Life Prison Sentence Silences BTK
After Three Decades Of Terrorizing Wichita, Rader Locked Away
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Play CBS Video Video BTK Sentenced To Life Dennis Rader, the BTK serial killer, was sentenced today to life in prison — the maximum sentence. Families of the victims got an opportunity to confront Rader in court, Erin Moriarty reports.
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Video BTK Fails To Move Court CBS News Correspondent Erin Moriarty reports on Dennis Rader's sentencing, his address to the court and the reactions from the families of his victims.
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Video BTK Killer Speaks CBS News RAW: Convicted serial killer Dennis Rader spoke at his sentencing in court.
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Dennis Rader, the convicted BTK serial killer, is escorted into the El Dorado Correctional Facility on August 19, 2005 in El Dorado, Kan. (GETTY)
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Capt. Sam Houston of the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office shows a mask during Dennis Rader's sentencing hearing. It was found with victim Dolores Davis' body, police say. (AP)
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Brandon Wegerle, left, embraces his sister, Stephanie Clyne, as their father, Bill Wegerle, makes a victim statement during the sentencing phase of the murder trial of BTK serial killer Dennis Rader. (AP)
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Interactive The BTK Killer A look at some of the lives snuffed out by Kansas' BTK Strangler and a timeline of the murders.
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Interactive Serial Killers & Mass Murder Meet some of the world's worst killers, find out how some have gotten caught and what some have said about their crimes.
Rader's taunting killing spree started in 1974 and ended in 1991. BTK resurfaced in 2004 after years of silence with a letter to The Wichita Eagle that included photos of a 1986 strangling victim and a photocopy of her missing driver's license.
That letter was followed by several other cryptic messages and packages. The break in the case came earlier this year after a computer diskette the killer had sent was traced to Rader's church, where he once served as president.
The sentencing hearing also included graphic testimony from detectives who outlined Rader's crimes in grisly detail.
Capt. Sam Houston of the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office testified about Rader's last known killing — the strangulation of 63-year-old Dolores Davis in 1991. Rader, who handcuffed Davis and tied her with pantyhose, told police it took two or three minutes for her to die, and that fueled his torturous fantasies for years.
"It was this moment that victim was tied and bound," Rader wrote in a journal, according to testimony Thursday by Houston. "He could live in that moment for years."
Investigators also testified that Rader kept hundreds of pictures from magazines and circulars mounted on index cards, with details of the warped sexual fantasies he dreamed of carrying out.
Yet to be determined is how Rader will spend his remaining years behind bars.
Prosecutors asked the judge at sentencing to recommend Rader be barred from seeing or listening to news reports regarding his murders, prohibited from possessing anything with which he could draw or write about his sexual fantasies, and disallowed from making audio or visual recordings other than for law enforcement purposes.
The prosecution request surprised defense attorneys, who said they had not had time to research the issue.
Waller plans a hearing in about a month to decide the issue.
©MMV CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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