Joseph Robert Miller

Joseph Robert Miller (born Joseph Robert Tarczon; January 15, 1955) is an American serial killer and rapist who raped and killed at least six women in Chicago and Peoria, Illinois, from 1977 to 1993. He was convicted of these crimes the following year and sentenced to death, which was later commuted to life imprisonment.

Biography Joseph Robert Tarczon was born on January 15, 1955, in Illinois, but was abandoned at an orphanage shortly after his birth. A few years later, he was adopted by a married couple from Chicago, the Millers, who changed his surname to match theirs. His adoptive parents proved to be very strict and frequently beat him, leading the young Miller to develop anger issues and engage in petty crime from an early age.

Between the late 1960s and 1977, he was arrested a total of 11 times on charges such as theft, carjacking and sexual assault, but would always get away with a short stint in prison after accepting plea deals from the prosecutors. In the early 1970s, Miller left Chicago and lived in various locations including the cities of Bloomington and Waukegan, and even the state of Virginia. By 1977, he had permanently settled in Skokie, where he had married a local woman and worked as a pizza delivery man.

First murders and trial On October 25, 1977, 31-year-old convicted sex worker Martha Ryan, also known as Martha E. Kowalski, was reported missing from Chicago. After interviewing witnesses, police learned that Ryan was last seen in the company of an unknown young man driving an orange Chevrolet Vega. Eight days later, her body, which was wrapped up in a blanket, was found in some bushes outside a liquor store in Skokie, not far from Miller's home.

Due to the fact he and his car matched the description of the man last seen in Ryan's company, Miller was brought to the police station for interrogation. On the following day, Skokie police discovered the body of 22-year-old Ann Iecile Maxham, who had multiple convictions for prostitution. While investigating her killing, officers were approached by a sex worker who claimed to have known the victim, claiming that both Miller and his wife, Marsha, frequently used their services and that she herself had been in their company on several occasions.

While he was in custody, police obtained a search warrant for Miller's apartment and car, discovering evidence that implicated in an armed robbery in Skokie; a kidnapping in Cook County and aggravated battery in DuPage County. He was also the prime suspect in several other murders dating back to October 1976.

Incarceration, release, and relapse After his conviction, Miller was transferred to serve his sentence at the Illinois River Correctional Center in Canton. During his internment, he participated in sex offender rehabilitation programs and earned a reputation as a model prisoner. In the mid-1980s, he suffered a severe leg injury that left him physically disabled, due to which he was obliged to a disability pension from the state. A few weeks later, police were informed by a newspaper deliveryman that Fagotte had not picked up her weekly newspaper or her mail for a few weeks. After interviewing neighbors, relatives and acquaintances, the authorities realized that the woman was missing. At around the same time, the bodies of three women were found in a drainage ditch on the outskirts of Peoria, with all of them in various stages of decomposition. Their identities were eventually established as 34-year-old Marcia Logue and 26-year-old Helen Dorrance, whose bodies were found on September 18, and 42-year-old Sandra L. Csesznegi, whose body was found on September 26.

On September 23, Fagotte's Oldsmobile was found abandoned in the parking lot of a home near the nursing home where Miller resided. Because of his criminal record, he came under suspicion and was questioned by police on September 29. With his permission, officers were allowed to search his apartment and the interior of his car, whereupon he was taken to the local police station. After detectives read his Miranda rights, the interview began, with Miller claiming that he had nothing to do with any of the crimes. Shortly afterwards, during a search of Fagotte's car, authorities located a knife which had Miller's fingerprints on it. He provided authorities with a supposed burial site, but no human remains were located and his confessions were eventually dismissed as bogus. Representatives of the Prosecutor's Office later stated their belief that another offender, Arlie Ray Davis, was the true culprit, and that Miller had confessed simply to bring attention to himself. Nevertheless, he has never been officially ruled out as a suspect in the murders, which remain unsolved.