I finally finished this episode. Omg. Everyone PLEASE give Simon some respect for this one. Him and David both deserve all the praise in the world for this episode. Thank you to everyone that was a part of this one. (This includes you Jen)
PTSD was “shell shock” or “battle fatigue” back in the day. David, this episode was tragic. But I will say this; in my opinion you made your goal. This is definitely the most in depth account of JWG I’ve heard. I can only imagine the stress that put you under. Thank you for doing the work and being so committed.
My mothers grandfather's fought in WWI and had what my mom always called "shell shock". He wasn't abusive or violent but you had to stand on the other side of the room to wake him because he'd wake up swinging.
@@Alliebaba7782 I’m in no way trying to imply that those with ptsd/shell shock are prone to violence. But like with anything else it can be a contributing factor.
@@PeachM0de i didn't mean it to sould like I thought that. I just wanted it out there if I spoke about my great grandpa that he wasn't. I never thought you implied that
My god. 3 hours of fact boy and I’m all for it. As someone who’s appendix burst. Worst pain I’ve ever felt. Completely healed now and still vividly remember the pain
I really appreciate the photos of the victims, most of the ones online are blurry. These are clear and you can actually see these poor boys' and men's faces. RIP to all of them.
@@spddracerI was thinking of this the other day. I started a video titled after the victim. I was sad when we got to the name of the perpetrator and THEN I realized I knew the case. We really owe them more. I also think we should stop using the buzzword special names. The Co-Ed Killer sounds sensational…but the reality is he’s the “sad sack dickhead killer” just like every other monster who thinks these things are okay to do.
I honestly really appreciate yall not mentioning his kids' info. That sort of thoughtfulness is why i prefer The Casual Criminalist over most other true crime media i've seen.
Yeah I never get why other true crime channels would in the end mention where or what the kids are currently living and doing did if they have kids too, like are you telling us to go after them or something?
The sad thing about a lot of child abuse disguised as discipline is that it was often excused with the saying "spare the rod, spoil the child." My dad explained to me that people had that saying all wrong. It's from shepherding, the "rod" is what we often call a shepherd's crook. Shepherds wouldn't beat their sheep with the crook, they'd tap the ground and nudge the sheep to *guide* them. Metaphorically, it's the same with children. If you don't give them guidance, they get spoiled and can't function as adults. My dad uses a cane to walk because of a congenital defect, so he also takes the phrase *literally* and would nudge us kids along (usually me) or us the handle to pull us back into line (usually me, again). "You can't *permanently* commit someone to a mental health ward." You could in the '50s. First half of the 20th century, you could have an embarrassing family member committed just for being embarrassing. A woman might be committed for *reading* too much, for instance. It was particularly popular among the rich and influential as it just didn't do to let anyone know your family produced someone *abnormal.*
I appreciate this rod explanation. I heard the real version growing up in Sunday school, but I also heard the twisted version a lot. And as a kid neither one really sank in. Rereading it as an adult is eye opening. My partner used to need a cane to walk, for years, before his back surgery. We had a young toddler and he watched daddy use a can almost every day. He would grab it and walk with daddy to "help" him. It really gave me a different perspective on how we're responsible for how our kids perceive medical conditions or disabilities. I love that he grew up thinking the cane was not a big deal. He's going to go into school being so much more understanding. He saw a man in a wheelchair the other day snd pointed and got excited snd goes "look mama! Wheels!" He thought it was awesome the guy had his own wheels
People get mad at how hard it is to commit someone today, forgetting how easy it used to be to commit people for very little, for life. I think we’ve gone too far in the opposite direction, but we did it for a reason.
Don't forget this is going to hurt me more of this going to hurt you they love throwing that one around. Are im doing this because I care about you. The sad thing is there's always a justification for abuse and the kid is too young to understand what is actually going on. The Kennedys did that had one of the Kennedy's committed to a mental ward and had her have a lobotomy which left her with a mindset of a two-year-old it was because she was embarrassment and was too unruly.
I love your explanation here of the phrase/verse for "Spare the Rod, spoil the Child." The common use never sat right with me; true, discipline is necessary for children, but not corporal punishment. I knew that people were trying to use that as an excuse to beat their children. The Guiding Shepherd Metaphor, however, DOES make sense! Thank you for sharing! God bless. 💙
@@dio_Brando1888 Rosemary Kennedy had brain damage from a birth injury, which the family worked hard to cover up. They even lied and claimed she got a degree in teaching when she had the reading and writing skills of a fourth-grader. I mean, OBVIOUSLY they had to lie because OBVIOUSLY a prominent family couldn’t have a child with learning disabilities. Right? In her early 20’s she developed mood swings and had violent outbursts. (She also had convulsions, so there had to be more going on than emotional difficulties.) So OBVIOUSLY something had to be done, like experimental brain surgery. (Done with her father’s consent but without her mother’s knowledge, because that’s cool.) The operation went even worse than the average lobotomy, reducing her to the state of a two-year-old. So her parents put her in a psychiatric hospital, then an excellent home for the disabled, and didn’t visit her for 20 years, and didn’t tell any of her sisters and brothers where she went. They didn’t learn where she was until their father had a stroke, and didn’t involve her in family life until he died eight years later. Totally normal and completely understandable. Because the past was the worst.
Rignall needs a freaking medal! He literally did the police's job for them, showed them his findings, pestered them to accept his findings and then literally legally forced them into having to take the final steps of all of his work, what a hero, who know how many lives he save from these incompetent arse holes!
@ᛟᛞᛁᚾ well its a swastika surrounded by stars of David imposed upon the LGBTQ+ flag. In modern times one is a flag of love another of religious devotion and the other the symbol of a genocidal autocracy. I know the swastika has a long and storied history but symbol meanings change sometimes irreversibly. So yeah... mixed messages. I also wanna just be clear I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just saying haha
I'm watching this now and I'm in tears!! All these poor souls. But the 15 yr old so scared and crying hits my heart hard!!! I hate all these cops and the DA!! All these men didn't have to die!!! RIP🕊🕊🕊🕊🕊
Another case that will make you really mad at the cops: John Arthur Ackroyd, thought to have committed a bunch of rapes/murders in Oregon from the 1970s to the 1990s. The part that is the most infuriating was that his first victim was raped, but he didn't attempt to kill her. She went to file a report and it's thought that because she was native, that there was some racism at play and the cops didn't take it seriously. So all his future victims that he escalated to murder for might have been saved if only the police had been willing to do their jobs.
If she’s Native, racism was definitely at play. It’s a fact when it comes to issues or reports raised by Native women, that they are severely under evaluated or written off as quickly as possible. My major is in Indigenous Studies and modern day effects on Indigenous peoples and our identity, and it’s absolute numbing how many issues, and people, are just waved away as they are seen as unimportant. Look up No More Stolen Sisters, Red Dress Day, and the MMIWG movements, and the statistics concerning missing Native women and LGBTQ+ individuals will appall you.
@@catasrophieGrrl There’s a highway in Canada called Highway of Tears, in reference to the Trail of Tears. It’s highway 16 and is notorious due to the sheer number of people found dead or gone missing when on it. I have never heard of Ghosts of Highway 20 , I will look that one up.
I think it’s because we can just sit the phone down and listen opposed to having to pay complete attention the whole time. I’ll just listen to it while I’m smoking or getting ready for work
Lad, it's because a movie requires full commitment! Im playing fekkin Animal Crossing while listening to my favorite Brit ramble on about rapey clowns.
One small bright spot: Gacy’s children were tiny when he went to jail, so he had barely any impact on them. They’re now untraceable, so it’s believed that they changed their names and are living normal lives quietly, out of the spotlight.
thank goodness. I wonder about them and Bundy's daughter sometimes. I can't imagine living with that knowledge, being fearful of people hunting you down to ask you dumb shit about your murderer father. There's definitely a few 'fans' who would do that. They deserve to live in some sense of peace.
But genetics are still a risk. Some bullies, a failed fitst love ...people hold both the best and worth in them. But some also are genetically set up and if things go wrong multiple times.....Oh my.
I was a police officer for years, this blows my mind. I always handled every single case to the best of my ability no matter what anyone said. This entire story makes me sick for so many reasons. I really hope there was some civil law suits brought against the state and some real changes made to department. I can imagine this happening in today's day and age. But this wasn't that long ago.
With Dahmer, the police took a crying naked victim back to Dahmer, who killed and cannibalized him. Idk how cops look in the mirror when they miss something that's screaming in their face. I won't call the police bc I don't trust them. Nothing in 67yrs of my life has convinced me they're worth a call.
Usually when you see 3 hours on UA-cam it’s podcast style with multiple hosts playing it off the cuff and minimal editing. The fact that one person wrote this whole scrips. Someone else read this whole scrips and then a third single person had to edit the whole damn thing. All three of you deserve massive props for this one.
I feel bad for the child he was but not for man he became. Once you are an adult you have to take the steps to heal from your childhood trauma in a healthy way. It was a thousand times harder back then but there were still people who grew up in abusive households and didn’t become serial killers.
@@easyenetwork2023 sadly I believe both of you may very well be correct here, I've had my own issues in the past that I've had to overcome through either therapy or just isolating myself from other people and letting them know "hey I got to work something out but don't worry, as soon as I do it'll be okay, if they need any help I'll let you know, thank you and I appreciate your concern, it really does mean a lot to me". by the way I do not recommend isolating yourself unless you absolutely know what you're doing, I did it as a form of self therapy but it has its pros and cons, honestly it would probably be better to see a therapist for most people, I'm just a bit of an odd case where most therapy didnt work sadly. As for neurological disorders, regrettably there's only so much we can do about those, I have seizures on occasions due to it, and the only way to stop those is with medication, even then it doesn't stop them all 100% of the time, it's a lil bit of a hit and miss thing, so I can't even begin to imagine how much worse it would be if I had more than just that and a few other problems, like occasional sleep-walking...won't lie, it gets scary, just wish someone was there to make sure I stay in bed and sleep & hopefully truly be 'resting comfortable', instead of feeling like I ran a marathon right before I wake up 😅.
Yeah, it's tough. I mean YOU control your own actions, no one else. So no matter your age, u are responsible for what comes of your actions. That being said, whoever teaches/raises u teaches u these things..so from a psychosocial standpoint...um yeah😢
@@easyenetwork2023 In some cases yes, but he knew what he was doing. The premeditation, the lies, the fact that he could pretend to be normal member of society who was well like. He knew what was right and wrong and there is overwhelming evidence that supports that. Plus, a lot of people out there suffer traumatic brain injuries and don't turn into serial killers. Like he actively chose to be a killer over and over again. He knew enough to hide what he did not because he felt bad but because he wanted to keep doing it. He lured young boys and did disgusting things to them.
18:55 - Chapter 1 - Meet John Wayne Gacy 39:25 - Chapter 2 - An attempt at a normal life 56:55 - Chapter 3 - The point of no return 1:13:25 - Chapter 4 - American predator 1:25:10 - Chapter 5 - Pogo's adventures in prison 1:34:45 - Chapter 6 - The murder house 1:41:00 - Chapter 7 - The greyhound bus boy 1:47:00 - Chapter 8 - Bodies under the house 1:59:35 - Chapter 9 - 1976, Horrific escalation 2:10:45 - Chapter 10 - The slaughter of 1977 2:20:20 - Chapter 11 - The torture of robert donnelly 2:26:15 - Chapter 12 - Sadistic '78 2:37:15 - Chapter 13 - Rignall's revenge 2:42:10- Chapter 14 - A bridge too far 2:46:20 - Chapter 15 - The investigation 2:58:20 - Chapter 16 - This place of full of kids 3:02:05 - Chapter 17 - Trial & death 3:09:30 - Dismembered appendices
I've watched enough of these that they almost never get me emotional. But "Arrest him, murder. This place is full of kids." had me choking up and holding back tears at work. I can't imagine the fear these victims felt in their final moments, my heart breaks for them.
When I first started listening to the Casual Criminalist, I wondered a bit at Simon's naivety and faith in the police and such and found it a bit amusing. Now it makes me both a bit sad when he realizes just how dark the world can a be, but also glad in a way because it means Simon hasn't suffered or witnessed these kinds of injustices and the heartbreaks that make one jaded and expectant of negligence, apathy and different kinds of abuse. Does that make sense? I'm probably rambling mire because this episode felt like a sucker punch to listen to and even with my long standing distrust and disdain for the cops, I still couldn't fathom the level of negligence and lack of any care towards the victims and survivors they showed till it was completely undeniable and they had no choice but to do their fucking jobs.
I was thinking the exact same thing - especially since I know for a fact that UK and US cops couldn't care less about kiddy fiddling and both Irish and German cops tend to go one step further and try to actively frame the kid as the perp instead of following any of this. Only ever met ONE decent cop, and he wasn't even a cop, he was FBI... and strangely just as naive about all of this as Simon - Agent Wilson, if you ever read this: please don't ever become like the other cops. 😢
He should be used to it now.. Cops back then thought everyone was a Runaway. Most of the stories of serial killer victims from the 70s and 80s went the same way..
The homophobia is inexcusable, but I don't know if they were incompetent. Don't forget that back then the criminal records of people weren't digital and if someone did something it was a real chore to actually find out about it, especially if it happened in another state. Hell, if an arrest happened in another district it would be hard to find out about it. You basically had to contact every state separately, ask them to send someone down to the basement to manually look through the records and see if he had a prior conviction. You just don't that on a hunch, because you would just be doing it constantly and the system would just slow down even further... Even if he had a previous arrest in the very district, unless the current officer knew about it directly, he had to go down to the records files and sift through them to find out about it. It is easy to look back at them and call them all incompetent idiots, but we forget the luxury we have with linked computer systems. Now the FBI can ask the Interpol for information and get it within minutes, back then it took days or weeks to get information from another state... I am not saying they shouldn't have looked at Gacy earlier, especially because the homophobia is inexcusable, but don't assume all of them are incompetent for not knowing about previous convictions or arrests, it just wasn't that easy to find out...
*My dad was a young doctor finishing up his residency in Chicago during the time of Gacy's arrest and trial. He said that in all of his years as a doctor, the only time he ever doubted whether this was the right profession for him was when he heard about Gacy's crimes. He told me he had to really sit down and think long and hard about whether or not he'd be capable of providing care to someone like Gacy if they ever walked into his ER.*
I know a pair of paramedics who took their time administering first aid to a child molester who was stabbed multiple times in the court cells at a jail. They didn’t succeed in saving his life, “unfortunately”.
I'd like to thank you for all the team's hard work in producing these extra long episodes that you know are likely to be demonetised. I recently watched the Dahmer video, and it must be awful to put so much work in to a project and not get paid for your efforts. By donating a monetary thank you I hope to encourage you to continue producing episodes like this. Perhaps if other people read this comment it might prompt them to give financial support if they are able? The censorship lately must really be taking a toll, and I hope it doesn't stop you from producing a steady stream of new Casual Criminalist episodes.
This is by far and wide the most in-depth analysis of John Wayne Gacy's crimes that I have ever seen. Kudos to Simon for being able to get through narrating it and super massive props to David for researching and writing such a grueling script. Thank you to the both of you.
As you keep mentioning that Gacy should be on the sexual offender registry, it's important to mention it wasn't around at the time when Gacy was active. It does raise a possible topic for a future show: if you would like to know more about the inception of the United States National Sexual Offender Registry, check out the 1994 murder of Megan Nicole Kanka in New Jersey. As infuriating as crimes against children are at least this situation motivated society to finally do something meaningful to prevent it in the future.
I thought you were going to suggest a mini-series on how things like the National Sex Offender Registry and other national criminal databases, and how various other improvements in police tactics that catch notorious criminals were formed. For example, take the Harold Shipman episode and re-structure it as an episode on how the NHS created countermeasures to catch criminal doctors like him. That would be a really clever and interesting take on True Crime, but I don't know if there's an audience for that perspective or enough material to make it last more than a season
@@ATotalDork I'm sure Simon has a channel that would work with. He is very much on the road to taking over yt. 🙃 Also, are you really a total dork?!? Or just a half dork, part time dork, or some other type?
Holy fuck. Three hours? Simon, you spoil us! My condolences for the horror this might've inflicted on your psyche, though. We all know you aren't a fan of these dark tales but well.. We appreciate it. And thank you to your writer, too!
If he does Dean Corll the candy man from Texas Simon and his writers may need to take a long vacation I kid you not. that is one of the most unimaginable unspeakable crimes against children I've came across in a long time. I guess it's not well known because Dean was killed but who killed him & why is a story on its own. The incompetence of the Texas police department Is beyond disgusting disturbing and heartbreaking
@@jenniferlogan3375 Simon doesn't like doing children cases but the police incompetence of more than 25 boys just makes me so mad I don't know wth they were doing in Texas all 25 boys ran away? No they were all in Dean Corll house of horror's 😭😭😭😭 poor little guys nobody deserved that type of evilness did to them unless you are Dean Corll & his two sick accomplices 😭😭
Three hours...you guys need a break after this one. It was BRUTAL. But also, I appreciate the huge amount of effort put in by David to make this such an epic episode. Thanks to all of you, but also, somehow, I feel like this deserves an apology for all you've been through...
@@dr.davidbaker86 Seriously Man, as a Cook County Illinois Criminal Defense attorney (whose mentor was a cook County ASA during Gacy) bravo!!! Great job sir.
@@dr.davidbaker86 I know you wanted this to be the definitive video on Gacy and as far as I’m concerned you succeeded. I’ve watched quite a lot of videos on Gacy and I learned so much stuff I didn’t know before. It began with stuff from his childhood. I also never knew the extent of the torture. It was rough getting through those parts but necessary to show how horrible he truly was. Thank you so much for this. I now have no need nor desire to ever watch anything about him again.
Hey Simon... I felt it really important to let you know how much your comments and reactions meant to me. As a gay man, its hard sometimes for people to truly understand the extent with which our community gets overlooked, seeing your genuine frustration and disappointment and anger with people who failed to believe young men and investigate because they were gay, gives me so much hope that we keep making progress and have straight allies. Thankyou for doing this script, even if it was very clearly taxing on your psyche
Dahmer is a highlight of this. The young guy who staggered out of Dahmers unit and the two women who reported it to the police. Those same police pretty much pushed him back into Dahmers home to his death 😢
The fact police did not believe a person based on sexuality makes me sick above a persons sexuality is one very big fact they are a human being and deserve the respect that any human being deserves homophobes need to get over themselves what another person does behind closed doors is their own business
@@MrDannyboyhall I have a semantic disagreement with the word homophobe in most contexts. Most homophobes don't actually fear gays, rather they feel an aversion to their company. Now, if we're talking prison showers, then I'd definitely be homophobic.
@@LunarLocust even though homophobe suggests a fear of gay people it is mostly a hatred for them and that is something that shouldn’t exist treating a person like they are subhuman because they sleep with the same sex is just downright rude
Haven't seen a new Casual Criminalist in over week. "I wonder if Simon, Jen, and the writes are okay?" Posts a 3+ hour video on Gacy. "Nope, they are probably not okay". I hope the extra time away was for everyone's mental health.
@@Metfan722 I'm always confused on plagiarism when it's content of historical nature. Obviously it can happen, but if you're telling the story of let's say Jack the Ripper, there's only so many ways you can describe what he did and to whom he did it too. Plagiarism is wrong clearly, but I think it can be complicated. Plus you can be accused of plagiarizing yourself.
@@christinebenson518It wouldn't surprise me if it were (accidental) self-plagarism by the writer. It could have been on purpose, or of another but that *would* surprise me.
YES! OVER 3 HOURS of Casual Criminalist! 🤩 Well, I know where I'll be for the next few hours! 😃 Seriously, Simon, you're a Legend! David, thank you immensely for this research and Jen rules for the awesome editing! Thank you all for the work and dedication!
I knew Gacy was a monster, but honestly never looked into how bad...this story breaks my heart for the victims and their families, and angers me that none of these poor victims would have died if it wasnt for the ignorance/laziness/and greed of the police who could have easily shut him down from the beginning...I do however feel bad for Gacy when he was young, dealing with the abuse from his parents clearly amplified his mental demons... thank you for being willing to present this horrific story
@@AstarothG59This happens time and time again in mass murders. Police just suck at solving fucking crimes dude there’s been so many police interactions with mass murderers where they could’ve stopped them and they didn’t, jeffrey dahmer, ted bundy, gacy, etc
Interestingly I think the reason Gacy was the only one of his family who ended up like that was a combination between trauma, being sexually abused by a contractor and several head injuries. His dad used to beat him unconscious. At 11 he was hit in the head with a swing and suffered a blood clot which gave him brain damage and made him have blackouts and heart problems for life. He spent more time in local hospitals than at him from the beatings his father dished out. As evil as this man is seen I definitely think he was beaten into that very severe behaviour. People ignore brain damage but I had a friend who was smacked in the head with a wooden plank by other kids. It left him with permanent slurred speech and drastically altered his behaviour. It turned him completely different. He started killing cats (often pregnant ones) by kicking them in the head with steel boots and went from the meekest child in class to always fighting for almost zero reason. He also held his parents up with a knife before being sent to a psychiatric institution.
Did the other kids get punished and turn out normal? I mean the kids who bully people should be treated for bad behaviors with punishment and psychological counseling like anger management and therapy.
I know two people that have TMIs, one who has a brain tumor that’s affecting her behavior and speech. Neither have developed violent sexual proclivities or have a literal cemetery of murder victims beneath their homes. Frontal lobe injuries are not why he was a violent sexual sadist.
@@Tsumami__the OP didn’t say that, they said that brain injuries are a known cause of behavioral changes. This is a fact, by the way. CTE is proven to contribute to increased aggression, mood swings, depression, suicidal tendencies, etc.
I heard this episode on Spotify a couple of weeks ago. After seeing the faces of the victims, the horror just gets worse. Seeing Simons reactions and expressions gives the story a whole new dimension. David's writing is superp. As always.
“why is he not in prison!?” oh boy… if you think you’re upset now, just wait. Edit: Robert Piests co-worker is really what made the whole case. Without her putting a ticket stub in roberts jacket pocket, the cops wouldn’t have gotten a warrant. They found the ticket stub in gacy’s house. The only proof they had that robert had been in gacy’s house. The only proof that granted them the search warrant. Her first hand account is really moving, she talks about how they usually throw away the ticket stubs but she (for some reason) couldn’t bring herself to throw the stub away. And she put it in her jacket pocket. The jacket she had borrowed from Robert. When Robert took his jacket back and went out to talk with gacy, the ticket stub was still in his pocket.
@@Bluesit32 really is! I’m not religious myself but she said that she felt as if angels told her to do that and I totally get why she would feel like that
This is the most indepth and heartbreaking episode. David is an amazing writer and really brought out the horror, tragedy, frustration, and tragedy of this part of history. John Wayne Gacy's history and crimes deserved this kind of episode to show the true brutality of what happened and the utter failing of the justice system in protecting boys and young men from this vicious beast. Bravo to Simon for being able to get through this episode, it took a great deal of mental strength to just watch the whole episode, I can't imagine the strength it took to narrate it. And if there is a hell, I hope Gacy is in it.
I think true crime is so overrun with creators, it’s hard to find one who does Justice to the hideousness these people were. I love this team of creators. I never even think twice to check out all of Simon’s work. No matter how many channels.
This was a rollercoaster. David really is a master in writing these stories. Thank you so much, David, Jen and Simon for devoting so much time to this episode. Also, Rignall deserves every ounce of respect for doing what he did. It can't have been easy to do what he did in the 1970's.
David and Simon thank you for having the fortitude to write this non-dramatized and as factual as could be possible without relying on the words of Gacy. We know that this takes a toll on two of you and Jen as the editor and all I can say other than thank you for shining a light on this without glamor is to take some time to realize that while there are terrible people who do terrible things and terrible people who do nothing, remember the friends who helped stake out the off-ramp for that Oldsmobile and tracked Gacy back to the house. Remember them and just hope that more people become like that rather than those who let people slip through the cracks because they believe an outer shell, a costume of who they are, rather than seeing the monster in clown makeup behind their costume of a good natured human.
It does my heart good to see you get so offended by the abuse of a young Gacy, the dereliction of duty and bigotry of the police, empathize with the victims, and still keep coming back, doing this sort of content. Good on you guys.
It was weird listening to JWG's mother's excuses for his father's abuse and advice to not make him angry because my mother used to give the EXACT same advice and excuses for my dad's abuse, also telling us to lock our bedroom doors and hide inside when she wasn't home. She'd also often tell us that our dad really did love us IN HIS OWN TWISTED WAY.
Too brutally relatable. I've heard the "he loves you in his own weird way" dozens of times and each time it made me feel nauseous growing up. That abuse growing up pushed me to self-medicate and I went down a dark path for almost 10 years, but thankfully rehab, copious amounts of therapy, and cutting my father out of my life completely set me up for a much better and happier life today. I'm sorry you ever went through that
It’s always hilarious to hear😂 I’m not British so it’s easy to say, but I tried it with his accent and that makes it much less effortless to pronounce 😂😂😂
I think the 2nd worse thing about this case aside from the murders is that Gacy was spotted numerous times digging in the garden of the apartments his mother lived in during the middle of the night. CPD only dug and investigated where they were specifically told not to due to the fact there was a large bush there that had been there at the time potentially leaving many more families without answers
I'm a Chicago native. I completely understand your disbelief and frustration when it comes to why none of this was investigated around a person that had a criminal record, Simon. But you would not believe the crap that goes on in this city. You can get away with a lot if you were someone that had the "clout" of Gacy, particularly back in the 70's. The amount of corruption that exists at every level of city government is astounding and it's been going on for at least the last 100 years. Chicago politics are known as The Machine. And yes, it can extend down to the police department as well. I'm speaking as someone that has a convicted "dirty cop" in the family. Chicago is like a world unto itself. Sadly. Beautiful place to visit but you wouldn't want to live there.
I'm glad you spoke on the corruption up there, I'm a Peoria native cause my dad fled Memphis to Chicago in 1957, by 1961 he was fleeing Chicago for Peoria...I remember watching all this shit on the news, I also remember seeing Gacy and his gay black lovers in prison living it up on the infamous video too...
Simon you legend. You mentioned weeks ago how tough this one had been to record... maybe treat yourself to some good cheery heists for a while. Take care of yourself (and you too, David & Jen!) and as always, thanks for what you do.
Yes some good, fun heists where as few people die as possible, maybe some antics sprinkled in, a little hilarious police incompetence? Then we can cover Ted Bundy.
The reason I watch these is 1) Simon is great to listen to, but 2) These always go so much more in depth than you normally find on youtube. Having listened to so many versions of Gacy's story I can say that this is the only one that made me feel sick to my stomach and want to cry. I can only imagine how awful this was having to research, write, and read out loud. Major respect to all of you who worked on this episode and I hope you all can take some time to yourselves to care for yourselves.
That line of "a thin line between love and hate" I can understand and even agree with. Generally, this isn't the case but being a child of physical abuse from my own father i can relate. You are supposed to love your parent and its absolutely natural to do so. But when a parent is abusive it becomes a balancing act between the 2 emotions. Understanding my own fathers upbringing I get why he was the way he was to his kids. All i can do at this point is be better to my own 3 kids and unfortunately I dont have my own experiences to figure out how to be a good father. Sorry for all this, that line just resonated with me.
Fact boi, you’ve earned a heist palate cleanser after this one. Lord that was dark but also written, narrated and edited well. I thought i had a good understanding of this killer…but wow..there’s so much more to this story. I got through the awful stuff so i could hear about his capture, but I’m sure the neighbors heard me yelling about the police incompetence (corruption). This is by far my favorite true crime channel podcast/channel. Keep up the good work! And please for the love of all that’s good, go watch cute online videos.
I actually used to be a clown and did kid’s birthday parties n company picnics and I mostly enjoyed it. There was several times however that I would have parents try to force their kids to see the clown. I would implore them not to do that to their children and would tell them that doin that is the reason why some people develop coulrophobia and it follows them well into adulthood. I did not want to be the reason anyone feared clowns.
My 8th grade teacher told us her brother was a prison guard on death row during the Killer Clown's stay. That he tried to charm the gaurds. Even gave the brother two of his clown paintings. My teacher's brother took them and burned them. He knew they where evil and didn't want them lose on the world. She never told us why this Creep was so bad/evil/monsterist. Now I understand what she was protecting us from
im glad gacy isn't super sensationalized and generally people don't actually understand the full extent of his crimes. he gets the treatment serial killers should have. to many of them are sensationalized i.e bundy and dahmer. he's just that loser in a clown costume
@@Hexotoxyn No. he does not. All serialkillers should be fully scrubbed from history. Subject to a true Damnaeto Memoria, and thus, be entirely forgotten after everyone who was alive when they were dies.
2:20:00 'Departed from his home at 7pm in order to go to a rock concert in Indiana. He hitch-hiked his way there, and somehow wound up in John Gacy's crawlspace instead'. The writing there is spot on.Truly horrific.
I have been laying in bed sick listening to this video in and out of sleep. But waking up and hearing Simon be so pissed about the police in Iowa (my home)and Illinois and his genuine unabashed reactions makes me appriciate everyone that works on these channels so much. It's not sugar coated. It's not told lightly. It's a real reaction and that takes a toll. But thank you. Ok back to cold med slumber and more videos.
I am loving your long criminal sagas. This is by far the most comprehensive version of Gacey's career that I have encountered. Today I prepared a family dinner for 14 while listening! The timing worked out just right. Now I think I need to walk the dog, just to clear my head.
I wasn't sure how I felt about Simon the first time I watched him. Now he is my absolute favourite person on UA-cam. He adds much needed humanity to these stories so devoid of it. Watching Gacy now, and it is a must watch for every true crime/serial killer fan.
I vacillated for three weeks, deciding whether to watch this episode. I knew it would be hard to see, but I ultimately trusted that Simon, David, and Jen would handle the concentrated horror of this man's life and actions with truth, sensitivity, and humanity. I wasn't let down. Thank you all for your decency and outrage at these crimes, and at the systems and prejudices that enabled them. These stories need to be told by good people who don't glorify these monsters. I'm grateful to have this channel for that.
"Marion went back to John Sr and they reconciled". As a survivor of domestic abuse, it doesn't matter how many times I hear or read sentences just like that. It doesn't matter how many. Every time is like a dagger right through the heart.
Simon, I personally thank you for being able to deliver this horrible story. David, thank you for the probably horrible deep dive, and Jen thank you for trying to do what you could to make it less horrible. I really hope that you all are safe (mostly mentally). I will watch/listen to this channel faithfully and yes in both I give you 10 stars out of a five-star scale! Thank you for giving me information so that I can learn the signs to watch out for in my life.
Up until the moment when Gacy attempted his first murder, I actually felt sorry for him and pitied him. He had the potential to be something great if he wasn't too messed up.
He had the potential to be someone great or a monster of a different nature. I have no doubt whatsoever that he would have become a booming political figure. He had all the traits. Amiable, seemingly generous, hard worker, a smooth talker. And that sounds fine and good until you remember he is completely without empathy and would have gained actual power. He could have been one of the most corrupted governors or even senators in the history of Chicago...and I'm sure that's saying something.
@@karlshorstzwei 4 of the last 10. They seem to come in clusters. 2 late 60/70's and the others in 2010's They all went to federal prison for short periods of time. Absolutely wild.
I was raped for months as a 16 year old by a much older man who happened to be quite famous in Canada. I was not the only one, 4 of us came forward and the police did absolutely nothing. None of this surprises me… but it does make me sick.
I am so sorry that this happened to you and others. I hope that you can find some peace in the future. It's so horrible. I hope that bastard gets what he deserves.
Holy shit. That is how you cover something like this respectfully. Well done, I genuinely have to give the whole team mad respect for not ending this on the usual "like and subscribe"note. Just walking off camera. This must have been a REALLY rough one to make, but you guys did it justice.
Just paused the video to give Jen mad props for the "effortlessly" montage! Also thank you David for the effortlessly pneumonic spelling and winky face. And thank you Simon for being a good sport about your effortlessly troubles. Now, back to the horror.
Acting like Simon is making blood sweaters from his fiver writers he lures. Any who I and others bin threw darker then talking a tail told 1000 times overs.
This was tough. The victims, the homophobia, the inept (corrupt?) police/district attorney. 40+ years later and I was furious for Rignall and his treatment. Let alone all the victims who went unheard in their entirety until it was beyond too late. Every victim after Rignall (or let's be honest, Vorhees) has a little bit of their death to be placed at the feet of those in charge who ignored the signs because of JWG being "upstanding" and "powerful politically ". Simon, David, thank you for this excruciating episode. I'm sorry that it took so much out of you both.
Simon, David, Jen; That three hour video took me three days to watch with Many breaks in the middle. Thank you for having the.. fortitude to put this comprehensive video on the ghastly and inhuman crimes of Gacy on display in all their horror and pure state of evil that they entailed. I know that was not easy to make. I hope you hugged a loved one and found some peace because I know I needed it, too. there was the small satisfaction of knowing he was executed, a letdown they coukd t raise from the dead and kill him again tor spite, because he was just that.. evil. I keep using that word and I hate repeating stuff when I write or speak but its.. just.. the only word. Again, thank you. if you take a few days off I will totally not worry. I know after that you deserve a vacation, a raise, a medal.... :) thanks guys and gal. ;) -phiil PS this is the Only time I was t sure what button to hit, like or dislike because.. you just wanna Force Smash the dislike button to give Gacy the finger but inversely, I dont wanna screw up the analytics. so I grudgingly hit like. Now I need a shower... think Ill play a few video games after.. Farmville sounds nice after that. *avoids GTA like it has the clap*
Hey Simon, street numbers in the United States does not indicate how many houses are on that street. For example, I grew up on a street that only had 10 houses. My address was 1959. The only rule about house numbers in the United States is that odd number houses are in one side of the street, even numbers on the other side, and the houses are in numerical order. 😊 I love your true crime videos the most because you are getting the info with the people who listen to you. And your voice is so soothing that it’s like hearing a totally dark bedtime story that I love falling asleep to. Which is kinda disturbing. 😂😂😂
Also, there is so much sprawl here in the USA that numbers get large because on a street with large house plots, they leave large gaps in the numbers in case property is added in between later, although infill isn’t all that common.
About police not getting suspicious about so many of Gacy's employees disappearing: Gacy often hired runaways and teenagers known to have been in legal troubles before. So if his employees just suddenly disappeared nobody suspected Gacy to have murdered them but everybody who even noticed that he constantly hired new teenagers with others just vanishing just thought that these "young drifters" got bored and moved on to some other place. This happened in the late 60s and throughout the 70s, most people simply didn't give a fuck about runaway male teenagers in those days, if Gacy had preyed on teenaged girls but used the same MO, he would have been caught much earlier...
I think runaways (especially repeat runners/those with a record) are pretty equally dismissed, unfortunately. Most people also couldn't imagine Gacy being gay, so he "of course would have no reason to be killing those boys/men." I think it would've been the same if a woman was killing girls.
I really feel for Simon with this episode. It begins as an attempt to be entertaining but soon descends into hell. Simon is all the more effective for becoming more sweary and aghast, exactly as he should be. It was soon apparent that there's nothing whimsical, titillating or comedic about this tale and, respect to him, that quickly becomes clear from Simon's words and body language. He was visibly upset, moved and distraught as he progressed through the story. I appreciated his stony anger when he reached the point where the police refused to investigate because the accuser was LGBT. I sincerely hope I never go through what Gacy's poor victims endured but, if I do, I'd feel privileged for Simon to then tell my story.
I knew one of the victims' mom years later. Not only did she endure her son murdered by this monster, but also had the small town pastor use the tragedy to preach about the dangers of homosexuality. The pastor and his son still are around and preaching the same crap to this day. My friend just passed and I hope she is able to maybe see her son once again after so many years. She was such a sweet lady.
As I'm listening, I wanted to say that the medical condition JWG most likely had is called POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) that is, in short, a periodic, spontaneous (sometimes induced by stress and other triggers, as well) rapid heart rate that diverts blood flow away from the brain, causing dizziness, fainting, and a myriad of other symptoms. I've read/heard that it can be very debilitating, but I believe he probably wasn't faking anything, they just didn't have a term for it, like with PTSD and whatnot. Later edit: I feel your anger, Simon....this hits so hard, even though I knew it was going to be bad.
A good friend of mine has POTS. The tachycardia is a result from your body compensating the different distribution of your blood. When you stand up, for example, your blood rushes down to your feet which is normal but with POTS your vessels don't constrict enough to re-regulate the distribution in your body & to prevent symptoms like dizziness, and fainting...
@@diychad7268 It's pretty clear he was lying about the amnesia as part of his multiple personalities excuse. Pots results in fainting and short of it happening while a doctor is looking at your vitals doesn't leave much of a trace at all.
As a former court employee, I can attest that our prosecuting attorney and several cops were getting away with assaults and drunk driving while I worked there. I'm not surprised they let him (Gacy) slide so much
I find it fascinating that trying to look up the DA who refused to prosecute yields nothing. You'd think a history of those who served in public office would be a matter of public record.
I had an appendix that burst open like that due to infection at the age of 12, and what you said is very much true! It is by far the worst pain I have ever been in, and it was so weird because the pain switched between my lower right abdomen, and my left shoulder right above the collarbone. It made it hard to breathe properly and was so goddamn awful. I was in the hospital when it popped, but even doped up on medication I could feel that obvious relief when it burst. I remember the exact moment. Thanks to me knowing what was going on, being scheduled for surgery later that day (they had misscalculated how bad my case was and I spent a day or two in the hospital waiting for my turn), and being known for my odd calm during insane situations, I did not do much but comment on the odd sensation so my dad could tell the nurses. But I can only imagine what it must have been like for John, all alone and in pain with no meds or anything. Poor thing... As a kid he was innocent, and if he had not been abused I don’t think he would have become the sick freak he grew into. It is awful what he went through.
Dude, I feel that, heavily. From the agony, to the relief, and even having "an odd calm in insane situations" lol. I went through almost the same exact thing at 15. I already had a very high pain tolerance back then due to sustaining many injuries & broken bones from skating & motorcycle racing. Strangely enough, I'm also known for having an "odd calm" during insane, and even life threatening situations, but the agony I experienced when I had appendicitis was indescribable. My mom refused to take me to the hospital and said "it's just a stomach ulcer from stress" while I was on the bathroom floor involuntarily screaming in agony, and begging to go. I've never reacted to pain (or anything else) like that, so you'd think she would have taken it more seriously. I laid in agony on the same bathroom floor for two effing days before she finally noticed I was still in there like that and called an ambulance. I was shocked when I learned I had only been in there for two days because it truly felt like I spent an eternity in hell. It's so hard to describe. It's like time didn't exist anymore, just perpetual agony and hopelessness (as corny as that sounds). Thankfully, once I got to the hospital they ended up rushing me into emergency surgery. They did a microsurgery procedure where they operate through three small incisions. When I came to afterwards, the surgeons told me I was very lucky. They explained that as soon as they got the camera in, they noticed that my appendix was likely seconds from bursting. If that happened they would've had to make the large incision all the way across my abdomen, but they worked fast and prevented that from happening. They told me if I'd have gotten there any later it would have burst, and would have been a much more serious situation. I thanked them profusely, and told them that I wouldn't have cared if they sliced me all the way open, I was just glad they got that thing out of me lol. Just having that pain gone was euphoric on it's own, but then they pumped me full of pain meds. The best part is that since all the recovery beds were occupied, I got to recover in the pregnancy unit 😂. I spent 3 days in this big colorful room and slept in this big comfy pink bed while they pumped me full of pain meds. Best sleep I've ever had in my life! I actually had a new pair of skates (rollerblades) come in the mail while I was there, so they were brought to me at the hospital because I was so excited about them. Normally it only takes 5 minutes to assemble them, but it took me the entire 3 days to tighten a total of 8 small bolts because I kept nodding out lol. Of course, my second day home from surgery I just couldn't help myself but go to the skatepark and try the new skates out. I got a little carried away and ripped open the stitches right below my belly button (which is the largest incision of the 3). So I skated to the Safeway w/ my friends while holding my stomach together to go buy super glue. The poor lady at the check-out was looking at me like a psycho because *1)* I'm holding a gnarly wound together while nonchalantly buying super glue as if this is totally normal, and *2)* it's not the first time I've done this (or the second time). The same poor lady has rang me up on gnarly super glue runs 3 separate times before this 😂. My friends and I definitely looked like weirdos for always stopping in their store solely to buy all the paraffin wax on the shelf (it's for skating), and the occasional blood covered super glue run lol. Everything healed up nicely, and the skates were sick lol. Anyway, if you read this whole thing, I apologize for my long tangent, but that's my appendicitis experience 🤷♂️. I'm glad that you made it through such a terrible experience of your own. You were definitely a tough kid at 12. I hope your recovery went well, and that you didn't have any kind of complications from your appendix rupture. I know just how unspeakably agonizing it all was for you. Even though that pain is unforgettable, so is the relief afterwards, and luckily we won't have to go through all that again. Take care, bud. I hope all is well!
Wow. Huge respect for this. It was absolutely horrific. Also its the most indepth version of the crimes I've ever heard. This S*it bag didn't 'just' murder 30 + children. He destroyed 30+ families. Future generations of these families will also be scarred. God Bless them all.
I'm so proud of the Casual Criminalist breaking a MILLION views on this video, & it's made a more impressive feat because it's so lengthy & gruseome. I've found myself rewatching this case in particular
I never thought I could possibly feel sorry for John Wayne Gacy, but damn..it's little wonder he turned out so screwed up. This was a difficult episode to watch. Kudos to everyone involved, as this was a story that needed to be told. If this doesn't illustrate the horrific, soul-crushing fallout of child abuse, I don't know what will.
@@JuMiKuI feel sympathy for both, for different reasons. You can really see JWG unraveling. You can see him trying to be "normal" but unable to cope with his childhood trauma, and trying so hard to earn his father's love and respect. For obvious reasons I feel for his victims as well. But on a human I feel for both.
@@Strider91 I'm honestly wary of even believing the extent of the abuse. Gacey is a known liar, who likes talking himself out of responsibility and enjoys attention.
@@ijneb1248 no ones disputing that. We are just discussing how one can be disgusted by the actions of an individual, yet also recognize the struggle of the human condition
Gacy kind of reminds me of my oldest uncle, who was physically abused by his mother after she had a mental breakdown and claimed he was s*xually abused by a priest, which I actually do believe. My uncle is, as described by my Dad, a criminal genius. But he's a bit too full of himself, like most of that side of the family, assuming that those who know them well enough to know they're liars will still fall for their BS. Currently he's in prison and likely to die there, but he's claiming he has early-onset dementia (so he doesn't remember his crimes, ofc) and asking for compassionate release. I hope he doesn't get it. He's not a murderer, fortunately. But he has a particular interest in his underage female relatives, with convictions for assaulting both his daughter and granddaughter. We're lucky our parents kept us away from him when we were kids.
This was amazingly chilling. As a Chicagoan, Alderman are basically neighborhood mayors. You call them about rodents, terrible neighbors, permits, and other small things the mayor's office wouldn't be bothered doing. Also, my cousin attended to JWG at the mental institute,, she said he was the most charming creep she'd ever encountered. 🤣
I legitimately get mind boggled at how so many psychopaths are able to hide under a charming persona. Ive known various ppl in my life who would just talk their way out of everything and for me it was quite the opposite with the foot in mouth syndrome lol. I used to admire and want to be someone like that till i grew older and saw that they def shouldn't be role models. 😬
It’s amazing how with such dark material Simon can still include, intentional or not, moments of comedy gold. The “effortlessly” segment got some of the best laughter out of me in a long time. And not some chuckles, full on tears in my eyes 😂
If you're looking for a lighter story to cover, a writer of heist stories started to get fan mail from a guy in prison for robbing banks, as and the bank robber started teaching him how heist groups worked, and they became writing buddies. Unfortunately I can't remember the names involved, but searching for the bank robber who became a crime fiction writer should turn up the guys involved. And even if it turns up someone else, you're still looking at an interesting story. Crime writers who used to be criminals themselves are always a fun topic.
The absolute unabashed fury in Simon's voice towards the tail-end of the documentary was downright spinechilling, A+ for all the work that David, Jen, and Simon put into this blockbuster documentary and hope y'all had a nice and relaxing weekend after this was posted/edited/written because i had to watch it in chunks of 25-30mins because what the actual fuck Chicago PD
A few unfortunate realities: Even today, rapists constantly get away or are given just probation because of their status or because they "have great potential," no matter how much proof there is. A cop disguise isn't that terrible for raping someone, even today. In a lot of states, a cop can rape someone in their custody and claim it was consensual. In 2019 the house tried to pass a law making a federal law to make it illegal in all states, but the republican Senate did not pass it. It was passed again earlier in 2022, but who knows how that will go. Rape victims today, even if it is a man and a woman (a lot of cops don't think men can be raped), do not get an investigation. Their rape kit doesn't even get processed. Their is a HUGE backlog in most cities, where they have access to the better labs. And in some places, they are legalky allowed to throw out your rape kit unless you sign a form to keep them from doing it. AND you have to pay hundreds of dollars in medical expenses for the rape kit (depending on your insurance, if you have it). Being gay also causes a lot of cops today to ignore domestic violence cases, because they "don't know who's the girl and who's the guy," so it is just two guys getting into a fight, or a catfight. Who knows what they write down for nonbinary people. Battered wife syndrome is what you were thinking of, and valium is a benzodiazepine, but a lot of benzodiazepines do make you tired. But valium is the one most often used to sedate people I believe. Also, the corruption in our politics is staggering and goes beyond that. And cops do not do shit unless they want to do it, for the most part. I've been on both sides, where they wanted to and didn't want to. The difference is staggering. A big thank you to Jen for well placed memes to emphasize certain misunderstandings or times of naivete lol.
Unsure about the US, but, In the UK, legally, Men can only be raped by another man. I still remember the surprise on my fellow students faces when they learned that. Audible gasps.
@@sdrake8355 in the US, rape cases are a lost cause and most women don't even bother to report it, let alone a man. And while on the books he CAN be raped by a woman, they only really take it seriously if they are a child or if objects are forced inside him. It is kind of the same thing that keeps a chunk of women from coming forward. With your adrenaline pumping because you are scared, having an orgasm during is a natural thing, even if you have never even had one with anyone else before. It is just how the body works. Getting a guy hard to rape him is a lot easier, if we are being realistic. I know men eho have been raped by women, and ines raped my men, and most of the women i know have been raped. And if they haven't been raped, they have been sexually assaulted. I was raped by 4 people before i graduated 3rd grade, then college was a rough time because i was a REALLY sheltered kid, so i didn't know how to navigate certain situations.
It's so sad that when JWG told those boys who survived "nobody will believe you, so don't even bother telling the police" ... and he was right 😭 he wouldn't have gotten caught if Ringall hadn't been incredibly brave and persistent.
This channel is literally #1 for me. A great way to get some sleep due to my insomnia. Y’all both entertain and help me mentally. Even though the stories are gruesome at best and totally terrifying at worst. This channel really does let my overactive brain relax, from Simon’s soothing voice and tangents, the writer’s amazing imagery, and last but definitely not least Jen’s funny imagery. It’s calming, informative and entertaining. Thank you so much.
The John Wayne Gacy case is what made me take a big break from true crime the first time I heard it, genuinely one of if not the most disturbing and disgusting cases I've ever heard
Might just do that too. I'm 24 hours in... on a 3 hour vid. No other JWG documentary has every been this detailed but this one just opened a whole flood of information I didn't know and can't stomach. Had to stop and watch multiple videos in-between sections just to process the things I just heard.
I had to watch the entire episode in gratitude for the incredible work Simon, David, and Jen put into this for us, but it was hard to finish. Not because of the quality, which is absolutely outstanding, but because the content is so intensely disturbing. Simon was right when he said this and Pedro Lopez were the worst episodes. Lopez because he was such a monster, Gacy because it was so clear what he was doing, yet so many people had to die due to homophobia and the corruption involved. I feel the politicians and police that kept him out of jail for so long are as guilty as Gacy. There's blood in their hands as well.
I was struck by how emotionally moved and angry you were at the homophobia and willful incompetence of the police. And it just reminds me that as an American the fact that seeing a man show distress at disturbing shit is somewhat refreshing and surprising to me is a problem and just plain depressing.
My great-grandfather served in WWI in the Canadian forces and participated in three of the most horrific battles including the Battle of the Somme. He returned home, married, and raised four daughters and a son. He was not abusive and his children grew up to be exemplary citizens. There is never an excuse for being abusive. Not even war or PTSD.
bless your great grandfather! My two great great uncles died in the Somme, the horrors of that particular battle can't really be overstated. I'm sure it was very hard to live with those memories during a time when mental health support wasn't good at all. I'm so glad he had his family to pour love and life into, I'm sure he was so proud to see his kids grow up into great people.
My grandpa served in the south Pacific during the island hopping campaign in ww2, he served at Leyte, Mindanao, Okinawa and Iwo Jima as well as volunteering for the occupation of japan "cleaning up" as he put it. The man was an absolute sweetheart but never talked about the war except twice when I asked for school projects. Definitely had his demons from PTSD but was never a violent or mean person because of it
My great-grandfather served in WWI in the forces of the German empire. He got wounded at one of the battlefields and his leg never really recovered. He became an abusive man who would hit his children with a belt, especially the boys. He also became an alcoholic in WWII, most likely because of the memories WWII brought back. I think your great-grandfather did very well indeed and I think my grandmother and her siblings deserved a father like him.
Ever heard of the White Death? Legendary killer in war but a normal man in life. Real men aren't insecure sissies who need to take out their insecure anger at the world usually they take it out on people that can't even fight back.
@@dr.davidbaker86 anytime my friend. When are we getting the David and Alex drunkenly yelling at ghosts show? Anyone approach you for your pilot yet? Lol
Oh boy, I have been holding off watching this one for months since I knew it was going to be quite heavy (both by infamy and the time stamp like wow 3 hours?? You are a champ Simon). Even with my "experienced" watching, this was a hard one to go through with constant breaks for my sanity, and what kept me going was Simon's outrage at all the absolute corruption and bull that was happening. Thank you Simon and The Casual Criminalist crew, for giving more insight on the victims of these horrible monsters that roamed the streets. Gacy's childhood was rough, but that does not justify his adult actions. I hope that fucker burns in hell for eternity.
It's really interesting watching Simon be confronted with a very real example of why homeless LGBT youth are one of the most vulnerable demographics in western society. Gacy was always going to be believed over a troubled gay teen who was engaging in sex work to survive.
You guys manage to handle complex, disturbing content in an amazing way. The editing and writing are brilliant and Simons presenting has always been top notch. Thank you for tackling this one, I know it wasn't easy!
I remember watching a crime documentary on Gacy where his lawyer was interviewed. I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned that he was actively trying to appeal his case when he was executed. His lawyer called him to tell him his appeal was yet again denied. Gacy, who was 15 minutes from execution, said he'd call him back in an hour to discuss another appeal. His lawyer was astonished and told him "Mr. Gacy, you'll be dead in an hour." Gacy was (and this is an understatement) delusional. He didn't actually believe that he was going to be executed.
Simon’s indignation and outrage (along with menial tasks to keep my hands busy) make these episodes so much easier to listen to. This was an EXTENSIVE episode, I have never learned so much about this killer as I have today. Thank you to David, Simon and Jen for putting this together- I know it was difficult, but wow. I’m glad to know so many of the victims’ names- they deserve to be remembered.
I finally finished this episode. Omg. Everyone PLEASE give Simon some respect for this one.
Him and David both deserve all the praise in the world for this episode.
Thank you to everyone that was a part of this one.
(This includes you Jen)
Jen doesn’t get enough love. She makes me laugh EVERY EPISODE!
Jen is the reason for the season
And they do it so effortlessly 😁. Seriously I wonder if they put that word in there just to torment Simon.
After this episode I give them some much credit
@@kat8753 oh yeah. No question. 100% on purpose. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
PTSD was “shell shock” or “battle fatigue” back in the day. David, this episode was tragic. But I will say this; in my opinion you made your goal. This is definitely the most in depth account of JWG I’ve heard. I can only imagine the stress that put you under. Thank you for doing the work and being so committed.
My mothers grandfather's fought in WWI and had what my mom always called "shell shock". He wasn't abusive or violent but you had to stand on the other side of the room to wake him because he'd wake up swinging.
@@Alliebaba7782 I’m in no way trying to imply that those with ptsd/shell shock are prone to violence. But like with anything else it can be a contributing factor.
@@PeachM0de i didn't mean it to sould like I thought that. I just wanted it out there if I spoke about my great grandpa that he wasn't. I never thought you implied that
Shell shock was what I thought of, recalling George Carlin's monologue.
@@mangrove George Carlin is one of the great comedians to live; along with Robin Williams and Sam Kinison.
My god. 3 hours of fact boy and I’m all for it. As someone who’s appendix burst. Worst pain I’ve ever felt. Completely healed now and still vividly remember the pain
To quote the joker... And.. Here.. We.. Go!
SO PUMPED.
SO PUMPED.
This is the length I want all casual criminalist episodes to be. I love extended fact boi viddys
Yikes. I hope you recover well and feel better quickly! 💜
I really appreciate the photos of the victims, most of the ones online are blurry. These are clear and you can actually see these poor boys' and men's faces. RIP to all of them.
RIP Gentlemen/Boys
We should know the victims not the monster.
Sadly it simply isn't the case.
@@spddracerI was thinking of this the other day. I started a video titled after the victim. I was sad when we got to the name of the perpetrator and THEN I realized I knew the case.
We really owe them more.
I also think we should stop using the buzzword special names. The Co-Ed Killer sounds sensational…but the reality is he’s the “sad sack dickhead killer” just like every other monster who thinks these things are okay to do.
I honestly really appreciate yall not mentioning his kids' info. That sort of thoughtfulness is why i prefer The Casual Criminalist over most other true crime media i've seen.
Yeah I never get why other true crime channels would in the end mention where or what the kids are currently living and doing did if they have kids too, like are you telling us to go after them or something?
@@KingBasieSims4 The stepkids....two girls....
@@KingBasieSims4he had 2 kids of his own aswell, that he never meet again after the first divorce
The sad thing about a lot of child abuse disguised as discipline is that it was often excused with the saying "spare the rod, spoil the child." My dad explained to me that people had that saying all wrong. It's from shepherding, the "rod" is what we often call a shepherd's crook. Shepherds wouldn't beat their sheep with the crook, they'd tap the ground and nudge the sheep to *guide* them. Metaphorically, it's the same with children. If you don't give them guidance, they get spoiled and can't function as adults.
My dad uses a cane to walk because of a congenital defect, so he also takes the phrase *literally* and would nudge us kids along (usually me) or us the handle to pull us back into line (usually me, again).
"You can't *permanently* commit someone to a mental health ward." You could in the '50s. First half of the 20th century, you could have an embarrassing family member committed just for being embarrassing. A woman might be committed for *reading* too much, for instance. It was particularly popular among the rich and influential as it just didn't do to let anyone know your family produced someone *abnormal.*
I appreciate this rod explanation. I heard the real version growing up in Sunday school, but I also heard the twisted version a lot. And as a kid neither one really sank in. Rereading it as an adult is eye opening.
My partner used to need a cane to walk, for years, before his back surgery. We had a young toddler and he watched daddy use a can almost every day. He would grab it and walk with daddy to "help" him. It really gave me a different perspective on how we're responsible for how our kids perceive medical conditions or disabilities. I love that he grew up thinking the cane was not a big deal. He's going to go into school being so much more understanding. He saw a man in a wheelchair the other day snd pointed and got excited snd goes "look mama! Wheels!" He thought it was awesome the guy had his own wheels
People get mad at how hard it is to commit someone today, forgetting how easy it used to be to commit people for very little, for life. I think we’ve gone too far in the opposite direction, but we did it for a reason.
Don't forget this is going to hurt me more of this going to hurt you they love throwing that one around. Are im doing this because I care about you. The sad thing is there's always a justification for abuse and the kid is too young to understand what is actually going on.
The Kennedys did that had one of the Kennedy's committed to a mental ward and had her have a lobotomy which left her with a mindset of a two-year-old it was because she was embarrassment and was too unruly.
I love your explanation here of the phrase/verse for "Spare the Rod, spoil the Child." The common use never sat right with me; true, discipline is necessary for children, but not corporal punishment. I knew that people were trying to use that as an excuse to beat their children. The Guiding Shepherd Metaphor, however, DOES make sense! Thank you for sharing! God bless. 💙
@@dio_Brando1888 Rosemary Kennedy had brain damage from a birth injury, which the family worked hard to cover up. They even lied and claimed she got a degree in teaching when she had the reading and writing skills of a fourth-grader. I mean, OBVIOUSLY they had to lie because OBVIOUSLY a prominent family couldn’t have a child with learning disabilities. Right?
In her early 20’s she developed mood swings and had violent outbursts. (She also had convulsions, so there had to be more going on than emotional difficulties.) So OBVIOUSLY something had to be done, like experimental brain surgery. (Done with her father’s consent but without her mother’s knowledge, because that’s cool.) The operation went even worse than the average lobotomy, reducing her to the state of a two-year-old. So her parents put her in a psychiatric hospital, then an excellent home for the disabled, and didn’t visit her for 20 years, and didn’t tell any of her sisters and brothers where she went. They didn’t learn where she was until their father had a stroke, and didn’t involve her in family life until he died eight years later. Totally normal and completely understandable. Because the past was the worst.
Rignall needs a freaking medal! He literally did the police's job for them, showed them his findings, pestered them to accept his findings and then literally legally forced them into having to take the final steps of all of his work, what a hero, who know how many lives he save from these incompetent arse holes!
@ᛟᛞᛁᚾ that channel picture is giving me some serious mixed messages haha
@ᛟᛞᛁᚾ well its a swastika surrounded by stars of David imposed upon the LGBTQ+ flag. In modern times one is a flag of love another of religious devotion and the other the symbol of a genocidal autocracy. I know the swastika has a long and storied history but symbol meanings change sometimes irreversibly. So yeah... mixed messages.
I also wanna just be clear I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just saying haha
@ᛟᛞᛁᚾ yes but let's forget the politicians who were helping protect him but not get angry at them
@@anguskeenan4932 its a satirical flag meant to be as offensive to as many people as you can possibly get
@@joachimiscool Oh, have you seen that flag before?
The boy bursting into tears broke me. I am so furious that NOBODY did anything about him until he murdered over 33 people!
me too~ I have watched it before and each time I hear it it affects me as a mom~ so heart broken~
I'm watching this now and I'm in tears!! All these poor souls. But the 15 yr old so scared and crying hits my heart hard!!! I hate all these cops and the DA!! All these men didn't have to die!!! RIP🕊🕊🕊🕊🕊
Lol
I felt that too. Like… I hope that boy got an amazing life.
Masonic number
Another case that will make you really mad at the cops: John Arthur Ackroyd, thought to have committed a bunch of rapes/murders in Oregon from the 1970s to the 1990s. The part that is the most infuriating was that his first victim was raped, but he didn't attempt to kill her. She went to file a report and it's thought that because she was native, that there was some racism at play and the cops didn't take it seriously. So all his future victims that he escalated to murder for might have been saved if only the police had been willing to do their jobs.
Proof it was racism? O could it just be bad/lazy police?
Well, they probably would’ve prevented the earlier ones, but he most likely would’ve escalated to murder at some point.
Hearing his survivour talk is wrenching. He's awful. Ghosts of Highway 20 on youtube is a great doco.
If she’s Native, racism was definitely at play. It’s a fact when it comes to issues or reports raised by Native women, that they are severely under evaluated or written off as quickly as possible. My major is in Indigenous Studies and modern day effects on Indigenous peoples and our identity, and it’s absolute numbing how many issues, and people, are just waved away as they are seen as unimportant. Look up No More Stolen Sisters, Red Dress Day, and the MMIWG movements, and the statistics concerning missing Native women and LGBTQ+ individuals will appall you.
@@catasrophieGrrl There’s a highway in Canada called Highway of Tears, in reference to the Trail of Tears. It’s highway 16 and is notorious due to the sheer number of people found dead or gone missing when on it. I have never heard of Ghosts of Highway 20 , I will look that one up.
Me: Watching a movie is too much of a commitment. Also me: 3 hour, 15 minute Simon Whistler video, sure that's fine.
Even though he claims this is the longest video on JWG there is a 5+ hours one. Try commiting to that one 😂
I think it’s because we can just sit the phone down and listen opposed to having to pay complete attention the whole time. I’ll just listen to it while I’m smoking or getting ready for work
Lad, it's because a movie requires full commitment! Im playing fekkin Animal Crossing while listening to my favorite Brit ramble on about rapey clowns.
Lol this is me.
Glad to know I'm not the only one.
One small bright spot: Gacy’s children were tiny when he went to jail, so he had barely any impact on them. They’re now untraceable, so it’s believed that they changed their names and are living normal lives quietly, out of the spotlight.
that's nice.
Found one of Gacy's children guys
I appreciated that David's writing made it clear the kids names and ages would not be written and shouldn't be research
thank goodness. I wonder about them and Bundy's daughter sometimes. I can't imagine living with that knowledge, being fearful of people hunting you down to ask you dumb shit about your murderer father. There's definitely a few 'fans' who would do that. They deserve to live in some sense of peace.
But genetics are still a risk. Some bullies, a failed fitst love ...people hold both the best and worth in them. But some also are genetically set up and if things go wrong multiple times.....Oh my.
I was a police officer for years, this blows my mind. I always handled every single case to the best of my ability no matter what anyone said. This entire story makes me sick for so many reasons. I really hope there was some civil law suits brought against the state and some real changes made to department. I can imagine this happening in today's day and age. But this wasn't that long ago.
I know a good few police officers because family... I'm not surprised a bit tbh.
Acab
True all criminals are bastards indeed@@ryanatkinson2978
You can or can't imagine this happening in this day and age? If you meant can't wait, idk why not. The behaviors aren't unheard of still.
With Dahmer, the police took a crying naked victim back to Dahmer, who killed and cannibalized him.
Idk how cops look in the mirror when they miss something that's screaming in their face.
I won't call the police bc I don't trust them. Nothing in 67yrs of my life has convinced me they're worth a call.
Usually when you see 3 hours on UA-cam it’s podcast style with multiple hosts playing it off the cuff and minimal editing. The fact that one person wrote this whole scrips. Someone else read this whole scrips and then a third single person had to edit the whole damn thing. All three of you deserve massive props for this one.
I feel bad for the child he was but not for man he became. Once you are an adult you have to take the steps to heal from your childhood trauma in a healthy way. It was a thousand times harder back then but there were still people who grew up in abusive households and didn’t become serial killers.
If he had brain trauma and damage, then he might not have had good decision making skills due to damage.
@@easyenetwork2023 sadly I believe both of you may very well be correct here, I've had my own issues in the past that I've had to overcome through either therapy or just isolating myself from other people and letting them know "hey I got to work something out but don't worry, as soon as I do it'll be okay, if they need any help I'll let you know, thank you and I appreciate your concern, it really does mean a lot to me".
by the way I do not recommend isolating yourself unless you absolutely know what you're doing, I did it as a form of self therapy but it has its pros and cons, honestly it would probably be better to see a therapist for most people, I'm just a bit of an odd case where most therapy didnt work sadly.
As for neurological disorders, regrettably there's only so much we can do about those, I have seizures on occasions due to it, and the only way to stop those is with medication, even then it doesn't stop them all 100% of the time, it's a lil bit of a hit and miss thing, so I can't even begin to imagine how much worse it would be if I had more than just that and a few other problems, like occasional sleep-walking...won't lie, it gets scary, just wish someone was there to make sure I stay in bed and sleep & hopefully truly be 'resting comfortable', instead of feeling like I ran a marathon right before I wake up 😅.
Yeah, it's tough. I mean YOU control your own actions, no one else. So no matter your age, u are responsible for what comes of your actions. That being said, whoever teaches/raises u teaches u these things..so from a psychosocial standpoint...um yeah😢
@@easyenetwork2023 In some cases yes, but he knew what he was doing. The premeditation, the lies, the fact that he could pretend to be normal member of society who was well like. He knew what was right and wrong and there is overwhelming evidence that supports that. Plus, a lot of people out there suffer traumatic brain injuries and don't turn into serial killers. Like he actively chose to be a killer over and over again. He knew enough to hide what he did not because he felt bad but because he wanted to keep doing it. He lured young boys and did disgusting things to them.
@@katie005 did you not see how f#**ed up his childhood was?!?!
18:55 - Chapter 1 - Meet John Wayne Gacy
39:25 - Chapter 2 - An attempt at a normal life
56:55 - Chapter 3 - The point of no return
1:13:25 - Chapter 4 - American predator
1:25:10 - Chapter 5 - Pogo's adventures in prison
1:34:45 - Chapter 6 - The murder house
1:41:00 - Chapter 7 - The greyhound bus boy
1:47:00 - Chapter 8 - Bodies under the house
1:59:35 - Chapter 9 - 1976, Horrific escalation
2:10:45 - Chapter 10 - The slaughter of 1977
2:20:20 - Chapter 11 - The torture of robert donnelly
2:26:15 - Chapter 12 - Sadistic '78
2:37:15 - Chapter 13 - Rignall's revenge
2:42:10- Chapter 14 - A bridge too far
2:46:20 - Chapter 15 - The investigation
2:58:20 - Chapter 16 - This place of full of kids
3:02:05 - Chapter 17 - Trial & death
3:09:30 - Dismembered appendices
41:43 Effortlessly meltdown 😂
Thank you!
@@fett713akamandodragon5 Me or Simon ?
@@ignitionfrn2223 Simon ;P
With a video this long, this is a huge benefit. Thank you. Your comment should be pinned.
I've watched enough of these that they almost never get me emotional. But "Arrest him, murder. This place is full of kids." had me choking up and holding back tears at work. I can't imagine the fear these victims felt in their final moments, my heart breaks for them.
Simon's genuine outrage at police incompetence and homophobia is the only thing that kept me sane at the end of this nightmare of a story.
When I first started listening to the Casual Criminalist, I wondered a bit at Simon's naivety and faith in the police and such and found it a bit amusing. Now it makes me both a bit sad when he realizes just how dark the world can a be, but also glad in a way because it means Simon hasn't suffered or witnessed these kinds of injustices and the heartbreaks that make one jaded and expectant of negligence, apathy and different kinds of abuse. Does that make sense? I'm probably rambling mire because this episode felt like a sucker punch to listen to and even with my long standing distrust and disdain for the cops, I still couldn't fathom the level of negligence and lack of any care towards the victims and survivors they showed till it was completely undeniable and they had no choice but to do their fucking jobs.
I was thinking the exact same thing - especially since I know for a fact that UK and US cops couldn't care less about kiddy fiddling and both Irish and German cops tend to go one step further and try to actively frame the kid as the perp instead of following any of this.
Only ever met ONE decent cop, and he wasn't even a cop, he was FBI... and strangely just as naive about all of this as Simon - Agent Wilson, if you ever read this: please don't ever become like the other cops. 😢
Same.
He should be used to it now.. Cops back then thought everyone was a Runaway. Most of the stories of serial killer victims from the 70s and 80s went the same way..
The homophobia is inexcusable, but I don't know if they were incompetent. Don't forget that back then the criminal records of people weren't digital and if someone did something it was a real chore to actually find out about it, especially if it happened in another state. Hell, if an arrest happened in another district it would be hard to find out about it. You basically had to contact every state separately, ask them to send someone down to the basement to manually look through the records and see if he had a prior conviction. You just don't that on a hunch, because you would just be doing it constantly and the system would just slow down even further...
Even if he had a previous arrest in the very district, unless the current officer knew about it directly, he had to go down to the records files and sift through them to find out about it.
It is easy to look back at them and call them all incompetent idiots, but we forget the luxury we have with linked computer systems. Now the FBI can ask the Interpol for information and get it within minutes, back then it took days or weeks to get information from another state...
I am not saying they shouldn't have looked at Gacy earlier, especially because the homophobia is inexcusable, but don't assume all of them are incompetent for not knowing about previous convictions or arrests, it just wasn't that easy to find out...
Can we all agree that Jen’s timing makes her a comedic genius?! Come for Simon’s delightful tangents, stay for Jen’s epic interjections.
I was impressed with the "Memento" out take - interjection. 10/10 Jen!
Yes... I think we can agree!
The scripts are great too, but Jen's certainly my favourite basement member.
UA-cam gold!
Agree. Jens intro memes are my favourite part of the Chanel.
*My dad was a young doctor finishing up his residency in Chicago during the time of Gacy's arrest and trial. He said that in all of his years as a doctor, the only time he ever doubted whether this was the right profession for him was when he heard about Gacy's crimes. He told me he had to really sit down and think long and hard about whether or not he'd be capable of providing care to someone like Gacy if they ever walked into his ER.*
I’d gladly treat Gacy because I’d want to see him tried legally, have his name dragged through the dirt, and likely be beaten to death in prison
I know a pair of paramedics who took their time administering first aid to a child molester who was stabbed multiple times in the court cells at a jail. They didn’t succeed in saving his life, “unfortunately”.
@@john-paulsilke893 good on them
Tough call probably why I cant do jobs like that I would walk over to the guy with the dislocated shoulder and tell Gacy to suck an egg
If i heard about all those crimes and saw him walk in the room for any treatment i'd probably become a murderer
I'd like to thank you for all the team's hard work in producing these extra long episodes that you know are likely to be demonetised. I recently watched the Dahmer video, and it must be awful to put so much work in to a project and not get paid for your efforts. By donating a monetary thank you I hope to encourage you to continue producing episodes like this.
Perhaps if other people read this comment it might prompt them to give financial support if they are able? The censorship lately must really be taking a toll, and I hope it doesn't stop you from producing a steady stream of new Casual Criminalist episodes.
Maaaan, what a waste!
@@julzbung9869 cry about it, let her spend HER money as she wishes.
@@julzbung9869and not even a thank you either. 😮
@@WakeyWakeyEggsandBakeythere is 5 thousand plus comments under this video you cannot expect them to read every single comment
@@LordMonstruxliterally. maybe they just wanna support a youtuber they like 😂
This is by far and wide the most in-depth analysis of John Wayne Gacy's crimes that I have ever seen. Kudos to Simon for being able to get through narrating it and super massive props to David for researching and writing such a grueling script. Thank you to the both of you.
As you keep mentioning that Gacy should be on the sexual offender registry, it's important to mention it wasn't around at the time when Gacy was active.
It does raise a possible topic for a future show: if you would like to know more about the inception of the United States National Sexual Offender Registry, check out the 1994 murder of Megan Nicole Kanka in New Jersey.
As infuriating as crimes against children are at least this situation motivated society to finally do something meaningful to prevent it in the future.
An unfortunate amount of good things come from awful things. It really is a shame that progress can be so grim sometimes.
There's an old phrase; safety standards are written in blood. It's true for this, too.
@@keyholes, I often say that. It's so true.
I thought you were going to suggest a mini-series on how things like the National Sex Offender Registry and other national criminal databases, and how various other improvements in police tactics that catch notorious criminals were formed. For example, take the Harold Shipman episode and re-structure it as an episode on how the NHS created countermeasures to catch criminal doctors like him. That would be a really clever and interesting take on True Crime, but I don't know if there's an audience for that perspective or enough material to make it last more than a season
@@ATotalDork I'm sure Simon has a channel that would work with. He is very much on the road to taking over yt. 🙃
Also, are you really a total dork?!? Or just a half dork, part time dork, or some other type?
Holy fuck. Three hours? Simon, you spoil us!
My condolences for the horror this might've inflicted on your psyche, though. We all know you aren't a fan of these dark tales but well.. We appreciate it.
And thank you to your writer, too!
If he does Dean Corll the candy man from Texas Simon and his writers may need to take a long vacation I kid you not. that is one of the most unimaginable unspeakable crimes against children I've came across in a long time. I guess it's not well known because Dean was killed but who killed him & why is a story on its own. The incompetence of the Texas police department Is beyond disgusting disturbing and heartbreaking
@@Army4life82 I just read about his story after you mentioned him and... holy fck. What a story.
@@Army4life82 I don't know if I want to know or not... I won't go research it on my own, but if Simon does something on it, I'll watch it
@@jenniferlogan3375 Simon doesn't like doing children cases but the police incompetence of more than 25 boys just makes me so mad I don't know wth they were doing in Texas all 25 boys ran away? No they were all in Dean Corll house of horror's 😭😭😭😭 poor little guys nobody deserved that type of evilness did to them unless you are Dean Corll & his two sick accomplices 😭😭
Poor editor who isn't acknowledged at all in your comment.
At the 2 hour mark and feel like I'm just getting through this with Simon at this point. Staying with him till the end.
It's rough. Same here
FR I'm at work and I had to take break because this was just pissing me off. No wonder epstien got away with it for so long!
Three hours...you guys need a break after this one. It was BRUTAL. But also, I appreciate the huge amount of effort put in by David to make this such an epic episode. Thanks to all of you, but also, somehow, I feel like this deserves an apology for all you've been through...
Thanks so much!
@@dr.davidbaker86 Seriously Man, as a Cook County Illinois Criminal Defense attorney (whose mentor was a cook County ASA during Gacy) bravo!!! Great job sir.
Yeah, this. Wow, impressed and have a good rest.
@@dr.davidbaker86 I know you wanted this to be the definitive video on Gacy and as far as I’m concerned you succeeded. I’ve watched quite a lot of videos on Gacy and I learned so much stuff I didn’t know before. It began with stuff from his childhood. I also never knew the extent of the torture. It was rough getting through those parts but necessary to show how horrible he truly was. Thank you so much for this. I now have no need nor desire to ever watch anything about him again.
@@dr.davidbaker86 It was amazing :):):)
Hey Simon... I felt it really important to let you know how much your comments and reactions meant to me. As a gay man, its hard sometimes for people to truly understand the extent with which our community gets overlooked, seeing your genuine frustration and disappointment and anger with people who failed to believe young men and investigate because they were gay, gives me so much hope that we keep making progress and have straight allies. Thankyou for doing this script, even if it was very clearly taxing on your psyche
Dahmer is a highlight of this. The young guy who staggered out of Dahmers unit and the two women who reported it to the police. Those same police pretty much pushed him back into Dahmers home to his death 😢
The fact police did not believe a person based on sexuality makes me sick above a persons sexuality is one very big fact they are a human being and deserve the respect that any human being deserves homophobes need to get over themselves what another person does behind closed doors is their own business
@@MrDannyboyhall I have a semantic disagreement with the word homophobe in most contexts. Most homophobes don't actually fear gays, rather they feel an aversion to their company. Now, if we're talking prison showers, then I'd definitely be homophobic.
@@LunarLocust even though homophobe suggests a fear of gay people it is mostly a hatred for them and that is something that shouldn’t exist treating a person like they are subhuman because they sleep with the same sex is just downright rude
@@MrDannyboyhall I'm just saying we need a better word for it. We don't call people who hate jews semitiphobes.
Haven't seen a new Casual Criminalist in over week. "I wonder if Simon, Jen, and the writes are okay?"
Posts a 3+ hour video on Gacy.
"Nope, they are probably not okay".
I hope the extra time away was for everyone's mental health.
There was one last Friday, but there was allegations of plagiarism with it. Simon very quickly took down the video and fired the writer.
@@Metfan722 Do you remember what it was about and who the writer was? I can’t remember whether I saw it.
@@Metfan722 I'm always confused on plagiarism when it's content of historical nature. Obviously it can happen, but if you're telling the story of let's say Jack the Ripper, there's only so many ways you can describe what he did and to whom he did it too.
Plagiarism is wrong clearly, but I think it can be complicated. Plus you can be accused of plagiarizing yourself.
@@christinebenson518It wouldn't surprise me if it were (accidental) self-plagarism by the writer. It could have been on purpose, or of another but that *would* surprise me.
It was not done effortlessly
The amount of effort it takes this man to say effortlessly will forever be my favorite thing about this channel
YES! OVER 3 HOURS of Casual Criminalist! 🤩 Well, I know where I'll be for the next few hours! 😃
Seriously, Simon, you're a Legend! David, thank you immensely for this research and Jen rules for the awesome editing! Thank you all for the work and dedication!
I knew Gacy was a monster, but honestly never looked into how bad...this story breaks my heart for the victims and their families, and angers me that none of these poor victims would have died if it wasnt for the ignorance/laziness/and greed of the police who could have easily shut him down from the beginning...I do however feel bad for Gacy when he was young, dealing with the abuse from his parents clearly amplified his mental demons... thank you for being willing to present this horrific story
John Wayne Gacy was more than a monster! He was in cahoots with other pedophiles that played along with more murders that anyone knows.
This is SOP with a large number of serial killers.
As well as kids in child welfare today.
First comment I’ve seen mentioning the ineptitude of the feds in this they could have shut him down so much earlier
This is a pretty tame version of the shit gacy did. He was a torture rapist murderer of children. He'd spend hours.
@@AstarothG59This happens time and time again in mass murders. Police just suck at solving fucking crimes dude there’s been so many police interactions with mass murderers where they could’ve stopped them and they didn’t, jeffrey dahmer, ted bundy, gacy, etc
Interestingly I think the reason Gacy was the only one of his family who ended up like that was a combination between trauma, being sexually abused by a contractor and several head injuries.
His dad used to beat him unconscious.
At 11 he was hit in the head with a swing and suffered a blood clot which gave him brain damage and made him have blackouts and heart problems for life.
He spent more time in local hospitals than at him from the beatings his father dished out.
As evil as this man is seen I definitely think he was beaten into that very severe behaviour.
People ignore brain damage but I had a friend who was smacked in the head with a wooden plank by other kids.
It left him with permanent slurred speech and drastically altered his behaviour.
It turned him completely different.
He started killing cats (often pregnant ones) by kicking them in the head with steel boots and went from the meekest child in class to always fighting for almost zero reason.
He also held his parents up with a knife before being sent to a psychiatric institution.
Did the other kids get punished and turn out normal? I mean the kids who bully people should be treated for bad behaviors with punishment and psychological counseling like anger management and therapy.
I know two people that have TMIs, one who has a brain tumor that’s affecting her behavior and speech. Neither have developed violent sexual proclivities or have a literal cemetery of murder victims beneath their homes.
Frontal lobe injuries are not why he was a violent sexual sadist.
@@Tsumami__ I agree, but it's possible it was a contributing factor to just how fucked up he became rather than the cause
Gacys brain and heart were checked and they found nothing
@@Tsumami__the OP didn’t say that, they said that brain injuries are a known cause of behavioral changes. This is a fact, by the way. CTE is proven to contribute to increased aggression, mood swings, depression, suicidal tendencies, etc.
I heard this episode on Spotify a couple of weeks ago.
After seeing the faces of the victims, the horror just gets worse. Seeing Simons reactions and expressions gives the story a whole new dimension.
David's writing is superp. As always.
“why is he not in prison!?”
oh boy… if you think you’re upset now, just wait.
Edit: Robert Piests co-worker is really what made the whole case.
Without her putting a ticket stub in roberts jacket pocket, the cops wouldn’t have gotten a warrant.
They found the ticket stub in gacy’s house. The only proof they had that robert had been in gacy’s house. The only proof that granted them the search warrant.
Her first hand account is really moving, she talks about how they usually throw away the ticket stubs but she (for some reason) couldn’t bring herself to throw the stub away. And she put it in her jacket pocket. The jacket she had borrowed from Robert. When Robert took his jacket back and went out to talk with gacy, the ticket stub was still in his pocket.
Remarkable that something so incidental would be his downfall.
@@Bluesit32 really is! I’m not religious myself but she said that she felt as if angels told her to do that and I totally get why she would feel like that
2hrs 30 min in and im thinking of looking up your recent news....im calling an elon musk style takeover lol
This is the most indepth and heartbreaking episode. David is an amazing writer and really brought out the horror, tragedy, frustration, and tragedy of this part of history. John Wayne Gacy's history and crimes deserved this kind of episode to show the true brutality of what happened and the utter failing of the justice system in protecting boys and young men from this vicious beast. Bravo to Simon for being able to get through this episode, it took a great deal of mental strength to just watch the whole episode, I can't imagine the strength it took to narrate it. And if there is a hell, I hope Gacy is in it.
I think true crime is so overrun with creators, it’s hard to find one who does Justice to the hideousness these people were.
I love this team of creators. I never even think twice to check out all of Simon’s work. No matter how many channels.
This was a rollercoaster. David really is a master in writing these stories. Thank you so much, David, Jen and Simon for devoting so much time to this episode. Also, Rignall deserves every ounce of respect for doing what he did. It can't have been easy to do what he did in the 1970's.
David is the best a hitting copy paste on Wikipedia
Much respect to Rignall and the others who reported and testified.
David and Simon thank you for having the fortitude to write this non-dramatized and as factual as could be possible without relying on the words of Gacy. We know that this takes a toll on two of you and Jen as the editor and all I can say other than thank you for shining a light on this without glamor is to take some time to realize that while there are terrible people who do terrible things and terrible people who do nothing, remember the friends who helped stake out the off-ramp for that Oldsmobile and tracked Gacy back to the house. Remember them and just hope that more people become like that rather than those who let people slip through the cracks because they believe an outer shell, a costume of who they are, rather than seeing the monster in clown makeup behind their costume of a good natured human.
It does my heart good to see you get so offended by the abuse of a young Gacy, the dereliction of duty and bigotry of the police, empathize with the victims, and still keep coming back, doing this sort of content. Good on you guys.
It was weird listening to JWG's mother's excuses for his father's abuse and advice to not make him angry because my mother used to give the EXACT same advice and excuses for my dad's abuse, also telling us to lock our bedroom doors and hide inside when she wasn't home. She'd also often tell us that our dad really did love us IN HIS OWN TWISTED WAY.
Too brutally relatable. I've heard the "he loves you in his own weird way" dozens of times and each time it made me feel nauseous growing up. That abuse growing up pushed me to self-medicate and I went down a dark path for almost 10 years, but thankfully rehab, copious amounts of therapy, and cutting my father out of my life completely set me up for a much better and happier life today. I'm sorry you ever went through that
🤗🥰🤨🤗
yeah, I get that woman's also a victim, but she's also an abuser and accomplice FOR SURE. Personally I don't have any sympathy for her.
@@Dudewithnoface1 🫂
🫂
Simon putting SO MUCH effort into saying "effortlessly" and failing repeatedly & spectacularly is just 😘👌
One simply cannot easily say effortlessly effortlessly. 😂
Jen roasted him with that edit xD
It’s always hilarious to hear😂 I’m not British so it’s easy to say, but I tried it with his accent and that makes it much less effortless to pronounce 😂😂😂
So many extra L's I don't get it it seems like most people could pronounce it effortlessly
I was listening in the shower and was genuinely confused as to what he was trying to say 😂
I think the 2nd worse thing about this case aside from the murders is that Gacy was spotted numerous times digging in the garden of the apartments his mother lived in during the middle of the night. CPD only dug and investigated where they were specifically told not to due to the fact there was a large bush there that had been there at the time potentially leaving many more families without answers
I'm a Chicago native. I completely understand your disbelief and frustration when it comes to why none of this was investigated around a person that had a criminal record, Simon. But you would not believe the crap that goes on in this city. You can get away with a lot if you were someone that had the "clout" of Gacy, particularly back in the 70's. The amount of corruption that exists at every level of city government is astounding and it's been going on for at least the last 100 years. Chicago politics are known as The Machine. And yes, it can extend down to the police department as well. I'm speaking as someone that has a convicted "dirty cop" in the family. Chicago is like a world unto itself. Sadly. Beautiful place to visit but you wouldn't want to live there.
I'm glad you spoke on the corruption up there, I'm a Peoria native cause my dad fled Memphis to Chicago in 1957, by 1961 he was fleeing Chicago for Peoria...I remember watching all this shit on the news, I also remember seeing Gacy and his gay black lovers in prison living it up on the infamous video too...
Simon you legend. You mentioned weeks ago how tough this one had been to record... maybe treat yourself to some good cheery heists for a while. Take care of yourself (and you too, David & Jen!) and as always, thanks for what you do.
Some clever unsolved heists would honestly be fun to listen to
Yes some good, fun heists where as few people die as possible, maybe some antics sprinkled in, a little hilarious police incompetence? Then we can cover Ted Bundy.
@@OriLOK2 Hells yeah! Not heists that break out in epic gun battles.
@@CHKNFRGZ yep, everything you wrote.
The reason I watch these is 1) Simon is great to listen to, but 2) These always go so much more in depth than you normally find on youtube. Having listened to so many versions of Gacy's story I can say that this is the only one that made me feel sick to my stomach and want to cry. I can only imagine how awful this was having to research, write, and read out loud. Major respect to all of you who worked on this episode and I hope you all can take some time to yourselves to care for yourselves.
That line of "a thin line between love and hate" I can understand and even agree with. Generally, this isn't the case but being a child of physical abuse from my own father i can relate. You are supposed to love your parent and its absolutely natural to do so. But when a parent is abusive it becomes a balancing act between the 2 emotions. Understanding my own fathers upbringing I get why he was the way he was to his kids. All i can do at this point is be better to my own 3 kids and unfortunately I dont have my own experiences to figure out how to be a good father. Sorry for all this, that line just resonated with me.
Fact boi, you’ve earned a heist palate cleanser after this one. Lord that was dark but also written, narrated and edited well. I thought i had a good understanding of this killer…but wow..there’s so much more to this story. I got through the awful stuff so i could hear about his capture, but I’m sure the neighbors heard me yelling about the police incompetence (corruption). This is by far my favorite true crime channel podcast/channel. Keep up the good work! And please for the love of all that’s good, go watch cute online videos.
I actually used to be a clown and did kid’s birthday parties n company picnics and I mostly enjoyed it. There was several times however that I would have parents try to force their kids to see the clown. I would implore them not to do that to their children and would tell them that doin that is the reason why some people develop coulrophobia and it follows them well into adulthood. I did not want to be the reason anyone feared clowns.
My 8th grade teacher told us her brother was a prison guard on death row during the Killer Clown's stay. That he tried to charm the gaurds. Even gave the brother two of his clown paintings. My teacher's brother took them and burned them. He knew they where evil and didn't want them lose on the world. She never told us why this Creep was so bad/evil/monsterist. Now I understand what she was protecting us from
im glad gacy isn't super sensationalized and generally people don't actually understand the full extent of his crimes. he gets the treatment serial killers should have. to many of them are sensationalized i.e bundy and dahmer. he's just that loser in a clown costume
The sad thing is there are people that bought his paintings and still have them. Why would anyone want that??
Listen to the song about Gacy “ Kinko the Clown.”
@@Hexotoxyn No. he does not. All serialkillers should be fully scrubbed from history. Subject to a true Damnaeto Memoria, and thus, be entirely forgotten after everyone who was alive when they were dies.
@@MeepChangeling I would disagree for some cases as they do have some sort of information to be gained from there stories
2:20:00 'Departed from his home at 7pm in order to go to a rock concert in Indiana. He hitch-hiked his way there, and somehow wound up in John Gacy's crawlspace instead'. The writing there is spot on.Truly horrific.
I have been laying in bed sick listening to this video in and out of sleep. But waking up and hearing Simon be so pissed about the police in Iowa (my home)and Illinois and his genuine unabashed reactions makes me appriciate everyone that works on these channels so much. It's not sugar coated. It's not told lightly. It's a real reaction and that takes a toll. But thank you. Ok back to cold med slumber and more videos.
Im in Illinois and i was like has my dad crossed paths with this man ???
@@mytake2688 You don't truly know how many times you have brushed up against a monster and never known. It's sad but true.
I am loving your long criminal sagas. This is by far the most comprehensive version of Gacey's career that I have encountered. Today I prepared a family dinner for 14 while listening! The timing worked out just right. Now I think I need to walk the dog, just to clear my head.
14!?? Props to you!! I bet it was wonderful, awesome work!
A much needed break with a pupper is a perfect cool down. I hope your dinner was lovely.
Makes for interesting dinner conversation as well.
Thank you Simon, David and Jennifer for giving this story the appropriate reaction of outrage that it needed.
I wasn't sure how I felt about Simon the first time I watched him. Now he is my absolute favourite person on UA-cam.
He adds much needed humanity to these stories so devoid of it.
Watching Gacy now, and it is a must watch for every true crime/serial killer fan.
I vacillated for three weeks, deciding whether to watch this episode. I knew it would be hard to see, but I ultimately trusted that Simon, David, and Jen would handle the concentrated horror of this man's life and actions with truth, sensitivity, and humanity. I wasn't let down. Thank you all for your decency and outrage at these crimes, and at the systems and prejudices that enabled them. These stories need to be told by good people who don't glorify these monsters. I'm grateful to have this channel for that.
Its November 8 today. Thats how long it took me to gird myself for this 1.
@@dfuher968 huh?
@@stevejenkins9984 I think he’s referring to how long this video has been up. It’s taken him all of this time to get ready to listen to the horror.
sensitive one are ya
@@leeonardodienfield402 I think this is something ppl should be sensitive to.
Someday we'll have a video about Callum's disappearance that will never be solved, because a certain person won't be writing down his crimes...
"Marion went back to John Sr and they reconciled". As a survivor of domestic abuse, it doesn't matter how many times I hear or read sentences just like that. It doesn't matter how many. Every time is like a dagger right through the heart.
Simon, I personally thank you for being able to deliver this horrible story. David, thank you for the probably horrible deep dive, and Jen thank you for trying to do what you could to make it less horrible. I really hope that you all are safe (mostly mentally). I will watch/listen to this channel faithfully and yes in both I give you 10 stars out of a five-star scale! Thank you for giving me information so that I can learn the signs to watch out for in my life.
Up until the moment when Gacy attempted his first murder, I actually felt sorry for him and pitied him. He had the potential to be something great if he wasn't too messed up.
He had the potential to be someone great or a monster of a different nature. I have no doubt whatsoever that he would have become a booming political figure. He had all the traits. Amiable, seemingly generous, hard worker, a smooth talker. And that sounds fine and good until you remember he is completely without empathy and would have gained actual power. He could have been one of the most corrupted governors or even senators in the history of Chicago...and I'm sure that's saying something.
@@Bluesit32 Yeah it is, Illinois, man, I mean we're talking about a state where 4 of the last 6 governors are in prison.
@@karlshorstzwei and the current mayor of Chicago is a nutcase.
@@karlshorstzwei wow that’s insane and truly laughable!
@@karlshorstzwei 4 of the last 10. They seem to come in clusters. 2 late 60/70's and the others in 2010's They all went to federal prison for short periods of time. Absolutely wild.
I was raped for months as a 16 year old by a much older man who happened to be quite famous in Canada. I was not the only one, 4 of us came forward and the police did absolutely nothing. None of this surprises me… but it does make me sick.
What was his name
That’s terrible! Have you considered pressing the issue now? In this age of Me Too, you might get justice at last.
I am so sorry that this happened to you and others. I hope that you can find some peace in the future. It's so horrible. I hope that bastard gets what he deserves.
I’m so so sorry that happened to you. Hope that piece of absolute filth suffers double what they did to you. Hope you are extremely happy and content.
Damn... hope you and the others are doing alright now
Holy shit. That is how you cover something like this respectfully. Well done, I genuinely have to give the whole team mad respect for not ending this on the usual "like and subscribe"note. Just walking off camera. This must have been a REALLY rough one to make, but you guys did it justice.
You know it’s bad when just the backstory alone is as long as most other episodes.
Simon being baffled at Chicago corruption is hilarious. It really helps lighten the mood in all this horror.
....or democrats be corrupt criminals!😜
Police corruption
I don't find his reactions funny. I get furious along with him.
@@ryllo2886: It's a democratic city so that's the true reality of the place. I mean, look at what Gacy did with his connections...
Lol the Euros have no idea what our cities are like.
That quote from the CSI technician; "Arrest him! Murder! I think this place is full of kids." sent shivers down my spine.
Just paused the video to give Jen mad props for the "effortlessly" montage! Also thank you David for the effortlessly pneumonic spelling and winky face. And thank you Simon for being a good sport about your effortlessly troubles. Now, back to the horror.
As you stated at the beginning of the video, this was 100% hands-down the most thorough (and disturbing) video on Gacy I have ever seen or heard.
Can we take a minute and just make sure Simon's mental health is ok after this episode.
THIS. This needs more upvotes.
Acting like Simon is making blood sweaters from his fiver writers he lures. Any who I and others bin threw darker then talking a tail told 1000 times overs.
First of all, being edgy doesn’t make you cool. Second, learn how to spell.@@memoofjacoboarbenzjuanarev9724
@@bigware9588 Indeed.
Agreed. For that matter the rest of the team. The things Jen has seen and heard editing this one that never made it past her cutting room floor...
This was tough. The victims, the homophobia, the inept (corrupt?) police/district attorney. 40+ years later and I was furious for Rignall and his treatment. Let alone all the victims who went unheard in their entirety until it was beyond too late.
Every victim after Rignall (or let's be honest, Vorhees) has a little bit of their death to be placed at the feet of those in charge who ignored the signs because of JWG being "upstanding" and "powerful politically ".
Simon, David, thank you for this excruciating episode. I'm sorry that it took so much out of you both.
Yet people feel the police deserve the utmost respect. They re scumbags. Blue Lives Matter.
Well put! Agreed. This was by far the worst story, absolutely horrific. And I've listened to a lot :(
Simon, David, Jen;
That three hour video took me three days to watch with Many breaks in the middle. Thank you for having the.. fortitude to put this comprehensive video on the ghastly and inhuman crimes of Gacy on display in all their horror and pure state of evil that they entailed. I know that was not easy to make. I hope you hugged a loved one and found some peace because I know I needed it, too. there was the small satisfaction of knowing he was executed, a letdown they coukd t raise from the dead and kill him again tor spite, because he was just that.. evil. I keep using that word and I hate repeating stuff when I write or speak but its.. just.. the only word.
Again, thank you. if you take a few days off I will totally not worry. I know after that you deserve a vacation, a raise, a medal.... :) thanks guys and gal. ;) -phiil
PS this is the Only time I was t sure what button to hit, like or dislike because.. you just wanna Force Smash the dislike button to give Gacy the finger but inversely, I dont wanna screw up the analytics. so I grudgingly hit like. Now I need a shower... think Ill play a few video games after.. Farmville sounds nice after that. *avoids GTA like it has the clap*
Amen to that.
I put it off for two weeks....all of what you said.
Exactly what I needed to say
Hey Simon, street numbers in the United States does not indicate how many houses are on that street. For example, I grew up on a street that only had 10 houses. My address was 1959. The only rule about house numbers in the United States is that odd number houses are in one side of the street, even numbers on the other side, and the houses are in numerical order. 😊
I love your true crime videos the most because you are getting the info with the people who listen to you. And your voice is so soothing that it’s like hearing a totally dark bedtime story that I love falling asleep to. Which is kinda disturbing. 😂😂😂
Also, there is so much sprawl here in the USA that numbers get large because on a street with large house plots, they leave large gaps in the numbers in case property is added in between later, although infill isn’t all that common.
About police not getting suspicious about so many of Gacy's employees disappearing: Gacy often hired runaways and teenagers known to have been in legal troubles before. So if his employees just suddenly disappeared nobody suspected Gacy to have murdered them but everybody who even noticed that he constantly hired new teenagers with others just vanishing just thought that these "young drifters" got bored and moved on to some other place. This happened in the late 60s and throughout the 70s, most people simply didn't give a fuck about runaway male teenagers in those days, if Gacy had preyed on teenaged girls but used the same MO, he would have been caught much earlier...
I think runaways (especially repeat runners/those with a record) are pretty equally dismissed, unfortunately. Most people also couldn't imagine Gacy being gay, so he "of course would have no reason to be killing those boys/men." I think it would've been the same if a woman was killing girls.
I really feel for Simon with this episode. It begins as an attempt to be entertaining but soon descends into hell. Simon is all the more effective for becoming more sweary and aghast, exactly as he should be. It was soon apparent that there's nothing whimsical, titillating or comedic about this tale and, respect to him, that quickly becomes clear from Simon's words and body language. He was visibly upset, moved and distraught as he progressed through the story. I appreciated his stony anger when he reached the point where the police refused to investigate because the accuser was LGBT.
I sincerely hope I never go through what Gacy's poor victims endured but, if I do, I'd feel privileged for Simon to then tell my story.
I knew one of the victims' mom years later. Not only did she endure her son murdered by this monster, but also had the small town pastor use the tragedy to preach about the dangers of homosexuality. The pastor and his son still are around and preaching the same crap to this day. My friend just passed and I hope she is able to maybe see her son once again after so many years. She was such a sweet lady.
Wow. Never would have thought that this kind of connection could be made but of COURSE some people found a way. Shame on them!
awful, when one of the reasons why he wasn't caught sooner is bc of _homophobia_
She had her son murdered by JWG, and somehow that makes her a sweet lady, WTF is wrong with you...
@joearledge what a weird way to interpret what I wrote. My friend was a sweet lady IN SPITE of it. Wtf.
That's fucked up.
Brilliant episode. Not many people could keep an audience engaged for 3 hours. It was a rollercoaster. Genius team.
As I'm listening, I wanted to say that the medical condition JWG most likely had is called POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) that is, in short, a periodic, spontaneous (sometimes induced by stress and other triggers, as well) rapid heart rate that diverts blood flow away from the brain, causing dizziness, fainting, and a myriad of other symptoms. I've read/heard that it can be very debilitating, but I believe he probably wasn't faking anything, they just didn't have a term for it, like with PTSD and whatnot.
Later edit: I feel your anger, Simon....this hits so hard, even though I knew it was going to be bad.
Sister has it, I can confirm it sounds very similar.
A good friend of mine has POTS. The tachycardia is a result from your body compensating the different distribution of your blood. When you stand up, for example, your blood rushes down to your feet which is normal but with POTS your vessels don't constrict enough to re-regulate the distribution in your body & to prevent symptoms like dizziness, and fainting...
Are you giving him that excuse for him saying he had amnesia during all of it?? Come on now
@@diychad7268 It's pretty clear he was lying about the amnesia as part of his multiple personalities excuse. Pots results in fainting and short of it happening while a doctor is looking at your vitals doesn't leave much of a trace at all.
@@TamiiLife Yes, thank you!
As a former court employee, I can attest that our prosecuting attorney and several cops were getting away with assaults and drunk driving while I worked there. I'm not surprised they let him (Gacy) slide so much
I find it fascinating that trying to look up the DA who refused to prosecute yields nothing. You'd think a history of those who served in public office would be a matter of public record.
@Beaver of the Pola I also blamed our former Chief Prosecutor.
@Beaver of the Pola Dude, who hurt you?
@Beaver of the Pola You have...issues, and you aren't arguing a point, you're just being a troll
I had an appendix that burst open like that due to infection at the age of 12, and what you said is very much true!
It is by far the worst pain I have ever been in, and it was so weird because the pain switched between my lower right abdomen, and my left shoulder right above the collarbone. It made it hard to breathe properly and was so goddamn awful.
I was in the hospital when it popped, but even doped up on medication I could feel that obvious relief when it burst. I remember the exact moment.
Thanks to me knowing what was going on, being scheduled for surgery later that day (they had misscalculated how bad my case was and I spent a day or two in the hospital waiting for my turn), and being known for my odd calm during insane situations, I did not do much but comment on the odd sensation so my dad could tell the nurses. But I can only imagine what it must have been like for John, all alone and in pain with no meds or anything. Poor thing...
As a kid he was innocent, and if he had not been abused I don’t think he would have become the sick freak he grew into. It is awful what he went through.
Dude, I feel that, heavily. From the agony, to the relief, and even having "an odd calm in insane situations" lol. I went through almost the same exact thing at 15. I already had a very high pain tolerance back then due to sustaining many injuries & broken bones from skating & motorcycle racing. Strangely enough, I'm also known for having an "odd calm" during insane, and even life threatening situations, but the agony I experienced when I had appendicitis was indescribable. My mom refused to take me to the hospital and said "it's just a stomach ulcer from stress" while I was on the bathroom floor involuntarily screaming in agony, and begging to go. I've never reacted to pain (or anything else) like that, so you'd think she would have taken it more seriously. I laid in agony on the same bathroom floor for two effing days before she finally noticed I was still in there like that and called an ambulance. I was shocked when I learned I had only been in there for two days because it truly felt like I spent an eternity in hell. It's so hard to describe. It's like time didn't exist anymore, just perpetual agony and hopelessness (as corny as that sounds). Thankfully, once I got to the hospital they ended up rushing me into emergency surgery. They did a microsurgery procedure where they operate through three small incisions. When I came to afterwards, the surgeons told me I was very lucky. They explained that as soon as they got the camera in, they noticed that my appendix was likely seconds from bursting. If that happened they would've had to make the large incision all the way across my abdomen, but they worked fast and prevented that from happening. They told me if I'd have gotten there any later it would have burst, and would have been a much more serious situation. I thanked them profusely, and told them that I wouldn't have cared if they sliced me all the way open, I was just glad they got that thing out of me lol.
Just having that pain gone was euphoric on it's own, but then they pumped me full of pain meds. The best part is that since all the recovery beds were occupied, I got to recover in the pregnancy unit 😂. I spent 3 days in this big colorful room and slept in this big comfy pink bed while they pumped me full of pain meds. Best sleep I've ever had in my life!
I actually had a new pair of skates (rollerblades) come in the mail while I was there, so they were brought to me at the hospital because I was so excited about them. Normally it only takes 5 minutes to assemble them, but it took me the entire 3 days to tighten a total of 8 small bolts because I kept nodding out lol.
Of course, my second day home from surgery I just couldn't help myself but go to the skatepark and try the new skates out. I got a little carried away and ripped open the stitches right below my belly button (which is the largest incision of the 3). So I skated to the Safeway w/ my friends while holding my stomach together to go buy super glue. The poor lady at the check-out was looking at me like a psycho because *1)* I'm holding a gnarly wound together while nonchalantly buying super glue as if this is totally normal, and *2)* it's not the first time I've done this (or the second time). The same poor lady has rang me up on gnarly super glue runs 3 separate times before this 😂.
My friends and I definitely looked like weirdos for always stopping in their store solely to buy all the paraffin wax on the shelf (it's for skating), and the occasional blood covered super glue run lol.
Everything healed up nicely, and the skates were sick lol.
Anyway, if you read this whole thing, I apologize for my long tangent, but that's my appendicitis experience 🤷♂️. I'm glad that you made it through such a terrible experience of your own. You were definitely a tough kid at 12. I hope your recovery went well, and that you didn't have any kind of complications from your appendix rupture. I know just how unspeakably agonizing it all was for you. Even though that pain is unforgettable, so is the relief afterwards, and luckily we won't have to go through all that again.
Take care, bud. I hope all is well!
Idea for charity stream, people donate to hear Simon try to pronounce difficult words without a pronunciation guide.
Yes, difficult words like “effortlessly”
Make this happen.
That Simon's nightmare word is the word 'effortlessly' is just...cosmic.
It LITERALLY means without effort.
The comedy of it is unbelievable! 🤣
The irony
Fun on a bun!!
Just say effort and Leslie in the British way combine and you've got it
Wow. Huge respect for this. It was absolutely horrific. Also its the most indepth version of the crimes I've ever heard. This S*it bag didn't 'just' murder 30 + children. He destroyed 30+ families. Future generations of these families will also be scarred. God Bless them all.
I'm so proud of the Casual Criminalist breaking a MILLION views on this video, & it's made a more impressive feat because it's so lengthy & gruseome. I've found myself rewatching this case in particular
I never thought I could possibly feel sorry for John Wayne Gacy, but damn..it's little wonder he turned out so screwed up. This was a difficult episode to watch. Kudos to everyone involved, as this was a story that needed to be told. If this doesn't illustrate the horrific, soul-crushing fallout of child abuse, I don't know what will.
Feel sorry for his victims, all of whom had it worse, thanks to this monster.
I've never felt less sympathy for a victim of abuse.
@@JuMiKuI feel sympathy for both, for different reasons. You can really see JWG unraveling. You can see him trying to be "normal" but unable to cope with his childhood trauma, and trying so hard to earn his father's love and respect. For obvious reasons I feel for his victims as well. But on a human I feel for both.
@@Strider91 I'm honestly wary of even believing the extent of the abuse. Gacey is a known liar, who likes talking himself out of responsibility and enjoys attention.
I still don't, it doesn't matter how he grew up he still did what he did it's 100% his choice and his fault
@@ijneb1248 no ones disputing that. We are just discussing how one can be disgusted by the actions of an individual, yet also recognize the struggle of the human condition
Gacy kind of reminds me of my oldest uncle, who was physically abused by his mother after she had a mental breakdown and claimed he was s*xually abused by a priest, which I actually do believe. My uncle is, as described by my Dad, a criminal genius. But he's a bit too full of himself, like most of that side of the family, assuming that those who know them well enough to know they're liars will still fall for their BS. Currently he's in prison and likely to die there, but he's claiming he has early-onset dementia (so he doesn't remember his crimes, ofc) and asking for compassionate release. I hope he doesn't get it. He's not a murderer, fortunately. But he has a particular interest in his underage female relatives, with convictions for assaulting both his daughter and granddaughter. We're lucky our parents kept us away from him when we were kids.
This was amazingly chilling. As a Chicagoan, Alderman are basically neighborhood mayors. You call them about rodents, terrible neighbors, permits, and other small things the mayor's office wouldn't be bothered doing.
Also, my cousin attended to JWG at the mental institute,, she said he was the most charming creep she'd ever encountered. 🤣
Well i mean it seemed like he could sell snow to an Eskimo
Bundy was that way too, and his good looks made him all that much more dangerous.
Imagine Gacy’s numbers if he’d been good looking!! 😳😳😳
That was the point of killers like Gacy and Bundy, if they couldn't charm anyone in, they wouldn't be able to get their victims.
@@BohoStitcher I had to double check with her was it Bundy or JWG, definitely Gacy.
I legitimately get mind boggled at how so many psychopaths are able to hide under a charming persona. Ive known various ppl in my life who would just talk their way out of everything and for me it was quite the opposite with the foot in mouth syndrome lol. I used to admire and want to be someone like that till i grew older and saw that they def shouldn't be role models. 😬
It’s amazing how with such dark material Simon can still include, intentional or not, moments of comedy gold. The “effortlessly” segment got some of the best laughter out of me in a long time. And not some chuckles, full on tears in my eyes 😂
If you're looking for a lighter story to cover, a writer of heist stories started to get fan mail from a guy in prison for robbing banks, as and the bank robber started teaching him how heist groups worked, and they became writing buddies.
Unfortunately I can't remember the names involved, but searching for the bank robber who became a crime fiction writer should turn up the guys involved. And even if it turns up someone else, you're still looking at an interesting story. Crime writers who used to be criminals themselves are always a fun topic.
The absolute unabashed fury in Simon's voice towards the tail-end of the documentary was downright spinechilling, A+ for all the work that David, Jen, and Simon put into this blockbuster documentary and hope y'all had a nice and relaxing weekend after this was posted/edited/written because i had to watch it in chunks of 25-30mins because what the actual fuck Chicago PD
Chicago has always been a massive corruption hellhole. Hasnt changed even today.
A few unfortunate realities:
Even today, rapists constantly get away or are given just probation because of their status or because they "have great potential," no matter how much proof there is.
A cop disguise isn't that terrible for raping someone, even today. In a lot of states, a cop can rape someone in their custody and claim it was consensual. In 2019 the house tried to pass a law making a federal law to make it illegal in all states, but the republican Senate did not pass it. It was passed again earlier in 2022, but who knows how that will go.
Rape victims today, even if it is a man and a woman (a lot of cops don't think men can be raped), do not get an investigation. Their rape kit doesn't even get processed. Their is a HUGE backlog in most cities, where they have access to the better labs. And in some places, they are legalky allowed to throw out your rape kit unless you sign a form to keep them from doing it. AND you have to pay hundreds of dollars in medical expenses for the rape kit (depending on your insurance, if you have it).
Being gay also causes a lot of cops today to ignore domestic violence cases, because they "don't know who's the girl and who's the guy," so it is just two guys getting into a fight, or a catfight. Who knows what they write down for nonbinary people.
Battered wife syndrome is what you were thinking of, and valium is a benzodiazepine, but a lot of benzodiazepines do make you tired. But valium is the one most often used to sedate people I believe. Also, the corruption in our politics is staggering and goes beyond that. And cops do not do shit unless they want to do it, for the most part. I've been on both sides, where they wanted to and didn't want to. The difference is staggering.
A big thank you to Jen for well placed memes to emphasize certain misunderstandings or times of naivete lol.
“Nonbinary” isn’t even real, who cares what the cops write down.
Unsure about the US, but, In the UK, legally, Men can only be raped by another man. I still remember the surprise on my fellow students faces when they learned that. Audible gasps.
@@sdrake8355 in the US, rape cases are a lost cause and most women don't even bother to report it, let alone a man.
And while on the books he CAN be raped by a woman, they only really take it seriously if they are a child or if objects are forced inside him.
It is kind of the same thing that keeps a chunk of women from coming forward. With your adrenaline pumping because you are scared, having an orgasm during is a natural thing, even if you have never even had one with anyone else before. It is just how the body works.
Getting a guy hard to rape him is a lot easier, if we are being realistic.
I know men eho have been raped by women, and ines raped my men, and most of the women i know have been raped. And if they haven't been raped, they have been sexually assaulted.
I was raped by 4 people before i graduated 3rd grade, then college was a rough time because i was a REALLY sheltered kid, so i didn't know how to navigate certain situations.
It's so sad that when JWG told those boys who survived "nobody will believe you, so don't even bother telling the police" ... and he was right 😭 he wouldn't have gotten caught if Ringall hadn't been incredibly brave and persistent.
This channel is literally #1 for me. A great way to get some sleep due to my insomnia. Y’all both entertain and help me mentally. Even though the stories are gruesome at best and totally terrifying at worst. This channel really does let my overactive brain relax, from Simon’s soothing voice and tangents, the writer’s amazing imagery, and last but definitely not least Jen’s funny imagery. It’s calming, informative and entertaining.
Thank you so much.
The John Wayne Gacy case is what made me take a big break from true crime the first time I heard it, genuinely one of if not the most disturbing and disgusting cases I've ever heard
Might just do that too. I'm 24 hours in... on a 3 hour vid.
No other JWG documentary has every been this detailed but this one just opened a whole flood of information I didn't know and can't stomach. Had to stop and watch multiple videos in-between sections just to process the things I just heard.
I had to watch the entire episode in gratitude for the incredible work Simon, David, and Jen put into this for us, but it was hard to finish. Not because of the quality, which is absolutely outstanding, but because the content is so intensely disturbing.
Simon was right when he said this and Pedro Lopez were the worst episodes. Lopez because he was such a monster, Gacy because it was so clear what he was doing, yet so many people had to die due to homophobia and the corruption involved.
I feel the politicians and police that kept him out of jail for so long are as guilty as Gacy. There's blood in their hands as well.
Much respect for Simon covering this as succinctly as he did.
I was struck by how emotionally moved and angry you were at the homophobia and willful incompetence of the police. And it just reminds me that as an American the fact that seeing a man show distress at disturbing shit is somewhat refreshing and surprising to me is a problem and just plain depressing.
Don't put the whole of America (or men) on blast for the shitty people you surround yourself with. "As an American"... Smh.
My great-grandfather served in WWI in the Canadian forces and participated in three of the most horrific battles including the Battle of the Somme. He returned home, married, and raised four daughters and a son. He was not abusive and his children grew up to be exemplary citizens. There is never an excuse for being abusive. Not even war or PTSD.
bless your great grandfather! My two great great uncles died in the Somme, the horrors of that particular battle can't really be overstated. I'm sure it was very hard to live with those memories during a time when mental health support wasn't good at all. I'm so glad he had his family to pour love and life into, I'm sure he was so proud to see his kids grow up into great people.
My grandpa served in the south Pacific during the island hopping campaign in ww2, he served at Leyte, Mindanao, Okinawa and Iwo Jima as well as volunteering for the occupation of japan "cleaning up" as he put it. The man was an absolute sweetheart but never talked about the war except twice when I asked for school projects. Definitely had his demons from PTSD but was never a violent or mean person because of it
@Orrion I agree with you.
My great-grandfather served in WWI in the forces of the German empire. He got wounded at one of the battlefields and his leg never really recovered. He became an abusive man who would hit his children with a belt, especially the boys. He also became an alcoholic in WWII, most likely because of the memories WWII brought back. I think your great-grandfather did very well indeed and I think my grandmother and her siblings deserved a father like him.
Ever heard of the White Death? Legendary killer in war but a normal man in life. Real men aren't insecure sissies who need to take out their insecure anger at the world usually they take it out on people that can't even fight back.
Also, David... dude... you're the ultimate overachiever. Thank you for this one. You're a rock star.
Thanks, mate!
@@dr.davidbaker86 anytime my friend. When are we getting the David and Alex drunkenly yelling at ghosts show? Anyone approach you for your pilot yet? Lol
@@jasonritner9662 alas, no takers yet!
Oh boy, I have been holding off watching this one for months since I knew it was going to be quite heavy (both by infamy and the time stamp like wow 3 hours?? You are a champ Simon). Even with my "experienced" watching, this was a hard one to go through with constant breaks for my sanity, and what kept me going was Simon's outrage at all the absolute corruption and bull that was happening. Thank you Simon and The Casual Criminalist crew, for giving more insight on the victims of these horrible monsters that roamed the streets. Gacy's childhood was rough, but that does not justify his adult actions. I hope that fucker burns in hell for eternity.
It's really interesting watching Simon be confronted with a very real example of why homeless LGBT youth are one of the most vulnerable demographics in western society. Gacy was always going to be believed over a troubled gay teen who was engaging in sex work to survive.
Blughhh omfg stop talking dude
@@douggaudiosi14 You stop talking.
You guys manage to handle complex, disturbing content in an amazing way. The editing and writing are brilliant and Simons presenting has always been top notch. Thank you for tackling this one, I know it wasn't easy!
I remember watching a crime documentary on Gacy where his lawyer was interviewed. I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned that he was actively trying to appeal his case when he was executed. His lawyer called him to tell him his appeal was yet again denied. Gacy, who was 15 minutes from execution, said he'd call him back in an hour to discuss another appeal. His lawyer was astonished and told him "Mr. Gacy, you'll be dead in an hour." Gacy was (and this is an understatement) delusional. He didn't actually believe that he was going to be executed.
He genuinely believed they'd let him donate his liver
No one should ever be executed it’s just as bad as murder!
@@Starae336 PEOPLE WHO R@PE AND MURDER CHILDREN DO NOT DESERVE TO LIVE
@@Starae336 I strongly disagree.
@@Starae336 Wrong
Of all the channels and videos, this is their Stairway to Heaven. Masterpiece. Well done!
Simon’s indignation and outrage (along with menial tasks to keep my hands busy) make these episodes so much easier to listen to. This was an EXTENSIVE episode, I have never learned so much about this killer as I have today. Thank you to David, Simon and Jen for putting this together- I know it was difficult, but wow. I’m glad to know so many of the victims’ names- they deserve to be remembered.