Real Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Theories Book III

Son of Sam: David Berkowitz

David Richard Berkowitz (bornRichard David Falco, June 1, 1953), also self-proclaimed withthe name Son of Sam and christened by the media as the .44Caliber Killer due to the weapon he used, is an American serialkiller who pleaded guilty to eight separate shooting attacks thatbegan in New York City during the summer of 1976.

Berkowitz grew up in New York City andserved in the United States Army before committing his crimes. Usinga .44 caliber Bulldog revolver, he killed six people and woundedseven others by July 1977. The killing spree terrorized New Yorkersand gained worldwide notoriety. As the number of victims increased,Berkowitz eluded the biggest police manhunt in the history of NewYork City while leaving letters that mocked the police and promisedfurther crimes, which were highly publicized by the press.

On the night of August 10, 1977,Berkowitz was taken into custody by New York City Police Departmenthomicide detectives in front of his Yonkers apartment building; hewas subsequently indicted for eight shooting incidents. He confessedto all of them, and initially claimed to have been obeying the ordersof a demon manifested in the form of a dog belonging to his neighbor"Sam." Despite his explanation, Berkowitz was foundmentally competent to stand trial. He pled guilty to second-degreemurder and was incarcerated in state prison. He subsequently admittedthat the dog-and-devil story was a hoax. In the course of furtherpolice investigations, Berkowitz was also implicated in many unsolvedarsons in the city.

Intense coverage of the case by themedia lent a kind of celebrity status to Berkowitz, which he seemedto enjoy, as noted by some observers. In response, the New York StateLegislature enacted new statutes, known popularly as "Son ofSam laws", designed to keep criminals from financiallyprofiting from the publicity created by their crimes. The statuteshave remained law in New York despite various legal challenges, andsimilar laws have been enacted in several other states.

Berkowitz has been incarcerated sincehis arrest and is serving six consecutive life sentences. During themid-1990s, he amended his confession to claim that he had been amember of a violent Satanic cult that orchestrated the incidents asritual murder. A few law enforcement authorities have said that hisclaims might be credible, but he remains the only person ever chargedwith the shootings. A new investigation of the murders began in 1996,but was suspended indefinitely after inconclusive findings.

Early life

David Berkowitz was born Richard DavidFalco on June 1, 1953, in Brooklyn, New York. His mother, Elizabeth"Betty" Broder, grew up as part of an impoverishedJewish family, and was a waitress. She married Tony Falco, an ItalianAmerican, in 1936. m After a marriage of less than four years, TonyFalco left her for another woman.

In 1950, Broder started a relationshipwith a married man named Joseph Klineman. Three years later, shebecame pregnant with a child to whom she chose to give the surnameFalco and, within a few days of Richard's birth, Broder gave thechild away. Although her reasons for doing so are unknown, writershave surmised that Klineman threatened to abandon her if she kept thebaby and used his name.

The infant boy was adopted by Pearl andNathan Berkowitz of the Bronx. The Jewish-American couple werehardware store retailers of modest means, and childless in middleage. They reversed the order of the boy's first and middle names andgave him their own surname, raising young David Richard Berkowitz astheir only child.