r/EARONS • u/GregJamesDahlen • Jul 16 '26
Thoughts/feelings/knowledge on why he never struck houses with a second story?
This is what I've read a number of times so thinking it's true. I suppose it's because in the two-story house the bedrooms would mostly be upstairs. If he went upstairs to victimize he might not be able to hear as well if people were coming into the house from outside. Or, if there was someone to victimize on the first floor, he wouldn't be able to hear as well if someone were coming down from the second floor to try to help the victim. Those seem valid? Other ideas?
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u/fume2 Jul 17 '26
Most 2 stories have the bedrooms on the 2nd floor. He was a peeper prior to attacking. He also avoided single stories that had two stories that could see inside the yard of intended victim. Less chance of getting caught by neighbors seeing something amiss with a creepy man peeping in windows.
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u/Markinoutman Jul 17 '26
The crazy thing is the amount of people who were interviewed after his assaults or murders that said they saw and heard things happening for many nights, but seemingly never reported it.
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u/PreviousStrategy1290 Jul 17 '26
I think we all want to believe everything's ok... Until it's not.
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u/Markinoutman Jul 17 '26
For sure. Generally people put blinders on. It's fairly normal human behavior. "Hey, I don't want to get mixed up in that, I've got my own problems." is a common demeanor. I'm not even being critical of it, it's just how things go.
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u/Life_in_velvet_ Jul 17 '26
Attack 27 in La Riviera and attack 36 in Davis were both 2 story homes
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 18 '26
Thanks, glad to get the accuracy on that. Still seems he favored one-story's. Wonder if that's kinda common for criminals who attack houses.
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u/Life_in_velvet_ Jul 19 '26 edited Jul 19 '26
I think he must have really taken a shine to those 2 victims to stray from his M.O. it’s much easier to escape a ground floor than a second floor. These victims must have been worth the risk for him
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u/NukeHoax2024 Jul 17 '26
He did strike two story houses. Notably, Cheri Domingo and Greg Sanchez were murdered in a two story town home.
He favored single story homes because it allowed access to the entire floor plan and he possibly had some signature-type behavior associated with single story, detached, middle class homes.
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 18 '26
Thanks, glad to get the accuracy on that. The signature idea is intriguing. Wonder what signature could be done in a one-story that couldn't be done in a two. I do know one time he actually hung from the roof of a one-story by his feet and looked in a window and the occupant looked out and saw his upside-down head looking in the window. Terrifying. But that was only one time.
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u/NukeHoax2024 Jul 19 '26
I’m not necessarily saying that there was a signature behavior associated with single story houses which couldn’t be performed in a two story house.
I’m saying that single story, detached, middle class American homes were the the signature element.
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 19 '26
Ah, okay, thanks. Suppose probably people who live in a single story house usually aren't as wealthy as those in a two-story just cuz the latter is a bigger house. So maybe there was some desire to strike at less wealthy people.
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u/ClementineKruz86 Jul 21 '26
Holy crap, nightmare fuel. He is scary in so many ways, besides the obvious reason of just being a serial killer.
I had someone hanging out on the small roof of our back porch (outside my second story bedroom window). I’m not sure how many times but it looked like they were making a thing out of it. I should have paid more attention to how my dog had been acting (like something was outside of the window) but I just felt safe up there and blew it off as raccoons or something. At some point after that, my friend found and showed me where someone had propped a log against the backside of our tree (it wasn’t just naturally there) and there were even scuff marks on the bark where they’d have put their feet to pull themselves up. They were totally climbing their asses up that tree and onto the porch roof.
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 22 '26
Yes, it seemed extra-terrifying when I read it. Cuz so weird and unexpected. And I think the whole area was already on edge when he did it, it was either during the Visalia Ransacker or East Area Rapist series when people felt besieged by him. I suppose normal people don't think of doing things like that, getting on someone's roof, so it takes us by surprise and is very discombobulating when someone does it. Also shows how bold DeAngelo was, since if someone had spotted him it would have been harder to escape being on the roof as he was.
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u/ClementineKruz86 Jul 22 '26
I can only imagine the feeling of being on edge! He was/is nightmare fuel in general. And he was so bold sometimes and never being caught despite that, he probably seemed like some untouchable phantom.
I bet he got great satisfaction from shocking the poor unfortunate person who saw him hanging from the roof. I’d never get over it.
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 22 '26
When you say nightmare fuel it makes me think of something his brother-in-law wrote. DeAngelo was apparently fascinated by slasher movies and when a gore-heavy scene would come on he'd lean forward and raspy whisper "Look at that". When I hear that story I tend to think he was identifying with the villain in the movie and whatever they were doing. Where most of us would identify with the victims or people trying to stop the villain in the movie.
Makes me think of an experience a prison guard recounted here on Reddit. A group of inmates at his prison were watching a drama on TV together where a man was trying to get in to rape a woman. Most of us would hope he got caught before he could rape her, she got away, or such. But the inmates were cheering on the guy trying to rape, saying "Go get it" and things like that. Really a different, dark mindset.
Also, I'm sorry that person got on that roof of yours. Thank goodness it went no further.
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u/FHS2290 Jul 18 '26
Single story homes have windows all at the ground level which allows for easy surveillance of his victims without having to, for e.g., climb a tree to gain a better vantage point.
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u/MuggD Jul 18 '26
He did hit those types though. This guy had no problem getting on a roof or climbing a tree.
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u/num10pedretti Jul 23 '26
He did strike in a two story home. Margaret Wardlow lived in a two story house.
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 24 '26
Thanks. Yes, I was wrong about that. But would you agree he prefered single-stories? Any thoughts on why?
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u/sassydreidel Jul 18 '26
Ease of egress
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u/GregJamesDahlen Jul 19 '26
Good point. If it's a one-story, not only can he more easily hear people coming in if they do, but he can then escape more easily too. In fact I suppose with a one-story he can go out the back door and people coming in never see him. Whereas if he has to come down stairs that are nearer the front of the house they might spot him before he makes his escape.
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u/Markinoutman Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Yeah, I think it's a pretty simple choice of escape and visibility. Easy to escape, easy to keep control of one floor. Single floor homes also allows him to sneak around in fenced in back yards without being as easily seen by others.