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Birth
He is born on March 17, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois. -
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The Life of John Wayne Gacy
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His Childhood/Adolescence
Gacy and his siblings grew up with an abusive alcoholic father. He physically assaulted Gacy's mother and would also beat the children with a razor strap if they misbehaved. Gacy later realized he was attracted to men and struggled with it for the rest of his life. -
Waterloo, Iowa
Gacy is named "outstanding vice-president" of the Waterloo, Iowa KFC franchise. However, unknown to many, there is a another side of life in Waterloo involving prostitution, pornography, and drugs. Gacy is cheating on his wife regularly. Gacy also opens a "club" in his basement for the young boys of Waterloo, where he allows them to drink alcohol and makes sexual advances towards them. -
First Charge
Two Waterloo boys accuse him of sexual assault. -
First Conviction
Gacy hires another young Waterloo boy to beat up one of the accusers. The boy is caught and confesses to everything. Gacy is then arrested and convicted of sodomy. He is sentenced to 10 years in the Iowa State Penitentiary. -
Divorce
His [first] wife files for divorce immediately following his imprisonment, and it becomes finalized in 1969. -
Parole
After serving 18 months, Gacy is paroled and moves back in with his mother in Illinois. -
House
With his mother's assistance, he buys a house* in an unincorporated area of Norwood Park Township, Cook County. The house has a 4 ft. deep crawl space under the floor. *8213 West Summerdale Avenue -
Second Charge
A teenage boy claims that Gacy had picked him up and tried to force him into sex. However, charges on sexual assault are dropped when the boy doesn't appear in court. Gacy is then charged with disorderly conduct. -
Parole Lease
Gacy is discharged from parole. -
Third Charge
Gacy is arrested again and charged with sexual assault, but this time from a young man. A young man claims Gacy flashed a sheriff's badge and lured him into a car where he forced him into sex. Charges are again dropped. -
Robert Piest
Piest disappears from Des Plaines pharmacy where he worked after school. He happens to tell a coworker right before he leaves that he is going to a house down the street to talk to "some contractor" for a job. Interestingly enough, Gacy was there hours earlier discussing a remodeling job with the owner of the pharmacy. -
House Search
On December 12, 1978, the Des Plaines Police call Gacy. Unlike the Iowa Police, they check his record and discover that he did time for sodomy. The police get a warrant and search the house the next day. They find a 1975 high school ring, driver's licenses, handcuffs, a 2x4 ft. wooden plank with holes drilled in at the ends, a syringe, clothing too small for Gacy, and a receipt from the Des Plaines pharmacy. -
Confession
One of Gacy's employees tells the police that Gacy has confessed to more than 30 murders. Gacy is arrested for marijuana, and the police retrieve a second warrant to search the house again. Underneath the crawlspace, they find human bones. During questioning, Gacy confesses to the police that most of the bodies were buried under the crawlspace, but the last five bodies were thrown off the I-55 bridge and into the Des Plaines River. -
Discovery of Robert Piest's Body
The body of Robert Piest is discovered on the banks of the Des Plaines River -
Trial
Gacy's trial begins in Chicago, Illinois. He pleads not guilty, but his lawyer, Sam Amirante, says he may have had temporary moments of insanity, but he regained enough sanity before and after to lure the young men and boys and dispose of the bodies. -
Verdict of Trial
Gacy is found guilty and convicted of 33 murders. He is sentenced to death for 12 of them and natural life in prison for the rest. -
Execution
Gacy is executed at the Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill, Illinois via lethal injection. According to correctional officers and doctors, he did not express any sort of remorse. His last words, said to a correctional officer while walking to his execution site, were "Kiss my ass." -
Extra Facts
Although Gacy was convicted of 33 murders, there is the possibility that there are other young men and boys that no one ever found out about. After his execution, his brain was removed and at his request, studied. His brain now resides in the basement of Dr. Helen Morrison.
