Carol M. Bundy
Encyclopedia
Carol M. Bundy was an American serial killer
.
Bundy and Doug Clark
became known as "The Sunset Strip Killers" after being convicted of a series of murders in Los Angeles
during the late spring and early summer of 1980. The victims were young prostitutes or runaways.
, went to police claiming that her lover, Clark, had told her he had killed several young women. All had been shot with a gun Bundy had purchased. Bundy claimed initially that she knew nothing of the murders, "only what (Clark) told me".
Shortly before going to police, Bundy, who worked as a nurse, had shot to death, stabbed and beheaded another lover, Jack Murray. Bundy eventually confessed to that murder but claimed it was self-defense. Later, Bundy also admitted that she had been present during one of the murders for which Clark was charged. That murder took place in a car parked behind a gas station in East Hollywood. Bundy claimed Clark shot a prostitute in the head while the prostitute was in the act of fellatio
. Bundy had hired the girl for Clark's birthday. Clark insisted Bundy was the shooter. Both agreed that they had disposed of the body together.
Clark has always claimed that Bundy and Murray committed the murders and he was merely Bundy's fall guy.
with it in a shower and stored it in his ice box. Bundy's testimony was critical; all other evidence
introduced against Clark was circumstantial. Moreover, no forensic examination was ever performed comparing the body of the girl who had been beheaded with Murray's body.
The evidence included a piece of bloody scalp found in the ceiling of Murray's van. That evidence was mentioned but not introduced at Clark's trial. Bundy plea bargain
ed and, in return for her testimony, received a life sentence.
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
.
Bundy and Doug Clark
Doug Clark (criminal)
Douglas Daniel Clark is an American serial killer. Clark and his accomplice Carol M. Bundy are known as the "Sunset Strip Killers"...
became known as "The Sunset Strip Killers" after being convicted of a series of murders in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
during the late spring and early summer of 1980. The victims were young prostitutes or runaways.
Background
Bundy, a divorcee with two children living in the San Fernando ValleySan Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
, went to police claiming that her lover, Clark, had told her he had killed several young women. All had been shot with a gun Bundy had purchased. Bundy claimed initially that she knew nothing of the murders, "only what (Clark) told me".
Shortly before going to police, Bundy, who worked as a nurse, had shot to death, stabbed and beheaded another lover, Jack Murray. Bundy eventually confessed to that murder but claimed it was self-defense. Later, Bundy also admitted that she had been present during one of the murders for which Clark was charged. That murder took place in a car parked behind a gas station in East Hollywood. Bundy claimed Clark shot a prostitute in the head while the prostitute was in the act of fellatio
Fellatio
Fellatio is an act of oral stimulation of a male's penis by a sexual partner. It involves the stimulation of the penis by the use of the mouth, tongue, or throat. The person who performs fellatio can be referred to as the giving partner, and the other person is the receiving partner...
. Bundy had hired the girl for Clark's birthday. Clark insisted Bundy was the shooter. Both agreed that they had disposed of the body together.
Clark has always claimed that Bundy and Murray committed the murders and he was merely Bundy's fall guy.
Trial
Clark's trial was a pitch-black portrait of the San Fernando Valley underworld of the late 1970s, a world in which Bundy and Clark went on endless sexual adventures. Clark himself had engaged in a long sexual relationship with the 13-year-old girl who babysat Bundy's children. However, the highlight of the trial was Bundy's account of how Clark had taken the head off one of his victims, had oral sexOral sex
Oral sex is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a sex partner by the use of the mouth, tongue, teeth or throat. Cunnilingus refers to oral sex performed on females while fellatio refer to oral sex performed on males. Anilingus refers to oral stimulation of a person's anus...
with it in a shower and stored it in his ice box. Bundy's testimony was critical; all other evidence
Evidence
Evidence in its broadest sense includes everything that is used to determine or demonstrate the truth of an assertion. Giving or procuring evidence is the process of using those things that are either presumed to be true, or were themselves proven via evidence, to demonstrate an assertion's truth...
introduced against Clark was circumstantial. Moreover, no forensic examination was ever performed comparing the body of the girl who had been beheaded with Murray's body.
The evidence included a piece of bloody scalp found in the ceiling of Murray's van. That evidence was mentioned but not introduced at Clark's trial. Bundy plea bargain
Plea bargain
A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...
ed and, in return for her testimony, received a life sentence.
External links
- Love and Death: The Sunset Strip Killers at Crime LibraryCrime LibraryThe Crime Library is a website documenting major crimes, criminals, and trials, forensics, and criminal profiling from books, police reports, crime television shows, and writers...