Throughout the 1960s and 70s, from Los Angeles to San Francisco, Californians were terrorized by multiple killers including notorious serial killers like the Zodiac Killer, the Hillside Stranglers, Herbert Mullin, and Ed Kemper. While the decade may have ended with these killers disappearing or apprehended, the threat of violence and murder simply moved north.Though less known than his contemporaries, David Carpenter was no less prolific and frightening a killer than those men mentioned above. Nicknamed “The Trailside Killer” by the press, Carpenter terrorized Point Reyes and Santa Cruz County for a decade, assaulting, kidnapping, and killing at least eight people, but he was suspected of more. Like those other killers, Carpenter had a long history of violent and antisocial behavior going back to his childhood, including multiple arrests and incarcerations. How was it that a man with such an alarming history of violence could go uncaught for a decade?Thank you to the Incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research and Writing support!ReferencesAssociated Press. 1980. "Trail Killer will strike again." Santa Cruz Sentinel, December 1: 1.Burkhardt, Bill. 1979. "Woman found murdered on Mt. Tam." San Francisco Examiner, August 21: 1.Graysmith, Robert. 1990. The Sleeping Lady: The Trailside Murders Above the Golden Gate. New York, NY: Onyx.Keraghosian, Greg. 2020. "'Do not hike alone': For 21 months, the Trailside Killer terrorized Bay Area's outdoors." San Francisco Chronicle, October 25.Leader, Lewis. 1980. "Identification ends dad's long quest." San Francisco Examiner, December 2: 2.San Francisco Examiner. 1960. "MP's shots foil attack on woman." San Francisco Examiner, July 13: 1.—. 1961. "Presidio attacker gets 14 yrs." San Francisco Examiner, March 10: 11.—. 1960. "Sex case insanity plea." San Francisco Examiner, October 8: 5.Santa Cruz Sentinel. 1970. "Boulder Creek girl attacked." Santa Cruz Sentinel, January 29: 22.—. 1970. "Grand jury indicts con." Santa Cruz Sentinel, July 17: 7.—. 1970. "SLV kidnap suspect flees Calaveras jail." Santa Cruz Sentinel, April 27: 1.The People v. Carpenter. 1997. S004654 (Superior Court of Los Angeles County, April 28).The People vs. David Carpenter. 1999. S006547 (Superior Court of San Diego County, November 29).Todd, John. 1980. "Tam closed in hunt for clues." San Francisco Examiner, October 16: 1.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Chapter 1: Who are the hosts of this Morbid podcast episode?
Hey weirdos, I'm Alayna. I'm Ash. And this is Morbid. Hi. We were just talking about Dorinda Medley from New York Housewives. Always and forever. Because I'm watching the old episodes again.
They're so fun. They're constant in my house. If we don't know what to watch, we just put that on and disassociate. Old New York Housewives. Jewels forever. Jewels should have been. Jewels forever. Jewels should have gotten wheny more. I was going to say way more, and then I said many, so wheny more seasons. She should have. I loved her.
I liked her personality. She was great.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Carol. I didn't like her husband, but I liked her. No, and that's why she should have stayed on because they ended up divorcing and I'm pretty sure she like might have... He caught his. Yeah.
Which, like, nobody should hit anyone.
No.
It's probably not. No, don't hit people. Yeah, don't do that. Did she hit him? I think there was some allegations, I will say. I'm not saying that I know what happened, but it was a little bit of allegations.
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Chapter 2: What is the background and context of the Trailside Killer in California?
His assaults are basically attempted murder. Yeah, they are. All of them. But yeah, he's a horrible, horrible human being.
Like, very horrible. He really is. And he somehow gets worse. Well, with that being said, we hope you keep listening. And we hope you keep it weird. Weird, but not so weird that you don't tune in to part two. Oof. Thank you.
Last year, law and crime brought you the trial that captivated the nation. She's accused of hitting her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe, with her car. Karen Reid is arrested and charged with second-degree murder. The six-week trial resulted in anything but resolution.
We continue to find ourselves at an impasse. I'm declaring a mistrial in this case.
But now the case is back in the spotlight. And one question still lingers. Did Karen Reid kill John O'Keefe? The evidence is overwhelming that Karen Reid is innocent. How does it feel to be a cop killer, Karen? I'm Kristen Thorne, investigative reporter with Law & Crime and host of the podcast, Karen the Retrial. This isn't just a retrial. It's a second chance at the truth.
I have nothing to hide. My life is in the balance and it shouldn't be.
I just want people to go back to who the victim is in this. It's not her.
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