http://cbs5.com/crime/what.happened.stinky.2.596043.html
Whatever Happened To The 'Stinky' Rapist?
BERKELEY (CBS 5) ― Portia's memory of what happened on a December night in 1976, is vivid and clear.
She was 28 years old, separated from her husband and living with their 2 and 1/2 year old son in Berkeley. A college student, with a job at an airline.
She hit the books, then fell asleep.
"I just remember waking up with pressure on my back, and at that point, I raised my head and a blindfold went over my face, I thought it was a robbery, but it turned out to be a rape."
CBS 5 covered the story in 1977. The reporter at the time was Ben Williams. His story was about a prolific rapist, the same man who attacked Portia. The suspect had already attacked scores of women, all who remembered the way he smelled. His nickname: "Stinky."
Investigators believe Stinky's first attack was June of 1973. His youngest victim was 13; his oldest, 87.
During Stinky's reign of terror, Oakland's Bay Area Women Against Rape crisis counselors were swamped with calls.
"He had a huge terrifying impact on the city of Berkeley, " said Marcia Blackstock of Bay Area Women Against Rape. "Police were going door to door warning women about him."
Just out of the police academy, Guy Craig and his officer collegues would have to get creative in their investigation, since they lacked a good description of Stinky.
"We'd stand in the shadows or sit on someone's porch, go into bushes and hide in the bushes," said Craig, now a sergeant in the Berkeley PD. "Basically looking for any movement, anybody on the street."
Carolyn Craven, was Stinky's last known victim, number 62. A local journalist, she did something unheard of back then, she did not remain silent – interviewed on TV by Tom Snyder.
Even though blindfolded during her ordeal, her reporter instincts kicked in. An inspector called her, "a fantastic witness."
"(The rapist) is absolutely sane," said Craven. "In fact, that's one of the things that terrified me about him, that's what made it so terrifying, how ordinary he seemed."
But not ordinary enough, to steer clear of police suspicions.
"They were always confident they knew who the suspect was, and knew based on things, interventions they'd done, that he was not going to be committing any more crimes," said Berkeley police chief Douglas Hambleton.
Chief Hambleton says Stinky's case is now closed. The statute of limitations ran out in 1981. "But they did not have enough to be able to present a prosecutable case to the district attorney's office, so case never prosecuted."
In the end, the suspect in the Stinky caser wasn't really that mysterious. Eventually his name and even details of his life appeared in newspapers. Still, police refuse to identify him today, because he'll never get his day in court. And now, we've learned, for the first time, that prime suspect, is now dead.
In the wake of the pain Stinky inflicted, the words of Carolyn Craven are still loud and clear. Bay Area Women Against Rape uses this emotion packed interview, in training classes for both crisis counselors and police officers.
Today, it's only role playing, but soon Portia will give her gift, too. She is halfway through training to become a sexual assault crisis counselor.
"I remember sitting on the bed that day, thinking, I'm in the middle of finals, I have a job to go to tonight, and I need to decide right now," said Portia, "am I going to let a stranger take away the rest of my life, or am I going to raise up and stay on focus."
Back then, more than 30 years ago, Portia was called a victim. Today, she is considered a survivor.
Bay Area Women Against Rape, the nation's first rape crisis center, was founded in 1971. The organizations is always in need of volunteers. If you're interested, you can call (510) 430-1298. If you'd like to talk to a counselor, the Crisis Hotline number is (510) 845-RAPE (7273).
Whatever Happened To The 'Stinky' Rapist?
BERKELEY (CBS 5) ― Portia's memory of what happened on a December night in 1976, is vivid and clear.
She was 28 years old, separated from her husband and living with their 2 and 1/2 year old son in Berkeley. A college student, with a job at an airline.
She hit the books, then fell asleep.
"I just remember waking up with pressure on my back, and at that point, I raised my head and a blindfold went over my face, I thought it was a robbery, but it turned out to be a rape."
CBS 5 covered the story in 1977. The reporter at the time was Ben Williams. His story was about a prolific rapist, the same man who attacked Portia. The suspect had already attacked scores of women, all who remembered the way he smelled. His nickname: "Stinky."
Investigators believe Stinky's first attack was June of 1973. His youngest victim was 13; his oldest, 87.
During Stinky's reign of terror, Oakland's Bay Area Women Against Rape crisis counselors were swamped with calls.
"He had a huge terrifying impact on the city of Berkeley, " said Marcia Blackstock of Bay Area Women Against Rape. "Police were going door to door warning women about him."
Just out of the police academy, Guy Craig and his officer collegues would have to get creative in their investigation, since they lacked a good description of Stinky.
"We'd stand in the shadows or sit on someone's porch, go into bushes and hide in the bushes," said Craig, now a sergeant in the Berkeley PD. "Basically looking for any movement, anybody on the street."
Carolyn Craven, was Stinky's last known victim, number 62. A local journalist, she did something unheard of back then, she did not remain silent – interviewed on TV by Tom Snyder.
Even though blindfolded during her ordeal, her reporter instincts kicked in. An inspector called her, "a fantastic witness."
"(The rapist) is absolutely sane," said Craven. "In fact, that's one of the things that terrified me about him, that's what made it so terrifying, how ordinary he seemed."
But not ordinary enough, to steer clear of police suspicions.
"They were always confident they knew who the suspect was, and knew based on things, interventions they'd done, that he was not going to be committing any more crimes," said Berkeley police chief Douglas Hambleton.
Chief Hambleton says Stinky's case is now closed. The statute of limitations ran out in 1981. "But they did not have enough to be able to present a prosecutable case to the district attorney's office, so case never prosecuted."
In the end, the suspect in the Stinky caser wasn't really that mysterious. Eventually his name and even details of his life appeared in newspapers. Still, police refuse to identify him today, because he'll never get his day in court. And now, we've learned, for the first time, that prime suspect, is now dead.
In the wake of the pain Stinky inflicted, the words of Carolyn Craven are still loud and clear. Bay Area Women Against Rape uses this emotion packed interview, in training classes for both crisis counselors and police officers.
Today, it's only role playing, but soon Portia will give her gift, too. She is halfway through training to become a sexual assault crisis counselor.
"I remember sitting on the bed that day, thinking, I'm in the middle of finals, I have a job to go to tonight, and I need to decide right now," said Portia, "am I going to let a stranger take away the rest of my life, or am I going to raise up and stay on focus."
Back then, more than 30 years ago, Portia was called a victim. Today, she is considered a survivor.
Bay Area Women Against Rape, the nation's first rape crisis center, was founded in 1971. The organizations is always in need of volunteers. If you're interested, you can call (510) 430-1298. If you'd like to talk to a counselor, the Crisis Hotline number is (510) 845-RAPE (7273).
