Son of Sam / Son of Hope
I just watched a portion of the show Crimes and Trials on the History Channel featuring the Son of Sam killing spree that paralyzed New York City with fear back in the ’70s. David Berkowitz is now serving 350 years in a maximum security prison for the murders he committed then.
There was another program that I caught earlier in the evening that also featured Berkowitz. The Focus on the Family radio program had Berkowitz discuss “how poor choices led to the horrific murders he committed, and how he eventually became a Christian.” Here’s David in his own words:
…God is the God of love, forgiveness, mercy and hope. And He’ll have compassion on anybody that comes to Him because Jesus came into this world to save sinners and if He could save someone like me, a man who is a murderer, who is a criminal, who was in trouble and tormented most of his life, I know that God can save anybody, that there is nobody beyond the reach of His salvation, of His outstretched hands of love.
Are these insincere words aimed to please the parole board? Quite the contrary. He has sent a letter to the governor of New York rejecting a parole hearing for himself. Read Berkowitz’s personal testimony and view a mini-documentary on a life transformed from his official website.
March 12th, 2004 at 7:14 pm
I have a ongoing fascination with serial killers. (Purely for background story purposes, I assure you.) I never knew this about Berkowitz. Good read. Thanks!
March 13th, 2004 at 10:31 am
I just found a book with a similar title that contains David’s poetry:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1588209202/
Apparently, it was published to discredit his reformation process.