Trial of Serial Killer Ted Bundy

Posted by
Karen Lotter
Apr 12, 2008

I’m not quite sure what started me on bite marks maybe one of the true crime programs I enjoy watching in TV – we get the Crime and Investigation Channel here in South Africa so I am intimately familiar with serial killers and a host of forensic science topics from watching reruns of the programs.

I guess it was one of the serial killer programs that focused on Ted Bundy. In this one True Crime writer Anne Rule was talking about the time when she and Ted Bundy were friends.

While a university student in Seattle, Bundy worked all kinds of odd jobs including as a night-shift volunteer at Seattle's Suicide Hot Line. That was where he met and worked with former Seattle policewoman and fledgling crime writer Ann Rule. Who later wrote the most famous biography of Bundy and his crimes, The Stranger Beside Me.

In an interview with Katherine Ramsland, Rule says that she knew that Bundy was a serial killer but s tiny shed of doubt remained and that the bite mark evidence during the trial, which she covered as a reporter, remained the hardest for her:

"To be absolutely sure about his guilt," Rule remembers, "I needed to see direct physical evidence, and there it was, no question. It made me sick to my stomach. I went down to the hall to the ladies' room and threw up. Yet he still maintained this suave, friendly look. It was a bad day for me."

The Stranger Beside Me launched her career.

Being an Anne Rule fan and a writer I wondered at the incredible coincidence of a serial killer and a true crime writer becoming friends before their paths would take them in such opposite, yet similar directions.

Dec 22, 2008 11:47 PM

Guest :

With the dawn of the twentieth century, another phenomenon crawled from the streets of London, and found its way into American society. That would be, of course, the practice of serial murder. Also, one must realize that there were several incidents of serial murder before Jack the Ripper. The only reason that the public is unaware of this is due to the fact that a lot of these incidents were never reported. The other factor may have been that Law Enforcement was either not as prominent, or non-existent. It would have been very difficult to track crime sprees, much less a series of murders, and be able to track them back to one person. By the time Jack the Ripper came into the picture, there was a law enforcement organization in place. Unfortunately, forensic science was seen as pseudo-witchcraft, and was dismissed as pure conjecture. This only benefited the serial killer in that his actions were being seen as mere rampage, or frenzy, as opposed to efforts in scientific analysis of the killer’s behaviorisms. This would have lead to the eventual capture. When another prominent serial killer came into the public focus, the science of forensics, as well as profiling techniques had developed enough to follow the criminal career of one of history’s most infamous serial killers. Unfortunately, most of the actions taken to find him were reactive, as opposed to proactive. Still, Law Enforcement was able to learn a valuable lesson. That was to prepare for others like him. Whether or not society was prepared for this phenomenon did not matter. This character made sure that he made an impression on society, and criminal history. In fact, he became the template for others to come. The serial type that was not invisible, or even unimaginable. He looked like everyone else, even handsome and charming. That was an advantage he used to its full extent, much to the horror of several parents.

Having studied serial killers extensively, I had published a novel called "Can I Stop Now?" which is on Amazon. While the account is written as prose, It does encompass all of my research.

Regards,
Cesar Acosta