Dale Hausner Anniversary of Arrest

Five years ago today the country awoke to the news that the serial killer who had been terrorizing the city of Phoenix had been captured. It was the first time we heard the name "Dale Hausner." Dale was captured in a SWAT raid at midnight, shown here fresh from his living room. He testified when the door burst open and bright lights shone, he thought it was a prank by his roommate.

Dale Hausner soon after his arrest. Pool photo

Nothing was a prank, the whole thing was a terrible nightmare for an entire city and for many individuals who were hurt the most.

Dale Hausner still sporting his Charles Starkweather look.  Pool photo

Five years on, Dale has long since had his day in court. We all listened to him as Americans who (photo by Camille Kimball)
believe in his right to a fair trial including to take the stand try to convince a jury in his own words with the force of his personality.

The person who had to listen to him the most was his lead defense attorney, shown here taking the brunt of Dale's energetic ideas in court while prosecutor Laura Reckart slips away for a break. Ken Everett had a tough job and, as he himself knew, was on the receiving end of a lot of community hostility. But as the trial wore on and I watched Dale tug on his sleeve constantly, passing notes, gesticulating incessantly, busily whispering, whispering, whispering always in Everett's ear, I developed some real pity for the lawyer. As the photo shows, most of us could get away from Dale. Ken Everett couldn't.

But that's just a tiny little side observation. The main event was that Dale Hausner was the driving force behind a year of terror for America's fifth largest city and several life sentences of grief and maiming for many specific individuals.

On August 4, 2006, a network of cops such as Cliff Jewell, Darrell Smith and Pete Salazar and a brave citizen named Ron Horton, put a screeching halt to the mayhem caused by the Serial Shooter.

On August 4, 2006 we learned his name.

On August 4, we saw his face.

Camille Kimball's books are:

What She Always Wanted

A Sudden Shot

The Mammoth Book of Tough Guys
Masters of True Crime