THE man accused of being the “Grim Sleeper” serial killer has made his first appearance in court, as details emerged of the provocative new DNA technique used to nab him.
Lonnie Franklin Jr appeared in a Los Angeles court on 10 counts of murder and other charges in killings between 1985 and 2007.
His arraignment was postponed until August 9 at the request of his lawyer.
Police hailed his arrest this week as an end to a quarter-century reign of terror on the streets of Los Angeles. The killer earned the “Grim Sleeper” nickname after taking a 14-year hiatus between slayings and re-emerging in 2002 to take three more victims.
In the end, it was a pizza meal at a Los Angeles restaurant that led to Franklin’s arrest.
An undercover officer pretending to be a waiter collected tableware, napkins, glasses and pizza crust at a restaurant where the suspect ate in recent days, allowing detectives to obtain a “familial DNA” match.
The trail began to heat up when the DNA of Franklin’s son was entered in a state database after he was convicted in a weapons case, authorities said.
The son’s DNA was similar to genetic material found on the victims, and authorities soon began following around Franklin to get his DNA and see if he was the suspected killer.
California Attorney-General Jerry Brown said it marked the first time in the nation that familial DNA had been used to break a case of such magnitude. He expects legal challenges but believes the case will hold up to the scrutiny.
Police Chief Charlie Beck said the case will be groundbreaking.
“This will change the way policing is done in the United States,” he said.
Advocates of familial searches believe they will solve many more crimes in which there is DNA evidence. Others worry that it creates the potential for guilt by association: a person could come under suspicion simply if a family member’s DNA is in a criminal database.
LaVerne Peters attended the officials’ news conference with other family members and stood in front of police headquarters clutching a picture of daughter Janecia Peters in her high school graduation gown and mortar board.
Her daughter was killed in 2007 at age 25, leaving behind a then five-year-old son.
“There’s no greater pain than the loss of a child,” said LaVerne Peters, now guardian of the eight-year-old boy. “You wanna just fall to your knees and stay there. Some people ask, `How do you go on?’ and I say, `I get up and I put one foot in front of the other and keep going.”’
Police have said at least 11 killings are believed part of the “Grim Sleeper” case. Kilcoyne said one of those deaths was not included in the charges because it is not a DNA case.
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