Introduction
David Berkowitz, also known as the Son of Sam and the .44 Caliber Killer, is an American serial killer that haunted New York City through 1976-1977.
Early Life
He was born as Richard David Falco in Brooklyn, New York on June 1, 1953 to his parents, Betty Broder and Joseph Kleinman. His mother had married Tony Falco, and they ran a fish market together but separated before David’s birth. Betty Broder had an affair with Joseph Kleinman, got pregnant, and Kleinman threatened to abandon her if she kept the baby. Therefor, she gave the baby up for adoption and listed Tony Falco as the father on his birth certificate. David was adopted shortly after his birth by Pearl and Nathan Berkowitz, who were hardware store retailers. Together, they raised their only son, with a name change of David Richard Berkowitz. For the purpose of this paper, I will refer to the term parents to David’s adoptive parents, Pearl and Nathan Berkowitz.
Throughout David’s childhood, he would engage in petty larceny and pyromania. Pyromania is an impulse control disorder where an individual fails to resist impulses to start fires to relieve tension or for personal gratification. His behavior startled his parents, which resulted in contact with a psychotherapist, which did not lead to any immediate treatments because
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Donna Lauria, 18, and Jody Valenti, 19, were the victims. David approached their car and removed a pistol from a paper bag and shot three times, not saying a single word. One bullet instantly took Donna’s life, Jody was shot in her thigh, and the third bullet missed the girls completely. This was now David Berkowitz’s third attempted murder, and first murder. Jody survived but could not identify the shooter. She gave a description to the police but no leads were found. The police were able to determine that the gun used was a .44 special cartridge, bulldog model, manufactured by Charter
The first shooting occurred on July 29, 1976 and the second months later; and the third one month after the second. At this point, Berkowitz had shot six people but the New York Police Department did not see any relation between the shootings. In January 1977, Berkowitz struck again by shooting a couple while sitting in a car. This event caused police to start a search for a .44 caliber killer. A .44 caliber gun is the type of gun that Berkowitz used in all of his murders. He continued to elude police, he even began taunting them. Berkowitz started leaving note addressed to the NYPD captain near all of his crime scenes. In the letters he spoke to police telling them of how he was recruited to commit the murders and addressed himself as the “Son of Sam”. This is how Berkowitz attained the name The Son of Sam Killer.
David Berkowitz is not a household name, however his media given title "Son of Sam" will ensure his memory as one of the most notorious serial killers of all time.
American serial killer, Richard Ramirez was born on February 29, 1960 in El Paso, Texas. Ramirez was known for being a satanic worshiper and for going on a two-year raped and torture rampage, harming more than 25 victims and murdering more than a dozen. Ramirez, also known as the "Night Stalker," turned to satanic worship at an early age by his cousin, a soldier who had recently returned from the war in Vietnam. Following a four-year trial, in 1989, Ramirez was convicted of 13 killings. Ramirez received the death penalty and was sent to San Quentin Prison in California. He later died on June 7, 2013, at the age 53.
Child abuse was still on the verge of emerging like mental illness, there were no laws or rights being enforced to protect those against neglect or abuse. Furthermore, all the marks that were present of David’s body had to be cause by more than he was admitting being no one else witnessed the abuse. For instance, when Catherine tried to have David eat the defecated diaper, the abuse stopped when Ron, Stan, and David 's father came back to the vacation cabin (Pelzer, 1995, pp. 57). It was a risky long drawn out rescue mission, but if Catherine had assumed a social case was being built on David’s behalf she may have killed him before he had a chance to realize it. I could not envision myself in a situation of that nature, yet as a person concerned about the well-being of a child, I would have done my own personal questioning to David. I understand teachers have to adhere to protocol, but if you notice everyday your student smells or looks unhealthy, you have to investigate as too why, especially if the mother looks glamorous during a parent teacher conference while the child dresses like a hobo. You may want to question why? Stephen, David 's father was the main person in authority with an opportunity to prevent maltreatment. David 's father stood by watching his son use a five-gallon bucket to relieve his diarrhea. When David was forced to eat
It was not just these influences but he also had a deep interest in science and chemicals. He was alone for the early part of his child hood because of his father’s work habits and his mother’s illnesses. This being the case, David found it easy to become engulfed in books but more specifically The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments. The Golden Book was a large factor in most of his early experiments, and even played a part in some of his experiments in the later years. This book contained many science experiments and different types of chemical reactions. He used this book as a guide to learn how different experiments work, and also showed David how he could create his own tests. Although his mother and father were not very supportive he did have one family member that was. His grandfather always backed him up and realized he had a love for science. Then, the boy scouts came along. His father saw this as a way to get David out of the house and create more of a social life. What he did not know is that David was using the perks of being a boy scout to obtain more chemical to further the needs for his
They ended up a Dave Schultz house, where Dave was tinkering with his radio in his Toyota Tercel, he then stopped turned to his boss with a smile then duPont pulled his gun pointed in Goodales face before pointing it at dave and pulled the trigger. “ I said John what are you doing?” Goodale testified at the trial “David screamed after the first shot then fell.” Goodale then leapt from the car with his weapon and pointed it a duPont once their barrels met John threw his gun on the seat then backed the car
“On May 5, 2004, I received a phone call from Ron Reimer, David’s father,” said John Colapinto. “Ron was a surprise, and the tone of his voice suggested that he was not calling with happy news.” “David took his own life yesterday… He shot himself in his car.” Ron said. David's suicide was “a horrible shock but not a complete surprise” (John Colapinto) to many people who knew of his life. His parents, Ron and Janet Reimer were raised as Mennonites in Winnipeg. Janet was an energetic girl who was convinced by her mom to quit school after ninth grade and work at a sewing factory to help provide. At Janet’s fifteenth birthday she was forced to move out , so she went gladly. She moved to a nearby city where she met Ron Reimer whom she fell in love
Berkowitz’s shootings appear to be acts out of impulse. Not targeting specific people though his prey of choice were single, young women with long dark hair (Bardsley, 1981). Before one of the violent shootings, witness Cacillia Davis saw a man removing a parking ticket from his yellow Ford Galaxy (Bardsley, 1981). Davis relays this message to NYPD who later determined it was in fact David Berkowitz who she had seen. At the time no suspicion rose from NYPD that Berkowitz was the Son of Sam killer, only that he was an important witness. NYPD eventually contacted Yonkers Police Department in order to track down Berkowitz for questioning. Where surprisingly to New York, Yonkers claimed Berkowitz might be the notorious serial killer they had been
Serial murder is defined by the National Institute of Justice as a "series of two or more murders, committed as separate events, usually but not always, by one offender acting alone. The crimes may occur over a period of time ranging from hours to years. Quite often the motive is psychological, and the offender's behavior and the physical evidence observed at the crime scenes will reflect sadistic, sexual overtones." This definition perfectly describes serial killer Albert Fish.
In the 1980s, Daniel built a house with his brother. He was very proud of the house because it was big enough for his family. On November 10, 1990, Daniel’s first grandson, Axle Russell, was born. Axle was Stacy’s son. Daniel was very proud to be a grandfather. On October 1, 1994 I was born. My parents surprised my grandad by naming me after him. He was very happy that I would carry on his name.
Scott Scovell Hamilton was born on August 28, 1958, in Toledo Ohio. Six weeks later, he was adopted by a couple who had trouble having children; Ernest Hamilton – a professor at Bowling Green State University, and Dorothy Hamilton – a second grade school teacher. Scott grew up in the city of Bowling Green with his adoptive parents, his older sister, who was their biological daughter, and his younger brother, who was also adopted. At first it seemed as if he was a strong, healthy kid, but that was until his parents noticed that he wasn’t developing like the other children. At around two or three years, he mysteriously stopped growing. For a long time, the toddler was taken in and out of hospitals, being misdiagnosed many times. Scott recalled this period in his life as, “…a lot of time alone at a very early age, which was scary… I was surrounded by strangers in a ver...
As a child Dave Pelzer was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother; a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games that left one of her sons nearly dead. She no longer considered him a son, but a slave; no longer a boy, but an 'it'. His bed was an old army cot in the basement, his clothes were torn and smelly, and when he was allowed the luxury of food it was scraps from the dogs' bowl. The outside world knew nothing of the nightmare played out behind closed doors. Dave dreamed of finding a family to love him and call him their son. It took years of struggle, deprivation and despair to find his dreams and make something of himself. A Child Called 'It' covers the early years of his life and is an affecting and inspiration memoir of one child's determination to survive.
Most deaths are caused from a gunshot wound, either it be a homicide, taking one’s life, or just an accidental discharge. Knowing the type of weapon is really importa...
Land, Judith, and Martin Land. Adoption Detective: Memoir of an Adopted Child. Tucson: Wheatmark, 2011. Print.
David Berkowitz was one of the most feared killers in New York City in the 1970's. His crimes caused the death of six people, and the injuries to seven others. His crimes became legendary because of the bizarre content in the letters that he wrote to the police and the media and his reasons for committing the attacks. David Berkowitz, better known as Son of Sam, is a man with a troubled childhood and upbringing. From his many “Parental Figures” to believing that dogs were telling him to kill. During his reign of killing the police felt the pressure to catch David. "Operation Omega" was formed, which was comprised of over 200 detectives – all working on finding the Son of Sam before he killed again. He is currently serving a 365 year sentence at the Sullivan Correctional Facility in Fallsburg, New York, and became eligible for parole in 2002.