Dennis Rader

Rader used a Trappers Scout outing as cover for the murder. On January 18, 1991, the Trappers were having their annual "dead of winter" outing at Harvey County Park West. Rader went to the park and set up camp before fabricating a story and leaving. Rader then drove to his parents' house and got undressed out of the trapping scout clothes.<ref name="CNNAugust2023" /> Rader then drove to Park City Baptist Church, to which he had a key because of his Boys Scouts duties. Rader left the church, walking through wheat fields and cutting through a cemetery to get to Davis's home. The severe cold drove Rader to break-in by smashing the window rather than trying to break in more quietly.<ref name="31 Years" />

Rader used a Trappers Scout outing as cover for the murder. On January 18, 1991, the Trappers were having their annual "dead of winter" outing at Harvey County Park West. Rader went to the park and set up camp before fabricating a story and leaving. Rader then drove to his parents' house and got undressed out of the trapping scout clothes.<ref name="CNNAugust2023" /> Rader then drove to Park City Baptist Church, to which he had a key because of his Boys Scouts duties. Rader left the church, walking through wheat fields and cutting through a cemetery to get to Davis's home. The severe cold drove Rader to break-in by smashing the window rather than trying to break in more quietly.<ref name="31 Years" />

The time was 10:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. when Rader arrived at the Davis home, where he could see Davis reading through the window blinds. Rader waited until the lights had been out for a few minutes, then threw a cinder block through the sliding glass door. Davis ran out of her bedroom yelling. Rader used his wanted man ruse on her. He said he would tie her up and leave her, but take her car and some food after taking some time to warm up. Davis refused and told him to leave, at which point Rader informed her that he had a gun, a club, and a knife on his person. Davis then became cooperative.<ref name="Siegel2012" /> Rader obtained the keys to her car and rattled around in the kitchen pretending to look for food. While being tied with the pantyhose, Rader believed that Davis realized that he was going to kill her. Davis begged for her life, prompting Rader to strangle her with the panty hose. Rader initially was going to stay and take photos with the body, but Davis had lied to him and said that somebody was coming soon, forcing him to leave ahead of time.<ref name="Singular2007" />

The time was 10:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. when Rader arrived at the Davis home, where he could see Davis reading through the window blinds. Rader waited until the lights had been out for a few minutes, then threw a cinder block through the sliding glass door. Davis ran out of her bedroom yelling. Rader used his wanted man ruse on her. He said he would tie her up and leave her, but take her car and some food after taking some time to warm up. Davis refused and told him to leave, at which point Rader informed her that he had a gun, a club, and a knife on his person. Davis then became cooperative.<ref name="Siegel2012" /> Rader obtained the keys to her car and rattled around in the kitchen pretending to look for food. Rader believed that while he was tying her up with a pair of her pantyhose that Davis realized that he was going to kill her. She begged for her life, prompting Rader to strangle her with the pantyhose. Rader initially was going to stay and take photos with the body, but Davis had lied to him and said that somebody was coming soon, forcing him to leave sooner than he had planned.<ref name="Singular2007" />

Rader used a bedspread to drag Davis's body to her car and put her in the trunk. Rader drove her car to the [[Kansas Department of Transportation]] (KDOT) lake, where he dumped her body in the bushes. Rader drove back to Davis's home and threw her keys on the roof, having read that the police had looked for the Otero's keys on the roof of their home. Rader walked back to the Baptist Church to pick up his car. Rader drove back to the KDOT, collected the body, and drove out to a rural area, where he dumped the body underneath a bridge. Rader did not take any pictures the night of the murder because he needed to get back to camp before his absence was noticed.<ref name="Paulson2018">{{Cite web |last=Paulson |first=Rick Jr |date=February 4, 2018 |title=BTK Confession Court Transcript |url=https://serialkillersinfo.com/documents/btk-confession-court-transcript/ |access-date=March 15, 2025 |website=Serial Killers Info |language=en-US}}</ref>

Rader used a bedspread to drag Davis's body to her car and put her in the trunk. Rader drove her car to the [[Kansas Department of Transportation]] (KDOT) lake, where he dumped her body in the bushes. Rader drove back to Davis's home and threw her keys on the roof, having read that the police had looked for the Otero's keys on the roof of their home. Rader walked back to the Baptist Church to pick up his car. Rader drove back to the KDOT, collected the body, and drove out to a rural area, where he dumped the body underneath a bridge. Rader did not take any pictures the night of the murder because he needed to get back to camp before his absence was noticed.<ref name="Paulson2018">{{Cite web |last=Paulson |first=Rick Jr |date=February 4, 2018 |title=BTK Confession Court Transcript |url=https://serialkillersinfo.com/documents/btk-confession-court-transcript/ |access-date=March 15, 2025 |website=Serial Killers Info |language=en-US}}</ref>