On a bitterly cold January night in 1977, a 26-year-old woman named Christine Freund was fatally shot in Queens, New York, becoming a victim of the infamous serial killer David Berkowitz, also known as the 'Son of Sam'. The evening had been ordinary, a date night for Christine, a Wall Street secretary, and her fiancé, John Diel. They had just seen the movie 'Rocky' and were sitting in Diel's Pontiac Firebird near the Forest Hills Long Island Rail Road station, making plans to go dancing.
Suddenly, the cold quiet of the night was shattered by three gunshots fired into the car. Diel, who sustained only minor injuries, frantically drove away seeking help. Christine had been struck twice. She was rushed to a nearby hospital but succumbed to her injuries several hours later. The couple had been planning to announce their engagement just fifteen days later, on Valentine's Day.
The attack on Christine Freund and John Diel was a pivotal moment in what was becoming one of the largest manhunts in New York City's history. Her murder helped police connect the dots between a series of seemingly random shootings, revealing a terrifying pattern. The perpetrator targeted young women, often with long, dark hair, who were sitting in parked cars. This realization spread a wave of fear across the city, prompting many women to change their appearance in hopes of avoiding the killer's attention.
The reign of terror lasted for over a year, during which the 'Son of Sam' killed six people and wounded seven others. The breakthrough in the case came from a parking ticket issued near one of the crime scenes, which led investigators to David Berkowitz. He was arrested on August 10, 1977, and confessed to the string of shootings. Berkowitz initially claimed that a demon communicating through his neighbor's dog had commanded him to kill, a story he later admitted was a hoax. He was found mentally competent to stand trial and pleaded guilty to multiple counts of murder and attempted murder. Berkowitz was sentenced to six consecutive life sentences and remains incarcerated.
