Essay on The Zodiac Killer - 2094 Words

The Zodiac Killer The late 1960’s and early 1970’s were a time of great change in America. The Vietnam War, the civil rights movement and the sexual revolution were just some of the issues on the evening news in American households. For citizens of the San Francisco Bay area, as well as the rest of California, the late 60’s early 70’represented terror, fear and death. â€Å"The bizarre and theatrical and still unresolved serial murders by real-life ghoul who called himself Zodiac, who claimed in letters to have killed 37 people (though police have focused on five homicides and two attempted murders in the greater Bay Area in 1968 and 1969† (Booth,2) have intrigued people for nearly four decades. How has Zodiac remained so elusive? What†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"The shot made a deafening blast, as the bullet entered David’s head blowing it apart† (Wark, 5). With David out of the way, the killer turned his attention back to Betty. â€Å"He pursued her through the woods, his gun drawn and shot her five times in the back from less than ten feet away†(Wark,5). David was still alive, but Betty was dead. In the ambulance David was able to give the police an account of the events that had taken place, but he died shortly after from his wounds. Upon investigation, the police came up with nothing, and ruled the murder a random homicide. Darlene Ferrin, a close friend of the first two victims, was the next victim of the Zodiac. On Friday, July 4th, 1969, Darlene made arrangements with friend Michael Mageau to go to the movies. Darlene picked Michael up from his apartment that evening, and from the beginning it was apparent that they were being followed. Darlene took many country back roads and traveled at very high speeds to try to lose the pursuing vehicle, but with no success. The vehicle forced Darlene’s car off of the road and into the parking lot of the Blue Rock Springs Golf cours e. Once the pursuer had sufficiently blocked them from any further movement in the car, he stepped out of his vehicle with a lantern in his hand. â€Å"Mike could feel intense heat throughout his body. He had been shot. The bullets were still being fired as Darlene slumped over theShow MoreRelatedThe Zodiac Killer1732 Words   |  7 PagesLucas Kelleher/ Street Law 10/3/08 The Zodiac Killer The Zodiac Killer is a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s. His identity to this day still remains unknown. The Zodiac coined his name in a series of taunting letters he sent to the press. His letters included four cryptograms (or ciphers), three of which have yet to be solved. The Zodiac murdered five known victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa, and San Francisco between December 1968 and October 1969.Read MoreEssay on The Zodiac Killer2341 Words   |  10 PagesThe Zodiac Killer Works Cited Not Included In the late sixties and early seventies, California was haunted by dozens of unsolved murders. The offender remains unknown to this day. The murderer, who referred to himself as the Zodiac, made contact with the police and area newspapers throughout his reign of terror through a series of menacing notes. Although the police were never able to apprehend Zodiac, they were able to gather information about him via the letters. Zodiac boasted of killingRead More The Zodiac Killer Essay2809 Words   |  12 Pagesear. The shot made a deafening blast, as the bullet entered David’s head at a horizontal angle, blowing it apart (Tina 3). With David out of his way, the killer turned his attention back to Betty. He pursued her through the woods, his gun drawn, and shot her five times in the back from less than ten feet away. (Tina 3). The killer then got back into his car, and drove away as quickly as he had appeared. David, amazingly, was still alive, and bleeding profusely from his wounds, but Betty wasRead MoreThe Zodiac Killer Project2069 Words   |  9 PagesThe Zodiac Killer Project The crime spree murders of the Zodiac killer is one of the greatest unsolved murdered cases of all time. The Zodiac’s murders took place from later 1960s, through to about 1972. Most of The Zodiac’s murders took place in Northern California. Some main areas where murders took place are Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa, and San Francisco, California. Two out of the four men that were attacked lived and three women out of the three were killed. The ages of the victims goesRead MoreEssay On The Zodiac Killer1734 Words   |  7 PagesThis is the Zodiac Speaking â€Å"I like killing people, because it is fun. It is more fun than killing wild game in the forest, because man is the most dangerous animal of all.† These are the words spoken by a man who terrorized the area of San Francisco, California for two years, lurking in the shadows killing five people, but taking credit for 37 different murders. This man taunted police, seeing his murders as one giant game, sending cryptic messages to the newspapers, forcing them to publish themRead More The Elusive Zodiac Killer Essays2062 Words   |  9 PagesThe Elusive Zodiac Killer Serial killers almost without exception enjoy playing games. Whether played with their victims’, or the police forces trying to track them down, the game of the kill is almost as essential as the murder itself. In most instances this need to draw out the experience leads to the downfall of the culprit. This was not the case with the elusive Zodiac Killer of the San Francisco Bay Area. Zodiac’s career, which would become the most cerebral murder case ofRead MoreEssay On The Zodiac Killer3047 Words   |  13 PagesLaw enforcement officers meet in San Francisco in 1969 to compare notes on the Zodiac Killer, who is believed to have killed five people in 1968 and 1969. The killer gained notoriety by writing several letters to police boasting of the slayings. He claimed to have killed as many as 37 people and has never been caught..Zodiac kill up to 45 people and more that they dont know about because he kill people in a different way in the different town that he was in but he word the same thing every timeRead MoreTaking a Look at the Zodiac Killer1610 Words   |  6 Pages The Zodiac Killer is one of the greatest unsolved serial killer mysteries, after Jack the Ripper. There were 2,500 suspects, but the case was never solved. The Zodiac’s first known victim is Cheri Jo Bates. His first letter, Confession, mentioned Cheri and said, â€Å" she is not the first and she will not be the last†. Six months after Cheri’s death, the killer sent copies of the letters to the Riverside Press, the police, and her dad. Since the killer knew her dad, the police thought that CheriRead MoreThe Zodiac Killer Case Revisited1231 Words   |  5 PagesThe Zodiac Killer Case Revisited I. List of crimes The horrors in California began on Friday, December 20, 1968 in the city of Vallejo when sixteen-year-old Betty Lou Jensen and seventeen-year-old David Faraday were killed while out on a date. At the time, according to Haugen (2011), they had driven to a remote lover’s lane on Lake Herman Road. It was while they were there that a vehicle stopped nearby and the driver got out, shot out the rear passenger window of David Faraday’s station wagonRead More The Zodiac Killer Essay examples1229 Words   |  5 Pages Much is unknown about the Zodiac killer, but given what is known about serial killers in general, this man was probably born between 1938 and 1943. That would make his age between 25 and 30 years old at the time of his first murder in Vallejo, California, in 1968. Also, that age estimate works with witness statements and its supported by Zodiacs references to his victims in younger terms in his letters of 1969. Zodiac wasnt an attractive character from what we kn ow. He may have had to wear glasses