The Murderer David Berkowitz: Son of Sam
On June 1st in 1953, Elizabeth Falco gave birth to a baby boy named Richard David Falco in Brooklyn, New York. He was the result of an affair between his biological parents, Elizabeth (Broder) Falco and Joseph Klineman. His father was married to another woman at the time and refused to let Elizabeth keep the child. A few days later, Nathan and Pearl Berkowitz, a middle-aged Jewish couple adopted him. Eventually, they renamed him David Richard Berkowitz.
As a child, David was unruly and problematic, but his loving parents tried very hard to keep him under control. His poor behavior seemed to intensify at age 14 when his adoptive mother died of cancer. Many people who knew David state that he “was especially attached” to Pearl Berkowitz (Hamill, James, Edmonds, Browne, Gottlieb, 1977). Subsequently, David became involved with crimes like, petty theft and bullying. It grew worse when his adoptive father remarried just four years after her death.
Once he returned in 1974, he started looking into his birth records and discovered that his birth mother was alive and that he had a half-sister. In an interview in 2016, Berkowitz claims that “the crimes that happened later had nothing to do with her”, although many psychology professionals suggest that this reunion could have aggravated Berkowitz and lead him to commit the murders (Storyteller Ministries, 2016, 10:22). In December of 1975, Berkowitz claims to have attacked a woman by stabbing her (Jenkins, 2006). In addition to that, according to his journal, David set around 1,500 fires throughout New York City around this time (Jenkins,
First, David’s mother gave him enough courage to keep hope his father would be all right after the Nazis arrested him. Because their own house was no longer safe from Nazi invasion, David’s family was staying with friends. However, Nazis burst into the house they were staying in on...
According to the Psychopathy Checklist Revised by Robert Hare, a psychopath is a mentally unstable individual that typically displays insensitive behavior and demonstrates a strong lack of empathy towards others. Psychopaths are described as emotionally shallow and exhibits abnormally violent social behavior. Furthermore, David Berkowitz accurately fits this criterion and is described to be a true psychopath. Berkowitz, recognized as the Son of Sam killer, relentlessly tormented the citizens of New York City for over a year. Throughout his killing spree, Berkowitz murdered six people and injured seven more, amounting to thirteen shootings overall. Consequently, many theories have surfaced in regard to why David Berkowitz murdered his victims, including theories of a possessed canine and a brutal satanic cult. Although theories exist about the Son of Sam killer, evidence shows that David Berkowitz murdered because of psychopathic issues and mental instability.
David Berkowitz was born on June 1, 1953 to a single unwed mother and immediately into adoption. He was adopted by Nat and Pearl Berkowitz, a loving Jewish couple unable to have children. Throughout his childhood, David was repeatedly informed that his birth mother had died during childbirth and these were his new parents (Essene, 2000). David had a relatively normal childhood; his parents loved him dearly and showered him with gifts on numerous occasions. However, he was socially uncomfortable, and possessed a low self esteem, David had frequent violent episodes in which he would often turn over furniture and throw temper tantrums.
A loss of David’s innocence appears during his killing of a magpie. This “it can be done in a flick of the finger”. The particular significance about this plays an important part in his as he considers that he also is capable of committing such unfortunate yet immoral things. “Looking in the dead bird’s eye, I realised that these strange, unthought of connections - sex and death, lust and violence, desire and degradation - are there, there, deep in even a good heart’s chambers”.
At first, David cares that his mother treats him badly. After awhile, he doesn’t care and becomes apathetic.
6. I think that his mother just randomly decided to abuse David. Since she was an alcoholic she did not always realize what she was doing to him. She also probably didn’t want to do all the things around the house and thought it was too much to do so she had David do all the chores. She punished him by doing dreadful things.
As Davis starts to tell about his life as a young boy in America, he lets us know about his mother dying far too young, and him being raised by his father and aunt. David's dad is stereotype of a man and their emotions. He and his son never have a close relationship. Even when David gets hurt in an accident, his father doesn't want him to cry. He wants him to be a man, a manly man and not a Sunday teacher.
The first issue that is a major concern in the novel, is the torture and abuse towards David, and other members in the novel. Every minute in the United States, children are physically and sexually abused, murdered, maimed, and emotionally scarred. David, the narrator of the novel, has encountured this abuse more than once. David is tortured numorous times, by his father, Joseph Strorm. This brutality would continue, until Mr. Strorm received the information he demanded. It would continue on for hours, until David could not handle it anymore, until the answers Joseph Strorm wanted, were beaten out of of him. No child, anywhere in the world, should have to experience such cruelty. Over 67% of children with disabilities are induced by physical abuse. These numbers are very shocking, but what is every more unbelievalbe is the fact that these children are suffering in...
his father and dead mother. David's father has an idealized vision of his son as
Not much is known about David's early childhood, but it is known that he was a solitary child. He enjoyed playing cowboys and Indians, war games, and other childhood games. He was a chubby kid, and got teased a lot for it. He was also very smart, in 1960; he was given an IQ test, and scored a 118, a “superior” level. One of his elementary teachers described him as a “moody child, very easily upset.” David loved to hide; his father gave him various nicknames like Sneaky, Snoop, and Spy. David loved sneaking through the house, trying to be invisible.
The traumatic effect of the physical, mental, and emotional abuse marked Pelzer’s life. Through a psychological point of view, it is visible that there are many ways the abuse affected David. David was mistreated in ways that made him wonder why. I was also left feeling perplexed and sometimes feeling frustrated, I wanted to know why David 's mother singled him out for her abuse. Then, I realized that this was the same frustration David has lived with most of his
David, the main character in the book, realizes that his girlfriend Hilary has cheated on him. To make things even worse she is cheating with one of his friends from the football team, Sam. David tries to talk to Hilary but she thinks he hasn’t been the same since his mother died about a year ago. Later, David beats up Sam at a party.
The victim, John Kondejewski, a sergeant in the military as well as battle school instructor, was killed on May 15th, 1997 in Brandon Manitoba by the defendant, his wife, Kimberley Kondejewski, in the bedroom of their home (Sheehy 88). The couple was married for over 17 years before the proceeding occurred. Kimberly shot her husband three times that Thursday night; first shot to the chest, second and third shot were closer range, which led the police to charge her with first-degree murder (Sheehy 115). However, she also tried to end her life, fortunately she was only wounded. She even had composed a suicide note addressed to their children, Jennifer and Christopher. The judge assigned to the case was Justice Rodney H
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
David changes his mind about Uncle Frank through the traumatic experiences regarding the discovery of Frank’s secret actions. Uncle Frank used to be David’s idol and David adored him. But that all changed when David’s housekeeper and baby sitter, Marie Little Soldier, becomes violently ill and is in need of a doctor. Wes Hayden, David’s father, calls his brother Frank, who is the town doctor, to come and see her. Strangely enough, Marie Little Soldier refuses to be alone in the room with Frank. Later on, Marie tells David’s mother horrible things that Frank has been doing to Native American women. David’s mother, Gail, tells Wes as David overhears. She says, “ ‘Wesley, your brother has been raping these women. These girls. These Indian girls…’ [David states] I was beginning already to think of Uncle Frank as a criminal…Charming, affable Uncle Frank was gone for good'; (47, 49). David always thought goodly of his uncle, until he heard these ghastly statements. All the attractiveness and appeal of Frank dissipated once David learned of his filthy behavior. David knew this information would change him forever. He takes anoth...