On October 8, 2009, Hurley went to the game with two friends. But it was all a lie. She changed her story again, this time to say she too was involved in Bennett's death. Melissa G. Moore, Jesperson's older daughter, wrote Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killers Daughter (2009). , 32, was found dead in September 1992. After a night of barhopping, Homan headed home at around 10 p.m. with a friend. He tries to paint the victim as someone who needed to be killed, Phelps, whose nearly decade-long relationship with the killer gives him insight into Jespersons mind, told producers. A Canadian-born long-haul truck driver and divorced father of three, Jesperson carried out his killings over the course of five years until he turned himself in to authorities in 1995. Investigators said there wasno sign of foul play, and his death was ruled an undetermined drowning. Jesperson was born on 6 April 1955, to Leslie (Les) and Gladys Jesperson in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada,[1] the middle child with two brothers and two sisters. Keith Hunter Jesperson was born in 1955 in British Columbia, Canada and is a serial killer. 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 . 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 . Pavlinac then confessed to her. But when investigators were unable to match the purse and denim piece to Bennett, they confronted Pavlinac about fabricating evidence. John Ingram, who worked on the case. After he raped and strangled her, Jesperson dumped her body near the Columbia River Gorge, outside Portland. This led police agencies in several states to reopen old cases, many of which were found to be possible victims of Jesperson. "She was that kind of woman. Rather than fall victim to the trauma surrounding her father's crimes and arrest, she processed the events. By Joseph Diaz, Scott Engel, Emily Wynn, Jenner Smith, and Lauren Effron November 4, 2021, 3:32 AM 1:24 Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske are seen here in this 1985 family photo. He would often get into trouble for behaving badly, sometimes violently, and would be severely punished by his father. In addition to murder, Jesperson's criminal history included animal cruelty, arson and sexual assault. The DNA Doe Project identified Skiple's body in partnership with the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office after it was found near westbound State Route 152. "I don't think she was in love with him. Bennett was found strangled to death near a scenic overlook at the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. [27] In November 2014, she wrote an article about her father for the BBC.[28]. Homan and his friend somehow got separated during their walk home, and his friend ended up at the ER detox with a head injury after being picked up by police. 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. Updated: Mar 3, 2021 (1955-) Who Is Keith Hunter. Surveillance footage captured Booth entering the bar where the celebration took place, but there is no video evidence of him leaving. His father often punished Jesperson by hitting him with a leather belt. "I don't remember going to no gorge, dumping no body for God's sake. 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. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. He left her remains in Nebraska, though Subrize was likely killed in Wyoming. 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. Julie Winningham is the last known victim of Keith Hunter Jesperson. The two would often get into trouble together, and Jesperson claimed he was often punished many times for things Martin had done and shifted the blame. The night of his disappearance, Geib made several calls from his cell phone. ", This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 19:00. I just said it, this is close enough," she said. 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. At the time, he was being investigated for the murder of 41-year-old Julie Winningham, who some described as his girlfriend. By Tim Stelloh. The purse had not been found at the crime scene, and its location was considered information only the killer would know. Other students hold photos of Mr. Jesperson's victims. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. According to former detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson, when Booth was found, his body was in full rigor mortis, which normallydissipates within 24 to 36 hours after death. One of Welzien's friends, Nick Young, stayed behind. First, she told investigators that she knew Sosnovske did it because she saw Bennett's body, said Ingram. Jespersons second victim, known only as Claudia, was found murdered on August 30, 1992 in Blythe, California. In reality, smiley face is a joyous symbol to convey happiness and joy, which is used everywhere from message chatting to letters to wall decoration in our daily lives. The book I: the Creation of a Serial Killer (2002), by Jack Olsen, delved into Jesperson's life. A smiley face had been spray-painted on a tree near where Geib's body was found, and a smiley face sticker was later placed on his gravesite. A smiley face was found spray painted on an underpass near where James body was discovered. , who survived a violent encounter with Jesperson when she was 21. His last known victim was a woman he dated, which led to his capture and, During his depraved spree, Jesperson taunted authorities with anonymous. Possible Smiley Face killers victim Mason Cox. jocks) usually after a night of drinking at a bar are kidnapped, tortured, murdered and then their . One New York serial killer has been plying his grisly trade for over twenty years now, killing at least ten victims between 1996 and 2010, and possibly more we haven't yet discovered. The Smiley Face Killers. His brothers did not help him, instead they nicknamed him "Igor" or "Ig", a name that stuck throughout his school years. "The Smiley Face Killers" movie was . After Jesperson was in custody, he provided the location of Bennett's purse, which only the killer would know. 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. [33] The episode was released on July 9, 2021. Keith Hunter Jesperson (born April 6, 1955) is a Canadian-American serial killer who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the early 1990s. "Now, I'm thinking, 'She's confessed she's pointed out the dump site, she's confessed to us on tape. The term "smiley face" became connected to their theory when the team . I had been worried about this for a long time. Mahoney drove to the address, but Hurley was not there. He showed signs of psychopathic behavior from an. We need to report this, John.' I wanted to get those two people out of prison," he said in 1995, referring to Pavlinac and Sosnovske. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. are covered in bracing detail in the Oxygen special Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, now streaming. 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. Retired New York City Police detectives Kevin Gannon and Anthony Duarte, joined by criminal justice professor Dr. Lee Gilbertson, believe that a group of serial killers have been murdering young men around the country and making their deaths look like accidental drownings. The Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department. FILE - Accused murderer Keith Hunter Jesperson, dubbed the Happy Face Killer, right, listens to his attorney . That's when they said she implicated herself in the murder, according to Det. Jesperson was dubbed the "Happy Face Killer" for the smiley face drawings he included on a letter he sent to a Portland, Oregon newspaper, in which he bragged about killing women in a spree that began in 1990. 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. "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. 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. Moore, Melissa G. & M. Bridget Cook (2009). 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. She also examined her father's actions in the podcast Happy Face. [8][16] This led Phil Stanford, the journalist working the story for The Oregonian, to dub Jesperson "The Happy Face Killer". All calls are toll-free and confidential. That letter-writer turned out to be. Alcohol and antidepressants were foundin Geib's toxicology screen, but it was reported thatGeib was not sufferingfrom any form of depression at the time. Welzien told his friends he wanted to call it a night and go back to the hotel where they were staying. The only difference was that the American version, operating in the Midwest throughout the 1990s, spray painted a smiley face on his victims. Jesperson was a middle child, with an older sister and brother and a younger sister and brother. When she arrived, however, he was nowhere in sight. At age 35, Keith was 6'7.5" tall and weighed 240lbs. . That triggered him. Jesperson got away easily so long as he was killing women he did not know, but his impulsivity got the best of him, and eventually, he murdered someone he did knowhis own girlfriend. His death was ruleda probable drowning, and there wereno signs of trauma. 45 colleged-aged males across a 20-year span. The victims were predominately white, male, athletic ("3.5 and above star athletes," according to Gannon), and young from 17 to early 20s. His fourth victim was another sex worker, Laurie Ann Pentland of Salem, Oregon, whose body was found in November 1992. Police interview tapes obtained by "20/20" show the lengths Pavlinac went to convince investigators she and Sosnovske were the killers responsible when they weren't. The oldest child, Melissa, was ten years old. Sosnovske would later plead no contest to the murder charge. Mahoney said she drove around for an hour before returning home, thinking Hurley got another ride, and that when she got back, Hurley was still gone. A smiley face was paintedon a wall of the bar under a deck. Taunja Bennett, 23, is seen here in this undated photo. She was a previously-unidentified woman named Patricia Skiple,[12] who, he claimed, was named "Carla" or "Cindy". That this never happened. Laverne Pavlinac convinced investigators she and John Sosnovske had killed Taunja Bennett, when they hadn't. Convicted murderer Keith Jesperson, right, shown here at a Nov. 2, 1995, court appearance in Portland, Ore., with attorney Thomas Phelan, has recanted all his previous murder admissions. Skiples remains were found on the side of. 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 Pavlinac claimed she knew where she and Sosnovske had left Bennett's body in the Columbia Gorge outside of town, and took investigators to the exact remote wooded area where Bennett was found. went missing from Chicago, Illinois, after a night of celebrating Y2K with his friends. In. Jesperson's first victim, 23-year-old Taunja Bennett, was killed on January 21, 1990. Soon after his injury was when Keith started to kill. Jesperson's last victim was the crime that ultimately led to his capture. Tommy Booth, 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. 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. Oddly,Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the wateras if he had gone for a swim. To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on Oxygen. They'd mostly all been college-aged, popular, and athletic. Largely considered an urban legend, the Smiley Face Killer, like the Manchester Pusher, murdered his victims by drowning. "He went off into the woods with her," Pavlinac told investigators. Jespersons fifth victim was known only as Susanne, whom he met in Crestview, Florida. Could some of them be connected to a serial killer or group of killers? "Theyhave her tell me the story and I looked at her again, and I said, 'Mom, are you sure?' Victim 1: Taunja Bennett. They met at a truck stop in Corning, California. 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. He was known as the "Happy Face Killer" because he drew smiley faces on his many letters to the media and prosecutors. The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department announced. [5] This continued as he got older. After getting in an argument with Bennett, he strangled her to death with his hands and disposed of her body. On January 25, 2017 around 11:30 p.m., James was walking back to his apartment after a night out drinking with friends and co-workers. 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. Investigators have confirmed that he killed at least 8 people, including the woman now known to be Skiple. He had a relationship with his final victim and became a suspect after her body was discovered in March 1995. He had given police officers the location of the victim's purse. Skiples remains were found on the side of California State Route 152 in the Gilroy area about 80 miles southeast of San Francisco in June 1993, in an area known as Pacheco Pass. In the years following, Jesperson said he often thought about what it would be like to do the same to a human. As she and Sosnovske started their life sentences, one of the United States' most notorious serial killers continued his murder spree. Meanwhile, the real killer carried out a series of murders over five years. Taunja Bennett was the first to die. [26], In 2008, Moore published a book titled Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter. Before his arrest, he also wrote a letter to his brother that admitted, "I am sorry that I turned out this way. Soon after Angela Subrize ran into Jesperson at a bar in Spokane, Washington in January 1995, she traveled east with him in his truck. Jesperson told Phelps they met at a truck stop and that after he agreed to give her a ride he felt like she was trying to play him. Sosnovske was brought in for questioning and denied any involvement. Six days after his disappearance,Hurley's body was foundin the Charles River, close to where he asked Mahoney to pick him up. A television movie, Happy Face Killer, starring David Arquette as Jesperson, aired in 2014. [00:02:05] Hi, everyone. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,contact us! [21], Following Bennett's murder, as all the attention was going to Pavlinac and Sosnovske, Jesperson wrote a confession on the bathroom wall of a truck stop and signed it with a smiley face. Jesperson resides in the Oregon State Penitentiary, where he spends much of his time making art. At her trial, Pavlinac recanted her confession, but the jury found her guilty. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Before serial killer Keith Hunter Jesperson, known by his nickname "Happy Face Killer," turned himself in, authorities believed they had solved the murder of his first victim Taunja Bennett. The couple divorced in 1990.[8]. ". 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. In 2006, the serial killer submitted a letter to the Santa Clara County District Attorneys Office admitting to sexually assaulting and killing an unknown female subject along a dirt turnout on Highway 152, the department wrote in its release, and a year later he pled guilty to killing her. Investigators installed a hidden recording device in their home hoping to catch Sosnovske making incriminating statements. . 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. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Remembering the first known victim of Happy Face serial killer. A smiley face was found painted near the river. She found out that her son had reportedly suffered blunt force trauma to the head, his eye socket and behind his left leg. The morning of October 2, Homan's body was found not far from the shore of the Mississippi River. He later claimed his intention was to kill the boy. PHOTO: Justice for Mason/Facebook. Revealed as the Happy Face Killer, Keith Hunter Jesperson confessed to killing eight women in Florida, California, Oregon, Wyoming, and Washington. Halfway through the game, Hurley called hisfiance, ClaireMahoney, pictured above, and said he wanted to leave. According to Gannon and Gilbertson, Homan had various injuries on his head, hands and arms, and they theorized that a mark on his forehead may have been a footprint that was the result of Homan being held down. [00:02:14] April 18, 2022, at 9:19 p.m. California 'Happy Face Killer' Victim ID'd After 29 Years. The first happened when Jesperson was around age 10, when he was friends with a boy named Martin.