The Serial Killer Who Thought Murder Prevented Earthquakes: The Twisted Mind of Herbert Mullin
April 18th is a date marked by devastation in California’s history.
On April 18, 1906, a catastrophic earthquake struck San Francisco, claiming thousands of lives and leaving the city in ruins.
And on April 18, 1947, Herbert Mullin was born—a man who would go on to believe that only bloodshed could prevent another disaster of that scale.
Obsessed with his birthdate and consumed by schizophrenic delusions, Mullin became convinced that he had been chosen to make human sacrifices to stave off a cataclysmic earthquake. Between 1972 and 1973, he slaughtered 13 victims in a deranged attempt to “save” California. His rampage ended on February 13, 1973, when police finally caught up with him.
This is the terrifying true story of one of California’s most bizarre and chilling serial killers.
A Promising Young Man with a Dark Future
Unlike many serial killers, Herbert Mullin’s early years showed no sign of impending violence. In high school, he was popular, voted “Most Likely to Succeed,” and showed promise.
But beneath the surface, something sinister was brewing.
According to forensic psychologist Louis Schlesinger, Mullin suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, a disorder that lay dormant until his early twenties. Then, suddenly and violently, it took control of his mind. At age 22, he checked himself into Mendocino State Hospital, the first of many psychiatric institutions he would enter and leave over the next few years.
By 1972, the voices in his head had reached a fever pitch, commanding him to kill—or risk an earthquake that would wipe out California.
A Trail of Blood Across California
In 1972, at age 25, Mullin returned home to Santa Cruz to live with his parents. He was unemployed, unstable, and teetering on the edge of madness.
Then, the killing began.
On October 13, 1972, he bludgeoned 55-year-old Lawrence White to death with a baseball bat. Eleven days later, he picked up a hitchhiker, 24-year-old Mary Guilfoyle, and stabbed her repeatedly before disemboweling her, searching for evidence that her blood was “polluted.”
In a gruesome turn, Mullin—raised Catholic—entered St. Mary’s Church in Los Gatos on November 2, seeking confession. But instead of repenting, he stabbed and stomped Father Henri Tomei to death inside the confessional booth.
His murders were erratic, his methods unpredictable. He used a bat, a knife, and a gun, killing seemingly at random: a young couple, a retired boxer, an entire family. There was no clear pattern—except his belief that each victim was a necessary sacrifice to prevent an earthquake.
On February 13, 1973, Mullin’s killing spree reached its climax. That morning, he shot and killed 72-year-old Fred Perez in broad daylight as Perez tended to his yard. A witness noted Mullin’s license plate and called the police. Within minutes, the deranged killer was in custody.
Trial, Conviction, and a Twisted Legacy
At trial, Mullin’s defense argued that he was not guilty by reason of insanity, citing his LSD use and schizophrenia. However, the jury found him guilty of 10 murders—two counts of first-degree murder and eight counts of second-degree murder. He was separately convicted for Father Tomei’s killing.
Mullin was sentenced to multiple life terms in prison, where he remained until his death on August 18, 2022, at the age of 75.
When One Serial Killer Isn’t Enough: The Santa Cruz Nightmare
As if Mullin’s reign of terror wasn’t horrifying enough, Santa Cruz was simultaneously being stalked by another serial killer: the 6-foot-9 necrophiliac known as the “Co-Ed Killer,” Edmund Kemper.
Between 1972 and 1973, both men were murdering within the same small city, causing widespread panic and confusion. Authorities, at first, struggled to distinguish between their crimes. Santa Cruz District Attorney Peter Chang even dubbed the city “Murdersville, U.S.A.”
When both killers were finally behind bars, they briefly shared a jail. Kemper, known for his manipulative charm and towering intellect, initially saw Mullin as an annoyance. He even considered killing him—just to make the world a little quieter. Instead, he resorted to psychological games, rewarding Mullin with peanuts when he pleased him and throwing water on him when he didn’t.
Eventually, the two men were transferred to separate prisons, where they never spoke again. While Kemper remains incarcerated, Mullin’s twisted legacy ended with his 2022 death.
A Killer Who Thought He Was a Savior
Herbert Mullin wasn’t just a serial killer—he was a man at war with his own mind, driven by voices that convinced him he was saving lives, even as he took them.
His story serves as a chilling reminder of the devastating consequences of untreated mental illness, and the horrifying reality that sometimes, the most dangerous people aren’t lurking in the shadows—they’re walking among us, convinced they are doing the right thing.
And in Mullin’s case, he thought he was saving the world—one murder at a time.
