Why Did Francis Hernandez Kill His Friends?

How many people can say that one of their high school friends became a serial killer? Those who attended Millikan High School in Long Beach, California in the late seventies and early eighties can. I am one of those people.

Around the time I graduated from high school in 1977, my friend, Lori, introduced me to a 15 year old punk named Francis Gerard Hernandez. We called him "Fran." He lived on Petaluma Street behind the Four Square Church.

I liked Fran. I thought he was a cool guy who had a good sense of humor. I'm not sure if Fran was attending school when I met him. If he didn't, it wouldn't have bothered me. I knew a few other teenage boys who did not go to school. What I remember most about Fran was his long, dark hair.

Lori and I went partying with Fran several times. We went to El Dorado Park in the new car that Lori's parents bought for her as a graduation gift. I remember driving through the park, listening to the radio, talking and laughing with Fran and Lori. Basically, we did what teenagers normally do.

When Lori and I were with Fran, he did not make any sexual advances toward either of us. I saw nothing that indicated that Fran might have a tendency to be violent. He certainly did not behave as if he hated women. Nor did I see anything that would cause me to feel fearful or distrustful of him. To me, Fran was just another kid who hung out at the park.

But I would like to be honest. Fran did a lot of drugs. Not just alcohol and marijuana. I heard he did hard drugs, such as Angel Dust and LSD. My definition of a "cool guy" must have been slightly skewed.

Several years later, my parents and I moved to California's High Desert. In January 1981, I was watching the news when something a newscaster said grabbed my attention. A young woman named Edna Bristol had been raped, tortured and strangled. Then her body was dumped at John Marshall Junior High, a school I attended when I was a girl.

Five days later, the body of a 16 year old girl named Kathy Ryan was dumped at Millikan High School. Millikan was the high school I attended. Like Edna, Kathy had been raped, brutalized and strangled. I did not know either of the victims. What was done to those unfortunate girls -- both before and after their deaths -- was unspeakable.

Shortly thereafter, Lori telephoned me. She told me that Fran had been arrested for the murders. I didn't know who she meant when she said Fran. At that time, I was acquainted with a woman named Fran in the desert. Lori reminded me of El Dorado Park. Memories of the young, dark-haired punk flooded my mind.

At first, I believed that Fran snapped after smoking Angel Dust or dropping acid. Angel Dust was prevalent in southern California in the late seventies. I was acquainted with some young men who went to a party and smoked what they thought was marijuana. The joint they smoked was laced with Angel Dust. They freaked out and ended up in a hospital's emergency room. I also read information put out by law enforcement about Angel Dust. At one time the drug was an animal tranquilizer, but vets stopped using it because it was too unpredictable. A person could use Angel Dust regularly for an extended period of time without having any problems. Suddenly and without warning, that person could have a bad reaction to the drug. For those reasons, I did not use Angel Dust.

I'm sure that most of you have heard about Art Linkletter's daughter and LSD. Do you wonder why I thought hard drugs may have contributed to the murders?

My theory that Francis killed Edna and Kathy while on a bad acid trip soon fell apart. He may have been higher than a kite when he killed Edna, but he enjoyed raping, torturing and killing her so much that he decided to make Kathy his second victim five days later. That was too logical and well-planned for a person having a bad reaction to drugs.

Years later, when appealing his death sentence, Fran's attorney argued that the court did not consider that he was an alcoholic and under the alcohol and marijuana when he committed the murders. (There was no mention of history of using hard drugs.) I've known many alcoholics. To my knowledge, none of the other alcoholics I've known has murdered anyone. Obviously, Francis Hernandez's case involves more than alcoholism or drug addiction.

I read on the internet that Fran's mother had a nervous breakdown and was prone to bizarre behavior. Perhaps he directed the rage and hatred he felt toward his mother at Edna and Kathy. Schizophrenia tends to run in families. Those who knew him have suggested that he was always odd. Fran was obviously out of his mind when he set out on his killing spree.

I don't know if it is true or not, but I remember reading in the newspaper that Fran's stepfather abused him. Violence begets violence. If he was abused as a child, would that have caused him to experience sadistic sexual fantasies?

Are some people just born evil?

I have often wondered why Fran killed Edna and Kathy, but he did not kill Lori or me. Some of my female friends also hung out with Fran. Why didn't he rape or kill them? I already know the answer. Fran was only 15 years old when I met him. He may have been already experiencing dark, violent sexual fantasies. But he had not yet acquired the old, dark green van that he turned into a portable torture chamber by gerry-rigging it so that the only way a person could get out was via the driver's door.

Some serial killers murder strangers. When apprehended by law enforcement, they cannot provide information that would identify their victims. Others kill prostitutes, topless dancers, the homeless or other people they think will not be missed.

Francis Hernandez did not target strangers. He knew both of his victims. He was able to catch Edna and Kathy off guard because they considered him to be a friend. He would have killed more friends too because he said at court that he was "just getting started" when he was arrested.

I was a young and naive woman in 1981. While I believed that it was morally wrong to murder anyone, I could not imagine why anyone would want to kill his friends. You were supposed to love your friends and be good to them. You weren't supposed to do anything that might harm your friends. I lost part of my innocence when I learned of Fran's crimes. By murdering Edna and Kathy, Fran ultimately betrayed all of his friends.