Serial killer John Wayne Gacy had accomplices, lawyers say

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Serial killer John Wayne Gacy had accomplices, lawyers say

usnews.msnbc.msn.com...

Nearly two decades after Chicago serial killer John Wayne Gacy was executed for torturing, raping and murdering 33 men and boys in the 1970s, two lawyers say they’ve unearthed evidence that indicates he didn’t act alone in some of the slayings.

Criminal defense attorneys Robert Stephenson and Steven Becker, who are partners in a Chicago law practice, said they re-examined the circumstances surrounding the disappearances of some of the victims. Their conclusion: the so-called “Killer Clown” had at least three accomplices.

So, the only serial killer to have ever had his brain kept after execution for examination in which they found nothing unusual, it is now determined that this sick, demented excuse for a human being didn't work alone.

“There is significant evidence out there that suggests that not only did John Wayne Gacy not operate alone, he may not have been involved in some of the murders, and the fact that he was largely a copycat killer,” Stephenson told WGN.

Stephenson and Becker on Friday presented their findings to Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart plus a lead investigator and a former prosecutor in the decades-old case.

Dart described the meeting as "very fruitful."

"They raised valid questions," Dart told msnbc.com in a telephone interview. "I definitely would not dismiss what they have said. It’s not out of left field. Its' well thought out."

The sheriff said investigators will follow up on the information and, if it proves solid, will try to locate the potential accomplices -- two of whom are believed to be still alive. The case has had so many twists and loose ends – seven Gacy victims remain unidentified, for example – that Dart is keeping an open mind.

"Have we ruled out that someone would have helped Gacy in one or more of the murders? No," the sheriff said.

Stephenson said he and Becker started looking into the Gacy case last year at the request of a mother who questioned the finding that her son, Michael Marino, was one of the bodies found on Gacy's property. A dentist who made the original body IDs re-examined X-rays and said he’s certain the victim was Marino, according to the Sun-Times.

The investigation into Marino's death led the lawyers to a flurry of leads and new information from other sources.

Did Gacy have help?
Stephenson and Becker say a review of Gacy’s travel and work records and other court documents indicates he was out of town when Nelson and Gilroy disappeared.

Please visit the article for more detailed information.

I sure hope they get the other sickos.

Reading other articles about this, I've come across conflicting information.

From the article in the original post:

“I felt from the beginning that there may be loose ends. It was such a huge case, especially at the time,” Sullivan told WGN.

But Gacy’s defense lawyer, Sam Amirante, doesn’t buy the accomplice theory.

“Nothing as far as killing or recruiting … we thought about it, but we just never saw any evidence,” he told WGN.

Amirante said Gacy confessed to everything early on, and only after years in prison did he begin to change his story.

Now, from this article from CBS Chicago:
chicago.cbslocal.com...

The attorneys are also examining Gacy’s own questions to police when he was arrested. Among those questions were – “Who else do you have in the station? There are others involved,” and he said his “associates” were involved “directly,” the Sun-Times reported.

So, why would detectives have overlooked his question about who else they had in thier custody? HE EVEN ADMITTED OTHERS WERE INVOLVED. Why did police choose to ignore what he was revealing? Also, why would the attorney in the case say that there was no evidence at the time that there were others involved? Did he not know about Gacy's question and admittance to police?
I find this strange after two decades.
Somebody, or more than one somebody, messed up big time.

Why would Gacy not have given up a partner or partners?
Was it a lover? A relative?
It makes my blood go cold to think that there may be one or more people out there who have continued killing for the past two decades because police were in a hurry to close the case and present Gacy to the public -- if that's what happened. It just seems as though things got sloppy as soon as they figured they got their man and didn't turn over every rock.

“There is significant evidence out there that suggests that not only did John Wayne Gacy not operate alone, he may not have been involved in some of the murders, and the fact that he was largely a copycat killer,” Stephenson told WGN. Stephenson and Becker on Friday presented their findings to Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart plus a lead investigator and a former prosecutor in the decades-old case. Dart described the meeting as "very fruitful." "They raised valid questions," Dart told msnbc.com in a telephone interview. "I definitely would not dismiss what they have said. It’s not out of left field. Its' well thought out."

copycat killer?

That is intriguing, I wonder in what way exactly was he copy cating?

Are they trying to suggest there were other clown guys luring victims?

We just had a thread about killer clowns in the Midwest, and the thread mostly got clowned( no pun intended).

People pretty much wrote it off as urban legend based on John Wayne gacy and nothing more.

It would be terrible if there really was something more to this story....thanks for bringing this to my attention afterthought, I'll be watching how this unfolds.

reply to post by Mijamija


I can tell you why it got 'solved' so quickly, from the point of view of a Chicago resident at the time. We were scared out of our gourds and then so disgusted/un-nerved by the 'clown' next door that Cook County had to make it go away as quick as they could.

Just my opinion.

-Zz

reply to post by Technomancer01


I agree. That was pretty much my conclusion as well. Of course the police wanted it wrapped up as quickly as possible so they could put the public at ease. I just think that they were very irresponsible when they ignored what Gacy was telling them. It will be interesting to see who they bring in.

reply to post by Afterthought


Or it could be that John Wayne Gacy (JWG) like a majority of serial killers was just a paranoid, schizophrenic, sociopath. Maybe there were other accomplices, inside his head.

I have dealt with a lot of crazy people in my career, although not on the level of a JWG. Most of them heard voices, said other people helped or made them do things. None turned out to be true.

However police are just humans and are obviously prone to making mistakes, over looking evidence or even hiding evidence. So of course that could be the case with JWG and other serial killers. In my experience though, it has been the suspects just being crazy. I would have to do more research on the new claims before I came to a personal conclusion.

Great thread!