ZODIAC CIPHERS
Richard Grinell, Coventry, England
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AT THE WATER'S EDGE

4/30/2014

 
One of the earliest crimes to be connected to the Zodiac Killer was that of Johnny and Joyce Swindle (both 19 years), a newlywed couple brutally gunned down on Wednesday, February 5th 1964 as they were enjoying an evening out alongside Ocean Beach, San Diego, near Narragansett Avenue. It appeared the killer had shot them from distance first - perched near a retaining wall overlooking the sea - before approaching the couple for the final coup de grâce. Five shots from a .22 caliber weapon had been discharged from his sniper position by the rocks, with the last two directed at the heads of the young couple from very close range. Google Map location. 
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This crime was committed eight months after the Domingos/Edwards double murder near Gaviota State Park, Santa Barbara, with the obvious and inevitable comparisons being drawn between both crimes. Both involved young couples in areas overlooking the sea, with the crime scenes in both cases strewn with .22 caliber shells - although it is not believed they originated from the same weapon.

These early crimes have always drawn interest from a Zodiac Killer perspective, as the Bay Area murderer's first three attacks involved lone couples in isolated retreats, thereby drawing the obvious interest from amateur sleuths. Here we will take a look at these early attacks, as well as the later crimes at Lake Herman Road, Blue Rock Springs, Lake Berryessa and the final confirmed murder of Paul Stine in Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969, and see if they tell us anything about the Zodiac Killer.

The two double murders of 1963 and 1964 may or may not have been the work of the Zodiac Killer, but there still may be a pattern at work. The murder site of John and Joyce Swindle was a matter of yards from the seafront, as were the murders of Robert Domingos and Linda Edwards on June 4th 1963. The first confirmed attack by the Zodiac Killer at the Lake Herman Road turnout was only a 9 minute walk to the edge of Lake Herman, approximately 0.4 miles. 
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..................................Click the image to view on Google Maps.....................................
It has been suggested that the Zodiac Killer must have been familiar with the area due to its remoteness -  and an area of Benicia/Vallejo that would unlikely to have been known by a stranger to the area, particularly in regards to it being used by courting couples late at night - and the exact reason the Zodiac Killer may have targeted this location. He knew it was secluded and he knew the possibility that victims could be found here, however, was there a closer connection. When the Zodiac Killer delivered a letter to the San Francisco Examiner on August 4th 1969 he made reference to the double murder of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, stating "Last Christmass In that epasode the police were wondering how I could shoot + hit my victims in the dark. They did not openly state this, but implied this by saying it was a well lit night + I could see silowets on the horizon. Bullshit that area is srounded by high hills + trees. What I did was tape a small pencel flash light to the barrel of my gun".

The Zodiac Killer's next attack was at Blue Rock Springs on July 4th 1969, only 3.5 miles northwest of Lake Herman. with both crime scenes a relatively short distance from San Pablo Bay and the Carquinez Strait. His final attack on a couple was on the shoreline of Lake Berryessa on September 27th 1969, yet exhibited a marked deviation from the method he employed during his first two crimes. Nevertheless, it was again very close to a lake or large body of water. Lake Berryessa is situated approximately 50 miles north of Lake Herman Road, passing numerous areas on the way, including the region of Napa where he would eventually place his call at 1231 Main Street after the attack on Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard. It is for this reason, it appeared he had specifically earmarked this area as his preferred choice of attack site.     
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.................................Lake Berryessa..................................
The early crimes of a serial killer are usually close to home before they venture outwards with growing confidence - but almost always they choose areas they are familiar with. It is with near certainty that the Zodiac Killer had previously frequented Lake Berryessa, as the location suited him perfectly due to its remoteness and seclusion, particularly advantageous during the early evening hours in September when the majority of visitors would have packed up for the day, yet still enough light to make his grand entrance, bedecked in the splendour of his executioner's costume. The point being, that if the Zodiac Killer had lived south of Riverside in the region of San Diego or Santa Barbara, before moving north to the area of San Francisco, Benicia or Vallejo, then one thing tied all five crime scenes together - the close proximity of water. Of course, this means little on its own unless we delve a little deeper and examine the recreation angle. What hobbies or types of leisure activity did the Zodiac Killer engage in that brought him close to these areas?
The possibility exists that a close connection between the Zodiac Killer and water always existed, not because of the actual names of the crime scenes, but because of what he did there when he wasn't murdering people. The Zodiac Killer may have been an avid fisherman and hunter, not only because he used a different gun at all of the murders, implying an easy access and interest in weaponry, but because of certain hints contained in many of his letters and diagrams to the newspapers.
 
It is well known that 10.5 size Wing Walker impressions were found at the Lake Berryessa crime scene - a variant of the Jump Boot, used by military personnel - but ideal for hiking in rough and slippery terrain, with good ankle support. The Zodiac Killer also used a crossed circle logo, employed to maximum effect when he mailed us his Button letter and Phillips 66 Petroleum Map on June 26th 1970 stating the crosshairs were to 'be set to Mag N'. His directional knowledge was actually correct in both his two phone calls to police (despite what people claim on the internet), and seemed very precise when he talked about radians and inches along the radians, as well as stating the compass dial on the Phillips Map was to be set to Magnetic North. He seemed very familiar with this concept, despite the fact radians would have meant very little to the majority of the general public, unless of course you were a very keen fisherman, hiker or hunter - or all three.    
The Silva Sweden AB designed their first compass in 1928, popular for outdoor navigation with many useful features.
In 1950 Silva introduced the 'The Silva Ranger' to North America, and in 1964 'The Silva Ranger Type 15' deluxe compass, with adjustable declination, clinometer and quadrant scale became available. This was a popular well constructed compass, albeit, other variations and manufacturers were widely available from hunting, hiking and army surplus stores.
Often, good compasses were fitted with a sighting mirror for plotting locations, gradation scales in inches and millimeters, a magnifying glass, a rotating dial, and more importantly, in conjunction with a map the compass could be used to locate magnetic declination points (the difference between True North and Magnetic North), believed to be approximately 16.5 degrees in 1970 when the Zodiac Killer sent us his Button letter and Phillips 66 Map. See video.   
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The compass he may have used could have been set with a directional arrow facing north, designated at zero degrees, similar in fashion to the compass marker he placed on the Phillips Map, complete with Magnetic North instructions. The planning or plotting of radians - and indeed murder sites - would have been easy for somebody who was familiar with the use of such a compass. 

The Zodiac Killer also stated on August 4th 1969 when he mailed the Debut of Zodiac letter, "What I did was tape a small pencel flash light to the barrel of my gun. If you notice, in the center of the beam of light if you aim it at a wall or ceiling you will see a black or darck spot in the center of the circle of light about 3 to 6 inches across. When taped to a gun barrel, the bullet will strike in the center of the black dot in the light. All I had to do was spray them as if it was a water hose; there was no need to use the gun sights". A pencil flashlight was a useful tool, not only as the Zodiac claimed, to use as a sighting implement to focus his aim, but a tool that may already have been readily available to him, as it is often used in pursuits such as fishing and hiking. It is ideal to read maps and to manage small fishing tackle because it could be used hands free, held in the mouth - and in addition - it also had the advantage of being lightweight and compact. The proximity of water in all these locations had the added benefit regarding the disposal of his weapon in the immediate aftermath of each crime, if indeed, this is what he did.

The Ocean Beach location, the Santa Barbara coastline (particularly in view of the area of the Domingos/Edwards murders, that would barely have been known by somebody unfamiliar with the area), the Lake Herman and Lake Berryessa locations, all frequented by hikers and in particular fishermen, suggested the Zodiac Killer (if responsible for all these crimes) had extensive knowledge of these areas and had good reason to have visited them all in advance of each murderous attack. They were his comfort zones. They were his areas of familiarity.  
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Of course, the Paul Stine murder on October 11th 1969 was the biggest deviation of all, but with Presidio Heights being on the northern extremity of San Francisco, water was never far away. Washington and Cherry Streets were no more than one mile away from the coastline of Marina Boulevard. 

The famous Fisherman's Wharf is situated roughly 3 miles east of the Julius Khan playground, developed as a tourist attraction in the 1970s and 1980s, but prior to this was a fishing magnet for Italian migrants. It provided good fishing, that included the now famous Dungeness crab. See on Wikipedia.  

It is arguable that the Zodiac Killer may have had a profession that took him close to all these areas. A connection could be forged from Humble Oil in Benicia, to the Santa Barbara oil fields, as well as the military angle, pursued from the standpoint of the Vandenberg Air Force Base, nine miles northwest of Lompoc, California to the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo. However, the possibility also exists that either of these occupations can stand alongside his recreational pursuits, with the military angle spiking the most interest as it can be intertwined with all of the above. The use of Wing Walkers, access to weaponry and a firm knowledge of map reading and co-ordinates, taking his profession straight into his pastimes and pursuits - that kept the hunter within him burning bright.

SOUTH OF RIVERSIDE

4/27/2014

 
Recent events have shone some new light on the murder of Meadowbrook student Nikki Alexandra Benedict, just shy of forty seven years ago in Poway Road, Poway, California on Monday May 1st 1967. The young 14-year-old girl was traveling back home to Olive Tree Lane when her journey was cut short by an unknown assailant, who to this day remains a mystery.
She had left her friend's house, situated on Halper Road in the early evening hours and it was in the region of the 12700 blocks of Poway, 100 yards from the Carriage Road intersection that her life was cruelly snatched away by fatal stab wounds to her chest. See area on Google Maps. Nikki Benedict was discovered alive at approximately 6:30 pm by a local boy Ronald Fisk (11), who raced to get help on his bicycle to his fathers shop nearby. Bob Fisk ran a butchers store in Poway throughout the 1960s and 70s. 
Nikki Benedict was rushed to Palomar Medical Center but sadly died shortly after her arrival. Recent developments have sparked some new interest in the case, brought to the attention of investigators by a long standing resident of Poway.
The knife used in the murder was shown to residents in the local area back in 1968 - and it is the memories of one particular 54-year-old man, that has now become the focus of this new lead. This case has also drawn interest from the Zodiac Killer perspective in respect to the Bay Area murderer's communications to the newspapers during a five year period from 1969 to 1974. But in particular, a letter he mailed to the Los Angeles Times.

Nikki Benedict was born on March 13th 1953. Exactly 18 years later the Zodiac Killer gave us his latest offering, simply known as the 'Los Angeles Letter', received on March 13th 1971. In this correspondence he stated "I do have to give them credit for stumbling across my riverside activity, but they are only finding the easy ones, there are a hell of a lot more down there".
Riverside, California was the location of the murder of Cheri Jo Bates on October 30th 1966, situated 80 miles north of Carriage Road, Poway. Google Maps. 
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Nikki Benedict murdered on May 1st 1967
Cheri Jo Bates was brutally stabbed outside the Riverside City College library after the killer had sabotaged her Volkswagen Beetle in the pretense of luring the young student to her death. One month later, on November 29th 1966, a typed Confession Letter was received at the Riverside Police and Riverside Enterprise detailing the murder, and culminating with the chilling words "Beware....I am stalking your girls now". Five months later came the murder of Nikki Benedict on May 1st 1967.
However, there is little to link the two cases other than a vague suggestion by the Zodiac Killer that there was a "lot more down there". On the face of it, this appears to be an unlikely Zodiac connection, but all avenues must be explored for the sake of the family and friends of Nikki Benedict, who surely after 47 years of questions deserve some form of resolution to her cruel murder.
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Larry Hargis murdered on June 25th 1970
Another case predating the 'Los Angeles Letter' on March 13th 1971, was that of Larry Hargis, a 27-year-old Yellow Cab driver, murdered on June 25th 1970, just over eight months after the callous slaying of Paul Stine who was gunned down by a single shot to his head in Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969. Larry Hargis had informed the taxicab company dispatcher of a client asking to be driven to the Spring Valley area from downtown San Diego, California. San Diego is situated near the coast in Southern California, about a two-hour drive south of Los Angeles and Riverside County, but only a 30 minutes drive from the crime scene of Nikki Benedict in Poway. See here on Google Maps. The words to the dispatcher in the early hours of the 25th June, unfortunately were the last spoken by taxicab driver Larry Hargis; whose body was later discovered in a field near Galopago Street. He had been shot and his wallet had been taken. His taxicab, presumably commandeered by the murderer(s), was later discovered abandoned in downtown San Diego, approximately 20 minutes traveling time from the murder scene.
No suspect or suspects have ever been identified and the case remains unsolved to this day.
This murder took place the day before the Zodiac Killer's Button Letter was received at the San Francisco Chronicle on 26th June 1970, claiming he had "shot a man sitting in a parked car with a .38". However, the location in San Diego, and the traveling distance back to San Francisco makes any connection to the Button Letter, as well as the Zodiac Killer, unlikely.  Nevertheless, it provides a significant timeline between the murder of Larry Hargis and the mailing of the Button Letter to the San Francisco Chronicle the following day.

Any information regarding either of these cases, please contact the San Diego Homicide Detail by visiting their website below.
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coldcase/index.html. Thank-you.

EAST TO BENICIA

4/17/2014

 
Where did the Zodiac Killer live? A question that has always derived much speculation, based on the sites he mailed his letters, the location of his crimes and his apparent topographical knowledge, or lack of, when describing the areas his murders were committed. In a previous article, an area of interest was narrowed down to within a one mile radius of the payphone at the intersection of Springs Road and Tuolumne Street. Indeed, this area contained the home of Arthur Leigh Allen at 32 Fresno Street. A link to this article is available at the foot of the page, but here we will be examining a different possible home location of the Zodiac Killer, based on his movements after each crime, the distance he traveled using the least effort principle, and the standard working week.

His four confirmed attacks were Lake Herman Road on 12.20.68, Blue Rock Springs 7.4.69, Lake Berryessa 9.27.69 and Presidio Heights 10.11.69. These four attacks were committed on a Friday, Friday, Saturday and Saturday respectively, all at the weekend, suggesting the killer may have had a standard 9-5 occupation from Monday to Friday, only committing his murders prior to a day of rest. Serial killers often begin their crimes close to home in what is termed a comfort zone. In other words, areas that are familiar to them, such as their leisure zones, their place of work, the location of friends and family, along with functional activities. But not too close to risk identification or draw attention to their home residence. Once a crime has been perpetrated, the main objective of the criminal is to return home or to relative safety. Killers will venture further away from their home base as they gain confidence, but generally not too far, as the least time they are traveling carrying the 'smoking gun' or harboring transfer from the crime scene, the better.   
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On the right is a map of the four crime scene locations and the traveling times to each from Benicia, as this area will now become the main focus of our attention as the likely residence of the Zodiac Killer. If Benicia was his residence during the murders, then his first two attacks at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs Park would have been relatively close to home, but committed in isolated locations that served to protect his identity.

If he worked standard occupation hours and finished work on Friday at 5:00 pm, the least effort principle would come into play. Murder was on his mind, but having arrived home late afternoon or early evening, he conceivably wanted to travel the least distance possible, while still maintaining a reasonable buffer zone to his residence. 

This would explain both the Lake Herman Road murders and the Blue Rock Springs attack occurring on a Friday night.
His Saturday crimes of Lake Berryessa and Presidio Heights were considerably further - and being a rest day for the Zodiac Killer - the least effort principle would be mitigated. Now we will examine the possible movements of the Zodiac Killer after each crime to narrow down a location for his home residence.

Eyewitness testimony from the Lake Herman Road murders suggested a very small window of time that the Zodiac Killer had available to him in order to escape detection, but one eyewitness, that of Stella Borges, was the most crucial of all. A second eyewitness, James Owen, passed the turnout at what was calculated to be 11:14 pm and he saw no victims lying on the turnout floor. However, Stella Borges in a revised timeline, passed the turnout at approximately 11:20 pm and saw both victims David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen lying on the gravel turnout. Based on this chain of events, the earliest the Zodiac Killer could have murdered the young couple and started to leave the turnout would have been 11:15 pm. Stella Borges, it was estimated left her ranch at 11:15 pm heading towards Benicia. She reported passing no vehicles en route. Therefore the Zodiac Killer could not possibly have headed towards Vallejo along Lake Herman Road using this timeline. The only possible scenario using these claimed times, is the Zodiac Killer headed in an easterly direction towards Benicia and towards the relative safety of home. 

After committing two brutal murders, possibly covered in biological material from the close contact murder of David Faraday, the sound of at least ten shots on a still dark night, and almost certainly still in possession of a .22 weapon, it would have been unimaginably stupid - and furthermore made little sense - for the killer to head in the opposite direction to his home residence, thereby risking a prolonged period of detection, and in all likelihood, ruling out Vallejo as the home residence of Northern California's most elusive serial killer.  
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The attack at Blue Rock Springs was approximated no later than 12:04 am on the 5th July 1969, however, the call the Zodiac Killer made to police dispatcher Nancy Slover at the Springs Road and Tuolumne Street payphone was logged at 12:40 am. This payphone was located only a 10 minute drive from Blue Rock Springs. So what had the killer done during this time period? It is highly unlikely he would have sat stationary in his car in the area, or outside the payphone for any prolonged period of time. After gunning down two people only 3.7 miles away, this would only have increased his risk of capture. The Zodiac Killer had likely planned this phone call to police in advance of the crime, despite the fact it carried greater risk. The payphone may have been chosen because it was known to the killer and not too close to where he lived.
If he lived in Benicia or somewhere in that region, as his movements suggested after the Lake Herman Road double murder, then knowing the phone call would place him at greater risk, it is conceivable he discarded the weapon before making the phone call to Nancy Slover, in his mind, reducing the risk of being stopped carrying the 'smoking gun'. He was familiar with Lake Herman Road - and in near isolation, free from prying eyes - it would have been a perfect disposal site for his weapon, particularly bearing in mind Lake Herman was situated near to his first murders. A journey from Blue Rock Springs to Lake Herman, with time spent to exit his vehicle, wipe down the weapon and toss the evidence into Lake Herman, before returning to the payphone at Springs Road and Tuolumne Street, would have taken approximately 30 minutes, and nearer the time of 12:40 am, the time the call was logged. Any stop by police now, would have held far less risk. He could equally have traveled straight home after the attack at Blue Rock Springs, disposed of any incriminating evidence, before returning to make the phone call. 
In the phone call to police dispatcher Nancy Slover, the killer would announce his campaign of terror "I wish to report a double murder. If you will go one mile east on Columbus Parkway to a public park, you will find the kids in a brown car. They have been shot by a 9 mm Luger. I also killed those kids last year.... Good-bye".
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After his third attack at Lake Berryessa, he made a second phone call at 1231 Main St, Napa, heading in a southerly direction, a direct route back to the Vallejo and Benicia region, suggesting a return to the locale of his first two crimes. This was the first time the Zodiac Killer had traveled any great distance to perpetrate murder. Is it possible a connection between Lake Berryessa and Lake Herman could be forged from a standpoint of recreation? Was the Zodiac Killer a keen fisherman in his spare time, hence his choice of remote areas that seemed to punctuate his early crimes?

His final confirmed murder was that of Paul Stine at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969. This was in stark contrast to his previous attacks, taking place in a built-up area with high risk. To commit such a brazen attack in a heavily populated location seemed on the face of it an unusual choice, which led to the idea the killer was very confident in these surroundings. ​It is well documented that a large proportion of his mailed correspondence was postmarked San Francisco, indicating he may have likely worked in San Francisco, yet lived in the Vallejo or Benicia region.

The area of the red triangle (drawn on the first map diagram), suggests a comfort zone, incorporating Presidio Heights, Lake Herman Road, Lake Berryessa, Napa, Blue Rock Springs Park, Benicia and the Springs Road and Tuolumne Street intersection. His residence could in theory fall anywhere within this triangle if we take geographic profiling to its basics, with the central area of the triangle providing the greatest interest of all. 

SEE; http://www.zodiacciphers.com/1/post/2013/08/the-lost-40-minutes.html

THE HALLOWEEN CARD WITHIN THE 340 CIPHER

4/12/2014

 
THE 340 CIPHER WAS CRACKED ON DECEMBER 3RD 2020 BY DAVE ORANCHAK, SAM BLAKE AND JARL VAN EYCKE, SO THIS EARLIER ARTICLE SHOULD BE VIEWED IN RESPECT TO RECENT DEVELOPMENTS.
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It has often been theorized that the 340 cipher may have inspired the design of later communications, but equally, as time went by the Zodiac Killer dismayed that nobody was able to crack his masterpiece, may have dropped clues or keys in his subsequent cards and letters, particularly the latter ones as he became more desperate to push people in the right direction. An interesting article on Jos Kirps's Popular Science and Technology Blog, indicated some extremely close connections, that suggested the Halloween card mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on October 27th 1970 may have been the Zodiac Killer's biggest clue to date.

He observed that on the Halloween card the Zodiac Killer had added the phrases By Fire, By Gun, By Knife and By Rope in four quadrants around the intersecting Paradice and Slaves, which may bear some relation to the unsolved 340 cipher. The word "By" was also present in the four quadrants of the 340 cipher, all running horizontally. If that was not curious enough, he noticed the possibility that the word Paradice ran down the center of the 340 cipher, and the word Slaves  across its midsection, on the 10th row. In the following section we shall use this as our starting point and attempt to find some more connections to the Halloween card.

We shall add the words  Fire, Knife and Rope underneath the words "By" on the 340 cipher (By Gun runs upwards to remain in its respective quadrant). On the Halloween card the Zodiac Killer placed Fire, Gun and Rope next to the letter B of "By". But the word Knife is placed next to the letter Y of "By" (as it runs vertically). In the diagram below Fire, Gun, Knife and Rope have been colored in.

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If you take a look at the word Knife and Rope, the letter E on both would fall over a > symbol on the 340 cipher. The letter E in the word Slaves would fall over a < symbol. The E in the vertical word Paradice would fall over a < symbol as well.

Therefore out of the five E's on the Halloween card, four would fall over a directional symbol, either < or > (Fire would not). If we transposed this E onto the fourth symbol on the top row of the 340 cipher, the word Here is formed.
This would now connect five directional symbols to the letter E. In the above examples, three E's are represented by > symbol and two E's are represented by < symbol. But it would be nice to have five the same.

The Halloween card has many interesting features, but in terms of focusing in on individual alphabetical letters, the Zodiac Killer does two things. He mirrors the letter N in By Knife and underlines LAV in Paul Averly on the envelope. If we then produce a mirror image of all the symbols on the 17th line of the 340 cipher (to correct the reversed N in Knife), the < (E) of Paradice becomes >. If we take a mirror image of all the characters on the 10th line of the 340 cipher, including Slaves (LAV), the < (E) of Slaves becomes >. Therefore all five E's would now be represented by the symbol >.

FOUR MINUTES BEHIND

4/10/2014

 
On a cold dark night back on December 20th 1968, a young couple were enjoying a late night out, parked up in their Rambler on a lonely gravel turnout, just off the unlit, narrow winding road of Lake Herman, when an unknown assailant shattered the tranquil night time air, gunning down both David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen in cold blood and unleashing an unparalleled horror on a community, the like of which had never been seen before. Unbeknownst at the time, this crime was just the start of a bloody campaign of terror by the now infamous Zodiac Killer, that would in a little over six months become all too apparent, when police dispatcher Nancy Slover received a phone call from the killer at 12:40 am, on the morning of July 5th 1969. 

The Blue Rock Springs and Lake Berryessa attacks saw two of the victims survive and the final confirmed murder at Presidio Heights had key witnesses view the killer, exiting the taxi of murder victim Paul Stine and heading north along Cherry Street, but the Lake Herman Road double murder was altogether different, in that there were actually no witnesses of the crime in progress. The subsequent analysis of the crime scene was the only story to be told. Several witnesses traveling along Lake Herman Road that night passed by the scene, but by chance failed to spot the killer, in what must have been a slender corridor of time for the Zodiac Killer to have committed the murders and depart the remote turnout, heading back towards Benicia or Vallejo without being seen. 

In a previous post, Morf13 calculated the actual time difference between James Owen passing the location, driving towards Humble Oil in Benicia for his graveyard shift and seeing no bodies in the turnout, and the arrival of Stella Borges (Medeiros), who discovered the two victims, may have been as little as six minutes or less, which is a very small window of time for the Zodiac Killer to unleash his horror and make good his escape.  
James Owen had his car radio on low that night when he passed the gravel turnout and according to a police statement taken on 24th December 1968, he definitely saw two cars, parked within 3-4 feet of each other, with no persons in or around them. Approximately one quarter of a mile beyond the turnout "he thought he heard a shot". Therefore, if this second car belonged to the Zodiac Killer, then he, along with Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday must have been either hiding between the cars or somewhere else out of sight when James Owen's car was seen approaching.
Once James Owen passed, the Zodiac Killer then waited 30 seconds (approx time to travel one quarter of a mile at 30 mph), before 
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unleashing his horrifying attack. But there are some problems with this exact chain of events. 

James Owen mentions no gunshots in his first statement to police on 21st December 1968, but three days later he states that "he thought he heard a shot". On a quiet country road at approximately 11:14 pm at night, the killer only waited 30 seconds after James Owen had passed before firing off numerous rounds from a .22 caliber weapon. But Owen supposedly only heard one. After James Owen passed the turnout, are we to conclude the Zodiac Killer only shot David Faraday (the shot James Owen heard), then waited a certain length of time until James Owen was out of earshot, then murdered Betty Lou Jensen? The sequence of events makes little sense from either perspective and in all probability James Owen heard nothing. This also raises questions. James Owen in his first statement describes two cars 10 feet apart, one was a 1956 or 1957 station wagon, boxy type with a neutral color, but was unable to provide any meaningful description of the other car. This became 3-4 feet in the second statement, but the report also uses the phrase "He definitely saw two cars". Why the emphasis on definitely. Was he questioned on this fact. 

The widely believed sequence of events is that the Zodiac Killer approached in his car, forced the couple to leave their vehicle from the passenger side door, initially shot David Faraday at close range (or after a very brief struggle), and as Betty Lou Jensen ran for her life, she was gunned down by five shots to her back, finally succumbing approximately 34 feet to the west side of the gravel turnout. She fell backwards, her head finally resting 28'6" from the rear bumper of the Rambler station wagon. He then departed the scene.   
The most logical scenario of events that night, appears to be, at approximately 11:13 pm the Zodiac Killer had parked up in the turnout alongside the couple, firing at least two warning shots to 'encourage' the couple to exit the passenger side door of their Rambler and onto the ground between the cars, out of view from the road. James Owen's car was noticed approaching along Lake Herman Road, either audibly or visually. The Zodiac Killer stooped behind the couple's Rambler until Owen's car had passed at 11:14 pm. The killer waited a reasonable amount of time for James Owen's car to move out of earshot, or at least a safe distance away before he eventually struck. We shall attribute this time delay at nearer 2 minutes: approximately one minute waiting for James Owen to depart and one minute to carry out the murders, get back in his car, reverse and exit the turnout. The time now would be around 11:16 pm. It may be slightly earlier or slightly later, but it's a reasonable estimation.
 

Stella Borges (Medeiros) lived 1.5 miles west of the Lake Herman Road turnout (Borges Ranch). It was calculated she had passed the turnout at 11:20 pm, indicating she had left the Borges Ranch at 11:17 pm. Mike Morford, a keen Zodiac investigator stated "Borges drove off immediately at speeds of 60-70 mph towards Benicia to get help, where she eventually ran into Benicia Police Officer Pitta. From Pitta’s report, he notes that Borges flagged him down at approximately 11:25 pm. Pitta then raced to the scene arriving there at about 11:28 pm. This is apparently how they established that Borges took 5 minutes to find and make contact with Pitta. They now think that Borges was actually at the scene at 11:20 pm".

At 11:17 pm, when Stella Borges left her ranch, the Zodiac Killer was either in the process of leaving the turnout or had likely already left the turnout approximately one minute ago. Had he chosen to turn left and head towards Vallejo he would have passed Stella Borges along Lake Herman Road. She reported passing no other vehicles. The Zodiac Killer therefore, if this sequence of events is correct, turned right and headed east toward Benicia. He had a four minute jump on her, so after she discovered the bodies, despite traveling at speeds of 60-70 mph, she never was likely to view the taillights of the Zodiac Killer. He had disappeared into the night. This was not the last time he was going to get lucky.
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LAKE HERMAN ROAD TIMELINE

4/6/2014

 
Mike Morford (Morf13) posted a very interesting timeline of the main eyewitnesses movements during the Lake Herman Road double murder of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen on December 20th 1968 and it demonstrates the very small window of time the Zodiac Killer had available to him, to avoid being spotted, possibly as little as six minutes. With his permission, the forum post can be read unchanged and in its entirety here.
Lake Herman Rd Timeline- Taken from the Reports

The timeline of events for 12/20/68 on Lake Herman Rd is an interesting one, and includes some questionable details. One thing is sure, for being a dark, cold night on a quiet, lonely road, there seem to have been a good amount of witnesses and cars at and around the crime scene.
An examination of the timeline is in order, but I will not attempt to ‘discredit’ ANY of the witnesses, but will merely point out the approximate established times as taken from the reports, as well as details included therein.

The first, and perhaps most interesting witness, was William Crow.
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David Arthur Faraday (17) and Betty Lou Jensen (16). Murdered at Lake Herman Road on December 20th 1969.
WILLIAM CROW-
At aprox 9:30 to 10:00, Crow and his Girlfriend claim that they were parked on that very spot where Faraday & Jensen would be murdered a little over an hour later. There were no other cars parked there. Crow claims that while parked at the spot checking out his girlfriend’s new car, a blue car, possibly a Valient, passed them coming from Benicia to Vallejo, and then suddenly stopped in the road and started to back up. Crow, sensing danger, quickly pulled out, and the other car followed them at a high speed before Crow was able to quickly turn off, losing the blue car behind them. The car that chased Crow apparently contained two white males.
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PEGGY & HOMER YOUR-
At aprox 11:00 pm, Mr & Mrs Your passed the crime scene while out checking pipes for her Husband’s job. As they passed the pump station(the turnout), they saw Faraday’s Rambler, with a ‘boy’ sitting in the driver’s seat, with the ‘girl’ resting on his shoulder, certainly based on what she witnessed, there was no sign of foul play at 11:00pm, just a young couple parked in a quiet area enjoying their time together. Mrs Your went into detail even stating that when her headlights his Dave’s car, Dave put his hands on the steering wheel. It’s obvious that she is providing great detail here, and while Ray Grant would have you believe that the kids were kidnapped earlier, and that Mrs Your was lying, or making these details up, there is ZERO evidence to support Ray’s ‘theory’. 
The Yours went down the road a ways, then turned around and worked their way back, and again saw the Victims and their car a couple minutes later, still in the same previous positions. The car was facing “EAST TOWARDS THE FIELD, LEFT OF THE GATE”.When the yours turned around at the Marshall Ranch, they noticed the raccoon hunter’s red truck. (Connelly & Gasser), and “at this time, the car was NOW FACING OUT TO THE ROAD”, and that there were “TWO WHITE MALES IN THE CAR”. There’s a bit of confusion here, because the report mentions “TWO MEN IN THE CAR”, which should read as, “IN THE TRUCK”. And also, it’s not clear from the report, but is likely to be assumed, that the car that was “NOW FACING OUT TO THE ROAD” was Faraday’s, and that the “TWO MEN IN THE CAR” were actually the two hunters in the truck. In a later report about 3 months after the incident, Mrs Your continues to say that she saw the two victims in the Rambler, and again mentions that when their headlights shined on the young Caucasian couple, consisting of a boy, and a girl, the boy adjusted himself, moving in his seat. She also once again details the hunters, and their clothing. Nothing changes in her description of the scene or the cars. She estimates that she encountered the hunters and saw the Rambler at about 11:15-11:18pm. Mr. Your describes the same details, and estimated that they were at the scene between 11:00 & 11:20pm. (The Yours clock was found to be off by____minutes).
THE HUNTERS
(FRANK GASSER & ROBERT CONNELLY) -
First statement to police on 12/21/68, The hunters claim they hunted until 11:00pm or so, and they noted the time as Connelly had looked at his watch. Time was approximate, and could have been 10:50 or 10:55pm. They stated that it took them about 3-5 minutes to walk to their truck. In his 2nd statement to police, Connelly stated it may have taken up to 10 minutes to walk back to the truck. Connelly stated that they arrived at the truck, and were there about 5 minutes when a car came in and turned around. This car belonged to the Yours. 
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After the Yours turned around, the hunters sat there about another 5 minutes, and then drove off. Connelly estimated that they left the area between 11:05 & 11:15pm. 
If we assume that the hunters started walking back to their truck at Connelly’s earliest estimated time of 10:50pm, and it took them 3-10 minutes to get to their truck, they arrived at the truck about 10:53 to 11:00pm. They sat there until approximately 10:58 to 11:05pm, at which time they saw the Yours turn around. They then sat there another 5 minutes or so, until approximately 11:03 to 11:12, before they left.

JAMES OWEN-
James Owen estimated that he passed the scene at 11:20pm. Owen estimated that he left his home in Vallejo for work at Humble Oil at about 11pm, heading towards Benicia. Police determined that Owen’s clock was 6 minutes fast, and that he really would have left at about 10:54pm putting him on the scene at about 11:14. In fact, 11:14 appears on one of the sketches, and the sketch shows Owen’s car passing the scene, and shows Faraday’s car in it’s spot, with a 2nd mystery car parked to the right of it, which is what Owen claims he saw as he went by. Owen’s account may perhaps be more important than any other witnesses, as he is the last person to see the Victim’s car prior to it being found at aprox 11:20pm by Stella Borges, along with it’s two occupants, dead on the road beside it. In short, police think that Zodiac killed the two victims between 11:14pm, and 11:20pm, when Borges found the bodies. Also of note, Owen states that he saw no people in the cars, or anywhere around them, which would include two dead bodies on the ground. Police stated that “it takes 19 minutes to travel the distance from his home to the crime scene”, which again, puts him there at 11:14pm.
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STELLA BORGES-
Stella Borges is the person that found the two victim’s dead, and she is the first person known to be at the crime scene following the last person to pass the scene before the couple was killed.(Owen)
Between Owen, and Borges, their accounts would lead the police to believe there was a tight 6 minute window for zodiac to strike. Borges states that she looked at the clock in her house, and it was 11:10pm. She then left the house driving ‘casually’ over the 2.7 miles until she reached the crime scene. She estimates that she arrived at the scene, 4-5 minutes later, which would be about 11:14-11:15pm.
Keep in mind, Owen is placed there at 11:14pm up to this point. Now for something crucial- police checked her clock, and found it to be one minute fast, meaning that she likely would really be there at 11:13-11:14. Well, obviously, this is a huge glaring problem, Owen there at 11:14 seeing two cars and no people or bodies, and Borges being there at 11:13-11:14 and seeing one car and two bodies. Obviously, both of the established times for Owen and Borges can’t be correct. What happened? Borges drove off immediately at speeds of 60-70mph towards Benicia to get help, where she eventually ran into Benicia Police Officer Pitta. From Pitta’s report, he notes that Borges flagged him down at aprox 11:25pm. Pitta then raced to the scene arriving there at about 11:28pm. This is apparently how they established that Borges took 5 minutes to find and make contact with Pitta. They now think that Borges was actually at the scene at 11:20, hence the 6 minute window for zodiac to strike. The police report mentions “the distance was 3.4 miles” from where she found the cops, and the murder scene, and “possibly took her 5 minutes to drive”.
One thing police did correct was to verify the accuracy of the clocks of the people on Lake Herman Rd that night. Some were found to be off, and police adjusted the times in their statements. It does not appear in the police reports, but James Owen told me that the police had him drive his route from that night while they accompanied him, and if memory serves, they had him do that more than once. Although the police did some things right, there are also some major issues with their investigation. For example, they allowed James Owen to question a potential witness, a co-worker of his, to see if he had driven by the crime scene the night of the murders. In addition, police asked Owen to hand over two rifles that he owned for ballistics testing, but later when they found out a rifle was not used, they never asked him for his handguns for testing. 
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Lake Herman Road - Click the picture for aerial view on Google Maps
According to Owen, they also never asked him for prints, or writing samples. For these reasons, and the fact Owen is the last person confirmed to be at the crime scene before Borges found the bodies a few minutes later, he has become my favorite suspect. Owen was the only person at the scene that night without a witness to verify his statements, or provide an alibi for him. He had multiple inconsistencies in his statements to police. In one account he mentioned that the mystery car parked next to the Rambler was 3-4 feet away from the Rambler, and in the other statement, it was 10 feet. The biggest discrepancy of all, was that 9 hours after the crime on 12/21, Owen was giving a statement at the scene of the double murder, likely with chalk outlines on the ground, yet he failed to mention hearing any shots 9 hours before when he passed the scene, yet 3 days later on the 24th, Owen suddenly mentions that he heard a shot after he passed the scene, about a quarter mile up the road. Personally, I find it highly unusual that a witness would leave out a detail like that only 9 hours after the crime when it was fresh in his mind, especially a retired military guy like him who you would expect to be more detail oriented.Whether or not Owen was Zodiac, can be debated, the point is, the window for Zodiac to get in and out unseen, is very tight. Between the hunters leaving and Borges finding the bodies, was likely about 10 minutes. Owen is the only one confirmed to be there in between. The time between Owen passing, and Borges finding the bodies, is really tight, 6 minutes according to police, but it could be as little as 3-4 minutes. 
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The latest time Connelly the hunter thinks they left would be 11:12. Owen was there at 11:14. Borges found the bodies at about 11:20. If Connelly’s and Owen’s times are correct, then Zodiac only had 2 minutes to arrive by some miracle in between 11:12 & 11:14 pm. That would be pretty miraculous. Also, it’s quite amazing that the crime wasn’t taking place when Owen or Borges arrived at the scene. Due to how tight the timeframe is, I think it’s entirely possible that Owen was Zodiac based on the timeframe, and the things I previously mentioned above about Owen.

​It simply would take the greatest luck for Zodiac to slip in to the scene without being seen just prior to Owen arriving, and slip out just before Borges finding the bodies, and Owen happens to be there at that time. He should have been properly ruled out as a suspect.

THE EXORCIST LETTER

4/3/2014

 
The final confirmed letter mailed by the infamous Zodiac Killer to the San Francisco Chronicle on January 29th 1974 has been commonly referred to as the Exorcist Letter. This sixty-one word correspondence appeared to mock the 1973 movie The Exorcist, directed by William Friedkin and based on a novel by William Peter Blatty published in 1971, chronicling the demonic possession of a twelve-year-old girl, Regan MacNeil. William Peter Blatty spent long nights in a secluded Lake Tahoe cabin crafting images of good and evil, religion, faith and the afterlife, that would eventually go on to make movie history and court its fair share of controversy along the way. 

The letter is short, reminiscent of much of the Zodiac Killer's later contact with authorities, but as well as mentioning The Exorcist movie, the letter, in rather disjointed fashion, breaks into a Mikado recital once again, recalling memories of the Little List Letter mailed three and a half years previously on July 26th 1970. But this time the foreboding 'Tit Willow' seemed contemplatory in this context, possibly marking the end of the Zodiac reign - and to this day is still often quoted as the murderer's epitaph. The third and final section issued the usual threat of more murders, capped off with Asian style symbols in the form of a cryptic message. Like much of his later correspondence there is little substance here, but we will attempt to delve a little deeper into the Exorcist Letter and find any links that may be relevant or otherwise, as to why he wrote the letter in the first place. This is not a theory, just an examination into where the Zodiac Killer may have been drawing his inspiration.       
PictureGroucho Marx : I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member.
The Little List Letter mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on July 26th 1970 heavily featured the Gilbert and Sullivan stage play, The Mikado. One section loosely quotes 'a more humane Mikado',  followed by the more extensive paraphrasing of Act 1 Part 5a, 'As some day it may happen'. The curious thing, is that the Zodiac Killer's version of the Little List mimics closer to the Groucho Marx version in the Bell Telephone Hour (1960) than the original Gilbert and Sullivan play. Visit here for the full audio collection: Gilbert Sullivan-The Mikado audio. A thread at the Zodiac Killer Site Forum also covers this topic in detail. Groucho Marx would possibly appear again, depicted in the American Greetings Card or Eureka Card, mailed by either the Zodiac or a copycat in the December of 1990.

The Eureka Card was reminiscent of the Halloween Card mailed some 20 years earlier. It begins with the words FROM YOUR SECRET PAL CAN'T GUESS WHO I AM YET?  WELL, LOOK INSIDE AND YOU'LL FIND OUT...  and once opened stated ... THAT I'M GONNA KEEP YOU GUESSIN'! HAPPY HOLIDAYS, ANYWAY. The scene portrayed on the Christmas card  was of a snowman disguised in a Groucho Marx style nose and glasses. In front of the snowman was a rabbit or hare apparently gazing up at the wintry scene. One cannot help thinking the Zodiac Killer chose his cards for a reason.

Another interesting connection was noted on viewing the Tom Hanson Zodiac movie from 1971, in that the killer wore a Groucho Marx style nose and glasses in one scene from the movie. View the scene and thread at ZodiacKiller.com. But this was not the only possible film connection to the Groucho Marx disguise featured on the 1990 Eureka Card.  
PictureGroucho Marx disguise in Terror Train (1980)
Terror Train was released in 1980, directed by Roger Spottiswoode and starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Ben Johnson and David Copperfield. During New Year celebrations at the students fraternity house Sigma Phi, a prank backfires on Kenny Hampson (Derek MacKinnion). Mentally scarred by the event, this forms the basis of revenge when the students responsible for the prank board a private train hosting a fancy dress party, exactly three years later. On boarding the train one of the students is stabbed, but his friends believing it is a prank, continue along unconcerned. The killer collects the victim's Groucho Marx mask, follows them onto the train and seeks his revenge, one by one. The movie was primarily a thriller/slasher, filmed in Canada from November 21st to December 23rd 1979 and released by Twentieth Century Fox in the October of 1980.

But can we connect Groucho Marx to the Exorcist Letter? Not directly, but by association. The Zodiac Killer described The Exorcist as, "the best satirical comedy that I have ever seen". Well, this may not be the case, however, the genesis of the movie may well have been born with the help of a comedy genius - that of Groucho Marx. The Exorcist author, William Peter Blatty, was a close friend of Groucho Marx, and there was an intention by Marx to dress as the priest Father Lankester Merrin from the movie and appear on the set of the Exorcist film, but due to scheduling matters the comedic entrance never materialized. But in one episode of the popular You Bet Your Life series, hosted by Groucho Marx, William Peter Blatty was a contestant and walked away with a prize of $10,000. When he was asked what he was going to do with the money, he stated he was to take some time off  to work on a novel. That novel was the acclaimed inspiration for the movie The Exorcist.  

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Groucho Marx was a lifelong fan of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas, appearing as Ko-Ko in a production of the Mikado, on NBC's Bell Telephone Hour in 1960. He also recited Tit Willow in 1960 and on the Dick Cavett Show on March 20th 1970. Wikipedia. Therefore, Groucho Marx can be associated through the Little List Letter mailed on July 26th 1970, the Exorcist Letter on January 29th 1974 and the Eureka Card in the December of 1990. However, there is a little more background.

William Peter Blatty released a novel in 1966, entitled Twinkle,Twinkle Killer Kane. It achieved little commercial or critical acclaim. View accompaniment. The story centers on a psychiatrist, 'Killer Kane' (Hudson L Kane) and explores faith, humanity and irony. He enters a madhouse to determine if its residents, comprised of soldiers and astronauts are actually mad or just putting on an act. This results in extended interaction with resident Manfred Cutshaw on the concept of God. In the story Kane postulates "every man who has ever lived has been born with desire for perfect happiness. But unless there is an afterlife, fulfillment of this desire is a patent impossibility". It was to be later rewritten and published under the new title 'The Ninth Configuration' in 1980, attempting to explore the marginal line of sanity over insanity. It failed to inspire the public on its cinematic release.    

THE SILENT MURDER AT PRESIDIO HEIGHTS

4/2/2014

 
After the brutal execution of Paul Stine at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969, the question has always remained, which route did the Zodiac Killer take after he was last seen walking away from the crime scene northbound along Cherry Street? This is where the facts cease and the speculation begins, so let us start with what we do know. The Zodiac Killer was spotted from the upstairs window of a house across the street approximately 50-60 feet from the murder scene by three teenagers.
The killer appeared to be wiping down areas of the taxicab from both inside and outside, but crucially the witnesses reported hearing no gunshot. The fare was logged for Washington and Maple Street but the taxicab had traveled one block further to the corner of Washington and Cherry Streets. More importantly, two days after the callous murder, the Zodiac Killer mailed a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle containing a torn section of Paul Stine's shirt, leaving law enforcement in no doubt that the murderer of four young people, had indeed brought his reign of terror to the midst of San Francisco - but that was not all.

The Zodiac Killer began his letter with the words "I am the murderer of the taxi driver over by Washington St + Maple St last night, to prove this here is a blood stained piece of his shirt. I am the same man who did in the people in the north bay area". The killer was even claiming to have committed the crime of murder, at Washington and Maple, not at Washington and Cherry where he was ultimately observed leaving the taxicab and heading north up Cherry Street. This would clearly explain the absence of any gunshot heard by the three teenagers - had this been the case.
The reason for believing the actual murder of Paul Stine took place at Washington and Maple Street can be explained by tracing the killer's footsteps once he left the taxicab, headed along Cherry Street and what he did next.
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It takes a matter of 60 seconds to travel up Cherry Street, before you head east onto Jackson Street. Why though, would the killer have to head east along Jackson Street? Because if his intention was to kill Paul Stine at the Washington and Maple intersection, then logically he would have left his getaway vehicle somewhere north along Maple Street. not too close to warrant identification, but not too far to risk being apprehended.
This would explain his actions of heading north from the area where the taxicab came to rest, up Cherry Street and backtracking east along Jackson Street, thereby 
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heading back to his getaway vehicle, somewhere at the top of Maple Street. It may be the case his vehicle was parked somewhere along Jackson Street, West Pacific Avenue or by the eastern edge of Presidio Park, but ideally the least walking he could afford himself, the better.

When responding officers Donald Fouke and Eric Zelms steered their patrol car along Jackson Street, they noticed a white male, described later, as 35-45 years, 5'10" in height, 180-200 lbs, barrel chested, with light colored hair, who appeared to be in no hurry - in what Officer Donald Fouke described as a shuffling lope, bent forward with his head down. He also claimed in the 2007 Zodiac documentary that he saw the man entering the stairwell of a house, thought to be 3712 Jackson Street. But was this the Zodiac Killer?
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There may be a strong possibility that this was our killer, but for one reason only. He was on the wrong side of the street.

Why was the killer walking on the north or right sidewalk, as viewed by the patrol car? Any responding police vehicles in the vicinity, immediately after the call was received, would have been heading towards the crime scene at Washington and Cherry Street, not away. So why does the killer head up Cherry Street and cross over the road to the north
sidewalk of Jackson Street, placing himself in closer proximity to approaching police vehicles and the glare of headlights. Any blood transfer on his person or clothing would be more likely to be spotted from a patrol car on this side of the road. One reason the murderer of Paul Stine would have contemplated being present on this side of the street, is if he had killed the taxicab driver at Washington and Maple, not Washington and Cherry. But why?

The absence of a gunshot being heard by the three teenagers has been speculated on before, with a great article here at http://www.zodiackillerfacts.com/blog/mysteryquest-paul-holes-and-the-murder-of-paul-stine, explaining a possible alternative to the widely held view. The killer draws his gun just as Paul Stine is starting to pull over at Washington and Maple - and either a brief struggle ensued - or the taxicab driver is killed immediately with a single shot to the right side of his head. But either way, Paul Stine's foot slips off the brake pedal and the killer has to react immediately by entering over to the front passenger side of the taxicab, leaning or pushing Paul Stine's lifeless body over towards the driver side door so he can gain some form of limited control over the foot pedals and steering wheel. He then coasts the taxicab away from Washington and Maple - and the sound of the gunshot -  to the next intersection at Washington and Cherry, where the taxicab is brought to its final resting place. There has also been speculation that the murderer traveled in the front passenger side of the taxicab during the journey, but either way, if Paul Stine had been murdered at Washington and Maple as the Zodiac Killer himself claimed, then for one entire block it was possible the killer was pushing left against Paul Stine's body as he tried to regain some form of control. The blood loss exhibited at the scene would have meant the Zodiac Killer's left side would have received the majority of the blood transfer, as he leaned against Paul Stine in commandeering the vehicle. This would explain why the killer was wiping down various parts of the front side of the taxicab. If he had remained in the rear of the taxicab throughout, this action would have been unnecessary.  
This now would explain his actions, after he left the scene and rounded the corner of Cherry Street. Being aware that his left side had received the majority of the blood transfer and knowing that he possibly had 60 seconds of 'free' time, waited until he reached Jackson Street before crossing onto the north sidewalk. This would keep his left side facing away from the roadside and any passing vehicles. He could, at the very least, have angled himself to the left side as any cars or police vehicles approached, without drawing too much attention.
A killer turning away fully to the left may have raised suspicion  - unless entering the stairwell of 3712 Jackson Street is your next best option, to fully conceal the blood apparent on one side of your clothing.
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Of course, if the killer had exited the crime scene and traveled on the left side of Jackson Street (as viewed by the approaching patrol car), the left part of his body would have been exposed to the full glare of passing vehicles. Any motion to turn into a residence on that side of the street would again expose the blood on the left side of his attire. If he had turned to face into the street to conceal his left side, his face would be in full view, so any description passed out would once more draw too much unwanted attention.

This may explain the reason why the killer chose to walk on the north side of Jackson Street in closer proximity to oncoming traffic and fly in the face of the rational choice, of staying on the south side of the street. The killer claimed two days later in his letter the the San Francisco Chronicle that he was hiding in the Presidio Park, despite this proclamation being discredited by some Zodiac observers, due to the fact sniffer dogs were employed in the search, and anybody hiding in the park covered in blood, would have been apprehended fairly quickly. But one thing the Zodiac Killer did say that was probably true, was "I am the murderer of the taxi driver over by Washington St + Maple St last night" - and the real reason, why he was, where he was, when Donald Fouke and Eric Zelms entered Jackson Street on that fateful October night back in 1969.
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    The Zodiac Killer may have given us the answer almost word-for-word when he wrote PS. The Mt. Diablo Code concerns Radians & # inches along the radians. The code solution identified was Estimate: Four Radians and Five Inches To read more, click the image.
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    The Zodiac Atlas: The Zodiac Killer Enigma by Randall Scott Clemons. Click image for details.
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    The Zodiac Killer Map: Part of the Zodiac Killer Enigma by Randall Scott Clemons. Click image for color version
    For black and white issue..
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Photos used under Creative Commons from Marcin Wichary, zAppledot, vyusseem, Alex Barth, Alan Cleaver, jocelynsart, Richard Perry, taberandrew, eschipul, MrJamesAckerley