Victoria Harkless
Assistant Editor-In-Chief
A lot has happened in the world of true crime in the past couple weeks. This article will cover all of the big true crime news that has happened since the last updates.
To start the Zodiac Killer’s cipher was solved. The 1969 puzzle was originally sent to the San Francisco chronicle but was just solved in 2021 by what The New York Post is calling “a team of amature code breakers,” in the article titled “The Zodiac Killer sent a cipher 51 years ago. A team of amateur code-breakers just cracked it.” by Meryl Kornfield.
This is a big deal because the still-unnamed murderer claims to have killed thirty-seven people in the 1960 and 1970’s. The puzzle did not hold the killer’s name like the self proclaimed Zodiac promised, instead it held a rather chilling message.
The beginning of it read, “I hope you are having lots of fun in trying to catch me,” but quickly turned more twisted when the killer wrote of the relief he believed he would feel when he was caught. “I am not afraid of the gas chamber because it will send me to paradise all the sooner…” This is basically him saying he does not fear death; he openly states that he is not afraid of death, and that life will be easy in the aforementioned “paradise”. This is particularly chilling because he goes on to say he has “slaves'' who are doing his work for him now. This could be killings that were done after this letter was sent or any number of things and the true crime world is speculating on it still.
The FBI has spoken out about the code being broken. Their statement said “The Zodiac Killer case remains an ongoing investigation… We continue to seek justice for the victims of these brutal crimes.” The zodiacs victims consisted of mostly young couples, and a single male cab driver, but he often sent letters and puzzles to police about his unsolved cases
In slightly newer news, the new Richard Ramirez Netflix limited series titled “Night Stalker: the hunt for a serial killer” just came out. The following is my opinion on the series. I encourage you to watch it on your own and draw your own conclusions about it. Another thing to remember is due to the graphic nature of this case the show might not be for everyone.
While Richard Ramirez is perhaps one of my least favorite true crime cases to learn about, as soon as Netflix announced the show and its release date, I knew I would have to watch it.
I must say, despite my initial hesitation to actually start the show, it was one of the most interesting true crime shows I have watched. The series has four episodes that are about forty-five minutes long. They are manageable, and something you can take a break from and then watch the next episode. There were no serious cliff hangers or anything like that.
While I would say it was interesting and well done for the most part, sections of it were boring. There is not much about how the actual crimes were committed, how it affected Los Angeles, or the victims that survived. It is more about how the police solved it. They show crime scene pictures and talk about how they connected the crimes. If you like the law enforcement side of true crime documentaries, this show is for you.
Personally, it was not my favorite thing to watch but it did lay out a complete timeline of the horrendous crimes attributed to Richard Ramirez. For research purposes, it would be a good thing to watch as it is the homicide unit from the Los Angeles police department talking about how they caught him. You get to see how they caught him and what type of toll Ramirez was having on them and the people around them.
A lot can happen in two weeks in the world of true crime; for example, a fifty-year -old puzzle can be solved and a new show about a solved crime can come out and give you a new perspective.
Image Credit: Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash
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