Many of his victims were sex workers and transients who had no connection to him. His older daughter has described witnessing acts of animal cruelty that included Jesperson killing kittens. Jesperson described murdering her, like other women he killed, as putting her out of her misery.. He would often get into trouble for behaving badly, sometimes violently, and would be severely punished by his father. She claimed to have found a strange purse in the trunk of her car with a piece of denim from a pair of jeans inside -- When Bennett was found, her purse was gone and her jeans were missing the fly. He slapped her. Her sister Michelle White said Bennett was the only one in their family who graduated from high school, someone who read a lot and loved music. Pavlinac had made the whole thing up. Dubbed the Long Island Serial Killer or the Craigslist Ripper, the extent of these unsolved crimes is still unknown. Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske are seen here in this 1985 family photo. [26], In 2008, Moore published a book titled Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter. We need to report this, John.' The night of his disappearance, Geib made several calls from his cell phone. However, Jesperson.css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;} later said he actually killed another woman and did not recognize Wilcox's photo. Jesperson worked as a truck driver to support the family. While in custody, Jesperson began revealing details of his killings and making claims of many others, most of which he later recanted. That letter-writer turned out to be Keith Hunter Jesperson, who became known for signing the letters with a happy face symbol thus the Happy Face Killer moniker. He duct-taped her mouth and hands before raping and strangling her. was 23 years old when he went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [10] Jesperson soon realized that this job afforded him the opportunity to kill without being suspected. Safety in numbers is the name of the game, before, during and after a night out on the town. By Joseph Diaz, Scott Engel, Emily Wynn, Jenner Smith, and Lauren Effron November 4, 2021, 3:32 AM 1:24 Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske are seen here in this 1985 family photo. His death was ruleda probable drowning, and there wereno signs of trauma. John Ingram, who worked on the case. A smiley face was found spray painted on an underpass near where James body was discovered. Jesperson was born on 6 April 1955, to Leslie (Les) and Gladys Jesperson in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada,[1] the middle child with two brothers and two sisters. NR Jul 18th, 2021 Documentary. . But to Melissa Moore, he was more than just a serial killer . RUIN SMILEY'S DAY: Follow these tips to minimize the danger of vanishing into thin air one night and ending up another unsolved "drowned" statistic: 1. [8][16] This led Phil Stanford, the journalist working the story for The Oregonian, to dub Jesperson "The Happy Face Killer". After Pavlinac confessed to investigators, her daughter said she got a call from the detectives asking her to come to her mother's house right away. Local police theorized the men simply got too drunk, fell into the water and drowned, but Gannon, Donovan, Duarte and Gilbertson investigated their deaths as the work of an organized group of serial killers dubbed "The Smiley Face Killers." A victim of the "Happy Face Killer" has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway, authorities said Monday. As she and Sosnovske started their life sentences, one of the United States' most notorious serial killers continued his murder spree. First, she told investigators that she knew Sosnovske did it because she saw Bennett's body, said Ingram. GHB was also found in his system along with alcohol. I'm thinking, 'My God, she is actually involved in this,'" Ingram said. I'll go to death row.'". Jesperson's last victim was the crime that ultimately led to his capture. Patrick McNeill is thought to be the first victim of the Smiley Face Killers. Hurley walked outside while Mahoney drove to the stadium to pick him up. [15], Although Jesperson at one point claimed to have had as many as 160 victims,[16] only the eight women killed in Washington, Oregon, California, Florida, Nebraska, and Wyoming have been confirmed. They'd mostly all been college-aged, popular, and athletic. What Is the Smiley Face Killers Theory? After a series of letters are sent to the press, the killer earned the moniker, the Happy Face Killer. After the body of his first victim, Taunja Bennett, was found, media attention surrounded Laverne Pavlinac, a woman who falsely confessed to having killed Bennett with the help of her abusive boyfriend, John Sosnovske. Todd Geib was 22 years old when he went missing during the early hours of June 12, 2005, at a bonfire party in an orchard close to his home in Casnovia, Michigan. You can find episodes of Serial Killers and all other Spotify originals from podcast for free on Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. [19] To avoid the possibility of facing the death penalty, Sosnovske pleaded no contest. Laverne Pavlinac convinced investigators she and John Sosnovske had killed Taunja Bennett, when they hadn't. The last known sighting of the Duquesne University graduate student was caught on asurveillance camera in the downtown area. Keith Hunter Jesperson, The Sad Story of the Happy Face Killer Stories about . More than a dozen of these cases have been outlined in Gannon and Gilbertson's book "Case Studies in Drowning Forensics," but there are six deaths in particular that stand out as potential Smiley Face murders: Dakota James was 23 years old when he went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. California 'Happy Face Killer' victim identified after 29 years By Associated Press 8:06am Apr 20, 2022 A victim of the Happy Face Killer has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway, authorities said this week. "She was a free spirit, and she would go here, there, and she would go to work at a place, and wouldn't work for very long because she would always go out on the road. All drowned after getting intoxicated. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! After a night of barhopping, Homan headed home at around 10 p.m. with a friend. Some time later, at a public pool, Jesperson attempted to drown the boy by holding his head under the water until a lifeguard pulled him away.[6]. Surveillance footage captured Booth entering the bar where the celebration took place, but there is no video evidence of him leaving. The first victim was found in 1997. In 1990, shortly after his marriage ended, Keith Jesperson, a long-haul trucker from Selah, Washington, began killing women. Their work has spawned an Oxygen series, Smiley Face Killers: The Hunt for Justice, which aired in January 2019. [33] The episode was released on July 9, 2021. On January 25, 2017 around 11:30 p.m., James was walking back to his apartment after a night out drinking with friends and co-workers. In April 1990, he sexually assaulted a woman who managed to escape. Victim 8: Julia Ann Winningham, 41. Hurley's mother received a copy of the autopsy report and allowed aphysician to analyze the report. She changed her story again, this time to say she too was involved in Bennett's death. Jesperson claims that her name was Susanne. Jesperson got away easily so long as he was killing women he did not know, but his impulsivity got the best of him, and eventually, he murdered someone he did knowhis own girlfriend. Canadian-American serial killer (born 1955), "Happy Face Killer" redirects here. Revealed as the Happy Face Killer, Keith Hunter Jesperson confessed to killing eight women in Florida, California, Oregon, Wyoming, and Washington. Detectives first became aware of Pavlinac when she anonymously called them to report that she overheard Sosnovske at a bar bragging about killing Bennett. Victim 6: Florida Jane Doe. She told investigators she drove them to a scenic overlook at the Columbia Gorge, where Sosnovske told her to pull over. While he has claimed to have killed as many as 160 people, only eight murders have been confirmed. [2] Jesperson's father was a domineering alcoholic; according to Jesperson, his paternal grandfather was prone to violence. She also said she was able to point to the location of Bennett's body based on where the brush had been cleared away. I don't," Sosnovke is heard saying on the tape. Keith Hunter Jesperson was born in 1955 in British Columbia, Canada and is a serial killer. When she arrived, however, he was nowhere in sight. The couple divorced in 1990.[8]. And they were laughing," Pavlinac told investigators. [17] He was convicted of another murder and received a fourth life sentence in January 2010. [00:02:14] Keith Hunter Jesperson committed his first murder in 1990. Largely considered an urban legend, the Smiley Face Killer, like the Manchester Pusher, murdered his victims by drowning. Her daughters are still trying to understand why their mother did what she did, and why she didn't see another way to end the relationship. Victim 1:Taunja Bennett. Jesperson resides in the Oregon State Penitentiary, where he spends much of his time making art. Sosnovske pleaded no contest to first-degree murder and kidnapping charges to avoid the possibility of a death sentence and was sentenced to life in prison. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. Pavlinac had been with Sosnovske, a farmhand 18 years her junior, for a decade when the Bennett case caught her attention in 1990. [10][14], Jesperson was arrested on 30 March 1995 for the murder of Julie Winningham. And she [said], 'Well, they told me I had to tell you thisbecauseif I told you then they would believe me,'" Carpenter said. The police gave him the nickname "The Happy Face Killer" as he would leave a happy face on his confession letters to the media. To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on Oxygen. On January 21, 1990, after taking her to his rental place, plans to have sex went awry and he beat her senseless, he told Phelps. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Victims of the Smiley Face Killer | Photo Credits: Oxygen The Team of Men that Came Up With the Theory. On January 1, 2000, Northern Illinois University junior. Based on Pavlinac's statements, and that Sosnovke failed a polygraph test, authorities arrested Sosnovke on murder charges. This led Jesperson to violently attack Martin until his father pulled him away. What doesn't make sense is that many of the 40 cases the investigators have looked into have puzzling evidence. Tommy Booth, 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. Halfway through the game, Hurley called hisfiance, ClaireMahoney, pictured above, and said he wanted to leave. Pavlinac soon admitted to making up her entire story, but her claims were ignored. [00:02:05] Hi, everyone. Various witnesses outside the hotel saw Welzien vomiting in the street. The production features interviews between, Dangerous Ground: My Friendship with a Serial Killer.. He never made it home. In both cases, and as per usual . At age 35, Keith was 6'7.5" tall and weighed 240lbs. Geib's remains also had very little signs of decomposition, which would have been present if he had died the day he went missing 22 days before the recovery of his body. There, he assaulted, beat and strangled her. Investigators have confirmed that he killed at least 8 people, including the woman now known to be Skiple. Jesperson would capture birds and stray cats and dogs around the trailer park where he lived with his family, severely beating the animals and then strangling them to death, something for which he claims his father was proud of him. Jesperson was dubbed the "Happy Face Killer" for the smiley face drawings he included on a letter he sent to a Portland, Oregon newspaper, in which he bragged about killing women in a spree that began in 1990. Jesperson's first known victim was Taunja Bennett on 21 January 1990, near Portland, Oregon, United States. The term "Smiley Face Killers" come from the graffiti smiley faces supposedly found at the crime scenes. Who is the Happy Face Killer Keith Hunter Jesperson? Melissa Moore's father, known as the Happy Face Killer, murdered eight or more women. California investigators have identified a victim of the West Coast's notorious "Happy Face Killer" nearly 30 years after her body was discovered near a highway in 1993, officials recently . She previously claimed to the FBI that he was a wanted bank robber and frequently complained to Sosnovske's probation officer that he was drinking too much. A Navy veteran, 24-year-old William Hurley went missing after leaving a Bruins hockey game in Boston,Massachusetts. Photo: Jesperson met 21-year-old Bennett in a bar in Portland, Oregon. Keith Hunter Jesperson (born 6 April 1955) is a Canadian-American serial killer who murdered at least eight women in the United States during the early 1990s. That's when they said she implicated herself in the murder, according to Det. Watch Happy Face Killer on Lifetime Movie Club. According to detectives Anthony Duarte and Kevin Gannon, the Smiley Face Theory came into . 'Happy Face Killer' Bay Area murder victim finally identified Andrew Chamings , SFGATE April 18, 2022 Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon, was 45 at the time of her death in 1993. Jespersons heinous crimes as well as shocking twists in the case including a couple who took the blame for one of his homicides are covered in bracing detail in the Oxygen special Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, now streaming. [11] Jesperson gives the Jane Doe's name as Claudia. Sosnovske was brought in for questioning and denied any involvement. According to former detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson, Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the water. When an Oregon newspaper ran a five-part series called The Happy Face Serial Killer in 1994, an anonymous author took credit for the five murders. A few days before his arrest, he wrote a letter to his brother in which he confessed to having killed eight people over the course of five years.