When karma strikes twice
Sunday, September 5, 2010 at 2:41PM 
At 6:13 PM EDT on October 26, 2006, Danny Harold Rolling took his final breath. Florida’s most notorious serial killer since Ted Bundy was executed by lethal injection for raping and carving up five college students in a ghastly spree that horrified and terrorized the University of Florida’s campus in Gainesville back in August of 1990, just as the fall semester got underway. Each one was murdered with a hunting knife. Some were mutilated, sexually molested and put in gruesome poses. One of his victim’s severed head was placed on a shelf, her body posed in a seated position.
Just before his execution, he confessed to the November 1989 murders of a 55-year-old man in Shreveport, Louisiana, his 24-year-old daughter and her 8-year-old son.
One of his victims at UF was Sonja Larson, a freshman who was killed along with her roommate in the apartment they shared. Her goal was to become a teacher. On that fateful night, she and her roommate, Christina Powell, went to a local Walmart to buy a few things. Danny Rolling was a drifter who just happened to be in the store at the same time. He followed the women back to their apartment and attacked them in their sleep.
Her brother, Jim Larson, who lives in Orlando, said, “He confessed to killing five people. He cut their heads off, then played with them. He did the worst things you can possibly do to somebody…”
During the trial, he was so shocked by the details that at one point, he curled into a ball on the floor and sobbed. He might have never moved from that spot had it not been for his wife, Carla. She cradled him as he cried and sat with him during the remainder of the trial. She convinced him that evil had not infested the entire world, despite it touching so close to home. She was his guide and mentor; his beacon of hope and strength.
Fast forward seven years. Carla Larson got up on the morning of June 10, 1997, to go to work as a building engineer for Centex Rooney Construction Company. The project, a resort called Coronado Springs, was on Walt Disney World property. It was an ordinary day until she left for lunch and never came back. She went to a nearby Publix supermarket to buy grapes and strawberries when a small time convict named John Huggins kidnapped her in the parking lot, drove to a remote field, and strangled her, partially burying her in a shallow grave and covering her with leaves.
What did Jim Larson do to deserve this? They had a one-year-old daughter together. It was her idea, but he didn’t want to bring a child up in a world where murderers like Danny Rolling stalked innocent victims. After extensive counseling, Jim found inner peace and their daughter was born. They had bought a small house in the suburbs of Orlando, in College Park. They installed new locks and a home security system. They bought a Rottweiler. Carla drove a big Ford Explorer. Jim made sure he did everything he could do to keep his family safe.
John Huggins was a Sanford landscaper who had been in and out of trouble with the law most of his life. He was on vacation with his estranged wife, Angel, and their children, staying at a hotel directly across the street from that Publix. In broad daylight, he punched Carla in the stomach, forced her into her Explorer, and drove away, never to be seen alive again. Two days later, her nude body was found, partially clad in a beach towel. She was badly decomposed after only two days in the hot summer sun, but one of the medical examiner’s photographs suggested the possibility of a pre-mortem sexual injury. In other words, rape, without all of the details of the autopsy report. At the time, Dr. Sashi Gore was the Chief Medical Examiner for Orange and Osceola Counties. A different Dr. G back then.
I distinctly remember this murder. It’s funny how the mind plays tricks. After his arrest, John Huggins looked like an ordinary guy to me, unlike a murderer, but then again, what is a murderer supposed to look like? Someone pleasing to the eye, like Casey Anthony or Ted Bundy? When Jim Larson was interviewed on TV, he acted so unemotional and flat, he became a prime suspect in the minds of viewers. He’s hiding something! I even hesitated to believe him because of his indifference. He talked to the media, never shedding a tear, and never showing anger or sorrow. When he spoke, it was insipid, with a prosaic stare. Law enforcement officials were so perplexed by his strange behavior, they asked him to take a lie detector test, just to see if he was somehow involved. Of course, his only involvement was the incredible love he felt for his wife. It lasts to this very day. The murders of his sister seven years earlier, and now his wife, had completely drained him.
On the afternoon of the murder, Carla’s white Explorer was seen speeding away from what turned out to be her temporary grave, along the Orange-Osceola county border. Huggins was trying to patch up his broken marriage. He and his family had been staying in motel and hotel rooms mostly around the Melbourne area where his wife’s mother lived, before coming to Orlando. Angel, his second wife, later told police that her husband was gone at lunchtime that day and returned sometime later, all sweaty and nervous. She soon left with the children to stay with her mother, Fay, leaving Huggins behind.
Later that day, he arrived at Fay’s house driving a white SUV that matched the general description of Carla’s. It was a rental, he said. Although he and his wife were in the process of a divorce, they continued to stay together in the coastal area until her sister, Tammy, arrived to visit. During that time she and Huggins began a relationship. What happened next was something I remember because it was so obvious what this was all about.
Kevin Smith, who lived nearby, was a friend of Huggins. He had agreed to let him keep the SUV at his house for a few days. On the evening of October 26, police received a phone call that an SUV was engulfed in flames in a vacant lot near Kevin’s house. Instinctively, most of us knew what it was, and a subsequent investigation proved it was Carla’s and it was set on fire intentionally.
On the following day, seventeen days after Carla’s murder, Tammy returned to her home in Maryland with John in tow. Shortly after they left, Angel watched America’s Most Wanted, which featured Carla’s murder. She had wondered where John got the SUV and never believed his story. She called the show and reported that she suspected her husband of the murder. As a result of that call, investigators conducted two extensive searches of Fay’s house, but were unable to find anything incriminating. Angel and her mother searched, too, and one day while getting a can of bug spray out of the back yard shed, Fay noticed a screwdriver on top of an electrical box. On a whim, she unscrewed the lid, and found jewelry inside - jewelry that was later found to belong to Carla, including her pear-shaped diamond engagement ring.
John Huggins was arrested in Maryland and extradited back to Florida. After his indictment in front of an Orange County grand jury, he requested a change of venue, which was granted and transferred to Jacksonville in Duval County. On February 3, 1999, Huggins was convicted of first-degree murder, carjacking, robbery and kidnapping. During the sentencing phase, Jim Larson told the jury that, ”One night Carla and I were sitting on a bench outside her dorm room. We were just talking. Carla got up to do something. She walked a few steps and turned around and looked at me. It was just a moment. But when our eyes met, it was as if our souls touched one another. I smiled back at her. I felt so good my eyes filled with tears. I loved her so much. We set our wedding date for Dec. 1, 1990, after her graduation from college.”
After considering the aggravators and mitigators, the jury recommended the death penalty by an 8-4 vote. The court agreed, and John Steven Huggins was sentenced to death. Ironically, Danny Rolling and John Huggins were on death row together. Two murders unrelated except for one common thread - a man, two women and two families who did nothing in life to deserve this. Neither did Jim and Carla’s daughter, a mere one-year-old at the time, much too young to sin, and much too young to know anything about bad karma.
This is the end of PART ONE. Where am I going with this? Wait and see. The answer will come this week, when I weave it all together with what we are witnessing today in a case that has so much national exposure, it dwarfs the magnitude of Carla’s murder in scale, but certainly not in importance.
TO READ PART 2, CLICK HERE
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Dave Knechel | tagged America's Most Wanted, Carla Larson, Christina Powell, Danny Rolling, Dr. Sashi Gore, Jim Larson, John Huggins, Kevin Smith, Sonja Larson, Ted Bundy | in Capital Punishment, Casey Anthony, Caylee Anthony, Dave Knechel, Death Penalty, Human Interest, Marinade Dave, Marinade Dave’s Caylee Anthony Posts, uNIVERSITY OF fLORIDA | Share Article 
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Reader Comments (97)
Hi Dave, what a terrible and tragic story for the families. Just horrible. I know there are things like this that happen, but so shocking to read. Unbelieveable that people like this are walking around this is terrible. I have never believed in the DP but after reading this it makes me think twice. I can't imagine what these families must have gone through, just horrible. I am very quick to say no DP just LWOP but after reading this I can't say that. I could never or want to be on a jury I couldn't ever make myself make a decison of the DP. It's one thing to talk about a case but to be on that jury I couldn't do it. It takes a very strong person to be on a jury in any type of trial like this. You have to feel for the victim and their family and decide a fate of the convicted, very tough job. I am too emotional for that. I commend jurors who are able to do it.
Dave, You dive deep into your subject and bring compassion and sorrow from us that we do not know we have. At the same time it is easy to recognize the deep compassion you yourself have. What a tangled web life is. Many do extremely well and some never have the chance. It is good to read and learn to appreciate all the good and hope to avoid all the unsuspected harm we can be near every day.
Thank you for writing this. Looking forward to the next part.
Dave, I am thinking if you tied this case in with The Anthony case, George and Cindy already lost their grandaughter and if Casey gets the DP they would go through karma 2x. I still believe Casey should get LWOP if convicted and not the DP. I often think when G & C are alone not in front of the cameras they must literally fall apart, they are dealing with the murder of their grandchild and knowing thir daughter did this and faces the DP. As upset as I feel when I watch them sometimes on TV I also feel sorry for them in a way for the magnitude of what they are dealing with and will have to deal with for their entire lives. How does anyone do this, I would have been a basket case, I wouldn't be able to talk especially in front of a camera. Maybe staying on their mission to protect Casey keeps them going and their way of coping?? I don't know, no one does. I think if they accepted the truth about Casey they can begin to heal and find some peace. But I think they will continue to try and implicate anyone just to save Casey. Most people would not do that, I think that is why so many are angered at their behvior.
Yes, Barbara, this is a very tragic situation, and one that is extremely difficult to fathom. The odds of a random murder happening to a family are slim enough, but twice?
The odds are higher than the chances of getting struck by lightning (1 in 600,000)。 Winning the Florida Lottery is 1 in 14 million. Back then, Subramanian Ramakrishnan, of the University of Miami, estimated the odds are at least 1 in 200 million, and probably higher, that two random and unrelated murders would occur in the same family. This was reported on July 25, 1997 by Lane Kelley, Sun-Sentinel。
Thanks, New Puppy. I do strive to dig into my subject matter and report it with some emotion and heart. This was a very sad case. Jim Larson did go on to date, but he's still a single father, and I don't know the state of his private affairs today. Yes, I do have a lot of compassion for innocent victims of crime, and I hope it shows in my writing. Jim and Carla were living the Amercan dream. John Huggins turned it into a nightmare that will last his lifetime, and he's left with a daughter who will never feel her mother's touch. It's quite sad.
Dave, yes, how could this happen twice to a family. How do they cope? Very tragic, no one should go through that even once. New Puppy, I agree with what you have said about Dave and his writng, he makes me stop and think and yes brings out fairness and compassion. I know myself as things came out about Cindy I would say how could a mother and grandmother act that way??? Although I still don't feel Cindy handled any of this morally right, I am able to feel compassion for her. I must admitt sometimes I do not, but she lost her precious granddaughter and I couldn't even imagine the pain both she and George feel. We all go through things in life, but this is something no one can ever ever get over. For that i feel compassion for both Cindy and George to live with that for the rest of their days. They are also dealing with Casey's fate at the same time. For their sake I hope Casey does not recieve DP but I do hope she does recieve LWOP.
Barbara - I will tell you the tie-in has nothing to do with X2. At the same time, I agree with you that the murder of a grandchild by her own mother is something no one can remain sane over. The thought of it is unfathomable. That doesn't give them a hall pass, but it doesn't make them pariahs on earth that need to die, as some people suggest. To give you an idea of how insane some people in the public are, do you know that there are actually people out there who insist - yes, INSIST - and fully believe that I am worse than Adolf Hitler? That's how insane and obsessed some people are. Like I would ever kill anyone. They would gladly exchange me for Casey.
Dave, I remember reading about John Huggins. What a tragedy for that family. For it to happen twice is unbelievable. Your writing shows the true compassion that you have for others. I am eagerly waiting to read what you have coming for us next.
Dave~~the way those two cases are connected is really uncanny. No wonder Jim Larson's emotions finally shut down. To think of the hell he must have gone through after the death of his sister and then his wife meeting the same fate. It is hard to fathom why a gentle caring man would have to go thru such torture. I hope, since all this happened, Jim was able to get counseling and he is able to have a normal relationship with his daughter. To love and care leaves a person wide open for hurt and this is why some people become emotionally dead and keep their guard up to avoid being hurt again.
I see these murderers as subhumans and they probably hate all women. Oh yes, they can have a relationship with women and appear normal but I doubt if there is love involved. They need that power struggle over their victim in order to get their sexual gratification. It would be interesting to find out, from examining their brains after death, if they have some unique genes that make these people do what they do. Dismembering their victims is sick beyond imagination.
Thanks Dave, for this article. I notice that you possibly held back alot of the gruesome details and, for that, I am grateful. You are still my number one writer and it sure looks like no one is about to replace you anytime soon. Keep up your excellent work, friend!
My heart goes out to the families of the victims..No matter what the hurt goes on forever..Thank you Dave for sharing this with us and all you do.
Now I am sitting on pins and needles waiting on "the rest of the story."
'
It was very sad, Mary Jo. Of course, no one was aware he had lost his siter until this murder happened. Life can take unusually strange twists and turns. I'm glad my writing shows compassion. Thank you, it's real.
Yes, Snoopy, it is very uncanny. Part of my point was that death, especially heinous like that, changes the way normal people think, but what is normal, actually? The way the public expects people to react, as if they would know? Most people don't ever have to face the murder of a loved one, let alone a friend, so what is right and what is wrong? There was quite an uproar in the Orlando area after Jim Larson appeared on the news, answering questions. Yes, people cried, he did it! Ironically, he had a perfect alibi right from the git go.
As much as I'm against the DP. there's no doubt those two deserve to die. One is dead and the other is in limbo. Yes, I withheld a lot of the gruesome details, although I wanted to show the stark inhumanity of both killers. Hopefully, I got my point across in softer words. Thank you. I like being #1. It beats #2.
I am just speechless. I lived in SC at the time of these murders and back then it seemed everything bad that was going to happen to a person was going to happen in Gainesville. We heard just a little of the details like the posing, but not all the grusome stuff. I never heard of the Huggins case until I just read it. This also goes to show that no matter how heinous the crime and no matter how well it's publicized there are places that know very little about a case. The same is true for the Anthony case. I'm not as nice as you, Dave, I'm all for capital punishment if the crime is bad enough. People like the Danny Rollings and the Ted Bundy's need to be put to death for what they did to others. When it was all going on I was thinking Rollings would get off because back then the insanity defense was used quite often. They really cracked down on it after that. You don't hear about it so much anymore.
I am one who is of the opinion that Casey doesn't fit in with the above bunch. I think she should get LWOP mainly because she should be alive for many years to remember how life would have been for her little girl if she had just been allowed to grow up.
Hi, Glenda - Yup, the hurt never dies, and we will never know the pain and suffering he lives through every day. Thank you for appreciating this post. I obligated myself to write the second part because it is an interesting story, to say the least, so I will write it this week.
Hi, Connie - One thing is certain, it's not easy in the state of Florida to get away with the insanity plea, and it's something that ties into this next installment.
In the end, and only if Casey is found guilty, will it come down to aggravators and mitigators. Just like the scales of justice, that is what it will come down to.
I saw a true crime show about that Rowlings guy an he had women fighting over the right to visit him an be his girl freind or even wife when he was in jail?At one point whilst in court he asked for permision to speak.The Judge said O K so he turns to his girlfreind an starts belting out a love song to her.They let him sing the whole song.It seems they let some weird stuff go down in courts in America.Ted Bundy even asked his girlfreind to marry him whilst in court an rekoned because she said yes an he declared them to be legaly married in the pressence of a Judge it was a legal wedding.He then went on to consumate it up against a vending machine in the prison visiting room.Even managed to impregnate her an a child was born.Imagine the converstion when the child asks who his father was?Great Post by the way Dave cant wait for the conclusion.
Yes, ecossie possie, you're absolutely right. He fancied himself a singer, he did. I remember recordings he made of songs he wrote and performed. I'm glad I only sat through one session of it. I don't know what it is about murderers in prison, but they bring out the worst in some people who have no common sense. They fall in love with a murderer. How odd.
I hope Bundy's child got a legal name change when he/she turned 18, although there was the much loved Al Bundy on Married With Children. Fictional, yes, but the name didn't change the ratings.
Thanks for enjoying the post, too. That's a nice compliment.
Thanks Dave for writing about the horrible Gainesville murders and the followup with the Larson murder. I lived in Gainesville at the time and I can truly say it brought Gainesville to its knees. I pass the wall and palm trees planted in their memory everyday and will never forget the fear. We took in one student of an out of state friend and after the 3rd murder we took in four more of her friends as many of the residents of Gainesville did. We just celebrated the 20th year memory of those great students. Some say the city should just move on but most think the students need to be made aware of what can happen and practice safety at all times. I can say the city of Gainesville and the University truly came together during that time and that togetherness remains today.
I think Jim at the time of his wife's death was brought back to the horrors of Gainesville and he just emotionally withdrew from life. I hope he has recovered enough to truly enjoy his little girl and the happiness she brings.
Hi, Nika1 - Thank you. I remember how it did bring Gainesville to its knees. I also remember two suspects, one looked guilty, but he wasn't, and people were ready to hang him. Edward Humphrey was the classic example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Humphrey was emotionally disturbed and LE did all they could to hold him. Finally, the real killer was caught. I believe Humphrey settled out of court because he was vilified by LE, the media, and the public.
My cousin is a big professor of economics there, and I used to enjoy traveling up to the football games with friends when I could. There was Albert the gator, too, in that small brook or whatever it was we walked by on our way to the stadium. Back in those days, we put team hats in the rear window, facing out, and when people asked me how long it took to get there, my standard response was, "Oh, about a six-pack." That always got a laugh, but alas, my drinking days are gone and I haven't been up there in years, but it's a nice college town.
Thanks for sharing your recollections of those days and how Gainesville reacted and cared. It's a good testament. Some day, I'd like to drive by those trees and the wall. I might ask you where to find them.
I know what the tie-in is....
Shhhh...
Dave what has happened to Simon Barret Blogtalk Radio regards reporting Caylee Haighlea ect?I heard a rumour he was no longer going to report on Haighlea because of a spat with someone called Levi Page,Is there any truth in this?
At the moment, ecossie possie, Simon and Jan have decided to take a short sabbatical. They will return. There were several factors involved, and most of it stemmed from a writer with a personal vendetta, not so much a person with an on-air presence. He didn't wimp out. That, I am sure of.
Dave, this is by far the most engrossing piece of your work that I have read to date. I am very familiar with both of these cases and I agree with Snoopy, you didn't lose one iota of the emotion that these stories evoke by leaving out the gruesome details. I didn't know about connection to Jim Larson between these cases. OMG!
Even though I already know the tie in between these cases to FL vs Casey Anthony :- X, I still look forward to your next installment with bated breath!
I'm glad that Simon and Jan are taking a little hiatis.....they have missed very few Sunday radio shows since the beginning of the Caylee Anthony case.....that is a lot! I don't know the circumstances with the writer that you refer to or Levi, but I don't believe for a second Simon has wimped out.....he is far too dedicated to the Haleigh and Caylee cases.....ok now I'm heading to BNN to see if Simon has anything to say about this situation. I hope he and Jan enjoy a little time off and come back recharged and ready to go! I'm sooo out of the loop for the last month. Glad to see most of my favorite peeps still around.
Absolutely, Dave. I appreciate you're style.
It's a truly tragic and saddening story for Jim Larson. I can't begin to conceive what sort of agony he's suffered and will continue to for the rest of his life. His daughter is now about 14? With all that I have and all that I am, I wish that only good karma surrounds Mr Larson and his family for the rest of their lives.
Thank you very much, katfish. I feel honored by your compliment. I will probably be working on the next installment today, or I might try something else and do it start tomorrow.
I can guarantee, without a doubt, that Simon and Jan are not wimps, and they will pick up where they left off, and then-some.
Yup, it is nice to see most of the peeps hanging around.
Hi, cereusle - Thanks for keeping it quiet, and for appreciating my writing style.
It's a terrible thing that happened to Jim Larson and both families. It's a shame that his daughter is growing up without her mother, but I am quite sure she knows everything about her. She must be his comfort after all that's happened and I'll bet you he watches her like a hawk. Who would blame him? Personally, I would never let her out of my site, but that's so impractical. And she's at that age fathers dread.
All I can say is WOW - how sad is this story... Very well written, can't wait for part 2...
Thank you, Jelly. I bean working on it.
That's what I was thinking. Watching your daughter become a young woman and dealing with the worries and fears he has every reason to. No one can tell him that nothing like that will ever happen to someone he loves again. While the odds are in his favor, they are only odds, not sureties.
Now you have two articles with part 2 pending.... actually, I believe you've left several other cliffhangers. No matter, you always seem to follow up and bring out part two in such a way that they flow smoothly. Me thinks you have all the makings of an excellent author.
Until then, write on.
Seriously.
Another winner, Dave! I had forgotten about the murder of Jim Larson's wife. It seems like there are so many of these terrible crimes happening that they some times seem to run together.
Like the murder of JFK, O.J.'s wife and the first of the Gainesville horrors I remember vividly where I was and what I was doing at the time the news broke. School had just started and I was driving my school bus to start picking up students for the day and I had the bus radio on. All I caught ar first was that a student was "beheaded" and the head posed on a bookshelf. I nearly lost it right there! I will never forget how my stomach turned over and it seemed like I was on a different planet.....surely this was not real.......but it was and it continued........it was enough to make a person not want to turn the radio or t.v. on for fear of hearing of more murders.......
I have been to Gainesville many many times since Rollins was caught and sentenced and executed and I always manage to pass that memorial painted on the wall. It is a haunting site to see and, to my surprise it has remained for all these years.
Now we all have to wait with bated breath to read part #2.
I know what it's like when a young girl reaches that age and boys become the rage. It's not pleasant, but that was under normal circumstances. This girl has that bitter history behind her and I'm sure it's left an impact. She may have matured beyond her yeas. I hope, for his sake.
Some odds are predictable because of a set of values. A poker player knows there are 52 cards. A lottery player in Florida understands there are millions of combinations of numbers, but that means they are finite. The odds of one person facing two unrelated murders are not predictable because they are random acts.
I need to run some errands this afternoon, but I will be writing later on. I don't know when the second part will be up, but since I forced my own hand, I must get it done. Thank you very much for your vote of confidence in me as a writer and potential author. That's a great compliment and don't think it went unnoticed. One day, I might surprise you. Seriously!
I won't keep anyone in suspense for too long, Carole, but I will say it won't be as emotionally heavy as this one. It will be more of a Paul Harvey "and now you know the rest of the story" moment.
I don't remember that moment like 9-11 or JFK or OJ, but I certainly remember it. It was like a shades of Ted Bundy moment. Why the Gators? Deja Vu all over again. I hope that campus, and campuses everywhere, are spared of this sort of torture in the future. It's been a long time since I've been up there, but I would love to go to at least one game this year.
Thank you very much, Carole.
Dave, I certainly hope that we get to read a real "book" about this circus called "Anthony/Baez" when this is all over........and I don't need to mention who the author needs to be,,,,,,,got it??? My order is already in and I would like it autographed!!
And who might that be, Carole??? You mean moi? If I write a book, you will have an officially autographed copy.
Dave, You bet your bippy it is!
I have been reading true crime stories since I put down my Aesops Fables and my Big Book og Fairy Tales.
The first one I sharpened my teeth on was about the Boston Strangler. My husband worked nights and when I started reading that book I kept a meat hook in bed with me........just in case some nut case got mixed up and thought Chicago was Boston. And Truman Capote and his "In Cold Blood" was another all nighter with a baseball bat for company.
Dave - email me
I e-mailed you, Nika1.
I might give it a try, Carole. Book writing is a lot different from writing independent posts for a blog. The biggest issue for me is how I would write it, meaning from what vantage point? From the perspective of a blogger and all it entails? Certainly, I could write a truthful section about how trolls threw up and made disgusting messes everywhere they squatted. That wouldn't be the gist of it, but there's no doubt, they are playing a role of some kind. Besides, every good book needs more than one villain. The antiheroes.
Dave,
I know that writing a book is different than writing a blog but you have a gift for writing, whether it is a blog or a book or a menu. You weave words into an easily understandable story and bring the characters to life. And you leave your readers wanting more!!
I agree with you Carole.
Dave- Really a wonderful post. Lord, the poor man. I knew plenty about Gainesville and what Rollings did to all those poor people but wasn't familiar with the other. I think the basic methodology used by that Prof has to be somewhat skewed- would lightning strike twice in, say, Pocatello, Idaho? There's a reason why the website The Weekly Vice gives the lovely state of Florida it's very own page (the only state that warrants such special attention!) I'd have left Florida myself, if only for the memories.
Oh, and Carole- I hate to tell you but Chi-town has had any number of real doozy serial killers, no need to worry about the Boston Strangler going there- LOL! Plenty to go around. Speaking of Beantown, imagine my surprise when I too read the classic "The Boston Strangler" by Frank Gerold, only to find I was living in one of the Strangler victims' buildings at the time! Not, I think (hope?) the same unit however. Not to mention that it turns out there may have been more than one killer- many of the later crimes were likely committed by copycats, and that there were other similar murders well after DeSalvo's incarceration. Me, I slept with a hammer for about a year and carried my mace everywhere. I too, hate it when my husband isn't around nights (sometimes works 3rd shift on commercial jobs). A barking dog is great company...
Gainesville... (sigh)
Dave~ I remember reading about this murder. I feel so bad for the families involved. It is tough when someone dies but it is so much harder when a loved one dies because of another human being. If it has not happened to you, count your blessings. It is so much harder to move forward. I am glad that you shared this with me, because I did not know the whole story. I did not know about his sister, very tragic indeed.
Karen,
You just gave me goosebumps!! To find out you were living in that building??!! YIKES!!
I remember the day the news came on the radio about the Richard Speck case where he killed all of those nurses. My mother worked downtown Chicago at the A.M.A. and when she was leaving the building on either that day or the following couple of days she was stunned to find that the area around their building was totally blocked off by Chicago police because Speck was suspected to be in the area. Oy!!
After the Speck deal I traded in the meat hook and baseball bat for a LARGE German shepherd!
I now have a lap dog and a glock!
Boston has had layers upon layers of crime, it would likely be difficult to find a place DT that didn't have yellow tape all over it at some point. Reminds me of the basement rear apartment I had for 2 years, back of Beacon. A girl who, like me, lived further down the alley also in a basement rear, and like me, tended to hang at the Bull 'n Finch (Cheers) on weekends back in the day, was found dismembered on (if memory serves) 3 different floors of a brownstone condo conversion. Seems she told off some construction dude from the site whilst at the bar and he followed her home-ish, which was right near the project. He was questioned but not arrested (this was just before DNA was being used widely) and I never heard about any updates. I did hear from a mounted cop that he had worked on one of the BS cases and that "this one is worse"- dude knew his tools, cop throwing-up situation. None of that would be gleaned from reading the Boston Globe version of events, you know? Girl killed in some construction site (Beacon Street??? May it never be!), suspect questioned. I read every word I could about that one, no nice little bow on that package... I wonder if that mounted cop ever thinks of that girl, Rose her name was, she had a rose tattoo (rare in Boston at the time) and you don't want to know about that little detail- I know I do, and how no one ever seems to have paid for that, but the single women who lived in fear at the time...
Karen,
I know what you mean about not having these cases tied up with a bow.......I remember several murders from when I was in high school in Chicago. I have looked all over the internet to see if I could find any answers about them. One was a girl named Judith Mae Anderson. She was found I believe dismembered and put in an oil drum floating in the Montrose Harbor on lake Michigan.
As a teenager I was oblivious to most of the news stories on t.v. but the story of this girl really got to me because she was about my age and I loved to go to the Montrose Harbor to watch the boats.....
I think I just cancelled my reservations to Boston........
Well, I'm humbled, Carole and New Puppy. I really do like to write and it's nice to know it shows. Thank you.
Thank you, Karen. One thing that people forget, or don't understand about Florida, is that it's a very transient state. People come and go and it's a melting pot, so odds are, if some nasty crime occurs, the person grew up in another state. It's the same thing with winter. The transients leave the cold weather behind and settle here until spring. Crime increases during this period. Even Rolling, also known as The Gainesville Ripper, was born in another state, Louisiana. The Grissom murders occurred in Shreveport.
Hi, Laurali - I'm surprised you remember it because I didn't know it was reported outside of Orlando. The Rolling murders, yes, but Carla Larson? I would expect Jim Larson to be a VERY protective father, and rightfully so. You would understand this more than anyone else because of what you went through.
That's a good point, Dave. Florida does have 'em coming and going, and especially when construction is booming a lot of parolees can't find jobs elsewhere so naturally head there (and make more trouble). You have a ready "victim" population there (seniors and tourists) as well. Add booze and tons of drugs, mix well... Cannot wait for Pt. 2- I'm deliberately avoiding looking any of this up so I "get" the Surprise.
BTW, did anyone yet mention this, on Caylee and that strange "breakfast" video yet? Perhaps I missed it, but here it is if no one else has forwarded it:
http://drlillianglassbodylanguageblog.wordpress.com/2010/09/05/caylee-anthonys-body-language-in-disturbing-video-indicates-emotional-neglect-by-casey-as-casey-speaks-the-words-i-kill/