. With a couple of the prior attacks the whole idea of him creeping along the canal (which just looks like a drain to me) in the dead of night is eerie as hell.

Do you guys find some things not clickable? I couldn't click on #37 for 3 days then could. Now I want to read the Mystery Silent Dog and it isn't clickable. :/

Do you guys find some things not clickable? I couldn't click on #37 for 3 days then could. Now I want to read the Mystery Silent Dog and it isn't clickable. :/
I noticed this, too. I've been trying to read #27 because you mentioned it, but can't.

I noticed this, too. I've been trying to read #27 because you mentioned it, but can't.


Here is #27:



Victim’s mother was awakened by a banging noise. It was the closing of the bedroom’s patio sliding glass door. Victim’s mother, 56 years old, bolted up in bed. Her eyes were immediately blinded by the splatter of a bright flashlight beam. She demanded to know what the figure behind the light wanted.

“I won’t hurt you ore harm you,” replied a male voice in undertones. “All I want is your money. Lie back down.”

The man was masked. He spoke in an angry whisper between clenched teeth. He now ordered her to lie on her stomach. He tied her hands and then her ankles. She complained that her hands were tied too tight.

“Do you want me to cut off your fingers?” he replied. Then: “Who else is in the house? If you lie to me, I’ll slit your throat.”

She replied that the only other person in the house was her daughter.

The intruder then told victim’s mother that he was going to go tie the daughter. He left the room.

Intruder then tried to wake up the 13 year old daughter in her own room. He had to shake her awake. Still half asleep she told him to leave her alone. When fully awake she realized that the intruder was a man wearing a black ski mask with holes for eyes and mouth.

“This isn’t a joke,” he snarled. Get on your stomach and put your hands behind your back.”

She argued with him. “No!”

“Do what I say or I’m going to stick you with a knife. I’ll slit your throat and watch you bleed to death.” Assailant then pressed the knife against her neck, behind her ear. “Do you want me to cut off your ear?”

“I don’t care,” she replied while she rolled over.

“All I want is your money,” he reaffirmed in a snarl.

“I don’t have any,” she replied.

Assailant then tied her hands and feet and left her bedroom. She heard him go into the bathroom.

During this time, victim was able to loose the ties from her feet. She then heard him returning.

Assailant growled and started retying her feet. “If you move again,” he warned her, “I’ll kill your mother.”

Assailant left the room and started rummaging throughout the condominium. These condominiums have kitchens upstairs. Victim had heard him go up and now heard him coming back downstairs. She heard dishes rattle. She knew now it was the East Area Rapist. He walked past her room to her mother’s. Victim now knew she would be the victim.

Assailant returned to the mother’s bedroom and put two plates on victim’s mother’s back. “If I hear these plates jiggle you’ll be dead, bitch. All I
27
want is your money and food. Do you hear me?” She did not reply. “Do you hear me? Do you hear me?”

“Yes,” she finally replied.

“I need things for my apartment. Blankets. My car’s parked out front and I’m going back to L.A.”

Assailant returned to victim’s room. Victim saw strips of towels in his hands. He gagged her. Then he blindfolded her. He untied her feet and straddled her on the bed. He placed his penis in her tied hands.

Assailant ordered her: “Grab it. Squeeze it.” As her stiff fingers moved, he said: “Do you know what this is?” She replied that she did not.

Assailant then asked: “Have you ever ****ed before?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do you know what that means?”

“No.”

“Roll over,” he ordered.

“Why?”

“Roll over or I’ll kill you!”

“I don’t want to!”

Assailant then viciously ordered her to roll over. She did not. He grabbed her and rolled her over. “Bend your legs!” he ordered.

Investigation

Police investigators were faced with an adamant victim and mother who insisted that there had been no rape. Investigators were certain this was an East Area Rapist attack and that the 13 year old had been raped.

Description

Description of the attacker was similar to that in previous rapes, not only in how he spoke but in how he used the knife and flashlight.

Geography

The location on La Riviera Drive near Watt Avenue is condominiums on one side and houses on the other. These condos share the same levee and bike trail as the condos further down La Riviera where Victim 18 was attacked.

Whoa, thanks for pasting that. I do find her reaction funny andI bet EAR was really flustered by that response. He was probably used to wide-eyed terror and here this young girl refuses to do anything he says.

I hope she wasn't raped, but I could see why the mother and daughter would lie if she was.

As for the site, I wonder why I can't click on this one? I tried to click on the Silent Dog and can't either.

You're welcome. I know that I had to reload several times everyday and one day unclickable ones were clickable. I am hoping to see the silent dog one soon!

"I'll cut your ear off"

"I don't care"

:eek: that child was rough!

Several of the cases I've read contained reports of silent dogs, either at the victim's house or neighboring houses. Just goes to show they don't always bark and/or attack. And to think some people believe this is part of the reason Darlie Routier is guilty.

I'm thinking ONS/EAR probably gave the dogs treats, or befriended the dogs while casing the places prior to the attacks.

I think it's interesting to talk about the phone calls to the victims. I think the ones BEFORE the assaults were probably so ONS/EAR could get a feel for who was in the household and what hours they kept. The ones AFTER the assaults were a form of harassment. It's also interesting to note that sometimes he called neighboring houses, so I think sometimes he targeted a specific area and not a specific person. Or perhaps he had a "backup" target victim in case the original one fell through for whatever reason.

How did the creator of this website obtain such detailed information about each individual attack? :eek: This website is like nothing I've ever seen about the EAR/ONS. Detailed descriptions of what he was wearing during each attack. All the photos of the streets, canals, parkland etc seem very detailed. This person has certainly done his homework.

^I was wondering the same thing.

Can you believe somebody actually looked at the license plate of ONS/EAR, but couldn't remember what letters/numbers were on it? Unfortunately, that would have MAJOR implications for a lot of people down the road.

The blog we have all been checking out was updated about an hour ago. It says: "Let us take the next step and commence the unmasking process. . ." and then when you click on the words Portrait of Terror, a whole detailed section comes up. A great read. The whole site is. Almost scary how much information this person has...I doubt it, but almost makes you wonder if it's EAR himself!

Its not new or unknown info, but compiled in an excellent way. I have been immersed in this guys site. Interesting auto salvage theory worker theory

Its not new or unknown info, but compiled in an excellent way. I have been immersed in this guys site. Interesting auto salvage theory worker theory

You know, it seems like he had access to many cars. I remember them saying Volkswagen numerous times, as well as older cars I can't really recall what make or model. That would seem to jive with auto salvage worker theory, though I haven't come across that theory yet on that site. I'm wondering if they go into further detail about it.

Almost scary how much information this person has...I doubt it, but almost makes you wonder if it's EAR himself!

I thought the exact same thing flytrapp! :eek:

Although if it was was him, he'd deliberately leave out the all the details concerning his rather errr…..small *manhood*. :lol:

Ugh...I've been checking this Quester person's page every few days. I want to hear about his suspect! This is the latest update:


April 30, 2015

Let us take the next step and commence the unmasking process. . .

And that's it. Okay! Unmask already, dude!!!

Ugh...I've been checking this Quester person's page every few days. I want to hear about his suspect! This is the latest update:




And that's it. Okay! Unmask already, dude!!!
You can add him as a friend on Facebook. He updates that more regularly than he does the Quester page and has uploaded a photo of the man he believes to be EAR. However, he hasn't given any details or a name yet.

and the picture he posted of the suspect is gone :/ booo lol

No you're right. They found dog footprints that they concluded came from a dog with only 3 legs. It was at one of the murder sites I think...

The dog was supposed to be present at the two Goleta murder scenes. White German Shepherd with some deformity to a paw.

Wow, the only sketch I have ever seen was with the damn ski mask. Where have I been??!:eek:

I believe these are the sketches from the Maggiore murders, which may have been a separate incident.

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm241/portofleith-2008/miraloma_zps3278e6b2.jpg

Above is a copy of a newspaper article (I hope I did it right so all can see it!) from November 1977. It is the town hall meeting held at Mira Loma high school.

Detective Shelby said the man who spoke at the town hall meeting (she said the man was Italian) spoke out at a meeting in November of 1976, a completely different meeting. I forget the location of that meeting, but it doesn't matter, because the attack on the out-spoken man and his wife was in May of 1977, a full six months prior to the meeting held at Mira Loma HS, where the picture was confirmed to have been taken. Does this rule out that EAR was not in the picture? Nope! The brazen bastard may have been at this meeting as well...or none at all...or every single one of them. Doesn't look like we're going to know all the moving parts and pieces until the case is solved (if it ever is...fingers crossed that it will be!).

There seems to be a lot of "lore" with this case as well. For example, is there any confirmation of the supposed dog with three legs?
Or even thinking about what I just wrote above, the press made it sound like after the guy spoke out at the meeting like he and his wife were the next targets. Meanwhile, it was seven months later.
Another example is the supposed "challenge" that the press gave EAR by printing an article that says he only targets women living alone. In fact, the press made a mistake! They printed this article on April 15, 1977, but EAR's first attack on a couple was April 1, 1977. Because of this error, speculation began that EAR was "challenged" by this article, and that's why be began targeting couples....meanwhile, he'd already started that two weeks before any assumed "challenge" was ever presented. There's a lot of weird stuff with this case.

some of the lore comes from police statements. I remember one of the cops said in an interview that the next attack happened after the meeting but no attacks fit that chronology. The biggest lore I think is the belief that the attacker broke into houses ahead of time and movewd things around (in one case there was even a claim that he emptied a gun under a pillow and put it back then returned to the same house--which would seem very reckless)... once the manhunt started it seems very unlikely that the person would evade capture if he really was breaking in in known areas like La Riviera Drive. I think he selected one story houses so he could peek in the windows and know who was home rather than pre-stalk targets.

I first got interested in this case because someone I knew claimed the attacker broke into her home and stole her daughter's picture but never came back. It was on La Riviera. Since then I've heard many Sac people make similar claims. If they were all true then the cops were pretty incompetent which I do not think was the case.

Yeah, I hate to be mean about it, but this lame 'Golden State Killer' name smacks of an attempt by the author to 'own' the case. When they released some TON related audio under the GSK name all it did was confuse me. The main Original Night Stalker message board even added GSK to the url of their site, but in my opinion we shouldn't be dignifying the 'Golden State Killer' name in any way.

I have always thought the name Original Night Stalker, taken from an off the cuff comment from an OC cop, is a terrible (lame in my opinion) designation as it confuses people with the actual Night Stalker (who is much more famous) and with a wacky 1970s tv show (after which the NS was named). I prefer something like Bedroom Killer which I used on a website with all the articles from the Sac library and a master timeline. But all the names are somewhat confusing in addition to the ONS name being confusing on its own.

Also I have heard many times that someone was 99% sure they know who did it and the case will be broken within a (week, month, year) and nothing ever happens. Basically they don't have much to go on for a good suspect. DNA is only helpful if you have something to match it with (ie DNA with a name attached). And you'd have to find someone able to have committed the crimes by being able to be at the various locations during the time frames. You'd think that the locations are unique enough to narrow trhat down but apparently it has not been. So as long as the killer does not do something to get his name attached to DNA (like commit more crimes) he is going to be hard to catch. And he is probably not the creepy neighbor or he would have been caught long ago!

I always thought the attack on Janelle Cruz in 1986 was a weird outlier. All of his other known attacks were in the 70's and early 80's. His next to last attack was on Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez, and it was theorized that Mr. Sanchez managed to do some damage on him before he and his wife perished.

First of all it was not a Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez. It was a divorced lady (Domingo) and her ex-boyfriend (Sanchez) who was leaving the area the next day. The killer could not have known they were together that night in advance as it was an impromptu thing. Since it was near a previous attack he must have been surveilling the area in general and honed in on them.

Secondly, to me the two Irvine attacks (only several blocks apart but several years apart) Wittuhn and Cruz seem "outliers" or oddities compared to the rest of the series because they were single not couples attacks after many consecutive couples crimes. My theory is that the killer at the time lived in Irvine (the couple killed in Dana Point worked in Irvine FYI) and killed women alone there because he was trying to make his crimes resemble those of a then unsolved case in the area, "the Bedroom Basher."
The basher was on UM, I believe, and Cold Case Files. Those crimes are famous because a guy was falsely convicted of one of the basher crimes and spent years in jail until the real guy (who was in jail for other crimes) confessed. The guy's then wife was the main accusor (of course she had gotten bashed on the head). At the time of the Irvine crimes, the basher was in jail but no one knew it. The Irvine crimes were never linked to the basher but they were also never linked to each other until DNA came in. In the Wittuhn case the killer tried to make it look like a burglary.
Why the big time gap between two crimes committed nearby with the killer still in the area (apparently)? My theory is that the killer was frightened because in the previous crime (only recently linked by DNA) Sanchez had almost escaped and had to be shot to be subdued. Although no one responded to the late night noise in a residential neighborhood, the killer fled quickly, expecting a response. I think that stopped him for five years and the Cruz murder was him falling off the murder wagon one last time for some reason (there are many theries) before he finally stopped for good.

"the Bedroom Basher."
The basher was on UM, I believe, and Cold Case Files.

The Bedroom Basher was never profiled on UM.

Well, it looks like he found someone to help him.

That last update!!

I apologize if this has been mentioned before, but there's another new book about this case, called "Hunting A Psychopath" by Richard Shelby (presumably not the long-time Alabama senator). As of this moment, there are just 5 copies left on Amazon. It's a big'en at 476 pages.

The more I think about this case, the more I believe EAR is probably dead. Can't help but think that if he was still out there, his DNA would have surfaced in connection of a crime sometime in the past 30 years, but not a single murder or attack was linked to him after 1986, despite advances in DNA technology and all those linked to him prior to that. And I just can't see a guy like that stopping.

Of course, there were the threatening phone calls to victims in the early 90's, but even those ceased, I think 1991 was the last one. And its almost impossible to know for certain if that was actually the EAR.

Nothing is certain, if there is even a one in a million chance this SOB is still out there he needs to be brought to justice, and even if he is dead he still needs to be identified. But I sort of lean towards him being dead.

some of the lore comes from police statements. I remember one of the cops said in an interview that the next attack happened after the meeting but no attacks fit that chronology. The biggest lore I think is the belief that the attacker broke into houses ahead of time and movewd things around (in one case there was even a claim that he emptied a gun under a pillow and put it back then returned to the same house--which would seem very reckless)... once the manhunt started it seems very unlikely that the person would evade capture if he really was breaking in in known areas like La Riviera Drive. I think he selected one story houses so he could peek in the windows and know who was home rather than pre-stalk targets.

I first got interested in this case because someone I knew claimed the attacker broke into her home and stole her daughter's picture but never came back. It was on La Riviera. Since then I've heard many Sac people make similar claims. If they were all true then the cops were pretty incompetent which I do not think was the case.

I've dated a few women the last year above coincidently lived on La Riviera. I remember one night just starting out the window of this bedroom. It had to have been about 3am. There was a total stillness that just made it creepy to think that it was the usual time that EAR would strike. The fact it was the same neighborhood made it very tense. I remember leaving a little while later while it was still dark (6am in winter) and noticing most of the house had all their blonde and shades wide open. You could see everything in these people's homes. How much had changed in 37 years.
It must have been an "open season" for him to pick and choose at will.

I've dated a few women the last year above coincidently lived on La Riviera. I remember one night just starting out the window of this bedroom. It had to have been about 3am. There was a total stillness that just made it creepy to think that it was the usual time that EAR would strike. The fact it was the same neighborhood made it very tense. I remember leaving a little while later while it was still dark (6am in winter) and noticing most of the house had all their blonde and shades wide open. You could see everything in these people's homes. How much had changed in 37 years.
It must have been an "open season" for him to pick and choose at will.


I'm still in the process of reading through that guy's EAR / ONS website. So far I'm only up to 1978 due to the extreme detail of each attack. How was all this info (detailed descriptions of his clothing and dialogue during each of the many attacks) accessible? :eek: With all of the Rapes that were occurring in those suburbs from 1976-79 I surprised all residents didn't have their Houses locked up at night like Fort Knox! Yet this guy continued stalking and gaining access to his victims homes very easily by the sounds of things.

Great site, although it appears he was determined to define the 1970s and used the EAR cases as a launching pad for that summary.

The pictures are particularly valuable. I've been to Sacramento a few times, but always during unbearably hot summers and never spent more than a few days. I didn't grasp the layout of the communities until the photos, and with the very thoughtful captions below.

Very good segment on the Maggiores. I didn't realize they went the other direction from their normal dog walking route, and that the deadly encounter otherwise probably doesn't happen. I've never understood how the composites were so specific in that incident, if the chase occurred at roughly 9:15 or 9:30 PM. This is early February, hardly the long daylight of mid summer. Fleeting glances in the dark, possibly aided by staggered street lights. If the Maggiores recognized EAR it had to be within close quarters, perhaps called out by name.

The author loses me when he tries to identify the offender, and claims 99% certainty. That's always the problem with pursuits like this, wanting to pretend that simply because you've done more work than virtually anyone else, the reward will be the correct name. Sorry, buddy, your 99% is a massive longshot.

I can't get many of the links to work. Some seemingly work one day and not the next. And in some fashion I actually miss the invented dialogue from Sudden Terror. Maybe this author should have asked permission to include some of it, massaging a word or phrase here and there.

What is the over/under on how many times EAR shouted, "Shut up!" ?

I apologize if this has been mentioned before, but there's another new book about this case, called "Hunting A Psychopath" by Richard Shelby (presumably not the long-time Alabama senator). As of this moment, there are just 5 copies left on Amazon. It's a big'en at 476 pages.

Shelby was one of the Sacramento detectives. Famous for allegedly predicting where the next attack was going to be...

I sampled more of Quasar's site. Auto wrecking makes a heck of a lot of sense, far beyond any other version I've seen. Years ago I tired of the related A&E board largely because of all the preoccupation with military and/or real estate connection. That seemed sloppy and illogical, given the variables in play.

EAR had to have access to numerous vehicles. I've always been certain about that. Not 3 or 5 but a huge number and an ever-changing allotment. He's not worried about scanning neighborhoods at all hours of the day and night largely because the same vehicle won't be noticed and potentially described. It may look out of place but the next day there's a different version, if not a different version later the same day. That essentially cuts EAR's vulnerability in half. His lurkings on foot are subject to repeated notice but since he's rather standard at 5-9 and thin it links him with a major chunk of the population. The car is more problematic. And since it's not the same car as a day or week earlier, anyone suspicious about the kid concludes it's probably not the same guy.

Even if EAR's car is noticed with the tag number copied down and reported, EAR doesn't have normal danger along those lines since it's a stolen tag from another junkyard vehicle.

Constantly buying cars makes little sense, even if using cash to make the purchases more difficult to trace. The volume here is simply too high, and the offenses within a tight time frame.

The 99% estimate might not be as much of an exaggeration as I asserted yesterday. It can't be that high but if an individual fitting the age and geographical requirements can be found within that auto wrecking community, I'd say we're closer than ever before. Logically, EAR could not have been a low level employee. He'd need trusted access to the lot, and vehicles at his disposal. Family ownership indeed makes sense.

Quasar loves exhaustive detail. That can lead askew, as I've mentioned many times. He seldom varies his approach. In this case he can't let go of the auto wrecking angle, even when it's no longer nearly as relevant, like the Goleta episodes. EAR is not known in that area. He hasn't been a weekly or monthly terror, like Sacramento years earlier. Consequently he has far greater margin and room to vary his approach.

I sampled some of Quasar's other works. He seemingly investigates every major true crime case, like so many of the obsessive types with connections to Tom Voigt's Zodiac site. Perhaps Voigt snarled at them so dependably they decided to detour elsewhere to catch a brief breather. I'm not nearly as impressed with Quasar's work in other cases. For example, he dismisses the Kathleen Johns Zodiac incident due to fixation on the description of exactly where her car was located, and Johns' estimate of the offender's weight. Who the heck cares? That really has danger of a wrongful conclusion, as opposed to the big picture. I noticed Quasar has a planned segment devoted to D.B. Cooper. If he attaches his normal reliance on trivial matters like reported eye color, Quasar is a major candidate to wander everywhere and botch that conclusion as well, as opposed to merely aligning yourself with massive boring probability and Richard Floyd McCoy.

I wish the Quester Files guy good luck on his EAR suspect. But he completely lost me tonight when I read a blurb in his EAR segment regarding copycats and folklore. He's obviously going to make the D.B. Cooper case far beyond what it was, merely a first attempt by Richard Floyd McCoy that went wrong when he lost the vast majority of the cash during the jump.

There is a link to a future examination of the Cooper case on the Quester website. But he already hints to the absurdity of his examination in this paragraph on the EAR site:

"The only genuine individual “copycat” crimes, where a successful crime inspired a crime wave, are the kind like those skyjackings that followed D.B. Cooper’s success in 1971. A few other guys tried to get away with robbing airlines. Each was caught. None tried to make themselves appear to be D.B. Cooper. They were merely inspired by his success."

That is simply world class ignorance. But I suspected as much, given the obsessive detail that this guy prefers, as opposed to logical wide scope.

People who drive automobiles, that's an extremely large block. People who play golf, that's another huge number, although sadly declining. People who commit murder, that's a sharp, sharp decline, bordering on fractional but hardly unheard of. After all, there are widespread opportunities. People everywhere. Targets. Certain advantages, like darkness. People can fit inside buildings and cars. People can fit most anywhere. Lots of those places provide cover. Most of the variables can be identified beforehand.

Airplanes, that's another matter. Not nearly as many of them as people. Kind of an awkward target because you don't find airplanes on every street corner. A hijacker or skyjacker is mostly stuck with the prospect of invading the plane either at an airport, or in the sky after previously dealing with an airport.

None of this is ideal. I propose it's the reason we don't have a channel devoted exclusively to Skyjackers or Hijackers, as opposed to all those channels dealing with food or murder. Otherwise I'll bet the over on reruns.

So when one skyjacker case in history is somehow considered a mystery, the sample size of potential perpetrators is extraordinarily low, considering all the variables in play. The FBI doesn't seem to grasp this. They'll chase any absurd flimsy claim, like Duane Weber. I shouldn't even single that one out because others are equally ridiculous.

Not everything is going to fit, like recollection of eye color. To so many of these cyber sleuths, or even FBI agents, a detail like that somehow attains considerable weight when it should be nothing at all. The fact that McCoy pulled off a virtually identical crime months later is extraordinary evidence that he was Cooper, given the surreal burden of that type of crime.

If maybe 3 or 4 people in history are known to have seriously attempted it, and we have one "unsolved" example, I know where I'm looking first. Somehow the Creative Prosecutors and detectives of the world have no trouble looking first and foremost at immediate relatives and friends on every other case, but the closest kin to this type of crime is comfortably excluded. It would be laughable if it weren't so pathetic.

I would isolate McCoy even if I didn't know anything about that bizarre trip he took to Las Vegas from Provo in the wee hours preceding the Cooper event. Once you include that info, it's a lock, if you know anything about probability and aren't fixated on comparative trivia.

Quasar absurdly claims that McCoy, as one of the so-called copycats, didn't bother to emulate Cooper. McCoy obviously sensed that he took too many precautions during the Cooper event, including launching his day from a faraway airport, and jumping into the middle of nowhere. I don't doubt that he blamed losing the money during the first jump partially on all the bells and whistles he took toward deflection, losing focus on more important details, like how much that darn money would weigh, and how to secure it during a jump.

In the followup skyjacking, McCoy showed disdain for the authorities and FBI, concluding they were mostly blundering boobs. So he jumped nearly smack into his own backyard.

McCoy has mostly been proven correct in his assessment of FBI caliber during the subsequent 4+ decades after his death. I had to laugh tonight when somebody on this site proposed that the FBI was gaining ground on Brad Bishop, with new details that they haven't released. Just as likely, the FBI only recently found out about Facebook. "Family Annihilator" for Bishop's monicker is right up there with "Golden State Killer" for EAR.

Quasar no doubt will hyperventilate over every irrelevant Cooper detail and completely whiff the big picture, like so many before him.

I need to get back into the scheme of things on the Quester Files website, now that most of the links seem to be working again. For awhile, many of them weren't.

I just had a disturbing thought. The site mentions 49 attacks that have been attributed to ONS/EAR. The number of women alleging Bill Cosby of rape just surpassed the 50 mark. I have a terrible fear ONS/EAR could come out of "retirement" because he may view his mark as having been passed by somebody else. Or perhaps ONS/EAR may send some anonymous letters to authorities that would link him to more attacks, so he could "regain his lead." He seemed to get a lot of jollies off on the publicity and notoriety he was getting.

Then again, who knows how many women Cosby has raped. The number (sadly) just keeps rising with no end in sight. As Patton Oswalt said, he's probably raped hundreds of women. Having read about and seen interviews with several of the victims going into detail about the attacks, the whole thing is rather sickening. He's a pig, plain and simple.

What do you all think about the oddities associated with his voice? It's frequently reported that he whispered, but I can't imagine why he would feel the need to do this, since police very rarely do voice recognition tests, plus they'd have to round him up as a suspect first (which never happened because his DNA isn't on file anywhere).

The only thing I can think of was that several people mentioned his voice seemed high-pitched for a male, so perhaps he had a distinctive voice that would have been more noticeable.

The stuttering and stammering is also an interesting angle, though it's reported he frequently laid red herrings and this would almost certainly have to be one of them.

I read somewhere, I think it was the A & E boards, that there was some speculation he might be British. I have no idea if he is or not, but could that be another possible explanation for the stuttering? That he was trying so hard to sound American that he kept repeating syllables?

Perhaps that's a little far-fetched, but I think his voice might be an overlooked clue. It's also important to note he talked a lot more than necessary, often just repeating the same things over and over and mentioning a lot of unnecessary things.

At this point, I have read the 49 (!!) reports of rape and robbery (though I think I missed a few here and there due to links not working) and I have yet to read about the detailed reports when he started murdering in regular fashion (although the Maggiore murders had happened by this point, though that was almost certainly an outlier and an impromptu double homicide).

Anyways, one thing I noticed was that several of the reports mentioned he had drank Coors beer, and in one case had even brought it with him as the owner(s) didn't stock Coors beer in their house. Perhaps even more importantly, in the very last attack before he turned regular murderer, the man of the house surprised him by spotting him before he could do anything and noticed he wore a shirt that had lettering on it. He thought it said "CORN" although I really can't imagine anybody making or wearing a shirt like that. The author of the Quester Files website thought it may have actually said "COORS"

Normally, I might pass this off as being another red herring planted by ONS/EAR, but it can't be ignored that he turned regular murderer after this attack. It's also important to note that I believe this is the only known instance of a man getting any sort of look at him as ONS/EAR usually had the males tied up before they could even get out of bed.

Could this be somebody who worked for Coors?

Yet another nickname for him is the "Diamond Knot Killer", for his ability to tie the uncommon and complex Diamond Knot, also known as the Chinese Decorator Knot.

Definitely one of the saddest ones was the one where he raped the woman in her last night staying in the house (they had sold it). In fact, the attack happened at 4:30 and she had planned to leave for a flight an hour later to fly to their new home.

So I was watching an old Dateline on cable and it featured a police detective they called the "Evidence Whisperer" because he solved a 2001 murder in 2010 simply by looking at a picture a la Monk. It turned out it was Larry Montgomery, the now retired Irvine PD detective who was the lead on the last two "Original Night Stalker" (or as I call him the Bedroom Killer) murders. He is now the point man for the OC District Attorney's office on Cold Cases. I interviewed Larry a few years ago as part of a website I have on those cases. The reason I sought him out was because a poster on another message board had appeared on the anniversary of the last (1986) murder and in a series of posts claimed he was a friend of the last victim, tried to visit her before her body was discovered, was the son of a man who had murdered people but got away with it and had never been interviewed by the police. He also told a story about a suspicious man that the victim had met at a public pool. The message board went into an uproar about the incompetence of the police and the pool guy suspect. I had some personal e-mails with the guy whose e-mail was his name. So I sought out Larry who is reachable by the public through his new job in the DA's office. He was very friendly and quickly was able to cite the date and time in 1986 that the poster was interviewed, only a couple of days after the body was found. In the interview there was no mention of the pool guy. The interview transcript is online (google Bedroom Killer you'll find it). I also interviewed a retired FBI agent who broke up one of the Goleta crimes and chased the attacker who was riding on a stolen bike in the middle of the night. It was the closest anyone came to capturing the attacker in this spree. It is also online. Without new info I consider those crimes unsolvable which is why the Evidence Whisperer has not solved it-- the murderer was too clever at leaving minimal evidence (pretty much only his DNA which is not on any database).

It was sickening that the media blamed AC/DC, saying they inspired Richard Ramirez to kill many people.

I interviewed Larry a few years ago as part of a website I have on those cases. The reason I sought him out was because a poster on another message board had appeared on the anniversary of the last (1986) murder and in a series of posts claimed he was a friend of the last victim, tried to visit her before her body was discovered, was the son of a man who had murdered people but got away with it and had never been interviewed by the police. He also told a story about a suspicious man that the victim had met at a public pool. The message board went into an uproar about the incompetence of the police and the pool guy suspect. I had some personal e-mails with the guy whose e-mail was his name. So I sought out Larry who is reachable by the public through his new job in the DA's office. He was very friendly and quickly was able to cite the date and time in 1986 that the poster was interviewed, only a couple of days after the body was found. In the interview there was no mention of the pool guy. The interview transcript is online (google Bedroom Killer you'll find it). I also interviewed a retired FBI agent who broke up one of the Goleta crimes and chased the attacker who was riding on a stolen bike in the middle of the night. It was the closest anyone came to capturing the attacker in this spree. It is also online. Without new info I consider those crimes unsolvable which is why the Evidence Whisperer has not solved it-- the murderer was too clever at leaving minimal evidence (pretty much only his DNA which is not on any database).

Good work on the interviews jjmcgr. Taking an extra step like that is very valuable, as opposed to frantic rehash of all the stuff we already know. That's what drives me nuts on related message boards.

I remember the uproar on that A&E site. Unfortunately it became the norm.

I generally agree that this case is mostly unsolvable unless the perpetrator can be narrowed down to a limited profession or location. I'm not a believer in wild stabs at a specific name, which is generally the preferred mode. But if it can be whittled in half, and in half again, and again...and finally to a realm with a reasonable number of potentials, then maybe we've got a chance. That's why I perked up at the idea of auto wrecker, which makes more sense than anything else I've heard and can't involve thousands or even hundreds in that area at the given time.

I haven't looked at that guy's site in months. He lost a great deal of credibility with me with his DB Cooper sentences.

Good work on the interviews jjmcgr. Taking an extra step like that is very valuable, as opposed to frantic rehash of all the stuff we already know. That's what drives me nuts on related message boards.

I remember the uproar on that A&E site. Unfortunately it became the norm.

I generally agree that this case is mostly unsolvable unless the perpetrator can be narrowed down to a limited profession or location. I'm not a believer in wild stabs at a specific name, which is generally the preferred mode. But if it can be whittled in half, and in half again, and again...and finally to a realm with a reasonable number of potentials, then maybe we've got a chance. That's why I perked up at the idea of auto wrecker, which makes more sense than anything else I've heard and can't involve thousands or even hundreds in that area at the given time.

I haven't looked at that guy's site in months. He lost a great deal of credibility with me with his DB Cooper sentences.

The uproar on that old message board and the continual rehashes (I made a website specifically to minimize that but people don't like to read apparently) along with one self-righteous poster from Sacramento (who believed every rumor from his childhood) and a crazy lady (who sooner or later accused every male poster of being the killer) from Georgia and the seemingly unsolvable nature of the crimes drove me away along with attending night school.

My conclusions:

1. There was more than one EAR person in Sacramento (I think that one was a USAF member from the nearby airbase). One moved south and became a killer. The other (or at least one of the others) was sloppy and probably got caught in a related crime and went to prison or was killed. The Sac crimes were not linked by DNA and in some cases had really different MOs.

2. The Maggliore murders are somehow involved with the EAR crimes-- the victims were USAF and the murders took place very near the earliest EAR crimes at a time the EAR was still operating.

3. The killer tried to mislead the police so his crimes would not be linked by committing them over a wide geographical area and then copycatting the nearby Bedroom Basher crimes (which was a big deal there at the time and still then unsolved) in Irvine by killing singles instead of couples. He also made one look like a botched robbery. The two Irvine crimes were never linked until DNA came in some years later even though they happened blocks apart but they were also never linked to the Basher (who unknowingly was already in jail for a different crime).There is an outside chance that a late spree composite of the Basher from a botched crime in Irvine which looked nothing like the real Basher may have been the Bedroom Killer's first attempted crime in Irvine and may show what he looked like. That is on the Bedroom Killer website.

4. I think he lived in Irvine in 1986 and somehow was acquainted with the Dana Point victims, who worked or went to school in Irvine. Crimes 5 years apart were committed blocks apart and the killer seemed to know about the Bedroom Basher crimes from a year or two before his first murder there.

5. The killer did not want to get caught and elaborately planned his crimes to leave minimal evidence. He used as weapons things found at the crime scene. He attacked people who were often not found for days. The only evidence he left behind was DNA (he hadn't anticipated that this would link his crimes).

6. I think 5. is the main reason he stopped. I do not believe the theory that serial killers cannot stop. This is based on ones that were caught. And some of them like BTK and GRK had stopped. There are reasons to stop. Maybe a new clingy wife or a job with different hours. Or just getting old. I think this guy stopped because he didn't wanna get caught. If the Goletas are linked (supposedly they are by DNA now but there were no rapes there) the male victim in the last Goleta crime almost got away and this may have scared him. Then DNA came in and his future crimes would eventually be connected, providing a unique trail. The last murder after a 5 year gap may have been a relapse crime. Somehow he knew she'd be alone for an extended period. Also the victim was featured (including a picture) in the local newspaper in an article several months earlier.

7. I don't believe all the EAR Sacramento hype. The EAR did not scout out victims in the daytime and then come back (including taking bullets out of a gun under a pillow-- what a fantastic story that is!). If this were the case, how did the police not catch him once the crimes became a big deal? Crimes were committed on the same streets and general areas long after the hype started. Barney Fife could have caught him if he were casing houses in the daytime. There is a reason the attacks were all in one story houses (one was two stories but there was an embankment in the back that placed the second floor at ground level)... so he could peek in before bedtime and see who was there. In one case the attacker didn't even realize the man did not live there and had to stop him and his GF in the driveway as he was leaving.

Now can it be solved? How many guys lived or worked in succession in Sacramento, near SF, Goleta then Irvine in the time period? It cannot be that many. I don't believe the killer drove hundreds of miles to commit his crimes. In the pre-digital age it might be hard to track. Larry Montgomery should be following that trail, get a list, DNA them and go. Back to the Future day was yesterday... soon it will be 30 years after the last Bedroom Killer murder. Go Larry Go! catch him before the Reaper does.

we can't really tell the guy's profession from the crimes except he seemingly does not work all night on a regular basis.

but here are my guesses. Rancho Cordova was an Air Force bedroom community. good likelihood he was serving when he started. When people get out of the service they usually move back to where they came from which makes the So Cal OC area probable. They had the good GI Bill back then so it is possible he went back to school or went to OC for school. He may have hung around the Bay Area first for a while and got a temp job in Goleta first. Maybe he was studying something at UCal Irvine as one of the Dana Point victims worked there.
Dana Point is a bit of an anomaly as the victims lived in a guarded gated community. It seems the killer would not have sought out victims randomly in such a location unless he had somehow preselected them but not in a way in which he became an obvious suspect. While Larry Montgomery can track the trail of the crimes he could also recheck all the associates of the DP victims no matter how loosely, starting with where the woman worked or hung out (since he was a rapist that's a good place to start). Maybe there will be a name on both lists. If it were a tv crime show the name would pop up at the 50 minute mark! We are reaching the 29 year mark.

we can't really tell the guy's profession from the crimes except he seemingly does not work all night on a regular basis.

but here are my guesses. Rancho Cordova was an Air Force bedroom community. good likelihood he was serving when he started. When people get out of the service they usually move back to where they came from which makes the So Cal OC area probable. They had the good GI Bill back then so it is possible he went back to school or went to OC for school. He may have hung around the Bay Area first for a while and got a temp job in Goleta first. Maybe he was studying something at UCal Irvine as one of the Dana Point victims worked there.
Dana Point is a bit of an anomaly as the victims lived in a guarded gated community. It seems the killer would not have sought out victims randomly in such a location unless he had somehow preselected them but not in a way in which he became an obvious suspect. While Larry Montgomery can track the trail of the crimes he could also recheck all the associates of the DP victims no matter how loosely, starting with where the woman worked or hung out (since he was a rapist that's a good place to start). Maybe there will be a name on both lists. If it were a tv crime show the name would pop up at the 50 minute mark! We are reaching the 29 year mark.
I always suspected the air force connection.

I just wanted to say that in my current job I talk to people all over the country via phone. Occasionally I will happen to get someone from Rancho Cordova, or Stockton, or Modesto, and I'm always tempted to ask if they know anything about EAR/ONS. (Though I don't, obviously.)

I just wanted to say that in my current job I talk to people all over the country via phone. Occasionally I will happen to get someone from Rancho Cordova, or Stockton, or Modesto, and I'm always tempted to ask if they know anything about EAR/ONS. (Though I don't, obviously.)

Just hearing the names of those places sends a chill up my spine!

Try living in Sac. This may be tmi, but I went out with two women who lived on La Rivera. One was in the apartments next to the townhouses he struck and the other was a home a block over closer to the college. The house was the creepiest because of how long the window was in the master bedroom. I remember laying awake staring up through the window just waiting to see his face appear.



That was scary.

Try living in Sac. This may be tmi, but I went out with two women who lived on La Rivera. One was in the apartments next to the townhouses he struck and the other was a home a block over closer to the college. The house was the creepiest because of how long the window was in the master bedroom. I remember laying awake staring up through the window just waiting to see his face appear.

That was scary.


The woman who introduced me to this case lived on La Riviera during the spree and thought the EAR had broken into her house and stole her daughter's picture (later I learned many SAC people held such beliefs making most improbable with the rapist(s) never being caught. [BTW there were a lot of rapes in SAC in the 1970s! The solved ones were removed from the EAR list]). The cops staked out her house but no EAR. There were EAR crimes several blocks away on La Riviera on both sides of her house. She then moved to county land in Arden near the HS where they had one of the meetings about the crime near the end of the spree. There were EAR crimes all around her new residence as well, including one where a car was sighted. The reason she told me about the crimes was because this was during the time when the DNA link between the later murders was in the news. I figured I'd read the book on the case but there was no book (and the ones that have come out since have been disappointing although I haven't read Shelby's yet.) so I ended up researching the case. Cold Case Files then did an episode that produced a message board that recycled the same kind of questions every time the show was rerun. Because of that I created a website with all the info on the case I had accumulated. Since I have never actually been to Sacramento, the site lacks the mythos of a 1970s SAC resident but tries to look at things logically. The biggest thing on the site is a master timeline. But there are also unique interviews with several key individuals and what may be a real but often ignored composite of the Irvine killer from a failed attack then attributed to the Bedroom Basher which looked nothing like the actual Basher. The killer attacked couples except in Irvine, making it seem he may have been copycatting the Basher who did not attack couples.
Recently someone else has started blogging about this case under the name Golden State Killer (probably preluding a book). The website I created but haven't updated in a long time can be found by googling Bedroom Killer if anyone is interested.

You should update the sight with the latest breaking info, JJMCGRR

The woman who introduced me to this case lived on La Riviera during the spree and thought the EAR had broken into her house and stole her daughter's picture (later I learned many SAC people held such beliefs making most improbable with the rapist(s) never being caught. [BTW there were a lot of rapes in SAC in the 1970s! The solved ones were removed from the EAR list]). The cops staked out her house but no EAR. There were EAR crimes several blocks away on La Riviera on both sides of her house. She then moved to county land in Arden near the HS where they had one of the meetings about the crime near the end of the spree. There were EAR crimes all around her new residence as well, including one where a car was sighted. The reason she told me about the crimes was because this was during the time when the DNA link between the later murders was in the news. I figured I'd read the book on the case but there was no book (and the ones that have come out since have been disappointing although I haven't read Shelby's yet.) so I ended up researching the case. Cold Case Files then did an episode that produced a message board that recycled the same kind of questions every time the show was rerun. Because of that I created a website with all the info on the case I had accumulated. Since I have never actually been to Sacramento, the site lacks the mythos of a 1970s SAC resident but tries to look at things logically. The biggest thing on the site is a master timeline. But there are also unique interviews with several key individuals and what may be a real but often ignored composite of the Irvine killer from a failed attack then attributed to the Bedroom Basher which looked nothing like the actual Basher. The killer attacked couples except in Irvine, making it seem he may have been copycatting the Basher who did not attack couples.
Recently someone else has started blogging about this case under the name Golden State Killer (probably preluding a book). The website I created but haven't updated in a long time can be found by googling Bedroom Killer if anyone is interested.


I used to talk to the residents of a complex I managed on Sunrise in Citrus Heights. The older ones remembered it and I remember I had a resident who matched the description of EAR. He lived in Citrus Heights during the time frame, was slim, 5'9", a runner, and even moved down south in the 80's the same time EAR did. I remember that even though he was a grown man in his 50's, his parents were still very much involved in his daily life. To the point of overbearing and he was dependent on them. I did report him as a POI, but nothing came from it.

whoa. That's some interesting and scary stuff, charlie99909.

I consider this to be the definitive website on ONS/EAR, and I know a lot of people would agree with me.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/the_night_predator_--_case_of_.html

I consider this to be the definitive website on ONS/EAR, and I know a lot of people would agree with me.

http://www.thequesterfiles.com/the_night_predator_--_case_of_.html


Yes I have to agree with you on that one. The amount of detail covered in each case plus all of the photographs of the area where he struck is mind boggling!

I used to talk to the residents of a complex I managed on Sunrise in Citrus Heights. The older ones remembered it and I remember I had a resident who matched the description of EAR. He lived in Citrus Heights during the time frame, was slim, 5'9", a runner, and even moved down south in the 80's the same time EAR did. I remember that even though he was a grown man in his 50's, his parents were still very much involved in his daily life. To the point of overbearing and he was dependent on them. I did report him as a POI, but nothing came from it.

near Sunrise there were several crimes in the spree (like on Primrose at Farmgate) and many sightings of a prowler that matched the general description you gave. But ultimately none panned out.

about halfway through Shelby's book.
Several interesting points.
First, Shelby presents as factual the "kitten man" story from the last murder when its claimant is unreliable (the person claimed 20 years later not to have been interviewed by the cops when records show he was interviewed within days of the crime and said nothing about a kitten man and he also claimed his father was a murderer who was never caught). This brings into question the accuracy of other things he presents.
Secondly many of the accounts of the crimes are presented anecdotally which is good. Apparently there was a lot of prowling and sightings of strange cars, strange phone calls and strange men in the neighborhoods but nobody reported them until the police went door-to-door. Also some people found a gym bag in one of their bushes which contained a ski mask, a flashlight and shoelaces. They did call the cops. They were told to throw the bag away. A couple of days later there was a crime committed around the corner.
Many missed opportunities.
Also in SAC at the time if you did not have an alarm system the guy would managed to get in somehow one way or another. And he'd cut the phone line so you couldn't call out. And dogs did not deter him.

The San Jose Mercury ran an article the other day about EAR, and how LE is getting a group of blind people to listen to the voice recording of the EAR. The idea is that people who are blind or are visually impaired use their ears more acutely, their hearing is heightened, and therefore they might be able have some insight on the background noises....they might be able to pick up on something that a regular ear cannot. Interesting idea.

Over the last few years there have been a bunch of claims that the case has been solved. There are many clips on YouTube with these claims. The amazing thing is that they are al different and all except the most recent have not panned out.

A few years ago I received e-mail telling me the case would be solved by the end of the year (it was 2010 or 2011). Like the Mayan doomsday, nothing happened.

Ex LE SAC guys (Shelby and Oase) apparently had a 99% suspect who was in the medical field...nothing came of it though both (according to Shelby) were being stalked, apparently by suspects who did not match the EAR DNA.

Santa Barbara authorities had a lead in the construction/ painting industry with links to both Goleta and Sacramento that got everyone excited. I got a few e-mails about it even though I have been out of the mainstream EAR online "investigation" for several years. (It's obsessive and repetitious).

The latest is Gian Quasar, a SAC area guy who went all in on investigating the case only a few years ago. He has a 99% solution of a suspect in the auto wrecking industry. Quasar's reasoning is the most comprehensive I've seen, covering almost all the bases, particularly the angle that many different strange cars were seen near the crime scenes. However, there are a few weaknesses. His suspect was very young when he started. Even though the first crimes were right outside a large Air Force base, there is no military connection, although the criminal does seem to have some such connection (not via any "special" skills or athleticism but rather through comments he made and the locations of the crimes-- the earliest was just outside a large AF base, the later ones near two Marine air bases, the only murders in Sac involved an AF guy, and his relocations seem like they could match terms of military service). He doesn't really account for some of the differences in witness descriptions of the attacker (not hair). He believes the perp drove in to prowl and commit his crimes, which to me seems unlikely. (Why not prowl nearby?) And he is very vague about his suspect being in So Cal for an extended period.
Nevertheless, the Quasar suspect, who he believes had a sidekick of sorts who is still alive, seems pretty viable. Time will tell if it will pan out. But what is somewhat amazing is that different people can look at the same evidence, including retired and active LE professionals, as well as amateurs with (apparently) a lot of time on their hands and some sort of independent income, come up with different solutions.

This just shows that when someone kills strangers without any apparent motive, they can be very hard to catch. but the killer seemingly did have personal connections to two sets of victims. The Maggiores who were chased and killed in Rancho Cordova seemingly "had to die" because they somehow knew the shooter. (Quasar uses this case extensively and claims Maggiore knew his suspect although it seems unlikely from the hints given about his suspect). And the Harringtons in Dana Point were odd victims. They lived in a gated community and worked 25 miles away in Irvine where there were two later murders. Why would a prowler select victims in a gated community with its own security force? Seems like they were targeted and that Irvine might be where. I wonder if the janitor where Mrs. Harrington worked was ever checked out?

I think the Irvine connection has been downplayed by recent POI hunters.
Irvine is important for several points.
First the hardest attack in terms of difficulty was the Dana Point attack which was in a guarded gated community. The killer's attacks were increasing in difficulty up to this point. His previous two attacks in Goleta had been failures. In one the victims got away and the attacker had to flee on a bicycle while being pursued. In the next one the killer had to shoot the victims as the male victim had to be shot as he lunged at the killer and again he had to flee on a bike. The next event was the murders of a couple in a gated community in Dana Point. The very next crime was committed in a single woman being killed in Irvine. Both Dana Point victims spent their weekdays in Irvine. The next crime was a semi-botched one back in Goleta. And then, after five years the final murder was of a lone woman in a house in Irvine only blocks away from the previous attack.

I think these attacks indicate the killer was living in Irvine during that period.

First off he chose to attack in a gated community 25 miles away. The guy had the whole world to pick his victims from and chose victims in a guarded place with no real place to stash his car. That he thought he could succeed at this in a place where he really could not prowl around ahead of time is odd. This, at least to me, implies that the victims in this case had some previous connection to him. they were preselected meaning no prowling was necessary. All he had to do was follow them. Even if the security gate stopped him, then all he had to do was come back the next time and then on foot wait for their arrival and follow that way to figure out where they lived. Then he could come back and commit the crime on a weekend where the bodies would not be discovered for days. Since the vicitms were in Irvine, this implies the meeting with the killer, no matter how obscure it was, probably took place in Irvine.
The two attacks on women by themselves in Irvine not only also implies that but shows a knowledge of the news from the area. In the years before the first Irvine murder the area was abuzz with the activities of another killer, the Bedroom Basher, who attacked women by themselves in their houses. By the time of the Dana Point attack the Basher hysteria was over. The crimes of the Basher were really only a local story. I think the murderer only attacked singles in Irvine, a step back in the difficulty level of his crimes to not get them connected to his couples murders and to get them blames on the Basher. At the time the real Basher was in jail but no one knew it and the crimes were still unsolved.
Also when Dana Point happened, it was immediately connected to the Goleta crimes in news stories. I think the perp deliberately went back to Goleta, where he apparently used to live or temporarily work, for one last attempt at rape/murder to draw attention away from Dana Point.
five years later he strikes again for the final time in Irvine. Again it is a single and again he had the whole world in which to strike but chose to do so only blocks away from the previous attack. This apparent "off the wagon" attack is interesting. The victim was in the local newspaper with a feature story that included her picture. If the killer was now a local he could have seen the picture and then selected her as a victim. He probably had to wait for whatever restriction he seemingly now had (like an attentive wife or boss or his own trepidation at falling off the murder wagon) to be lifted so he could strike.
therefore for a suspect I'd be looking at someone who lived in Irvine for some time and hhad some, probably obscure, connection to the Harringtons (the DP victims). The person would also have had to formerly lived in Sacramento and had reason to be in Santa Barbara/Ventura County on a temporary basis a few years before. He could work in the medical (best for a connection with the Harringtons), real estate or car junking fields if they fit the above criteria. During the five year gap in 1983 Irvine was plagued by a rash of rapes that had the city on edge. Some were solved but not all and at least some of these crimes match the EAR MO to some extent and some the general EAR description. Maybe the killer tapered off (reverting to rape- something the Boston Strangler did) rather than completely stopping all at once. In any event, I think Irvine is the key to solving this case.

Love hearing your perspective on the case jjmcgr. Why do you think he stopped?

Love hearing your perspective on the case jjmcgr. Why do you think he stopped?

in general terms when he was committing his crimes he was not being watched closely by anyone but later on someone in his life (boss, wife, roommate, new career) was. But a second reason could be that he really did not want to get caught and this desire eventually overrode the urge to commit the crimes. He may have felt he was getting too old to successfully pull off the crimes. The three Goleta attacks probably rocked his confidence. In the first the victims fought back and he was chased. in the second and third he had to use his gun as the male victim escaped or surprised him. He was lucky because neighbors did not pay attention to the gun shots in both cases. He disguised his Irvine attacks by not attacking couples. if the attacks were linked to the series in real time, the cops might have started checking everyone in town who used to live in Sacramento. While today it is hard to do so, at the time maybe just checking drivers license addresses would have been enough. He may have not completely shut down for 5 years. He may have tapered off because there were a lot of rapes in Irvine in 1983. Several matched the EAR MO and description and were never solved. The last murder seems like a final reversion to type. The victim may have presented too juicy a target. She, Janelle Cruz, was in a local newspaper story several months before that portrayed her as a formerly troubled teen who was starting to get it together (it was an article on the Jobcorps) and had a picture of Cruz. Whatever restriction the killer was under was temporarily lifted at the time (wife away, vacation, between jobs) so he was able to purse the crime. He probably interjected himself in passing into Cruz's life after seeing the article like hanging out wherever she worked and then following her home to figure out where she lived. Some other guy confessed to the Cruz crime so the time the cops wasted figuring out it was not him left the real killer time and space to revert back to his now non-murderous lifestyle.
Of course he could have been in jail for another unconnected crime but this seems unlikely because there has been no DNA match and no snitch has come forward claiming his cellmate told him about the crimes.

Quasar's suspect supposedly "went south" for a while then returned to Sacramento and started a new career as a security guard (a good choice for a prowler) in 1989, got hurt on the job in 1995 and died in 2007. Many researchers have a Sacramento-centric approach understandably, but I think the last place the guy was, Irvine, is at least as important.

I could be way off as have been most of the recent suspect claims but whatever the true solution is, I am sure it will prove to be simpler than anyone thinks now (Occam's Razor is always effect).

I just hope the sob is in the grave

* Yeah, the 99% stuff is comical. I've emphasized that countless times. People have a very poor grasp of true probability, to the point it's very rare to meet someone who does. I used to bet politics heavily until Nate Silver ruined it. It was like stealing. The oddsmakers used to treat a 2 or 3 point polling advantage the same as a 2 to 3 point favorite in a football game, as a minor theoretical edge. It was like they were stupid enough to use the same chart as sports, with a 2 point edge -135 favoritism ($135 to win $100) and 3 point at -155 or thereabouts. Hilarious. Now I wish I had been far more greedy when those odds existed. Silver demonstrated that small polling edges in general elections are exponentially more meaningful and reliable. I had posted that for years and years on political sites but didn't have the fancy math that he owns.

* When you follow something all year long or for a very long time there's a natural tendency to need to justify it. That's where the 99% dunces falter. They've spent months and months, if not years, so it must be 99% now that it's apparently come together. It's like when I used to follow horse racing all year long. I had to justify those obscure December races at obscure tracks as more significant than they actually were. Therefore the horses who emerged from those races were special, and worthy of being followed. No they weren't. They were glorified claimers.

* I do like a couple of things about Quasar's research and suspect. I've always believed the perpetrator was very young. My estimate was age 17 or 18 in 1976. I remember posting that on the A&E board in my first post. Gosh that's probably been more than a decade ago. I didn't post often there, primarily because there was one local who acted like he ran the place, often mocking any opinion he disagreed with, with a theme that if you weren't from Sacramento and didn't live there simultaneous with the crime wave then you couldn't possibly know anything or contribute anything. I can't remember his user name but I know his mother died, then he passed away himself within a couple of years.

I concluded EAR had to be very young based on accounts of his running and jumping prowess. My friends and I played high level outdoor pickup basketball and football games for nearly a decade, through high school. Then years later when many of us were back home briefly after college we attempted it again. It was almost laughable. We thought we were in shape, until the local kids who were our previous age joined those games. They were like jackrabbits, running circles around us. Only then did I grasp the gap between age 17 and 23-25 when you're not a dedicated athlete. The youngsters owned all the natural advantages.

That was EAR in the early years. I'm not surprised that the one time he stopped in his tracks and seemed to concede that a pursuer was every bit his equal was when the teenager was chasing him. EAR waited on the other side of the fence and shot the kid in the stomach as the kid vaulted the fence. Fortunately he survived.

* Also, the military assumption is plain sloppy. That was another point I made in my initial A&E post. Who cares if Sacramento has greater military presence and connections than the typical city, or that EAR supposedly made some related remarks? It still doesn't boost you anywhere close to 50/50 likelihood.

Check out this link: http://zipatlas.com/us/ca/sacramento/zip-code-comparison/percentage-military-population.htm

Even if you assign greater percentage 40 years ago, and then Happy Adjust to bizarre proportion, you still don't threaten a high percentage. It would be like the vote percentages of the political candidates who have already dropped out of the race. People of EAR's general age are roughly 75% likely to have some family member who served in the military at some point, but after the draft was eliminated in 1973 the likelihood of the person himself serving dropped sharply and has continued to decline.

Besides, there was no guarantee EAR was from Sacramento or lived in Sacramento. Merely that he chose to commit rapes there. I appreciate that about Quasar's research.

* Once EAR trended south and became a killer I doubt he was as concerned about escape routes or gated communities or whatever. He was older and wasn't going to challenge himself physically, not like earlier. Even if he didn't have that intention from the outset then Goleta 1 was a jarring convincer. Unlike Sacramento he also wasn't in the news to the degree that people were on nightly concern of an intruder.

* I'm convinced serial killers can and do stop, contrary to conventional wisdom and detective babble. That was a point I made here after an experience in Las Vegas with an oldtime gambler. He no longer bet sports but loved to make the rounds, like previously. He wrote down all the lines at every spot and then sat down in the sportsbook every night to root in his "mind bets." For a few weeks I allowed that guy to tag along with me, because he was discouraged that he could no longer walk the Strip every afternoon like in his prime. I drove him around until he started trying to dictate my route, which was not the same as his own. Sorry, pal. Mind bettors can't be choosers.

I don't doubt that EAR and other aging serial killers have undertaken the research on victims and opportunities but don't go through with it, understanding the risk level as opposed to previously

* Keep in mind that prosecutors and detectives deal with crime and criminals every day. They see everybody involved in every new case as the potential culprit. That's partially why they have no trouble standing up there and arguing overwhelming guilt, even if the case has languished in doubt in their jurisdiction for a decade or more. People who dream up these murders of a family member or colleague are similarly fixated on crime and murder. Heck, we see it all day and night on television. Why would the authorities suspect me, when it's going on everywhere and they have so many cases to deal with? This case will be #94 on the list, like the IRS approving a $20 refund.

Meanwhile, murder is very rare. Those crime shows exist because they have the entire country and entire world to draw from, and any semi-recent time frame. Every time I watch one of these cases with a family member and particularly a spouse as the obvious guilty party I have to chuckle at how stupid they were. Nope, that scope won't include me.

Quasar is astute when he points out that the "unsuspected" get away with it, or are more likely to. If somebody had to get away with a major crime they'd be moronic to choose somebody who they had any connection with, regardless of how minor. Luckily the hit and run stranger crimes are now solved far more frequently than before due to DNA hits, even if it requires years or decades.

Quasar's site is very good but his pictures and maps are hard to follow (and his YouTube videos) because they are not annotated. He seemingly presumes readers an on-the-ground knowledge we (I've never been to Sac and only have a map knowledge of the geography) do not possess.

Quasar's research is very good and his theory accounts for a lot of the known facts (or clues as he calls them). It is interesting that many others have done similar excellent research but come up with completely different theories. That's why I'd emphasize time and place (someone who could have committed the crimes, starting with Irvine.) We don't know what we don't know. Maybe those odd cars seen were all coincidences or someone who had business there.
I think the downtown jobs, medical and real estate aspects may be red herrings. In a heavily populated place you'd expect many people to work downtown. That's one of the reasons the place is heavily populated. And a lot of people have medical jobs in places where a lot of people live. There was a population boom at the time so of course many houses will be for sale. Of course the attacker could have used open houses as a recon technique. Both Shelby and Quasar present odd events. Shelby usually says "I don't know if this was ever pursued" and let's it go and Quasar generally discounts things that don't fall under his theory, apparently believing in coincidence selectively.

I don't think the attacker was as young as you guys think because the attacker seemed to have a level of knowledge and ability from the start that I don't think a 17 yo could possess. He also seems totally unwatched by anyone most of the time. The killer was equally as athletic in his later attacks as he was in the earliest ones. In the first Irvine attack (when he could not possibly be 17-18), he jumped the fence over the backyard both coming and going even though he seemingly did not have to. I think the guy just kept himself in good shape (a possible military indicator but not necessarily so)I also think the killer lived or worked nearby, particularly in the earliest crimes, because it is convenient, particularly if you want to spend hours prowling both at day and night. He may have been from Sac or been in the AF there but I think he ended up in Irvine, at least for an extended period. I think the military connection is possible mostly because the first attacks were virtually just outside the gate of Mather AFB. And the Maggiores were killed in that same neighborhood and he was in the AF. And his unit later had a criminal drug bust after his murder. The EAR never did anything that I think indicated "military training" IMO.

I just reread all the articles on the Dana Point murders (as you know I think Irvine is key). The Harringtons both were at the University of California at Irvine (UCI) for a long time. Mrs. Harrington worked there as nurse but at the time of the murders was working as a private nurse. A resident of the gated community remarked that there was no reported prowling or other oddball events typically seen elsewhere at the place before the murders.

I wonder if they checked students and employees at UCI for a Sacramento connection. If the perp was in the AF previously, he'd have been eligible for the good GI Bill. If they did check it probably wasn't until the DNA kicked in which would have made it harder. I just think the attack location would not be chosen at random when there were many unguarded subdivisions out there. Like Katie, the Harringtons "had" to die.

The reason these crimes are hard to solve is not because the suspect is unlikely. It's because when someone kills a stranger with no motive other than to commit the crime, all suspects are unlikely.

Just hearing the names of those places sends a chill up my spine!

I've never been to Sacramento but I listen to a podcast (the Don Geronimo Show) from there. The show originates from Auburn and Madison, a site at which Quasar claims his main POI worked at back in the day (it is a strip mall now but was some kind of car towing business then). And they often mention places familiar from the case files: Rancho Cordova, Orangevale, Citrus Heights, Carmichael. And one of the EAR clusters was about a half mile east down Madison.

The reason I listen to Don has nothing to do with Sacramento FYI. I used to listen to his radio show in Washington, DC when I lived there. I was listening to him on 11 September 2001. It was very popular. He quit the show after his wife got killed in a car crash (she called into the show frequently) and eventually got a new wife and went back on the radio. He ended up in Sacramento because the DC show had been syndicated there and was very popular so they offered him a new radio show. Eventually he got fired and started a podcast that is on every morning. I keep hoping they'll have someone like Quasar, Shelby or Oase on the show but it is probably too shock jock-ish to do such a serious story. Nevertheless they are always looking for guests so maybe I'll drop them a line. The Shelby spiderman story would probably be something they'd like.

ps a 9/11 anecdote... at the time where I worked was right across the river from the airport. planes were always flying over because of the restrictions on flying over the white house and capitol. the planes basically had to sharply bank to the left or right after takeoff. we were to the right. that morning the sky was empty except for the smoke from the pentagon and there were rumors that another plane was in the air heading our way. we knew if they shot it down they wouldn't care if it landed at fort mcnair (where I worked). I had taken the subway that day and on the way home it was rerouted not to cross the Potomac river bridge and it drove right through the pentagon station without stopping. the next day security checks at the gate took a half hour. then came the anthrax scare which affected the post office we got our mail from and the dc snipers (they shot a woman in the home depot parking lot next to the barnes and noble I always went to). crazy times.

Cold Case Files then did an episode that produced a message board that recycled the same kind of questions every time the show was rerun.

a message board which, hilariously, you still have linked to on your website.

a message board which, hilariously, you still have linked to on your website.
not really... everytime it goes trolls-up the people use the message board as a backup (which is why it was created in the first place) although one of the posters has recently created their own which they moderate so that doesn't happen as much anymore. The AETV board is a gateway to the case and the old threads are of value. The problem is that people new to the case (it is advertised every time the episode is rerun) do not read the old threads and ask the same questions over and over.

Very sad. Michelle McNamara died in her sleep two nights ago, completely unexpected and only age 46.

She injected new energy and focus onto the EAR-ONS case a few years ago, and was responsible for the new monicker Golden State Killer that has a very active message board under that title.

McNamara also had a book on the case that is reportedly finished and scheduled to be released soon. I think it's called "Bird With a Broken Wing" and focuses on the final known victim, Janelle Cruz.

Yesterday, perhaps coinciding with the news of McNamara's death, somebody posted a series of interviews with her on the prominent video site, under that title, "Bird With a Broken Wing."

Quite shocking, especially just a couple of weeks after the death of jjmcgr, who also contributed significantly to the EAR-ONS discussion. When I looked for this thread to post the news I was jolted that the most recent post was from jjmcgr, about two weeks prior to his death.

RIP

Very sad. Michelle McNamara died in her sleep two nights ago, completely unexpected and only age 46.
I am in shock over Michelle's death. Most of the public only know her as Patton Oswalt's wife, but in our circle she was known as an intelligent, talented writer who gave new life to many cold and overlooked cases. She was kind enough to correspond with me a few times about cases and theories, and her valuable insight will be missed. I've followed TrueCrimeDiary.com for many years and have been waiting on the edge of my seat for her book to come out. I'm so very sad for her husband and young daughter. RIP.

jjmcgr has passed away? :(

jjmcgr has passed away? :(

Yes, about a month ago. Very sudden. I read on another forum that it was a stroke.

His son also posts here and started a thread a day or two after the death.

I am in shock over Michelle's death. Most of the public only know her as Patton Oswalt's wife, but in our circle she was known as an intelligent, talented writer who gave new life to many cold and overlooked cases. She was kind enough to correspond with me a few times about cases and theories, and her valuable insight will be missed. I've followed TrueCrimeDiary.com for many years and have been waiting on the edge of my seat for her book to come out. I'm so very sad for her husband and young daughter. RIP.

Thank you. That's what I've gathered about Michelle from sampling various sites, that she really respected the true crime forums and exchanged ideas with many posters.

The scope she had was very rare, since she also communicated with detectives who recognized her contributions and shared material that others had no chance to access.

This really is a huge loss, perhaps the most shocking death at a young age since I started following true crime decades ago. Michelle began on this case but had branched out to many other obscure ones that deserved focus and a solution. She was just getting started. That's the tragedy. She found her niche, to go along with her husband's thriving career. I saw a post on another forum that said he thought Michelle would still be alive and contributing 30 years from now. That's exactly how I felt.