General True Crime Shows

[Josette]

If the Golden State Killer died, presumably, his death would be after April 6, 2001 since that is the date of the last phone call attributed to him.

[cooksdelight]

Hell, he could have retired with a dog, joined the local church and blended into the background for all we know.

[bubbls]

Someone elsewhere mentioned he could’ve been killed by an armed homeowner during a break-in and nobody connected it. I think that’s highly likely. What he was doing was incredibly risky. His luck was bound to run out, especially as he got older and possibly developed a normal life ( or got into drugs or alcohol) thereby investing less attention to detail regarding his prowling and casing. 

Edited March 10, 2018 by bubbls

[KellsBells]

On 3/8/2018 at 4:13 PM, ridethemaverick said:

Re: last night's See No Evil

The detective was all shocked because this seemingly harmless little old lady committed a murder but I was more shocked that this little old lady was cruising and picking up a random young stranger for hotel sex. Not knocking it, just didn't see it coming LOL.

Haha! I just watched that yesterday morning and had the same thought. A 65-year-old woman picking up young black men for sex? And he said they "spent several days" in the motel, so there's that. Talk about your cougar...

Edited March 11, 2018 by KellsBells

[Yokosmom]

Quote

So, I think they said they ran his DNA to even check for relatives that may have been arrested, but found none.  They think he comes from an upstanding family.   I'm leaning toward something in construction or development planning.

They didn't mention it, but it was the brother of one of the male victims that pushed for a statewide DNA search to find the killer.  It was Harrington's brother.

 In 2004, California voters passed an initiative, bankrolled by the brother of one of his victims, that mandates collection of DNA samples from people convicted — or even arrested — in felony cases.

Hopefully, the link will work: http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-dna-night-stalker-20160615-snap-story.html  I think that they collected DNA before that, but perhaps only for sex crimes?  

I've sort of followed this case for a while.  The biggest shocker for me was that the real estate company employee identified the location on the map and that it was her house that was blacked out.  I'm assuming that he is the one that burglarized the place.  Perhaps he was planning on coming back until he lost the map?  I think that he was tied into the real estate/architecture business, but development planning is a very good possibility too.

Re the 5 year break between the penultimate and the last known victims.  Gary Ridgeway stopped killing for a while for two reasons--one, things were starting to get a little too hot for him, but also 2, he married a woman who made him the center of her world and didn't set off any misogynistic bells inside him.  In other words, he was somewhat content for a while.  But it didn't last for him, either.  Perhaps something happened in the GSK's life that made him, for lack of a better term, happy for a while?  Or, perhaps he got a job out of state?  I still think he may have murdered others, perhaps using a different MO.

[auntjess]

Legally, could they search for close DNA matches in Ancestry.com DNA database?  
I'm guessing that they couldn't search the military one.

[Razzberry]

Not legally.   It's a tantalizing thought but would violate their privacy policy and probably bankrupt their business to allow it.  If law enforcement had a suspect they could collect DNA by other means though.  Unless they lived on a boat or something, it shouldn't be that hard.  

Det. Shelby(?) one of the original Sac investigators wrote a book "Hunting a Psychopath" and said his main suspect did indeed move onto a boat in the eighties and is still among the living in California waters.  I was hoping the series would address this.

Edited March 13, 2018 by Razzberry

[SunnyBeBe]

6 hours ago, Razzberry said:

Not legally.   It's a tantalizing thought but would violate their privacy policy and probably bankrupt their business to allow it.  If law enforcement had a suspect they could collect DNA by other means though.  Unless they lived on a boat or something, it shouldn't be that hard.  

Det. Shelby(?) one of the original Sac investigators wrote a book "Hunting a Psychopath" and said his main suspect did indeed move onto a boat in the eighties and is still among the living in California waters.  I was hoping the series would address this.

Interesting.  I hadn't heard that theory about a suspect moving to a boat. I'd like to learn more about that. 

One thought I had about the GSK stopping his attacks.  I've wondered if his access to information dried up when he retired or got fired, as well as if he encountered some health problems.  He could have gotten MS, arthritis, or some medical condition that rendered him incapable of stealth attacks. 

[auntjess]

12 hours ago, Razzberry said:

If law enforcement had a suspect they could collect DNA by other means though.

I was thinking if it was one of those cases where the killer is someone not on their radar, it might help.
Meanwhile, I'm waiting for the Zodiac decoders to come back on.

[applecrisp]

Web of Lies was very disturbing and sad last night.

[Annber03]

Yes, it was. That poor girl. I fully agree those creeps got off WAY too easy for what they did to her. 

Her classmates' reactions were horrifying, too. Again I'm reminded of why I'm so glad social media wasn't a thing when I was in school. 

[walnutqueen]

I am watching a truly horrific yet somehow uplifting A&E series "Divided States".

It is well worth the binge watch.

[auntjess]

1 hour ago, walnutqueen said:

I am watching a truly horrific yet somehow uplifting A&E series "Divided States".

I've seen it in the guide, but I'm angry enough already.

[One Tough Cookie]

Looks like I'm gonna binge  on ON DEMAND tonite.  I deliberately didn't watch it as I am so upset about rape cases.  I remember reading retired FBI's  agent Jack Douglas' book "Whoever Fights Monsters" and he discussed this case, but I don't think it had a name.  I remember the tea cup scenario and  remember that he beat one woman so badly she required a double mastectomy.

Edited March 14, 2018 by One Tough Cookie

[Razzberry]

On 3/13/2018 at 5:21 AM, SunnyBeBe said:

Interesting.  I hadn't heard that theory about a suspect moving to a boat. I'd like to learn more about that. 

A woman came forward about her ex-husband, who he calls "Carlos".  Carlos had the ability to mimic voices, worked as meter-reader for the utility company, was often gone all night, and owned or had access to all the vehicles associated with GSK.   What's more, they lived in Visalia during the time Visalia Ransacker was active, but suddenly he wanted to move to Sacramento.

Shelby writes:

"In 1979, Carlos invested in a new 37.5 ft. boat which was classified as a “ship”. Trailering it to Southern California, they stopped at just about every port they came across. His wife put them in Orange, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties at the same time the ONS was active. Today, Carlos lives on that boat."

[KellsBells]

I'm watching Evil Talks, I guess it's the first one, about Angelina (no spoilers here, I won't tell you what it's about). Her in-laws talk about how attractive she was and all I can say is she must take a TERRIBLE picture. 

[walnutqueen]

6 hours ago, auntjess said:

I've seen it in the guide, but I'm angry enough already.

Oh, believe me, I am a total rage monster when confronted with evil stupidity, but this show includes actual heros/heroines who stepped up in the face of evil (OK, unfortunately sometimes to their own demise, but not always).  I am a misanthropic pessimist at heart, so for a true story to resonate is surely noteworthy.

[hoosiermom]

They should show that episode of Web of lies in every junior high and high school in America and make it a mandatory thing. Both genders need to see the consequences of their actions or inactions. (Although those boys didn’t seem to have any but the laws have been changed)

Edited March 15, 2018 by hoosiermom

[Annber03]

I couldn't help wondering about those boys' parents and how they raised them throughout the episode. There's a reason those boys thought their behavior was perfectly acceptable, after all. Kids whose parents actually teach them well generally don't go on to do things like that. 

[Brattinella]

26 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

I couldn't help wondering about those boys' parents and how they raised them throughout the episode. There's a reason those boys thought their behavior was perfectly acceptable, after all. Kids whose parents actually teach them well generally don't go on to do things like that. 

Saratoga and Saratoga High School are very hoity-toity, the folks there are pretty rich.  The boys were spoiled and neglected is my guess.

[SunnyBeBe]

11 hours ago, Razzberry said:

A woman came forward about her ex-husband, who he calls "Carlos".  Carlos had the ability to mimic voices, worked as meter-reader for the utility company, was often gone all night, and owned or had access to all the vehicles associated with GSK.   What's more, they lived in Visalia during the time Visalia Ransacker was active, but suddenly he wanted to move to Sacramento.

Shelby writes:

"In 1979, Carlos invested in a new 37.5 ft. boat which was classified as a “ship”. Trailering it to Southern California, they stopped at just about every port they came across. His wife put them in Orange, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties at the same time the ONS was active. Today, Carlos lives on that boat."

Oh my.....that's pretty amusing.  My initial thought was that the GSK was with the phone company or some other utility worker, due to familiarity with the streets, houses, etc. and ease of fitting in.  I thought phone, since he seemed to know so much about the people inside and their personal details.  Thought he could listen in on their phone conversations.  But, I suppose a meter reader could work too.  Still not sure how that person would have so much info on their personal details though, like who was going out for the night, teens on dates, couples staying home, etc.  Of course, all they have to do is get the DNA that his guy discards or find a relative of this guy to see if there's a match.I wonder if they have done that.

Edited March 15, 2018 by SunnyBeBe

[Darian]

The documentary Audrie & Daisy (on Netflix) is partly about Audrie Pott, the victim from the last Web of Lies. 

[hoosiermom]

3 hours ago, Darian said:

The documentary Audrie & Daisy (on Netflix) is partly about Audrie Pott, the victim from the last Web of Lies. 

Thanks! I will have to watch that. That episode really got to me.

[funky-rat]

I missed that one, but cyber stuff is scary as heck.  There was that episode on ID (can't remember which show it was) where the boy in his early 20's in Canada met a girl online who said she was a nurse studying abroad.  I remember she said her last name was Chestiakov (or something similar) and had a brother and was close to her parents, and was coming home to Canada and would set up meetings with him, only to cancel right before.  She also kept saying that her ex-boyfriend was harassing her.  The guy was bipolar, and this really messed with his head.  Eventually, he took some drugs one night because she'd backed out on him for the umpteenth time, and he died.  The boy's mom started getting texts from the girl's mom saying the girl killed herself when she found out the boy died ,and "Our babies can finally be together" and some other weird stuff.  The boy's mom finally had enough, and they found out that it was all an elaborate lie by some teenage girl with no life somewhere else in Canada.  And there wasn't much they could do to her, since what she did technically wasn't illegal.

And there's always the case of "talhotblond".  I can't remember where I saw that one (a 48 Hours/Dateline style show - not the TV movie by the same name made a few years after the incident), but it was seriously messed up.  I will never understand how people can be so pathetic as to create an elaborate online persona, and then just keep adding and adding to it, rather than just walk away when things get too heavy.  It's always an option.

[Annber03]

11 minutes ago, funky-rat said:

And there's always the case of "talhotblond".  I can't remember where I saw that one (a 48 Hours/Dateline style show - not the TV movie by the same name made a few years after the incident), but it was seriously messed up.  I will never understand how people can be so pathetic as to create an elaborate online persona, and then just keep adding and adding to it, rather than just walk away when things get too heavy.  It's always an option.

That story was nuts. I lost count of how many times I must've said some variation of "Are you kidding me?" when I first heard that story.

I remember the other story you mention as well. Truly messed up stuff. I don't understand it, either. Setting aside all the obvious dangers and tragedies that come with those kinds of elaborate lies...that kind of constant lying just sounds way too damn exhausting. Wouldn't the person get tired or bored or something after a while? 

[funky-rat]

13 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

That story was nuts. I lost count of how many times I must've said some variation of "Are you kidding me?" when I first heard that story.

I remember the other story you mention as well. Truly messed up stuff. I don't understand it, either. Setting aside all the obvious dangers and tragedies that come with those kinds of elaborate lies...that kind of constant lying just sounds way too damn exhausting. Wouldn't the person get tired or bored or something after a while? 

Talhotblond caught my eye initially because the website they met on is one I am at regularly, but I turned the chat window off eons ago.  It's also where my late FIL met wife 3, after late MIL died.  That lasted 2 years before they went their separate ways, never officially divorcing.  Both have passed now.  But seriously - any of these people could have just walked away - disappeared, and it would have all been over, and people would still be alive.

[riley702]

I was intrigued by the GSK show. I don't believe he's, alive, however, because his violence just seemed to be escalating and I don't think people like that are really capable of changing. Maybe one in a blue million, but that's just the exception that proves the rule. The 5 year break was probably either he was in prison for something else (did California only draw DNA for sexual criminals back then?), or he was somewhere else and committing crimes there. He could have died in a car wreck or had a quick illness. Maybe he was killed by a homeowner who thought he was a burglar. Has California gone thru all the cases of justifiable homicide about that time period?

[KellsBells]

18 hours ago, funky-rat said:

And there's always the case of "talhotblond".  I can't remember where I saw that one (a 48 Hours/Dateline style show - not the TV movie by the same name made a few years after the incident), but it was seriously messed up.  I will never understand how people can be so pathetic as to create an elaborate online persona, and then just keep adding and adding to it, rather than just walk away when things get too heavy.  It's always an option.

That's one of the strangest stories I've ever seen. If it were a work of fiction I would have been like, "no way...ridiculous." And that she used her own daughter...you can't even make up that level of crazy. 

[funky-rat]

2 minutes ago, KellsBells said:

That's one of the strangest stories I've ever seen. If it were a work of fiction I would have been like, "no way...ridiculous." And that she used her own daughter...you can't even make up that level of crazy. 

Indeed.  Another reason why it's stuck with me.  Just so very strange.  What's scary is that in both of the ones I mentioned, the persons who perpetrated it were all like "I thought it was just harmless fun.  I thought it would just fizzle out eventually".  With the one where the guy OD'd, the teen who was pretending to be the nurse used multiple e-mail and cell phone accounts, so that's not harmless fun.  That's severe mental illness.  I hope her parents got her help, because there was nothing the Canadian police could do, just like Talhotblond - she technically didn't commit a crime.

[funky-rat]

OK - Apparently the Canadian police did eventually make something stick, but if she went through the program they mention, her record will be cleared.  Brandon's mom is far more forgiving than I would be, and her uncle can shove his "This is public humiliation" crap:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/online-hoax-creator-apologizes-at-hearing-1.1188391

Apparently the charges stemmed from the girl texting Brandon's mom claiming Clarissa (who didn't exist) committed suicide:

https://globalnews.ca/news/240964/police-charge-n-s-teen-in-fake-facebook-suicide-case/

It went a lot deeper than the show let on.  Deeply mentally ill.  Girl needs some time in a hospital:

http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/77300-lost-teen-still-lives-in-mom’s-heart

You can watch the ep here (the show was "Web Of Lies - High On Love"):
https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/tv-shows/web-of-lies/full-episodes/high-on-love

[applecrisp]

22 hours ago, hoosiermom said:

Thanks! I will have to watch that. That episode really got to me.

Yes, thanks. I was surprised the parents had not heard anything from the rumor mill. Did it all happen in about a week? Just so sad.

[Annber03]

19 hours ago, funky-rat said:

Talhotblond caught my eye initially because the website they met on is one I am at regularly, but I turned the chat window off eons ago.  It's also where my late FIL met wife 3, after late MIL died.  That lasted 2 years before they went their separate ways, never officially divorcing.  Both have passed now.  But seriously - any of these people could have just walked away - disappeared, and it would have all been over, and people would still be alive.

Wow. Kinda freaky to realize they met somewhere you and your family frequented, huh?

But yeah, agreed. These were adults who should've known a hell of a lot better. 

1 hour ago, KellsBells said:

That's one of the strangest stories I've ever seen. If it were a work of fiction I would have been like, "no way...ridiculous." And that she used her own daughter...you can't even make up that level of crazy. 

I feel so, so bad for that poor daughter. I don't know what her specific response to all of this was in the end, but if I were in her situation I would've distanced myself from my mom so incredibly fast. That's just...beyond creepy. 

[funky-rat]

4 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

Wow. Kinda freaky to realize they met somewhere you and your family frequented, huh?

But yeah, agreed. These were adults who should've known a hell of a lot better. 

I feel so, so bad for that poor daughter. I don't know what her specific response to all of this was in the end, but if I were in her situation I would've distanced myself from my mom so incredibly fast. That's just...beyond creepy. 

I've played games on Pogo (and Club Pogo) for eons, so that's what initially caught my attention.  But I turned off the chat window years ago.  Strange people there.

Her daughter has no contact with her anymore, and her husband divorced her.  The daughter was in college, and not living at home when this was all going down, so she had no idea.

[Annber03]

2 minutes ago, funky-rat said:

Her daughter has no contact with her anymore, and her husband divorced her.  The daughter was in college, and not living at home when this was all going down, so she had no idea.

Ah, okay, thanks. Yeah, I remembered hearing the daughter had no clue any of this craziness was going on-didn't know she was in college at the time, though. 

Wise choice on both her and the husband's part to break away. 

[bubbls]

FYI “Unmasking A Killer” series starts tonight on HLN. The subject is the East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker/Golden State Killer. I think it’s five parts. 

[KellsBells]

Okay, all of this talk about the Talhotblond case made me want to look it up again -- I was interested in what the crazy mom was doing now. I didn't find anything out on that (presumably, she's still estranged from her family), but I did find this very compelling article: https://www.thedailybeast.com/webs-killer-love-triangle. The most telling quote, for me, was this one: Shieler, according to Schroeder, has never apologized to her daughter, shown any remorse, or acknowledged wrongdoing of any sort. She also asked her daughter at the divorce hearing "why don't you get over this?" Wow. 

[Annber03]

9 minutes ago, KellsBells said:

The most telling quote, for me, was this one: Shieler, according to Schroeder, has never apologized to her daughter, shown any remorse, or acknowledged wrongdoing of any sort. She also asked her daughter at the divorce hearing "why don't you get over this?" Wow. 

That takes some true nerve to say that, considering she did this...

Quote

It was later learned that Shieler had flirted online, as Jessi, with other men as well, even once having pointed a videocamera up her daughter's skirt for a video she sent to several men with the question, "guys, do you like it?"

And yet there's a quote from her in that article where she claims she kept engaging with the guy because she simply wanted to "protect real teenagers". Uh-huh. 

These two were creepy in general, really. I mean:

Quote

At one point, Montgomery wrote a bizarre note to himself that read, in part, "On January 2nd, 2006, Tom Montgomery (46 years old) ceases to exist and is replaced by a 18 year old battle scarred marine…" The note went on to say that this new 18-year-old resembled a red-headed Harrison Ford, and had $2.5 million in the bank and a 9-inch penis.

It truly amazes me what some people think actually passes as sexy sometimes :/. 

Edited March 19, 2018 by Annber03

[Razzberry]

On 3/18/2018 at 7:51 AM, bubbls said:

FYI “Unmasking A Killer” series starts tonight on HLN. The subject is the East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker/Golden State Killer. I think it’s five parts. 

Bubbls, do you happen to know the full name of HLN?  I can't find it in my lineup.

Okay, I googled it.  Pretty sure I get that channel.  Thanks for the head's up.

Edited March 19, 2018 by Razzberry

[auntjess]

On 3/18/2018 at 10:51 AM, bubbls said:

FYI “Unmasking A Killer” series starts tonight on HLN. The subject is the East Area Rapist/Original Night Stalker/Golden State Killer. I think it’s five parts. 

I liked the other one better; it seemed better organized.
And let me again recommend It Takes a Killer, on Oxygen, tonight.
(The Oxygen site lists old episodes, and videos, but no description of the scheduled ones.
http://tv.twcc.com/tv/it-takes-a-killer/9933372/schedule

[KellsBells]

5 minutes ago, auntjess said:

I liked the other one better; it seemed better organized.
And let me again recommend It Takes a Killer, on Oxygen, tonight.
(The Oxygen site lists old episodes, and videos, but no description of the scheduled ones.
http://tv.twcc.com/tv/it-takes-a-killer/9933372/schedule

Unfortunatley, Oxygen isn't in my cable package and I'm not willing to pay $15 more a month to add it. 

[tobeannounced]

5 minutes ago, auntjess said:

And let me again recommend It Takes a Killer, on Oxygen, tonight.
(The Oxygen site lists old episodes, and videos, but no description of the scheduled ones.
http://tv.twcc.com/tv/it-takes-a-killer/9933372/schedule

Thanks for the recommendation, auntjess. I don't usually watch Oxygen, but I caught the Aaron Hernandez special, and I thought they did a good job. So I'll check this out.

[auntjess]

It's a half-hour show, staccato delivery, but at the end,you don't feel like you're missing anything.
No sleazy reenactments.
There are some on the Oxygen page.

 

[applecrisp]

16 hours ago, auntjess said:

It's a half-hour show, staccato delivery, but at the end,you don't feel like you're missing anything.
No sleazy reenactments.
There are some on the Oxygen page.

 

Oxygen has Snapped and they seem to be going full crime.  Must be big business.

[Brattinella]

Oxygen channel is next to the ID channel in my line-up, so I don't have to go far!  I watched the Aaron Hernandez episode too; it gave me a lot of information that I didn't know before.  I have to agree with Mr Baez (ahem!) that he most likely would have been found not guilty in the first trial.  I cannot imagine how much pain and confusion he must have been in; more than I could handle, that's for sure.

[auntjess]

I didn't watch the Aaron Hernandez shows, but read some about the extent of his horrific injuries.  So sad.

[emma675]

I watched the Aaron Hernandez special last night and didn't realize how little I knew about the whole thing. But I feel like they glossed over the fiancee and her involvement, I seem to remember a lot of controversy around her. I also didn't realize her sister was dating Odin Lloyd, yikes. 

And I hated myself but I agreed with Jose Baez on that bitch blonde reporter and the idiot radio guys who made jokes on air about Hernandez possibly being gay. He was right, who the hell were they to have done that?

[rocketinu]

20 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I watched the Aaron Hernandez special last night and didn't realize how little I knew about the whole thing. But I feel like they glossed over the fiancee and her involvement, I seem to remember a lot of controversy around her. I also didn't realize her sister was dating Odin Lloyd, yikes. 

And I hated myself but I agreed with Jose Baez on that bitch blonde reporter and the idiot radio guys who made jokes on air about Hernandez possibly being gay. He was right, who the hell were they to have done that?

If I could have reached through the tv and punched that blonde bitch reporter I would have done so. What a vile human being. Good show - I also learned a lot. He got life and his two accomplices got much lighter sentences tho no one knew who actually fired the gun. I don't understand that.

[funky-rat]

Last night was my first encounter with the show that was about dying for love.  One ep was a 17 year old girl murdered by her ROTC commander.  The other one was about a woman who moved to Florida and had a pastor convince her that God wanted her to have an affair with him, and then convinced her that God wanted them to be polygamous with him and his wife.  Then he got her pregnant and spun a long chain of lies, convinced her to give her other daughter to her ex-husband, then he and his wife took the baby and moved to AZ, claiming the baby's mom just took off.   At the end, it said that the wife of the pastor has custody of the baby.  What in the fresh hell?  She's still married to the pastor, and he got a ludicrously light sentence, and will be out in a few years and back with that baby.  The pastor's wife couldn't conceive.  I feel her pain, as I am in the same boat, but I don't buy her innocent act.  I think the two of them planned it all along because they desperately wanted a baby.  I'm dumbfounded as to why that baby isn't with her mother's family.  Apparently her family exhausted their appeals with the court.  I was so angry I had trouble sleeping. 

[Brattinella]

1 hour ago, funky-rat said:

and then convinced her that God wanted them to be polygamous

I just cannot tell you how much this enraged me.  I went through something like that, and watching this lecherous sleaze-bag wheedle his girlfriend made me want to puke!

[Annber03]

Yeah, I think stories like the sort with that pastor should be a huge warning sign to all women everywhere. If a man says he needs to have multiple wives because "God said so", run. I have yet to hear about a single story of that sort that ended well for all involved.