"Now You Are the Prey": The Golden State Killer's Ex-Wife's Written Statement and the Victims' Families in Court, CBS13, 2020
CBS13's report from August 20, 2020, the last day of victim impact statements before Joseph James DeAngelo's sentencing: passages from his ex-wife's written statement, read by the reporter, and murder victims' relatives addressing him in court. DeAngelo is not heard.
- Subject
- Joseph James DeAngelo
- Recorded
- about August 20, 2020
- Runtime
- 2:13
Content warning: Concerns a series of murders and rapes; a daughter describes witnessing her father's killing; no graphic detail.
The Interview
This is not an interview, and Joseph James DeAngelo is not heard in it. It is a 2-minute-13-second report by CBS13 in Sacramento, aired on the evening of August 20, 2020, the eve of DeAngelo's sentencing. It quotes the victim impact statement of his ex-wife, Sharon Huddle, which the station obtained; she does not appear, and her statement was not read in court. The voices are the CBS13 anchor, reporter Anna Giles (as introduced on air), Ken Smith, Katie Maggiore's brother, and Karen Smith, Katie Maggiore's aunt (both named in CBS13's on-screen straps), and Elizabeth Snelling Hupp.
Historical Context
Between the mid-1970s and 1986 an unidentified man committed dozens of rapes and at least 13 murders across California and became known as the Visalia Ransacker, the East Area Rapist, the Original Night Stalker and finally the Golden State Killer. Joseph James DeAngelo, a former police officer, was arrested on April 24, 2018, after a genetic genealogy investigation.
Circumstances
Judge Michael Bowman heard victim impact statements from August 18 to 20, 2020, with sentencing set for August 21 at the Sacramento State University Union ballroom. The families of murder victims spoke on August 20. According to CBS13, Huddle's written statement was obtained by the station and would not be read in court.
What the Recording Covers
Ken Smith, Katie Maggiore's brother, tells DeAngelo, "You lurked in the dark so you could prey on innocent victims. Well, now you are the prey." The reporter quotes Huddle's statement: "I now live every day with the knowledge of how he attacked and severely damaged hundreds of people's lives," and summarizes her account that he lied about where he was going while she worked graveyard shifts. Karen Smith, aunt of Katie Maggiore (Katie and Brian Maggiore were shot dead in 1978), says, "We all know who Katie and Brian are." Elizabeth Snelling Hupp, who the reporter says watched DeAngelo shoot her father dead, says what sickens her most is that he "was able to live a normal life with his family for all those years." The report closes with a promotion for live coverage of the sentencing.
What Makes the Recording Significant
CBS13 presented the statement as the first time DeAngelo's own family had spoken publicly about the harm he caused.
Important Caveats
DeAngelo is not heard, and his ex-wife does not speak: her words are read by the reporter from a written statement. The title's phrase "I will never be the same person" is not spoken in the video. The speaker in court at 00:29 (Ken Smith, Katie Maggiore's brother) and the Maggiore relative at 01:27 (Karen Smith, Katie Maggiore's aunt) are not named aloud; they are named in CBS13's on-screen straps (frames at 00:33 and 01:26), and those strap identifications may be used. The reporter's surname and the spelling of Elizabeth Snelling Hupp's married name are not verified. "Sacramento State University" is California State University, Sacramento.
Cbs13 Anchor: Joseph DeAngelo's day of reckoning, more than four decades in the making. Confronted by his victims one by one for three days, tomorrow the confessed East Area Rapist will be sentenced to life in prison. And for the very first time, we're hearing from his own family about the devastation he's caused. Here's CBS13's Anna Giles.
Anna Giles: The final day in a painful journey: DeAngelo is set for life in prison, and his survivors get to see it happen.
Ken Smith: We all know who you are. You lurked in the dark so you could prey on innocent victims. Well, now you are the prey, DeAngelo.
Anna Giles: For the first time, DeAngelo's ex-wife, Sharon Huddle, is talking about her pain. We obtained her victim impact statement, which will not be read in court. She says, quote, "I now live every day with the knowledge of how he attacked and severely damaged hundreds of people's lives." Huddle says DeAngelo would lie about where he was going as she worked graveyard shifts. She says, "When I was not around, I trusted he was doing what he told me he was doing. Now, without my ability to trust, my relationships with other people are severely impacted." As DeAngelo sits emotionless in court, he's forced to hear about the other families he tore apart. Families of DeAngelo's murder victims take the stand. They remember Katie Maggiore, who DeAngelo shot dead alongside her husband in 1978.
Karen Smith: No more holidays. Their grandkids never got to see [unclear: "them" / "him"], their kids never got to see him. But believe me, we all know who Katie and Brian are.
Anna Giles: Elizabeth Snelling Hupp is a survivor who just barely got away, but watched DeAngelo shoot her father dead.
Elizabeth Snelling Hupp: What sickens and angers me the most is that DeAngelo was able to live a normal life with his family for all those years.
Anna Giles: Now that they can finally see the man who haunted them for so long, some survivors say DeAngelo is not worth their time or their words.
Cbs13 Anchor: And we will have full coverage of DeAngelo's sentencing hearing live on CBS13 and CW31, starting at 9 a.m. tomorrow. We'll also be streaming the hearing on CBS13.com. [02:12: speech ends; clip runs to 02:13.] ---