Yes, I really am reviewing the second book on John Wayne Gacy in less than year. I was a senior in a suburban Chicago high school when the John Wayne Gacy story broke. I have strong memories of watching the news each night, hearing the body count rise, and then discussing the case with my classmates at school the next day. We were around the same age as many of the victims, and it was chilling. Although I’ve read a number of books about Gacy, I feel compelled to read any new books that are published. After college, Moss served internships with the U.S. Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. He decided to go into law and graduated in 2002 from University of Michigan Law School. He set up a criminal defense practice in Henderson, Nevada. He was married to Charlotte Moss. [1] The Last Victim [ edit ] Due to the subject matter this book is loaded with gruesome and disturbing details. While not for everyone, it is an excellent book for those who study or are intrigued by true crime. Gacy didn't look like a monster but he truly was. Books like this which focus on the victims are incredibly important. Much of PDM's workforce consisted of high school students and young men. [59] Gacy would often proposition his workers for sex, or insist on sexual favors in return for lending his vehicles, financial assistance or promotions. [49] [60] Gacy also claimed to own guns, once telling an employee, "Do you know how easy it would be to get one of my guns and kill you—and how easy it would be to get rid of the body?" [61]

Two months later, on March 15, 20-year-old Jon Prestidge disappeared. Prestidge was last seen leaving a Near North Side restaurant. He was buried in the crawl space above the body of Francis Alexander. [120] Shortly before his disappearance, Prestidge had mentioned he had obtained work with a local contractor. [121] Gacy murdered one additional unidentified youth and buried him in the crawl space in the spring or early summer of 1977. On July 5, Gacy killed 19-year-old Matthew Bowman. Bowman's mother last saw him at a suburban train station; he had intended to travel to Harwood Heights for a court appointment. [101] [122] Cook County medical examiner Robert Stein supervised the exhumations of the victims buried on Gacy's property. [220] The crawl space was marked in sections and each body was given an identifying number. The first body recovered from the crawl space was assigned a marker denoting the victim as Body 1. [112] He was identified as Jon Prestidge on January 6, 1979. [121] No cause of death could be determined. Shortly thereafter, Gacy enrolled at Northwestern Business College, despite having failed to complete high school. He graduated in 1963 and took a management trainee position with the Nunn-Bush Shoe Company. [12] [16] In 1964, the company transferred him to Springfield, Illinois, to work as a salesman, and eventually promoted him to department manager. [8] In March of that year, he became engaged to Marlynn Myers, a co-worker. [16] NamUs - National Unidentified Persons Data System Case Report - 11004". Archived from the original on April 1, 2016 . Retrieved July 30, 2017.In June 1969, Gacy was denied parole. To prepare for a second scheduled parole hearing in May 1970, he completed sixteen high school courses, obtaining his diploma in November 1969. [8] On Christmas Day 1969, Gacy's father died from cirrhosis. When informed of his father's death, Gacy collapsed to the floor, sobbing. [8] His request for supervised compassionate leave to attend the funeral was denied. [35] Return to Chicago The television movie To Catch a Killer, starring Brian Dennehy as John Wayne Gacy, was released in 1992. The movie is based on the investigation of Gacy. [27] The prosecutors argued that Gacy was sane and in full control of his actions. [125] They produced several witnesses to testify to his premeditation and the efforts he took to escape detection. Those doctors refuted the defense doctors' claims of multiple personalities and insanity. Cram and Rossi testified that Gacy had made them dig drainage trenches and spread bags of lime in his crawl space. Both said Gacy looked periodically into the crawl space to ensure they and other employees they supervised did not deviate from the precise locations he had marked. [63] [157]

You have to look at that section — 1972 to 1975 — for a specific tally because we don’t have the graveyard that was his house. He could have been on the road where he improvised. There could be dozens of unknown victims.” The made-for-TV movie Dear Mr. Gacy was released in 2010, starring William Forsythe as John Wayne Gacy. The movie is based upon the book The Last Victim, written by Jason Moss. [29] Remains Found in Utah Identified Through John Wayne Gacy Investigation". deseretnews.com. September 20, 2012. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020 . Retrieved February 14, 2017.Through his membership in a local Moose Club, Gacy became aware of a "Jolly Joker" clown club, whose members regularly performed at fundraising events and parades in addition to voluntarily entertaining hospitalized children. [51] In late 1975, Gacy joined the clown club and created his own characters "Pogo the Clown" and "Patches the Clown", devising his own makeup and costumes. He described Pogo as a "happy clown", whereas Patches was a "more serious" character. [57] Cahill, Tim; Ewing, Russ (1986). Buried dreams: inside the mind of a serial killer. Bantam Books. ISBN 978-0-553-05115-5.

Gacy was close to his mother and two sisters, but had a difficult relationship with his father, an alcoholic who was verbally and physically abusive to his family. [2] [8] [9] [a] The elder Gacy frequently belittled his son, calling him "dumb and stupid" and comparing him unfavorably with his sisters. One of Gacy's earliest childhood memories was of his father beating him at age four for accidentally disarranging car engine components. [11] His mother tried to shield her son from his father's abuse, which resulted in accusations that he was a "sissy" and a "mama's boy" who would "probably grow up queer". [4] [8] [12] In 1949, Gacy's father whipped him after he and another boy were caught sexually fondling a young girl. [13] The same year, a family friend began to occasionally molest Gacy. [8] [9] Gacy never told his father, afraid that his father would blame him. [14] Despite their challenging relationship, Gacy loved his father, [9] but felt he was "never good enough" in his father's eyes. [15]His conviction for thirty-three murders (by one individual) then covered the most homicides in United States legal history. Gacy was sentenced to death on March 13, 1980. He was executed by lethal injection at Stateville Correctional Center on May 10, 1994. The author makes you understand that Gacy really thought he could get away with his behavior – not just at the beginning, but at the end. Taking teenager Robert Piest from his workplace could have been a plea to get caught, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Gacy really thought his brains and reputation with cops and politicians would get him off the hook once again. Fortunately, he was wrong. In Springfield, Gacy was involved in community organizations such as the United States Junior Chamber. He became the vice-president of the Springfield chapter by 1965. [1] Move to Iowa [ change | change source ]

On December 15, Des Plaines investigators obtained further details of Gacy's battery charge, learning the complainant, Jeffrey Rignall, had reported that Gacy had lured him into his car, then chloroformed, raped and tortured him before dumping him in Lincoln Park. In an interview with Gacy's former wife the same day, they learned of the disappearance of John Butkovich. [144] The same day, the class ring was traced to a John Alan Szyc. [118] An interview with Szyc's mother revealed that several items from her son's apartment were also missing, including a Motorola TV. [148] [149] The Forensics Library: John Wayne Gacy". aboutforensics.co.uk. June 30, 2012 . Retrieved February 14, 2017. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. (March 17, 1942 – May 10, 1994 pronounced Gay-see), also known as The Killer Clown and Pogo the Clown, was an American serial killer and rapist. He is confirmed to have killed 33 young men and teenage boys. He killed them in a brutal way and buried their bodies in or near his Chicago home. Gacy did not use a gun for any of his crimes.Inside the Mind of John Wayne Gacy focuses much more on Gacy than did Boys Enter the House by David B. Nelson, which I reviewed in 2021. I didn’t learn anything new, and yet somehow reading about the victims makes me feel at least I can do that much for them. The case is still active since five victims remain unnamed. Three victims have been identified since 2011, including Francis Wayne Alexander in October 2021. Suspecting Gacy might be holding Piest at his home, Des Plaines police obtained a search warrant on December 13. [139] This search revealed several suspicious items, including several police badges; a starter pistol; a syringe and hypodermic needle; handcuffs; books on homosexuality and pederasty; [140] [141] [142] pornographic films; capsules of amyl nitrite; a dildo; [143] a two-by-four with two holes drilled into each end; bottles of Valium and atropine; several driver's licenses; a blue hooded parka; [139] and underwear too small to fit Gacy. [142] They also found a class ring engraved with the initials J.A.S. [144] and a Nisson Pharmacy photo receipt in a trash can, alongside a 36-inch (91cm) section of nylon rope. [69] Surveillance