When Your Dad is a Serial Killer

There has been extensive research done concerning what goes on inside the mind of a serial killer—what leads them to kill, how they choose their victims, and how they feel about the crimes they have committed. But, I'm also fascinated to know what thoughts go through the mind of a child born to a serial killer . How must it feel to walk through life knowing that your mom or dad is responsible for the murders of several or more people? Is there a concern that whatever caused this violence is somehow stored in your DNA as well?

I was flipping channels recently and came upon an interview with Melissa Moore . She is the daughter of Keith Jesperson , who became better known as "The Happy Face Killer." Jesperson was responsible for the deaths of eight women , with a killing spree that started in 1990. He earned his nickname when he sent letters to a newspaper in Oregon detailing his crimes and signing a happy face instead of his name. He eventually turned himself in after a receipt with his signature was found on the body of one of his victims.

Moore was only fifteen years old when her father was arrested, and she immediately started to keep a journal of her thoughts and fears. Those writings have now been compiled into a published book entitled Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter . Moore recalls some disturbing incidents as a young child that offered clues into her father's mind and shares some frightening words he confided to her during a visit following her parents' divorce. She now speaks at conferences and reaches out to other men and women who share the distinction of the being the offspring of a killer.

Melissa Moore is a happily married mother, and it seems like she has found some peace in overcoming what it understandably a difficult family legacy to carry.