The Serial Murder Effect: Determining Inconsistencies in Unsolved Cases
Faculty Mentor Name
Kelly Crockett
Format Preference
Poster
Abstract
Serial murder is often marked by separate attacks between victims in which there is a noticeable pattern in the methodology. Usual patterns of behavior with serial murderers include a five-step process in which they have a fantasy, stalk, abduct, kill, and dispose. Within these steps, each individual murderer is defined by their own signature, which can be seen in the way that the murder occurred or how the scene appeared. Most serial murderers do not stray from their own patterns or processes, especially when they find that they have not yet been caught. However, there are some cases where murders that have been linked with active serial murderers do not match their pattern.
In the case of the Zodiac Killer, a prominent killer throughout California during the ’60s and ’70s, there is one unsolved murder and one attempted murder that do not appear like the rest of the attacks during his active period. On September 29, 1969, a couple was enjoying their day at Lake Berryessa when they were approached by a masked individual who hog-tied them and stabbed them. Bryan Hartnell survived the attack; however, his partner Cecelia Ann Shepard did not. In previous cases, the Zodiac Killer used a gun to commit his murders, not knives. This inconsistency with the murder weapon, along with other factors in the case, represents changes that are unusual for serial killers.
This Capstone project aims to compare each confirmed and possible Zodiac Killer case to develop a better understanding of what type of serial killer the Zodiac Killer was, as well as to find contrasts within each case to determine whether the Lake Berryessa attack was completed by another individual and has been falsely linked to the Zodiac Killer for almost 60 years.
The Serial Murder Effect: Determining Inconsistencies in Unsolved Cases
Serial murder is often marked by separate attacks between victims in which there is a noticeable pattern in the methodology. Usual patterns of behavior with serial murderers include a five-step process in which they have a fantasy, stalk, abduct, kill, and dispose. Within these steps, each individual murderer is defined by their own signature, which can be seen in the way that the murder occurred or how the scene appeared. Most serial murderers do not stray from their own patterns or processes, especially when they find that they have not yet been caught. However, there are some cases where murders that have been linked with active serial murderers do not match their pattern.
In the case of the Zodiac Killer, a prominent killer throughout California during the ’60s and ’70s, there is one unsolved murder and one attempted murder that do not appear like the rest of the attacks during his active period. On September 29, 1969, a couple was enjoying their day at Lake Berryessa when they were approached by a masked individual who hog-tied them and stabbed them. Bryan Hartnell survived the attack; however, his partner Cecelia Ann Shepard did not. In previous cases, the Zodiac Killer used a gun to commit his murders, not knives. This inconsistency with the murder weapon, along with other factors in the case, represents changes that are unusual for serial killers.
This Capstone project aims to compare each confirmed and possible Zodiac Killer case to develop a better understanding of what type of serial killer the Zodiac Killer was, as well as to find contrasts within each case to determine whether the Lake Berryessa attack was completed by another individual and has been falsely linked to the Zodiac Killer for almost 60 years.