Inside the Mind of BTK

The Capture and Arrest of BTK 163
The clock was ticking for Dennis Rader.
Even if I hadn’t known the tragic, terrible outcome of his story, I
had gained enough of an understanding about serial killers over the
years to know that he had reached an age when there was no turning
back. Even though he had yet to take a life, it was only a matter of
time. Even though he told himself he was going to put his dark urges
behind him, those urges were just too powerful. And growing stronger
every day.
Reading this portion of Rader’s journal entries was like watching
an impending train wreck.
The year was 1970. Shortly after Rader returned to Wichita following
his four-year hitch in the Air Force, his mother announced,
“You need to come to church with me. I met a nice girl there who I
think you’d like.”
She was right. Her name was Paula Dietz, and she’d graduated
from Wichita Heights High School in 1966, the same year Rader went
into the service. Paula had grown up in a quiet little suburb of Wichita
known as Park City. Physically, she was a wet dream come true for
Rader—tall and blonde, with brown eyes. She was a looker, he told
one of my sources, but in a proper and sweet way. The two began dating
shortly after meeting, and by May 1971 they were married. Before
long, they’d purchased a home in Park City that was practically next
door to the house where Paula’s parents lived.
Rader wasn’t in love, of course. Serial killers lack that ability. But
they can fake it with the proficiency of a veteran actor. And Rader
knew even then that having a wife was the honorable, normal thing
to do. Having a wife, he no doubt sensed, would provide the perfect
cover, allowing him to remain hidden and inconspicuous.
By all accounts, Paula is a quiet, simple, hard-working woman.
Her faith and her family are her passion. Even today, no one in the
area will say a single disparaging word about her. In fact, people who
know her basically refuse to say anything at all about her to strangers.
Shielding her from the glare of inquisitive outsiders has become something
of a community project.
Yet in this entire horribly depressing saga involving her husband,
she has emerged as a truly fascinating character. One can’t help but
wonder, How was it that she could not know? Of course, only Paula
holds the answer to that question. What is known is that on the surface
Dennis and Paula Rader were the picture of marital bliss. Friends