"He Rolls That Zero": Kerri Rawson on Her Father, Dennis Rader, After the Park City Dig, KAKE, 2023

Name: "He Rolls That Zero": Kerri Rawson on Her Father, Dennis Rader, After the Park City Dig, KAKE, 2023
Uploaded: 2023-09-01T00:00:00Z
Duration: 2 min 21 s
Description: After investigators dug at the site of Dennis Rader's former Park City home in August 2023, his daughter Kerri Rawson described on a podcast her prison visit and his answers about other cases. KAKE's report carries her words; Rader is not heard.

After investigators dug at the site of Dennis Rader's former Park City home in August 2023, his daughter Kerri Rawson described on a podcast her prison visit and his answers about other cases. KAKE's report carries her words; Rader is not heard.

Subject: Dennis Lynn Rader
Recorded: about September 1, 2023
Runtime: 2:21

Content warning: Refers to the BTK murders, the disappearance of a 16-year-old girl and the murder of a 22-year-old woman; no graphic detail.

The Report

This is a 2-minute-21-second KAKE News report by Leon Purvis, posted by the Wichita station on its own channel on September 1, 2023. It is built around excerpts of a two-hour interview that Kerri Rawson, Dennis Rader's daughter, gave to the podcast "Surviving the Survivor." Rawson is heard for about 50 seconds. Dennis Rader is not heard; his daughter describes what he said to her.

Historical Context

Dennis Rader, the BTK killer, was arrested on February 25, 2005, pleaded guilty to ten murders in Kansas on June 27, 2005, and was sentenced on August 18, 2005, to ten consecutive life terms. Kerri Rawson, born in 1978, has written two books about her father, "A Serial Killer's Daughter" (2019) and "Breaking Free" (2023).

Circumstances

Around August 22, 2023, investigators from Osage County, Oklahoma, dug at the site of Rader's former home in Park City, Kansas, and recovered items they described as being of interest. The sheriff's office named Rader a prime suspect in the 1976 disappearance of Cynthia Kinney, 16, of Pawhuska, Oklahoma, and said he might be connected to the 1990 murder of Shawna Garber, 22, in McDonald County, Missouri. Rawson had visited her father in prison earlier in 2023.

What the Report Covers

The anchors say Rawson talked about "the possibility of more victims" and her prison visit. Rawson says she had not seen her father since 2005, and that when she asked, "Is it 10, Dad?" he answered "10" and "rolls that zero," which she took as a signal that there were more than ten victims. She says he was "literally sobbing" and hugged her. Asked about Garber, she says, "it was like that dad mask came off," and she accuses him of "dodging" and "making up alibis." She says he "has not said one word" since the dig. The reporter adds that, according to Rawson, Rader cannot use the internet, social media or email and can only watch the news.

What Makes the Recording Significant

The report records, in her own voice, the account given by Rader's daughter of her 2023 prison visit, at the moment the attempt to link him to other cases was in the news.

Important Caveats

Dennis Rader is not heard. **He is a suspect only in the Kinney and Garber cases; he has not been charged in either, and he has denied involvement.** Rawson's interpretation of the "rolled zero" and her view that he is lying are her own claims. The title's "new evidence" reflects the station's wording; investigators described "items of interest," and their link to any crime is unproven. The report says the sheriff's office was "100% sure"; that is the investigators' statement, not an established fact.

David Scott: Kerri Rawson had a lot to say during a two-hour podcast. Good evening, thanks for joining us. I'm David Scott.

Deb: And I'm Deb [unclear: "Barris" / "Berra"]. She talked about everything from the possibility of more victims to going to visit her father, Dennis Rader, in prison. KAKE's Leon Purvis is here now with the story. Leon.

Leon Purvis: Deb, Kerri Rawson explains on the podcast "Surviving the Survivor" she had not seen her father since 2005. Not only does she describe the condition he was in, but also the way he told her something that got her thinking.

Kerri Rawson: I go, "Is it 10, Dad?" And he goes, "10," and he rolls that zero.

Leon Purvis: Kerri Rawson recently asked her father, Dennis Rader, known as serial killer BTK, directly if he killed more than 10 people. She explains how she interpreted the roll of the zero.

Kerri Rawson: And now I'm thinking, good God, man, how many times are you rolling that zero? Because I think you're trying to tell me it's more than 10.

Leon Purvis: After 18 years behind bars and convicted of killing 10 people, there's still a human element to Rader.

Kerri Rawson: He was literally sobbing. He reached out for me, he hugged me, he kissed me.

Leon Purvis: Last week, Oklahoma investigators dug up the ground where Rader's Park City home once stood. They say they're 100% sure the killer had something to do with 16-year-old Cynthia Kinney's 1976 disappearance. Detectives also think he may have something to do with the murder of 22-year-old Shawna Garber in 1990.

Kerri Rawson: I said, "Hey, what do you think happened to Garber?" And it was like that dad mask came off, and it was like BTK.

Leon Purvis: Rawson doesn't believe her father.

Kerri Rawson: It's not Dad claiming these. He is telling me directly that he didn't do these, and he's dodging. He's making up alibis. He's lying to my face.

Leon Purvis: When investigators found evidence at her family's former Park City home, Rawson says her father was speechless.

Kerri Rawson: Interestingly enough, guys, he has not said one word since we dug up his precious yard. Um, I think that's pretty telling. Like, I think he's shocked into muteness after 50 years.

Leon Purvis: Rawson also mentioned her dad is not allowed on the internet, social media or email. He can only watch the news. For the full podcast interview with Kerri Rawson on "Surviving the Survivor," go to our website, KAKE.com. Live in studio, Leon Purvis, KAKE News, On Your Side. [02:20: speech ends; clip runs to 02:21.] ---