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Richard Grinell, Coventry, England
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THE CRANK CALL

9/26/2019

 
Benicia Herald: "Bidou and his partner had served a warrant on a Lake Herman Road cabin Dec. 20, 1968, and were on their way to deposit some marijuana in the police department’s evidence locker when they were dispatched back to Lake Herman Road. Initially, they were told a woman was lying outside a car; they thought they were being sent to a crash. Police at first speculated it might have been a crank call, but the officers headed back north. But when they arrived, Bidou realized it was no crank call and no car accident. Instead, it was a sinister crime scene". It is reported that Stella Medeiros was the only eyewitness to see the stricken couple lying on the turnout floor, who then raced off to Benicia and flagged down Captain Daniel Pitta, recorded in the Benicia Police report at 11:25 pm. It was estimated that Stella Medeiros passed the turnout at approximately 11:20 pm. Captain Daniel Pitta would have then radioed into the Benicia Police Department reporting the details and requesting possible assistance. Coming from a experienced officer over the radio, it is difficult to understand how this could be interpreted as a "crank call". A call indicates a telephone call, and not a radio message. This opens up the possibility that somebody other than Captain Daniel Pitta called the Benicia Police Department at around the same time and reported something that was interpreted as an accident on Lake Herman Road. The last reported eyewitness to have passed the turnout prior to Stella Medeiros was James Owen, who was traveling to his graveyard shift at Humble Oil in Benicia.   
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How many times have we passed a certain area and seen somebody lying on the ground and made the assumption that the person has had too many drinks or taken drugs, and just continued on our way, reluctant to get involved. Is it possible that James Owen was driving to work that night and noticed one or both victims lying on the turnout floor and just assumed it was teenagers worse for wear? In other words, his initial reaction was different to that of Stella Medeiros. He continued on to Humble Oil in Benicia and parked up at around 11:18 pm to 11:19 pm. He then entered his place of work, and upon refection, considered that the wise decision was to ring the Benicia Police Department and report that he had seen a "woman lying outside a car" in a turnout. The time of any such phone call would have been very close to 11:25 pm (possibly slightly before) with the unsure nature of the phone call possibly resulting in the police dispatcher considering it a crank call. If a phone call was received by Benicia Police Department reporting a "woman lying outside a car", we only know of one other eyewitness who passed the turnout immediately prior to Stella Medeiros, who could possibly have made this call at around the same time as Captain Daniel Pitta's radio message. That person was James Owen. 
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In an interview with Michael Morford in 2012, he stated "As I was getting ready to leave work the next morning, a worker on the morning shift came in talking about the crime. When I left work, I passed the scene, and there were police there working, so I stopped and told them what I had seen.”

Having now been informed of the gravity of the crime, he did the dutiful thing by informing the police of his recollection of the second vehicle in the turnout, but how would it have been received in light of the double murder, had he now admitted seeing the young girl lying on the turnout floor and just drove on past without seeking the immediate help of police, and making what was described as a "crank call" (possibly lacking urgency). Was James Owen reluctant to admit what he saw in the turnout that night because of his misinterpretation of the crime scene on his way to Humble Oil, and how it may have been viewed by police? Is it possible he saw one or both victims on the turnout floor and didn't make the phone call, making him even more reluctant to reveal the whole truth to police?

In the police report James Owen stated 'that just before he approached the scene, a vehicle passed him going in the opposite direction toward Vallejo. He could give no description of this vehicle. This occurred near the Borges Ranch'. The occupants of this vehicle never came forward - which leaves the possibility that this vehicle could have played some part in the crime. James Owen's gave a second statement on 12.24.68:
"He definitely saw two cars, a station wagon and another vehicle, parked approximately three or four feet to the right of the station wagon. He did not see anyone in the cars or around them. He stated as he traveled approximately one quarter of a mile beyond, he thought he heard a shot."  It is this statement that makes little sense from the standpoint of other eyewitnesses.

The couple were spotted in their vehicle shortly after 11:00 pm by Peggy and Homer Your, but 10 minutes later, according to James Owen, they had completely vanished from the turnout. He didn't mention the doors of either vehicle being open. So, if the Zodiac Killer had driven the young couple from the Rambler, but noticed James Owen approaching the turnout and hidden David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen out of sight, we would have to assume he closed the door of his vehicle and the Rambler, and then later reopened the passenger side door of the Rambler for some unexplained reason - because this is how it was discovered by responding officers. The actual crime makes much more sense if the couple had already been shot when James Owen approached the turnout and simply misinterpreted what he saw. Had there been a second vehicle present at that time, then James Owen would have passed the turnout with Zodiac still on scene, but possibly out of sight. If there was no second vehicle, then the car traveling toward Vallejo by the Borges Ranch could have been the Zodiac Killer. 

But the bottom line is, that had a phone call been received by Benicia Police Department - described as a "crank call" - then the person who made this phone call had to have passed the turnout very close to the time of Stella Medeiros. If it wasn't James Owen, it may have been the Zodiac Killer himself.   


Mo
9/26/2019 12:49:02 pm

If Z did make a call, that would be consistent with his other slayings of which he immediately took responsibility for and taunted police about. However, the timeline between when the Yours saw the two teens alive (11 pm) and when Stella Medeiros found their bodies (11:20) is too tight to contemplate having enough time to stop at a pay phone and make a call in such a remote area.

However, if Z was in law enforcement, then he could have possibly radioed it in as a possible car accident. Interestingly, the crime scene at the Lake Herman roundabout leads to a Benicia Police Shooting Range just down the road.

Richard
9/26/2019 01:05:28 pm

Depending on the time James Owen passed the turnout (ruling out Owen making any call), which has been argued from 11:08 pm to 11:14 pm, the Zodiac could reach the Springs and Tuolumne payphone easily by 11:20 pm to 11:25 pm, allowing him to make a call to Benicia PD prior to Captain Daniel Pitta. There is a magazine article mentioning a Zodiac call at Lake Herman Road, but obviously reporting did contain errors in the day. But a phone call at LHR is in keeping with his following two crimes Mo.

Richard
9/26/2019 01:12:54 pm

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/dir/38.0949574,-122.1440453/Springs+Rd+%26+Tuolumne+St,+Vallejo,+CA+94590,+USA/@38.0889556,-122.1632993,15897m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m9!4m8!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x80857313cbbd0a63:0x324aaeeb53569f5d!2m2!1d-122.2381857!2d38.106186!3e0?hl=en

6 miles, even travelling at a slow speed of 30mph, would only take Zodiac 12 minutes. 11:08pm + 12 minutes = 11:20pm. Or 11:14pm + 10 minutes = 11:24 pm (travelling slightly faster).

Richard
9/26/2019 01:21:20 pm

6 miles at 40mph = 9 minutes. 11:14 + 9 minutes = 11:23 pm. So, Zodiac certainly could have made a phone call from Springs and Tuolumne twice.

Richard
9/26/2019 01:35:49 pm

The Argosy Magazine stated '"The man in the hood" had laughed diabolically as he plunged his knife again and again into Miss Shepard beside the lake. He had also laughed in his phone call to Vallejo Police in December 1968.' http://www.zodiackiller.com/Argosy6.html

It stated December 1968, but suggested Vallejo Police.

Mo
9/26/2019 02:19:11 pm

Yes, it is possible that Z made it to a pay phone, but it is a very tight fit. Actually, everything about this particular crime is a very tight fit.

It is also very questionable as to why we don’t have more details about this alleged call either from a dispatcher, police or Z himself (similar to known details of the calls after BRS and LB).

James Owen is a very confusing figure. His testimony seems to defy the logic of everything we have come to know about this crime (2 cars, no persons at the scene, hearing only a single bullet 30 seconds later). It does seem he drove by just as the slayings were about to take place, but how were there no people visible to him?

Richard
9/26/2019 02:53:30 pm

Very true Mo, something is not quite right with his story. Had Zodiac pulled into the turnout even 1 minute prior to Owen, the overwhelming consensus is of a Zodiac who exited his vehicle, began forcing them from the vehicle and then killing them almost immediately. But Owen claimed there were no bodies on the turnout floor. If the timing was such (as described in the article) where he was just about to shoot them when he noticed Owen's vehicle approaching the turnout, then we have to assume Zodiac hid the couple successfully, yet still played merry-go-round with the vehicle doors. If Zodiac had been present in the turnout several minutes before Owen arrived, then why hadn't the couple already been shot. If Owen was correct and nobody was in the turnout, then where the hell were they. I highly doubt he was escorting them around the field. His story doesn't make much sense.

BB
9/26/2019 02:58:18 pm

but how were there no people visible to him?

I think the Zodiac ducked down as the car passed. While the teens in their car were necking. And, laying down probably. That's possibly why the first shot was at the back of the wagon.

Mo
9/26/2019 03:08:43 pm

That does make sense.

Another possibility is that James Owen was never forthcoming in his testimony. Maybe he saw something, but was too apprehensive to be the one who came forward. Perhaps he felt curious/guilty the next day when he decided to visit the crime scene.

Richard
9/26/2019 03:11:56 pm

David was the effective carer of Betty Lou that night, entrusted to keep her safe. A strange vehicle pulling alongside them within 10 feet in a lonely, dark turnout, I would be extremely surprised if he just ignored this vehicle and carried on making out. Peggy Your earlier stated that "she observed a Rambler station wagon parked with front end heading east, there were two Caucasians in the front seat, male and female, when the lights from the car came upon the station wagon, the male sat up in the seat". I highly doubt he would be oblivious to a vehicle pulling alongside.

Richard
9/26/2019 03:19:46 pm

You also have to factor in that the previous eyewitnesses before Owen were Connelly and Gasser, with Connelly on two separate occasions telling police the Rambler was facing the fence on the west bank. By the time Owen arrived, he claimed that the Rambler was back over facing the eastern edge.

Richard
9/26/2019 03:25:58 pm

The only reason I can possibly think for David moving to the west bank after the Yours passed, is for more privacy without the glare of headlights striking the Rambler. After Connelly had passed, Zodiac pulled in behind the Rambler and forced it back over towards the eastern side. Then shot at the vehicle driving the couple out and finally killing them. Owen saw one or both of the victims on the turnout floor and misjudged what the scene, driving on to Humble Oil. The testimony of Connelly is often overlooked when piecing together the events that night.

Richard
9/26/2019 03:44:59 pm

In other words, if Connelly's testimony is to be believed and the Rambler was on the west bank facing in, then Zodiac couldn't have pulled alongside them on the right. He had two options [1] pull up behind them similar to BRS, or [2] pull up on their left hand side. The final position of the Rambler noticed by Owen and the investigators suggested that Zodiac pulled up behind them and ushered them back across the turnout from the west bank. The only other possibility, is David moved to the west bank for more privacy and when they were ready to leave he was in the process of driving over to the left side of the turnout, to then eventually reverse and u-turn his way out of the turnout when Zodiac suddenly appeared on his right side. Either way, David was, according to Connelly in two police statements, on the west bank around 11:05 pm. The rest is a matter of what you believe.

Richard
9/26/2019 03:49:22 pm

Anyway, thanks everybody for your comments, but I'm off for a rest now. My eyes have gone blurred staring at this computer screen. See you tomorrow - have a great night.

Scott
9/26/2019 05:45:02 pm

Something to keep in mind--when I was out at LHR in 2002 at night (and I believe a streetlight or two has been added since then) it was very very dark. There is no ambient light at all. Also the turnout is on a curve of sorts so headlight exposure is minimal; in addition this calendar suggest only a quarter moon. https://www.calendar-12.com/moon_phases/1968

Given that, I've always doubted somewhat the statements of Borges, Your, Owen et al. You can pass that turnout very quickly and just not see much. Lonely road.

Mo
9/27/2019 04:06:50 pm

Yes, witness testimony, especially of quickly unfolding events at nighttime, should be taken with a grain of salt. Nothing against any individual witnesses, but we all have visual and memory limitations, especially when we are not paying attention beforehand. There is a lot of going back as to exactly what we saw, heard or noticed. Not to mention varying personal abilities, biases and motives.

The questionable testimony of James Own is one example. The difference between the Lake Berryessa composite sketch and that of the Paul Sine killer is another (not to mention the disagreement over the age of the Stine killer). Even law enforcement folks disagree on whether or not there is an actual recording of one of the Zodiac calls.

Ultimately we will need a breakthrough in DNA, a fingerprint match, weapon match or someone to find Paul Stine’s wallet. Otherwise, ALA is probably our best bet.

Richard
9/28/2019 03:21:48 am

Yes, eyewitnesses are our only feasible way of understanding the events that night and shouldn't be disregarded, but I understand that their recollections may not be totally accurate. My belief Mo, is the best way to identify the Zodiac Killer is through geographic profiling. Narrow the field of view and concentrate the efforts to one particular location, and then work outwards. While I don't mind people who identify possible suspects, it usually begins with one person plucking a person from the state of California and wrapping a few "coincidences" around him. You have a massive pool of people to choose from, so the chance you have the right person is miniscule. Arthur Leigh Allen has featured prominently over the years and features in my suspect list, along with Gaikowski, Marshall, Kaczynski etc, but personally I would like to remove them all from my website, because I attach no relevance to them being Zodiac other than other people highlighting them. But because they have become part of the story, they are featured. We humans demonstrate certain behaviours, one being achieving a task with the minimal effort - in other words, you generally don't drive or walk to work the longest way. The Zodiac would have followed these behaviours during his crimes, such as not travelling as far for his Friday crimes had he finished work that day. To me, the most telling is the phone call and its timing. He may be a serial killer, but he still would demonstrate characteristic behaviour that we all do when it comes to effort and time. In terms of DNA, if there was any, it doesn't take 2 years to secure. The only other possibility is they have been trawling genealogical databases for 2 years. Another year, and it's unlikely we will ever see any results. There is a backlog as long as Route 66 for DNA testing in America, so how high is the priority of a 50-year-old case. Zodiac enthusiasts certainly place it high in importance, but investigators have current cases hitting their desks everyday. Realistically Mo, I put this case in the Jack the Ripper category - no chance of ever being solved. And sadly, getting more unlikely every year, if that is possible.

Mo
9/28/2019 06:47:18 am

Yes, the optimism in the Zodiac community after the capture of the Golden State Killer seems to have faded and been replaced with frustration and hopelessness. However, you never know. Maybe something will come of Touch DNA or other advancements. Absent of any breakthroughs however, we’ll just each have to rely on our own opinions of the known circumstantial evidence.

Regarding ALA, he is in a league of his own. His name was not put forward by sleuths or even Robert Graysmit, but by different law enforcement agencies in California. Graysmith simply wrote two books about his experience observing the investigation into ALA. Most of the other known suspects were questioned and dismissed by law enforcement except ALA, for whom “something” seemed to stick.

Geographic profiling points to a suspect from the Vallejo/Benicia area. We know who Mageau picked out of a photo “line up”. Judges from two different California counties issues two different search warrants for the same person over a 17 year period. Other things like the watch, the pipe bombs under his house, the two bloody knives in his possession on the day of the LBS stabbings, Don Cheney, Ralph Spinelli, the walk with a “shuffling lope” and the fact that he even tried to forge a letter about passing a lie detector test all make him a favorite suspect.

Obviously, the handwriting, fingerprints and DNA do not support the circumstantial evidence against above, but I’m not sure they entirely clear him either.

Perhaps the popularity of the suspects list reflects our refusal to acknowledge that Zodiac’s boast of being “crack proof” is a boast that has stood the test of time.

BB
9/28/2019 12:45:55 pm

Mo
About 99% agree with about 99% of what you say.
But, process of elimination has got to be put above
even our most sure beliefs. We have to pound our
heads into accepting that. And, we must look for the
things that eliminate a suspect. And, not put much stock
in things that point towards. Other wise we force the
answers to match the questions. Yes, it is preachy.
And, frustrating. ALA, although, was set up to be the Zodiac.
That much is certain. Graysmith, Cheney, Spinelli and many
others are proof of that. They have spent many years making the
solution to the equation equal ALA. Even though it doesn't. ALA
was easy to set up and smear. He had nothing. No wife. No kids.
No job. No freedom. No privacy. No money. Nothing. On top of that
he was on parole where the state watches your every step. He is
eliminated as a suspect. But, perhaps one of those trying to set him up - were actually the Zodiac.

BB
1/15/2020 11:38:01 am

Richard
Was Zodiac a cop that shined his flashlight in the victim’s faces?
Or was he a hunter?
Night time hunting is a real dirty trick.
Hunters shine their flashlights in the eyes of the animals - that are blinded by the light and then killed.
There were two men at the LHR scene doing this vary thing.
Was the Zodiac the two hunters, and the pen light BS a diversion?

BB
9/30/2019 04:48:53 pm

Another curious figure and roommate of Cheney is -

Santo Paul "Sandy" Panzarella

Could this Sandy be the suspect Sandy for the 1963 Lompoc slayings?


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