In the last two articles we examined the timeline of Cheri Jo Bates on October 30th 1966, particularly regarding the four young men who spotted Cheri Jo Bates by her lime green Volkswagen Beetle from across the road at 6:15 pm, when she parked alongside the curb on Terracina Drive. They spotted her, but Walter Siebert and friends who arrived at the library at 7:15 pm, noticed the four young men, but not Cheri Jo Bates, whom they all knew. This indicated that her vehicle had not been tampered with prior to 7:15 pm, as the interrogated four men recalled nothing suspicious. See Cheri Jo Bates-Minute by Minute Part One and Part Two.  

Here we shall focus on the condition the Volkswagen Beetle was found in and 'abandoned' that Sunday night, as well as the crime scene and what Cheri Jo Bates had in her possession. Assuming the independent eyewitnesses, who heard screams between 10:15 pm and 10:45 pm were correct, then Cheri Jo Bates was likely away from her vehicle for at least four hours that night. When she returned to Terracina Drive, her vehicle was apparently disabled, leading to speculation she was led away unsuspectingly to her death by a single assailant on the promise of a lift or phone call for help. But something doesn't sit right with this scenario.

'Detectives learned from the slain girl's friends that Cheri Jo had been "terribly afraid of the darkness." This led investigators to believe that Cheri Jo had known her killer and unsuspectedly accompanied him to her death. "Cheri Jo was very proud of her little car" her boyfriend told detectives. "She worked hard to pay for the car. She never left it without locking the doors and rolling the windows up". So it is extremely unlikely she would have left the vehicle without locking the doors, rolling the windows up - never mind leaving her library books on the passenger seat, with the key in the ignition, especially at around 10:00-10:40 pm at night. Admittedly, the vehicle wouldn't start for her (or her supposed helper), but she couldn't be sure somebody else gaining access to her car at a later time wouldn't be able to start it - after all she likely didn't know the reason for it failing to fire up.

Another important piece of information surfaced in one newspaper column, but how reliable it is can only be speculated. It read "Both windows were rolled down and the right door was ajar. The distributor had been tampered with and there was evidence that the man had been in the car with her". Were the facts that both windows had been rolled down indicative of the time she returned to the Volkswagen Beetle and the ambient temperature inside the vehicle. 'In October 1966 the average high temperature in Riverside, CA was 80.7°F, and this was 0.2°F cooler than the average of 80.9°F. The hottest day in October 1966 was 31 October when the temperature reached 91.9°F. Overnight the average temperature in October is 51.8°F.'  climatespy.com/climate/summary/united-states/california/march-arb/october/1966
​She had rolled down both windows - not just the driver side - possibly indicating the stuffiness inside her vehicle and likely something you wouldn't do if you felt under any threat at this point in time. It obviously makes sense to roll your windows down before starting the vehicle and exiting Terracina Drive.

If the newspaper report is correct, then what was the evidence that somebody "had been in the car with her". The likely answer to this is probably contained within the same report, in that the right door was ajar. From the police photographs of the Volkswagen Beetle, if the right door was ajar, then it was only slight - just probably not shut properly. If somebody had entered the passenger side of her vehicle on her return, then clearly Cheri Jo had placed her library books down subsequent to him or her exiting, or they had opened the passenger door to engage with Cheri Jo on a more personal level. This would also explain why the passenger door may be unlocked, because she knew the person. If you had returned to your vehicle that night, the act of rolling down the windows, placing your library books down next to you and placing the keys in the ignition are all perfectly plausible events. However, unlocking the right passenger side door to a complete stranger is not one, especially after 10:00 pm at night.

Her friends stated that Cheri Jo would never have "left her vehicle without locking the doors and rolling the windows up". That is unless a person she knew and trusted offered to stay with her vehicle, while a second person she knew and trusted offered to accompany her to a payphone, or a lift to make a call. One has to consider why a young woman would leave her prized Volkswagen Beetle with the windows rolled down, library books on the seat, door possibly ajar and keys in the ignition so late at night, yet still took her 'large red and tan woven straw bag', which was ultimately found half covered by her body. It has to be pointed out that many women will never be without their handbag, which often contains their personal items, such as a purse (and associated money), make-up, hair brush and such-like. It would therefore not be unusual to leave her vehicle with somebody she thought she could trust, but would instinctively take her handbag with her - in this case her woven straw bag. It is apparent that Cheri Jo was "terribly afraid of the darkness," and unlikely to have entered a dark, unlit alleyway at approximately 10:30 pm at night, but in the company of somebody she knew her fears would be allayed, coupled with her necessity to ring home or seek help.     

The time she returned to her vehicle cannot be fully corroborated by the screams in the alleyway, because we cannot be be 100% certain of the earwitnesses testimony, or that any screams were that of Cheri Jo Bates. But recapping all of the above and from information gleaned from the four young men and Walter Siebert, it is likely her vehicle was sabotaged sometime after 7:15 pm, by one, or even two assailants working together. One possibility, is that two people who knew and sought malice on Cheri Jo Bates, trailed her to the Riverside library that evening, waited for the four young men to leave and tampered with her vehicle. They could have been unsure of her plans after exiting the library that evening and may have had something else in store for her, but when she left the area for an undetermined time period - and subsequent to the four young men moving away from the Volkswagen - they decided to disable her vehicle and wait close by.

Cheri Jo Bates arrived back at her vehicle, placed her library books on the passenger seat, rolled both windows because it was stuffy, then placed the keys in the ignition to start the vehicle. Her Volkswagen turned over a few times and the two men (or possibly one man and a woman) approached, both known to Cheri Jo Bates, offering their help. At some point Cheri Jo, or one of the good Samaritans opened the passenger door (through the open window) kneeled and spoke to Cheri Jo, partially closing it after their conversation. The second pretended to look at the engine. When the vehicle failed to start, one person offered to accompany Cheri Jo Bates to their car to go for help, or offered to escort her to a payphone. The other stayed behind to keep an eye on her car, which is why she had no worries about leaving the windows down and keys in the ignition. She grabs her purse and woven straw bag, slings it over her shoulder and heads off toward the alleyway.

The detectives stated that after the murder "drops of dried blood leading from the body to Terracina Drive indicated that the murderer had walked back to the street following the slaying". This likely indicated that the murderer walked back to their accomplice, back to their car, or possibly both? During the reenactment two weeks later, students recalled a 1947-1952 Studebaker with "light-colored oxidized paint" parked just south of Terracina Drive at 7:00 pm on the night of the murder, that failed to show. Was this our killer/s vehicle parked just out of sight from Terracina Drive?

Two important questions remain. Where had Cheri Jo Bates gone after leaving the library just prior to 6:30 pm. If she had gone to a friend's house nearby, why didn't this person come forward to police? Were they afraid of being implicated in the crime?
Secondly, what was the exact time Cheri Jo Bates arrived back at her Volkswagen Beetle on Terracina Drive? Does the weather give us a clue? The sun set at approximately 5:00 pm that afternoon in Riverside, it was the first day of Daylight Savings, and the daytime temperature hit 88 degrees Fahrenheit. Was the fact that Cheri Jo Bates rolled both windows as opposed to just the driver side window, indicative of the temperature inside her vehicle when she returned, and that she had arrived back earlier rather than later on October 30th 1966, or had she rolled down both windows to speak to her approaching 'good Samaritans'? Cheri Jo Bates may have been forced from her vehicle by a single assailant at any point from 7:30 pm onward, and led towards the alleyway where she was ultimately stabbed. The state her vehicle was found the following day by police tells a story. A story of a young girl who was specifically targeted by her killer/s - the ripples of which are still being felt 51 years later.

Continuing on from the previous article on the murder of Cheri Jo Bates, we will attempt to expand on the timeline.
Claims that Cheri Jo Bates never entered the library at all on October 30th 1966, require that we totally dismiss the eyewitness testimony of the Mexican-American student, who stated 'he knew Cheri Jo Bates and had noticed her in the library the night in question. He said he saw the girl "writing something with a ball point pen in her blue spiral school notebook." The boy told us he was outside about 5.30 pm, waiting for the library to open at 6, and it was then he saw the girl'. We totally ignore that a male librarian at the college said he "thought he saw" Cheri Jo in the library that Sunday evening, but he was unable to pinpoint the time. And totally disregard the three library books that were discovered on the front passenger seat of Cheri Jo Bates' Volkswagen Beetle, which were likely dusted for fingerprints. The idea the library books may have been discharged from the library by another person, makes little sense, when somebody who knew Cheri Jo 'noticed her in the library the night in question'.  
But the crucial eyewitnesses that are rarely mentioned, were the four young men, dressed in work clothes, who were noticed by Walter Siebert of 3667 Gloreen Court. He stated that on the Sunday evening in question 'he and a few friends were in the library from 7:15 pm until 9, but did not see Miss Bates, whom they all knew. They said they saw four men dressed in work clothes sitting on a fence across from the spot where Miss Bates' car was found, but they did not know them.' These four men were interrogated by police, and said "they had seen Cheri Jo near her car the previous night".

The four men, who viewed the young graduate that evening on Terracina Drive, at approximately 6:15 pm when Cheri Jo Bates parked up, were again spotted in the same location at 7:15 pm by Walter Siebert and friends. It doesn't matter if the four men spotted her at 6:15 pm, or when she returned to her vehicle at any later time, because the 'interrogated' men did not recall or relay to police any information pertaining to Cheri Jo Bates being approached and accompanied by an unknown male, or had noticed her car being tampered with and disabled, as well as any other car parked behind her, or her being abducted from the vicinity of her vehicle. In fact, they didn't relay any suspicious activity whatsoever - and were likely in this location between 6:15 pm and 7:15 pm, corroborated by themselves and Walter Siebert.

The idea that she entered the library, her Volkswagen Beetle was then disabled, she returned, and then after failing to start the engine, she was aided by the 'good Samaritan', is patently false. The four men also never mentioned to police hearing any screams or cries for help that night, despite the alleyway where Cheri Jo was found murdered being only 225 feet from their location. The only way for the 'Confession' letter timeline to be correct, or for any abduction theories to prevail, is if we conveniently dismiss the eyewitness testimony of these four young men. But one can be sure that people will, to protect their long formulated beliefs.   

The FBI file above stated that 'the time of her death was fixed at 6:15 pm.' If we believe the four young men and Walter Siebert, who saw them at 7:15 pm, then this is not possible.

The pathologist F. Rene Modglin stated 'the gastric contents suggest she had eaten a supper type meal probably not more than 2 to 4 hours before death'. In addition, the stomach contents contained 'at least 100ml of thick fluid, with particulate food particles in which are easily recognized reasonably large pieces of beef, along with vegetable particulates and/or celery and onion, and what appears to be milk or cottage cheese'. Cheri Jo Bates consumed this meal at approximately 4:00-4:30 pm, before Joseph Bates arrived home. Food takes approximately 2-5 hours to leave the stomach, depending on its constitution. The pathologist stated she had eaten not more than 2-4 hours before her death. This means that if Cheri Jo Bates ate this meal at approximately 4:30 pm, then she would have been killed somewhere between 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. However, this contradicts the screams heard in the area at 10:15-10:45 pm, assuming it was the cries of Cheri Jo Bates. On this occasion, however, we shall leave the autopsy findings behind, as many internal and external factors can alter the rate of human digestion. 

If the four young men were present from the time Cheri Jo Bates arrived at Terracina Drive at 6:15 pm, and remained up to and shortly after 7:15 pm, when and how was her Volkswagen Beetle disabled? We need a plausible scenario that takes Cheri Jo Bates away from the library for at least one hour or possibly more.
 
Earlier that day Cheri Jo had asked her friend Stephanie Guttman to accompany her to the Riverside City College library that evening, but Stephanie chose to stay home. Had Cheri Jo made alternative arrangements or met somebody she knew at the library. She had clearly not been present in the library from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm, yet did not return to her car to find it disabled. Had she, then one could be sure that the four young men would have been only too keen to aid the attractive college student in her time of need. At the very least, they would have noticed her being offered assistance by an unknown male or struggling to get the vehicle started. None of which they reported to police.

So where did she go after she left the library for upwards of one hour? The only reason for her to willingly choose not to return to her car, is if she was waylaid by a friend or acquaintance, who occupied her for some time away from the library - or she had planned to visit a friend. But if she had chosen to visit a friend, then this person had to have lived close to the Riverside library, within walking distance, otherwise she would have opted to drive. So what happened when she exited the library annex? It is highly unlikely she was kidnapped on the library steps during opening hours, or wandered away from the library with a complete stranger (after all, her Volkswagen wasn't disabled at this point, nor had she returned to it) - therefore it is highly probable Cheri Jo Bates traveled away from the library with somebody she knew. This appears the only option left. The four young men never relayed any car trouble to the police or anyone offering her assistance, so she couldn't have returned to the Volkswagen prior to 7:15 pm. Consequently, she had no reason to leave the library with a stranger.  

If the screams heard from the alleyway at 10:15-10:45 pm were Cheri Jo Bates, then she had left the library with somebody she knew prior to 6:30 pm, returned to her vehicle sometime after 10:00 pm, placed her library books on the seat, but failed to start the engine. It is at this point the offer of assistance may have arrived, when nobody was in the vicinity. The library had long been closed. Her vehicle had to have been disabled between 7:15 pm and around 10:00 pm. If the friend she had spent time with hadn't accompanied her back to her vehicle, then the likelihood she was trailed to the library that night by a third party, who didn't like what he saw - and lay in wait - is one possibility. If she was accompanied back to her vehicle by the friend, then it is conceivable an argument may have occurred and the supposed 'friend' disabled her vehicle in front of her to prevent her leaving. Neither option can be ruled out.  

Whatever the case, it appears the killer knew the victim and had a vested interest in the attractive woman, seemingly corroborated by the uncontrolled and ferocious attack in the alleyway only yards from her vehicle. But there are more questions.

The 'Inside Detective' magazine described the scene of the murder and stated that 'a large red and tan woven straw bag was half covered by the body'. Had Cheri Jo been at a secondary location for 3-4 hours after leaving the library, then surely she would have carried her blue spiral notebook and three library books in her 'large straw bag' - not separately. However, this would mean that after she returned to her Volkswagen Beetle, she would have taken the library books out of the bag and placed them on the passenger seat, rather than just placing the bag itself on the seat. What caused her to leave her prized Volkswagen Beetle in a hurry, with the library books still on the seat, the key in the ignition and the windows rolled down, yet still in possession of the large straw bag? You certainly wouldn't be running for your life clutching a large woven straw bag, and you certainly wouldn't have left your vehicle in the above condition willingly at 10:00 pm at night on the promise of a lift home or phone call. One possibility, is that she had her keys ready to unlock the vehicle, sat in the driver seat, removed the bulky library books from her bag, rolled down the windows, placed the key in the ignition, when she was approached and either forcibly removed from the vehicle, or threatened with the knife and ushered down the road into the alleyway. Needless to say, we have only scratched the surface in the most puzzling of cases.      

CHERI JO BATES-MINUTE BY MINUTE (PART1)

The murder of Cheri Jo Bates outside the Riverside City College library on October 30th 1966 has one of the most questionable timelines of any. The following is going to make it even more complicated than ever before.

Two eyewitnesses placed Cheri Jo Bates' lime green Volkswagen Beetle in the vicinity of Terracina Drive at around 6:15 pm, where it was ultimately found unlocked the following day. However, a young Mexican-American student said he knew Cheri Jo Bates and had noticed her in the library the night in question. He said he saw the girl "writing something with a ball point pen in her blue spiral school notebook." The boy told us he was outside about 5:30 pm, waiting for the library to open at 6, and it was then he saw the girl. Sergeant Gren said "he seems to have a very good memory." Other students who were acquainted with Cheri Jo said they were in the library between 6:30 pm and 6:40 pm, and did not see the girl during that time. Walter Siebert of 3667 Gloreen Court, who attended the library that evening, stated that he and a few friends were in the library from 7:15 pm until 9, but did not see Miss Bates, whom they all knew.

The Mexican-American student appeared to have good recollection, detailing her writing in a blue spiral notebook, further corroborated by the fact that her 'abandoned' Volkswagen Beetle had three library books neatly stacked on the front passenger seat. Dismissing the idea that a third party withdrew her library books - and taking into account the Mexican-American eyewitness, and two other eyewitnesses that saw her at approximately 6:15 pm - it seems evident that Cheri Jo Bates had entered the library shortly after it had opened and had left prior to 6:30 pm. But this is where it gets confusing. The 'Inside Detective' Magazine stated 'Detectives interrogated four young men who said they had seen Cheri Jo near her car the previous night.'  But it did not go into any further detail. A newspaper article, however, would add the crucial information we require and expand the testimony of Walter Siebert.      

From what we know, it is almost certain that the four men (dressed in work clothes) saw Cheri Jo Bates when she parked up at approximately 6:15 pm, but never saw her return, as they apparently have no recollection of her being assisted by an unknown male. This would also mean that they couldn't have noticed anyone tampering with the vehicle. If the workmen left after 7:15 pm, this would suggest Cheri Jo Bates Volkswagen Beetle was disabled after 7:15 pm. But if she had been accompanied by the assailant on her leaving the library and up to this point, how could he have disabled her vehicle without her noticing, when they both returned to the Volkswagen Beetle. One possibility is a second assailant.

One man meets Cheri Jo Bates and lures her away from the library for a period of time, while the accomplice disables her vehicle. However, this presents further problems. The accomplice noticing four workmen opposite Cheri Jo Bates vehicle cannot disable her car until they leave, sometime after 7:15 pm. If these workmen were an unforseen circumstance, then he is 'lucky' he is able to disable the vehicle before Cheri Jo Bates and his partner in crime return. If we assume the 'single killer' hypothesis, then we are back to square one.

Did a single assailant kill Cheri Jo Bates in the alleyway sometime after 7:15 pm, gather her keys and books, return to her vehicle and place everything in situ, disable her vehicle, and make it appear like she returned to her vehicle immediately after leaving the library? Coupled with the 'Confession' letter, it may deflect the investigation. This may seem a possibility, until you consider the windows of the Volkswagen Beetle were rolled down - a needless extra - if you were concocting a crime scene.
Taking everything into consideration, when did the murderer tamper with the distributor wire?

The 'Confession' letter stated "I first cut the middle wire from the distributor. Then I waited for her in the library and followed her out after about two minutes. The battery must have been about dead by then. I then offered to help. She was then very willing to talk to me. I told her that my car was down the street and that I would give her a lift home. When we were away from the library walking, I said it was about time she asked me, "about time for what ?". I said it was about time for her to die" - which according to all we know, is seemingly wide of the mark - and flies in the face of all the eyewitness testimony.               

Dave Oranchak unearthed some new videos of the Lake Herman Road crime scene from the San Francisco Bay Area news archives. Below are some relevant new images of the crime scene, showing the positions of the stricken couple within the turnout. The fourth image has been manufactured from two independent still frames, but nevertheless is a totally accurate representation, showing the position of David Faraday and the Rambler in the foreground, to Betty Lou Jensen at the western edge of the turnout. Some have been colorized to add clarity.
Here is the link to the video https://diva.sfsu.edu/collections/sfbatv/bundles/231064 and to the thread on Zodiac Killer Site forum, where another new video featuring Paul Avery can be viewed.  
Credits to Broadcasting of San Francisco, Inc and Alex Cherian.  

To assess the distance from the right rear taillight of the Rambler to Betty Lou Jensen's head, two still frames have been used, capturing two white dots on the turnout floor. We know the approximate position of the rear of the Rambler next to David Faraday's outline, shown by the green dot in the below left image. Therefore when the camera pans to the right, shown in the below right image, the rear of the Rambler can still be estimated to a high degree. The orange line now gives us an unbroken image, showing the distance of the widely quoted 28 feet, from the Rambler to Betty Lou Jensen. The car in the distance is approximately 14 feet in length. The man approximately 5'8". This gives us a comparison of distances, despite the foreshortening of the camera angle.        

Although this topic has been covered before, here it will be expanded in a little more detail, concerning the timeline of Pierre Bidou and his thoughts that he must have just passed the Lake Herman Road turnout literally minutes before the murders of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen on December 20th 1968. However, this may not be the case - and his statements of not seeing any vehicles in the turnout or passing any vehicles on Lake Herman Road after his seizure of marijuana at The Cottage, may be not relevant to the minutes before the murders. Here are a collection of statements by Pierre Bidou:

[1] 2007 documentary: "During that night we had served a search warrant at what we call The Cottage at Lake Herman which was owned by the city of Benicia, a narcotics search warrant my partner and I, we confiscated about a pound and a half of marijuana, which in the 1960s was a big drugs bust, today it wouldn't get very high on the Richter scale. We were heading back to the police department to put the marijuana into evidence and as we drove by, we did not see or observe anyone in that area, because it's a turn there and your headlights shine right in there as you go by. I was pulling into the lot in the police department, we heard the Benicia Police Department dispatch about a call of a possible shooting and victims on Lake Herman Road, and described the location. My partner and I turned around at that time and responded to the call. We felt we were only minutes from the crime scene when it actually happened and for the best of my recollection we did not pass any other vehicle or traffic. I'm pretty sure of that because that is one of the things we told the sheriff's office, that we did not see any other vehicles coming our way. What could have happened, depending on where a vehicle turned onto Lake Herman Road, if it came from behind us, from Vallejo, we would not have seen them".

[2] Benicia Herald: "Bidou and his partner had served a warrant on a Lake Herman Road cabin Dec 20 1968, and were on the way to deposit some marijuana in the police department's evidence locker, when they were dispatched back to Lake Herman Road".

[3] True Crime video with Aphrodite Jones (2010): "We had just passed here (Lake Herman Road turnout) and there was no one here. Patrols would always look here, because this was kind of known as a lovers point". 

The impression that we have come to believe, is that Pierre Bidou and his partner, Steve Armenta, passed the turnout shortly before the murders, from where they traveled directly to the Benicia Police Department and were almost immediately dispatched back out to the double homicide. This order of events could never have happened, if we believe all the eyewitness statements that night.

The Cottage, where Pierre Bidou seized the marijuana, was not far from the turnout on the Vallejo side, with the journey time to Benicia Police Department from this location approximately 8 to 10 minutes.
For Pierre Bidou to have seen no vehicles in the turnout just minutes before the murders, he would at the very least had to have passed before Peggy and Homer Your, who recalled seeing the Rambler on two occasions at around 11:00 pm. Not to mention Frank Gasser, Robert Connelly, James Owen and finally Stella Borges, who passed the turnout at approximately 11:20 pm and saw the stricken couple on the turnout floor. Stella Borges raced off to Benicia to inform Officer Daniel Pitta at 11:25 pm, or thereabouts. He would then radio Benicia Police Department of a possible 187 on Lake Herman Road.

Had Pierre Bidou just literally arrived at the police department, and after "pulling into the lot in the police department, had heard the Benicia Police Department dispatch about a call of a possible shooting and victims on Lake Herman Road", then this would be around 11.25 to 11.30 pm. We know the journey time from The Cottage to Benicia Police Department is around 10 minutes. This means Pierre Bidou must have passed the Lake Herman Road turnout at approximately 11:15 to 11:20 pm according to his recollection of events. But we know this is not possible. He had to have passed the turnout prior to the Rambler first being spotted by the Your's at around 11:00 pm. Let us say he passed the turnout at 10:55 pm, he would then have arrived at Benicia Police Department at 11:05 pm and literally swung the car around and returned to the crime scene. The call from Officer Daniel Pitta was still at least 20 minutes in the making.     

We have a further problem if we believe the police report and the testimony of Helen Axe. She claimed the earliest sighting of the Rambler in the turnout that night at about 10:15 pm. The police report stated "Miss Axe reports that she and her boyfriend, a sailor, were driving on Lake Herman Road. They passed the area of the pumping station, she recognized the Rambler and the victims, Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday. Stated that when she went by about 10:15 pm, the car was facing in towards the gate and when she returned about 15 minutes later after having gone to the end of the road and then came back, the car was turned around and the front was facing the field, a little to the side".

She stated she saw the Rambler at 10:15 pm, and then 15 minutes later at 10:30 pm. Assuming that David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen remained in the turnout until the Rambler was next spotted at around 11:00 pm, then Pierre Bidou would had to have passed the turnout prior to 10:15 pm to actually view no vehicles present. Let us say David Faraday parked up at 10:10 pm and Pierre Bidou passed the turnout at 10:09 pm. He then would have arrived at the Benicia Police Department at 10:19 pm, over an hour prior to the reporting of the murders by Officer Daniel Pitta, dispelling the claim that he and his partner Steve Armenta "were only minutes from the crime scene when it actually happened".

If Helen Axe was mistaken, and Pierre Bidou passed the turnout at 10:55 pm, his journey to Benicia Police Department is 20 minutes too long. If Helen Axe was not mistaken, his journey to Benicia Police Department is 66 minutes too long. Either way, the timeline requires a different explanation. So where did Pierre Bidou go after the drugs bust that night? His statements to either his superiors or to any documentary, with regards to the movement of vehicles on Lake Herman Road that night, are in direct conflict to the eyewitness sightings of the Rambler in the turnout on December 20th 1968. This problem may have been resolved in a future article entitled The Edge of Darkness.

This time we will take a trip to the shores of Lake Berryessa and take a closer look at whether the mystery man spotted by the three young women from Pacific Union College was the same man that would later go on to attack Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard just a couple of hours later. A rudimentary sketch of the man, compiled using the descriptions of the three women was generated - an overall description that bore similarities to statements by Bryan Hartnell. On first look, the sketch appears inconsistent with the drawing of the suspect generated from eyewitness testimony at Presidio Heights, just two weeks later on October 11th 1969, however, they may be a lot closer than first thought.
 
Many people have questioned Lake Berryessa as a Zodiac crime, citing the different style of the attack and his failure to detail this crime in any of his subsequent correspondence with newspapers. The writing on the car door, his phone call and the mention of 'sept' on the 'Dripping Pen' card mailed on November 8th 1969, have seemingly failed to convince everyone. So later we will take a closer look at the sketch, bearing in mind the Zodiac could easily have cut and dyed his hair in the two weeks prior to the murder of Paul Stine.
The Zodiac Killer also stated in the November 9th 1969 'Bus Bomb' letter "I look like the description passed out only when I do my thing, the rest of the time I look entirle different. I shall not tell you what my descise consists of when I kill".

Firstly let us take a look at the overall details submitted by the three women.
Earlier on in the day, three young women, students of Pacific Union College parked their vehicle two miles north of the A & W Root Beer stand at 5100 Knoxville Road. As they left their vehicle to go sunbathing, a white male, driving a silver or light blue Chevrolet 2-door sedan with California plates pulled up to the rear of their car, bumper to bumper, yet remained inside his vehicle. This man would seemingly remain in his vehicle for approximately 30 minutes before they spotted him again, observing them from about 40 to 50 feet away while they were sunbathing. Each time they looked at him he seemingly evaded eye contact, thus drawing suspicion from the three women. He was described as being between 28 and 40 years, 200-225 pounds, 6 feet tall, styled black hair, with rounded eyes and thin lips - he was good looking, with a muscular or stocky build, wearing dark pants and a dark pullover shirt. He remained observing them, by their accounts, for between 30-45 minutes and then left. At 4:30 pm they decided to leave the shores of Lake Berryessa and noticed his vehicle had gone. Here are the separate descriptions they submitted;

#1. "A subject driving a late model silver-blue Chevrolet, 2-door sedan. This subject was described as 6' tall, weighing 200/210 pounds, muscular build, rather nice looking".
#2. "Vehicle described as a 1966 or 1967 light blue Chevrolet with California plates. Witness believes the vehicle was a 2-door sedan and described the headlights as long rather than round".
#3. "Subject was described as approximately 28 years of age, 6'1" to 6'2" tall, 200/225 lbs, black hair possibly styled, with a part on the left, rounded eyes, thin lips, medium nose, straight eyebrows, small ears, well built, rather nice looking".
#4. "Vehicle was described as a late model Chevrolet, sky blue in color. The rear taillights appeared to be long rather than round. She described the subject as 6' tall, stocky build, about 200 lbs, black short-sleeved sweater shirt, dark blue slacks, and straight dark hair neatly combed. She guessed his age at approximately 30 years".
When the three young women returned to their vehicle at 4.30 pm, the man and his vehicle had left.

Bryan Hartnell thought the attacker to be 20-30 years using voice concept, with dark brown hair visible through the hood, wearing dark blue or black pleated slacks, 5' 8" to 6' 0" tall and 225-250 pounds. He also noticed a knife in a case on the right side of his belt, near the front of his trousers and cut up rope in the assailant's rear pocket. It was the type similar to white plastic clothesline.

Certain key aspects given by Bryan Hartnell and the three women match up. The dark hair, observed by both Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard by the eyelets of the mask worn by the assailant, may indicate his hair was drawn downwards when he pulled on the mask. The sketch by the three women indicates longer hair, probably swept back on top. The description of a heavyset man, 200-225 pounds is identical in both instances, in line with the description of a heavyset man at Presidio Heights. The age is also consistent. The three women described what they thought was a white belt around his back, thinking it could possibly have been a tee shirt hanging out. Another girl stated he was wearing a black short sleeved sweater shirt bunched up at the front, again describing a white tee shirt hanging out the back. Did the bunched up sweater shirt hide anything sinister? Could the descriptions given by the women, describing a white belt around his back or white tee shirt 'hanging out', actually have been the cut lengths of plastic clothesline trailing from his rear pocket in anticipation of a prepared attack on the women, but for whatever reason got cold feet, changed his mind and turned to Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard approximately two hours later. 

In an interview with Sgt John Robertson, Bryan Hartnell mentioned the windbreaker worn by the assailant stating "That was dark blue. And I don't know. Maybe he had something in his pouch". The three women would describe the man as he approached the beach within 20 feet of them, noticing "a black short-sleeved sweater shirt, bunched up in front". Was the knife or gun concealed under his shirt, described by Bryan Hartnell as "a knife in a case on the right side of his belt, near the front of his trousers?" Bryan Hartnell in the police report, stated the assailant was wearing "sloppy clothes. And he had on this old pair of pleated pants. Well like I say, he was dressed kind of sloppily, you know. His pants real tight up here and his stomach kind of pouched a bit". These style of pants would be later detailed by Donald Fouke, one of the responding officers at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969. Bryan Hartnell would also describe the clothing worn by the assailant as old-fashioned. One of the women would describe the vehicle driven by the mystery man, stating the car "as appearing very conservative and did not appear to belong to any young person, such as a teenager". ​ 

Just prior to the attack on Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard, the assailant ducked behind some trees, before he reappeared wearing his costume. The three women mentioned in the police report "the male subject watching them from the edge of the trees" at the top of the hill. Was the "black short-sleeved sweater shirt, bunched up in front", possibly the executioner's hood, concealed beneath his clothing in preparation, along with the gun and knife?

The three women described his vehicle as a 'late model, 1966 or 1967 light blue Chevrolet, the rear taillights appeared to be long rather than round.' Below is a picture of the rear end of a 1967 Chevrolet Nova II, with long taillights, rather than round. What was actually meant by the description of 'long' can be interpreted in two ways - either 'long' vertically or horizontally. However, after much searching of vehicle specifications, this car has been chosen for a reason. Its track width is almost identical to the tire impressions found next to Bryan Hartnell's 1956 white Karmann Ghia shortly after the Lake Berryessa attack. This was examined in much greater detail here.

Ninety minutes precedent to the Lake Herman Road murders on December 20th 1968, William Crow and his girlfriend were parked up in the fateful turnout. "He was parked in the open area by the pump station and he observed a blue car, possibly a Valiant coming down the road from Benicia towards Vallejo. They passed his location, stopped in the middle of the road and he saw the white lights of the reverse come on and the car started backing up towards them. Mr Crow put the car in gear and took off at a high rate of speed and the car followed him at a high rate of speed". William Crow described the vehicle as possibly a blue Valiant in the original police report - and bearing in mind the vehicle momentarily stopped just past the turnout, before reversing, this would undoubtedly be the best view he had of the vehicle that night, before being chased down Lake Herman Road. The rear of a 1967 Plymouth Valiant is shown in the above right photograph, with the characteristics of the rear end and taillights bearing a passing similarity to the 1967 Chevrolet Nova II. So is it possible William Crow was pursued by a 1967 Chevrolet Nova II on December 20th 1968, the same vehicle that would be viewed by the three women at Lake Berryessa nine months later?  A vehicle that would further match the track width, measured by detectives alongside Bryan Hartnell's 1956 white Karmann Ghia.  

Finally, we shall return to the sketch attributed to the three women and compare it to the sketch generated at Presidio Heights.
The first image on the left is the original sketch (colored, without glasses) from the three teenagers overlooking 3898 Washington Street. The middle image shows the Lake Berryessa sketch with the haircut from Presidio Heights. The right image changes one further characteristic from Lake Berryessa;- the lips of the assailant. Taking into consideration the eyewitnesses at Presidio Heights were hindered by distance and poor lighting, was the Lake Berryessa sketch more accurate? Or indeed, was the man observed by the three women actually the Zodiac Killer? It depends on whether the images below could be mistaken for the same person. I will let you decide. 

In the middle image below, the eyes on the Lake Berryessa sketch have been widened to match the Presidio Heights sketch. In the right image below the eyes on the Presidio Heights sketch have been narrowed to match the Lake Berryessa sketch. This has been done to  compensate for any possible changes to the appearance by wearing glasses.

With little progress in the Zodiac case, often we have to return to what we already know but examine it in more depth. The search for the Zodiac Killer has broadened as the years have passed, with ever more suspects being introduced into the fold, effectively diluting the identity of the real murderer. The bigger the haystack becomes, the harder the needle is to find. One, if not the best clue in the Zodiac case, is the phone call he made from the intersection of Springs and Tuolumne at 12:40 am on July 5th 1969, approximately 40 minutes after the attack at Blue Rock Springs Park - particularly in light of a journey that should have taken slightly less than 10 minutes. What did he do during this time period? We cannot rule out that he just sat in his vehicle for the entire duration, but if the killer lived nearby, then separating himself from the weapon and any blooded clothing, before making a risky phone call so close to the police station, appeared to be the sensible option. It has already been surmised that the killer may be local to the area, due to the fact he seemed aware that Blue Rock Springs Park and Lake Herman Road were a good place to target couples or lone individuals in the night.

If the Zodiac Killer had lived in San Francisco, then he could have made this phone call anywhere en route back to his residence. There would appear little reason to sit closer to the crime scene than separate yourself from it, especially loaded down with incriminating evidence. The journey time back to San Francisco is approximately 40 minutes, with innumerable payphones on the way, and so negating the logic of remaining in the danger zone - unless of course you lived in Vallejo and were determined to make a call to police no matter.    

Kim Rossmo, who pioneered the science of geographical profiling, made an important observation that the killer exhibited target selection at Presidio Heights as opposed to his first three crimes, where the location was the overriding consideration. If we believe the Zodiac Killer to be a resident of Vallejo or Benicia and less familiar with the San Francisco area, then control would be the order of the day and his 'search attempts' in alien surroundings are less certain. He could not afford to travel around looking for victims without designated prime locations and expect to escape with any surety, thereby he targeted the victim first and took him to a predetermined location, as opposed to the location being the prime requisite. In the Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs attacks, he frequented known locations to find a victim, whereas in San Francisco he searched for a victim and took him to a location. Kim Rossmo states that 'criminals who travel longer distances to offend are less likely to use uncertain target selection techniques'.

The Zodiac Killer knew Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs Park were secluded locations and knew that by cruising between these two areas he would eventually find his moment to strike, shrouded by the darkness and limited traffic. Using the software Rigel, Kim Rossmo entered in various details in the Zodiac case, some of which were the murder locations, travel routes and phone calls - and came up with some key areas of interest. These areas were [1] southeastern Napa County, including American Canyon and north Vallejo. [2] eastern Solano County, including east and north Vallejo, Mare Island and Benicia. [3] northern Contra Costa County, just south of the Carquinez Strait, including Crockett.
All of these areas are viable destinations to reach from Blue Rock Springs Park and back to the Springs and Tuolumne intersection in 40 minutes to make the phone call to police. This is good news, but we need to narrow the field of view even further and begin with the most likely first, before extending outward.     

In a recent re-examination of the Lake Herman Road murders, it was possible to open up the timeline of James Owen and Stella Borges to 12 minutes, to enable the Zodiac Killer to head to Vallejo after exiting the turnout and pass by the Borges Ranch before she entered Lake Herman Road in her vehicle. Michael Mageau stated the killer exited the Blue Rock Springs parking lot and headed in the direction of Ascot Parkway, Tennessee Street and Springs Road, so we could have the Zodiac approaching the same exit of Columbus Parkway on both occasions, heading in the direction of central Vallejo. However, with the many inconsistencies in Michael Mageau's testimony, we cannot be certain which direction the Zodiac traveled after leaving the parking lot.
  
We know​ that killers often employ a 'buffer zone' from their residence and we know that with increased confidence, a serial killer will move from their comfort zone further afield. Often though, their initial crimes start closer to home. This is why the Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs Park crimes, separated by only 3.9 miles, are of paramount importance. Additionally, both attacks fell on a Friday, which for somebody working a normal Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 job, would explain the lack of 'adventure', that was otherwise displayed at the Lake Berryessa and Presidio Heights attacks, which both fell on a Saturday. This is referred to as the 'least effort principle'. There is one particular area of interest (northern Vallejo), that we can examine for all the right reasons and also examine for all the wrong reasons.​        

The area of interest is denoted by the red circle in the diagram on the left. The blue circle is the Springs and Tuolumne payphone. This area of interest is 4.7 miles from Blue Rock Springs Park (10 minutes). This area is 4.1 miles from the payphone (10 minutes). The times are approximated based on the route. A murderer leaving Blue Rock Springs at 12:04 am at the latest, with 15 minutes to hide the weapon and clothes at home, and ready himself before returning to the payphone, would arrive to make the phone call at 12:39 am. This area of interest is also in a direct line south from the 1231 Main Street, Napa payphone, only 12 miles away. It is situated 9 miles from Lake Herman Road.

In each case, a reasonable 'buffer zone' is employed from the crime scene at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs - and from both payphones - while still allowing the total journey time of 36-40 minutes to be achieved after the Blue Rock Springs crime. But in all cases, the 'buffer zone' is not too large either and a delicate balancing act that the killer may have factored into the equation.

Now we will focus on this area of interest for all the wrong reasons and the following must be taken with a huge pinch of salt.
Donna Ann Lass disappeared from the Sahara Tahoe Hotel and Casino on September 6th 1970, and was presumably highlighted by the Zodiac Killer in the March 22nd 1971 'Pines' card. The card itself indicated a location, thought to be the burial site of Donna Lass, although it was vague in nature, supplying what appeared to be directional markers. The text on the card read;   [1] 'Sierra Club'  [2] 'Sought Victim 12'  [3] 'Peek through the pines'  [4] 'pass Lake Tahoe areas'  [5] 'around in the snow' (pasted upside down). 

Two notable Sierra Club properties were identified. In a newspaper article it stated "the site depicted on the 'Pines' Card was from an advertisement published last Sunday by several newspapers. It was an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a project at Incline Village", located at 895 Tanager Street, Nevada. The other was Clair Tappaan Lodge at 19940 Donner Pass Rd, Norden, highlighted as a potential burial site and investigated by police officer Harvey Hines. An excavation of the site was performed but no body was unearthed. It has been stated that a pair of sunglasses, that may have belonged to Donna Lass were found (but this cannot be verified). The directions on the 'Pines' card, if from the Sahara Tahoe Hotel, seems to indicate that we have to pass some 'lake tahoe areas', traveling on the lake's western shore, along California State Route 89, which brings us out by Truckee, only 2 miles from the Donner Memorial State Park, and a few miles east of Clair Tappaan Lodge.

Here is an overhead view of Clair Tappaan Lodge on Google maps. Now let us drop to the roadside and 'peek through the pines' at Clair Tappaan Lodge. Whether the Zodiac Killer was using a play on words, possibly bringing us out by the Donner Memorial State Park and suggesting she could be found in this area, only he knows. Or was his play on words suggestive of somewhere entirely different. As stated above, Clair Tappaan Lodge is situated alongside Donner Pass Road, but are we in the wrong place, and does the clue point towards a totally different area, somewhere we are much more familiar with. Somewhere only 4.7 miles from Blue Rock Springs Park. Probably not.

In a previous article we highlighted a missing casing from the Lake Herman Road police report. It detailed nine shell casings retrieved from the crime scene and sent off for ballistics testing, despite the fact that ten shots were fired that night. Not only did the police sketches depict ten shots within the turnout (9 on the turnout floor and one on the front passenger floorboard of the Rambler), but so did the police report on page six, where it stated '10-shots (2 in car, 5 in back of female victim, 1 in male victim, 2 unaccounted)'. However, on page 9 of the police report it clearly states under #4 and #5 that only nine casings were turned over to responding officers. We know this to be true, because when the shell casings were tested and detailed in the Department of Justice ballistics report, only nine were submitted for examination.

The conclusion, was that coroner Dan Horan and Sergeant Silva only recovered the shell casings from the turnout floor (totaling 9), inadvertently leaving the tenth casing on the front passenger floorboard of the Rambler. This ultimately became separated from the other nine casings and was never sent for ballistics analysis. Therefore, we cannot know with any certainty that this shell casing can be linked to the other nine. It may have been fired from a second weapon or a second shooter. The Department of Justice report also stated that 'All bullets submitted were Western copper coated .22 long rifle bullets, although some were damaged, it was possible to determine ALL but Item [1] had 6 right hand groove class characteristics.' Bearing in mind item [1] was the bullet recovered from David Faraday's head, it therefore cannot be inextricably linked to the other bullets tested. When we consider the position of David Faraday when he was shot in the left side of his head (possibly by a right-handed shooter), it is not inconceivable that the shell casing ejected to the right and rear, into the open passenger side of the Rambler and onto the floorboard. We have an unmatched bullet and a missing shell casing that may be linked, both of which could be attributed to a second shooter. A murderer who may have secured the main threat that night, David Faraday.              

How is it possible that during a double homicide investigation, a shell casing pivotal to the case, can 'vanish' between evidence retrieval and the ballistics testing? In addition, wasn't this questioned by either the police or the forensic investigators? To make matters worse, the shell casing wasn't the only crucial piece of evidence to go missing, and raises further questions on the validity of any conclusions drawn from the Lake Herman Road crime scene.

Betty Lou Jensen was shot five times in the back, which is not under dispute. The post mortem revealed that there were three exit wounds, while two bullets remained inside her body. The three exit wounds were described:  
​[1] The first is over the left interior chest laterally and left margin of the breast, in the 4th intercostal space and 5 and 1/2 inches from the sternum.
[2] The second is in the anterior abdominal wall, below the xyphoid process and 1/2 an inch from the midline.
[3] The third is laterally and 3 and 3/4 inches to the right of the umbilicus.

If there were three exit wounds, why were only two of these bullets described in the police report on page 9, and only two detailed in the Department of Justice report? On page 9 of the police report it clearly states under #2, #3 and #8, the following findings;
#2 Two pellets removed from victim, Betty Lou Jensen, during autopsy.
#3 Pellet found in pants of victim Betty Lou Jensen, at mortuary, during examination of the deceased. The pellet had entered the lower back, coursed through her body, emerging under the waist band elastic of her panties, where it was found.
#8 Pellet recovered near victim Betty Lou Jensen in blood spattered path on her attempted escape route. Pellet entered her body in the back and emerged from the center of her stomach and dropped to the ground without penetrating the front of her dress.

This describes only four of the five bullets fired into Betty Lou Jensen. Two were recovered from her body at autopsy, one bullet was found in her panties and one bullet was found along her flight path on the gravel turnout. So where is the fifth bullet?
The investigation described ten shell casings apparent in the Lake Herman Road turnout, and the police report on page six accepted ten shots were fired, but again, only seven of the eight bullets accounted for reached the ballistics laboratory for testing.

Below are the items submitted for testing, as reported by the Department of Justice. As one can see, only seven bullets were submitted, whereas above we clearly have eight. 

The police report states that two bullets were unaccounted for (presumably the missed shots that night) - but now we have three unaccounted for, including the one that exited Betty Lou Jensen. That is two key pieces of ballistic evidence currently missing in relation to the crime scene at Lake Herman Road.

The Department of Justice report has two important pieces of information. Firstly, it states 'Intercomparison of the cartridge cases in items 4 and 5 indicates that all are probably fired in the same weapon and all are the same make and type of ammunition. Due to lack of sufficient unique structure it appears that considerable difficulty will be encountered in identifying the responsible weapon if it should be recovered.' The cartridge cases, in essence, could be used to rule out a particular gun, which they did many times, including the weapons of  Robert Connelly and James Owen, but could not be used to definitively rule a gun into the murders 'due to lack of sufficient unique structure'. This means that more than one gun may have been used in the Lake Herman Road murders of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, or possibly several. Secondly, the ballistics report states 'All bullets submitted were Western copper coated .22 Long Rifle bullets. Each of these was microscopically compared with the others, but in no case was an absolutely positive identification possible. This is apparently due to the condition of the rifle barrel, which does not leave coarse structures on bullets fired therein, as well as the effect of the copper coating on the bullet. From our examination it appears that a conclusive identification of the responsible weapon, will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, even if it should be recovered.' Therefore, in theory, there could be two or more weapons involved, concerning multiple shooters, and any suspect weapon recovered could not be fired and provide 'a conclusive identification.' In fact, it 'will be extremely difficult, if not impossible.' This coupled with the 'lack of sufficient unique structure' of the cartridge cases, means that all of the bullets and cartridge cases could have been the product of one person or many people. All that a ballistics comparison can do in respect to the Lake Herman Road murders, is simply rule out a particular weapon. There may well have been one assailant at Lake Herman Road on December 20th 1968, but all other possibilities cannot be ruled out on the basis of the evidence presented.  

In the November 9th 1969 'Bus Bomb' letter the Zodiac Killer was clearly agitated by the response he received after mailing the Paul Stine letter on October 13th. In it he stated "This is the Zodiac speaking up to the end of Oct I have killed 7 people. I have grown rather angry with the police for their telling lies about me. So I shall change the way the collecting of slaves. I shall no longer announce to anyone. When I committ my murders, they shall look like routine robberies, killings of anger, + a few fake accidents, etc". The newspaper article that upset him featured Chief of Police Martin Lee, who stated in the San Francisco Chronicle article on October 18th 1969 entitled 'Zodiac Called a Clumsy Criminal,' that Zodiac possibly left his fingerprints on the taxicab, allowed himself to be spotted by three teenagers, and failed to kill all his victims. He went on say "His boast of being in the area we were searching is a lie. We had the whole area flooded with lights. We had seven police dogs and a large number of patrolmen searching the area tree by tree and bush by bush. The dogs are the best in the country. A mouse couldn't have escaped our attention".

The question was; had the Zodiac already attempted or carried out a crime after the October 18th 1969 article that was designed to look accidental or natural, but had possibly failed. After all, his victim count remained at seven by the end of October, which he corroborated in the Dripping Pen Card on November 8th. To do so, we would have to look at attempted crimes claimed by the 'Zodiac Killer' between October 18th and November 8th, in a relevant location.

As seen on the left, a Salesian High School teacher, Daniel Williams had his house broken into, but nothing was taken. A man claiming to be the Zodiac Killer made several threatening phone calls beginning on October 23rd 1969, culminating with the caller saying "You're the dead duck" on November 2nd 1969. Later that day, Williams took a drink from the refrigerator, but fortunately spat it out after noticing a metallic taste. The drink contained enough arsenic to kill.

This in all likelihood is not the Zodiac Killer, however, the targeting of a school teacher is interesting, bearing in mind a Salinas High School teacher, Donald Harden cracked his first cipher, and his 'Dripping Pen' card and second cipher was to arrive in just six days. It could also be argued that this attempted murder - had it been successful - may have looked 'accidental' as the Zodiac would state in the 'Bus Bomb' letter.

Daniel Williams residence was situated at 1234 Bush Street, Martinez, only 9 miles from the location of Zodiac's first crime at Lake Herman Road.
The mystery man during one of his calls talked of "killing the lady in the blue house," but as of yet the meaning behind this utterance is undetermined. 

Bearing in mind the October 22nd 1969 Jim Dunbar radio show, in which Zodiac was supposed to call in, it is hardly surprising we may get a crank call by somebody claiming to be Zodiac beginning on October 23rd 1969. The only difference here, was it appeared the caller was prepared to back up his threat with action. The original caller to the Oakland Police Department at 2:00 am on October 22nd 1969 may however, not be the same person as the hoaxer, who ultimately called the Jim Dunbar show and spoke to Melvin Belli.

​The phrase 'dead duck' may originate from "Never waste powder on a dead duck," first recorded in 1829. Bearing in mind the use of arsenic powder, an ironic choice of words. 

On October 22nd 1969, the Oakland Police Department took a call in the early morning hours from somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer, requesting that either Melvin Belli or Francis Lee Bailey, high profile lawyers at the time, appear on a chat show hosted by Jim Dunbar later that day. Melvin Belli agreed to appear on the show, to which a man would eventually contact via telephone claiming not only his name was 'Sam', but also by inference that he was the infamous Zodiac Killer.

Three people had heard the voice of the Zodiac Killer, Bryan Hartnell who survived the brutal attack at Lake Berryessa in Napa County, and two police dispatchers, Nancy Slover and Dave Slaight, who all categorically stated that the man called 'Sam', who rang in to the Jim Dunbar show was not the same voice they had recalled from the Blue Rock Springs and Lake Berryessa attacks and therefore not the Zodiac. It was believed that Eric Weill, a mental patient was responsible for the hoax call to the Jim Dunbar show in the October of 1969. It is unknown whether the original caller to the Oakland Police Department was the real killer. However, just three-and-a-half months later on February 5th 1970, a second phone call would arrive during an on air interview by Jim Dunbar with a movie producer. The caller again claimed to be the Zodiac Killer.  

SAN FRANCISCO (UP!)- A man claiming to be the Zodiac killer of five persons held another on-the-air conversation today with television personality Jim Dunbar. Two police inspectors closeted themselves with Dunbar at station KGOTV immediately after the one-sided conversation, which consisted mainly of Dunbar asking questions and repealing fragments of answers.

“When headaches come on, you kill to get relief?” Dunbar asked at one point. “What other stuff you been on besides glue?”. Last October 23, Dunbar and attorney Melvin Belli, a guest on his early morning talk show, held a bizarre conversation with a man who said he was Zodiac. Belli set a meeting with the man, who did not show up. Today's call interrupted an interview by Dunbar with a movie producer. Police believe Zodiac is responsible for five killings in Northern California in the last 13 months. In a series of taunting cryptograms and letters to newspapers and police he has boasted of killing seven and threatened to kill more. Dunbar’s side of the conversation was recorded but not the other voice. The station said something had gone wrong with the monitor on the caller’s voice.

The conversation ran, in part, like this: "What other stuff you been on besides glue? Oh, gas? flow do you get? Oh. Do you still have parts of the shirt you sent the newspaper? Oh. . , . Did the victim make a move on you? In other words, you thought he was going to move? .... Did you have the 9 mm gun? Oh, three guns. What, four guns? How could you conceal four guns? ‘‘When headaches come on, you kill to get relief? . . . Chief evil is what ? . . . Sonny Barger of Hell’s Angels?. Meridith Hunter—you are going to do it yourself to bring justice on the Meridith Hunter murderer? Oh. . . Were you anywhere near Altamont for the rock concert? Oh, you knew it was a hoax? . . . You weren’t there?. . . . “You hate Yellow Cabs? . . . Is that why you killed Paul Stine? . . . You want Belli to represent you? . . . You want life in prison, not death?. m m Why Friday 13th? Is that a bad day? ... You say you’re a tranquility smoker? ... Oh, for 10 years? How can you say that when you’re only 18? . . . What usually brings your headache on? You go without sleep? Months? .. . Are you gassed now? . . . Why do you mix booze with drugs? "Why don’t we get together before Friday 13th? ... You say southwest corner of the Tonga Room? You have a girl? Oh, two. Pretty young, you say, 21 and 24? . . . Tell me one thing you told Belli that I don't know, or wrote to him that nobody else knows. I won't repeat it.”

The Tonga Room is a tiki bar established in 1945 in the Fairmont Hotel, Fairmont, San Francisco, 950 Mason St, San Francisco. The Tonga Room is 10 minute walk from the intersection of Mason and Geary Streets. 

Betty Lou Jensen Autopsy:
There are five bullet wounds of entry on the right side of the back: three on the posterior chest cage and two over the right lower posterior lumbar areas. From up downwards:
[1] The first is located in the 5th intercostal space, 3 and 3/4 inches right of the midline.
[2] The second is in the 8th intercostal space, 5 and 1/2 inches from the midline.
[3] The third is in the 9th intercostal space, 1 and 1/2 inches from the midline.
[4] The fourth in the tip of the right 12th rib, 3 and 1/2 inches from the midline.
[5] The fifth is over the crest of the posterior right iliac bone and 5 and 1/2 inches from the midline.
​There are three exit wounds:
​[1] The first is over the left interior chest laterally and left margin of the breast, in the 4th intercostal space and 5 and 1/2 inches from the sternum.
[2] The second is in the anterior abdominal wall, below the xyphoid process and 1/2 an inch from the midline.
[3] The third is laterally and 3 and 3/4 inches to the right of the umbilicus.

Heart: A bullet wound penetrates from right to left through both atrium.
Lungs: There are three through and through bullet wounds, corresponding to the three bullet wounds of entry on the right posterior chest cage and one bullet wound through the left lung, in line with the wound through the heart. They are associated with extensive hemorrhage of both lungs.
Abdominal Cavity: A bullet wound penetrates the liver. A bullet wound penetrates the right kidney, the left is normal.
Head: No injuries or skull fractures.
The bullet wound over the posterior iliac crest penetrates the deep muscles and exits to the right of the umbilicus. One bullet is recovered in the subcutaneous tissue of the base of the anterior neck (left side) and the other bullet in the subcutaneous tissue anterior to the right 7th rib, which it penetrated of the sternum. The entry wounds aperture 3/16 inch in diameter. The exit wounds are larger.

On the right the three exit wounds are marked with the letter E on Betty Lou Jensen's back. These exit wounds obviously exited the front of her body relative to the positions shown, but have been placed on the back to highlight the difference between the entry wounds and exit wounds. The other two red dots show the resting position of the remaining bullets within the body.

One can see that four of the bullets that exited or remained in the body, are all situated to the left of the entry wounds in the diagram, but the fifth bullet traveled from right to left also. Bullets do not necessarily follow a linear trajectory when they enter the body, as they can be deflected by the structures within the body, but here the overall pattern of the five bullets show a distinct right to left trajectory. The chances that all five bullets deflected to the left from a shooter standing directly behind Betty Lou Jensen is slim, indicating her body position was oriented on her right side in relation to the shooter for many of the shots, if not all.

'The bullet wound over the posterior iliac crest penetrates the deep muscles and exits to the right of the umbilicus'. This is bullet [5], which literally enters and exits her body one and a half inches offline. It entered her lower back (dark mark) and exited the front of her body '3 and 3/4 inches to the right of the umbilicus', indicating she was likely running away from the shooter at this point, in an upright position. Every bullet that entered Betty Lou Jensen traveled from right to left. 

Four wounds, marked in red (2 exit wounds from the front of her body and 2 bullets that remained in the body) can be seen marked on the upper portion of Betty Lou Jensen's back, yet two bullets entered low down on her right side. We know the trajectory of bullet [5], so bullet [4] clearly traveled from her lower back to upper back, strongly indicating that Betty Lou Jensen was likely hunched over at this point, struggling to escape the relentless onslaught. The likelihood therefore is that bullets [1], [2] and [3] effectively traveled directly across from the right shoulder area to the mid and left side, as stated here; 'Lungs: There are three through and through bullet wounds, corresponding to the three bullet wounds of entry on the right posterior chest cage and one bullet wound through the left lung, in line with the wound through the heart. They are associated with extensive hemorrhage of both lungs.' 

It is difficult to ascertain the exact order of the wounds inflicted that night, but if the uppermost hole in Betty Lou Jensen's dress contained the gunshot residue, then it could be argued that bullet hole [1] was the first shot fired, and likely bullet hole [3] may have been the fatal shot that night, as the autopsy stated 'Heart: A bullet wound penetrates from right to left through both atrium.'  The trajectory of bullet wound [3] is consistent with injury to the heart. The following diagram illustrates one possibility of the order of events that night.

The Zodiac Killer shoots David Faraday by the right green circle and he falls close to where Betty Lou Jensen is standing (yellow circle). The Zodiac Killer steps to the left green circle, as Betty Lou Jensen turns to flee westwards. The Zodiac Killer fires the first shot into her upper right shoulder, depositing the gun shot residue onto her dress. This is a non fatal wound and she continues along the flight path shown. The Zodiac Killer is always angled on her right side, in accordance with the bullet trajectories found at autopsy. The first two shots would have been fired at Betty Lou Jensen when she was more side on to the shooter, therefore possibly bullet wounds [1], [2].and [3].

The next shot may have been bullet hole [5] near the mid point of her flight path, striking her 'posterior iliac crest penetrating the deep muscles and exiting to the right of the umbilicus'. That is because this bullet deviated only 1 1/2 inches from front to back, suggesting she was further away from the shooter, slightly more straight on to him. Confirmation of this bullet wound can be found on page 9 of the police report. It states 'Pellet found in pants of victim Betty Lou Jensen, at mortuary, during examination of the deceased. The pellet had entered the lower back, coursed through her body, emerging under the waist band elastic of her panties, where it was found.'

​The previous shot [bullet hole 5] into her lower back may have caused Betty Lou Jensen to hunch forward in pain, then bullet [4] struck, entering low on her back and traveling upwards to the center of her upper back, and exiting from her stomach. The direction of this bullet is shown by the blue line in the left image. This bullet was also described in the police report; 'Pellet recovered near victim Betty Lou Jensen in blood spattered path on her attempted escape route. Pellet entered her body in the back and emerged from the center of her stomach and dropped to the ground without penetrating the front of her dress.' The stomach is situated beneath the heart, so was likely not the fatal shot that night. The police report stated it was found along her escape route, not necessarily where she was finally discovered. Betty Lou Jensen likely staggered a few more feet, twisting to her right side, possibly falling to her knees. The devastating shot was likely bullet [3], striking 'the 9th intercostal space, 1 and 1/2 inches from the midline', traveling 'right to left through both atrium.'

After the five shots she collapses to her right side, as viewed by Stella Medeiros. The woman who spotted the stricken couple as she passed the turnout stated "The girl was lying on her right side facing the road."  Betty Lou Jensen was aligned on the east/west axis to the rear of the Rambler. 

The image below shows the order the wounds may have been inflicted (white numbers). The further Betty Lou travels away from Zodiac, the straighter the shot becomes in respect to Betty Lou's back. Depicted by the green arrows, bullet paths 1, 2 and 3 are quite extreme (across the body), whereas bullet paths 4 and 5 have deviated less between the entrance and exit wounds (with respect to the midline), to 1 3/4 inches and 3 inches from right to left. Please remember the red circles are either showing the exit wounds (E) on Betty Lou Jensen's front side, or the bullets resting positions within the body. 

This analysis requires heavily on little bullet deviation from the internal structures of the body, nevertheless it attempts to give a rudimentary explanation of the right to left trajectory of all five bullets that night, that was unlikely to have happened just by chance.  

In the image below I have reassigned the bullet hole numbers on Betty Lou Jensen's back to show the likely order these wounds were inflicted by the assailant's gun, and depicted the most logical flight path of Betty Lou Jensen that night.