A Blast From the Past

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It occurred to me this week, when 72–year–old Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested under suspicion of being the infamous Golden State Killer of the 1970s and 1980s, that it was a lot like when Dennis Rader was charged in another cold case, the BTK slayings in Kansas, in 2005.

Rader's crime spree started roughly the same time as the Golden State Killer's — in the mid–1970s. He continued a few years after the Golden State Killer's known attacks ended. (I say known because more facts may yet emerge as this case unfolds.)

Both men were regarded as a bit quirky — even menacing — by others; they held positions of authority and lived for many years in the communities they terrorized.

If DeAngelo turns out to be the Golden State Killer — he entered no plea when he appeared in court yesterday — he had a slightly higher body count. Of course, that doesn't include the roughly four dozen rapes or the more than 100 burglaries that have been tied to the Golden State Killer. That makes him a far more prolific criminal.

The men are roughly the same age — and had no reason to be concerned about DNA evidence at the time they committed their crimes since the development of that technology was still in the distant future. They knew enough about contemporary forensic evidence to avoid the evidentiary traps of the times, but DNA, which played a role in their eventual captures, was not on their radar.

DNA was discovered in the 19th century, but how to apply it to criminal investigations evolved well into the next century. In the '70s, high school science teachers could tell their students about DNA, but they couldn't say how it would influence law enforcement — or anything else — in the years ahead.

It would be a couple of decades before most people would get that kind of exposure via the O.J. Simpson trial — and even then DNA was misunderstood by many.

Neither man said much during the arraignment phase. DeAngelo confirmed his name when asked; Rader said nothing during his arraignment.

All serial killers are not created equal, though. While DeAngelo apparently has kept mostly silent since being taken into custody, Rader seemed to derive pleasure in letting the authorities know how clever he had been, confessing to crimes in addition to the ones with which he had been charged.

It all comes down to what motivates a serial killer, and they are as individual in their motivations as people in any other walk of life. For those who study serial killers, it will be instructive to learn what motivated DeAngelo.

A Cold Case Turns 40

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It was 40 years ago today that a man known to history primarily as D.B. Cooper hijacked a Northwest Orient Airlines 727, demanded $200,000 and parachuted from the plane into legend somewhere between Portland, Ore., and Seattle.

The conventional wisdom for these last four decades has been that Cooper (who actually purchased his ticket under the apparent alias of Dan Cooper, but, because of miscommunication, is remembered almost exclusively as D.B. Cooper) couldn't have survived the jump, given the terrain and the weather at the time — and the fact that he was wearing an ordinary business suit that offered little protection against the subzero temperatures.

But, if he did not survive, no sign of his remains have been found, and neither has any sign of the money he jumped with — except for a few thousand dollars found in 1980 that are said to have been part of the ransom that was paid to Cooper.

The balance — nearly $195,000 — remains unaccounted for.

So, 40 years later, Cooper still commands the attention of the FBI, which has maintained an active investigation and continues to follow up on leads, however remote they may seem. Special Agent Larry Carr has been heading a citizens' research unit for nearly five years; that unit recently caused a bit of a stir when it was revealed that traces of pure titanium, aluminum, stainless steel and bismuth had been found on the neck tie Cooper left on the airplane.

There was also a claim made by a woman that Cooper was her uncle.

As Gar Swaffar of Digital Journal writes, those traces did provide some clues — not about where Cooper was when he leaped into popular lore on that cold, stormy night 40 years ago but where he came from.

"The primary use of pure titanium at the time was in the chemical industry," notes Swaffar, "and the other place it would be found was in the facility producing the titanium."

Swaffar doesn't really talk about bismuth, which may be the least familiar to most people. It has recently been found to be slightly radioactive, but that would not have been known to the people of 1971 — so, while the introduction of radioactivity into the conversation may invite all sorts of sinister thoughts, one must remember to focus on how bismuth was used in the early 1970s if one expects it to serve as a legitimate clue to Cooper's origin.

Its presence on anything in 1971 suggests to me a link to possibly cosmetics and some over–the–counter medicines like Pepto–Bismol (in which small traces of bismuth can be found).

Anyway, the examination of that trace evidence appears to have yielded nothing that could help close the book on the story of D.B. Cooper — and the woman's claim to be the niece of a man her family always called "L.D." appears to have been discredited as well.

Today, 40 years after his daring jump, D.B. Cooper's fate is still as mysterious as it was in 1971. Did he survive the jump? If he did, did he get away with the rest of the money? And, if he did not, what happened to the money? And what happened to his remains?

The world may never know.

James Earl Ray and the King Assassination

March 10 was a pivotal day in the life of James Earl Ray, the man who spent nearly 30 years in prison for the 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King.

His life began on March 10, 1928, in the city of Alton, Ill. Forty-one years later, to the day, Ray confessed to the assassination of King and was given a 99-year prison sentence. He took the guilty plea on the advice of his attorney to avoid a trial conviction and the possibility of a death sentence.

Three days later, though, Ray recanted his confession. Until his death in prison on April 23, 1998, at the age of 70, Ray claimed that a man he met in Montreal (known to him only as "Raoul") and Ray's brother had been involved in the assassination — but he had not been involved.

He later amended his story, claiming that he didn't shoot King but said he may have been "partially responsible without knowing it," hinting at the possibility of a conspiracy. But, just as it was in the case of Jack Ruby, who shot alleged JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald on national television, the suggestion of a conspiracy never went any further than that.

Ray died in prison from complications related to kidney disease caused by hepatitis C after spending years trying to get the trial he never had. His attorney, William Pepper, represented him in a televised mock trial. Pepper also represented the King family in a wrongful death suit against a Memphis restaurant owner, Loyd Jowers, who was found legally liable.

The King family does not believe Ray was involved in the murder. Ray's father did not believe he was smart enough to pull off such a crime. And, in 1978, a special congressional committee investigating assassinations in the United States said there was a "likelihood" that Ray did not act alone.

What was the truth? It has been nearly 41 years since King was murdered. And, if Ray were still alive today, he would be 81 years old. But there was never a trial in the case while Ray lived, and the chance that there would ever be one died with him nearly 11 years ago.

It would be useful for future generations to know the truth, to know who really killed King and why. But it appears destined to remain one of history's coldest cases.

Here We Go Again

The reports from Aruba say that there will be a development in the Natalee Holloway case soon.

Apparently, a confession from one of the original suspects in the case (Joran van der Sloot) is on tape, and the chief prosecutor is asking an Aruban judge to rule favorably on his request to reopen the case and arrest the young man for a third time.

Such a ruling may come as soon as today.

The chief prosecutor apparently has not requested that van der Sloot's alleged accomplices, Satish and Deepak Kalpoe, be arrested as well.

The three young men were taken into custody originally after Holloway disappeared in 2005, but they were later released when evidence was insufficient to press charges. They were taken into custody again in November and held for a few weeks before being released for, essentially, the same reason.

The alleged confession was recorded during an interview van der Sloot gave to a Dutch TV reporter recently. The reporter calls it "the most revealing report I've ever made." The report is scheduled to be televised in the Netherlands tomorrow.

One way or the other, let's hope this is the first page of the last chapter in this story.

Families on both sides have been riding an emotional roller coaster for nearly 3 years. Van der Sloot's attorney made an observation that would be appropriate for either side when he said, "We have been down this road before, where they say they have new evidence ... but claim they won't go into details [and] then it turns out they have nothing."

If there's evidence to take one or all of the suspects into custody and press charges, then arrest them and hold a trial. If the evidence doesn't exist, then stop arresting the suspects on the same flimsy case that won't hold up in court.

To keep doing this is nothing less than harassment of all parties involved.

The Latest -- and Perhaps Last -- From Aruba

CNN reports that authorities in Aruba have dropped the case against the three young men who are suspected of being involved in the disappearance and presumed murder of Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway in May 2005. Aruban authorities cite a lack of evidence.

We were hearing a different tune from prosecutor Hans Mos about a month ago. Back around the time of the American Thanksgiving, Mos was saying that it wasn't necessary, under Aruban law, to have a body to prove that a murder had occurred.

But today the public prosecutor's office announced there was not sufficient evidence to convince a court "that a crime of violence against Natalee Holloway had been committed nor that her death has been caused by involuntary actions by ... the suspects."

Seems to me the prosecutor doesn't know as much about Aruban law as he should to do his job.