The topic of geographical profiling has been covered many times on this site, but I would like to return to it one more time to examine the possible home base of the infamous Zodiac Killer, based on his movements, in particular, after the first two crimes, along with what he revealed either deliberately or inadvertently in many of his subsequent letters to local newspapers. However what is far more important than what he told us, is what he didn't say. If you were the killer of five people, it would make perfect sense to never draw attention to the area in which you lived and in the contrary, attempt to throw the suspicion elsewhere, not only in the communications you sent, but in the very timing of them also. The only question is, was the Zodiac Killer impulsive when he drew up his communications or did he carefully construct them, with not only the intention to taunt authorities and police, but to mislead them with intent and throw them the ultimate red herring. Some of the following has been covered before, but hopefully this ties it up into one neat bundle.
In the late hours of December 20th 1968, David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen would be gunned down by a merciless killer. Two important eyewitness timelines, that of Stella Borges and James Owen would indicate the murders most probably occurred sometime between 11.14 pm and 11.20 pm, but based on the statement of Stella Borges it was determined that the Zodiac Killer in all likelihood exited the turnout east, in the direction of Benicia. She was heading from Vallejo to Benicia and reported passing no vehicles en route. This crime was late at night, may have been the Zodiac Killer's first murders, he had fired off at least 10 rounds and as a result of the close contact wound to David Faraday's head, quite possibly had received blood transference to his clothing, not to mention his car had been spotted by several key eyewitnesses. Although not conclusive by any means, his first choice logically would have been to head home and relative safety, not head in the opposite direction and this is what he appeared to do, heading in the Benicia direction.
In the late hours of December 20th 1968, David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen would be gunned down by a merciless killer. Two important eyewitness timelines, that of Stella Borges and James Owen would indicate the murders most probably occurred sometime between 11.14 pm and 11.20 pm, but based on the statement of Stella Borges it was determined that the Zodiac Killer in all likelihood exited the turnout east, in the direction of Benicia. She was heading from Vallejo to Benicia and reported passing no vehicles en route. This crime was late at night, may have been the Zodiac Killer's first murders, he had fired off at least 10 rounds and as a result of the close contact wound to David Faraday's head, quite possibly had received blood transference to his clothing, not to mention his car had been spotted by several key eyewitnesses. Although not conclusive by any means, his first choice logically would have been to head home and relative safety, not head in the opposite direction and this is what he appeared to do, heading in the Benicia direction.
A serial killer generally commits his early crimes closer to home before venturing out with refreshed confidence and it has to be noted that his second crime at Blue Rock Springs Park had now shifted from Benicia over the jurisdictional line into Vallejo, 3 miles in a northerly direction, and further from the Benicia region. Had the killer resided somewhere in Benicia or in its close vicinity, then he was starting to become more confident, before ultimately progressing to Lake Berryessa and San Francisco, for his final two crimes. After the Lake Herman Road murders the police were desperate to catch the killer, but at this point were justifiable in their actions to seek out motives such as jealousy or revenge, interviewing friends and possibly rivals of the young couple. The thought that this crime was the inception of a serial killer clearly and understandably, was probably the last thing on their mind, especially considering that after the Lake Herman Road double murder the killer had remained quiet for just over six and a half months, but this premise would be shattered on Independence Day 1969 at Blue Rock Springs Park with the attack on Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau.
The Zodiac Killer appeared to show extreme patience from his first to second crime or was it more than that. Was it that this first crime and the extensive investigation that followed had driven the murderer of the young couple into the shadows, and the buffer zone he had created from his home location, for even him, had proved too close. He was determined never to make the same mistake again, but would go one step further and entice the police away from the Benicia region to the very heart of Vallejo.
The Zodiac Killer appeared to show extreme patience from his first to second crime or was it more than that. Was it that this first crime and the extensive investigation that followed had driven the murderer of the young couple into the shadows, and the buffer zone he had created from his home location, for even him, had proved too close. He was determined never to make the same mistake again, but would go one step further and entice the police away from the Benicia region to the very heart of Vallejo.
After the midnight attack at Blue Rock Springs Park the Zodiac Killer made a phone call to police dispatcher Nancy Slover at 12.40 am stating "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".
His directions were flawed for a start, as they were at Lake Berryessa and he directed the police 'to a public park', that may be suggestive of a man unaware of its name, albeit this is not conclusive. However it was not the phone call, but his first communications by letter that may have revealed the most. The first three letters arrived on July 31st 1969 at three newspapers, containing three portions of a cryptogram. In the San Francisco Chronicle letter he wrote "This is the murderer of the 2 teenagers last Christmass at Lake Herman + the girl on the 4th of July near the golf course in Vallejo". He mentions Lake Herman Road, but not Benicia and instead of calling Blue Rock Springs 'a public park', he this time writes 'near the golf course', but mentions Vallejo. Of course he could be bluffing, making it understood that he was not familiar with the area of Vallejo, when in fact he lived there. On the other hand he may have been genuinely unfamiliar with the Vallejo area. Hopefully the answer would come soon.
On August 4th 1969 the Debut of Zodiac letter arrived at the San Francisco Examiner, in which the Zodiac Killer mentions Vallejo a further three times, writing "In answer to your asking for more details about the good times I have had in Vallejo, I shall be very happy to supply even more material", then "I did not leave the cene of the killing with squealling tires + raceing engine as described in the Vallejo paper", and finally "I was in this phone booth having some fun with the Vallejo cop". But it was the extension of this line that would spike the interest "The man who told police that my car was brown was a negro about 40-45 rather shabbly dressed. I was in this phone booth having some fun with the Vallejo cop when he was walking by. When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me + my car". Not only does the author of the letter instill Vallejo into our minds, he effectively gives up the color of his car, even though there is no mention of a negro witness in the police report, unless of course the word 'negro' is not the important part of the phrase he wants us to notice. He wants us to notice 'my car was brown'. The author then unnecessarily uses the word car once again when he writes "When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me + my car". He could just as adequately wrote "When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me", but he doesn't. Twice he mentions the word car and on both occasions it was totally unnecessary, even forfeiting the color of the car for good measure.
His directions were flawed for a start, as they were at Lake Berryessa and he directed the police 'to a public park', that may be suggestive of a man unaware of its name, albeit this is not conclusive. However it was not the phone call, but his first communications by letter that may have revealed the most. The first three letters arrived on July 31st 1969 at three newspapers, containing three portions of a cryptogram. In the San Francisco Chronicle letter he wrote "This is the murderer of the 2 teenagers last Christmass at Lake Herman + the girl on the 4th of July near the golf course in Vallejo". He mentions Lake Herman Road, but not Benicia and instead of calling Blue Rock Springs 'a public park', he this time writes 'near the golf course', but mentions Vallejo. Of course he could be bluffing, making it understood that he was not familiar with the area of Vallejo, when in fact he lived there. On the other hand he may have been genuinely unfamiliar with the Vallejo area. Hopefully the answer would come soon.
On August 4th 1969 the Debut of Zodiac letter arrived at the San Francisco Examiner, in which the Zodiac Killer mentions Vallejo a further three times, writing "In answer to your asking for more details about the good times I have had in Vallejo, I shall be very happy to supply even more material", then "I did not leave the cene of the killing with squealling tires + raceing engine as described in the Vallejo paper", and finally "I was in this phone booth having some fun with the Vallejo cop". But it was the extension of this line that would spike the interest "The man who told police that my car was brown was a negro about 40-45 rather shabbly dressed. I was in this phone booth having some fun with the Vallejo cop when he was walking by. When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me + my car". Not only does the author of the letter instill Vallejo into our minds, he effectively gives up the color of his car, even though there is no mention of a negro witness in the police report, unless of course the word 'negro' is not the important part of the phrase he wants us to notice. He wants us to notice 'my car was brown'. The author then unnecessarily uses the word car once again when he writes "When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me + my car". He could just as adequately wrote "When I hung the phone up the damn thing began to ring & that drew his attention to me", but he doesn't. Twice he mentions the word car and on both occasions it was totally unnecessary, even forfeiting the color of the car for good measure.
It is wholly conceivable the police thought this also. His apparent willingness to give up a possible negro eyewitness to police and the color of his car was a complete ruse. His over emphasis, dragging the word car into the text unnecessarily was intended to look deliberate, so police would refocus to the idea the killer may have walked to the payphone, placing the killer's home location close by, in Vallejo. After all it would make sense to dispose of the gun, before making the phone call only 40 minutes after the attack. If the Zodiac Killer was a resident of Benicia, what better way to thrust the focus of attention away from where you live by the manufacturing of a carefully worded letter. During the aftermath of the Lake Herman Road murders there was no need for deception, the police were pursuing lines of inquiry that for all intense and purposes, were taking them further away from the real killer, so he just sat and waited it out.
We now have to consider the timing of the phone call at 12.40 am on July 5th 1969. If the killer at Blue Rock Springs had driven straight to the payphone at Springs and Tuolumne, he could have made the call as early as 12.10 am, so what did he do during this unaccounted timeline. It takes exactly 40 minutes to drive to Benicia or slightly beyond, with 10 minutes turnaround time to get changed, dispose of the weapon, then head back to the payphone. Benicia is the area he headed towards after the Lake Herman Road crime and an area that never once appears in any of his letters, despite committing his first murders there.
Then came the Bus Bomb letter on November 9th outlining his murder at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969, going into great detail of the events following the murder of Paul Stine. However he couldn't resist dropping us a piece of breadcrumbs one more time "To prove that I am the Zodiac, Ask the Vallejo cop about my electric gun sight which I used to start my collecting of slaves". Yes, ask the Vallejo cop about the electric gun sight you used in Benicia, an area you would always fail to mention.
We now have to consider the timing of the phone call at 12.40 am on July 5th 1969. If the killer at Blue Rock Springs had driven straight to the payphone at Springs and Tuolumne, he could have made the call as early as 12.10 am, so what did he do during this unaccounted timeline. It takes exactly 40 minutes to drive to Benicia or slightly beyond, with 10 minutes turnaround time to get changed, dispose of the weapon, then head back to the payphone. Benicia is the area he headed towards after the Lake Herman Road crime and an area that never once appears in any of his letters, despite committing his first murders there.
Then came the Bus Bomb letter on November 9th outlining his murder at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969, going into great detail of the events following the murder of Paul Stine. However he couldn't resist dropping us a piece of breadcrumbs one more time "To prove that I am the Zodiac, Ask the Vallejo cop about my electric gun sight which I used to start my collecting of slaves". Yes, ask the Vallejo cop about the electric gun sight you used in Benicia, an area you would always fail to mention.
