1. By Lauren Johnston Also known as “Pogo the Clown” or “The Killer Clown”

2.  Born on March 17 1942, in Chicago, Illinois  Was abused as a child  Conflicted over his sexuality  His drunken father would beat him & his siblings with a razor strap if he thought they misbehaved  Mother was also abused by their father  Developed a heart condition at a young age  His heart condition made him unable to play with other kids; suffered with alienation at school  His father looked at Gacy’s condition as another fail  Later in life, realized he was attracted to men & experienced a lot of self conflict within the discovery  Gacy worked as a fast-food restaurant manager during the 1960s and became a self-made building contractor in the 1970s.  Well-liked in his community and a clown performer at children's parties  Was married and divorced twice and had biological children and stepchildren.

3. CRIMEDATEVICTIM(S)PUNISHMENT Sexual assault1968Two teenage boys10 year prison term; was released in 1970 on parole Sexual assault1971Another teenage boy Charge dropped First known killing1972Timothy McCoyNot arrested at the time of the murder Murder197815 year-old Robert Piest Searched Gacy’s house under suspicion Serial killingsDiscovered on December 21, 1978 33 boys and young men Death penalty *Sexual assault- any involuntary sexual act where a person is forced to engage against their will *Serial killings- more than 3 murders over a period that spans more than one month

4. These were a few things found in his house along with porn magazines and murder weapons he used to kill his victims Authorities dug up & discovered 27 total bodies buried the crawl space of Gacy’s home as well as underneath his garage **The other victims are thought to have been dumped in the Des Plaines River

5.  Pronounced guilty in 1980  Multiple death penalties and life sentences  On death row for 14 years at Statesville Correctional Center until he was executed by lethal injection on May 10, 1994 “I should have never been convinced of anything more serious than running a cemetery without a license.” “They were just a bunch of worthless little queers and punks.”

6. Many books have been written about Gacy, such as: -John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster -The Killer Clown -The Last Victim One of the films made about Gacy was a biography called “John Wayne Gacy: A Monster in Disguise” A song was written about Gacy by Sufjan Stevens called John Wayne Gacy, Jr. and the lyrics tell about his life: He dressed up like a clown for them With his face paint white and red And on his best behavior In a dark room on the bed he kissed them all He'd kill ten thousand people With a sleight of his hand

7. I think that the Differential-Association Theory fits John Wayne Gacy pretty well because the theory is based upon how someone’s behavior is strongly determined by the people they are around or the company they keep. Gacy had a tough childhood; his father abused him and his family often and he had to learn to deal with that. In a way, I think he was brought up in a bad family and the influence his father had on his life sort of shaped how he turned out to be as an adult. I also think the Labeling Theory fits Gacy well because of his confused sexuality as a child. He viewed himself poorly and so I think he killed boys that might have reminded him of himself as child. He also shows signs of Denial of Responsibility and Denial of Victim; he seeks vengeance on these boys for no reason, but to him it makes perfect sense. Supporting my opinion about the Differential-Association Theory and also the Denial of Responsibility, he makes a statement that says, “ I see myself more as a victim rather than a perpetrator... I was cheated out of my childhood.”