The MythMyth
Most serial killers are not loners. Many have jobs and families.
The short answer
Are serial killers loners?
Most are not. The FBI’s 2008 report on serial murder says the majority of serial killers are not reclusive, social misfits who live alone. They often have families and homes, are gainfully employed, and appear to be normal members of the community. Because many can blend in so effortlessly, they are oftentimes overlooked by law enforcement and the public.12
Stat · The Myth
Years in one job
- Ridgway, truck painter32 years
- DeAngelo, mechanic27 years
Data table
| Measure | Value | Kind | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ridgway, truck painter | 32 years | Count | |
| DeAngelo, mechanic | 27 years | Count |
What does the FBI say about the loner myth?
The first myth in the FBI’s 2008 report is that serial killers are all dysfunctional loners. The report says the majority are not reclusive, social misfits who live alone. Many hide in plain sight within their communities, and serial murderers often have families and homes and are gainfully employed.12
The FBI’s 2008 report on serial murder opens its list of myths with this heading: “Myth: Serial killers are all dysfunctional loners.”12 The report says the majority of serial killers are not reclusive, social misfits who live alone.1 They may not appear strange, it says, and many hide in plain sight within their communities.1
Serial murderers often have families and homes, are gainfully employed, and appear to be normal members of the community.1 The report’s claim is about the majority; the myth is that all serial killers are loners. The FBI’s July 2008 story on the report said some serial killers have had wives, children and full-time jobs and have been very active in their community or church.3
Which examples does the FBI report give?
Melinda Mercer and Connie Ellis were murdered in Pierce County, Washington.45 Robert Yates was convicted of both murders in 2002, after pleading guilty in 2000 to 13 other counts of murder.45 The FBI report says he “was married with five children, lived in a middle class neighborhood, and was a decorated U.S. Army National Guard helicopter pilot.”1
Wendy Lee Coffield, 16, was found in the Green River near Kent, Washington, on July 15, 1982.67 Gary Ridgway, known in the press as the Green River Killer, pleaded guilty in 2003 to 48 counts of aggravated first-degree murder, hers among them.678 In 2011 he pleaded guilty to a 49th, the murder of Rebecca Marrero.69 The FBI report says he “had been married three times and was still married at the time of his arrest,” and that he “was employed as a truck painter for thirty-two years.”1
Ten people were killed in and around Wichita, Kansas, between 1974 and 1991, from Joseph Otero to Dolores Davis.11011 Dennis Rader pleaded guilty to their murders in 2005.1112 The FBI report says he “was married with two children, was a Boy Scout leader, served honorably in the U.S. Air Force, was employed as a local government official, and was president of his church.”1
What do prosecutors and news reports add?
Records outside the FBI report match it. King County prosecutors wrote in 2003 that Gary Ridgway was not a loner and was either married or had a steady girlfriend during all of his adult life. Dennis Rader enforced city codes in Park City, a Wichita suburb, and his church’s website named him president of the congregation.12131415
King County prosecutors made the same point about Gary Ridgway in 2003, in their summary of the evidence.1314 One reason he avoided detection for so long, they wrote, was that he did not fit popular preconceptions of a serial killer.13 He was not a loner, and he was either married or had a steady girlfriend during all of his adult life.1314
He worked as a painter at a truck plant for more than 30 years.11314 Even after his arrest in 2001, the prosecutors wrote, long-time co-workers, former girlfriends and family members expressed sympathy for him and doubted that he could be a killer.13
Dennis Rader lived with his wife and two children in Park City, a suburb of Wichita.11115 He enforced the city’s codes.1215 The website of Christ Lutheran Church named him president of the congregation.1215
Was the man identified in 2018 a loner?
Thirteen people were murdered in California between 1975 and 1986, from Claude Snelling to Janelle Cruz.1617 Joseph DeAngelo pleaded guilty to the 13 murders in June 2020.1617 He had been arrested in April 2018.1718
His record reads like the report’s examples. He was a police officer in Exeter, California, from 1973 to 1976, and then in Auburn until he was fired in 1979.161819 He married in 1973 and had three daughters.182021 He worked 27 years as a mechanic at a supermarket distribution center and retired the year before his arrest.18192022
Why does it matter that they are not loners?
The report states the consequence. Because many serial murderers can blend in so effortlessly, it says, they are oftentimes overlooked by law enforcement and the public.1
Ridgway shows the cost. He came to police attention in 1983, passed a polygraph in 1984 and had his home searched in 1987.68 He was arrested on November 30, 2001.713 He kept the same job the whole time.813
DeAngelo was identified through genetic genealogy in 2018, more than three decades after the last of the 13 murders.1617 The Sacramento County district attorney said that his name had not been on authorities’ radar in connection with the case until the week before his arrest.19
The rule
Most are not loners. Many hide in plain sight, at work, at church and at home.
Questions
Was Gary Ridgway married?
- Yes. The FBI report says he “had been married three times and was still married at the time of his arrest.” King County prosecutors wrote in 2003 that he was either married or had a steady girlfriend during all of his adult life.113
What was Dennis Rader’s job?
- He enforced city codes for Park City, Kansas, the Wichita suburb where he lived with his wife and two children. The FBI report says he “was employed as a local government official.” He was also president of the congregation at Christ Lutheran Church.11215
What did Joseph DeAngelo do for a living?
- He was a police officer in Exeter, California, from 1973 to 1976, and then in Auburn until he was fired in 1979. He later worked 27 years as a mechanic at a supermarket distribution center and retired the year before his arrest.16181922
Are any serial killers loners?
- The FBI report does not say none are. It says the majority of serial killers are not reclusive, social misfits who live alone, and that many hide in plain sight within their communities. The myth it rejects is that all are dysfunctional loners.1
Why are serial killers with ordinary lives overlooked?
- The FBI report says that because many serial murderers can blend in so effortlessly, they are oftentimes overlooked by law enforcement and the public. King County prosecutors wrote that one reason Gary Ridgway avoided detection for so long was that he did not fit popular preconceptions of a serial killer.113
The record
Sources
FBI, Behavioral Analysis Unit-2, National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime, “Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators,” ed. Robert J. Morton (FBI, 2008), GPO copy at govinfo.gov, pp. 3–4: the first myth, its heading, its text and the report’s three examples
Office of Justice Programs, NCJRS Virtual Library, record NCJ 223848, “Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators” (U.S. Department of Justice): date published 2008; the myths the symposium discounted, in the report’s order
FBI, “Serial Murder: New Report Highlights Views of Experts,” FBI news story (July 7, 2008), Internet Archive copy of archives.fbi.gov: the FBI’s summary of the loner myth
Supreme Court of Washington, State v. Yates, No. 73155-1 (decided Sept. 27, 2007), text hosted by FindLaw: the 2002 convictions for the Pierce County murders and the 2000 pleas
Supreme Court of Washington, In re Personal Restraint of Yates, No. 82101-1 (filed March 14, 2013), slip opinion, statement of facts: the 2000 plea to 13 counts and the 2002 Pierce County convictions
Seattle Times staff, “Timeline of the Green River killer case” (The Seattle Times, Feb. 18, 2011): the first victim found, police contact in 1983, 1984 and 1987, the arrest, and the pleas of 2003 and 2011
David Wilma, HistoryLink.org Essay 4262, “Gary Leon Ridgway pleads guilty to murdering 48 Green River Killer victims on November 5, 2003” (posted November 5, 2003): Wendy Lee Coffield, the 48 victims, the 1987 sample, the November 30, 2001 arrest
Ray Rivera and Ian Ith, “Ridgway pleads guilty to 48 Green River murders” (The Seattle Times, Nov. 5, 2003): the names read in court, police contact in 1983, 1984 and 1987, the same job for 32 years
Associated Press, “‘Green River Killer’ pleads guilty to 49th murder” (published by NBC News, Feb. 18, 2011): the plea for the murder of Rebecca Marrero
Complaint/Information, State of Kansas v. Dennis L. Rader (District Court of Kansas, Eighteenth Judicial District, Sedgwick County, Criminal Department, 2005), text published by Court TV’s Crime Library, Internet Archive capture of Oct. 6, 2006: the ten counts, from Joseph Otero in 1974 to Dolores E. Davis in 1991
Associated Press, “BTK killer waives trial, admits 10 slayings” (published by NBC News; the page is stamped June 26, 2005, and its text reports Monday’s plea): the plea, his home in Park City, his church and scouting roles
Mark Hansen, “How the Cops Caught BTK” (ABA Journal, May 1, 2006): his city job, the church website, the 2005 plea
King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (Norm Maleng, Prosecuting Attorney), “Prosecutor’s Summary of the Evidence,” State of Washington v. Gary Leon Ridgway, No. 01-1-10270-9 SEA (Superior Court of Washington for King County; 133 pages; filed with the plea in November 2003, per The Seattle Times of Nov. 6, 2003; the copy’s date line is blank), copy posted by The Seattle Times, Internet Archive capture of Jan. 28, 2005: section “Flying Under the Radar” and his employment. The document carries a graphic-content warning; only the lines quoted here are used.
Ray Rivera, report on the King County prosecutors’ 133-page summary of evidence (The Seattle Times, Nov. 6, 2003): the prosecutors’ description of him and his job
NBC News (msnbc.com news services), “Neighbors paint mixed picture of BTK suspect” (Feb. 26, 2005): his household in Park City, his city job, his church
Orange County District Attorney, “Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. Pleads Guilty to 13 Murders, 13 Kidnappings and Dozens of Additional Uncharged Crimes,” press release (June 29, 2020): the plea, the 13 murders by name and date, his police jobs, his identification in 2018
Janelle Griffith, “Golden State Killer suspect pleads guilty to 13 counts of first-degree murder” (NBC News, June 29, 2020): the plea, the arrest in April 2018, the 13 murders between 1975 and 1986, genetic genealogy
Laurel Wamsley, “After Arrest Of Suspected Golden State Killer, Details Of His Life Emerge” (NPR, April 26, 2018; copy published by CapRadio): his police jobs, his marriage, his 27 years in a supermarket distribution warehouse
Associated Press, “The Latest: Alleged serial killer worked in warehouse” (published by Fox News, April 26, 2018): the employer’s statement, the sheriff’s account of his police service, the district attorney’s statement
ABC7 News (KGO-TV, San Francisco), “WHO IS HE: The life and history Joseph DeAngelo, the alleged Golden State Killer” (page dated May 24, 2018): his daughters and his job
Matthias Gafni, “Golden State Killer’s wife speaks out: ‘I trusted he was doing what he told me he was doing’” (San Francisco Chronicle, Aug. 20, 2020): the 1973 marriage and their three daughters
KPIX 5 (CBS San Francisco), “Who Is Golden State Killer Suspect Joseph DeAngelo?” (April 26, 2018): the employer’s statement on his 27 years as a mechanic
Educational analysis. Adjudicated cases only. Victims named with respect.