#co-ed killer

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(around 1973—1979)

Ed Kemper’s suicidal tendencies while in jail.

Suicidal Actions Archives - Edmund Kemper Stories

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Halloween/Horror 10-29-2024

Theme: Ed Kemper

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Edmund “The Co-Ed Killer” Kemper

Welcome to the bonus post! As I said in my last update, I chose who to write about next by using a number generator and when this guy came up, I was too excited to wait so you guys get two posts in one day.  Also, I realized that I forgot my trigger warning in my last post so if you read it and it triggered you, I am SO sorry. I’ll do my best to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Alright, so if you’ve watched Mindhunter on Netflix, you definitely know who this guy is. If not, go watch it because it’s a great show.

TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of abuse, murder, animal abuse and necrophilia

Edmund Kemper, born Edmund Emil Kemper III, and better known as The Co-Ed Killer was born on December 18, 1948 in Burbank, California. He was the middle child and only boy of Edmund Jr. and Clarnell Kemper’s three children. Kemper was very close to his father so when his parents divorced and his mother moved him and his two sisters to Helena, Montana, he was devastated. Kemper did not get along with his mother. She was emotionally abusive and even locked him in the basement because she was afraid he would rape his younger sister. If that wasn’t enough for her to consider getting him help, he showed sociopathic signs at a young age. As a child he was a pyromaniac and enjoyed killing cats. He also used to enact murders and bizarre sexual rituals with his sisters dolls and would make a game out of pretending to be executed by the electric chair to fulfill his fantasy.

When Kemper was thirteen, he ran away and made it all the way to his father in California only to realize he had remarried and had put all his affection to his step son. He was sent back to his mother in Montana. When he turned fourteen, his mother sent him to live with his paternal grandparents, Edmund Sr. and Maude Kemper, in North Fork, California. Kemper did not get along with his grandmother and despite measuring an intimidating height of 6’4, he was bullied a lot by other kids. On August 27, 1964 Kemper shot and killed his grandmother in her kitchen with a rifle he had gotten for Christmas. Some sources say that he shot her after an argument and others say she was just working on her next children’s book when he shot her just to see what it felt like. His grandfather returned after a trip to the grocery store shortly after. He shot him in the driveway to spare him the sight of his dead wife. Afterwards, he made a phone call to his mother to tell her what he had done, then a second call to the police to do the same. He then sat on the porch steps and waited for the police to arrive. After his arrest, he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and admitted into Atascadero State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. During his stay, he surprisingly got along so well with his psychiatrist that he made Kemper his assistant. On his twenty-first birthday, Kemper was released back to his mother in Santa Cruz, California against the wishes of several psychiatrists. 

After his release, Kemper worked several different odd jobs before finally being hired by the State of California’s Department of Public Works as a laborer. He befriended quite a few friends at Santa Cruz PD and even wanted to become a cop himself. That dream quickly set sail after he learned his monstrous height of 6’9 was above regulation height. Eventually, Kemper was able to save enough money to move into an apartment with a roommate and after receiving a $15,000 settlement after a motorbike accident he was able to buy a truck. It seemed like he was truly safe to be a part of society now. Unfortunately, along with his truck, he also bought murder supplies such as a knife, plastic bags, and hand cuffs. Once he was fully prepared, he began searching the Pacific cost for female hitchhikers. On May 7, 1972, Kemper picked up two female Fresno State students in Berkley, California. He had promised to give them a ride to Stanford University but instead stabbed them to death. Over the next nine months, he would commit four other murders, usually after an argument with his mother. 

On April 19, 1973, Kemper had finally had enough and bludgeoned his mother to death in her sleep then spent the next several hours mutilating her body. He cut off her head and used it for oral sex. Then, he threw darts at it. Afterwards, he stuffed her vocal cords down the garbage disposal. Kemper wasn’t satisfied though, so he invited one of her friends over and killed her when she arrived. After his mini-spree, he took off in his truck listening to the radio for any reports about what he had just done. After four days of hearing nothing, he stopped at a phone booth in Pueblo, Colorado and called his friends at Santa Cruz PD. He confessed to all eight murders and at first, his friends thought it was a joke, but after a few phone calls, they realized he was telling the truth. Kemper went back to his truck and again, awaited his arrest.

At his trial, Kemper attempted to plea insanity but failed, so he requested the death penalty and an execution by electric chair, like he had always fantasized about. At the time, California had temporarily suspended capital punishment so instead he was sentenced to life in prison. While in prison, he was one of the first inmates to be interviewed by the Behavioral Science Unit. One interviewer, who had interviewed three times, found himself locked in a small room with Kemper as he began to threaten his life. The guards didn’t believe his screams for him and when they finally showed up, Kemper claimed he was kidding. Another interviewer admitted he actually liked Kemper. Kemper is now still serving his sentence at California Medical Facility in Vacaville.

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Edmund Kemper

Co-ed Killer On August 27, 1963 Edmund killed his grandmother and grandfather. He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and committed to a hospital for the criminally insane. He was released 5 years later, 3 years later the killing began.