The new documentary series I'll Be Gone in the Dark landed on NOW TV, and we are already obsessed. The six-part true-crime show is based on the book of the same name by the late Michelle McNamara in which she investigated the horrific crimes of the murderer that she dubbed 'The Golden State Killer,' who was responsible for 50 home-invasion rapes and 12 murders in California throughout the 1970s and 80s.
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Where is the Golden State Killer now?
So where is the Golden State Killer AKA Joseph James DeAngelo now, and how was he apprehended? After searching for him unsuccessfully for decades, he was arrested in 2018 after eventually being tracked down using DNA evidence. Investigators managed to track down members of his family who had tested their genetic genealogy.
Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested in 2018
According to The New York Times, officials uploaded his DNA profile to the website GEDmatch, which then identified around 20 people who shared great grandparents with the killer, eventually managing to narrow their findings down to two main suspects.
Although DeAngelo has admitted responsibility for dozens of sexual assaults which took place in the 70s and 80s, California's statute of limitations meant that he was eventually charged with 13 murders and 13 rape-related charges.
The true-crime documentary is based on Michelle's book of the same name
He pleaded guilty, and was been sentenced to life imprisonment with no possibility to parole in August 2020, but was spared the death sentence due to the state's current pause on capital punishment, and on account of his age. Before sentencing, the 74-year-old apologised for his crimes, saying: "I listened to all your statements, each one of them, and I'm truly sorry for everyone I've hurt."
What happened to I'll Be Gone in the Dark author Michelle McNamara?
Sadly, Michelle McNamara would never see his apprehension, arrest and sentencing, as she passed away from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs back in 2016 before completing her book. She was 46. Michelle was married to actor Patton Oswalt, who has previously opened up about seeing her work finished.
Michelle passed away in 2016 aged 46
He told the New York Times: "This book had to be finished. Knowing how horrible this guy was, there was this feeling of, you’re not going to silence another victim. Michelle died, but her testimony is going to get out there."
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Speaking about his reaction to the Golden State Killer's arrest on Instagram, he said: "This is insane. Looks like they’ve caught the East Area Rapist, and if that’s true they’ve caught the Golden State Killer. So, I think you’ve got him Michelle… Full tilt freak out in effect."
Michelle was married to actor Patton Oswalt
He also tweeted: "If they’ve really caught the #GoldenStateKiller I hope I get to visit him. Not to gloat or gawk — to ask him the questions that [Michelle] wanted answered in her 'Letter To An Old Man' at the end of #IllBeGoneInTheDark."