LOCAL NEWS

Author: Ted Bundy was capable of killing Tacoma child as teen

Aug 2, 2011, 8:56 AM | Updated: Oct 10, 2012, 7:28 am

cedargrove
Ted Bundy confessed to more than 30 murders and was suspected of more. (AP Photo)

Investigators are hoping a vial of Ted Bundy’s blood found in Florida will be useful in solving cold cases including the case of a Tacoma 8-year-old who went missing in 1961.

Bundy was only 14-years-old at the time of 8-year-old Ann Marie Burr’s disappearance, but an author who has been investigating the case for four years says Bundy showed signs early on that might indicate he was capable of such a killing.

“He was very capable of this by age 14,” said Rebecca Morris, author of the upcoming book, “Ted and Ann: The Mystery of a Missing Child and Her Neighbor, Ted Bundy,” in an appearance on 97.3 KIRO FM’s Ross and Burbank Show.

“By age eight he was killing animals, taking apart animals, setting animals on fire and taking little girls into the woods to urinate on them,” says Morris. “By 14, when Ann Burr disappeared, he was prowling neighborhoods, prowling on his bike, peeping through windows, stealing.”

Listen to interview: Author Rebecca Morris

Morris says Bundy’s family reports unusual behavior starting as early as age three.

“At age three, he was putting knives around a sleeping aunt and when she’d wake up scared, he really delighted in that.”

Morris says mutual friends of Ted Bundy and Ann Marie Burr report the two knew each other.

“In 1961, police didn’t know who Ted Bundy was. He was a 14-year-old boy living a couple of miles away from the Burr home in north Tacoma,” says Morris. “Once we knew Ted Bundy was Ted Bundy and that he was from Tacoma, police began looking at him as a possible suspect.”

Before he was executed in 1989, Bundy confessed to more than 30 murders and was suspected of many more.

Morris says that in 1987, Bundy offered a type of “hypothetical confession” in the Burr case.

“In 1986, he and Beverly Burr, Ann Burr’s mother, were corresponding. He denied it in letters in 1986, but in 1987 he did give a kind of hypothetical confession to killing her.”

While Bundy is typically known for his killings of college co-eds, Morris says there were also children among his victims.

“His very last victim was 12-years-old, and there’s some other children mixed in there.”

Morris says that the two original detectives in the Burr case believe Bundy is an unlikely suspect, but she’s very interested to see if they can establish a link to the notorious serial killer with the new DNA profile.

A bulletin will be sent to law enforcement agencies across the country when the DNA from the Florida blood sample is uploaded to the national DNA database. Tacoma police are among those waiting.

By JAMIE GRISWOLD, MyNorthwest.com Editor
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

You might also be interested in:

Ted Bundy’s DNA to be added to national database

Local News

organized retail theft...

Heather Bosch

Organized retail theft leads to higher prices in the long run

Target announced it would be closing nine stores in several major cities, including two in Seattle due to theft and organized retail crime.

1 hour ago

king county collisions...

Ranji Sinha, KIRO 7 News

State patrol warns public to slow down after 98 collisions in King County since Tuesday

Washington State Patrol is asking drivers to slow down and prepare for more rainy weather after dozens of collisions have happened in the past few days.

2 hours ago

seattle police home invasions...

Bill Kaczaraba

Police make arrests in connection with South Seattle home invasions

Seattle Police (SPD) announced several arrests Wednesday that were in connection with a string of 14 armed robberies in South Seattle.

3 hours ago

everett revenge porn...

Heather Bosch

Everett resident sentenced to 6 years in prison for revenge porn campaign against ex-wife

Gregson said Crawford, 42, used multiple online accounts to send around intimate photos of his ex-wife that were taken while they were still a couple.

4 hours ago

Lake Forest Park shooting...

Bill Kaczaraba

Person shot and killed in Lake Forest Park RV

A person was shot and killed between Lake Forrest Park and Lake City. Police say that the shooting involved an RV.

6 hours ago

Seattle rain...

Bill Kaczaraba

The rain is a big reminder that fall has arrived, but there’s hope for the weekend

El Niño events tend to take place every two to seven years and reach their peak intensities between December and April.

7 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

Swedish Cyberknife...

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

September is a busy month on the sports calendar and also holds a very special designation: Prostate Cancer Awareness Month.

Ziply Fiber...

Dan Miller

The truth about Gigs, Gs and other internet marketing jargon

If you’re confused by internet technologies and marketing jargon, you’re not alone. Here's how you can make an informed decision.

Education families...

Education that meets the needs of students, families

Washington Virtual Academies (WAVA) is a program of Omak School District that is a full-time online public school for students in grades K-12.

Emergency preparedness...

Emergency planning for the worst-case scenario

What would you do if you woke up in the middle of the night and heard an intruder in your kitchen? West Coast Armory North can help.

Innovative Education...

The Power of an Innovative Education

Parents and students in Washington state have the power to reimagine the K-12 educational experience through Insight School of Washington.

Medicare fraud...

If you’re on Medicare, you can help stop fraud!

Fraud costs Medicare an estimated $60 billion each year and ultimately raises the cost of health care for everyone.

Author: Ted Bundy was capable of killing Tacoma child as teen