The long held narrative of Lake Herman Road is of a couple, David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, pulling into the Gate #10 turnout and parking on the east side facing the field. They remained parked here throughout, when at sometime after 11:10 pm the Zodiac Killer parked alongside them and forced them from their Rambler with two shots striking the right rear window and headliner of the vehicle. The problem is that none of the eyewitness testimony supports this being the case. It is easy to write off eyewitness testimony because it makes the overall story difficult to explain, however, you do so at your peril. This was the case with Robert Connelly, who testified twice on December 21st 1968 and December 26th 1968. In his first statement the police detailed "a light colored 1960 Rambler S/W that was parked at the gate. It was parked southwest of where we finally found the car. This discrepancy wasn't noted at first." In the second interview "Connelly insists that the Rambler was parked on the bank. That would be the south side. He did not see any person in the car." Detectives concluded this was probably due to the victims having reclined the seat and were in a prone position. The seat was later found in this position at the crime scene. Rather than conforming to the story depicted by Peggy and Homer Your, James Owen and Stella Medeiros, he maintained and insisted the Rambler was parked alongside the west bank, facing south towards the gate/fence. This was turned into a crude sketch.
The dimensions of the sketch are not totally accurate with respect to the road, however, the Rambler has moved position from that described by Peggy and Homer Your, who headed to Benicia only a matter of minutes before Robert Connelly and Frank Gasser.
As they passed the turnout Peggy Your would recollect in the police report: "As they were driving west on Lake Herman Road at the turn off to the Benicia Water Pumping Station, 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. Mrs Your said it was a cold night and she noticed no frost on the station wagon". She went on to say "at the time she saw the boy sitting in the driver's seat and the girl against his shoulder. When the lights of their car flashed on the Faraday car, the subject in the driver's seat put his hands on the (steering) wheel of the car. Mrs Your had noticed this action. When the Your's returned a few minutes later, after having turned around, subjects in the Rambler were still sitting there in this position. The car was facing east towards the field at the left side of the gate."
David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen had been parked in the turnout for a considerable period of time at this point- so why would they change the position of the vehicle in the turnout? The Rambler's seats were in the reclined position, after all, they weren't in the turnout playing scrabble - they wanted some privacy, hence their choice of location. Peggy Your described David Faraday sitting up in the vehicle on one occasion, and also described him placing his hands on the steering wheel. Clearly he was disturbed by the headlights and approach of vehicles on Lake Herman Road. The next eyewitness along the road was Robert Connelly, who not only described the change in position of the Rambler, but that he didn't see any occupants in the Rambler. It is perfectly reasonable to assume David Faraday moved the Rambler into a position seeking more privacy, reversing the vehicle across the turnout onto the west bank, facing south. From this location the Rambler would be free from encroaching headlights in either direction. The reason Robert Connelly saw no occupants in the Rambler can be explained by the vehicle being shrouded in relative darkness, or that the couple were in the reclined position. This hypothesis isn't foolproof, but it would explain the movement of the Rambler immediately after Peggy and Homer Your headed to Benicia, and before Robert Connelly passed the turnout for the final time.
As they passed the turnout Peggy Your would recollect in the police report: "As they were driving west on Lake Herman Road at the turn off to the Benicia Water Pumping Station, 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. Mrs Your said it was a cold night and she noticed no frost on the station wagon". She went on to say "at the time she saw the boy sitting in the driver's seat and the girl against his shoulder. When the lights of their car flashed on the Faraday car, the subject in the driver's seat put his hands on the (steering) wheel of the car. Mrs Your had noticed this action. When the Your's returned a few minutes later, after having turned around, subjects in the Rambler were still sitting there in this position. The car was facing east towards the field at the left side of the gate."
David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen had been parked in the turnout for a considerable period of time at this point- so why would they change the position of the vehicle in the turnout? The Rambler's seats were in the reclined position, after all, they weren't in the turnout playing scrabble - they wanted some privacy, hence their choice of location. Peggy Your described David Faraday sitting up in the vehicle on one occasion, and also described him placing his hands on the steering wheel. Clearly he was disturbed by the headlights and approach of vehicles on Lake Herman Road. The next eyewitness along the road was Robert Connelly, who not only described the change in position of the Rambler, but that he didn't see any occupants in the Rambler. It is perfectly reasonable to assume David Faraday moved the Rambler into a position seeking more privacy, reversing the vehicle across the turnout onto the west bank, facing south. From this location the Rambler would be free from encroaching headlights in either direction. The reason Robert Connelly saw no occupants in the Rambler can be explained by the vehicle being shrouded in relative darkness, or that the couple were in the reclined position. This hypothesis isn't foolproof, but it would explain the movement of the Rambler immediately after Peggy and Homer Your headed to Benicia, and before Robert Connelly passed the turnout for the final time.
Using the measurements given in the police report, it is not too difficult to discover that the Rambler also changed position from the sketch based on Peggy Your's positioning of the Rambler, to the final sketch of the Rambler as police would have found it.
This lends credence to the Robert Connelly sighting of the Rambler, having reversed across the turnout to the west bank, before returning back to the position found by police (different from Peggy Your's). This contradicts the long held narrative of a static Rambler throughout, and is supported by the actual statements of the eyewitnesses.
The testimony of James Owen, the last person to pass the turnout before the murders, also depicts a Rambler devoid of occupants, but a Rambler flanked by an unknown vehicle. Therefore, we have consecutive eyewitnesses detailing a Rambler without any visual on the occupants inside. If the Zodiac Killer arrived at the turnout from Vallejo, he could easily have approached the Rambler from the rear, as it was sitting on the west bank, thereby forcing David Faraday back across the turnout as he attempted to leave. The turning circle of the Rambler may have required this movement. The Zodiac Killer then pulled up alongside the Rambler and forced the couple to halt their vehicle in its tracks with shots to the window and headliner.
"Lunblad said the bullets were small caliber, that it appeared the Faraday youth stopped his car when a slug was fired through a rear side window of the family station wagon he was driving. Once the vehicle stopped, the two young people were helpless at the hands of the slayer." Vallejo Times-Herald 12/22/68. These shots could be argued unnecessary had the killer immediately parked alongside using the current narrative. Why not immediately point the gun towards the passenger side window? But the James Owen testimony puts a massive spanner in the works.
This lends credence to the Robert Connelly sighting of the Rambler, having reversed across the turnout to the west bank, before returning back to the position found by police (different from Peggy Your's). This contradicts the long held narrative of a static Rambler throughout, and is supported by the actual statements of the eyewitnesses.
The testimony of James Owen, the last person to pass the turnout before the murders, also depicts a Rambler devoid of occupants, but a Rambler flanked by an unknown vehicle. Therefore, we have consecutive eyewitnesses detailing a Rambler without any visual on the occupants inside. If the Zodiac Killer arrived at the turnout from Vallejo, he could easily have approached the Rambler from the rear, as it was sitting on the west bank, thereby forcing David Faraday back across the turnout as he attempted to leave. The turning circle of the Rambler may have required this movement. The Zodiac Killer then pulled up alongside the Rambler and forced the couple to halt their vehicle in its tracks with shots to the window and headliner.
"Lunblad said the bullets were small caliber, that it appeared the Faraday youth stopped his car when a slug was fired through a rear side window of the family station wagon he was driving. Once the vehicle stopped, the two young people were helpless at the hands of the slayer." Vallejo Times-Herald 12/22/68. These shots could be argued unnecessary had the killer immediately parked alongside using the current narrative. Why not immediately point the gun towards the passenger side window? But the James Owen testimony puts a massive spanner in the works.
0.475 miles of unobstructed view heading towards Benicia. Click for Google maps. James Owen was traveling towards Benicia and reported seeing no vehicles ahead of him.
On the right is a straight section of Lake Herman Road before the ill-fated turnout. It is 765 meters (0.475 miles) of unobstructed road. Traveling at 30 mph (calculated based on police reports of a 19 minute journey), this section of road would take approximately 50 seconds to negotiate. So if Zodiac had traveled from Vallejo in the same direction as James Owen, then he had to be in excess of 50 seconds ahead of James Owen as he pulled into the Gate #10 turnout. Had Zodiac been closer to James Owen, he would have seen the Zodiac Killer's taillights ahead of him.
If the Zodiac Killer had approached the turnout from the Benicia end, then James Owen as he approached from Vallejo would have had unobstructed eyes on the turnout entrance at least 282 meters (0.175 miles) before arriving at it. That is at least 20 seconds viewing time. James Owen never saw the Zodiac Killer enter the turnout, so at a bare minimum, it is reasonable to argue that Zodiac had already been present in the turnout for approximately half a minute prior to James Owen passing it. It may have been much longer.
When James Owen passed the turnout he saw no occupants in either vehicle parked on the east side. When you consider the reaction of David Faraday when Peggy Your drove past the turnout earlier: "When the lights of their car flashed on the Faraday car, the subject in the driver's seat put his hands on the (steering) wheel of the car" and "when the lights from the car came upon the station wagon, the male sat up in the seat," it doesn't make any sense whatsoever that a strange vehicle occupied by the Zodiac Killer could actually pull into the turnout alongside the Rambler, and David Faraday doesn't react at all - continuing his romantic tryst in the reclined seats of the vehicle for a bare minimum of 30 seconds. Additionally, why had Zodiac just sat in his vehicle for the corresponding amount of time doing nothing. The obvious thing for Zodiac to have done, would have been to pull up alongside the Rambler and strike immediately - not read a newspaper first. Had he done this, James Owen would have seen the victims on the turnout floor - which he obviously didn't.
On the right is a straight section of Lake Herman Road before the ill-fated turnout. It is 765 meters (0.475 miles) of unobstructed road. Traveling at 30 mph (calculated based on police reports of a 19 minute journey), this section of road would take approximately 50 seconds to negotiate. So if Zodiac had traveled from Vallejo in the same direction as James Owen, then he had to be in excess of 50 seconds ahead of James Owen as he pulled into the Gate #10 turnout. Had Zodiac been closer to James Owen, he would have seen the Zodiac Killer's taillights ahead of him.
If the Zodiac Killer had approached the turnout from the Benicia end, then James Owen as he approached from Vallejo would have had unobstructed eyes on the turnout entrance at least 282 meters (0.175 miles) before arriving at it. That is at least 20 seconds viewing time. James Owen never saw the Zodiac Killer enter the turnout, so at a bare minimum, it is reasonable to argue that Zodiac had already been present in the turnout for approximately half a minute prior to James Owen passing it. It may have been much longer.
When James Owen passed the turnout he saw no occupants in either vehicle parked on the east side. When you consider the reaction of David Faraday when Peggy Your drove past the turnout earlier: "When the lights of their car flashed on the Faraday car, the subject in the driver's seat put his hands on the (steering) wheel of the car" and "when the lights from the car came upon the station wagon, the male sat up in the seat," it doesn't make any sense whatsoever that a strange vehicle occupied by the Zodiac Killer could actually pull into the turnout alongside the Rambler, and David Faraday doesn't react at all - continuing his romantic tryst in the reclined seats of the vehicle for a bare minimum of 30 seconds. Additionally, why had Zodiac just sat in his vehicle for the corresponding amount of time doing nothing. The obvious thing for Zodiac to have done, would have been to pull up alongside the Rambler and strike immediately - not read a newspaper first. Had he done this, James Owen would have seen the victims on the turnout floor - which he obviously didn't.
Click image to view on Google maps The idea the couple were forced from the vehicle and hidden out of sight makes equally little sense. James Owen reported seeing no car doors on either vehicle open. Had Zodiac shut the Rambler door when he observed James Owen's vehicle approaching and hidden the couple behind the vehicles, why was the Rambler door discovered open by responding police officers? James Owen also never heard the two shots into the Rambler window or headliner, as he claimed to have possibly heard one shot a quarter of a mile past the turnout. If he did hear this shot, why didn't he hear the two shots on his approach? He may have been out of range on his approach to the turnout to hear the initial two shots. But the further he is away, the longer Zodiac did nothing after forcing the couple from the Rambler.
The testimony of James Owen provides a major stumbling block in creating a reasonable narrative for the happenings of December 20th 1968. Without the presence of the second vehicle it doesn't help matters, because the couple were back over on the east side of the turnout without being forced there. We would have to believe they moved to the west bank for privacy, as described by Robert Connelly, then decided to move back across the turnout into a similar position (but not the same), as described by Peggy Your. The long held narrative of a killer arriving alongside the Rambler on the east bank, exiting his vehicle, shooting at the Rambler and executing the young couple almost immediately after they exited their vehicle, doesn't work. David Faraday and the Zodiac Killer would have displayed at least 30 seconds or more of inactivity upon their encounter in the turnout, and this makes little sense from either perspective.
The testimony of James Owen provides a major stumbling block in creating a reasonable narrative for the happenings of December 20th 1968. Without the presence of the second vehicle it doesn't help matters, because the couple were back over on the east side of the turnout without being forced there. We would have to believe they moved to the west bank for privacy, as described by Robert Connelly, then decided to move back across the turnout into a similar position (but not the same), as described by Peggy Your. The long held narrative of a killer arriving alongside the Rambler on the east bank, exiting his vehicle, shooting at the Rambler and executing the young couple almost immediately after they exited their vehicle, doesn't work. David Faraday and the Zodiac Killer would have displayed at least 30 seconds or more of inactivity upon their encounter in the turnout, and this makes little sense from either perspective.
RSS Feed
