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Birth
Born Richard David Falco in Brooklyn, NY -
New Name
He was adopted by Nathan and Pearl Berkowitz. Since they were Jewish, his name became David Berkowitz. -
Joined the U.S Army
active until 1974 -
1st attack
He attacked two women with a knife. -
1st victim
Jody Valenti and Donna Lauria were shot in Bronx, but only Valenti survived. -
Queens, NY
Carl Denaro and Rosemary Keenan were shot in the head, Carl survived. -
Queens, NY
Donna DeMasi and Joanne Lomino were shot, DeMasi survived, Lomino was paralyzed. -
4th victim
Christine Freund and John Diel were shot, Diel survived. -
NYPD
Determined the shooter used .44 caliber to kill -
Piecing Together
Virginia Voskerichian was shot in Queens, NY; .44 caliber shell matched July 29, 1976 shooting -
NYPD
Police determined it to be the same pistol from other shootings. -
Bronx, NY
Alexander Esau and Valentina Surani were shot and a hand written letter was found at the scene. -
Queens, NY
Sal Lupo and Judy Placido were shot, but both lived. -
The Letter
The letter was analyzed and they believed he had paranoid schizophrenia. He called himself the Son of Sam and claimed to not hate women. -
The Daily News
Jimmy Breslin received a handwritten letter from the shooter. The Daily News then posted the letter, excluding minor details. -
Brooklyn, NY
Stacy Moskowitz and Robert Violante were shot. Only Violante survived, but was blinded. -
David Berkowitz Arrest
Arrested in Yonkers, NY; claimed that a neighbors possessed dog told him to kill people. -
Conviction
Sentenced to 365 years in prison.
