Dean Carter

Dean Phillip Carter (born August 30, 1955) is an American convicted spree killer and serial rapist who was sentenced to death for the murders of four women in California in April 1984. He has also been implicated in the death of a fifth woman. Carter had met and befriended several of his victims at bars and restaurants prior to attacking them.

Early life and career Carter was born in Nome in the Territory of Alaska on August 30, 1955, as the illegitimate son of a half-Eskimo woman. He was adopted by his stepfather, who served as police chief, fire chief, and justice of the peace in the community. At the age of 12, Carter was committed to a youth camp, which he attempted to flee from at least three times. He was later placed in a foster home.

Carter served prison terms in Oregon for auto theft and in Alaska for burglary. During his incarceration in Alaska, Carter was trained as a television cameraman and video technician. Following his release in 1979, Carter worked with various television stations in Alaska. An individual who worked with Carter on an award-winning documentary on the Eskimo heritage recalled him as "just a normal guy, very attractive, very handsome".

On March 24, Carter called Tiner, who declined his invitation to "run off to Mexico and get married". That evening, he called another acquaintance, 18-year-old Polly Haisha, whom he had met at a party in February of that year. Haisha would later testify that she and Carter had spoken several times in the weeks after meeting, and that although Carter "was very nice" during their first phone conversation, he became more aggressive and irritated as she kept giving excuses to reschedule their date. During their last phone call, Carter informed Haisha that he would be arriving in San Diego the following day, and she rejected his offer to "quit school and come sail to France". After Carter began insulting his ex-wife, Haisha told Carter that she was no longer comfortable speaking with or seeing him and asked him not to call her again. Steward had met Carter before the attack when he was staying at a neighbor's residence; she avoided him despite Carter attempting to befriend her.

Murders On April 12, the bodies of Susan Lynn Knoll and Jillette Leonora Mills were found stacked inside a closed bedroom closet in the roommates' Culver City apartment by Mills' brother and a friend. Mills had been sexually assaulted, and each victim had died from asphyxia caused by strangulation. Knoll's vehicle was discovered one block from the apartment, though Mills' white Datsun 280 ZX automobile was missing, as were personal items belonging to both victims. Ronald C. Tulio—an employee of the United States Postal Service, the former boyfriend of Knoll, and an acquaintance of both Mills and victim Bonnie Guthrie—was arrested and detained by the Culver City Police Department later that day, and was in police custody at the time Janette Cullins is believed to have been murdered. Although Carter was ultimately never charged in relation to any of these cases, he was identified as a strong suspect in rapes in the Seattle area, and police intended to question Carter in connection with sexual assaults in Honolulu. According to Carter, he began writing the columns to provide "a reasonably coherent account of what it is like from where I sit".