Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases

This key figure is unique in that his exact identity is not known to Holes until the closing of the book. DeAngelo is the perpetrator of the crimes Holes becomes most fixated on solving: a series of rapes in central California from 1977 to 1979 and a series of murders throughout Southern California in the early 1980s. Early in Holes’s investigation, DeAngelo is known as the East Area Rapist and the Original Night Stalker—monikers that underscore the seriousness of his crimes. These identifying labels are later replaced by the title The Golden State Killer, which reflects the geographic extent of his crimes, committed across a large swath of the state. Coined by a journalist, the nickname is also “catchy” in a way that helps garner media attention and public interest in solving the case.

In order to determine the perpetrator’s identity, Holes relies on identifying unique traits reported by multiple survivors. Certain actions—such as tormenting and taunting victims with phone calls and eating the food found in the house of the victims—recur from instance to instance. These details not only help to establish that all of the crimes were committed by the same person, but they also paint a psychological profile of the killer that is useful in identifying suspects. For example, Holes notes early in his investigation that some of the tactics the perpetrator uses to subdue his victims, such as shining a flashlight in their eyes, are ones used by police—a clue to DeAngelo’s identity as a former police officer. Holes also notices that the perpetrator seems not to be a “psychopath” because he shows discomfort regarding anything that personalizes his victims (such as informing him of a pregnancy). Indeed, in many instances, the perpetrator shows emotion after attacking his victims—crying or berating himself in a manner that suggests he understands the wrongness of his actions.

When the police finally apprehend DeAngelo, Holes notes several parallels between his demeanor and the reports of survivors. DeAngelo is able to sit, unmoving and unspeaking, for long periods of time—a technique he used to torment his victims and subsequently employs when refusing to speak to police. Even seemingly insignificant aspects of his personality—such as his insistence on a fastidiously manicured lawn—indicate DeAngelo’s need for control and dominance. Holes has spent decades constructing a profile of the Golden State Killer; with his identity discovered, he can put a face to the portrait and confirm that his ideas were correct.

Detectives Conaty and Giacomelli were partners in the Pittsburg Police Department who feature in Holes’s memoir. Holes meets them in 1998 when he is called to assist with a homicide. Conaty and Giacomelli are known nationwide among law enforcement as a skilled team and revered and respected for their success in solving homicide cases. Holes particularly emphasizes the strong bond between the two men; when Giacomelli is killed in duty, the pair is no longer the same. Before this, however, a rapport develops between the men and Holes that grows into a long-term friendship.

Holes describes Conaty as tall with a commanding presence and an impeccable and stylish fashion sense—traits that Holes suggest make him intimidating. Giacomelli, who also dresses impressively, is short with a bushy mustache. Holes notes that these physical differences make the partners a noticeable pair, their contrast like something from a detective film. Both are hardworking and dedicated police officers who are humble and down-to-earth regarding their accomplishments and roles. They joke and make fun of one another and others in their orbit; Holes understands that their penchant for teasing him is a sign that they have accepted and respect him. Indeed, their humor is a coping mechanism for dealing with brutal experiences. Holes stresses that both men are deeply empathetic toward their families and the victims they encounter in their professional lives; they are driven to solve cases with a ferocity that matches Holes’s own obsession. They are eager to learn about the scientific aspects of solving crimes, and Holes is honored to teach them.