Going West: True Crime

In September of 1977, a promising 19-year-old college student in San Francisco disappeared after heading to study in her university’s library. Horrifically, she was found brutally murdered the next morning in a locked faculty reading room on the fourth floor, her belongings neatly piled nearby. With an attack on another local woman occurring in the same area that same summer, an intriguing and disturbing suspect came into play. This is the murder of Jenny Low Chang.

In September of 2009, a 24-year-old woman was released from a Los Angeles sheriff’s station in the middle of the night after being arrested for failing to pay her bill at a Malibu restaurant. In the hours preceding her arrest, she had been acting strangely and speaking in riddles. She had no car, phone, or money, yet she seemed determined to set off into the dark hills of Malibu Canyon, and was never seen alive again. This is the strange death of Mitrice Richardson.

On a stormy night in August of 1961, an eight-year-old girl vanished from her family home in Tacoma, Washington. There was no ransom note and surprisingly little evidence left behind. So after decades with no answers, an eerie link between the young girl and a man on death row birthed the theory that a notorious serial killer may have claimed her as his first victim. This the disappearance of Ann Marie Burr.

In August of 1989, a 26-year-old man in Prince George, British Columbia was given an unexpected lifeline when a bearded stranger at a pub offered him and his partner short-term work at a logging ranch nearby. With two young children, desperation for employment outweighed caution. Later that night, a witness saw the family pack their belongings and step into the man’s truck outside their home. But they were never seen again. This is the disappearance of the Jack family.

In August of 2011, a 21-year-old art student suddenly vanished from her Ohio townhouse. Her purse, her car —even her beloved dog—were all left behind. And with no signs of struggle and no clear explanation, the case baffled investigators and shook her community. For nearly two years, her disappearance was a haunting mystery… until a discovery miles away across state lines changed everything. This is the murder of Katelyn Markham.

In August of 1973, a 22-year-old woman was beginning her graduate degree in psychology at the same Missouri university when she was brutally murdered in her apartment. Originally, police believed the crime was committed by a woman. Or, a professor she may have been seeing on campus. Now, 52 years later, even more curious potential suspects have come into play, as a whole new investigation is underway. This is the murder of Tess Hilt.

In July of 2023, a beloved elementary school teacher took a walk through her Maryland neighborhood, just as she did every evening. But this time, she never came home. Within days, her disappearance sparked a massive search effort involving local authorities and concerned volunteers alike. As the weeks wore on, eerie details surfaced, including a photograph of the murder suspect as he was disposing of her remains. This is the murder of Mariame Toure Sylla.

In the spring of 2009, a short-lived spree of attacks against women in Boston and Rhode Island had the Eastern Seaboard on edge. But when a suspect was finally identified, the revelation was almost too bizarre to believe: a clean-cut, promising medical student with a seemingly perfect home life. As investigators dug deeper, they uncovered a dual existence darker and more calculated than anyone who knew him could have possibly imagined. These are the crimes of the Craigslist Killer, otherwise known as Philip Markoff.

In the summer of 1986, two young girls vanished mere months apart, both while out riding their bikes in Tacoma, Washington. Despite exhaustive efforts, both cases went cold, until decades later, when a surprising breakthrough revived the investigation. With new forensic tools and a fresh set of eyes, detectives began to piece together a puzzle that had haunted the community for years, finally finding answers over 30 years later. These are the murders of Michella Welch and Jenni Bastian, otherwise known as the Tacoma Girls.

In July of 2025, a couple and their two young daughters were hiking at the Devil's Den State Park in Arkansas after recently relocating to the area. But while on the trail, a strange man approached the family, stabbing and murdering the parents. Within days, someone was arrested for the slayings, and his identity would shock the nation. These are the murders of Clint and Cristen Brink, also known as the Devil's Den Murders.

In March of 2024, two women set off on a short drive through the rural backroads of Oklahoma, but they never made it to their destination. Hours later, their car was found abandoned by the side of the road, but suspiciously, along with signs of a struggle. As the search for them intensified, authorities uncovered a trail marked by custody battles, a religious cult, and secrets buried deep in a small-town community, which would ultimately lead to five arrests. These are the murders of Veronica Butler and Jilian Kelley.

In the 1980s and ’90s, a deeply disturbed man from New Jersey drifted from town to town, hiding behind a soft-spoken voice and a childlike demeanor. Seemingly tormented by delusions, and obsessed with revenge, he harbored gruesome secrets. By the time investigators connected him to the 1986 disappearance of six-year-old Michele Dorr, and later, the baffling vanishing of Harvard graduate Laura Houghteling, it was clear: this man wasn’t just strange... He was deadly. And he may have left behind more victims than anyone ever realized. This is the story of Hadden Clark, also known, as the Cannibal Gardener.

In July of 1986, a 19-year-old man was found hanging from a tree near his Maryland home. Authorities swiftly ruled it a suicide, but those closest to him questioned everything about the scene; from the small tree, which could barely support his weight, to the lack of an autopsy, to the suspicious friends who seemed to vanish in the wake of his sudden death. Years later, his mother received a suspicious envelope on her doorstep, and new evidence would challenge the original ruling. This is the death of Keith Warren.

In July of 1995, a 24-year-old woman in Alaska headed out on a date with a man she had only recently met. She was last seen at a crowded summer fair in the forest, surrounded by tourists - but by the time the sun rose the next morning, she was gone. What followed was a desperate search in the unforgiving Alaska wilderness, and eerie silence from her date, which only deepened the mystery. This is the disappearance of Erin Gilbert.

In the summer of 1990, a serial killer originally dubbed “The Charmer” began his crusade of committing brutal acts of violence against Seattle-area women, then placing their bodies in crude positions before abandoning them. Locals were terrified of the perverse madman loose on the streets of their city - but, thanks to DNA and a few careless slip ups, a suspect was identified. And quickly, the evidence against him began to stack. These are the gruesome murders of Mary Anne Pohlreich, Carol Beethe, and Randi Levine - committed by the Bellevue Killer.

In the late 1980s, a Hollywood camera operator was murdered in his home in the Los Angeles suburbs. At first glance, the scene appeared to be a tragic and random home invasion. But with little evidence to support this conclusion, a far more sinister story emerged, which would leave two people dead, two people in prison, and one person on death row. This is the murder of Bob Samuels, and the story of the Green Widow murders.

In July of 2012, a beloved high school teacher was found murdered inside her Staten Island home. Although it was initially believed to be a home invasion gone wrong, the scene left behind raised immediate questions with investigators. And a daunting four-month investigation would reveal family secrets that someone was fighting desperately to suppress - leaving a shocking trail of evidence in the form of Google searches and burner phone calls. This is the murder of Simeonette Mapes-Crupi.

Serial killers are not just the stuff of horror movies or thriller novels. They walk among us, hidden in plain sight, sometimes quiet, sometimes charming, almost always disarmingly ordinary. But what turns a human being into a hunter of humans? How do they emerge? And more importantly — why? Today, we’re diving into the dark psychology and chilling statisticsthat define the anatomy of a serial killer. We’ll explore what the numbers tell us, what patterns have emerged, and what lurks in the background of some of the most infamous killers.Also join us as we discuss Daphne's debut thriller novel NIGHT WATCHER, out NOW!https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/daphne-woolsoncroft/night-watcher/9781538770900/?lens=grand-central-publishing

In April of 2024, a 19-year-old student vanished after heading out for a promising first date in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. But hours later, her torched car was found in another part of the city, and later that day, dismembered body parts began popping up along the coastline… Although security footage and phone pings helped the case against their surprising suspect, blood evidence and disturbing images on his phone garnered answers in the recent June 2025 trial.  This is the murder of Sade Robinson.

Between 1980 and 1982, a string of unexplained child deaths unsettled small towns across Florida. Shockingly, the common thread was a quiet teenager hired as the babysitter. As grieving families sought answers and doctors cited rare medical conditions as the cause, suspicion began to build quietly among the grieving families. But it wasn’t until the summer of 1982 that the truth behind the tragedies began to emerge, raising chilling questions about evil hiding in plain sight. These are the murders by Christine Falling, also known as the babysitter from hell.