True Crime Friday: The Babysitter Unidentified Serial Killer
An unknown serial killer was active in Michigan from February 15, 1976, through March 16, 1977. This serial killer murdered four children in Oakland County, Michigan. It is suspected that he killed more people. The killer has several monikers including but not limited to The Snow Murderer, The Oakland County Killer and The Babysitter Killer. The latter moniker is the best known for the serial killer. The moniker stuck because the victims were being found in areas where they could be easily seen, the killer would keep the victim’s hostage for days weeks or months before placing their bodies in open areas to easy be found. Because the killer kept the children alive for weeks and months before he killed them some in the press started calling the killer the babysitter.
There were witnesses that saw a man with some of the children before their bodies were eventually found. At that time this was the largest serial killer investigation in American history. The Detroit Newspapers, radio stations and local and national television stations were covering the case. There was a documentary on WXYT radio station called Winter Fear: The Children, the Killer, the Search, that won a Peabody Award 1977. DNA testing indirectly implicated two suspects. Both suspects were sexual predators with multiple felonies. One of them died and the other one is still in prison to this day. Since the DNA was indirect and not direct there is no connection to the case. To this day the killer has never been identified.
The Early Childhood of the Babysitter
Of course, we know nothing about the early childhood of this killer. But since he turned out to be a serial killer, he would have these traits as a child. Childhood trauma such as abuse and neglect. Negative behaviors such as anti-social, generally they suffer extreme physical and sexual abuse by their parents or someone close to them. Because of the research that has been done by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) we have a better understanding of how serial killers think and operate.Advancement in profiling serial killers and understanding the sequential progression of their life histories can now indicate the path a person may take to become a serial killer.
The Babysitter Suspects
- Archibald Edward Sloan
- Ted Lamborgine
- Richard Lawson,
- Christopher Brian Busch
- Jeff Gannon
- Arch Sloan
Less Dead Theory
Unfortunately, these children fall under the less dead umbrella. This killer was able to snatch children off the street as they were walking home, walking to a friend’s house, to the store or were getting off the school bus. It took a while for police to understand that the cases were connected. There were serious missteps involved in this case by law enforcement. Law enforcement tends to neglect these cases and so does the media making it easier for serial killers to roam the communities with impunity. Cases involving more prestigious victims rarely take a back seat in the media and law enforcement. This is the Less Dead Theory in a nutshell.The Victims of The Babysitter
- Mark Douglas Stebbins, 12
- Jill Robinson, 12,
- Kristine Marie Mihelich, 10
- Timothy John King, 11,
- Donna Serra, 17
- Jane Louise "Janey" Allan, 13
- Kimberly Alice "Kim" King, 12,