"IN THE WOODS DIES APRIL" - Possible Zodiac Card July 13, 1971

AK Wilks wrote:

I requested this "WOOD...APRIL" letter dated 7/13/31, the San Jose letter possibly dated 11/21/69, the Atlanta letter (since obtained by Morf) and the 7/19/78 typed letter.

The request was denied.

I appealed, and now the appeal has been denied.

It was "suggested" to me, however, that the main objection was that I also requested all documents containing any analysis, examination or information on the letters.

It was suggested to me to RESUBMIT my request, without asking for the supporting documents, and to ONLY request the actual Zodiac letters and envelopes.

I have done so. That is the main focus of what I wanted, the actual letters. I would like to have the FBI analysis as well, but I think it better to get the letters without the analysis quickly (30 to 60 days), then have to fight for it all in court, which could take a year or more. Do people agree?

So I am hopeful that this new request will be granted.

If not then I will file a lawsuit. It is absurd that these letters are not released. I will not give up.

Go for it! and thanks so very much for you hard work on thise letter issues

You are welcome!

As I noted, it was "suggested" to me that they may be willing to give me the actual letters if I drop my request for the analysis.

So that is what I did. I will keep plugging away, and I will give updates here.

If needed, I will file a lawsuit if they still refuse to give the letters.

I hope to hear something on my amended request in about 30 to 60 days.

These two coeds were initially thought to be Zodiac victims, but someone nicknamed the Woodcutter was convicted of Kanes murder. The location of Kane's body, the date and the abandoned car do make it interesting. She worked at the Meadow Wood resort in St. Helena and went to the same college as Cecilia Shephard. I just noticed that Seagull has already addressed Linda Kanes murder.

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Port - The MO is interesting, and the timing and the woods aspect fit this Zodiac letter. I understand some in the community thought this man innocent. He was convicted, but I wonder how strong the case against him really was?

My other candidates for the victim this card may be hinting at include Judith Hakari and Robin Graham.

AK, I was turned down for some FBI documents I requested as well. I too asked for the FBI's opinion & evaluation of the documents, and I too was turned down perhaps because of that. But they didnt tell me to send another request without including the opinion & evaluation. Maybe i should do a new request asking for less stuff?

What a fortune to have Ak and Morf that does all this work trying to get new letters.... Good work...

morf13 wrote:

AK, I was turned down for some FBI documents I requested as well. I too asked for the FBI's opinion & evaluation of the documents, and I too was turned down perhaps because of that. But they didnt tell me to send another request without including the opinion & evaluation. Maybe i should do a new request asking for less stuff?

Morf, what documents did you request?

It may not make any difference in your case. Here is what happened to me:

Like you, I requested the bleeding knife and state is in trouble letters, and like you, I got them in the mail.

Then I made this 4 letters request. It was rejected. I filed an appeal.

I got a letter rejecting the appeal. But the letter seemed to focus on the analysis and exam pages I requested, more so than the letters. The rejection letter said that I have a right to file a lawsuit, but may wish to try mediation, as sometimes a compromise can be reached. It gave me the info for the National Archive Information Mediation Resolution. I called and talked to them. They couldn't get real specific, but the "feel" I got was that sometimes they might be willing to release a document but not the analysis information. She gave the number of someone to call at the FBI. I called and talked to him. he said it could be the case that a local agency, like SFPD was objecting to the FBI releasing the letters. But he agreed that the analysis and exam info might be more sensitive to the FBI than the actual letters.

My conclusion was, to try to avoid the time and expense of a lawsuit, to take what may have been "hints" and file a request for just the actual letters with no supporting FBI documents.

So that is what I have done, with both the FBI and the National Archives Information Mediation Resolution.

If it is still rejected, my plan will be to file the lawsuit.

Thanks for the comments, TheForeigner and Azazel! I will keep plugging away on this stuff!

I have also just made a request to the SFPD for the "WOODS...APRIL" Zodiac letter.

California law is even broader than the federal law.

This is what I sent to the SFPD Media Unit and Community Relations Unit:

The following request is made under the California Constitution Sunshine Amendment Article I, Section 3(b) which states in part that "the writings of public officials and agencies shall be open to public scrutiny", and the The California Public Records Act (California Government Code §§ 6250 through 6276.48), which requires disclosure of government records.

I hereby request these documents which are in the records of the San Francisco Police Department in the case of the "Zodiac Killer".

Letter from the "Zodiac" (and envelope if it exists) sent to SF Chronicle, dated 7/13/71 (or perhaps 7/12/71). Described as:

Letters pasted on picture

Contains words:

"NEAR MONTICELLO SHOUGHT VICTIMS 21...IN THE WOODS DIES APRIL"

I am requesting a copy of this letter and its envelope, and any documents pertaining to analysis or examination of the letter.

Thank you.

I would give just about anything to know what the picture is on the card.

Soze

Thats why I am doing all this! So all of us can know.

I am pretty sure this is the ONLY CONFIRMED Zodiac letter that has never been released to the public. If it is like the Lass card, I think when we see all the words and all the pictures, we will likely be able to figure out WHO is the victim this card is hinting at. Thus, this could possibly be a major bit of new information in the case, something that might cause us to consider a possible Zodiac victim like Hakari or Graham as a probable victim like Lass, or might lead us to a victim that has never before been mentioned as a Zodiac victim. And who knows, there may be DNA, fingerprints or other evidence in that case.

So onward march...

Well I wish you luck.


Soze

I spent several hours looking thru various news articles, google searches, etc, looking for any missing or murdered women named APRIL from right around the time of this letter, and could find NONE! That was frustrating.

The problem is we only have a few of the words from this letter, and we don't have the picture.

With all the words and the picture, we might be able to quickly identify who the victim was, just as with the Pines card and Lass.

Morf, remember the Pines card was sent 6 months and 16 days AFTER the abduction of Donna Lass.

So with this card of July 13, 1971, that points to perhaps an abduction/murder around January of 1971 to March of 1971? And nothing says Zodiac would wait exactly 6 months again. My thought is he waited awhile to insure nothing came out to connect him to the crime - no witnesses, no sketches, no reports of fingerprints found or license plates spotted. He waited 6 months after he took Lass, and feeling he was in the clear, sent the Pines card.

So I personally have considered crimes from January 1970 to June 1971.

We don't know if the "April" he refers to is the victims name, or the month of her abduction or discovery. Hakari was abducted in March 1970, but her body was found in APRIL, IN THE WOODS. That seems a pretty strong tie-in...except the near year and a half time period, and what then is the meaning of "MONTICELLO"? The word "APRIL" also makes me think of spring, and the ROBINS return and songs are associated with spring. A clue to victim ROBIN Graham? Perhaps, but it is a bit of a stretch, a little bit of a leap in logic and word association.

What does MONTICELLO mean? Does it mean a victim was dumped at the Monticello near Lake Berryessa, as Sandy Betts noted?

Is there another Monticello in California, or on the west coast?

Could it be a clue to its Italian translation, "Little Mountain"? If so, where is the "Little Mountain"?

Or is it a clue to Thomas Jefferson, a city or county named Jefferson?

lovethecar wrote:

AK Wilks wrote:

Yes that is one possibility...a dead or missing woman named "April". Though that might be a little more direct clue than Zodiac would give? Perhaps a person who was killed or went missing in April? Or a person named "Woods" maybe. What does the "Monticello" mean?

Looking at the Graysmith list of possible Zodiac victims, and other California victims from that era, none I know of are named "April". But perhaps others can access different databanks or do different searches, for a California, Nevada or West Coast victim with a name or tie in to "April", "Woods", "Monticello", Little Mountain, Jefferson or Virginia. Or "Agatha".

Of course we don't know the rest of the letter. The most vital clue could be in the words or pictures we don't know.

A "Robin" might be found in the woods...

Thinking of Donna Lass, Lake Tahoe and that card, makes me think of "April Snow." I just Googled and it is a Korean movie. I was thinking of...April...April Fool's Day, April First, Spring, Spring Skiing. It might be interesting to see what the snow conditions were like in April in the Lake Tahoe area the year Donna disappeared.

Sorry for typos and confusion re. dates but no time to go back and re-check like some of the wizards here LOL!

I had just finished reading about the child, April Tinsley (murder victim in Fort Wayne, Indiana area) but didn't note dates of these so am probably mixing them up.

Lots of things are found in the woods....bears, trees (Z could hide behind as in Lake Berryessa), wolves.

Hi lovethecar, actually it is a good thing to go back and check the dates an things before adding another theory. So Please read the police reports and do your homework ...read most the threads. Have you read the Zodiac, and Zodiac unmasked.... This will give you a better idea of the case, an the different POI's.
Much Thanks!
Zam*

Some possible good news - it appears at this point in time the SFPD is NOT objecting to the release of this 7/13/71 Zodiac document through my Cal Public Records Act request.

They do report that Inspector Jones is actually trying to find it, and that once found, they will make sure there is not an outstanding reason why it has never been released.

In other words, it seems like current SFPD investigators have never even seen this document, and they are trying to locate it. They also do not know why it was never released. If there was a particular reason it was never released, they will have to determine if it is still valid. They as of now do not object to its release.

My sense is it just fell through the cracks.

So that is where it stands. I hope to hear something more, or perhaps actually get it, sometime in the next 2 to 4 weeks, but who can say for sure!

Sounds interesting, thanks

Great work AK Wilks !

Very nice, sir.

-Nin

Well, this is all very interesting, new to me.

A second Berryessa link would certainly influence my feelings on Z's whereabouts in general. Moreover, what clues can the use of the name Monticello provide? I can say that, as one who visits the Berryessa area a couple of time a year, the name Monticello, and the history behind it, is very familiar to me and others who grew up or frequent the area (I'm also very familiar with Monticello Rd. in San Rafael, a residential street of tract homes).

A Monticello reference by Z would also tie into a little pet theory I have, that Z may have been connected with some sort of water based employment, be it as a laborer, engineer, pipe worker, whatever. We know that Lake Herman provides water supply to Benecia, and there was a pipeline project going on at LHR at the time of those attacks. Blue Rock Springs is also a watershed I believe.

As has been posted here already, the former town of Monticello sits at the bottom of Lake Berryessa, eliminated to form the lake itself, also a freshwater supply for the North/East Bay regions. Could Z have been employed in some regard with the Monticello Damn construction, upgrade or maintenance, so the term was common to him?

I believe our intrepid Ms. Tahoe27 is ahead of the curve on this idea and has previously posted additional information on the water supply angle.

bentley wrote:

Well, this is all very interesting, new to me.

A second Berryessa link would certainly influence my feelings on Z's whereabouts in general. Moreover, what clues can the use of the name Monticello provide? I can say that, as one who visits the Berryessa area a couple of time a year, the name Monticello, and the history behind it, is very familiar to me and others who grew up or frequent the area (I'm also very familiar with Monticello Rd. in San Rafael, a residential street of tract homes).

A Monticello reference by Z would also tie into a little pet theory I have, that Z may have been connected with some sort of water based employment, be it as a laborer, engineer, pipe worker, whatever. We know that Lake Herman provides water supply to Benecia, and there was a pipeline project going on at LHR at the time of those attacks. Blue Rock Springs is also a watershed I believe.

As has been posted here already, the former town of Monticello sits at the bottom of Lake Berryessa, eliminated to form the lake itself, also a freshwater supply for the North/East Bay regions. Could Z have been employed in some regard with the Monticello Damn construction, upgrade or maintenance, so the term was common to him?

I believe our intrepid Ms. Tahoe27 is ahead of the curve on this idea and has previously posted additional information on the water supply angle.

Good thoughts.

Or could it be someone angry that they destroyed a town for a damn? Ever see "Chinatown"?

---------------------------------

All we know is the card from Zodiac says:

"NEAR MONTICELLO SHOUGHT VICTIMS 21...IN THE WOODS DIES APRIL"

What the F does this mean???

From wiki on Monticello, CA:

A four- and six-horse stagecoach ran from the 300 men[6] working at the remote quicksilver mining town of Knoxville south through rocky hills to Monticello, where the horses were changed, then west through Devil's Gate to Napa.

AK - From Monticello to Devil's Gate to Napa. Interesting. "Mt. Diablo" is "Devil's Mountain".

From wiki on Monticello, CA:

As early as 1906, proposals were put forward to dam Putah Creek to form a reservoir. In 1907, the Mulholland-Goethals-Davis plan proposed a dam at Devil's Gate, the western limit of the valley. Other plans were formulated, but no proposal was acted upon until 1947 when Solano County and the United States Bureau of Reclamation together formed the Solano Project, a combination of water plans including Monticello Dam, the Putah Diversion Dam, the Putah South Canal, the Terminal Dam and Reservoir, the Green Valley Conduit and various related water distribution systems.[2] Residents of Monticello protested, but California Governor Earl Warren and Solano County promoted the dam as necessary for the economic and agricultural growth of the surrounding area. Residents started leaving the valley to find homes elsewhere.[7]

Dorothea Lange and Pirkle Jones were commissioned to shoot a photographic documentary of the death of the town, and of the displacement of its residents, for Life, but the magazine did not run the piece. Lange's Aperture magazine, however, devoted one whole issue to the photojournalists' work.[7]

Construction of the dam began in 1953. Vegetation in the valley was chopped down, fences torn down and buildings demolished down to their foundations. The town cemetery was moved to Spanish Flat, a bluff overlooking the valley. The Putah Creek Bridge, too well made to easily demolish, was left in place to be covered by the rising waters.[7] Monticello Dam was completed in 1957, and Lake Berryessa was formed.[2]

AK - Interesting. Like a scene out of the movie Chinatown. The developers wanted a dam, so a lot of the town got destroyed!

Interesting for sure! Hope to hear more! AK, I sent your request off to Kevin Fagan and a couple other contacts. Keep you fingers crossed.

Zincerely, Zam*

This is most interesting! I am confused. Is this In The Woods Dies April card a suspected Zodiac communication or a confirmed one? I know that it is listed as a suspected z "letter" on that SFPD DNA sheet, but has it since been authenticated?

As for Lake Berryessa, and the idea of possible water-based employment, there was that pump house at Lake Berryessa. Here are some pictures of a Lake B Map from the time period with the location of the Pump House:





Blown up version of attack site. Pump House is to the right of the white box at mid-lower left that reads Central Valley Builders SupplyL

Oops, I still can't post images. Tahoe, could you post these correctly so the actual pictures show up? Thanks!