Son of Sam," was a 1970s New York City serial killer who killed six people and wounded several others. David Falco Berkowitz was born June 1, 1953. It bothered David that his birth mother did not want him. His murders began after a three-year enlistment in the Army. The first murder took place July 29, 1976, when he fired into a car killing Donna Lauria and wounding Jody Valentini.

The title Son of Sam was coined by Sam Carr. According to David, Carr was a "high demon" who sent his "evil" labrador dog to tell David to kill. He targeted adolescent girls with long, dark hair and young couples.

David Berkowitz wrote a letter to police while he terrorized the city with a handgun

"Let me haunt you with these words: I'll be back! I'll be back! To be interpreted as bang, bang, bang, bang, bang - ugh!!"

Because he had a parking citation near the crime scene, an investigation led police to David. He immediately confessed, and was arrested on August 10, 1977.

"Throughout the past year, the people of this city had seen many faces of the "44 Caliber Killer" in a series of police composite sketches. Not one of his victims saw the "Son of Sam" smile. But as David Berkowitz was led into police headquarters early this evening, he broke into a macabre grin."

June 12, 1978, he was sentenced to 365 years in prison.

He first claimed he received orders to kill from a barking dog. Later he retracted that statement as false and said he was a Satanist. He asked a former priest turned exorcist, Malachi Martin, to visit him. In 1987 he became a born-again Christian and is now a prison chaplain.

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