The Boston Strangler is a mysterious serial killer believed to have murdered many women in the early 1960s. The first victim, Anna Slesers, was found dead on June 14, 1962. In the following months, several more women were found dead, seemingly killed by the same person.
The exact number of victims is disputed, with some accounts suggesting that the killer murdered 11 women and others suggesting that the number could be as high as 15.
Six decades after Slesers’s death, the true-crime saga of the Boston Strangler remains a dark and distressing story.
It involves a controversial confession, breakthrough DNA evidence, and a pioneering journalist who first connected the deaths.
A new film on Hulu called Boston Strangler explores the role of this journalist, Loretta McLaughlin, in covering the story. Keira Knightley plays the role of McLaughlin.
The women were all found dead in their homes, most of whom had been strangled. One victim, Mary Mullen, was found to have died of a heart attack, while another, Beverly Samans, had been stabbed to death. It was initially unclear whether the same person had committed all the murders.
From June 1962 to Jan 1964, Boston and its suburbs had eleven similar stranglings. The police were uncertain whether these stranglings were the work of one man, but they couldn’t be sure until they caught the culprit and obtained a confession.
The Boston Strangler Had A Far-Reaching Effect
The Boston Strangler had a far-reaching effect on the city because of the unknown and bizarre nature of the case. Some women left the city, while others lived in constant fear.
The Boston Strangler went unpunished for many years. Albert DeSalvo, however, admitted to the killings in 1965.
On unrelated charges, he was a manufacturing worker being held at Bridgewater State Hospital, a facility for prisoners deemed unable to control their behavior because of mental health concerns.
However, DeSalvo’s confession did not provide enough evidence for him to be charged with the murders.
He never faced charges related to the Boston Strangler killings, and ultimately, he recanted his confession. In 1967, DeSalvo was found guilty of another series of attacks and was sentenced to life in prison. His lawyer, F Lee Bailey, also represented Patty Hearst and OJ Simpson.
DeSalvo was never formally accused of committing the Boston Strangler killings. Following DeSalvo’s release from the Billerica House of Detention in the spring of 1962, 13 homicides occurred, according to Bailey, who testified on his client’s behalf in court.
To persuade the jury that DeSalvo could not be held accountable for his acts, he brought up those murders.
DeSalvo’s Identity As The Boston Strangler
DeSalvo’s identity as the Boston Strangler remained an open topic. Mary Sullivan, who was thought to be the Boston Strangler’s final victim, and DeSalvo’s unearthed body in 2001 yielded DNA evidence suggesting DeSalvo had not killed her.
However, additional testing was carried out in 2013 using DNA discovered on a water bottle that DeSalvo’s nephew had thrown away.
According to the National Institute of Justice, the tests implicated DeSalvo and eliminated 99.9 percent of the male population.
This gave officials permission to exhume DeSalvo’s body and collect fresh DNA. DeSalvo had already passed away after being stabbed in 1973.
