The Zodiac Killer, an unidentified serial killer who terrorized the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1960s and early 1970s, remains one of the most infamous unsolved cases in American history. The killer taunted authorities and the public with cryptic letters and ciphers sent to local newspapers, often claiming responsibility for multiple murders. Among the chilling symbols associated with the Zodiac is the drawing of a knife entitled "The Bleeding Knife of Zodiac." This article delves into the possible meanings behind this symbol and its connections to other crimes potentially linked to the Zodiac Killer.
On December 16th, 1969, the Zodiac Killer sent a letter to the Fairfield police department stating, "I will kill more people than you cops can count so look for more blood." The Zodiac Killer accompanied his lined letter with the large drawing of a knife entitled "The Bleeding Knife of Zodiac".
The Dripping Pen and Knife: A Chilling Similarity
The Zodiac Killer, inspired by the Deborah Furlong and Kathy Snoozy murders on August 3rd 1969 and its coverage on the front page of the Chronicle three days later, launched his callous knife attack at Lake Berryessa seven weeks later, resulting in the premature death of Cecelia Shepard. After the attack on Cecelia Shepard and Bryan Hartnell at Lake Berryessa, followed by the message on the car door, a depiction of a fountain pen dripping with blood probably seemed like an apt choice by the Zodiac Killer. I couldn't help noticing the similarities between the Dripping Pen and Dripping Knife of Zodiac, particularly because of the seven blood drops falling from the knife correlating with his "I've Killed Seven" claims in the greeting card and the addition of "Aug" in his chronological victim count.
We know he was responsible for five murders, that of David Faraday, Betty Lou Jensen, Darlene Ferrin, Cecelia Shepard and Paul Stine - but had now tagged victims six and seven onto his running total.Ironical then, that the Zodiac Killer wrote "look for more blood" in his previous correspondence.
The San Jose Connection
In an article with the header "I've Killed Seven, The Zodiac Claims" by Paul Avery, the article begins with "San Jose Girls May Be Victims" and continues "Beyond leaving several cryptic clues indicating that the newly revealed killings occurred last August, possibly in San Jose, Zodiac's latest correspondence - a long rambling letter and a contemporary greeting card - revealed nothing as to who the two victims were". Law enforcement and the newspapers had long posed the question as to whether Zodiac had any involvement in the brutal stabbing murders of the two young San Jose girls. The two teenagers, Debra Gaye Furlong (14) and Kathy Ann Snoozy (15), had been savagely attacked with a short-bladed knife on August 3rd 1969.
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The Zodiac Killer was hoping the attack on the shores of Lake Berryessa would augment the belief of law enforcement to his involvement in the San Jose murders. It would take nearly two years to conclusively expose this deception, coming with the arrest of Karl Francis Werner in late April of 1971.
The Melvin Belli Letter
The Melvin Belli letter attempted to depict a killer who was losing control and searching for a ninth and tenth victim. Bearing in mind the two brutal attacks perpetrated with a knife, was the Melvin Belli letter attempting to paint a picture of a bloodthirsty maniac, looking for two more victims picnicking alongside a scenic backdrop?
The drawing of a 'bleeding knife' not a direct reference to the "by knife" phrase written on the car door of Bryan Hartnell at Lake Berryessa, but more of a triumphant claim of his involvement in two brutal knife attacks in the Bay Area.
Weapons and the Halloween Card
It makes me consider the order he used his weapons with respect to the Halloween card - running clockwise: by gun, by rope, by knife and by fire (Johns car burning). This order reflects perfectly the order in which these weapons of murder appeared for the first time, whether or not he was responsible for the Modesto abduction or not.
But this begs the question, did he discover the Tim Holt comic book earlier than surmised and created a 'shopping list' of crimes, or were his crimes a case of circumstance with weapon availability or reactionary to his lack of front page newspaper coverage.
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The only reason I highlight San Jose rather than the Manson murders as inspiration, is the later 1971 correspondence continuing the theme. The argument could be made that Zodiac was simply a versatile killer, switching weapons, dressing up and attacking a cab driver in the heart of the big city. He thought by varying his style and making the attacks more daring, he would engender more publicity, which is basically what he was after from the beginning.
Zodiac Killer, explained.
Also, if the Zodiac Killer did trail the three Pacific Union College girls to Berryessa, then these were his primary target. Only circumstances altered the path of events that day, resulting in the attack on Shepard and Hartnell.
The Quest for Recognition
His obsession with front page coverage and disillusionment at not receiving it was a primary driver. The question that has to be asked is, did this drive him to his change of tactics on September 27th 1969 and his "apparent" focus on the knife attacks in San Jose and Saratoga in 1971, or was this switch simply self-governed. In other words, he had decided upon it without any outside influence. To me, it seemed like the newspapers shaped the Zodiac, just as much as he shaped their coverage.
The 1971 letters appeared like the last hurrah of a Zodiac who realized murder was not for him anymore, if it ever really was. Moreover, he always felt compelled to murder, because he needed to to get the coverage. Had this guy been an actor or celebrity, I doubt he would ever have embarked upon his Zodiac crimes. The attention was his sole driver.
When the letters and cards in 1971 were no longer backed up with murder, and law enforcement knew he was piggybacking off others crimes, the Zodiac inevitably fizzled out. His race was run. Whether or not he threw in the odd token letter subsequent to 1971 is open to conjecture. But that is another story.
Read also: Criminal Minds: Unmasking the Zodiac Killer's Legacy.
The Dripping Pen card stated "Could you print this new cipher in your frunt page? I get aufully lonely when I am ignored, so lonely I could do my Thing." His July 26th 1970 'Little List' letter wasn't even published for over 2 months and he wrote on March 13th 1971 "the reason I'm writing to the Times is this, They don't bury me on the back pages like some of the others".
The Knife Description and Arthur Leigh Allen
Lake Berryessa Report, Case No. 105907 (Filed: Sep. 29, 1969)
- Suspect placed gun in holster, took a large knife out of a sheath.
- Knife described as having blade approximately 12″ in length, 1″ in width. Possibly sharpened on both sides similar to a bayonet. Appeared to have a wooden handle with two brass rivets and 1″ white adhesive tape wrapped around the handle where the guard would normally be. (May be encased in wooden sheath.)
Return to Search Warrant Served on Arthur Leigh Allen, Feb. 14, 1991
- Large knife having blade approximately 12″ length and 1″ wide with wooden handle with two brass rivets on same and tape around handle.
- Any knives that are approximately 12 inches long with a one inch blade having rivets in the handle and tape around the handle.
Officers would have taken this photo of Allen’s bookshelf upon arrival at the location and before the physical search commenced.
NOTE: If this over-sized knife hanging on Arthur Leigh Allen’s bookshelf [See handle+blade, (1)+(2) in Fact Exhibit 8.2; and Zoom-in of same in Fact Exhibit 8.3] is the “hunting knife with rivets and sheath” described in the ’91 ‘Return to Search Warrant’ then its “hunting” categorization appears to me to be misleading.
However, it is in the same location as the fishing landing net (observed in both Fact Exhibits 8.1 and 8.2) and next to the spot where I identified Allen’s spearfishing pole in the subsequently filmed KTVU news image (Fact Exhibit 8.1).If this was not the referenced knife taken in the warrant, then after the unexpected search of his home, Allen determined for himself to switch out this knife for another.
Under either scenario, what we have is: five months later-in the exact same location on his bookshelf-Allen has replaced the knife pictured in the pre-search warrant photo with another of similar length, but unsheathed and with a light-colored wood handle.
In 2019, research community member Chaucer1 initiated an insightful inquiry on BladeForums.com as to what type of knife could match the description of the Zodiac killer’s weapon used at the Lake Berryessa crime. The forum members uploaded bayonet images including those of the ‘1888 Lee-Metford’ and the ‘1903 Krag.’ 2 These (or imitations / reproductions thereof) may be a close match to what we observe as Fact Exhibit 8.3.
The Zodiac's Victims
Police and investigators concur The Zodiac attacked seven people on four occasions in California.
The First Murders:
- The first murders retroactively attributed to the Zodiac were the shootings of high school students Betty Lou Jensen (16) and David Arthur Faraday (17) on December 20, 1968.
- Darlene Ferrin (22) and Michael Mageau (19) were shot shortly after midnight on July 4, 1969.
- Bryan Calvin Hartnell (20) and Cecelia Ann Shepard (22) were stabbed on September 27, 1969, at Lake Berryessa in Napa County.
- The last confirmed Zodiac murder took place two weeks after the Lake Berryessa attacks. on October 11 in downtown San Francisco, the Zodiac hailed a cab which was driven by a doctoral student named Paul Stine.
Victims Table
| Date | Victims | Location | Weapon |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 20, 1968 | Betty Lou Jensen, David Arthur Faraday | Benicia | Gun |
| July 4, 1969 | Darlene Ferrin, Michael Mageau | Vallejo | Gun |
| September 27, 1969 | Cecelia Ann Shepard, Bryan Calvin Hartnell | Lake Berryessa | Knife |
| October 11, 1969 | Paul Stine | San Francisco | Gun |