Posted on 03/01/2005 12:09:22 PM PST by Pyro7480
BTK Suspect Charged With 10 Murder Counts
By DAVID TWIDDY, Associated Press Writer
WICHITA, Kan. - Dennis Rader, the churchgoing family man and Cub Scout leader accused of leading a double life as the BTK serial killer, was charged Tuesday with 10 counts of first-degree murder.
Rader made his first court appearance since his Friday arrest by videoconference from his cell at the Sedgwick County detention center. During the brief hearing, Rader sat with his hands folded behind a small desk.
The BTK killer, whose nickname stands for "Bind, Torture, Kill," was suspected of eight deaths beginning in 1974, but authorities said Saturday they had linked two additional victims to the serial killer.
Rader's arrest has also prompted nearby law enforcement agencies through Kansas to reinvestigate any cold cases that bear similarities to the string of slayings.
Sedgwick County District Judge Greg Waller read the charges during the hearing, which lasted about five minutes. A preliminary hearing was set for March 15, when Rader is likely to be arraigned.
Rader's only comments during the hearing were short "yes" and "no" answers to questions.
He was accompanied at the hearing by a temporary attorney. Waller appointed the state's public defender office to represent Rader.
Not gonna happen.
Pics and other details at my Blog entries:
Those 3 counties are testing with DNA..lets hope they get one after the death penalty date!
** Turns out he worked with two of the victims and lived on the same street as a third. He also attended Wichita University, which they strongly suspected BTK had done. I think "LE" is going to have alot of egg on their faces over this one. **
Nowadays, we probably have computer programs that would have picked up on this 'coincidence' immediately. Rader would have been stopped fairly quickly, imo.
With the benefit of hindsight, it seems simple now to connect these dots. But they were dealing with literally thousands of potential suspects. Just an idea, anyway. I agree with you to a certain extent, though.
** I wouldn't be surprised if other murders linked to BTK. **
Have those Interstate 70 shootings been solved yet? It was during the 1990s, I think. Several of them.
Another frequent element of the typical serial killer profile is that they are a frustrated cop (i.e., police academy drop-out, working as a security guard, etc.) and will try to inject themselves into some aspect of the investigation (hanging out at cop bars, talking about the press reports of their killings, offering tips, etc.) Some of these do speak to Rader and what has been revealed about his personality type to date.
There have been female serial killers and there have been black serial killers, both of which were accurately profiled prior to apprehension. Profiling is, I imagine, like any other profession: there are profiles who are extremely proficient and do their jobs well, and their are others who are less capable. I highly recommend any of John Douglas's books...although they WILL make you reevaluate the way you look at some of the people around you!
I haven't been following this too closely, but it seems that most people consider this man "guilty" as charged.
I strongly tend toward "innocent" until proven guilty, but perhaps there's incontrovertible evidence against this man, or he's already confessed?
Can anyone show me the evidence against this man before we too-hastily judge him guilty?
He's a monster. According to his neighbors, he was a sadistic man who measured their grass with a ruler, who let his dog run free but ticketed a sick old lady who let her dog off the leash. Words don't describe this homicidal pervert.
Evidently he kept trophies of the murders in a shed in the backyard. His wife should have looked in the shed once in a while, but probably she didn't breathe until and unless her husband told her to. Can you imagine growing up in that household? With a sadistic killer/monster as a father? For sure he abused them all emotionally. He abused that entire neighborhood.
I think they have DNA from the daughter, and they found stuff in the backyard shed. Plus his computer.
I think there was one news report which stated he confessed.
Pictures seen by few, including possible baby picture.
Horrific poem written by killer and some excerpts of communication with police.
Link doesn't work.
According to all the news reports I've read, the police and/or the FBI have a DNA match, his confession, several murdered victims' items found in his back yard, and his "electronic fingerprints" on a floppy disk he mailed to them. That's just the stuff I can remember off the top of my head.
Some details about that floppy disk:
Rader typed something at his church and saved it on the floppy disk, but forgot to erase at least one file/folder on it. The folder's name was the same as the name of this Lutheran church. Last Friday, the police went to this church and asked the pastor if Rader had recently used one of their computers. The pastor said yes, then pointed to one of their computers. This computer was a match for whatever was on that floppy disk.
Also, the police are most likely eager to know more about the gun Rader used to make his victims submit to being tied up. News reports say he had a gun when he killed the lady who had 3 kids at home. (Her name was Shirley-something and the kids were locked in the closet). One of those kids had let Rader in the front door and the kid said he had a gun.
I'm thinking that if the police can find out more about Rader's gun, they might find that he was the Interstate 70 "white, slender male" who killed all those women in the 1990s.
Thank you for the information. The evidence is pretty strong against this guy. How devious to be living such extremes of a double-life....
Even if the DP is in play, Justice Kennedy will look to the fetish clubs of Europe and SF and LA and rule it unconstitutional.
"I haven't been following this too closely, but it seems that most people consider this man "guilty" as charged. I strongly tend toward "innocent" until proven guilty, but perhaps there's incontrovertible evidence against this man, or he's already confessed? Can anyone show me the evidence against this man before we too-hastily judge him guilty?"
The suspect is presumed "innocent" (pleads "not guilty") when he is on trial. The police and the public do not have to consider the suspect "innocent." There is no such obligation.
Why don't young people understand the legal concept "presumption of innocence"?
Can his wife divorce him and keep her share at least.
She'd have to move fast and right now that house is a crime scenel so it's not exactly going on the market.
Wanna buy a house cheap?....uh....don't look in that there shed.
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