the happy face killer victims

While he has claimed to have killed many more people, officials can only confirm that Jesperson killed eight women between 1990 and 1995 in California, Washington, Oregon, Florida, Nebraska and Wyoming. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. His fourth victim was another sex worker, Laurie Ann Pentland of Salem, Oregon, whose body was found in November 1992. "I consider this the most dangerous domestic terrorist group in the United States today," said Gannon. Jesperson worked as a truck driver to support the family. Detective Rick Buckner has to prove Keith Jesperson is the serial killer known as Happy Face Killer, guilty of murdering a woman in 1995, and has to make sure he is . To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on Oxygen. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! She called him a second time, but his cell phone seemed to be out of battery. Daughter of the infamous 'Happy Face' serial killer, Melissa Moore, and leading female Forensic Criminologist, Dr. Laura Pettler, unearth chilling details from homicide case files in this weekly true-crime series which tells the actual stories of people who shared their lives with a killer or their victims. The Pittsburgh police theorized James fell into the river while crossing a bridge near the city center and drowned. She grew up in a small town in Washington state and survived the escalating violence from her home life and. According to Jesperson, Pentland attempted to double the fee she charged for the sex he had been engaged in with her. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. When she arrived, however, he was nowhere in sight. The first happened when Jesperson was around age 10, when he was friends with a boy named Martin. Pentlands body was found in November 1992 after being discarded in Salem, Oregon. Investigators said there wasno sign of foul play, and his death was ruled an undetermined drowning. Now 66, Jesperson is serving five non-consecutive life sentences in Oregon's state penitentiary. We need to report this, John.' A month later, in Turlock, California, the body of Cynthia Lyn Rose was discovered. Her identity remains unknown. But the judge did not overturn Pavlinac's conviction, writing he did not find a constitutional defect with her trial since she had been convicted by a jury of her peers. . Jesperson's father denied being an abusive parent; however, while investigating for his book on the killer, author Jack Olsen was able to confirm much of the claimed abuse with other family members. What Is the Smiley Face Killers Theory? [00:02:14] His friend told him to get out of the car while he parked. The morning of October 2, Homan's body was found not far from the shore of the Mississippi River. Possible Smiley Face killers victim Mason Cox. The smiley face murder theory (also known as the smiley face murders, smiley face killings, and smiley face gang) is a theory advanced by retired New York City detectives Kevin Gannon and Anthony Duarte, as well as Dr. Lee Gilbertson, a criminal justice professor and gang expert at St. The footage captured James entering a dark alley, and that was the last time he was seen alive. When contacted by sheriffs detectives, he said he had gagged her with duct tape, raped her in the sleeping cab of his rig and strangled her, reported the Spokesman-Review. His father often punished Jesperson by hitting him with a leather belt. When investigators asked him why he decided to come forward, Jesperson listed two reasons. Best Known For: Serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, also known as the "Happy Face Killer," brutally murdered eight women between 1990 and 1995. NR Jul 18th, 2021 Documentary. He was caught after killing his 41-year-old girlfriend, Julie Ann Winningham, in 1995. Jesperson was born on April 6, 1955, in British Columbia, Canada. The body of 23-year-old Taunja Bennett was found in this remote woodland near the Columbia Gorge in 1990. Keith Hunter Jesperson (born April 6, 1955) is a Canadian-American serial killer who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the early 1990s. "Her persistence in this manipulation resulted in her own conviction.". A smiley face had been spray-painted on a tree near where Geib's body was found, and a smiley face sticker was later placed on his gravesite. was 23 years old when he went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. "I sometimes now wonder, if he was freed now, if he was released, would he kill again? Search dogs scoured the downtown area where Homan was last seen alive. Investigators believedhe could have walked to the edge of Lake Michigan, a five-minute walk from the hotel, and fallen in. In June 2021, a trailer appeared on iTunes for a new true crime podcast called Life After Happy Face, to be hosted by Melissa Moore and forensic criminologist Laura Pettler. Jesperson resides in the Oregon State Penitentiary, where he spends much of his time making art. Others say there is no killer. According to former detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson, Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the water. Skiples remains were found on the side of. At the time, he was being investigated for the murder of 41-year-old Julie Winningham, who some described as his girlfriend. His death was ruled an accidental drowning, andthe autopsy report noted"acute alcohol intoxication was a major contributing factor.". [13] Police originally considered her death a drug overdose. In. Oddly,Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the wateras if he had gone for a swim. April 19, 2022, 7:31 PM PDT. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. After he raped and strangled her, Jesperson dumped her body near the Columbia River Gorge, outside Portland. In November 1992, Jesperson had an encounter with sex worker Laurie Anne Pentland at a truck stop. She later rescinded her confession, but in 1991 a jury still found her guilty. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. When an Oregon newspaper ran a five-part series called The Happy Face Serial Killer in 1994, an anonymous author took credit for the five murders. ABC News/YouTube By Jean Mendoza / June 8, 2021 9:24 am EST Keith Hunter Jesperson is a serial killer who claimed the lives of eight women between 1990 and 1995. Angela Surbrize was the name of Jesperson's second-to-last victim. At school, Jesperson was bigger than his classmates and was taunted with names like "Monster Man" and "Igor." Pentlands body was found in November 1992 after being discarded in Salem, Oregon. Officials did not implicate the band member in Homan's death. "She slapped him. ET on ABC. She maintains a very private lifestyle, so not much is known about her. Before his arrest, he also wrote a letter to his brother that admitted, "I am sorry that I turned out this way. Jesperson claims she was a sex worker who climbed into his truck, even though he told her he wasnt interested in her services, according to the two-hour, , 26. Jesperson has said that he took 166 lives, but only the above eight murders have been attributed to him. On October 8, 2009, Hurley went to the game with two friends. He tries to paint the victim as someone who needed to be killed, Phelps, whose nearly decade-long relationship with the killer gives him insight into Jespersons mind, told producers. The body of Julie Winningham, 41, of Camas, Washington, was found alongside a Washington State road in 1995. A victim of the "Happy Face Killer" has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway, authorities said Monday. Smiley faces again served as his signature, prompting a journalist to dub Jesperson the "Happy Face Killer.". The first victim was found in 1997. Detectives first became aware of Pavlinac when she anonymously called them to report that she overheard Sosnovske at a bar bragging about killing Bennett. Victim 1:Taunja Bennett. [33] The episode was released on July 9, 2021. That's when they said she implicated herself in the murder, according to Det. Due to the unknown identity of the female adult, Cold Case Detectives later referred to Jane Doe as Blue Pacheco.. Pavlinac set up a meeting with investigators and gave a false confession, using the details she had read in the newspaper to give a detailed story of how Sosnovske forced her to help him rape, murder, and dispose of Bennett's body. Some time later, at a public pool, Jesperson attempted to drown the boy by holding his head under the water until a lifeguard pulled him away.[6]. [00:02:05] Hi, everyone. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. At her trial, Pavlinac recanted her confession, but the jury found her guilty. Courtesy of Kathy Geib, was 22 years old when he went missing during the early hours of June 12, 2005, at a bonfire party in an orchard close to his home in Casnovia, Michigan. Tommy Booth, 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. But Pavlinac claimed she knew where she and Sosnovske had left Bennett's body in the Columbia Gorge outside of town, and took investigators to the exact remote wooded area where Bennett was found. [4] Because of this, Jesperson was a shy child, content to play by himself much of the time. [7] Jesperson continued to spend time with his children when he was in town. Following the discovery of Bennett's body in January 1990, Laverne Pavlinac lied to police that she'd aided her boyfriend John Sosnovske in committing the crime. In September 2009, Jesperson was indicted in Riverside County, California, on murder charges; he was extradited in December 2009. "She was a free spirit, and she would go here, there, and she would go to work at a place, and wouldn't work for very long because she would always go out on the road. Who is the Happy Face Killer Keith Hunter Jesperson? More than a dozen of these cases have been outlined in Gannon and Gilbertson's book "Case Studies in Drowning Forensics," but there are six deaths in particular that stand out as potential Smiley Face murders: Dakota James was 23 years old when he went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Investigators have revealed the name of a heretofore unidentified victim of the "Happy Face Killer," nearly 30 years after her murder. His boss informed his family, who filed a missing persons report 72 hours later. Serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, also known as the "Happy Face Killer," brutally murdered eight women between 1990 and 1995. Jesperson is currently serving a sentence of life without parole at the Oregon State Penitentiary. Surveillance footage captured Booth entering the bar where the celebration took place, but there is no video evidence of him leaving. I'll go to death row.'". [8][16] This led Phil Stanford, the journalist working the story for The Oregonian, to dub Jesperson "The Happy Face Killer". Laverne Pavlinac, who, along with John Sosnovske, was convicted for the killing of Taunja Bennett, waits at the Oregon Women's Correctional Center in Salem, Ore., Oct. 27, 1995, for word on her release. He was sentenced to life in prison while Pavlinac was sentenced to no less than ten years, much more than she had anticipated. He decided to drag her body underneath his truck to impede identification. He then sought work again as an interstate truck driver after relocating to Cheney, Washington. Eight murders were eventually linked to Jesperson. I'm thinking, 'My God, she is actually involved in this,'" Ingram said. "I don't think she was in love with him. The last known sighting of the Duquesne University graduate student was caught on asurveillance camera in the downtown area. He introduced himself to Bennett at a bar and invited her to a house he was renting. [32] The series had 12 episodes. At age 35, Keith was 6'7.5" tall and weighed 240lbs. Revealed as the Happy Face Killer, Keith Hunter Jesperson confessed to killing eight women in Florida, California, Oregon, Wyoming, and Washington. Sometimes they even brag about it. On January 21, 1990, after taking her to his rental place, plans to have sex went awry and he beat her senseless, he told Phelps. Dr. Laura Pettler, along with her partner in crime-fighting, Melissa Moore, are taking a deep dive into murder cases in the upcoming podcast, "Life After Happy Face." "Life After Happy Face" is a follow-up to Moore's "The Happy Face Killer" podcast, which followed the case of Keith Jesperson, a serial killer who wreaked havoc in the Pacific Northwest during the 1990s. Sosnovske was brought in for questioning and denied any involvement. Welzien's friends said he had only three or four drinks, but by the end of the night he seemed very intoxicated. Published: Apr. Victim 6: Florida Jane Doe. Jesperson, who was arrested in 1995 on suspicion of killing a woman in Washington state, was dubbed the Happy Face Killer because he drew smiley faces on letters he sent to the media and. Notorious serial killer Keith Jesperson, better known by the "Happy Face Killer" nickname he was given in the '90s, has spent decades behind bars but his daughter believes he would kill again if released from prison today. . Victim 5: California Jane Doe. Jesperson met 21-year-old Bennett in a bar in Portland, Oregon. A television movie, Happy Face Killer, starring David Arquette as Jesperson, aired in 2014. Per Courthouse News Service, Slagle is a registered nurse and grandmother residing in Chico, Calif. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Daun Slagle is the sole survivor of the "Happy Face Killer." She is the only person to survive an attack by the infamous serial killer. Today, we're finishing our look at Keith Jesperson, the twisted murderer otherwise known as the Happy Face Killer. Jesperson was linked to murdering six other women, some of which remain unknown to this day: an unidentified woman who Jesperson said was named "Claudia" in August 1992 near Blythe, California; Cynthia Lynn Rose in September 1992 in Turlock, California; Lori Ann Pentland in November 1992 in Salem, Oregon; an unidentified woman who Jesperson said was named "Carla" in June 1993 in Santa Nella, California; an unidentified woman who Jesperson said was named "Suzanne" in September 1994 in Crestview, Florida; and Angela Subrize in January 1995 in Laramie County, Wyoming. In 1990, shortly after his marriage ended, Keith Jesperson, a long-haul trucker from Selah, Washington, began killing women. The renowned crime journalist and author of The Misbegotten Son turns his attention to serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, the "Happy Face Killer" from Oregon who strangled eight women in the 1990s, detailing his evolution from angry child to psychotic murderer. On January 25, 2017 around 11:30 p.m., James was walking back to his apartment after a night out drinking with friends and co-workers. Jesperson got away easily so long as he was killing women he did not know, but his impulsivity got the best of him, and eventually, he murdered someone he did knowhis own girlfriend. According to Jesperson, after he killed his fifth victim in 1993 he managed to stave off murderous urges for more than a year by committing arson while on the road as a trucker. 45 colleged-aged males across a 20-year span. Jesperson sent the photo to the Duquesne University students. Pavlinac then confessed to her. In April 1990, he sexually assaulted a woman who managed to escape. Because of their relationship, authorities connected her death to him. It had been washed ashore on a beach in Gary, Indiana, 30 miles south of Chicago. But it was all a lie. "Pavlinac has selfishly engaged in an obsessive and persistent obstruction of justice which deflected the investigation at an early stage, causing it to focus on her boyfriend, Sosnovske, while the real killer remained free to kill again and again," Lipscomb wrote in 1995. He had given police officers the location of the victim's purse. On January 25, 2017 around 11:30 p.m., James was walking back to his apartment after a night out drinking with friends and co-workers. The footage captured James entering a dark alley, and that was the last time he was seen alive. His blood-alcohol concentrationwas only 0.08 percent. She would pop in and pop out, and over the years, She was that type of person.". Jesperson became a suspect after Winningham's was found since he was known to be her boyfriend. Jesperson was a middle child, with an older sister and brother and a younger sister and brother. Happy Face Presents: Two Face iHeart True Crime True Crime 4.3 8.5K Ratings; What would you do if you learned you were adopted, your biological . As a child, he was cruel to animals he killed cats and snakes and, under the guise of hunting, inflicted pain on creatures like deer, rabbits, and coyotes. "He went off into the woods with her," Pavlinac told investigators. Brown also believes that the smiley face images found in some of the cases are likely nothing more than coincidences based upon making a guess at where the body entered the water and searching a wide . One of them was to a friend. For the 2014 film about Jesperson, see, List of serial killers in the United States, List of serial killers by number of victims, "The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)", "Serial killer receives fourth life sentence", "Dr. Phil Returns to The Oprah Show: My Father Is a Serial Killer", "ABC '20/20': Melissa Moore, Daughter Of Serial Killer, Opens Up Tonight About Life With 'Happy Face Killer' Keith Jesperson", "Meet Crime Watch Daily Correspondent Melissa Moore | Truecrimedaily.com", "My evil dad: Life as a serial killer's daughter", "Happy Face Presents: Two Face on Apple Podcasts", "Life After Happy Face on Apple Podcasts", Daughter of the 'Happy Face Killer' Talks About Growing Up With a Serial Killer Dad, Keith Hunter Jesperson: Happy Face Killer, Daughter of serial killer confronts her past, Radio Interview with Melissa Moore (daughter), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Keith_Hunter_Jesperson&oldid=1142498372, American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, Canadian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, Crimes against sex workers in the United States, People extradited within the United States, Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Oregon, Violence against women in the United States, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from November 2010, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 8 confirmed (confessed to as many as 185). He duct-taped her mouth and hands before raping and strangling her. A Navy veteran, 24-year-old William Hurley went missing after leaving a Bruins hockey game in Boston,Massachusetts. In the days following, Jesperson decided that he was certainly going to be arrested, and after two suicide attempts turned himself in hoping it would result in leniency during his sentencing. Keith Hunter Jesperson was born in 1955 in British Columbia, Canada and is a serial killer. He split from his wife in 1990 after 15 years of . Her body was found on a roadside rock pile in Santa Nella, California. They'd mostly all been college-aged, popular, and athletic. Six days after his disappearance,Hurley's body was foundin the Charles River, close to where he asked Mahoney to pick him up. Pieces of his artwork have been seen on "murderabilia" sites. Geib's body was found three weeks later in a lake that had previously been searched. whos serving multiple concurrent sentences in Oregon State Penitentiary. Jespersons heinous crimes as well as shocking twists in the case including a couple who took the blame for one of his homicides are covered in bracing detail in the Oxygen special Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, now streaming. For example, the Canadian-American serial killer, Keith Hunter Jesperson, who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the . One of the things about my dad - which made me very uncomfortable as a young woman - was that he was very explicit about his sexual relationships. "To come clean get it all over, the record straight. Although two different people were originally charged in Bennett's murder, the real killer turned out to be Keith Hunter Jesperson, who the media already knew as "The Happy Face Killer." The 21-year-old finance student rarely partied since he was dedicated to the university's soccer team, but he decided to have a few drinks for the new year. [6] Although Jesperson was not successful with girls in high school, having never even attended a school dance or his prom, he did enter into a relationship after high school. "Now, I'm thinking, 'She's confessed she's pointed out the dump site, she's confessed to us on tape. Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon, had been known only as "Blue Pacheco" for the color of her clothing until genetic genealogy was used to identify her last week, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office said. A "witchy" smiley face left at a murder site of the supposed "Smiley Face Serial Killer" seems to represent Charlie Manson. Updated: Mar 3, 2021 (1955-) Who Is Keith Hunter. Dubbed the Long Island Serial Killer or the Craigslist Ripper, the extent of these unsolved crimes is still unknown. When contacted by sheriffs detectives, he said he had gagged her with duct tape, raped her in the sleeping cab of his rig and strangled her,, To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on. She found out that her son had reportedly suffered blunt force trauma to the head, his eye socket and behind his left leg. An Oregon mother was identified Tuesday as a victim of "the Happy Face Killer" nearly four decades after her body was found on the side of a . A journalist noticed the symbol and came up with the Happy Face Killer nickname. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. T he Smiley Face death toll continues to climb, this time in Germany. His brother gave this letter to law enforcement. "I said 'Why is she dead?'" [15], Although Jesperson at one point claimed to have had as many as 160 victims,[16] only the eight women killed in Washington, Oregon, California, Florida, Nebraska, and Wyoming have been confirmed. She then reported Hurley missing, and various searches were conducted. Her sister Michelle White said Bennett was a compassionate person who loved everyone.. She previously claimed to the FBI that he was a wanted bank robber and frequently complained to Sosnovske's probation officer that he was drinking too much. "I [had] seen all these tracks and all this and that. Jesperson claims Rose was a sex worker who entered his truck at a truck stop while he slept. He would often get into trouble for behaving badly, sometimes violently, and would be severely punished by his father. A Canadian-born long-haul truck driver and divorced father of three, Jesperson carried out his killings over the course of five years until he turned himself in to authorities in 1995. of Victims 8-185 killed 5 attempted Span of crimes 1995/1966-March 10, 1995 (confirmed) Criminal Charges [3], Treated like an outcast and a black sheep by his own family and teased by other children for his large size at a young age, Jesperson was a lonely child who showed a propensity for torturing and killing animals. Pavlinac seemed to know intimate details about the case. Pavlinac's son also died shortly after due to medical reasons. Jesperson claims he killed her after she tried to double charge him for sex, according to Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer., Because Jesperson allowed her to use his credit card to make a phone call, he devised a depraved way to conceal her identity. He was reported missing later that day by his mother, and a massive manhunt ensued. "She was that kind of woman. After he raped and strangled her, Jesperson dumped her body near the Columbia River Gorge, outside Portland. [27] In November 2014, she wrote an article about her father for the BBC.[28]. We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,contact us! Hurley's mother received a copy of the autopsy report and allowed aphysician to analyze the report. Some say the Smiley Face Killer has taken 40 victims over two decades. And just like his British counterpart, the police denied . Various witnesses outside the hotel saw Welzien vomiting in the street.

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