PALMETTO PREDATORS:
                MONSTERS AMONG US



TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
Chapter One: Richard Valenti – Super Christian
Chapter Two: Lee Roy Martin – The Gaffney Strangler
Chapter Three: Marc Evonitz – Coward’s Way Out
Chapter Four: Larry Gene Bell – God Chose Us
Chapter Five: Final Justice – The Life and Crimes of Pee Wee Gaskins
Chapter Six:  Danny Starrett - Delusional Denial
Chapter Seven: James Neil Tucker – The $34 Killer
Chapter Eight: Sweet Eddie Fischer – One Man Epidemic
Chapter Nine: The Literate Monster – Stephen Stanko
Afterword



INTRODUCTION

“Remorse for what? You people have done everything in the world to me.
 Doesn't that give me equal right?”     - Charles Manson

The definition of a serial killer is: any offender, male or female, who kills
multiple victims over a period of time. Most researchers agree that to be
classified as serial killers there should be a minimum of 3-4 victims. However,
sometimes through good police work potential serial killers are stopped after the
first or second victim. This volume includes two such stories.
There are notable distinctions between a mass murderer and a serial killer. The
mass murderer, sometimes called a spree killer, kills several people in a short
period of time - the Columbine school shootings are a good example. A serial
killer murders victims over a period of time – months or even years. The mass
murderer also usually suffers from psychosis and is often considered insane. By
contrast serial killers are rarely found to be mentally ill. Most serial killers
are described as obsessive-compulsive because they normally kill according to a
particular style and pattern.
Greg McCrary, former FBI profiler says: “People have to be aware that [serial]
offenders  . . . are not one-dimensional monsters but project the appearance of
normalcy and blend in with the rest of society in many ways.”
Most serial killers are sexually motivated and derive pleasure in the physical
act of murder. The more they do it, the more they enjoy it.   
Is there a recipe for a serial killer? Most experts say “yes.” After thirty years
of intense study and analysis by forensic profilers and psychiatrists, serial
killers usually have some, most, or all of these traits and characteristics in
their past:

  • Most serial killers grew up in violent households with alcoholic adults.
    They were outcast and often suffered from physical impairments. As children
    they enjoyed torturing animals, setting fires and were chronic bed-wetters.
  • There is also a high rate of childhood head injuries among people who become
    serial murderers. As adults, many have some type of brain damage and become
    addicted to alcohol and/or drugs.
  • They are exposed to pornography at an early age, and it quickly moves past
    the Playboy / Penthouse style of porno into extremely violent torture,
    bondage, or S & M pornography.
  • Serial killers tend to be white, heterosexual males in their twenties and
    thirties who are sexually dysfunctional and suffer from low self-esteem.
  • Their methodical rampages are almost always sexual in nature. Their killings
    are usually part of an elaborate fantasy that builds to a climax at the
    moment of their murderous outburst.
  • Serial killers generally murder strangers with cooling off periods between
    each crime. Many killings include cannibalism and necrophilia. They often
    keep trophy-like body parts as mementos of their work as a way to relive the
    experience.
  • Serial killers are obsessive in nature. Some return to crime scenes or grave
    sites of their victims to fantasize about their deeds. Many like to insert
    themselves in the investigation of their crimes and some enjoy taunting
    authorities with letters or carefully placed pieces of evidence.
  • Serial killers tend to prey on women and children of their same race.
    Prostitutes, drifters and hitchhikers are their victims of choice.
  • Some homosexual killers enjoy hunting young boys and gay men.
  • Female serial killers tend to be "black widows" who kill a succession of
    husbands, lovers, or other family members. They can also be nurses or other
    medical professionals who become self-appointed “angels of death”, murdering
    babies, elderly, or the desperately ill in a misguided effort to relieve
    their suffering.

Palmetto Predators: Monsters Among Us is a collection of stories detailing the
life and crimes of some of South Carolina’s serial criminals. It also examines
two potential serial killers - murderers who had the profile of a serial killer
but were apprehended early enough to prevent them from reaching the magic
threshold.
As you read about these monsters keep this thought in mind. Every time we watch a
news story about the arrest of an accused serial offender, the news media rushes
to interview the monster’s neighbors. The typical comment from a neighbor is: “He
was such a nice, quiet man.”

Mark R. Jones
mark@blackcattours.com
www.markrjones.net