CA CA - Arlis Perry, 19, Stanford, 12 October 1974

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Does anyone have any other info than "Ultimate Evil" or William Ramsey's paper? Did authorities try to match the palm print on the candle to Bill Metzner?
 
Some facts from MSM so readers understand the subject of this thread.


Murder at Memorial Church remains unsolved 40 years later
Forty years ago this weekend, 19-year-old Arlis Perry's body was found in Memorial Church. The murder still has not been solved.
Murder at Memorial Church remains unsolved 40 years later
October 10, 2014 Caleb Smith

In the late afternoon sun of October, Memorial Church is a quiet place. The sun percolates through the bright stained glass windows, engulfing the building from the tiles to the rafters in serenity and silence. It seems almost impossible that one of the worst crimes in Stanford history took place within its stone walls 40 years ago.

On the morning of Sunday, Oct. 13, 1974, security guard Steve Crawford opened the door to the church at approximately 5:45 a.m. and discovered the body of Arlis Perry at the rear of Memorial Church’s east transept, near the altar (“Stanford student’s wife found slain in church,” Oct. 14, 1974).

Investigators determined that Arlis, 19, the wife of then-sophomore Bruce Perry, died by a blow from an ice pick to the back of the head. Found nude from the waist down, she had been molested with a three-foot candlestick. Another candlestick had been pushed up her blouse. She had also been beaten.
Devils in the Heartland: The ritualistic killing of Arlis Perry
By Kristen Grace / June 25, 2012

[...]
Arlis, whose maiden name was Dykema, was a devoted Christian who was involved in many school activities and organizations while attending Bismarck High School, where she met her future husband Bruce Perry. Brad King, a Bismarck dentist who was a classmate of Arlis and Bruce, recalls their romance as being a prime example of “young love.”

After she attended what was then called Bismarck Junior College for a year, Arlis married Bruce in August 1974 prior to moving to Palo Alto, where Bruce was already an undergraduate student. By Oct. 1 of that year, Arlis landed a job as a receptionist at a law firm called Spaeth, Blase, Valentine and Klein.

It was at the law firm’s office where she was visited by a mystery guest the day before she was killed, an appearance that continues to puzzle those who attempted to solve the crime.

Witnesses described this person as a man in his early 20s who was five-foot-10-inches tall. He wore jeans, a plaid shirt and had blond, curly hair of normal length. Co-workers reported that Perry seemed upset by the visitor, who they thought was her husband. However, the identity of the visitor remains unknown today, and may be an important clue in the murder mystery.

On the night of Oct. 12, 1974, a Saturday, Arlis and Bruce were walking out to mail a letter and got into an argument about air pressure in their car’s tires, according to sheriff’s reports. Arlis went off by herself around 11:50 p.m. to pray at Stanford Memorial Church. That was the last time Bruce saw Arlis alive.

Around 3 a.m. the next morning, Bruce called campus security after Arlis failed to return home. Shortly before dawn, her body was found partially hidden under the pews where she was had been praying. She had been choked, beaten and sexually assaulted. Detectives found semen at the scene, and retrieved a partial handprint from a candle that was used in the assault.
- See more at: http://www.greatplainsexaminer.com/2012/06/25/the-killing-of-arlis-perry/#sthash.dpMl228u.dpuf

full length article at the link
 
bessie said:
Some facts from MSM so readers understand the subject of this thread.


Murder at Memorial Church remains unsolved 40 years later
Forty years ago this weekend, 19-year-old Arlis Perry's body was found in Memorial Church. The murder still has not been solved.
Murder at Memorial Church remains unsolved 40 years later
October 10, 2014 Caleb Smith

In the late afternoon sun of October, Memorial Church is a quiet place. The sun percolates through the bright stained glass windows, engulfing the building from the tiles to the rafters in serenity and silence. It seems almost impossible that one of the worst crimes in Stanford history took place within its stone walls 40 years ago.

On the morning of Sunday, Oct. 13, 1974, security guard Steve Crawford opened the door to the church at approximately 5:45 a.m. and discovered the body of Arlis Perry at the rear of Memorial Church’s east transept, near the altar (“Stanford student’s wife found slain in church,” Oct. 14, 1974).

Investigators determined that Arlis, 19, the wife of then-sophomore Bruce Perry, died by a blow from an ice pick to the back of the head. Found nude from the waist down, she had been molested with a three-foot candlestick. Another candlestick had been pushed up her blouse. She had also been beaten.
Devils in the Heartland: The ritualistic killing of Arlis Perry
By Kristen Grace / June 25, 2012

[...]
Arlis, whose maiden name was Dykema, was a devoted Christian who was involved in many school activities and organizations while attending Bismarck High School, where she met her future husband Bruce Perry. Brad King, a Bismarck dentist who was a classmate of Arlis and Bruce, recalls their romance as being a prime example of “young love.”

After she attended what was then called Bismarck Junior College for a year, Arlis married Bruce in August 1974 prior to moving to Palo Alto, where Bruce was already an undergraduate student. By Oct. 1 of that year, Arlis landed a job as a receptionist at a law firm called Spaeth, Blase, Valentine and Klein.

It was at the law firm’s office where she was visited by a mystery guest the day before she was killed, an appearance that continues to puzzle those who attempted to solve the crime.

Witnesses described this person as a man in his early 20s who was five-foot-10-inches tall. He wore jeans, a plaid shirt and had blond, curly hair of normal length. Co-workers reported that Perry seemed upset by the visitor, who they thought was her husband. However, the identity of the visitor remains unknown today, and may be an important clue in the murder mystery.

On the night of Oct. 12, 1974, a Saturday, Arlis and Bruce were walking out to mail a letter and got into an argument about air pressure in their car’s tires, according to sheriff’s reports. Arlis went off by herself around 11:50 p.m. to pray at Stanford Memorial Church. That was the last time Bruce saw Arlis alive.

Around 3 a.m. the next morning, Bruce called campus security after Arlis failed to return home. Shortly before dawn, her body was found partially hidden under the pews where she was had been praying. She had been choked, beaten and sexually assaulted. Detectives found semen at the scene, and retrieved a partial handprint from a candle that was used in the assault.
- See more at: http://www.greatplainsexaminer.com/2012/06/25/the-killing-of-arlis-perry/#sthash.dpMl228u.dpuf

full length article at the link
Click to expand...


I knew all of that, I was just wondering if there were ever any new developments in the case. It seems all the articles I read borrows from each other.
 
Maury Terry's book, The Ultimate Evil links this murder to the Son of Sam killings in NYC in the 1970's.

The books makes a strong case that David Berkowitz did not act alone but its credibility is undermined because Terry attempts to link other crimes whose ties are speculative at best.

If Arlis Perry's murder was connected to Son of Sam, it would be connected to some Cult that operated in Bismarck but Terry couldn't really settle the issue.
 
I wish Berkowitz would speak already. He knows who murdered her. He knows the names of the other SOS killers, but says he's afraid for his living family memebers' lives and his own. And he knows he sounds like a hypocrite.. but that just shows you how threatening this group STILL is. If you catch my drift.

And as of last year, Maury Terry IS working on a new book with a LOT more info that he's had to hold back from his previous editions and also new revelations. I am asking around but it seems no one knows more than that. I have no way of contacting him. I wish I did.

Now, my theories on Arlis Perry:
I thnk the key is the story/rumor that she and a female friend went across from Bismark to Mandan to try to convert cult members to Christianity. From there she was "Hunted, Stalked and Slain."
WHO was that other female? When detectives asked around, no one seemed to know. So I see three possibilities:
1. This never happened and was in fact merely a rumor. (Who started it and why?)
2. People know who it is, and are afraid for her so are not speaking. Probably a member of Young Life.
3. This female was actually a plant from Mandan to lure her to Mandan. This reminds me of how killers would use these types of guises to lure people away from safe places. But whatever happened, she made it back home safely... so it seems. But we have to remember, Arlis was very secretive at times. If she thought something would upset you, she would keep it to herself (I mean personal problems.) Because she could also be very in-your-face with her faith and that would set certain persons off.


----added:
In subsequent conversations and correspondence, Berkowitz alleged that Perry was killed by Four Pi members as "a favor" to cultists in her hometown Bismarck, North Dakota, whom she had apparently offended in some way. Her slayer was named by Berkowitz as "Manson II," a professional killer "involved with the original Manson and the cult there in L.A."
Click to expand...
from: http://www.crimezzz.net/serialkillers/A/4PI.php

Manon 2 is allegedly Phil Benson (sp?)
 
Hello, I am new to WS, and just wanted to post that Mr. Terry's book was want turned me on to the whole true crime genre. Reading about the Arlis case and the whole SOS killings really creeped me out.

Sorry for bumping an old thread, but thought I might add that Mr. Terry passed away on Dec. 2015. So not sure if we will ever see an updated book or new material released.
 
'Stumbled across a couple of 2016 news reports and thought I'd post links.

'Makes me wonder if/when LE attempted to run/match the DNA... not only to possible suspects, but to other crime scenes as well. I have a tough time believing this sadistic murderer only struck once (OR only left physical evidence at one crime scene).


Feb 2016

"Perry had been raped with a white, three-foot-long ceremonial candle, inserted with such force that it snapped in two. Another candle was “shoved between her breasts with enough energy to break both bra straps,” according to a 1991 San Jose Mercury News article. Investigators also found a semen-stained kneeling pillow close to the body.

Deep bruises and a broken bone in her neck indicated that she had been strangled, but the cause of death wasn’t determined until coroners found a narrow icepick lodged deep in the young woman’s skull. The handle of the weapon was broken off and never found.
Rev. Robert Hamerton-Kelly, then dean of the church, described the murder as “ritualistic and satanic” sparking off decades of speculation that Perry murder was part of a Satanist conspiracy. Homicide investigators at the time, however, didn’t go for the cult angle.
Undersheriff Tom Rosa told the Associated Press that the murder “seems to fit the pattern of a sexual psychopath.”

“It has no cult-like overtones,” Rosa added, “It just happened to occur in a church.”"

"The only usable print at the scene was a palm print taken off one of the offending candles. Bruce Perry was cleared as a suspect after taking a polygraph test. His innocence was further confirmed when his DNA wasn’t a match for biological evidence collected at the scene of the crime."


https://archives.sfweekly.com/thesn...human-sacrifice-and-sexual-sadism-at-stanford


Sept 2016

"A new witness has emerged in a cold-case murder with a connection to “Son of Sam” David Berkowitz — and he has told police that a prominent entertainer now living in New York City may be responsible for the crime, The Post has learned."

The Santa Clara sheriff’s spokesman, James Jensen, told The Post that while “at this point, we are leaning toward [the entertainer] not being a suspect,” he acknowledged that the case is still wide open.

He insisted that “investigators followed up on all leads and fully investigated [McCracken’s] claims,” although Jensen refused to confirm that they interviewed the musician.

“If DNA evidence comes along, [we’ll re-evaluate the case],” the spokesman said.


https://nypost.com/2016/06/23/witness-links-nyc-musician-to-unsolved-church-slaying/
 
Four Pi is an offshoot of the Process Church.

Serial killer Stanley Dean Baker was apparently a member.
 
I am glad they resolved this one, finally. I would be surprised if there weren't other cases linked to the suspect. The murder of Arlis Perry was certainly vicious enough, and we know leopards don't change their spots.
 
So glad they finally resolved this case and her family has some peace of mind. Interesting to note the killer had passed a lie detector test.
 
An NBC report notes a number of unsolved cold cases that might fit the profile of Stephen Crawford, the killer in this case.

The Unresolved podcast did a follow update - he noted that as a Security Guard at Stanford Crawford committed a number of B and Es. If he was a cop then let go from the force - as noted on the podcast - kind of like the Golden State Killer suspect - I wonder what else he was involved in.

This murder was brutal and staged in a very graphic, deliberate way. The ice pick broken off in her skull, the candle placement, the disrobing and placement of limbs and clothes to create a diamond pattern.

I can't believe someone could follow through on all these steps on their first murder. Since he had the keys to the church - he had all the time he needed to torture her and stage her afterward with no fear of someone walking in.

If he did leave a suicide note - maybe that would point to some other unsolved assaults or murders.

The NBC story noted there was a much higher number of unsolved murders of women in Santa Clara during when Stephen Crawford would have been there, verses the decade after.

Still chilling that this guy was a cop forced out of the force just like the Golden State Killer suspect.

Unsolved Murders Fit Profile of Stanford Cold Case Suspect
 
I'm so glad this case has been solved. I am reading a few conflicting things though. The semen on the pillow didn't match Crawford, now they say it does. Another article said it was semen on Arlis' jeans that matches Crawford. The palm print on the candle didn't match Crawford, or it did match him. I'm a bit confused but really happy justice has been done. Wish Arlis' father had lived to see it happen.
 
I had this case on another thread "Cases That Haunt You". I can't believe it actually got solved.

I wonder if they're checking this guy against the other murders that were happening at Stanford at the same time. I don't remember much about them except I believe they happened on the campus and were two girls and a guy I think. Someone else will probably know all the details.
 
jessr927 said:
I'm so glad this case has been solved. I am reading a few conflicting things though. The semen on the pillow didn't match Crawford, now they say it does. Another article said it was semen on Arlis' jeans that matches Crawford. The palm print on the candle didn't match Crawford, or it did match him. I'm a bit confused but really happy justice has been done. Wish Arlis' father had lived to see it happen.
Click to expand...

I'm still somewhat concerned about DNA matching and/or NOT matching. I guess forensic evidence testing just became better with passage of time??
 
arlisperry1.jpg

Arlis Perry was murdered inside the Stanford memorial church, Palo Alto, California in 1974.
 
A lot of people, including some of the detectives who worked on the case, do not believe Steve Crawford acted alone in the killing of Arlis Perry. Yesterday, someone asked an odd question about Steve Crawford's brother, Bill Crawford, who served as a police officer in Mountain View, Calif., for more than 30 years. The person seemed to think, for some reason, that Bill Crawford could have been the mysterious sandy-haired man who visited Arlis Perry at the law firm where she worked and was later seen in the church. The comments are posted in response to this article, written in 2014, and along with the comments, there are 4 updates. The comments about Bill Crawford are on page 4: 4th Update: October 12, 1974: Murder on Crowleymas | What Lies Beyond
 
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