On the surface, Ted Bundy was all about an average man. Described as charming, sociable and very sympathetic by those around him, he has nevertheless become one of the most notorious serial killers in the United States. With 36 assassinations (listed) on his counter, the man never ceases to fascinate psychologists in search of answers to a question: where could this murderous madness come from?
A childhood in a roller coaster
November 24, 1946. In France, senatorial elections are held, responsible for electing representatives to the Council of the Republic. On the other side of the Atlantic, Harry S. Truman is President and young people only have eyes for Play the Game , a short series broadcast on television. That day, a certain Eleonor Louise Cowell gives birth to an illegitimate child, the fruit of a short-lived adventure: Theodore “Ted” Bundy. The name of Lloyd Marshallis still entered in the box intended for the father in the family record book. The boy spent the first three years of his life with his grandparents in Philadelphia. This is when the first disturbing signs emerge: Ted often speaks alone and plays with bladed weapons with disconcerting ease. His grandfather, who partly raised him, is described by several family members as a violent man.
Ted Bundy then moved to Tacoma, Washington. As a teenager, he shows a real desire to integrate, make friends and participate in group activities. His relatives at the time described him as “a medium-sized fish in a large aquarium”, during several interviews with biographer Ann Rule. But a dark side begins to take more and more place in his mind: it was at this time that he began to read pornographic magazines and criminal journals. At the end of high school, Ted Bundy enrolled in a generalist university year, before leaving to study Chinese at the University of Washington. At the same time, he engages in several extra-curricular activities. In 1968, he stopped everything to do odd jobs. He then became interested in politics and became a volunteer for the Republican Nelson Rockefeller’s campaign . His girlfriend at the time, a certain Stephanie Brooks, prefers to end their relationship. Devastated, he decides to return to his mother’s house and enrolls for a semester at Temple University in Philadelphia. On his way home, he meets a young woman with whom he begins a romantic relationship.
It was in the early 1970s that he finally found his passion: psychology. In order to put into practice the theories learned in class, he joined a Seattle suicide center. He is then described by one of his colleagues, Ann Rule, as “kind, caring and emphatic”. Blooming, he reconnects with his former girlfriend, whom he will finally drop a few months later, torn between two women. Meanwhile, disappearances are starting to worry the locals.
Diving in Hell
Unable to determine the year of Ted Bundy’s first crime. Several sources determine his passage to the act in 1974. He then begins to sexually assault young women, using various and varied objects, while knocking them unconscious. Some disappear, and will never be found. He then moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, to study law. Here again, women mysteriously disappear. Some are found dead, violently mutilated. One evening, he was stopped by the police as he drove slowly through the dimly lit streets of the city, presumably in search of his next victim. Several unusual items were found in the trunk of his car – such as a balaclava, gloves and a flashlight. In custody, he will have to undergo an identification session. For this one, he completely changes his appearance but is still recognized by a woman who accuses him of attempted kidnapping.
A trial, therefore, takes place. Very confident, Ted Bundy does not think for a single second that he can be doomed. Very involved, he does not hesitate to take charge of his case. Although he loudly proclaims his innocence, he is found guilty. The judge orders sessions with a psychologist, who must determine whether or not the man presents a danger to society. After several interviews, the verdict is final: Ted Bundy is upset and has a violent side to him. He is therefore sentenced to prison. The sentence, not determined at the outset, could range from one to fifteen years. While he remains behind bars, the police link him to murder in Colorado. To face this accusation, he accepts the extradition and is transferred to Aspen prison.
Very annoyed to be treated like any prisoner, he thinks only of one thing: preparing his defence, but especially his escape. He practices running in his tiny cell, changing clothes quickly and jumping out of bed, to prepare his legs for an impact. On D-Day, while quietly reading a book in a corner of the courthouse while awaiting the start of his trial, he flees through one of the windows, and vanishes into nature. During this time, the investigators mount a file against him, in particular for the murder of a young woman. Ted Bundy will not be found until seven days later and returned to prison pending trial.
Catch Me If You Can
Determined not to languish in prison, he put the cover back a few months later. One evening at the end of 1977, he managed to escape. For the second time, then. He had starved himself, weighing only 63 kilos and succeeding in passing through the trapdoor located in the ceiling of his cell. The murders then resume, in Florida this time. 46 days after the escape, a mysterious man is arrested in Pensacola. Police did not find out until days later that it was actually Ted Bundy, one of America’s most wanted men. In April 1978, he was at the heart of two investigations for a series of murders of a sexual nature. It was only three months later, after having gathered a certain amount of evidence, that the investigators announced, in front of the press, that he was officially indicted. Filmed,Joe Berlinger , for the documentary series he produced for Netflix , Ted Bundy: Self-Portrait of a Killer . In the images, Ted Bundy appears confident and expresses his desire to speak to the press. What will be refused to him: it is a tribunal, not a circus.
The trial takes place under the watchful eye of the cameras, and young girls in bloom, under the spell of the blue eyes of Ted Bundy. “He does not have the face of a serial killer”, says one, while another, mouth in heart, will speak of him as “a handsome boy very clean on him”. The accused assures his own defense, and only very rarely calls upon his officially appointed lawyers. He thinks he is superior, capable of being able to prove his innocence.
To coax the judges, he pulls out all the stops. He doesn’t hesitate to wear a bow tie and ask his then-girlfriend to marry – while the latter was called to the bar to testify on his behalf. Ultimately, all this will not be able to save him the death penalty. In accordance with the jury’s decision, the judge orders him to pass on the electric chair, after describing him as an “extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile” man – words strong and meaningful enough to become a film title, directed once again by Joe Berlinger. He is sent to death row, and will remain there for many years before being executed.
That won’t stop him from starting a family with his girlfriend – the same one who accepted his proposal in the middle of his trial. A daughter will also be born from this love. and will remain there for many years before being executed. That won’t stop him from starting a family with his girlfriend – the same one who accepted his proposal in the middle of his trial. A daughter will also be born from this love. and will remain there for many years before being executed. That won’t stop him from starting a family with his girlfriend – the same one who accepted his proposal in the middle of his trial. A daughter will also be born from this love.
Ted Bundy death
One week before his execution, and after an examination of his mental state, he decides to postpone his sentence by declaring that he wants to speak out, and finally confess all his crimes. In the hope of “purifying his soul”, he admits to practicing necrophilia, and to return regularly to the scene of the crime to have sex with the corpses – and this, until decomposition of the body. He also admits having cut off the heads of a dozen of his victims. “I don’t feel guilty about anything… I pity those who feel guilty… I’m a ruthless bastard,” he finally confided, without a hint of empathy.
Difficult to determine his motivations. He confided on several occasions that he was “urged to kill” by a voice in his head. He will blame pornography repeatedly, stating that most murderers used it regularly. “A person like this chooses their victim for a reason. Ownership. Control. The violence […] A murder leaving such an individual hungry, dissatisfied, also leaves him with the very irrational belief that with his next murder he will be satisfied ”, he had entrusted to a journalist, putting himself in the skin of a serial killer.
On January 24, 1989, he died in the electric chair. His body, wrapped in a medical bag, is transported in a hearse to the hospital. As they left prison, a crowd had gathered to, in a way, witness the execution of one of America’s most dangerous men.
This article was originally published on Naija News