John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster: Defending a Monster: The True Story of the Lawyer Who Defended One of the Most Evil Serial Killers in History

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The book initially attempts to grab readers by telling an imagined version of the murder of Gacy's final victim. I was interested in the case and tried to force myself through this book, but I had to give before I was even 60% through. The other portion of this book that deeply bothered me was the intense transphobia that transpires during a cross examination of one of the witnesses, Donita. He spends ample time describing how she is a stunning woman, gorgeous and holding the eye of every person in the courtroom. The author even says at one point “I had to expose the fact that she’s living a lie” when that’s obviously not the truth. I understand it’s a “sign of the times” or what have you, but it had zero place in this book and the book would have been fine without this chapter. Gacy, for a man of the ’70s, was a traveler. He would travel all over the country for business and pleasure, and how did he turn it off in other places?” Moran said, referring to his urges to kill.

Moran has also traced some of Gacy’s travels across the country, looking for missing men and boys along the way. A model prisoner, Gacy was released on parole in the summer of 1970 after serving 18 months of his sentence. However, Gacy was arrested again the following year after another teen claimed he lured him into his car and drove him to his house, where Gacy tried to force him into sex, according to John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster. The charges were dropped when the boy didn’t appear during the trial. With financial assistance from his mother, Gacy bought a house on 8213 West Summerdale Avenue in Norwood Park, Illinois, where all of his future murders would take place, according to Buried Dreams. Moran said identifying the remaining victims is difficult because of the likelihood that they were people with weak family bonds, possibly runaways or wards of the state, whose disappearances wouldn’t have raised alarms at a time when a million teenagers a year ran away from home, according to a published report from that time. In 1971, Gacy started a construction business called PDM Contractors, which grew rapidly and became financially successful. Also that year, Gacy also became engaged to Carole Hoff, who he briefly dated in high school. The two were married in 1972. Most of his employees at PDM Contractors were high school students and young men, who he would proposition for sex, sometimes under the threat of violence. Nevertheless, Gacy kept up a public front as a community man, hosting summer parties that were popular and well-attended, according to Buried Dreams. John Wayne Gacy’s Victims

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Bettiker has since become a mentor to Moran, a one-man cold-case squad who was tasked by Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart in 2010 with finding out the names of the remaining unidentified victims. What makes this book particularly compelling is Amirante's honest and often conflicting emotions towards his client. He grapples with the moral dilemma of defending a monster and struggles with the aftermath of the trial, including the toll it took on his personal and professional life. While dressing as a clown is unique to Gacy, he and Dahmer appeared to be ordinary people leading normal lives. Gacy owned a construction business, was involved in local politics and enjoyed performing for children. Dahmer was well-mannered, served in the military, had a job, and, although he was somewhat of a loner, didn’t appear to be a cannibalistic serial killer. Of course, their timelines crossing has led people to compare the two before, which is likely why it was included in Monster. John Wayne Gacy was born on March 17, 1942, in Chicago to John Stanley Gacy and Marion Elaine Robison. His father, an auto repair machinist and World War I veteran, struggled with alcoholism and beat John and his two sisters with a razor strap if they were perceived to have misbehaved. John’s father frequently belittled him, calling him stupid and comparing him disparagingly to his sisters, according to Johnny and Me: The True Story of John Wayne Gacy by Barry E. Boschelli. Image p2p slug: ct-john-wayne-gacy-investigation-major-players-003 Sam Amirante, who along with attorney Robert Motta represented Gacy, says the serial killer was so successful, in part, because of his charming personality. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)

He and others who worked during Gacy’s time said the case also tapped a well of homophobia that may have scared off some families from seeking information on their missing loved ones due to the social stigma. Sam, could you do me a favor?" Thus begins a story that has now become part of America’s true crime hall of fame. It is a gory, grotesque tale befitting a Stephen King novel. It is also a David and Goliath saga—the story of a young lawyer fresh from the Public Defender’s Office whose first client in private practice turns out to be the worst serial killer in our nation’s history. On December 11, 1978, 15-year-old Robert Piest went missing after telling his mother he was going to meet Gacy to discuss a potential construction job. Piest’s family filed a missing person report with the police, which led to a search of Gacy’s house in Norwood Park. Authorities discovered several suspicious items there, including police badges, a pistol, hypodermic needles, pornographic films, and items that they later learned belonged to some of Gacy’s victims. Gacy makes his debut in episode 10 of Monster, where he is seen pulling up in a van with a young man. He takes the young man into his house, and they discuss a job opportunity for the boy in Gacy’s construction company. Gacy makes them both drinks, slipping some drugs into the drink he serves the young man. The two talk for a bit until the drugs begin to take effect, and then Gacy binds the boy’s hands. He tries to escape, but Gacy overpowers him. Dressed as a clown, Gacy drowns the young man in his bathtub. This gives us a little insight into who John Wayne Gacy is and allows us to see the parallels between Gacy and Dahmer. Why would he ask such personal, demeaning questions about the state of a witness’s genitals, which had NO bearing whatsoever to the case? Why, for FUN, of course! He writes about how it childishly pleased him to be the one to make everyone in the courtroom realize (and I quote) "the beautiful woman that everyone in the room had been openly ogling… was a man! A he-she!".His boss, Dart, added that technology and social media have removed much of the anonymity that allowed serial killers like Gacy to operate in the shadows. Gacy was a member of a Chicago-area “Jolly Joker” clown club and frequently performed in clown attire and makeup at children’s parties, charity fundraisers, and other events as his alter egos “Pogo the Clown” or “Patches the Clown.” Years later, during a conversation with detectives while he was under surveillance, Gacy discussed his work as a clown, remarking, “Clowns can get away with murder.” He looked at his victims like he was taking out the trash. He had no feelings about them,” Amirante said, sitting in a private office at his Barrington home nearly 40 years after hearing the famous confession. “He could talk about a child who's dying of cancer and cry like a baby about this child he didn't even know or never met and feel authentically sad about this child. Then he'd talk about another child that he murdered and have no feelings whatsoever.” That being said, the second half of this book was a nightmare. The narration gets long-winded and obnoxious almost. There’s an entire chapter during the closing arguments where the author recounts a large portion of his closing argument. Via audiobook, this chapter lasted over an hour, almost an hour and a half.