Rader was born in 1945 and grew up in Wichita along with three brothers, all of whom graduated from Heights
High School in Wichita.
Rader was in the Air Force in Viertnam from 1965 to 1969. Joseph Otero, BTK's victim, was also in the Air Force
at the same time.
Rader worked in the meat department for a Park City grocery store and then as an assembler at the Coleman
camping gear firm between 1971 and 1973, where he met two of his earlier victims, Mike Brunker reported in a
MSNBC article.
He worked at ADT Security Services from 1974 through 1989. In 1989, he also worked for the U.S. Census
bureau going door-to-door collecting information. While working in both positions, Rader had access to many
area residents' homes. It is believed that he might have initially encountered some of his victims while on the job.
At some point in the 1970s, Rader married and he and his wife Paula had two children, a boy and girl. At around
the same time, he attended Wichita State University and in 1979 graduated with a degree in Administration of
Justice. According to Fox News, Rader "never became an officer but instead went "into code enforcement, or
what one critic called "a glorified dog catcher."
In his spare time, Rader lead a Cub Scouts group and was active in his church. No one imagined he was capable
of doing any harm to anybody. Many referred to him as a kind of guy who wasn't very noticeable, one who never
really stood out from others. In fact, it was his ability to "blend in" that allowed him to go undetected for so many
years.
New Revelations
Tuesday, March 1 12:05 PM Ron Sylvester of The Wichita Eagle and Frank Witsil of the Detroit Free Press
reported today that 'A Michigan law enforcement official said Monday that federal agents went to the home of
Dennis Rader's daughter to take a DNA sample shortly after his arrest Friday.'
Monday, Feb 28 1:20 p.m. update
Ron Sylvester reported in a February 28, 2005 AP article that investigators believed Dennis Rader was
responsible for 13 murders, although the authorities vehemently deny this. The article further suggested that at
least one of the additional murders is believed to have occurred after 1994, when the death penalty was
re-instated in the state of Kansas. If police can prove that a previously unknown victim of BTK was murdered
after 1994, prosecutors can make a good case for seeking the death penalty in this case, something for which
many of the victim's families are hoping.
Associated Press reported Sunday that a source close to the investigation that police believed that BTK may
have been responsible for the deaths of two Wichita State University students and a woman who lived down the
street from another BTK victim. After Wichita Police Chief Norman Williams threatened legal action against
anyone who spread erroneous information, AP modified its report to say that investigators are "looking into"
whether BTK was responsible for another three killings.
Sedwick County D.A. Nola Foulston insisted that the information in the modified A.P report is false. However, if
the three cases below are not being investigated by police, perhaps they should be. After all, the public has
learned of three new BTK victims in the past year: Vicki Wegerle, Marine Hedge, and Dolores Davis.
Three cases have been posted on Internet bulletin boards which seem to fit the description of the victims in the
Associated Press article.
· "Nov. 12, 1974: Sherry Baker, a Wichita State University student
stabbed in her apartment. Hands tied behind back (with a coiled telephone cord)
No sign of forced entry.
· June 29, 1985: Linda Shawn Casey, a Wichita State University student
found dead on the bedroom floor of her home bound, beaten, sexually assaulted, tabbed repeatedly. No sign of
forced entry. At the time, BTK was mentioned as a possibility but discounted due to the length of time since his
last known victim.
· Nov, 12, 1999: Tina Frederick, lived a few blocks from BTK victim Shirley Vian.
Found shot to death in her apartment - lying on a bedroom floor."
It has also been revealed that at the time Rader worked for the security company ADT between 1974 and 1989,
he "held positions that allowed him access to customers' homes, including a role as an installation manager,"
the Associated Press reported on February 27th. A majority of the murders attributed to BTK have occurred
during the period that Rader was employed by the company. Thus, it is possible that he used his position to seek
out potential victims.
The Wichita Eagle wrote that "Rader worked at ADT Security Services. Nobody who worked with Rader during
his 15 years with the company could stand him, according to several former co-workers."
Dennis Rader is a very polarizing figure: they either hated him or like him. As the Wichita Eagle reported, some
people saw him as "arrogant, by-the-numbers, rude and confrontational. Others said he is efficient, nice, friendly
and a regular guy."
Rader's bail has been set at a whopping $10 million, which will be set or changed during his next court hearing
scheduled in the upcoming days. At that time, the 10 first-degree murder charges against him will be formally
filed. Since there has been no indication, as of yet, that Rader has hired or asked for a lawyer, there is a chance
that the court will have to appoint him one. Regardless, the lawyer will need time to review the case, which will
likely prolong the hearing date, the Associated Press reported.
PICTURE2 Fox News reported that the suspect's daughter Kerri Rader, 26, provided the DNA samples that
allegedly linked Rader to eight murders attributed to BTK between 1974 and 1986. The Wichita Eagle reported on
Feb. 28 that Wichita Mayor Carlos Mayans confirmed that Kerri Rader's DNA was linked to the BTK victims.
Initially broadcast reports indicated that not only did Kerri Rader provide DNA samples to investigators, she had
actually gone to the police to voice suspicions about her father being BTK. This allegation is denied by the Rader
family and police. This ordeal has had a devastating effect on the Rader family, which is reportedly out of state in
seclusion.
According to the Wichita Eagle, BTK's most recent communication was sent to the Fox News Wichita affiliate in
mid February. Inside the package was a necklace, computer disk, and a copy of the cover of the 1989 John
Sandford novel entitled "Rules of Prey." The story is about a serial killer called "the maddog."
Sources:
Associated Press (February 27, 2005). BTK killings suspect led cub scouts.
Fox News, February 27, 2005
Sylvester, Ron (February 28, 2005). Report: BTK suspect confesses to killings. The Wichita Eagle.
Exercising Power and Control
Tuesday, Mar. 03 7:50 a.m. update
Rader was a Compliance Supervisor in Park City
Tuesday, Mar. 03 7:50 a.m. update
Rader was a Compliance Supervisor in Park City
In most cases, serial killers are primarily motivated by the need for power and control. Rader was no different
and often flaunted his self-perceived supremacy in his work and in everyday activities. At the time of Rader's
arrest, he was employed by Park City as a compliance supervisor, which involved "animal control, inoperable
vehicles, general code compliance and nuisances." However, if there was anyone a nuisance, Rader's
neighbors claimed it was he.
Fox News said that Rader was often referred to as a "bureaucratic bully" who would go "out of his way to find
reasons to give people citations." It was further reported that he would go around filming his neighbors in the
hopes of catching them committing some minor transgression. He even measured the grass of one woman he
disliked, in order to catch her in violation of a city ordinance.
According to Fred Mann and Les Anderson's article in the Wichita Eagle, two Park City residents, Sarah Gordon
and her sister Hearther Herrera, had a "run-in" with Rader at their garage sale in the summer of 2004 because
they didn't have a license for it. Rader reportedly told the women, "You don't want to mess with me. I'm nobody to
mess with." He wasn't kidding.
ABC News reported that Donna Barry, a neighbor of Rader's who has known him and his family since she was a
child, had seen a darker side of Rader.
"Barry said she and her children were out on their front lawn one day, and a neighbor from across the street
was outside with his dog. In his capacity as a dog catcher and ordinance officer, Barry said Rader approached
the dog and allegedly tried to mace it.
"But, according to Barry, the 'wind blew the mace back in his face.' She says Rader groped for his tranquilizer
gun, but couldn't get to it. That's when he allegedly pulled out a gun and shot the dog."
Other than the dog incident, "He was generally a really nice gentleman," she said. "I've known him since I was
probably four or five years old. You know, he was the kind of neighbor that you could go down the road and he
would stay up and talk to you and open the door for you and hold a conversation."
The Wichita Eagle reported that "several Park City residents and former co-workers described Rader as
egotistical and arrogant -- a by-the-book person who pays attention to detail. The descriptions in many ways
matched those offered by criminal profilers who have studied BTK. Charlie Otero, whose parents and sister
were BTK's first known victims, believes that if Rader is BTK, he should get the death penalty.
Rader Court Hearing
Tuesday, Mar. 03 3:50 p.m. update
Rader on closed-circuit TV, being informed of the charges against him
On March 1, 2005, BTK suspect, Dennis L. Rader, appeared on a closed-circuit television in Sedgwick County's
District Court to hear the 10 first-degree murder charges filed against him in the murders attributed to the BTK
Strangler. Public Defender Steve Osburn, Public Defender Jama Mitchell and Assistant Public Defender Sarah
McKinno were the court-appointed lawyers that Judge Greg Waller assigned to represent Dennis Rader during
the hearing, the Wichita Eagle reported. The prosecution team will consist of attorneys Kevin O'Connor, Kim
Parker and Aaron Smith. Even though the preliminary hearing has been set for mid-March, the Rader defense
team will likely need more time to prepare for the case. Thus, the hearing might be pushed up to a later date.
Wichita's KAKE-TV reported that Dennis Rader confessed to some but not all of the crimes, yet the report has
not yet been substantiated. In the days following Dennis Rader's arrest, there was a great deal of controversy
concerning whether Rader's daughter played a role in his capture. Previously it was widely reported that Kerri
Rader, 26, turned her father in and supplied the authorities with DNA samples in mid-February, which allegedly
led to her father's arrest. However, according to Sylvester and Witsel's more recent article in the Wichita Eagle,
Farmington, Michigan Police Chief Charles Nebus revealed that Kerri Rader actually supplied FBI agents with her
DNA after her father had already been arrested, which makes it less likely that she played a direct role, if any, in
her father's capture.
Interestingly, David Twiddy reported that Nebus "told The Associated Press that he didn't tell the newspapers a
DNA test was being conducted." Even more intriguing is on a March 2nd Fox News interviewed KAKE-TV anchor
Larry Hatteberg who said that a credible source told him that Kerri Rader's DNA was collected when her father
was under surveillance and that the results of the test were instrumental in Rader's arrest. To date, the facts
remain unclear whether the DNA was obtained prior to or after Dennis Rader was taken into custody.
The police claimed that it wasn't Kerri Rader that led to his arrest but a computer disk that he mailed in a
package along with other items to the Wichita television station KSAS. CNN reported that the computer disk was
scrutinized by investigators and traced to the Lutheran church, where Dennis Rader presided over the
assembly. Police technicians were able to "electronically peel back" information that was thought to have been
erased, leading to the discovery of Dennis Rader's name, it was further reported.
To date, the authorities continue to search for evidence that could be used in the case against Rader. Dennis
Rader's house has since been searched and several items confiscated, including his computer. Sylvester and
Witsel said that metal detectors and shovels are also being used to search areas near Rader's house in the
hopes of finding even more evidence. Hatteberg said during the Fox News interview that Wichita's sheriff has
actually found new evidence that might be linked to the Dennis Rader BTK case but it is unclear what exactly has
been discovered.
High School in Wichita.
Rader was in the Air Force in Viertnam from 1965 to 1969. Joseph Otero, BTK's victim, was also in the Air Force
at the same time.
Rader worked in the meat department for a Park City grocery store and then as an assembler at the Coleman
camping gear firm between 1971 and 1973, where he met two of his earlier victims, Mike Brunker reported in a
MSNBC article.
He worked at ADT Security Services from 1974 through 1989. In 1989, he also worked for the U.S. Census
bureau going door-to-door collecting information. While working in both positions, Rader had access to many
area residents' homes. It is believed that he might have initially encountered some of his victims while on the job.
At some point in the 1970s, Rader married and he and his wife Paula had two children, a boy and girl. At around
the same time, he attended Wichita State University and in 1979 graduated with a degree in Administration of
Justice. According to Fox News, Rader "never became an officer but instead went "into code enforcement, or
what one critic called "a glorified dog catcher."
In his spare time, Rader lead a Cub Scouts group and was active in his church. No one imagined he was capable
of doing any harm to anybody. Many referred to him as a kind of guy who wasn't very noticeable, one who never
really stood out from others. In fact, it was his ability to "blend in" that allowed him to go undetected for so many
years.
New Revelations
Tuesday, March 1 12:05 PM Ron Sylvester of The Wichita Eagle and Frank Witsil of the Detroit Free Press
reported today that 'A Michigan law enforcement official said Monday that federal agents went to the home of
Dennis Rader's daughter to take a DNA sample shortly after his arrest Friday.'
Monday, Feb 28 1:20 p.m. update
Ron Sylvester reported in a February 28, 2005 AP article that investigators believed Dennis Rader was
responsible for 13 murders, although the authorities vehemently deny this. The article further suggested that at
least one of the additional murders is believed to have occurred after 1994, when the death penalty was
re-instated in the state of Kansas. If police can prove that a previously unknown victim of BTK was murdered
after 1994, prosecutors can make a good case for seeking the death penalty in this case, something for which
many of the victim's families are hoping.
Associated Press reported Sunday that a source close to the investigation that police believed that BTK may
have been responsible for the deaths of two Wichita State University students and a woman who lived down the
street from another BTK victim. After Wichita Police Chief Norman Williams threatened legal action against
anyone who spread erroneous information, AP modified its report to say that investigators are "looking into"
whether BTK was responsible for another three killings.
Sedwick County D.A. Nola Foulston insisted that the information in the modified A.P report is false. However, if
the three cases below are not being investigated by police, perhaps they should be. After all, the public has
learned of three new BTK victims in the past year: Vicki Wegerle, Marine Hedge, and Dolores Davis.
Three cases have been posted on Internet bulletin boards which seem to fit the description of the victims in the
Associated Press article.
· "Nov. 12, 1974: Sherry Baker, a Wichita State University student
stabbed in her apartment. Hands tied behind back (with a coiled telephone cord)
No sign of forced entry.
· June 29, 1985: Linda Shawn Casey, a Wichita State University student
found dead on the bedroom floor of her home bound, beaten, sexually assaulted, tabbed repeatedly. No sign of
forced entry. At the time, BTK was mentioned as a possibility but discounted due to the length of time since his
last known victim.
· Nov, 12, 1999: Tina Frederick, lived a few blocks from BTK victim Shirley Vian.
Found shot to death in her apartment - lying on a bedroom floor."
It has also been revealed that at the time Rader worked for the security company ADT between 1974 and 1989,
he "held positions that allowed him access to customers' homes, including a role as an installation manager,"
the Associated Press reported on February 27th. A majority of the murders attributed to BTK have occurred
during the period that Rader was employed by the company. Thus, it is possible that he used his position to seek
out potential victims.
The Wichita Eagle wrote that "Rader worked at ADT Security Services. Nobody who worked with Rader during
his 15 years with the company could stand him, according to several former co-workers."
Dennis Rader is a very polarizing figure: they either hated him or like him. As the Wichita Eagle reported, some
people saw him as "arrogant, by-the-numbers, rude and confrontational. Others said he is efficient, nice, friendly
and a regular guy."
Rader's bail has been set at a whopping $10 million, which will be set or changed during his next court hearing
scheduled in the upcoming days. At that time, the 10 first-degree murder charges against him will be formally
filed. Since there has been no indication, as of yet, that Rader has hired or asked for a lawyer, there is a chance
that the court will have to appoint him one. Regardless, the lawyer will need time to review the case, which will
likely prolong the hearing date, the Associated Press reported.
PICTURE2 Fox News reported that the suspect's daughter Kerri Rader, 26, provided the DNA samples that
allegedly linked Rader to eight murders attributed to BTK between 1974 and 1986. The Wichita Eagle reported on
Feb. 28 that Wichita Mayor Carlos Mayans confirmed that Kerri Rader's DNA was linked to the BTK victims.
Initially broadcast reports indicated that not only did Kerri Rader provide DNA samples to investigators, she had
actually gone to the police to voice suspicions about her father being BTK. This allegation is denied by the Rader
family and police. This ordeal has had a devastating effect on the Rader family, which is reportedly out of state in
seclusion.
According to the Wichita Eagle, BTK's most recent communication was sent to the Fox News Wichita affiliate in
mid February. Inside the package was a necklace, computer disk, and a copy of the cover of the 1989 John
Sandford novel entitled "Rules of Prey." The story is about a serial killer called "the maddog."
Sources:
Associated Press (February 27, 2005). BTK killings suspect led cub scouts.
Fox News, February 27, 2005
Sylvester, Ron (February 28, 2005). Report: BTK suspect confesses to killings. The Wichita Eagle.
Exercising Power and Control
Tuesday, Mar. 03 7:50 a.m. update
Rader was a Compliance Supervisor in Park City
Tuesday, Mar. 03 7:50 a.m. update
Rader was a Compliance Supervisor in Park City
In most cases, serial killers are primarily motivated by the need for power and control. Rader was no different
and often flaunted his self-perceived supremacy in his work and in everyday activities. At the time of Rader's
arrest, he was employed by Park City as a compliance supervisor, which involved "animal control, inoperable
vehicles, general code compliance and nuisances." However, if there was anyone a nuisance, Rader's
neighbors claimed it was he.
Fox News said that Rader was often referred to as a "bureaucratic bully" who would go "out of his way to find
reasons to give people citations." It was further reported that he would go around filming his neighbors in the
hopes of catching them committing some minor transgression. He even measured the grass of one woman he
disliked, in order to catch her in violation of a city ordinance.
According to Fred Mann and Les Anderson's article in the Wichita Eagle, two Park City residents, Sarah Gordon
and her sister Hearther Herrera, had a "run-in" with Rader at their garage sale in the summer of 2004 because
they didn't have a license for it. Rader reportedly told the women, "You don't want to mess with me. I'm nobody to
mess with." He wasn't kidding.
ABC News reported that Donna Barry, a neighbor of Rader's who has known him and his family since she was a
child, had seen a darker side of Rader.
"Barry said she and her children were out on their front lawn one day, and a neighbor from across the street
was outside with his dog. In his capacity as a dog catcher and ordinance officer, Barry said Rader approached
the dog and allegedly tried to mace it.
"But, according to Barry, the 'wind blew the mace back in his face.' She says Rader groped for his tranquilizer
gun, but couldn't get to it. That's when he allegedly pulled out a gun and shot the dog."
Other than the dog incident, "He was generally a really nice gentleman," she said. "I've known him since I was
probably four or five years old. You know, he was the kind of neighbor that you could go down the road and he
would stay up and talk to you and open the door for you and hold a conversation."
The Wichita Eagle reported that "several Park City residents and former co-workers described Rader as
egotistical and arrogant -- a by-the-book person who pays attention to detail. The descriptions in many ways
matched those offered by criminal profilers who have studied BTK. Charlie Otero, whose parents and sister
were BTK's first known victims, believes that if Rader is BTK, he should get the death penalty.
Rader Court Hearing
Tuesday, Mar. 03 3:50 p.m. update
Rader on closed-circuit TV, being informed of the charges against him
On March 1, 2005, BTK suspect, Dennis L. Rader, appeared on a closed-circuit television in Sedgwick County's
District Court to hear the 10 first-degree murder charges filed against him in the murders attributed to the BTK
Strangler. Public Defender Steve Osburn, Public Defender Jama Mitchell and Assistant Public Defender Sarah
McKinno were the court-appointed lawyers that Judge Greg Waller assigned to represent Dennis Rader during
the hearing, the Wichita Eagle reported. The prosecution team will consist of attorneys Kevin O'Connor, Kim
Parker and Aaron Smith. Even though the preliminary hearing has been set for mid-March, the Rader defense
team will likely need more time to prepare for the case. Thus, the hearing might be pushed up to a later date.
Wichita's KAKE-TV reported that Dennis Rader confessed to some but not all of the crimes, yet the report has
not yet been substantiated. In the days following Dennis Rader's arrest, there was a great deal of controversy
concerning whether Rader's daughter played a role in his capture. Previously it was widely reported that Kerri
Rader, 26, turned her father in and supplied the authorities with DNA samples in mid-February, which allegedly
led to her father's arrest. However, according to Sylvester and Witsel's more recent article in the Wichita Eagle,
Farmington, Michigan Police Chief Charles Nebus revealed that Kerri Rader actually supplied FBI agents with her
DNA after her father had already been arrested, which makes it less likely that she played a direct role, if any, in
her father's capture.
Interestingly, David Twiddy reported that Nebus "told The Associated Press that he didn't tell the newspapers a
DNA test was being conducted." Even more intriguing is on a March 2nd Fox News interviewed KAKE-TV anchor
Larry Hatteberg who said that a credible source told him that Kerri Rader's DNA was collected when her father
was under surveillance and that the results of the test were instrumental in Rader's arrest. To date, the facts
remain unclear whether the DNA was obtained prior to or after Dennis Rader was taken into custody.
The police claimed that it wasn't Kerri Rader that led to his arrest but a computer disk that he mailed in a
package along with other items to the Wichita television station KSAS. CNN reported that the computer disk was
scrutinized by investigators and traced to the Lutheran church, where Dennis Rader presided over the
assembly. Police technicians were able to "electronically peel back" information that was thought to have been
erased, leading to the discovery of Dennis Rader's name, it was further reported.
To date, the authorities continue to search for evidence that could be used in the case against Rader. Dennis
Rader's house has since been searched and several items confiscated, including his computer. Sylvester and
Witsel said that metal detectors and shovels are also being used to search areas near Rader's house in the
hopes of finding even more evidence. Hatteberg said during the Fox News interview that Wichita's sheriff has
actually found new evidence that might be linked to the Dennis Rader BTK case but it is unclear what exactly has
been discovered.
B T K
BTK
BTK
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