Isabella Mueller (crime writer)
A prime example of a serial killer was Harvey Glatman, who went down in criminal history as ‘The Glamour Girl Slayer’ or ‘The Lonely Heart Killer’. He earned this nickname because he posed as a professional photographer working for prestigious magazines, placing newspaper adverts seeking models for risqué poses. Using this ruse, he lured his victims into a trap, where he would then rape them for hours before finally killing them. He is regarded as one of the first serial killers to have documented his crimes in full detail through photographs. Harvey Murray Glatman was born on 10 December in New York City, the son of Ophelia Gold and Albert Glatman. Even in his early years, he stood out for his sexual experimentation. The first incident occurred when Harvey was four years old. His parents discovered him in his bedroom with a piece of string tied around his penis, the other end of which he had secured to a drawer. Harvey had leaned far back, causing the string to be stretched to its limit. This marked the beginning of his bondage fetish, which he kept hidden from those around him – particularly his parents – following this incident. After the incident, Harvey was not only beaten by his father, but his mother also sent him to a doctor, who, however, deemed this behaviour typical for a child of his age. Harvey was a highly gifted boy, but he was extremely shy. In 1939, the family moved to Denver. Harvey was an excellent pupil who had a penchant for strangulation games. One day, his parents discovered that his neck was severely swollen and covered in red welts, so they confronted Harvey. He admitted that he had placed a noose around his neck whilst in the bath. He had tied one end of the noose to the water pipe. Harvey pulled on the noose with one hand whilst masturbating with the other. Following this incident, his parents took him to a psychiatrist, who attributed his behaviour to puberty. Harvey had a tough time at junior high school. His classmates had labelled him a ‘nerd’ because of his good marks; he was bullied for his protruding ears, his buck teeth and his severe acne, and was given the nickname ‘Squirrel Cheeks’. As a result, Harvey created a parallel world for himself in which he gave free rein to his violent fantasies about women. After school, he would hide away in the loft, where he played with ropes. Before long, he began breaking into other people’s flats and spying on them. In one flat, he found a pistol, which he subsequently used to sexually harass women. Whenever Harvey had his sights set on a woman, he would stalk her and break into her flat. At gunpoint, he forced the woman into the bedroom, where he gagged her and tied her up with a rope. He then groped the women whilst masturbating, without raping or sexually assaulting them. In this way, Harvey received the attention he otherwise failed to get from women. For as soon as Harvey found himself face to face with a woman or a female classmate, he would start to blush and stammer. On 18 May 1945, at the age of 16, Harvey broke into Elma Hamum’s flat on Vrain Street. He intended to rape and rob her, but a patrol officer had observed Harvey climbing in through the window. Harvey was caught red-handed, and a rope and the pistol were found in his pocket. During the subsequent interrogation at the police station, Harvey immediately broke down and confessed to the burglaries, but not to the sexual assaults on the women. Harvey was released on bail. However, he had learnt nothing from this, for just four weeks later, on 18 June 1945, he forced Norene Laurel into his car at gunpoint, where he groped her whilst masturbating. He then let Norene Laurel go, and she immediately reported the incident to the police. The officers showed Laurel photographs from the criminal records. The files had recently been updated to include a photograph of Harvey, whom Laurel immediately identified as her abductor and assailant. Harvey ended up in prison once again, but this time he was not granted bail. In November 1945, he was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment, which he served at the Colorado State Prison. Harvey was released after just eight months on the grounds of good behaviour. After his release, his mother Ophelia consulted a psychologist. The psychologist recommended shock therapy for Harvey. He was to confront his fear of women, which is why the psychologist advised him to attend dance classes in order to come into contact with women. To help Harvey make a fresh start, his mother Ophelia found him a flat in New York City, where he found work in a television repair shop. However, Harvey continued to prey on women, this time armed with a toy pistol and a pocket knife. His first victims in New York City were a couple. On 17 August 1946, shortly before midnight, Harvey attacked Thomas Staro and his girlfriend Doris Thorn. He pointed his pistol at the couple and forced them off the street. He then stole Staro’s wallet and tied his legs before groping Doris. But Staro managed to free himself from the restraints and sneak up on Harvey from behind. When Harvey realised this, he stabbed Staro with his pocket knife and fled. He boarded the train to Albany, where he rented a flat on Commercial Street. Just four days later, on 22 August 1946, he attacked the nurse Florence Hayden in broad daylight with the intention of raping her. But she fought back so fiercely that Harvey took to his heels. The very next evening, he tried his luck on Hollywood Avenue with Evelyn Berge and Beverly Goldstein. He had pulled out his toy gun and demanded their handbags. But Harvey turned red and could only stammer, which is why he fled. Just two days later, Harvey was arrested when two patrol officers saw him chasing a woman on Western Avenue. As Harvey matched the description given by the other victims, the officers searched him and found a toy gun, a pocket knife and a rope in his pockets. Just four days after his arrest, charges were brought and Harvey received a minimum sentence of five years, which he had to serve at Elmira Juvenile Detention Centre until he turned 21, before being transferred to the high-security prison at Sing Sing. Harvey proved to be a model prisoner. Psychological tests revealed that Harvey was of above-average intelligence. He had an IQ of between 130 and 140. Despite the minimum sentence, he was released early on parole under strict conditions after two years at Elmira and eight months’ imprisonment at Sing Sing. From then on, he was once again under his mother’s wing. Harvey was required to provide proof of employment, which was supervised by the court and a probation officer. Following his father’s death, Harvey repeatedly came into conflict with his mother, which is why his probation officer arranged for him to move into his own flat in September 1956. Harvey’s probation period finally came to an end in September 1956. In January 1957, Harvey moved to Los Angeles, where his series of murders began. Harvey had learnt that it was far too dangerous to attack women in the open street, so he devised a new method. He was a passionate amateur photographer. He put this skill to good use. Harvey contacted modelling agencies under a false name. He posed as a professional photographer working for true-crime magazines that also required authentic bondage photographs. Harvey went out of his way to buy a new Rollei Cord with a Schneider Xenar zoom lens. He earned the money for the expensive equipment by working in a television repair shop. In fact, Harvey initially only photographed the women before committing his first rape and murder. His first murder victim was 19-year-old Judith Ann Dull, who was in desperate need of money due to her acrimonious divorce and custody battle. Judith had obtained Harvey’s telephone number through an agency. Harvey picked Judith up on Sweetzer Avenue in August 1957. He first drove to her flat before taking her to his photography studio. The photo shoot proceeded quite normally until he asked Judith if he could take some bondage photos of her for a magazine cover. Judith agreed and allowed him to tie her hands and feet. Harvey then took a few photos before raping Judith for hours at gunpoint. Harvey kept taking photos. Afterwards, he watched a sitcom with Judith before driving to the town of Thousand Palms. Just past the town, he turned off towards the desert, where he once again made Judith pose for photos. He raped Judith again. Then he placed a noose around her neck, tying the end to her ankles. He then pulled on the rope until Judith suffocated. He then took photographs of Judith. On 8 March 1958, he met 24-year-old Shireley Bridgeford at the ‘Lonely Hearts Club’. He posed as George Williams and invited her out for dinner. After dinner, he drove her to the Vallecito Mountains, where he held her at gunpoint. He tied Ruth up, raped her repeatedly and eagerly took photographs before strangling her. On 23 June 1958, 24-year-old Ruth Mercado became Harvey’s next victim. He had arranged to meet her via a newspaper advert to take photographs at his flat, where he tied her up and raped her repeatedly. He then drove her to the desert area near San Diego, where he stayed with her until the following day. He assaulted Ruth repeatedly before strangling her. On 27 October 1958, he hired 28-year-old Lorraine Vigil through the modelling agency ‘Diane Studio’. He picked her up in his car and drove her to a remote road near Santa Ana. He tried to tie her up at gunpoint, but Lorraine put up a fierce struggle, so Harvey shot her in the thigh. In the process, he dropped the gun and Lorraine, acting on the spur of the moment, jumped out of the car, where patrol officers discovered her. Harvey was arrested and, during questioning, confessed to all three murders. Following a three-day trial, he was sentenced to death. Upon the pronouncement of the death sentence, Harvey simply remarked, “It’s better this way!” On 18 September 1959, he was taken to the “Lounge”, the so-called gas chamber at San Quentin State Prison. At 10 o’clock sharp, the executioner turned on the valve, releasing the lethal cyanide gas. After just 12 minutes, Harvey Murray Glatman, one of the worst serial killers in American history, died.
