World's Most Evil Killers - Season 5, Episode 15 - Sunset Strip Killers - Full Episode | Forensic Files

NARRATOR: On the 11th of August 1980, 37-year-old nurse Carol Bundy called the LAPD, claiming her boyfriend was the infamous Sunset Strip
Killer. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): Hello. Some time back, you were having a series of murders involving
prostitutes in Hollywood. POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): Uh-huh. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): OK.
Would you like to have your man today? I've only been involved with perhaps eight or nine of them.
JOHN STALBERG: She even say co-conspirators understating it. She actually got the victim in the car and handed him the gun.
NARRATOR: Her boyfriend was 32-year-old Doug Clark, a boiler engineer from Pennsylvania.
Clark's dark fantasies had culminated in a sexually motivated killing spree, targeting
sex workers on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. FRANK GARCIA: The things that they did
were unheard of quite frankly. And Doug and Carol gave a whole new meaning to the term sexual deviant.
NARRATOR: Between May and July 1980, Doug Clark brutally murdered six women, mutilating one of his victims and decapitating another.
It wouldn't be long before Bundy spurred on by Clark committed murder herself. POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): Doesn't that
make you feel bad, though, that you killed somebody? CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): Would you really
like to know the honest truth? POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): For sure. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): OK.
The honest truth is, it's fun to kill people. And if I was allowed to run loose,
I'd probably do it again. NARRATOR: The depraved actions of this deadly duo sent a wave of terror through the city of Los Angeles
during the summer of 1980, making Doug Clark and Carol Bundy two of the world's most evil killers.
[MUSIC PLAYING] On the 13th of November 1980, 32-year-old Doug Clark went on trial at the superior court of Los Angeles charged
with first degree murder. His accomplice and jilted lover Carol Bundy was also accused of murder.
Veteran homicide Detective Frank Garcia was assigned to the task force dealing with the investigation.
He interviewed Carol Bundy at length. FRANK GARCIA: She was the key to Clark. We knew it.
She knew it. Clark knew it. And he would do his damnedest to get her to turn and back up his story.
NARRATOR: Psychologist John Stalberg assessed 38-year-old Bundy while she was awaiting trial.
JOHN STALBERG: My impression was she was a frumpy, 40-ish bespectacled female. And she didn't look like she was capable of murder.
NARRATOR: But by the time the case got to court, it was clear to prosecutor Ronald Coen
just how dangerous these killers were. RONALD COEN: It was one of the most gruesome cases in terms
of the crimes that were committed, in terms of the personalities of the killers.
I've had a lot of heavy cases. This ranks right up there with the top. NARRATOR: The killers' story begins on August 26, 1942
Carol Bundy spent much of her early years in California. Her mother was a tap dancer.
And her father worked in cinemas across the state. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: Young Carol started
out as a fairly cute kid then she began to develop a severe astigmatism. So she ended up with very thick glasses.
And she had a kind of a lumpy, dumpy body. So as she's growing up, she doesn't look so attractive anymore.
In 1957, when Carol was 14 her mother suffered a fatal heart attack. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: After the death of her mother,
Bundy began to be sexually abused by her father. So she has this very ingrained idea about what
she should be as a woman. She should be subservient to a man. NARRATOR: At the age of 17, Bundy married a man
almost 40 years her senior. The marriage didn't last. And during the 1960s, a further two times and had two sons.
But all of these relationships proved unstable and never lasted long. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: Some of these marriages were abusive.
She was abused by the people that should have been caring for her. So she's constantly learning.
She's constantly having that idea reinforced that women are there to serve men. NARRATOR: By 1979, she was on her own
again and a regular at the little Nashville bar in North Hollywood. It was here at Christmas, she met 31-year-old Doug Clark.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: It was Christmas season. And she didn't have anybody. And she was at the little Nashville drinking.
And that is when Doug Clark entered the bar, saw her. And she was an easy mark for a guy like him.
NARRATOR: Douglas Daniel Clark was born in Pennsylvania in 1948. He had a transient childhood.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: He had a privileged upbringing. His father was an officer in the Navy,
and then became an engineer, traveled around the world. As a result, Clark was sent to prestigious schools.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: I think the military connection is an interesting one because he's learned from an early age
that aggression and violence is something that is valuable for his masculinity. GEOFFREY WANSELL: To be honest, he's seen by his fellow people
as arrogant, not prepared to work hard. And he also begins to have a bit of a reputation
as a sort of sex addict. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: So he would invite girls back to his dorm room and he would audio record
himself having sex with them. He wants to humiliate these girls. So he shared these recordings with his friends.
So he really got off on demeaning women. He really thought he had a right to do this.
NARRATOR: By the age of 20, Clark had left school and joined the Air Force. But after only two short years in the military,
he was discharged and moved to Los Angeles. Here, he settled down to a seemingly normal life.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: There's a concept compartmentalizing being able to pass as normal when in fact you harbor
a very deviant, dark fantasies. He learned pretty early to hide that stuff until he found somebody who wouldn't judge him.
NARRATOR: By 1979, Clark was on the lookout for a partner who would indulge his sexual fantasies.
On the 20th of December, he met 37-year-old licensed vocational nurse and mother of two, Carol Bundy.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: Bundy took Clark home pretty quickly. He, apparently, spent a lot of time pleasing her sexually.
He pretended to like her boys. He, himself, acted like a little boy and won her heart.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: Literally after their first date, he's moving some of his stuff into her apartments.
He really is making himself at home there. But she won't be looking at this thinking whoa,
this is going too quickly. She'll be looking at this thinking, this is great. NARRATOR: The relationship was intense.
But it wasn't long before Clark's behavior began to change. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: He began to have issues with the kids
being there. And at this point, Bundy was all in. She had to keep him. So she gave up her sons.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: She really wants to please him. She wants to be the standout woman for him.
I think there's also a sense in which Clark is exciting. He's the kind of character she's never met before.
He's the extreme end of the spectrum. NARRATOR: During the investigation, veteran homicide Detective Frank Garcia
built a disturbing picture of the pair's chaotic relationship. FRANK GARCIA: It didn't take long before he told her
this is really getting boring. So they started bringing in third parties. She would get prostitutes for him and have a threesome.
But most of the time, she would get cut out of the action. NARRATOR: It wasn't long before Clark's desires
took a more sinister turn. FRANK GARCIA: They met an 11-year-old girl that lived across the breezeway of the apartment buildings.
And Carol lured that 11-year-old over to the apartment. And it wasn't long before they were taking nude pictures,
showers together. Doug was touching her and kissing her. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: It begins with presents, and with gifts,
and making her feel included and wanted. Gradually, she begins to get involved with activities that probably did make her
feel uncomfortable at first. But because she felt that sense of obligation to this couple,
she would have gone along with it. She was a child who was exploited by them. He later dropped her and tried to rape her.
So by the time that it reaches that level of violence, that level of abuse, this individual
has been completely brainwashed by this couple, completely unable to reach out for help.
NARRATOR: Over the next six months, the depraved actions of Clark would continue
to spiral out of control. GEOFFREY WANSELL: After Clark moves in with Carol Bundy,
he increasingly tries to sexualize her. He wants to introduce her to torture. He wants to introduce her to all manner of other things.
But there's another extra potent thing in the mix, and that is Clark says he wants to have
sex with a dead body or bodies. Whether that offends Bundy, I'm not sure. But there's no doubt that necrophilia is now on his menu.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: What Bundy doesn't know Clark is also trolling around looking for women
that he wants to victimize. NARRATOR: On the 27th of April 1980 whilst driving the streets of Los Angeles,
32-year-old Clark picked up a sex worker. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: When she was giving him oral sex,
he began to choke her with the intent of killing her. It was much more difficult for him.
And I think he anticipated. So he pulled out a knife and started to stab her and then slash her over and over and over.
FRANK GARCIA: He was going to try to kill her. And she pushed away, fought him [INAUDIBLE]..
She was fighting for her life. She got out of the car somehow. And she got away.
NARRATOR: Obsessed with his necrophiliac fantasies and determined that his next victim would not escape,
Clark convinced Bundy to purchase two guns. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: Bundy went into a shop
and got a set of 25 caliber Raven automatic handguns. Now, Clark had a way to ensure whatever woman he picked up,
if he wanted to kill her, he could. NARRATOR: Trying to prove that she was a worthy partner,
besotted Bundy referred to the guns as the toys and started convincing Clark to take her into his confidence.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: So they have conversations about sexual fantasies and all of that kind of thing.
And the conversation turns to murder. Now you think that this would send her running
in the other direction. But this is somebody who wants to please her man. She wants to be liked.
She wants to be loved. She wants to be included. NARRATOR: However, controlling Clark operated alone.
And within four weeks of purchasing the guns, he was on the hunt for his next victim.
On the 12th of June, the bodies of two young girls were discovered dumped by the freeway.
Both victims had been partially stripped and shot in the head. They were identified as stepsisters,
15-year-old Gina Marano and 16-year-old Cynthia Chandler. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: They'd run away from home essentially.
They've been kind of pushing the boundaries as teenagers. Their parents were having a bit of a nightmare
keeping them under control. NARRATOR: 32-year-old Doug Clark had convinced the sisters to get into his car whilst
out trolling alone. FRANK GARCIA: He picked them up and he took them to some parking lot someplace.
And he talked the blonde into performing oral sex on him. He told the brunette, Gina, to look away.
And it was at that point that he shot Gina first because she was looking away and then he shot Cynthia.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: He sees all women as sex workers. These were just two teenage girls.
And both of them ended up dying. GEOFFREY WANSELL: He takes their bodies to a garage
and rapes them after their death. NARRATOR: Doug Clark had succeeded in fulfilling his deprave fantasy
before taking the girls bodies and dumping them on the freeway. Carol Bundy discovered what Clark had done.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: This is the point at which Bundy basically says, I want to be part of this with you, not just a fantasy
life. If you're doing this, I want the full intimacy. I want us to be one mind, one soul, one body.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: Bundy is very much feeding off the kind of things that he's telling her.
She really wants to please him. So she completely buys into this murder narrative.
NARRATOR: Detectives quickly identified the two girls who'd been reported missing
by their worried parents. However, finding their killer was going to prove difficult
in the teeming city of angels. FRANK GARCIA: In 1980, in June, when the Clark-Bundy case went
down, we were at a pace to either tie or break a homicide record in the city of Los Angeles.
That year, we had over 1,000 homicides. RONALD COEN: Law enforcement had the best of the best.
But they were stretched to the limits. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: Serial killing teams, they have to be chameleons.
They have to blend into the background. So nobody looking from the outside in would think that these two were capable of this.
NARRATOR: Desperate to prove that she was a worthy partner, 38-year-old Bundy put together a kill kit for the couple to use.
Kill kit consisted of a bag, certain items in it, the gun, she and Clark had matching guns,
and a boning knife. NARRATOR: She told 32-year-old Clark to use the knife to mutilate the bodies.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: As their relationship progresses, she wants to be the standout woman for him.
She wants to go further than other women have gone with him. And she's almost trying to kind of
shock him and say, look at me, aren't I dangerous and exciting? NARRATOR: On the 20th of June 1980,
Clark took Bundy out with him on what was supposed to be her first kill. RONALD COEN: The MO was to go hunting for prostitutes, people
that did not have family. Get a prostitute to enter the car on the guise of sex,
kill, and utilize the bodies. JOHN STALBERG: If a serial killer wants a woman to get in his car, who
gets in the car in an LA area? It's prostitutes. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: They pick up a sex
worker on Highland Avenue. And the plan is that Bundy will shoot this woman. But if she doesn't want to go through with it,
there will be some kind of code phrase that she uses. But I think Bundy got so excited at this situation
that it didn't go to plan whatsoever. Bundy didn't shoot this woman. Clark did. And there was a real kind of fumbled handover
of the gun that was used to kill this woman. NARRATOR: The victim, known only as Cathy,
was stripped of clothes and belongings, anything which could help identify her, and dumped beside a dirt truck.
Having failed to prove she was a worthy accomplice, Bundy was once again cut out of the action.
Shortly after 3:00 AM on the 23rd of June 1980, almost two weeks after the bodies of stepsister Gina
and Cynthia were discovered, detectives were called to another gruesome crime scene.
FRANK GARCIA: The decapitated nude body of Exxie Wilson showed up in the parking lot.
NARRATOR: Exxie Wilson was a sex worker working the Ventura Boulevard in Los Angeles.
Whilst out cruising alone, Clark picked her up. GEOFFREY WANSELL: Clark takes Exxie Wilson,
gives her a lift in his car. He shoots her in the head. He takes her to a parking lot and cuts off her head, which he
puts in the trunk of the car. And he dumps her headless torso in the parking lot.
NARRATOR: Doug Clark took the severed head home with him. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: So Clark tells Bundy
that he has this head and it's in the freezer. Now, he won't show it to Bundy immediately
because I think he gets the Bundy is quite excited about this. She's like a little child, essentially.
He delays the length of time before she sees him. JOHN STALBERG: He spent a lot of time
putting on makeup, lipstick, and making up the head. And I think Exxie might have been more pretty
than some of the other ones. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: He then takes the head into the shower with him and allegedly sexually
pleasure himself with the head. NARRATOR: The same morning that Exxie's headless body
was discovered, investigators receive reports of yet another victim. FRANK GARCIA: That same morning, Karen Jones
was discovered on a street near the Burbank Studios with a head shot. Exxie and Karen Jones were both prostitutes from Arkansas.
They had come to Los Angeles together to work the Sunset Strip area. NARRATOR: Clark was worried that Karen,
who'd seen him with Exxie, would identify him to the police. GEOFFREY WANSELL: He goes back and entices Karen
into the car with a simple intention of killing her too, which she does, even though he's got Exxie's
head in the boot of the car. These are actions of the most extreme depravity. They defy any kind of moral ground.
NARRATOR: With the discovery of Karen Jones's body, detectives started to think these killings might be linked.
They did the autopsy on Karen Jones. And at that point, it was kind of a feeling already.
It took the slugs out of the head. And it was immediately sent to ballistics. And they got a match that the slugs in Karen Jones
were the same as the two sisters, Gina and Cynthia. Now, we know we have a serial killer.
NARRATOR: All three victims had been shot with the same gun. One week later on the 27th of June 1980,
Exxie Wilson's head was discovered. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: Bundy went out and bought an ornate box.
They wrapped the head in clothing, dumped it in the chest, put the chest into an alley.
FRANK GARCIA: It was, I guess, four or five days later, the head was discovered by a motorist about 1:00
o'clock in the morning. And he hit this little wooden box that looked like a treasure chest.
He got out, looked at it, and he saw that it was a human head. NARRATOR: The head was positively
identified as Exxie Wilson. FRANK GARCIA: That head was taken immediately by the coroner.
The slugs were removed immediately to ballistics at the crime lab. That came back positive [INAUDIBLE]..
So now, you have a full blown serial killing investigation. NARRATOR: A depraved picture was starting to emerge
surrounding these killings. And a new wave of terror flooded the streets of LA. Local press calling the murderer The Sunset Strip Killer.
FRANK GARCIA: In this particular case, we were thinking that was just one killer
responsible for all these killings. All the ballistics came back to the same gun.
It was a 25 caliber Raven, semiautomatic. So in our mind, it was the same killer committing these crimes.
NARRATOR: With conclusive evidence they had a serial killer on the loose in LA, detectives started a task force dedicated to catching
The Sunset Strip Killer. Then on the 30th of June, a snake hunter out in San Fernando found the body
of another woman in the ravine just off the freeway. She'd been shot. FRANK GARCIA: She was decomposed.
But they took one or two slugs out of her. And those slugs were matched to Marano, Chandler, Exxie
Wilson, Karen Jones, and Comer was the fifth one to have a match. NARRATOR: The victim was identified as Marnette Comer.
She was just 17 years old and was last seen on the 21st of May in 1980. It was Marnette's T-shirt that Exxie Wilson's head
was later found wrapped in. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: She was a vulnerable child, somebody
who wasn't able to consent. And Clark can sniff out vulnerability. He is a predator.
He knew that it would be really easy to get this young woman into his car and do with her
whatever he wanted. NARRATOR: Marnette had been Doug Clark's first victim. The discovery of her body over a month
later came as a reminder to 37-year-old Bundy that she was not yet in on Clark's act.
In a bid to take control, Carol Bundy would soon take matters into her own hands.
With five victims conclusively linked to The Sunset Strip Killer, the police were
desperate to solve the case. On the 9th of August, another headless torso was discovered.
This time, however, the victim was male. RONALD COEN: The murder of Jack Murray was one of the most brutal murders that I've encountered.
NARRATOR: 45-year-old Jack Murray was a country and Western singer, who often performed at the little Nashville
in North Hollywood. He was also one of Carol Bundy's old flames. RONALD COEN: Jack Murray was known
as the Australian Tom Jones. And although he was married, Jack Murray and Carol Bundy
were having an affair. NARRATOR: Carol and Jack met in early 1979. But the honeymoon period didn't last long.
The following year, things turned sour. FRANK GARCIA: Jack got tired of her pestering him.
And basically, it was the type of thing where Jack told Carol don't bother me I'll call
you when I need you type thing. Doug was over here. Carol would still go back to Jack off and on, off and on.
NARRATOR: On the 3rd of August 1980, Bundy told Jack that she'd been helping her new boyfriend Doug Clark killed sex
workers from the Sunset Strip. FRANK GARCIA: He didn't believe her. She showed him the guns.
He said, oh, my God. You're not kidding. Carol goes home tells Doug what she had done.
That's when Doug tells her you're going to have to take care of Jack. JOHN STALBERG: Nobody really wants to go to jail for murder.
So she realized also oh, gee, I really screwed up. What am I doing telling somebody that I'm
involved in some murders? So she was going to solve that problem, too. NARRATOR: In the early hours of the 4th of August,
Bundy went back to the little Nashville and lured Jack Murray away with the promise of sex.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: I think there's a sense in which he has that expectation of women anyway,
even this woman who's just confessed this horrendous crime to him. But that was to be the downfall of Jack.
RONALD COEN: Murray owned a van. Carol Bundy took Jack Murray into the van on the guise
that he would orally copulate her. And as he did this act, she shot on the side of the head.
And then she had to get rid of the bullet and the evidence. So she cut his head off.
NARRATOR: Five days later, his body was discovered. FRANK GARCIA: I wasn't there at the crime scene.
But some of the people that we talked to afterwards said you couldn't see through the glass
because the flies were so thick. And that's what the neighbors reported the smell.
Well, that was Jack Murray. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: So when Jack's body was found and police questioned people in the bar,
they mentioned that he had been seen with Carol Bundy. She was brought in and Doug Clark came with her.
And she answered the questions. Yeah, she had seen him. They were friends. She didn't give anything away, but Doug Clark
sweated and sweated. ELIZABETH YARDLEY: The fact that he goes along with her that is an acts of control.
And I think the police will be quite well aware of that. And they are looking at this guy who's come in with her.
And he has no reason to be agitated or sweating. So that's what gets their radar pinging,
that perhaps, he could have something to do with this too. NARRATOR: With insufficient evidence to charge either Clark
or Bundy, the police let the couple go despite their mounting concerns. Carol was a basket case.
It was getting to her. She went to work. She was a licensed vocational nurse at the hospital.
She was having problems with her supervisor because her mind wasn't in work. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: She feels horrible.
She doesn't know what to do. She started telling co-workers what she and Clark had been doing together.
She just wouldn't stop talking. They were shocked, horrified. And they called the police.
By the time the detectives arrived, Bundy had fled. But later that morning, she called the LAPD herself.
CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): Some time back, you were having a series of murders involving
prostitutes in Hollywood? POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): Uh-huh. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): OK.
Would you like to have your man today? POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): Yeah. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): I can give you your man today.
NARRATOR: Desperate to be taken seriously, Bundy started giving details only somebody
involved in the murders could possibly have known. CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): He was, well, you don't know
it because you weren't there. But the head was decapitated. I did that. He was stabbed several times in the back.
POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): Doesn't that make you feel bad though that you killed somebody?
CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): Would you really like to know the honest truth? POLICE OFFICER (ON PHONE): For sure!
CAROL BUNDY (ON PHONE): OK. The honest truth is, it's fun to kill people. And if I was allowed to run loose,
I'd probably do it again. It really would seem to be quite bizarre behavior for somebody to drop themselves right in it
like this. But here's somebody who wants to be validated. They want to be liked.
They want to be recognized. And she literally can't contain herself. I'll be-- there's a restaurant called the Gristmill,
which is in Burbank. I'll be there at 2 o'clock. My name is Carol Bundy. NARRATOR: The center of attention
at last and determined to remain in control, Bundy arranged to meet detectives at a local restaurant.
But before she got off the phone, officers following up on the earlier report from her work colleagues were knocking at her door.
Bundy hurriedly began grabbing items of evidence to take down to the police station with her.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: She has several pair of women's panties that she hands over and says these belong to the victims
of The Sunset Strip Killer. She also shows them the photo album of the sex acts with the 11-year-old neighbor
and admits that she killed Jack Murray, but says most of the murders were done by Doug Clark.
NARRATOR: Detective Frank Garcia conducted the initial interview with her when she was in custody.
FRANK GARCIA: It was a typical police interview, where you sit down, introductions, everything's
nice, and how are you? Can we get you coffee or water? You know that type of thing.
NARRATOR: 37-year-old Carol Bundy appeared happy to discuss her crimes. FRANK GARCIA: She went into minute detail
on her killing Jack Murray, how she had trouble cutting his head off and all the other things she did to his body
because she told us she wanted to make it look like some sex pervert that killed him.
CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): I don't have any regrets over having done Jack. As far as Jack himself is concerned,
he really got off kind because he was dead before I did anything else to him. RONALD COEN: I remember hearing the tape recording
of the entire confession. And I was a veteran prosecutor. I had many, many cases of homicide on nature.
And my chin hit the desk when I was hearing her statements. NARRATOR: But her astounding confessions would continue
to shock investigators. The frumpy nurse from Burbank, Los Angeles wouldn't hold back on the details.
And she would turn the tables on Clark. She told investigators that her boyfriend
was The Sunset Strip Killer. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): It doesn't matter if it's
prostitutes or whatever. These are young girls. If he can get them in the car, his criteria,
believe it or not for whether or not they die is whether or not they give a decent blow job.
NARRATOR: With Doug Clark accused of being Bundy's partner in crime, a warrant was quickly issued for his arrest.
But unlike Bundy, he wasn't going to admit anything. So Clark suggests that Bundy has
completely set him up for this. He makes her out to be the mastermind, which is pretty incredulous.
And the police will be very skeptical of this from the outset because they will be able to see that Bundy is clearly very easily influenced.
So they know that yes, she's the puppet. But the Clark is the puppet master. NARRATOR: With both killers in custody,
the city of Los Angeles could breathe a momentary sigh of relief. But Bundy's confession alone wasn't going to be
enough to convict Doug Clark. FRANK GARCIA: After the arrest, we had obtained a search warrant for the garage
that he had rented, which was in Burbank. We went to the location of the garage,
I would say roughly 10:30, 11 o'clock that night. And the garage was small. It was very dusty.
We lit it up. And you could see with the lights that there was like drag marks on the smooth concrete surface
of the floor there. NARRATOR: The drag marks made sense to Frank. They fitted with an explanation that Bundy had provided.
CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): He took them bodily out of the car, put them in a rental garage
that he had that had a single bed in there. And he used them sexually. DETECTIVE (ON RECORDER): Excuse me, you're
talking about after death? CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): After death. He tripped out on social activities
with dead and dying people, necrophilia and stuff. FRANK GARCIA: The drag marks led to the corner of the garage,
which coincided with what Carol had told Broda and myself that Doug had told her about taking the girls to the garage
and placing them in these sexual positions. And apparently, at one time, there was a mattress in that corner, which
would have been the outright that was on the floor. NARRATOR: The forensics team confirmed
the drag marks were blood. FRANK GARCIA: We noticed there was a boot print. We asked the technician if there was something
he could do about that. He said if I lift the print, it'll destroy the blood that's under there.
[INAUDIBLE] we need that print. NARRATOR: Detective Frank Garcia was convinced this
was a vital piece of evidence. He was also convinced that boiler engineer Clark had hidden the murder weapons, the matching guns,
at his place of work. Frank paid a visit to the Jergen's manufacturing plant, where Clark was employed.
FRANK GARCIA: I talked to the manager of the plant and I said, here's what the deal is with that boiler.
And the boiler is a huge thing. It's like 2 and 1/2, 3 stories tall. And we found out later that the temperature in that thing
reaches like 4,000 degrees. NARRATOR: But searching Clark's work place was going
to prove easier said than done. FRANK GARCIA: The manager said it'll take a minimum of three days for that thing to cool off to work.
It can be inspected and searched. Once that's done, it's going to take another three or four
days to get it back online. We're looking at over a week. And I go, I suggest that you have
somebody search that boiler room every nook and cranny. Because if guns don't turn up, we're going to have
to shut that boiler down. I don't think it was quite two days, we got a call. And he said, hey, guess what?
They found the guns. NARRATOR: Things were looking up for Frank and the rest of the team.
At around the same time as the guns were discovered, they made another important discovery.
We're robbery homicide in the squad room and they bring Doug Clark up. So we're sitting there talking stuff.
And Doug in this real cocky, arrogant way puts his feet up on the desk and [INAUDIBLE] and I go like this.
It's the boot print on the boots he was wearing. We literally ran up to him. Take your boots off.
NARRATOR: Forensics confirm Clark's boots matched the prints lifted from the garage.
With the evidence mounting up, both Clark and Bundy were charged with murder. Whilst awaiting trial, 38-year-old Bundy underwent
psychiatric assessments. John Stalberg was the psychiatrist tasked with interviewing and building a rapport with her.
I was court appointed and it was a confidential report only to be sent to her attorney.
And the issues that he wanted addressed by me or whether she was competent to stand trial.
And the second one was whether she had a psychiatric defense, such as insanity or diminished capacity, which could
have perhaps reduced the crime from first degree to second degree. NARRATOR: The experienced clinician was shocked
at Bundy's candid confessions. JOHN STALBERG: I remember her telling me that she would pass on the gun.
He would reach back and she give him the revolver. And then just when he was having an orgasm
from the oral copulation, he would shoot the prostitute in the head. And I remember joking with Bundy that I said,
he's got to be a good shot at [INAUDIBLE] man who would shoot that close to his crotch a gun, you know.
But she laughed about that. NARRATOR: John spent three hours assessing Carol Bundy.
As far as any personality characteristics like psychopathic, or dangerous, or obviously anti-social
in nature, no, she was quite passive and cooperative with me. She wasn't obstructionistic or passive-aggressive.
She was actually probably pleased about the attention actually now looking back.
NARRATOR: John concluded that Bundy was fit to stand trial and she did not have grounds for an insanity plea.
She did not want to go to death row. I remember having that discussion with her.
Bundy does a plea deal with prosecutors in Los Angeles. NARRATOR: In return for taking the death
penalty off the table, she would plead guilty. But Bundy's damning confessions would still
have a hand in Clark's fate. After two years of pre-trial hearings, his trial began on the 9th of October 1982.
34-year-old Clark was eager to represent himself. And unexpectedly, the judge granted his request.
JOHN STALBERG: When Clark acted as his own attorney, it shows me, number one, that he was very narcissistic,
that I don't need an attorney. I can handle it. And this might be the main reason.
He, of course, knew that Bundy was going to be the main witness. And he thought that he would really give her a very, very
bad time when she testified on the witness stand in front of the jury. KATHERINE RAMSLAND: The problem was he got angry.
He yelled at the judge. He was vulgar. He slammed on tables. He was very dramatic to the point
where they had to restrain him. You cannot represent yourself doing that. NARRATOR: On the 20th of January 1983,
Doug Clark was found guilty of six murders. He was also convicted of sexual contact with human remains.
KATHERINE RAMSLAND: He started yelling at the judge right away. Just get to the sentence!
Get to the sentence! You know, I want to die. I want it over with. The presiding judge, Mr. Ricardo Torres
sentenced Clark to death. I mean, if anybody deserves the death penalty, it's Doug Clark for what he did.
NARRATOR: Even after Bundy and Clark were safely locked up, the body count attributed to the deadly duo grew.
In the spring of 1981, another body had been found in the Santa Clarita Valley. Bundy claimed this woman was the sex worker
Kathy, who she'd failed to kill on her first trip out with Clark. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): Oh, we had a hell of a time
with Kathy. First of all, he was on the passenger-- do you want the detail for this or not?
DETECTIVE (ON RECORDER): Absolutely! CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): I'm not boring you, am I?
DETECTIVE (ON RECORDER): Not at all. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): OK. DETECTIVE (ON RECORDER): You have my undivided attention,
believe me. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): She got in the car and she said, you know--
oh. first, she said my name's Kathy. And she says pleased to meet ya! just like that!
Dumb old bitch. Anyhow, she is kind of cute. NARRATOR: Carol Bundy went into great detail
about the encounter with Kathy. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): If I did not want to make the hit,
I was to give him a particular signal. If I wanted to do the hit, I was to say, "Boy, am I having a blast!"
He had the ultimate decision whether or not to go ahead and do it one way or the other.
We had to silent arguing back and forth between the two. Do you want me to do it?
Do you want me to do it? He kept shaking his head no. And she was getting uptight.
And finally, he reached out his hand like that. So I took the gun. And I slapped it in his hand.
NARRATOR: Clark shot Kathy in the head. CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): So I jumped out, ran up front, and jumped into the seat and pushed her.
Her head was in my lap. She bled like a stuck pig all over my blouse. NARRATOR: As the couple were driving around looking
for a suitable spot to dispose of Kathy's body, Clark had more instructions for Bundy.
CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): All the time he's telling me, "Strip her. Strip her down.
Take everything off. So I got all of her jewellery off. DETECTIVE (ON RECORDER): You're doing this on the front seat?
CAROL BUNDY (ON RECORDER): Uh-huh. Underneath the jacket. And if you don't think it isn't a bitch
to get a dress off of a dead girl who wasn't cooperating in the least bit. Anyway.
NARRATOR: On the 31st of May 1983, Carol Bundy was sentenced to life for Kathy's murder,
despite claiming she hadn't pulled the trigger and for the murder of Jack Murray.
ELIZABETH YARDLEY: I think in Clark, she met somebody who was a master manipulator, who
was able to make her feel loved and wanted, and have that sense of belonging in those early stages
of the relationship. And I think that was quite intoxicating for her because she was constantly trying
to get back those feelings that she's had in the early days. And if that meant killing, well, that meant killing.
NARRATOR: Bundy died in prison on the 9th of December 2003, age 61. Carol Bundy was not very healthy.
She was never going to survive prison in any event. And she did die in prison. So in a sense, she received the death penalty.
If anyone deserved it, she deserved it. NARRATOR: Doug Clark remains on death row
in San Quentin State Prison. FRANK GARCIA: As a homicide detective, not a lot of things
surprise you, astonish you. But these two guys, they were something else. RONALD COEN: Carol Bundy was evil to the day she died.
Douglas Clark is evil. NARRATOR: Douglas Clark and Carol Bundy's chaotic partnership terrorized the streets of Los Angeles
in the summer of 1980. Their depraved and deviant sexual fantasies knew no limits
and saw them target vulnerable women, teenagers, and even a child. This makes them two of the world's most evil killers.
[MUSIC PLAYING]

Douglas Clark and Carol Bundy were a deadly duo who terrorised the streets of Los Angeles in the summer of 1980, targeting vulnerable women, teenagers and even a child.

An in-depth look at the lives and crimes of some of the world's most evil killers, including Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Richard Ramirez, Cary Stayner, Leonard Lake, Dorothea Puente and more.

Brief Summary

Carol Bundy and Doug Clark terrorized Los Angeles in 1980, committing multiple murders and shocking confessions about their crimes.

Key points

Carol Bundy's Disturbing Admission. In a chilling phone call, Carol Bundy reveals to police, "It's fun to kill people."
The Birth of a Killer Duo. Doug Clark and Carol Bundy become infamous for their gruesome crimes in Los Angeles.
The Discovery of Exxie Wilson's Body. The decapitated body of Exxie Wilson is found, marking a turning point in the investigation.
Carol Bundy's Confession. Bundy reveals chilling details about her involvement in murders, shocking investigators.
Doug Clark's Trial. Clark represents himself in court, leading to dramatic outbursts and a guilty verdict.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It's fun to kill people.

Carol Bundy on her feelings about murder during a police call.

1:29WatchAug 27, 2021

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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