His death was ruleda probable drowning, and there wereno signs of trauma. Taunja Bennett was the first to die. A month later, in Turlock, California, the body of Cynthia Lyn Rose was discovered. Meanwhile, the real killer carried out a series of murders over five years. 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. Victim 4:Laurie Ann Pentland, 26. 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 Oxygen special. Largely considered an urban legend, the Smiley Face Killer, like the Manchester Pusher, murdered his victims by drowning. He slapped her. Jesperson claims that her name was Susanne. I'llgo to the pen. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Jesperson is serving four life sentences without possibility of parole in Oregon. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. 'Happy Face Killer' Bay Area murder victim finally identified Andrew Chamings , SFGATE April 18, 2022 Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon, was 45 at the time of her death in 1993. Jespersons heinous crimes as well as shocking twists in the case including a, couple who took the blame for one of his homicides. M. William Phelps penned a memoir about his interactions with Jesperson: Dangerous Ground: My Friendship with a Serial Killer (2017). [5] This continued as he got older. He decided to drag her body underneath his truck to impede identification. "[He said] I better not open my mouth. She was convicted of felony murder and sentenced to life in prison with a 10-year minimum served. Several years later, Hucke began to suspect Jesperson was having affairs when strange women would call. 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. Between 1997 and 2008, authorities pulled the dead bodies of more than 40 young white men out of rivers and lakes in more than 25 cities across 11 states. Officials did not implicate the band member in Homan's death. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. April 19, 2022 / 7:43 AM / CBS San Francisco. Her identity remains unknown. . 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 apprehended before he kills again. 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. Hurley walked outside while Mahoney drove to the stadium to pick him up. He was caught after killing his 41-year-old girlfriend, Julie Ann Winningham, in 1995. After Jesperson came forward in March 1995, he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder charges for Bennett and Winningham of Camas, Washington, his last known victim. In the majority of the cases, the victims were successful students and athletes who disappeared after a night out drinking with friends, and they were ultimately found dead in a body of water. Detectives first became aware of Pavlinac when she anonymously called them to report that she overheard Sosnovske at a bar bragging about killing Bennett. His fourth victim was another sex worker, Laurie Ann Pentland of Salem, Oregon, whose body was found in November 1992. On Monday, the Santa Clara County Sheriff . Tommy Booth, 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. 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. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. The night of his disappearance, Geib made several calls from his cell phone. 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. The Smiley Face Killers. Upset that he was not getting any media attention, Jesperson drew a smiley face on a bathroom wall hundreds of miles from the scene of the crime and wrote an anonymous letter confessing to Bennett's murder, providing proof. The daughter of a man dubbed the "Happy Face Killer" has revealed the suffering she went through after discovering her father, Keith Jesperson, was a serial rapist and murderer who preyed on what he once claimed was as many as 185 people over a five-year span. She told investigators she had gone to the bar to meet Sosnovke, but Bennett was alive when she picked them up and both got in the car with her. This led police agencies in several states to reopen old cases, many of which were found to be possible victims of Jesperson. ET on ABC. 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. For now it remains only a theory that has yet to be proved. Keith Hunter Jesperson (born 6 April 1955) is a Canadian-American serial killer who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the early 1990s. 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. When Young came back to the hotel around 4 a.m. and realized Welzien was not in their room, he searched the area outside the hotel. Serial killer Keith Jesperson murders at least eight women over a five-year span and taunts authorities with disturbing letters and scribbled confessions signed with a happy face. Director Carl Hindmarch Stars Doug Bates Janine Brugnone Beghtol Rick Buckner See production, box office & company info Add to Watchlist 1 User review One of them was to a friend. Smiley faces again served as his signature, prompting a journalist to dub Jesperson the "Happy Face Killer.". He has said he strangled her because she wouldn't let him sleep. 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. This included beatings, sometimes with a belt in front of others, and in one case he received an electric shock. The last known sighting of the Duquesne University graduate student was caught on asurveillance camera in the downtown area. Her body disintegrated against the hot asphalt as he drove. Her body was found after his arrest. That's when they said she implicated herself in the murder, according to Det. Their house bordered an apple orchard, and Jesperson killed stray cats and gophers that wandered nearby. The Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department announced on Tuesday that, using genetic genealogy, they were able to identify a body found in 1993 as Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon. According to former detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson, Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the water. First, she told investigators that she knew Sosnovske did it because she saw Bennett's body, said Ingram. However, Jesperson.css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;} later said he actually killed another woman and did not recognize Wilcox's photo. After the body of his first victim, Taunja Bennett, was found, media attention surrounded Laverne Pavlinac, a woman who falsely confessed to having killed Bennett with the help of her abusive boyfriend, John Sosnovske. According to police reports, one dog later hit on an an SUV owned by a local band member, who had played a show at the bar the night of Homan's disappearance, but the K9 alert was inconclusive. Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon, had been . [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. Six days after his disappearance,Hurley's body was foundin the Charles River, close to where he asked Mahoney to pick him up. But a few days later, they got another call from Pavlinac. 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. [33] The episode was released on July 9, 2021. Over the past 20 years, hundreds of college-aged men across the US have died as the result of undetermined or accidental drownings. We need to report this, John.' Some of his victims, as seen in this timeline, have never been identified. Pavlinac had made the whole thing up. T he Smiley Face death toll continues to climb, this time in Germany. Welzien's friends said he had only three or four drinks, but by the end of the night he seemed very intoxicated. Hundreds of college-aged men have died in accidental or undetermined drownings. Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske are seen here in this 1985 family photo. In September 1994, the body of a woman was found in Florida. Serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, also known as the "Happy Face Killer," brutally murdered eight women between 1990 and 1995. Investigators said there wasno sign of foul play, and his death was ruled an undetermined drowning. [10] Jesperson soon realized that this job afforded him the opportunity to kill without being suspected. 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. Her body was discovered behind the Blueberry Hill Cafe in Turlock, California. James' parents later hired a private investigator who organized a massive citywide search, which led tothe discovery of James' bodyin the Ohio River on March 6, 2017, 40 days after he had disappeared. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! What Is the Smiley Face Killers Theory? "I said 'Why is she dead?'" A stealth serial killer who wants to trick everyone against him will change-up his playbook with small tweaks to put a wrench in the profiler's and forensic scientist's game. A few days before his arrest, he wrote a letter to his brother in which he confessed to having killed eight people over the course of five years. In addition to murder, Jesperson's criminal history included animal cruelty, arson and sexual assault. went missing from Chicago, Illinois, after a night of celebrating Y2K with his friends. [7] She was a correspondent for Crime Watch Daily. On September 29, 2006, 21-year-old Lucas Homan vanished from La Crosse, Wisconsin. Her body, which had been strangled and tied up with duct tape, was found on August 30, 1992. Other students hold photos of Mr. Jesperson's victims. He left bodies in Oregon, California, Florida, Nebraska and Washington while working as a long-haul truck driver. Gannon and Gilbertson also notedthe body appeared to have been staged three sticks were strategically placed around his body, and there were shoe and drag marks in the soil. 'Happy Face Killer' case tapes reveal the lengths woman went to frame boyfriend Meanwhile, the real killer carried out a series of murders over five years. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. About two weeks after he went missing,Booth's body was foundfacedown in a creek behind the bar. Because Jesperson allowed her to use his credit card to make a phone call, he devised a depraved way to conceal her identity. ", This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 19:00. Dubbed the Long Island Serial Killer or the Craigslist Ripper, the extent of these unsolved crimes is still unknown. While in custody, Jesperson shared details of his eight murders. Moore recounts living with Jesperson until her parents' 1990 divorce, and noticing how her father was different when she was in elementary school. 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. , who survived a violent encounter with Jesperson when she was 21. Pavlinac told investigators during her last recorded statement on Feb. 26, 1990. It had been washed ashore on a beach in Gary, Indiana, 30 miles south of Chicago. Gannon, Duarte, Donovan and Gilbertson claim an organized group of serial killers would drug unsuspecting victims at a bar or party then abduct, hold and torture the victims before finally killing and dumping the bodies in water. "Theyhave her tell me the story and I looked at her again, and I said, 'Mom, are you sure?' In September 1994, another Jane Doe was found in Crestview, Florida. Pavlinac remarried, but her second husband died a few years later. that, using genetic genealogy, they were able to identify a body found in 1993 as Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon. His last known victim was a woman he dated, which led to his capture and, During his depraved spree, Jesperson taunted authorities with anonymous. Rather than fall victim to the trauma surrounding her father's crimes and arrest, she processed the events. 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. And just like his British counterpart, the police denied . "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. "I'm told to place her into a holding cell I say, 'OK, Laverne, now you need to go into that room right there,' She turned around and she looked at me and she gave me a hug. Taunja Bennett, 23, is seen here in this undated photo. At age 35, standing 6feet 7inches (2.01m) and weighing approximately 255 pounds (116kg),[9] Jesperson began working toward the goal of joining the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), but an injury suffered while training ended this endeavor. The only difference was that the American version, operating in the Midwest throughout the 1990s, spray painted a smiley face on his victims. The night of his disappearance, Geib made several calls from his cell phone. More than 25 years have passed since the ordeal, and in that time, both Sosnovske and Pavlinac have died. To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on Oxygen. He would often get into trouble for behaving badly, sometimes violently, and would be severely punished by his father. Judge Paul Lipscomb of the Circuit Court of Oregon agreed to vacate Sosnovske's sentence after ruling his no-contest plea violated his constitutional rights because it had not been voluntary since he was facing the death penalty. California investigators have identified a victim of the Happy Face Killer using DNA nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway. She claimed to have found a strange purse in the trunk of her car with a piece of denim from a pair of jeans inside -- When Bennett was found, her purse was gone and her jeans were missing the fly. Remains found in Merced County, California on June 3, 1993, belonged to a Jesperson victim he has said was called "Cindy." Victim 2: California Jane Doe. After he raped and strangled her, Jesperson dumped her body near the Columbia River Gorge, outside Portland. Victim 5: California Jane Doe. GILROY (CBS SF/AP) A victim of the Happy Face Killer has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a rural Gilroy highway . 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. His friends went up to their room and never saw Welzien again. In one six-page letter to The Oregonian newspaper, the serial killer revealed . I will be writing about that more in the future so stay tuned. Eight murders were eventually linked to Jesperson, whos serving multiple concurrent sentences in Oregon State Penitentiary. Many of his victims were sex workers and transients who had no connection to him. She'sgiveher the shirt off her back," McAlpine said. 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. 18, 2022, 3:19 p.m. Patricia Skiple, who lived in Colton, Oregon, has been identified as a victim of Keith Jesperson, the "Happy Face Killer," almost 30 years after Skiple's body . However, the kicker is that these drownings happening in 11 different states. He never made it home. Often Keith would dream of becoming an RCMP officer, the power of a position like that appealed to him, but his dream was dashed in 1990 after an injury prevented him from qualifying. I think that she was at a bad place in her life," said her daughter Darlene Carpenter. Keith Hunter Jesperson, also known as "The Happy Face Killer ," is serving a life sentence in prison today. But in the process, she also falsely implicated herself. Her sister Michelle White said Bennett was a compassionate person who loved everyone.. The body of Julie Winningham, 41, of Camas, Washington, was found alongside a Washington State road in 1995. Welzien told his friends he wanted to call it a night and go back to the hotel where they were staying. , 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. "Then it becameserious,a seriousargument. Jesperson killed his next victim in June 1993 in Santa Nella, California. Today's episode is part 1 of our coverage of serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson. Pieces of his artwork have been seen on "murderabilia" sites. A journalist noticed the symbol and came up with the Happy Face Killer nickname. He later claimed his intention was to kill the boy. Director Rick Bota Writer Richard Christian Matheson Stars David Arquette Gloria Reuben Daryl Shuttleworth See production, box office & company info