Doodler

Gerald Earl Cavanaugh, a Canadian-American immigrant, is believed to be the Doodler's first victim.[3] He was 49 at the time of his slaying, which had occurred by stabbing. Cavanaugh's fully clothed body was located on January 24, 1974, lying face-up on Ocean Beach in San Francisco, California, in the early hours of the morning.[10] He had died hours before.[11] He was determined to have been conscious at the time he was killed and had attempted to resist his killer because he had self-defense wounds.[9] He initially remained unidentified, being temporarily known as "John Doe #7" by the medical examiner. He was a single man and few details are available about his personal life.[12]

Joseph Stevens, best known by the nickname "Jae," was discovered on June 25, 1974, by a woman walking along Spreckels Lake in San Francisco.[13] Stevens was 27 and had died shortly before his body was found; he had been witnessed at a club the previous day. He was employed as a "female impersonator" and comedian. Officers suspected that Stevens was alive at the time he had been at Spreckels Lake, possibly transporting himself to the area with his killer.[9]

Klaus Christmann, a German-American immigrant, was discovered by a woman walking her dog on July 7, 1974.[14] His death had been somewhat more violent than the previous murders because he had considerably more stab wounds than Stevens and had been slashed in the throat several times.[10] The body was fully clothed.[9] Christmann, unlike the previous victims, was married and had children. The fact that he had a "make-up tube" on his person when he died suggested to police he may have been a closeted gay man.[9]

He remained unidentified briefly while police were investigating the cases, which they had believed were related after the third murder. He was buried in his native country.[9]

Frederick Elmer Capin, aged 32, was discovered on May 12, 1975, in San Francisco.[15] He had been stabbed like the other victims, dying from strikes to his aorta. It is believed his body had been moved approximately 20 feet as disturbances in the nearby sand indicated. Capin was identified through fingerprints when these were matched to those taken "by the state" due to his occupation as a nurse.[16] He also had served in the United States Navy, earning medals while serving in the Vietnam War.[9]

Harald Gullberg, aged 66, was a Swedish-American immigrant who was discovered on June 4, 1975 in a decomposed state about two weeks after his death in Lincoln Park.[12] He remains slightly inconsistent with the other homicides because he was far older than the others, his underwear had been taken by his killer and his pants were unzipped. Gullberg is believed to be the final victim of the Doodler.[3] While he remained unidentified, he was known as "John Doe #81."[9]

As of May 2018, the case is open and ongoing in the San Francisco Police Department.[21] Recent successes using DNA technology developed in the decades since the crimes have led police to re-examine evidence in the case.[22][23]

In February 2019, police offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the killer and released a revised sketch showing what he could look like four decades later.[24] They later announced they would consider forensic genetic genealogy, which identified a suspect in the Golden State Killer murders.[8]