Posted on 06/27/2005 8:56:58 AM PDT by GPBurdell
By ROXANA HEGEMAN, Associated Press Writer 6 minutes ago
BTK suspect Dennis Rader pleaded guilty Monday to 10 counts of first-degree murder, admitting in a chillingly matter-of-fact voice to a series of slayings that terrorized the city beginning in the 1970s.
Rader, 60, of Park City, entered the guilty pleas as his trial was scheduled to begin Monday.
Referring to his victims as "projects," Rader laid out for the court how he would "troll" for victims on his off-time, then stalk them and kill them.
"I had never strangled anyone before, so I really didn't know how much pressure you had to put on a person or how long it would take," he told the court in describing his first killings in 1974, a couple and two of their children.
Most of the victims' relatives who were in the courtroom sat silent and stared at Rader, although one woman wiped away tears.
Prosecutors had said before the hearing that no plea deal had been made. Rader was arrested Feb. 25.
The onetime president of the church council at Christ Lutheran Church and Boy Scout leader, Rader admitted killing 10 people in the Wichita area between 1974 and 1991. The serial killer known as BTK — the self-coined nickname that stands for "Bind, Torture, Kill" — taunted media and police with cryptic messages.
Sentencing was set for Aug. 17. Rader will not face the death penalty because the crimes were committed before the state adopted a new capital punishment law. But it's likely he'll never leave prison because each count carries a possible life sentence.
Rader, wearing a beige coat and dark tie, told District Judge Gregory Waller that he understood the charges against him and that he was waiving his right to a jury trial.
"The defense worked with me real well," Rader said. "We went over it. I feel like I'm pretty happy with them."
Asked by Waller if he was pleading because he was guilty, Rader answered, "Yes, sir."
The earliest crimes linked to the BTK strangler date to Jan. 15, 1974, when Joseph Otero, 38, and his 34-year-old wife, Julie, and their children Josephine, 11, and Joseph II, 9, were found dead in their home.
"The whole family just panicked on me. I worked pretty quick," he said. "I strangled Mrs. Otero. She passed out. I thought she was dead. I strangled Josephine. She passed out. I thought she was dead. Then I went over and put a bag on Junior's head."
He later said about Mrs. Otero: "I went back and strangled her again."
BTK's next three known victims were young women found strangled in their homes: Kathryn Bright, 21, in April 1974; Shirley Vian, 24, in March 1977; and Nancy Fox, 25, in December 1977.
After years of silence, the killer resurfaced last year with a letter to The Wichita Eagle that included photos of the 1986 strangulation of Vicki Wegerle and a photocopy of her missing driver's license. Her case had not been linked to BTK until then.
That letter was followed by several other cryptic messages and packages. The break in the case came after a computer diskette the killer had sent was traced to Rader's church.
Rader also is charged with the killings of Marine Hedge, 53, who was abducted from her Park City home on April 27, 1985, and found dead along a dirt road eight days later, and Dolores Davis, 62, who was abducted from her Park City home Jan. 19, 1991. Those deaths were not linked to BTK until Rader's arrest.
He described to the court how he chose his victims.
"If you've read much about serial killers, they go through what they call different phases. In the trolling stage, basically, you're looking for a victim at that time. You can be trolling for months or years, but once you lock in on a certain person, you become a stalker. That might be several of them but you really hone in on one person. They basically become the ... that's the victim. Or at least that's what you want it to be."
Rader had called the Wichita area home almost his entire life, earning a criminal justice degree at a local university. He worked in suburban Park City as a compliance officer, handling code violations and stray dogs. He had been married for 34 years and has two grown children.
The Rev. Michael Clark, pastor of the Christ Lutheran Church, said after the hearing, "That's what I hoped he would do."
Victim families left the courtroom, escored by officials into another building, and did not speak to reporters.
I watched his testimony live...it was chilling....
He discussed the killings as you or I would discuss what we had for lunch....very matter of fact....
He also discussed how he did the killings for sexual gratification.....very sick....even the Judge chocked on his words after some of the testimony...
NeverGore :^)
I turned on the TV and he was on, it was chilling. He admitted he did this because of "sexual fantasy." I was glad to switch the station, I couldn't take it. We never know who is walking in our midst.
This guy had zero,nada, nothing for his victims.
The guy cool and calmly describe his days at "work".
He touched on some of the sexual aspects of his "work" but didn't go into detail.
Scary! ...where is the next one like him?
This guy is a poster child for the death penalty. If he ever gets out of prison for whatever reason it will be business as usual and he will kill again.
I was stationed at McConnell AFB in Wichita when his spree started. My then gun scared wife was suddenly interested in learning how to use those evil guns I owned. We lived off base and if I was working the night shift she had the 12 guage pump and the .45 ACP beside the bed. I called ahead if I got off early.
Where is the next one like him? Prolly driving a rig from state to state, with a hostage he would torture and slowly kill; Or making Candy (the candy man) in a Texas town, "the rope", another strangler from gainsville.
There are all kinds of sicko's running around, and from time to time they catch one. I used to read Anne Rule's paperbacks, who wrote about many of them.
The worst of it is it can be someone you have known for a long time and completely trust, or it can be a relative stranger, a new person in town that seems harmless. You just never know.
Somebody needs to get rid of him when he's in prison.
Sounds like the b-movie, 'Suspect Zero'. ...his property had 100s of graves when finally caught.
The writer, Hannah Arendt, wrote the phrase to describe that infamous Nazi Adolph Eichmann, in her book "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil".
The writer, Hannah Arendt, wrote the phrase to describe that infamous Nazi Adolph Eichmann, in her book "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil".
The "Candyman"(Dean Corll) had a lot of victims buried as well, 30 boys that they found in the early 70's. He was a homosexual who murdered teenagers in Huston. People thought that their teenage kids just left home like they often do at that age. THis guy owned a candy factory, lived in the neighborhood for years, Always gave free candy to the kids.
I don't think there has ever been a movie made aabout this case, but I could be wrong.
I'm sure someone will take care of him like they did Dahmer. I don't think he lasted a month.
Wasn't "The Candy Man" one such Ronald Clark O'Brien, who poisoned his son on Halloween with Pixy Stix laced with cyanide circa 1974?
I remember the Dean Allen Corll case...he was killed by one of his accomplices, Elmer Wayne Henley, who is serving a life term in prison. Those two (and one other actor, if I remember right) were responsible by at least 30 abduction/murders, as you point out, but I don't recall that Corll had a nickname such as "The Candy Man." I do remember the case being referred to as the "Boathouse Murders," because many of the victims were buried in the dirt floor of a boat storage shed.
You are correct. Corll didn't have a candy factory either. But, he did have a boatshed.
I turned this on and caught part of this. I had to turn the channel, it was too much to bear.
I don't know how the families sat through it. How could they listen to someone talking about killing their loved ones?
What a sick monster! All those poor people.
Unfortunately, this kind of thing happens everyday in this country. Somebody just slaughtered a family of six in Arizona. What's unprecedented, IMO, is that the judge questioned and encouraged the prisoner for a full detailed confession of each count, while on live national TV.
As for the death penalty, don't be so sure. Once he's in prison, all it would take is for someone to call him a snitch for the warden, and he's dead. The inmates might just kill him anyways for no reason at all.
Since the guy killed kids, I bet a "lifer" will do such. IIRC, child killers are the lowest of the low on the prison caste system.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.