Smiley face murder theory explained

The smiley face murder theory (also known as the smiley face murders, smiley face killings, and smiley face gang) is a theory advanced by retired New York City detectives Kevin Gannon and Anthony Duarte, as well as Dr. Lee Gilbertson, a criminal justice professor and gang expert at St. Cloud State University.[1] It alleges that 45 young men found dead in bodies of water across several Midwestern American states from the late 1990s to the 2010s[2] did not accidentally drown, as concluded by law enforcement agencies, but were victims of one or multiple serial killers.

The term "smiley face" became connected to the alleged murders when it was made public that the police had discovered graffiti depicting a smiley face near locations where they think the killer dumped the bodies in at least a dozen of the cases. Gannon wrote a textbook case study on the subject titled "Case Studies in Drowning Forensics."[3] [4] The response of law enforcement investigators and other experts has been largely skeptical.

Gannon and Duarte's investigation

As recently as 2017, Gannon and Duarte were examining evidence going back to the late 1990s that they believe connects the deaths of 45 college-age males whose dead bodies were found in water in 11 states,[5] often after leaving parties or bars where they had been drinking. The men, according to the former detectives, often fit a profile of being popular, athletic, and successful students and most were white.[6]

Gannon and Duarte have theorized that the young men were all murdered, either by an individual or by an organized group of killers.[7] The term "smiley face" became connected to the alleged murders when it was made public that Gannon and Duarte had discovered graffiti depicting a smiley face near locations where they think the killer had dumped the bodies in at least a dozen of the cases.[4] Furthermore, Gannon and Gilbertson claim to have found other types of graffiti symbols associated with the suspicious deaths, but have not disseminated these other images outside a few trusted law enforcement contacts for fear of inspiring copycat graffiti or alerting suspects.[8]

Reception of the theory

Other police forces that have investigated the deaths dispute the conclusion that the cases are linked. Police departments that are involved do not currently view the deaths associated with smiley faces present at the scenes as serial-killer activity.[9] The La Crosse, Wisconsin police department, which was in charge of eight of the investigations, concluded that the deaths were accidental drownings of inebriated men and stated that no smiley-face symbols were found in connection with any of the cases.[10] The Center for Homicide Research published a research brief that also attempted to scientifically refute the theory.[11] In March 2009, Lee Gilbertson, a criminal justice faculty member at St. Cloud State University, voiced his support for the theory on an episode of Larry King Live in which the alleged murders were discussed.[12]

Criminal profiler Pat Brown calls the serial-killer theory "ludicrous," arguing that the evidence does not fit what is known about serial killers. Brown also believes that the smiley-face images found in some of the cases are likely nothing more than coincidences based upon guesses as to where the bodies entered the water, with smiley-face graffiti only found after a wide-area search. "It's not an unusual symbol," she told Minneapolis-based newspaper City Pages. "If you look in any area five miles square, I bet you could find a smiley face."[13] Gilbertson and Gannon have disputed the idea that smiley-face graffiti is commonplace, saying they examined many areas nationwide that were and were not associated with suspicious deaths and rarely found smiley-face images.[8]

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued the following statement:

Ruben Rosario of the St. Paul Pioneer Press has questioned Gannon's motives, stating that Gannon has failed to provide any factual evidence that a group of killers exists. Rosario noted that Kristi Piehl, the original reporter on the theory, and some of the parents of the deceased have since expressed skepticism despite initially supporting the idea. Another parent, Kathy Geib, is working with Piehl and others, but their main goal is to convince police to take a second look at cases of alcohol-related drownings.

In popular culture

See also

General:

References

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Nolasco . Stephanie . 'Smiley Face Killers' gang was behind young men's drownings, former NYPD detectives claim in new doc . Fox News. 18 January 2019 .
  2. Web site: The 'Smiley Face Killer' Theory That Connects 40 College Students' Deaths . Thought Catalog. 31 March 2015 .
  3. Web site: Fourteen Dead Men: Link or No Link?. Psychology Today.
  4. News: Is a Serial-Killer Gang Murdering Young Men Across the U.S.?. Nicole Weisensee. Egan. The Daily Beast. January 18, 2019. www.thedailybeast.com.
  5. News: The Investigation. Gannon. Kevin. Piehl, Kristi . Piehowski, Justin . 2008-04-25. Gannon interview (extended coverage). KSTP. 2009-03-30.
  6. "Smiley face killers may be stalking college men", CNN, May 21, 2008.
  7. "Detectives: 40 Drowning Victims May Have Been Murdered by 'Smiley Face Gang'", Fox News, April 29, 2008.
  8. Forletta Investigates podcast (Feb 16, 2021). (The Smiley Face Killers with Detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson. Accessed 11 July 2024
  9. Web site: Why The Smiley Face Killer Has Been One Of The Internet's Favorite Monsters For A Decade . ati. 28 June 2018 .
  10. Web site: media.graytvinc.com.
  11. Drake, et al. "Drowning the Smiley Face Murder Theory" Center for Homicide Research. Retrieved 2010-07-15.
  12. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0903/26/lkl.01.html Larry King Live March 26, 2009
  13. Web site: Smith . Matt . Minneapolis/st. Paul – City Pages – The Blotter – Criminal Profiler Debunks "Smiley Face Killers" . Blogs.citypages.com . 2009-02-20.
  14. News: Is a Serial-Killer Gang Murdering Young Men Across the U.S.?. Egan. Nicole Weisensee. 2019-01-18. 2019-01-18. en.
  15. Web site: New TV series to highlight 'Smiley Face Killers' theory about drownings . Fox 9. 17 January 2019 .
  16. Web site: Book Review: 'Ill Will,' By Dan Chaon : NPR. March 22, 2017. NPR.
  17. News: Johnston. April. In the Name of the Father. Columbus Monthly. April 2009. March 12, 2016. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160313231009/http://www.columbusmonthly.com/content/stories/2009/04/randy-shaffer-in-the-name-of-the-father.html. March 13, 2016.