Show notes
Herbert Mullin: The Santa Cruz Killer Who Believed Murder Prevented Earthquakes
In 1972, Herbert Mullin murdered thirteen people across Santa Cruz, California, during a six-month killing spree that terrorized the community already known as the "Murder Capital of the World." The homicide investigation revealed victims ranging from a hitchhiking college student to a Catholic priest killed inside a confessional booth, with forensic evidence and detective work eventually connecting the seemingly random murders to one disturbed killer whose conviction would hinge on whether his paranoid schizophrenia diagnosis proved legal insanity.
Herb Mullin genuinely believed he was saving California from sliding into the Pacific Ocean. He wasn't hunting for power or sexual gratification. He was a former high school golden boy, voted Most Likely to Succeed, who had his brain completely shatter after his best friend died in a car crash. He thought if he could get thirteen people to telepathically agree to die, their blood would keep the San Andreas Fault from ripping the state in half. The mental health system saw him deteriorating in real time and still couldn't prevent what was coming.
#HerbertMullin #SantaCruzKiller #TrueCrime #SerialKiller #ColdCase #MurderPodcast #CaliforniaCrime
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In 1972, Herbert Mullin murdered thirteen people across Santa Cruz, California, during a six-month killing spree that terrorized the community already known as the "Murder Capital of the World." The homicide investigation revealed victims ranging from a hitchhiking college student to a Catholic priest killed inside a confessional booth, with forensic evidence and detective work eventually connecting the seemingly random murders to one disturbed killer whose conviction would hinge on whether his paranoid schizophrenia diagnosis proved legal insanity.
Herb Mullin genuinely believed he was saving California from sliding into the Pacific Ocean. He wasn't hunting for power or sexual gratification. He was a former high school golden boy, voted Most Likely to Succeed, who had his brain completely shatter after his best friend died in a car crash. He thought if he could get thirteen people to telepathically agree to die, their blood would keep the San Andreas Fault from ripping the state in half. The mental health system saw him deteriorating in real time and still couldn't prevent what was coming.
#HerbertMullin #SantaCruzKiller #TrueCrime #SerialKiller #ColdCase #MurderPodcast #CaliforniaCrime
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