Son of Sam: The Making of a Monster – Inside the Mind and Crimes of David Berkowitz
Between 1976 and 1977, New York City was gripped by terror. Women cut their hair short to avoid being targeted. Couples stopped going out at night. Neighborhoods turned into fortresses of suspicion. The media called him the .44 Caliber Killer. The letters he sent to police and newspapers were signed Son of Sam. His real name was David Berkowitz, and by the time he was captured in August 1977, he had killed six people and wounded seven others.
But how did this quiet postal worker become one of America’s most infamous serial killers? Why did it take police over a year to catch a man who left behind clues in plain sight? And how much did his troubled upbringing shape the darkness that would one day explode across New York City?
A Troubled Beginning: The Birth of David Berkowitz
David Berkowitz was born Richard David Falco on June 1, 1953, in Brooklyn, New York. His biological mother, Betty Broder, became pregnant by a married man who threatened to abandon her if she kept the baby. Out of fear and desperation, she placed the child for adoption.
Three days after his birth, he was adopted by Nathan and Pearl Berkowitz, a working-class Jewish couple from the Bronx. They renamed him David and tried to provide a stable life. But early on, David showed signs of emotional trouble. He destroyed toys, started small fires, and lashed out physically at school. Teachers labeled him hyperactive, and neighbors described him as a loner with a temper.
His mother Pearl was his anchor, the only emotional connection he seemed to recognize. When she fell terminally ill with cancer during his teenage years, David spiraled. When she died in 1967, everything changed. He later said: “I felt like I had been betrayed by the only person I ever loved.”
At 18, he learned he had been adopted — a fact his parents had hidden from him. The discovery shattered him. He began to struggle with his identity and developed deep abandonment issues, paranoia, and growing resentment toward women. He also learned his biological mother had rejected him — an emotional wound that would later fuel his violent hatred.
Searching for Belonging and Finding Darkness
After high school, Berkowitz enlisted in the U.S. Army. He was stationed at Fort Knox and later in South Korea. The military gave him discipline and structure, and for a time, he seemed to stabilize. He became a decent marksman — a skill that would later make him deadly.
But he never bonded with people. He spent most of his time isolated. After receiving an honorable discharge in 1974, he returned to New York as lost as ever. He briefly found his biological family, but their rejection reopened every old scar. He started feeling like an outsider everywhere he went — a dangerous psychological tipping point.
He drifted between low-paying jobs: security guard, taxi driver, and later, postal worker. He moved into a tiny apartment in Yonkers. His neighbors found him odd, sometimes hostile, but not dangerous. All the while, inside his mind, the darkness was turning into obsession.
The Descent Into Violence
Before the shootings began, Berkowitz experimented with arson — a common precursor in serial killer psychology. He claimed to have started over 1,400 fires across New York. He kept detailed diaries and watched the flames from rooftops nearby. Fire gave him power. Violence gave him purpose.
Soon, that wasn’t enough.
In late 1975, he claims to have stabbed two women in Co-op City in the Bronx, though only one attack was officially linked to him. Police never identified him. He had crossed the line — soon, he would take human life with no hesitation.
The Son of Sam Attacks: Terror in New York
Between July 1976 and July 1977, Berkowitz carried out eight shooting attacks, most of them targeting young women — often sitting in parked cars with boyfriends. The attacks seemed random, yet quickly revealed a pattern: .44 caliber bullets, close range, and sudden ambush-style shots.
July 29, 1976 – The Killing Begins
In Pelham Bay, the Bronx, Berkowitz shot Donna Lauria (18) and wounded Jody Valenti (19) as they sat in a parked car. Lauria died instantly. It was a shocking but seemingly random murder.
October 23, 1976
He struck again, shooting Carl Denaro and Rosemary Keenan in Queens as they sat in a parked car. Both survived but suffered serious injuries. Police did not link this case to the first shooting — a critical mistake that allowed Berkowitz to kill again.
November 26, 1976
He shot Donna DeMasi (16) and Joanne Lomino (18) in Queens. Lomino was paralyzed. Again, no link between attacks was made.
January 30, 1977
He murdered Christine Freund (26) and wounded John Diel (30). This was the moment when headlines began warning New Yorkers about a possible serial shooter.
March 8, 1977
He shot college student Virginia Voskerichian (19) in Forest Hills, Queens. Detectives recovered a .44 Bulldog revolver bullet— finally connecting the attacks.
The city began to panic.
“I Am the Son of Sam”: Letters from a Killer
On April 17, 1977, Berkowitz killed Alexander Esau (20) and Valentina Suriani (18) in the Bronx. This time, he left behind a taunting handwritten letter addressed to NYPD Captain Joseph Borrelli.
It read in part:
“I am a monster. I am the Son of Sam. I love to hunt. Prowling the streets looking for fair game—tasty meat.”
The letter referenced demons, “blood-drinking,” and Satanic imagery. Whether deliberate manipulation or delusion, it terrified the public.
He later sent letters to famed columnist Jimmy Breslin at the New York Daily News, mocking police efforts to catch him and warning that the killings would continue. Millions of New Yorkers read his letter the next day. Newsstands sold out instantly. The killer had become a celebrity — and he knew it.
A City Under Siege
New York in 1977 was already on the brink — high crime, poverty, arson, riots, and social breakdown made the city a powder keg. The Son of Sam case turned fear into hysteria.
Women dyed their hair blonde after rumors spread he targeted brunettes.
Store owners sold out of mace and locks.
Couples stayed home to avoid being targets.
Police officers patrolled lovers’ lanes and clubs.
Over 300 detectives were assigned to the case — one of the largest manhunts in American history.
But despite massive effort, Berkowitz seemed invisible.
Why He Got Away for So Long
Investigators struggled for a number of reasons:
1. He Looked Ordinary
Eyewitnesses described a young white man, average build, short hair. In New York City, that matched millions of people. He blended in perfectly.
2. No Clear Victim Profile
Although he often targeted women with long brown hair, his attacks happened in multiple boroughs and didn’t follow a clear pattern by location or timing. Detectives wasted resources chasing false leads.
3. Separate Police Departments Didn’t Communicate Well
Each borough had its own homicide unit, and in the 1970s, no centralized database existed to connect crimes. Early victims were not connected until ballistic evidence was analyzed.
4. Media Chaos Hurt the Investigation
The press published every police move. That helped the killer stay ahead—and mislead investigators with letters full of false clues.
5. He Didn’t Fit the Usual Suspect Profile
At the time, serial killers were expected to have criminal records, mental hospital stays, or histories of violent offenses. Berkowitz had no violent criminal record. He passed under the radar.
The Break in the Case: A Parking Ticket
What finally brought him down was luck.
On July 31, 1977, Berkowitz shot Stacy Moskowitz (20) and Bobby Violante (20) in Brooklyn. Moskowitz died; Violante was blinded.
That night, a witness reported a suspicious man walking from the scene — a man who had received a parking ticketjust minutes before. That car belonged to David Berkowitz of Yonkers.
Detectives traced the car and found a man who matched multiple eyewitness descriptions. They put his apartment under surveillance.
On August 10, 1977, police arrested him outside his home. Inside his Ford Galaxie, they found a .44 caliber Bulldog revolver. When officers approached and opened his car door, Berkowitz smiled and said:
“Well, you got me.”
When asked why he did it, he replied:
“It was Sam. Sam made me do it.”
The “Talking Dog” – Satanic Panic or Strategy?
Berkowitz claimed he was being controlled by a demon speaking through a black Labrador retriever owned by his neighbor Sam Carr. He said Carr was actually “Sam,” a powerful demon commanding him to kill.
The story was sensational — but also absurd. Most psychologists and investigators now believe it was a calculated insanity defense. Yet Berkowitz insisted:
“I was doing what God — or the Devil — demanded.”
He later changed his story, claiming he was part of a Satanic cult in Yonkers called The Children, and that other cult members helped commit the murders. Some believe he may not have acted alone — but that remains one of the enduring mysteries of the case.
Trial, Conviction, and Life in Prison
Berkowitz confessed to the shootings in custody but refused to plead insanity. On May 8, 1978, he was sentenced to 25 years to life for each murder—a total of six consecutive life sentences.
He became eligible for parole but has repeatedly refused release, saying:
“I deserve to be in prison. I was a cold-hearted murderer. I ruined lives.”
In prison, he claimed he found God and now calls himself “Son of Hope”. He writes letters to victims’ families and has become a Christian minister inside Sullivan Correctional Facility.
How Trauma and Isolation Created a Killer
Psychologists have long studied David Berkowitz as a case of extreme emotional detachment and rage rooted in abandonment trauma. His early life was marked by:
Attachment loss – the death of his adoptive mother shattered his emotional development.
Identity crisis – discovering his adoption and biological rejection created identity instability.
Social isolation – chronic loneliness contributed to resentment and psychosis.
Objectification of victims – he didn’t see people as human, only symbols of his pain.
Whether he was schizophrenic, delusional, or simply evil remains debated. But what’s clear is this: David Berkowitz was not born a monster. He was made.
Why the Case Still Haunts Us
The Son of Sam killings changed American crime history forever.
It led to Son of Sam laws preventing criminals from profiting off books or movies about their crimes.
It changed police investigation tactics, inspiring centralized databases for ballistic evidence.
It triggered one of the first media-driven serial killer hunts in history.
It exposed the vulnerability of urban America to random violence.
And it raised deep questions about mental illness, responsibility, and evil.
Decades later, we’re still asking: Did he act alone? Did a Satanic cult really exist in Yonkers? Were there more victims? And could he have been stopped sooner?
David Berkowitz
David Berkowitz terrorized New York for more than a year, evading the largest police manhunt in American history through a mixture of luck, planning, and anonymity. But behind the legend of Son of Sam lies a story not just of murder — but of a broken child who became a predator.
His crimes are a chilling reminder of how untreated trauma, isolation, and mental illness can fester into something devastating. And as long as questions remain, the Son of Sam case will never truly close.
