Earlier today, Sacramento police arrested the man suspected of being the Golden State Killer, after an almost forty-year-long search for his arrest.
Joseph James DeAngelo, 72, was arrested early Wednesday morning and charged with two counts of murder. If he is indeed the Golden State Killer – also known as the East Area Rapist and the Original Night Stalker – then he’s believed to have killed at least 12 people, raped at least 45 people, and committed more than 120 home robberies, with his crimes being notable for being calculated, cold and brutal.
“These cases are some of the most horrific I’ve had to investigate,” said Erika Hutchcraft, an investigator for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. “They’re not a one-time, you know, crime of passion, but these are almost passionless crimes. Very cold, very violent.”
The late crime writer Michelle McNamara made it her life’s mission to catch the Golden State Killer, and her husband, comedian Patton Oswalt, commissioned a journalist to turn her notes into the bestselling book I’ll Be Gone In The Dark after her untimely death.
“I think you got him, Michelle,” he tweeted, after news broke that DeAngelo had been arrested.
“I think you got him, Michelle.” #IllBeGoneInTheDark #MichelleMcNamara #GoldenStateKiller https://t.co/sfI4ugGvzk
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) April 25, 2018
“She would be beyond excited about this. I think this is the definition of bittersweet,” he said in another tweet.
“Michelle McNamara didn’t care about getting any shine on herself. She cared about the Golden State Killer being behind bars and the victims getting some relief. She was Marge Gunderson in Fargo, not Chilton in Silence of the Lambs.”
It did, but #MichelleMcNamaradidn’t care about getting any shine on herself. She cared about the #GoldenStateKiller being behind bars and the victims getting some relief. She was Marge Gunderson in FARGO, not Chilton in SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. https://t.co/krMOWaWh9m
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) April 25, 2018
This is some GALACTIC SYNCHRONICTY. Michelle would be laughing her ass off. #IllBeGoneInTheDark #GoldenStateKiller #MichelleMcNamara pic.twitter.com/tEgUTrlvQu
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) April 25, 2018
During the press conference, police refused to acknowledge that McNamara’s book helped bring renewed interest in the case. But during the conference, they referred to DeAngelo as both the East Area Rapist and occasionally the Golden State Killer, a term coined by McNamara.
“Cops will never and have never credited a writer or journalist for helping them solve a case,” Oswalt tweeted. “But every time they said Golden State Killer they credited the work of Michelle McNamara and I’ll Be Gone In The Dark.”
Also, the cops will NEVER and HAVE NEVER credited a writer or journalist for helping them solve a case. But every time they said #GoldenStateKiller they credited the work of #MichelleMcNamara and #IllBeGoneInTheDark.
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) April 25, 2018
People are paying tribute to for her tireless dedication in tracking down the Golden State Killer, and for her part in making today happen.
I love and believe that Michelle McNamara made this happen.@pattonoswalt, this is the universe hugging you back.#GoldenStateKiller #illbegoneinthedark https://t.co/UWmOWC8X2p
— Brad Meltzer (@bradmeltzer) April 25, 2018
https://twitter.com/AliceEvansGruff/status/989233615165833216
It appears police have caught the Golden State Killer. Go get Michelle McNamara’s excellent book about the case, I’LL BE GONE IN THE DARK.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) April 25, 2018
https://twitter.com/stink_dumb/status/989160505402118144
https://twitter.com/kumailn/status/989167899045580800
Take a bow, #MichelleMcNamara. You earned it, girl. https://t.co/FSB3n3PJOK
— shauna (@goldengateblond) April 25, 2018
Oswalt’s wife, actress Meredith Salenger, also paid tribute to her husband’s late wife.
I am BEYOND thrilled for the capture of #TheGoldenStateKiller and for the brilliant #MichelleMcNamara whose painstaking determination led to the reopening of the case and his ultimate capture! Her book #IllBeGoneInTheDark is not only a BRILLIANT read but the reason this happened!
— Meredith Salenger (@MeredthSalenger) April 25, 2018
The legacy #MichelleMcNamara has left for her daughter of determination and finding justice for so many is incredible! I will everyday make make sure her daughter knows how spectacular her mother was, not just for her but for society. #GoldenStateKiller #IllBeGoneInTheDark
— Meredith Salenger (@MeredthSalenger) April 25, 2018
People are also sharing an excerpt from I’ll Be Gone In The Dark that predicted just how the Golden State Killer would one day be captured – a prediction that appears to be almost bang on the money.
One day soon, you’ll hear a car pull up to your curb, an engine cut out. You’ll hear footsteps coming up your front walk. Like they did for Edward Wayne Edwards, twenty-nine years after he killed Timothy Hack and Kelly Drew, in Sullivan, Wisconsin. Like they did for Kenneth Lee Hicks, thirty years after he killed Lori Billingsley, in Aloha, Oregon.
The doorbell rings.
No side gates are left open. You’re long past leaping over a fence. Take one of your hyper, gulping breaths. Clench your teeth. Inch timidly toward the insistent bell.
This is how it ends for you.
“You’ll be silent forever, and I’ll be gone in the dark,” you threatened a victim once.
Open the door. Show us your face.
Walk into the light.
