Zodiac's plea in Belli letter actually copycat writing?

[Zabagliona Profile]

I also concur with Z being bipolar as well as possibly schizoaffective....

Rod, the "mixed" letters do not necessarily mean it was not Heirens....He could have actually written this way, or, as you said, could have done it to try to throw police off, or he could have had some type of learning issue...

[Eduard Profile]

Ooopsss, William Heirens was of course the Lipstick killer.... sorry...

[Pettibon Junction Profile]

Ooopsss, William Heirens was of course the Lipstick killer.... sorry...

Not necessarily...Heirens has always maintained his innocence, insisting that his confession was literally beaten out of him. (Back in those days, this happened quite a bit.) There are other suspects in the Lipstick Killings, especially the Degnan murder, many of them more plausible than Heirens.

I've always felt strongly that the change in handwriting from the initial Zodiac letters in the summer and the more blocky, controlled text of the Belli letter was the result in the killer being bipolar. Specifically, some of the nastier letters (and codes) were written during the killer's manic phase and the more self-pitying letters came during swings of depression. But that's just my hunch.

For what it's worth, one of my first posts on this board was about this very letter. I suspect that its content and target could be the result of the Zodiac trying to lay the groundwork for a DeSalvo defense in the event of his capture (which I feel he believed was imminent.) Link is below:

viewtopic.php?f=89&t=982

[Lucifer's Angel Profile]

Personally, I don't think Zodiac would have allowed himself to be captured alive if he could help it. But that's another story.

[Pettibon Junction Profile]

Personally, I don't think Zodiac would have allowed himself to be captured alive if he could help it. But that's another story.

I disagree. I think, if identified, he'd confess right away. And in the days before the Son of Sam laws, I think he would've tried to sell his story to the highest bidder a la DeSalvo. If you're a serial killer, you only write letters if it's of crucial importance that you maintain control of the narrative. That's how BTK was caught and once he was in custody, he wouldn't shut up. Ditto Berkowitz. Those, I think, are closer to the kind of offender Zodiac was/is rather than, say, someone like Ted Bundy or Gerald Stano who would've been happy to go on killing under the radar.

[Lucifer's Angel Profile]

I agree with you that Zodiac could never settle for killing under the radar. Which is why I don't believe he murdered anyone after Paul. At the same time, though, I believe he valued his freedom, and being in police custody would be the ultimate relinquishment of his control 'over all things'.

We're going off topic; maybe we'd best continue this discussion in another thread?

[Pettibon Junction Profile]

sure. I didn't mean to jack the whole thread; you're just good to banter with

[Bullitt Profile]

I suspect that its content and target could be the result of the Zodiac trying to lay the groundwork for a DeSalvo defense in the event of his capture (which I feel he believed was imminent.)

Why would Z believe that? Unless he had actually been questioned by police between October and December 1969... otherwise, with just one print with traces of blood and several partials, LE was no closer to arresting him unless he had already been arrested and fingerprinted at some point. That's why I think this was just a joke on Z's part, because they weren't any closer to catching him then than they are today.

And why can't Z have come up with this on his own? Granted, he appeared to imitate other things, but isn't it possible that he was capable of coming up with something on his own, such as this letter, without being inspired by something else?

[Zabagliona Profile]

...Heirens was the Lipstick Killer....they've had plenty of chances to test DNA, and if they thought he were innocent he would have been out by now....They won't even parole him as an old man....huge clue right there...

Z may or may not have seen this...the phrase is a "common usage" type of thing...not all that unique in my opinion...