David Richard Berkowitz (born June 1 1953), also known as the .44 Caliber Killer and the Son of Sam, is an American serial killer and arsonist.

Shortly after his arrest in August 1977, Berkowitz confessed to killing six people and wounding seven others in the course of eight shootings in New York City between 1976 and 1977. He has been imprisoned for the crimes since 1977. His crimes had terrorized New York for a year. Berkowitz subsequently claimed that he was commanded to kill by a demon who possessed his neighbor's dog.

Berkowitz later amended his confession to claim he was the shooter in only two incidents, personally killing three people and wounding a fourth. The other victims were killed, Berkowitz claimed, by members of a violent Satanic cult of which he was a member. Though he remains the only person charged with or convicted of the shootings, some law enforcement authorities argue that Berkowitz's claims are credible: according to John Hockenberry of MSNBC, many officials involved in the original "Son of Sam" case suspected that more than one person was perpetrating the murders. Hockenberry also reports that the Son of Sam case was reopened in 1996 and, as of 2004, it was still considered open.

Early life

Berkowitz was born Richard David Falco in Brooklyn, New York. His mother Betty Falco (nee Broder) was married to Tony Falco, with whom she had a daughter before the couple separated without legally divorcing. After this, Betty Falco had an affair with the married Joseph Kleinman, who fathered a son. Kleimann suggested Betty Falco abort their child, but she gave birth to Richard David and listed Tony Falco as the father.

Before he was a week old, the baby was adopted by hardware store owners Nathan and Pearl Berkowitz, who reversed the order of his first and middle names in addition to giving him their own surname.

John Vincent Sanders writes, "David's childhood was somewhat troubled. Although of above-average intelligence, he lost interest in learning at an early age and began an infatuation with petty larceny and pyromania. Pearl Berkowitz died of breast cancer when David was a teenager, and his relationship with his father became strained, particularly because David disapproved of Nathan's second wife. Berkowitz later claimed his new step-sister was interested in witchcraft, sparking an interest in the occult he would later pursue more actively.

Berkowitz joined the U.S. Army in 1971, and was active until his honorable discharge in 1974. He avoided service in the Vietnam War, instead serving in both the U.S. and South Korea.

In 1974 Berkowitz located his birth mother, Betty Falco. After a few visits, she disclosed the details of his illegitimate conception and birth, which greatly disturbed him. They fell out of contact, but Berkowitz did stay in touch with his half-sister, Roslyn. Son of Sam, David Berkowitz, famous serial killer - The Crime library. Marilyn Bardsley. .

Though discovery of the letter was an open secret, the contents were not made public. Only a few hints were leaked: police speculated that the letter-writer might be familiar with Scottish English — the phrase "me hoot, it hurts, sonny boy" was taken as a Scots-accented version of "my heart, it hurts, sonny boy"; and the police also hypothesized that the shooter blamed a dark-haired nurse for his father's death — due to the "too many heart attacks" phrase, and the facts that Lauria was a medical technician and Valenti was studying to be a nurse. On July 28th, New York Daily News columnist Jimmy Breslin alluded to the "wemon" quirk and referred to the shooter watching the world from "his attic window.

Psychological profile and other police investigations

After consulting with several psychiatrists, police released a psychological profile of their suspect on May 26, 1977. He was described as neurotic and probably suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and believing himself a victim of demonic possession.

Police questioned the owners of 56 .44 Bulldog revolvers legally registered in New York City, and forensically tested each weapon, ruling them out as the murder weapons.

Among other unsuccessful ideas, police created traps with undercover officers posed as lovers parked in isolated areas, hoping to lure the shooter.

Breslin letter

On May 30, 1977, columnist Jimmy Breslin of the New York Daily News received a hand-written letter from someone who claimed to be the .44 shooter. The letter was postmarked early on May 30 in Englewood, New Jersey. On the reverse of the envelope was hand-printed a precisely-centered quatrain:

Blood and Family/Darkness and Death/Absolute Depravity/.44

The letter read:

Hello from the gutters of N.Y.C. which are filled with dog manure, vomit, stale wine, urine and blood. Hello from the sewers of N.Y.C. which swallow up these delicacies when they are washed away by the sweeper trucks. Hello from the cracks in the sidewalks of N.Y.C. and from the ants that dwell in these cracks and feed in the dried blood of the dead that has settled into the cracks. J.B., I'm just dropping you a line to let you know that I appreciate your interest in those recent and horrendous .44 killings. I also want to tell you that I read your column daily and I find it quite informative. Tell me Jim, what will you have for July twenty-ninth? You can forget about me if you like because I don't care for publicity. However you must not forget Donna Lauria and you cannot let the people forget her either. She was a very, very sweet girl but Sam's a thirsty lad and he won't let me stop killing until he gets his fill of blood. Mr. Breslin, sir, don't think that because you haven't heard from [me] for a while that I went to sleep. No, rather, I am still here. Like a spirit roaming the night. Thirsty, hungry, seldom stopping to rest; anxious to please Sam. I love my work. Now, the void has been filled. Perhaps we shall meet face to face someday or perhaps I will be blown away by cops with smoking .38's. Whatever, if I shall be fortunate enough to meet you I will tell you all about Sam if you like and I will introduce you to him. His name is "Sam the terrible." Not knowing the what the future holds I shall say farewell and I will see you at the next job. Or should I say you will see my handiwork at the next job? Remember Ms. Lauria. Thank you. In their blood and from the gutter "Sam's creation" .44 Here are some names to help you along. Forward them to the inspector for use by N.C.I.C: [sic] "The Duke of Death" "The Wicked King Wicker" "The Twenty Two Disciples of Hell" "Method Man" "John 'Wheaties' -- Rapist and Suffocator of Young Girls" "Inspectah Deck". PS: Please inform all the detectives working the slaying to remain. P.S: [sic] JB, Please inform all the detectives working the case that I wish them the best of luck. "Keep 'em digging, drive on, think positive, get off your butts, knock on coffins, etc." Upon my capture I promise to buy all the guys working the case a new pair of shoes if I can get up the money. Son of Sam

Underneath the "Son of Sam" was a logo or sketch that combined several symbols. The writer's question, "What will you have for July 29?" was taken as an ominous threat: July 29th would be the anniversary of the first .44 Caliber shooting.

Police and public response to the Breslin letter

Breslin notified police, who thought the letter was probably from someone with knowledge of the shootings. Sophisticated in its wording and presentation — especially when compared to the crudely written first letter — police suspected the Breslin letter might have been created in an art studio or similar professional location by someone with expertise in printing, calligraphy, graphic design or architecture.

Based on the "Wicked King Wicker" reference, police arranged a private screening of The Wicker Man, a 1970s horror film.

A week later, after consulting with police and agreeing to withhold portions of the text, the Daily News published the letter, and Breslin urged the killer to turn himself over to authorities. Reportedly, over 1.1 million copies of that day's paper were sold.

The letter caused a panic in New York, and based on references in the publicized portions of the letter, police received thousands of tips, all of which proved baseless.

As all the shooting victims so far had long, dark hair, thousands of women in New York cut or dyed their hair, and beauty supply stores had trouble meeting the demand for blond wigs. Despite being one of the hottest summers on record, people stayed indoors at night, ignoring the longstanding tradition of spending sultry evenings outdoors.

Sal Lupo and Judy Placido shooting

On June 26, 1977, there was another shooting. Sal Lupo, 20, and Judy Placido, 17, had left the Elephas discotheque in the Bayside section of Queens. According to Chris Summers of the BBC, the young couple were sitting in their car at about 3:00 a.m. when Placido said, "This Son of Sam is really scary — the way that guy comes out of nowhere. You never know where he'll hit next." Moments later, three gunshots blasted through the car.

Both were struck by slugs, but their injuries were relatively minor, and both survived. Neither Lupo or Placido had seen their attacker(s), but witnesses reported a tall, stocky, dark-haired man sprinting from the area, and a blonde man with a mustache who drove from the neighborhood in a Chevy Nova without turning on its headlights. Police speculated the dark-haired man was the shooter, and that the blonder man had observed the crime.

Berkowitz later claimed that cult member Michael Carr shot Lupo and Placido. Additionally, Berkowitz claimed that cult members had long wanted to shoot someone at the Elephas disco, thinking the site significant in light of their interest in the work of noted 19th century occultist Eliphas Levi.

Stacy Moskowitz and Robert Violente shooting

It was near the one-year anniversary of the first .44 caliber shootings, and police set up a sizable dragnet focusing on past hunting grounds of Queens and The Bronx. However, the next .44 shooting was in Brooklyn.

Early on July 31, 1977, Stacy Moskowitz and Robert Violente, both 20, were in Violente's car, which was parked under a streetlight near a city park. They were kissing when a man approached to within about three feet of the passenger side of Violente's car, fired several gunshots into the car, striking both victims in the head, before running into the park. Moskowitz died several hours later in the hospital. Violente survived, though one of his eyes was destroyed and he retained only very limited vision in the other eye. With her short, curly blonde hair, Moskowitz was a departure from the other female victims. Based on telephone calls to police within seconds of the shooting, the crime occurred at 2:35 a.m.

The Moskowitz-Violente crime produced more witnesses than any of the other Son of Sam murders, notably the only direct eyewitness who was not an intended victim. During the shooting, Tommy Zaino, 19, was parked with his date in a car three car lengths ahead of Violente's. Moments before the shooting, Zaino saw a peripheral glimpse of the shooter's approach and happened to glance in his rear view mirror just in time to see the crime occur. Due to the bright street light and full moon, Zaino clearly saw the perpetrator for several seconds, later describing him as 25 to 30 years old, of average height (5'7" to 5'9") with shaggy hair that was dark blonde or light brown — "it looked like a wig", Zaino said.

About a minute after the shooting, a woman seated next to her boyfriend in his car on the other side of the city park saw a "white male [who was wearing] a light-colored, cheap nylon wig" sprint from the park and enter a "small, light-colored" auto, which drove away quickly. "He looks like he just robbed a bank," said the woman, who wrote what she could see of the car's license plate: unable to determine the first two characters, she was certain the others were either 4-GUR or 4-GVR.

Other witnesses included a woman who saw a light car speed away from the park about 20 seconds after the gunshots, and at least two witnesses who described a yellow Volkswagen driving quickly from the neighborhood with its headlights off. A neighborhood resident given the pseudonym Mary Lyons heard the gunshots and Violente's calls for help, and glancing from her apartment window, she saw a man she later positively identified as Berkowitz, who was walking casually away from the crime scene as many others were rushing towards the scene to render aid.

Shortly after 2:35 a.m., a man given the pseudonym Alan Masters was passing through an intersection a few blocks from the park. Masters was nearly struck by what he described as a yellow Volkswagen Beetle that sped through the intersection, against the red light and without headlights, with the driver holding his door shut with his arm as he drove. Angered and alarmed, Masters followed the Volkswagen at high speed for several minutes before losing sight of the vehicle. Masters described the driver as a white male in his late 20s or early 30s, with a narrow face; dark, long, stringy hair; several days growth of dark whiskers on his face; and wearing a blue jacket. Upset, Masters neglected to note the Volkswagen's license plate number, but he thought it might have been a New Jersey rather than a New York plate. Violente encountered a very similar man as he and Moskowitz were in the park shortly before the shooting, describing him as a "grubby-looking hippy" with whiskers, wiry hair over his forehead, dark eyes, and wearing a denim jacket.

Berkowitz would later claim that the shooter in the Moskowitz-Violente case was a friend of John Carr's who had arrived from North Dakota for the occasion. Additionally, Berkowitz would claim that after his Ford Galaxie, license plate 561 XLB, received a parking ticket at 2:05 a.m. for being parked too close to a fire hydrant near the city park, he tried to persuade two other cult members at the scene to postpone or relocate the crime. Berkowitz claimed his suggestion was overruled, and he was ordered to remain in the area to make sure no police were nearby.

Police activities after the Moskowitz-Violente shooting

Police didn't learn of the Moskowitz-Violente shooting until about 2.50 a.m., and Dowd didn't think it was another Son of Sam shooting until an officer at the scene reported that large-caliber shells had been used.

About an hour after the shooting, police set up a series of roadblocks, stopping hundreds of cars to question drivers and inspect vehicles. Based on extended interviews of Masters and others who described a Volkswagen speeding from the crime scene, police now suspected that the shooter owned or drove such a vehicle. In subsequent days, police determined there were over 900 Volkswagens in New York or New Jersey, and they made plans to track down each of these cars and their owners.

Suspicion and capture

Despite dedicated police investigation of the Son of Sam crimes, Berkowitz was arrested primarily due to serendipity. The evening of the Moskowitz and Violante shooting, Cacilia Davis, who lived near the crime scene, saw Berkowitz loitering in the neighborhood and glaring menacingly at passersby for several hours before removing a parking ticket from his yellow Ford Galaxie which had been parked too close to a fire hydrant. Two days after the shooting, although she was afraid, she contacted police.

Despite their claims to the contrary, police initially thought Berkowitz a possible witness, not a perpetrator. Not until August 9, 1977 — seven days after Cacilia Davis informed police about the parking ticket man — did NYPD Detective James Justis telephone Yonkers police to ask them to schedule an interview with Berkowitz. The Yonkers police dispatcher who first took Justis' call was none other than Wheat Carr — the daughter of Sam Carr and sister of Berkowitz's alleged cult confederates John and Michael Carr.

Hockenberry writes that Justis asked "the [Yonkers] police for some help tracking [Berkowitz] down. Mike Novotny was a sergeant at the Yonkers Police Department. According to Novotny, the Yonkers police had their own suspicions about Berkowitz, in connection with other strange crimes in Yonkers, crimes they saw referenced in one of the Son of Sam letters. To the shock of the NYPD they told the New York City detective that Berkowitz might just be the Son of Sam."

The next day, police investigated Berkowitz's car parked on the street outside his Pine Street apartment in Yonkers, New York. Police saw a Commando Mark III rifle in the backseat. Searching the car, police found a duffel bag filled with ammunition, maps of the crime scenes and a letter to Sgt. Dowd of the Omega task force, threatening further murders. Police decided to wait for Berkowitz to emerge from the apartment rather than risk a violent encounter in the narrow apartment hallway.

Berkowitz emerged from the building shortly before 10.00 p.m., carrying a .44 Bulldog in a paper sack. Police arrested Berkowitz as he was starting the car outside his apartment on Pine Street in Yonkers on August 10, 1977. His first words upon arrest were reported to be, "You got me. What took you so long?

Police searched his apartment, and found it in disarray, with Satanic graffiti on the walls. They also found a diary wherein Berkowitz took credit for dozens of arsons throughout the New York area (some sources tell that this number might be as high as 1,411).

Questioning

Police were worried that, if challenged in court, their initial search of Berkowitz's vehicle might be ruled unconstitutional. Police had no search warrant, and their justification for the search of Berkowitz's car might seem flimsy — they'd searched initially based on the rifle visible in the back seat, though possession of such a rifle was legal in New York State, and required no special permit.

To the relief of police, however, Berkowitz quickly confessed to the shootings, and expressed an interest in pleading guilty in exchange for receiving life imprisonment rather than facing the death penalty. Berkowitz was questioned for about 30 minutes in the early morning of August 11, 1977, and he quickly confessed to the "Son of Sam" killings.

During questioning, Berkowitz said that the "Sam" mentioned in the first letter was Sam Carr, his former neighbor. Berkowitz claimed that Carr's labrador retriever dog, Harvey, was possessed by an ancient demon, and that it issued irresistible commands that Berkowitz must kill people. Berkowitz said he once tried to kill the dog, but was unsuccessful due to supernatural interference.

Sentencing

During his sentencing, Berkowitz repeatedly chanted "Stacy was a whore" at a low yet audible volume. He was referring, presumably, to Stacy Moskowitz, who died in the final .44 caliber shooting. His behavior caused an uproar, and the courtroom was adjourned. Berkowitz later claimed that his statement was a response to Moskowitz's mother, who frequently opined that Berkowitz should be executed.

He was sentenced on June 12, 1978 to six life sentences in prison for the killings, making his maximum term 365 years. He was first imprisoned at the Attica Correctional Facility.

Berkowitz's life in prison

Berkowitz claimed that the Hall & Oates song "Rich Girl" motivated the murders, but the song was not released until February of 1977, after the first four shootings had already taken place.

In 1979, there was an attempt on Berkowitz's life. He refused to identify the person(s) who had attacked him with a knife but suggested that the act was directed by the cult he once belonged to. He bears a permanent scar down his left shoulder that took 52 stitches to close.

In 1987, Berkowitz became a born again Christian while in prison. According to his personal testimony, his moment of conversion came after reading Psalm 34:6 from a Gideon's Pocket Testament Bible given to him by a fellow inmate. In the same testimony, he stated that his obsession with and heavy involvement in the occult played a major role in the Son of Sam murders.

In March 2002, Berkowitz sent a letter to New York governor George Pataki asking that his parole hearing be canceled, stating: "In all honesty, I believe that I deserve to be in prison for the rest of my life. I have, with God’s help, long ago come to terms with my situation and I have accepted my punishment. In June 2004, he was denied a second parole hearing after he stated that he did not want one. The parole board saw that he had a good record in the prison programs, but decided that the brutality of his crimes called for him to stay imprisoned. In July 2006, the board once again denied parole on similar grounds, with Berkowitz not in attendance at the hearing. He is very involved in prison ministry and regularly counsels troubled inmates.

In June 2005, Berkowitz sued his former attorney Hugo Harmatz, claiming he had taken possession of Berkowitz's letters and other personal belongings in order to publish a book of his own. Berkowitz stated that he would only drop the lawsuit if the attorney signed over all money he makes to the victims' families. On October 25, 2006, Berkowitz and Harmatz settled out of court, with Harmatz agreeing to return the disputed items to Berkowitz's present attorney Mark Jay Heller, and to donate part of his book profits to the New York State Crime Victims Board.

Shortly before her death in 2006, Stacy Moskowitz's mother Neysa wrote Berkowitz a letter saying she had forgiven him for his crimes. "She would say things like, 'This kind of anger can make you sick. Don't let anger eat you up,' " said her close friend and neighbor, Sharon Denaro. Moskowitz lived her final days in a Miami co-op, surrounded by pictures of her daughters, whom she talked about constantly. "She said she did forgive everyone," Denaro said. "She needed to relieve herself of anger to be able to move forward with her life."

Berkowitz is currently housed in Sullivan Correctional Facility in Fallsburg, New York. Berkowitz has an "official" website maintained on his behalf by a church group as he is not allowed access to a computer.

Berkowitz is currently writing a memoir, titled Son of Hope: The Prison Journals of David Berkowitz, which he plans to publish through Morning Star Communications. Berkowitz himself receives no money from publication, and a portion of the proceeds goes to the New York state crime victims board for distribution to the victims of his crimes.

List of victims

• Donna Lauria, 18, July 29, 1976
• Jody Valenti, 19, July 29, 1976 (survived)
• Carl Denaro, 19, October 23, 1976 (survived)
• Rosemary Keenan, 18, October 23, 1976, (survived)
• Donna DeMasi, 16, November 26, 1976, (survived)
• Joanne Lomino, 18, November 26, 1976, (survived)
• Christine Freund, 26, January 30, 1977
• John Diel, 30, January 30, 1977 (survived)
• Virginia Voskerichian, 19, March 8, 1977
• Alexander Esau, 20, April 17, 1977
• Valentina Suriani, 18, April 17, 1977
• Sal Lupo, 20, June 26, 1977 (survived)
• Judy Placido, 17, June 26, 1977 (survived)
• Stacy Moskowitz, 20, July 31, 1977
• Robert Violente, 20, July 31, 1977 (survived)

Laws

One major side effect of Berkowitz's murder spree were the "Son of Sam laws" enacted in several states in the 1980s.

The first of these laws was enacted in New York state after rampant speculation about publishers offering Berkowitz large sums of money for his story. The new law, named for Berkowitz, authorized the state to seize all money earned from such a deal from a criminal for five years, with intentions to use the seized money to compensate victims.

Satanic cult claims

Within a few weeks of his arrest, Berkowitz was hinting that others were involved in the .44 murders. In a letter to the New York Post dated September 19, 1977, Berkowitz repeated the possessed dog story, but closed out his missive with the warning, "There are other Sons out there — God help the world.

In later years, he has discussed the cult claims in greater detail, but alleges that he cannot divulge all he knows without putting his family at risk. The cult had roughly two dozen core members in New York — the "twenty-two disciples of hell" mentioned in the Breslin letter. The cult had ties across the U.S., claimed Berkowitz, and was deeply involved in drug smuggling and other illegal activities. Berkowitz reportedly invited the former priest and exorcist Malachi Martin to visit him to discuss his past Satanic cult involvement.

Hockenberry asserts that, even aside from the Satanic cult claims, many officials doubted the single-shooter theory, writing, "[w]hat most don't know about the Son of Sam case is that from the beginning, not everyone bought the idea that Berkowitz acted alone. The list of skeptics includes both the police who worked the case and the prosecutor from Queens where five of the shootings took place."

Son of Sam case reopened based on cult claims

Journalist Maury Terry began investigating the Son of Sam shootings before Berkowitz was arrested. Doubtful of the single shooter theory favored by police, Terry dug deeper into the case, noting a number of unresolved questions and inconsistencies that he first publicized in a March, 1978 newspaper article.

Eventually interviewing Berkowitz several times, Terry uncovered evidence that he argues strongly support the idea that a violent offshoot of the Process Church was responsible for the Son of Sam murders and many other crimes. After consulting with police and agreeing to withhold some names and other details, Terry publicized his conclusions first in a series of newspaper articles distributed by the Gannett syndicate in 1979, and later in his book The Ultimate Evil, which has been expanded several times since its 1987 publication. Queens' district attorney John Santucci, who thought the case against Berkowitz was riddled with inconsistencies and unresolved questions, was so impressed with Terry's research that, as Chris Summers of the BBC writes, "he agreed to reopen the Son of Sam case ... But to date no-one else has ever been charged in connection with the crimes."

Arlis Perry claims

In October 1978 Berkowitz mailed a book about witchcraft and other occult subjects to police in North Dakota. He had underlined several passages, offering some marginal notes, including the phrase: "Arliss [sic] Perry, Hunted, Stalked and Slain. Followed to Calif. Stanford University."

Arlis Perry, a newlywed 19-year-old North Dakota native, had been killed in a chapel on the grounds of Stanford University on October 12, 1974. Her murder remains unsolved. Berkowitz also mentioned the Perry murder in a few letters, suggesting that he heard details of the crime from "Manson II", the culprit. In the San Jose Mercury News, Jessie Seyfer noted that "investigators interviewed him in prison and now believe he has nothing of value to offer" regarding the Perry case.

Real-life sons of Sam

Berkowitz claimed that brothers John and Michael Carr — the real-life sons of Yonkers resident Sam Carr — were members of the same Satanic cult. John was the "John Wheaties, rapist and suffocator of young girls" mentioned in the Breslin letter.

Both Carr brothers came to violent deaths within two years of Berkowitz's arrest. John Carr was discovered dead in February 1978 in his girlfriend's North Dakota home; police initially viewed his death as suspicious, but it was ultimately ruled a probable suicide. Michael Carr died in a single-car traffic accident in October 1979, on Manhattan's West Side Highway.

Berkowitz claims that both Carr brothers were probably murdered by Satanic cult members because their heavy drug use marked them as untrustworthy and likely to become informants.

Story adaptations

• The 1985 CBS film Out of the Darkness was the first to deal with the Son of Sam killings, and was told from the point of view of Ed Zigo, one of the detectives responsible for capturing Berkowitz by poring over parking tickets given to an illegally parked car in Brooklyn near where Stacy Moskowitz was murdered. Zigo was played by Martin Sheen. The Son of Sam was played by Robert Trebor to great critical acclaim.
• The 1999 film Summer of Sam, directed by Spike Lee and set in 1977, depicts the tensions that develop in a Bronx neighborhood during the shootings. Berkowitz was played by Michael Badalucco.
• The 2007 ESPN mini-series The Bronx is Burning features the murders as a backdrop.
• Son of Sam killings are referenced several times in the sitcom Seinfeld. In "The Diplomat's Club", Newman claims to take over his mail route and that Son of Sam is "the worst mass murderer the post office ever produced" and that "there a lot of dogs on that route. In "The Junk Mail", George Costanza screams while running away "I knew it wasn't Berkowitz!" after mistaking Fragile Frankie shouting "Is this Seinfeld's van? Seinfeld's van? Seinfeld's van?!" for Son of Sam. In "The Engagement", when the authorities finally track down Newman for his involvement in a dog-napping, he says "What took you so long?", echoing Berkowitz's famous words to police. In "The Frogger", Kramer mentions a serial killer known as "The Lopper", but suggests "Son of Dad" as an alternative moniker.
• Son of Sam killings are also referenced in the season three finale of Criminal Minds.

Music

• "Son of Sam" is a 1978 song by The Dead Boys on the album We Have Come for Your Children.
• "Son of Sam", a 1989 song by Marilyn Manson & The Spooky Kids on the cassettes The Raw Boned Psalms and The Beaver Meat Cleaver Beat. Daisy Berkowitz was used as the pseudonym for the guitarist of Marilyn Manson & The Spooky Kids, using the first name from actress Daisy Duke and the last name from Berkowitz.
• "Son of Sam", a 1992 song by Meat Beat Manifesto on the album Satyricon.
• "Son of Sam", a 2000 single by Elliott Smith from the album Figure 8.
• Son of Sam, a horror punk supergroup.
• It was reported in the news that the barely audible voices in Jimi Hendrix's song "Purple Haze" were saying "Son of Sam."
• "Son of Sam" is a 1987 song by Macabre on their album Grim Reality.
• Offspring song "Original Prankster" contains the lyrics "Son of Sam- fire always makes it better."
• Immortal Technique song "leaving the past" contains the lyrics "verbally murderous like david berkowitz when im gunin"
• Papoose also mentions "son of sam" in many of his songs, including "What the fuck is a papoose"
• Flobots song "Stand Up" contains the lyrics "Under God but we kill like the Son of Sam."
• The Cypress Hill song "Insane in the Brain" contains the lyrics "Damn, I feel like the Son of Sam."
• The song "Represent" by Nas, contains the lyrics "Could use a gun son, but fuck being the wanted man//but if I hit rock bottom then I'mma be the Son of Sam"
• In 1999, the music label, Hollywood, issued a compilation album of songs from 1977, called, Summer of Sam.
• Shinedown released a song entitled Son of Sam on the extended edition of their album The Sound of Madness, though the title and the phrase "say goodbye, goodnight" are the only references to Berkowitz that the song contains.
• Cam'ron's 2002 Hot 97 freestyle includes lyrics "I'm the Son of Sam/Killa Cam brought The Roc back to Summer Jam"
• Lupe Fiasco's song "Ooh" includes lyrics "Better listen to your dos or get son of sammed up"
• The song "Get Off" by Cinema Bizarre includes lyrics "It can be scary baby ghostly I am I'm coming through like I'm the Lost son of sam"
• The song "Jumping At Shadows" by Benediction includes fragments from letters sent by Berkowitz
• The song "Mr.44" by The Electric Hellfire Club off the 1987 album 'Burn,Baby,Burn' is based on The Son Of Sam case.

References

Further reading

• Rowlett, Curt (2006). Labyrinth13: True Tales of the Occult, Crime & Conspiracy, Chapter 10, , Son of Sam and the Process Church of the Final Judgment: Exploring the Alleged Connections. Lulu Press. ISBN 1-4116-6083-8.

External links

• Crime Library
• David Berkowitz section of CharlieManson.com
• Forgiven for Life The Official Home Page of David Berkowitz
• Journal Caso abierto David Berkowitz
• Arise and Shine Journals and other information about David Berkowitz
• I Am the Son of Sam An article asking whether Berkowitz was the only killer using the Son of Sam MO and if he was linked to a Black Magic underground
• David Berkowitz television interview May 2007, WCBS-TV in New York
• 1977 Coverage of the Case from WCBS-AM in New York
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