00:00:07
A million years isn't enough because you won't suffer for that long. You will spend the rest of your forever in prison
00:00:15
and it doesn't feel satisfying. Nothing will ever make this right. This kind of grief stays. It was an incredibly
00:00:23
emotional day in court for the families of the victims of the Long Island serial
00:00:27
killer Rex Huerman, who had pleaded guilty to the murders of seven women spanning from 1993 to 2011.
00:00:38
>> My mother was not a headline, a statistic, or a label. You thought you took her voice, but you didn't know that
00:00:44
she had people who loved her. You hunted her, and I hunted you. His actions changed the course of my life forever.
00:00:52
They devastated my family, but they also shattered the lives of his own family who now must live with the knowledge
00:00:58
that they shared a home with a serial killer. >> We have reached the final chapter of
00:01:04
this high-profile case that has cast a shadow over the shores of Gilgo Beach on Long Island and over so many families
00:01:12
for years. I'm 48 hours correspondent Aaron Morardi and this is Case by Case. On Wednesday, June 17th, 2026, Huerman
00:01:24
was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for three counts of firstdegree murder and then 25
00:01:33
years to life for each of the four counts of secondderee murder. all to run consecutively for the murders of Melissa
00:01:41
Barllamy, Megan Waterman, Amber Costello, Moren Brainer, Barnes, Jessica Taylor, Sandra
00:01:50
Costilla, and Valerie Mack. Rex Hume spoke in court didn't say a lot, and he showed very little emotion.
00:01:59
>> There are no words I can say. I am responsible for what was said in this room today.
00:02:07
The the words I would say have no meaning and I'm going to leave it there at this time.
00:02:16
>> Huan has also admitted to killing an eighth woman, Karen Vata. However, as part of the plea deal, he was not
00:02:22
actually charged with Vata's murder. Rex Herman, though, will never hurt another
00:02:28
woman. I've been reporting on this case since 2011. Over the years, we've interviewed the family members and
00:02:36
friends of the murder victims. I've come to know many of them personally, and from the beginning, our goal was to make
00:02:42
sure these women weren't seen simply as escorts, as they were often portrayed in
00:02:48
the media, but as mothers, sisters, daughters, and friends. People whose lives mattered and whose loved ones
00:02:57
never stopped searching for answers. Joining me today to discuss a dramatic sentencing is CBS News legal analyst and
00:03:05
criminal defense attorney Caroline Pissy, who has been following this case since Human was arrested in 2023. Thanks
00:03:14
for joining us, Caroline. >> Thanks for having me, Aaron. I've been watching your coverage of this case for
00:03:20
many years now, and it's a real honor to be here today. I mean, you could feel that emotion in the courtroom. I found
00:03:27
it so interesting. I mean, you could literally hear the judge's voice quivering as he delivered this colloquy
00:03:34
which was escalating um to the end. He was yelling. He even wiped away tears at one point. I mean, I I've never seen a
00:03:42
judge really get so worked up at sentencing. >> I mean, in fact, the only person who
00:03:47
didn't show emotion was the person who should have, the one who brought everybody together, Rex Huerman. Let's
00:03:54
start about Let's just start where this whole case started. And it's interesting. It began as a search for a
00:04:01
missing woman, 23-year-old Shannon Gilbert. I want to be clear, Shannon was not one of the murder victims. Shannon
00:04:09
had been working as an escort and had been at a client's house on Long Island when she called police in a panic and
00:04:16
then she suddenly vanished. >> State police. >> Yeah, there's somebody after me. Police
00:04:22
did an exhaustive search for Shannon. And while searching in an area near Gilgo Beach, police found human remains
00:04:30
of four other women who became known as the Gilgo 4. Marine Brainer Barnes, Amber Costello, Megan Waterman, and
00:04:39
Melissa Bartholomew. Shannon's remains were eventually found about a year and a half after her disappearance. The police
00:04:47
believe her death was not a murder and not connected to the other victims, that Shannon had instead died from an
00:04:54
accidental drowning. But given that police described the Gilgo 4 as all petite in their 20s and working as
00:05:02
online escorts, investigators believed that they were dealing with the serial killer, who soon became known as the
00:05:08
Long Island serial killer. They got a description of him and the car he drove from a roommate of Amber Castello. The
00:05:16
roommate had told police about the client she'd left with the night she disappeared, describing him as looking
00:05:22
like a quote ogre and having a first generation Chevrolet avalanche. You know, it's funny. I I met David Sher and
00:05:30
he did use that term ogre. Investigators didn't have much else to go on, though.
00:05:35
I mean, that could fit any large man and the investigation stalled for over 10 years. That lack of movement was so
00:05:44
tough on the families of the four women. I talked to Missy K, Moren Brainer Barn's sister, frequently over the
00:05:51
years. She tried so hard to keep a spotlight on the case. But it finally took a new Suffach County police
00:05:59
commissioner by the name of Rodney Harrison, who happened to be a retired highranking New York City police
00:06:05
detective, to make real progress. He set up a task force in 2022 devoted to cracking the case and it worked.
00:06:14
>> Yeah. And kudos to them and that task force. It was so gut-wrenching for those
00:06:19
families when this case had turned cold for so many years. But they turned it around and really once that task force
00:06:25
was formed, they they figured it out pretty quickly. Um, it turns out that in the original case files, there were a
00:06:31
number of critical clues that this new task force was finally able to connect like the pieces of a puzzle. It it was
00:06:38
all really there. Um, like that information we just talked about from the roommate of Amber Castello who told
00:06:43
police about this big ogrelike man who drove a Chevy Avalanche. Um, police back then also knew that a client used a
00:06:51
burner phone to contact Amber Castello on the night she disappeared. also that Meoren, Melissa, and Megan had also been
00:06:59
in contact with burner numbers right before they disappeared. So in 2012, with the help of the FBI, the task force
00:07:07
determined that most of those calls were connected to cell towers inside a small
00:07:11
area of Masipua Park, Long Island. They called it the box. We had known that for
00:07:16
a long time, that it was they believed it was someone who lived on Long Island. They didn't know Massipa Park right
00:07:23
away. um and someone who worked downtown. We always knew that. Um so the task force knew now that they were
00:07:30
looking for a large built man who also lived in that small area, the box, and owned a Chevy Avalanche. And he owned it
00:07:39
at the time of the disappearances. In March 2022, they had what we call that aha moment. A female state trooper
00:07:49
linked a man by the name of Rex Huerman who lived in Masipa Park to a firstg generation Chevrolet avalanche pickup
00:07:58
truck that was registered to him at the time of the murders. So after years and we are talking years of uncertainty
00:08:06
suddenly 6 weeks sounds so fast to identify a suspect. I have to be honest. I remember hearing the news.
00:08:16
Rex Huerman, I mean, that name wasn't even on the radar. Same. I mean, I I was shocked. I was really initially just
00:08:24
stunned by the profile of this guy. I mean, essentially, he's the monster living among us, right? Um, he went
00:08:31
undetected for years. They finally were able to put all of those pieces together. Investigators say Huerman's
00:08:38
personal cell phone records show that his phone was in the same area as those burner phones when they were used to
00:08:45
contact victims. They also say that when the burner phones contacted victims, they were often in Masipiqua Park where
00:08:52
Humeman lived or Midtown Manhattan where his architectural firm was located. But
00:08:57
there was also DNA evidence. Uh, police tailed Hurman and recovered his DNA from
00:09:02
a discarded pizza crust in Midtown Manhattan, which was consistent with the DNA profile found on a male hair
00:09:09
discovered with Megan Waterman's body. And from a legal perspective, when you think about investigative techniques,
00:09:16
you know, a discarded pizza crust is fair game for law enforcement to use to test for DNA. Remember, Herman had never
00:09:23
been arrested before. So, obviously, none of his forensic information was in any database like Kotus, which is the
00:09:30
centralized system that combines local, state, and national crime labs information. So, they had to get a new
00:09:35
sample for this guy. And that's what made it so difficult to track him down for so long was usually a killer is
00:09:42
connected to a victim and he was picking strangers. So, this DNA became so crucial. Uh Humeman was arrested in 2023
00:09:52
and he was charged with multiple counts of murder in the deaths of Melissa Bartholomew, Megan Waterman, and Amber
00:09:59
Costello. He pleaded not guilty. And then in 2024, he was also charged with more murders. Moren Brainer Barnes,
00:10:07
Sandra Costilla, Jessica Taylor, and Valerie Mack. And again, also pleaded not guilty.
00:10:18
So, let's talk a little bit, Caroline, what the investigators learned about this man after his arrest.
00:10:24
>> Well, that's right, Erin. I mean, it's just so chilling. This is where we start
00:10:28
to get this picture of a serial killer essentially hidden in plain sight. By all accounts, he was this family man who
00:10:36
led a normal sort of boring suburban existence. He commuted to the city every day to do his job and provide for his
00:10:43
family. He ran an architectural consulting firm in Midtown Manhattan. He has a stepson and a daughter with his
00:10:50
now ex-wife Asa Ellerup who was born in Iceland. And she would take the children
00:10:56
to see her family there in the summers. And it was during those trips and some others that police believe that Hurman
00:11:02
killed the women. >> Herman's wife filed for divorce shortly after the arrest. Her attorney said she
00:11:10
was as stunned as anyone, any of us, by the accusations. And I know there were real questions um by the public. How
00:11:18
could she not know? But I have seen this happen over and over again when wives of
00:11:23
serial killers didn't know. But others would see personality traits that seemed odd or stood out. And that was true with
00:11:31
Humen as well. Uh including some of Humen's neighbors. Right. >> Yeah. Herman's neighbors obviously were
00:11:38
shocked when police made the arrest at the house. One neighbor described him as very quiet, dark, keeping to himself,
00:11:46
extremely intelligent, very smart. You know, I remember reading a New York Times article that reported that he used
00:11:53
to swing an axe in his front yard while he was glaring at neighbors. Um, and that parents told their children not to
00:11:59
go to his house on Halloween. I think we all have that one weird neighbor, you know, that we all tell our kids not to
00:12:06
go to on Halloween, but none of us obviously expect them to be a serial killer. >> I also remember uh the neighbors being
00:12:14
shocked by how many firearms that he owned and were found in his house cuz he was a hunter.
00:12:20
>> He had an arsenal. >> Yes, he did. This case was expected to go to trial in September of 2026 with
00:12:28
prosecutors planning to call more than 100 witnesses. That would have been a very long trial. But then in April of
00:12:36
2026, almost 3 years after Huerman's arrest, he suddenly changed his plea. He pleaded guilty to killing seven women
00:12:45
between 1993 and 2011 and admitted to killing an a victim, Karen Vata. So, can you tell me can you give me an
00:12:55
idea of how unusual this is from a legal perspective? Why do you think he decided
00:13:00
to take a plea? >> Yeah, I mean to tell you the truth, I wasn't totally surprised. I think the
00:13:05
timing was more surprising than the guilty plea itself. Look, we'll we'll never know for sure why he did it. But
00:13:12
when the evidence in a case is just so strong like this one and you know when you lose constantly those pre-trial
00:13:18
motions like Herman did in this case, of course the logical thing to do would be
00:13:23
to plead guilty and the prosecution really saves so many resources when you get a guilty plea. Also he gives up his
00:13:30
right to appeal. So saving you so much time and money and really the angst for those victim's families. And so that
00:13:38
gives you a sense of sort of the benefit that both sides get here. The defense really essentially saves him from having
00:13:45
to sit through all the gory details of what he actually did. And he may have wanted to spare his own family from
00:13:51
hearing that. >> Well, that's what Michael Brown, who are men's defense attorney, told me that he
00:13:58
did want to spare his family. But he also told me something that I found so interesting that as part of the plea
00:14:06
agreement, Huerman agreed to cooperate with the FBI behavioral unit. It's the department that analyzes offenders
00:14:13
motivations. Um it also is the department that creates profiles and it assists in solving cases. Um so are you
00:14:22
at all surprised that this would actually be part of a a plea agreement? Um have you run into that?
00:14:28
>> I I am so surprised. I've never ever come across this. I find this to be one of the the most fascinating aspects of
00:14:35
this plea agreement. I've never seen it before. And honestly, you know, I do believe that this sort of excites
00:14:42
Humeman and makes him feel important. We know other serial killers often love that attention because they're
00:14:50
narcissists and this likely feeds into that feeling of importance for human. Um, nonetheless, it is obviously so rare
00:14:58
to be able to get inside the mind of someone like Human that there may be some benefit to law enforcement in terms
00:15:04
of what the psychological profile is of this specific kind of serial killer. In court documents, prosecutors released an
00:15:12
image of what they called a blueprint that Huerman allegedly used to I mean it's detailed to plan out his kills with
00:15:22
these excruciating details. Um what all do we know about that blueprint and how unusual is that really to keep track of
00:15:31
all these things for a killer? >> Yeah. Well, and he would have to given how many victims there were over the
00:15:38
course of how many years. I mean, 17 years we're talking about. Um, the details are, as you would expect, just
00:15:44
absolutely chilling. The document has four columns labeled problems, supplies, DS, and TRG, which police believe stood
00:15:54
for dump site and targets. Among the problems that he listed down there, DNA, tire marks, blood stains, and more. I
00:16:03
mean, it's just it's just chilling. >> Well, also, he was really keeping track of the investigation itself. I mean, I
00:16:11
did not initially believe that so many bodies would be connected with the Long Island serial killer, but he is really
00:16:19
proof of how someone would change his MO because he did over the years. >> Yeah, he really it really seemed like he
00:16:25
was essentially, you know, honing his craft as it were. Um and and you know these meticulous notes that he would
00:16:33
have when his family were away on vacation. I mean he had to plan it out day by day, minute by minute in order to
00:16:41
stay undetected and under the radar for that period. And there were also some interesting reports of how Humeman has
00:16:50
spent the last three years in jail. Uh specifically what he reads, who he's been talking to. uh that also give a
00:16:59
sense of his character and mindset. >> Yeah, absolutely. Um Sephil County Sheriff Errol Tulin told the Associated
00:17:07
Press that Huerman has been really voracious reader in jail with a preference for violent crime and mystery
00:17:14
novels, some involving serial killers. Tulin also said that Keith Hunter Jespersonson, the infamous happy face
00:17:22
killer, who's currently serving multiple life sentences in Oregon, reached out to
00:17:27
Herman by letter. Hurman did write back, but he hasn't responded to several follow-up letters from Jesperson.
00:17:34
>> Sorry, I think it's very creepy that uh this case has brought out response from
00:17:41
other serial killers. So, >> gives you gives you a sort of a look inside the mind of, you know, some of
00:17:48
these guys want to feel important and this is this is how they do it, >> right? But on this sentencing hearing,
00:17:56
this was not about the killer. Now, this now was something that was specifically
00:18:02
for the families of the victims. Something they have been waiting for for years. And in the case of one family
00:18:08
since 1993, on June 17th, 2026, Rex Huerman showed up in court. He sat at the defense table
00:18:22
without much reaction. There were times I thought he looked red, but he didn't seem to be reacting. He remained still
00:18:29
with like one hand over the other. >> Yeah. You know, noticeably, his ex-wife, Asa Ellerup, was not at the sentencing
00:18:36
hearing. Her attorney did release a statement on her behalf that read, quote, "Miss Ellerup believes this day
00:18:43
should be centered on the victims, their families, and the profound impact these
00:18:48
crimes have had on their lives. Out of respect for those who have endured unimaginable loss and suffering, she
00:18:54
does not wish her presence to distract from the purpose of these proceedings. Her thoughts remain with the victims and
00:19:00
their loved ones as they continue their pursuit of justice, healing, and closure.
00:19:05
>> In hindsight, I think it was wise that she did not go to this hearing. Um, during this sentencing, we heard from
00:19:13
several of the victim's families and friends. Um, these families have been through a terrible time. They are angry.
00:19:21
They want answers. and they were allowed to address him directly, which actually
00:19:27
surprised me. Um, do you believe that they were limited in what they could actually say to him? Well, look, this
00:19:34
was really meant to be a catharsis for those families letting out all that anger and yeah, they were basically
00:19:42
allowed to say anything that they wanted, obviously within these usual boundaries of courtroom decorum. So,
00:19:49
generally no swear words, no yelling, etc. Uh, every judge has different rules about what they allow, but they were
00:19:57
very powerful in those statements and and just very gut-wrenching. >> I thought it was kind of odd that they
00:20:04
were facing the judge and he was to their left, so they had to keep like looking over. Um, so I thought
00:20:13
>> that's pretty typical. That's pretty typical. But, you know, if you listen to
00:20:16
the statements, they are directed at Huerman. I I thought um you know while he was emotionless um you could see sort
00:20:25
of something on his face that wasn't you know he wasn't it wasn't penetrating. He
00:20:30
wasn't feeling um the emotion that was on display by the victim's families. >> Well, it could be also because he was
00:20:39
like looking down most of the time. We first heard from Valerie Max family. She disappeared in 2000. And this is what
00:20:47
her adoptive mother Joanne Max said to the court. >> Even though justice is done, it cannot
00:20:54
replace what you have taken from us. Or can it give our beloved Valerie back her life here on earth? I do however
00:21:04
want you to understand that even though you were able to commit these horrendous
00:21:11
atrocities against our daughter and no matter what sense of power or control you felt
00:21:19
over Valerie's body, you were never able to touch her soul. We then heard from Jasmine Robinson, a
00:21:27
cousin of Jessica Taylor, who was killed in 2003. And she was the one that was just so emotional. And I I think it
00:21:34
really was because they were marking Jessica Taylor's 43rd birthday. >> I can't even put into words the
00:21:41
viscerating loading I have for you. My heart broke even more that there were more victims. Sick, twisted, heartless.
00:21:50
There aren't enough words for these murders. Missy K is the sister of Moren Brainer
00:21:56
Barnes and I have spoken to her actually many times before. She always carried so
00:22:01
much guilt. Um the last time she talked to her sister, her sister had called her
00:22:06
from Penn Station right before she disappeared asking for a ride home, but Missy was living in Connecticut. It was
00:22:14
late at night. Um so this is what Missy said at the hearing and this just broke my heart. When Rex chose to take Min's
00:22:22
life, he didn't just take her from us. He took my sense of safety. He took my peace of mind. He took the way I used to
00:22:29
move through the world without fear. In many ways, I became one of his victims, too.
00:22:35
>> Well, I do have a I I could say that just what I had forgotten until I heard her speak is that they also had a
00:22:44
brother, Will, and I mean, she just vanished and and then he died. So Missy lost uh two siblings and then had all of
00:22:55
this guilt. >> Yeah, it's it's it's absolutely gut-wrenching. Um also in attendance
00:23:01
there was Moren's son, Dylan Haggot, who was just one year old at the time of her
00:23:06
murder. He spoke about how he never had her when he needed her and she never got
00:23:11
to see who he had become. Um and there was Nichollet Brainard Barnes, Moren's daughter. She spoke really lovingly
00:23:18
about her mother, but Ben really turned her anger on Human. >> You are a pathetic man who thinks you're
00:23:25
better than women. You need to believe that sex workers are subhuman because you're a coward who takes out your own
00:23:31
shortcomings on others. I feel bad for you because your capacity for hate means that you can't possibly understand love.
00:23:38
The purity of it, the kind of love I had and still have for my mother. Seeing your last appearance and the way you
00:23:46
smirked as you finally confessed to what you did to my mother proves that you need to be locked away for the safety of
00:23:52
the community. There are no words extreme enough to communicate the l the level of depravity within you. You make
00:23:59
me sick and I don't forgive you. >> Well, I think it's the toughest for the kids. The kids of these women, they
00:24:06
never really got to know their parents. Megan Waterman's daughter, Liliana, I know her as Lily Waterman. um who's so
00:24:14
grown up now started her statement and she was so caught up in emotion and she was sniffling as she was trying to speak
00:24:22
and I hadn't even thought about this. She was noting that she is now the same age as her mother was when she was
00:24:31
pregnant with her and Liliana expressed how difficult it had been living out this tragedy so publicly. For years, my
00:24:40
mother's murder has been discussed in articles, television specials, podcasts, and
00:24:46
across social media. There are weeks when I cannot bring myself to open any social apps because I am constantly
00:24:52
confronted with reminders of the worst thing that's ever happened to me. I am grateful that people want to say
00:25:01
her name and seek justice for her. But there's a difference between remembering who she was and profiting
00:25:08
off of the tragedy that she's been through. >> Then there was a statement from Kimberly
00:25:13
Overreet. That was the sister of Amberlin Costello that was read aloud in court. In it, she spoke of finding
00:25:20
religion and direction in the wake of her sister's murder. And she actually credited her her sister's death as
00:25:28
leading to a crack in the case. For Karen Vatada, another victim. Her two sons were present in court for support,
00:25:36
but they chose not to speak. A statement was read from Sandra Castillia's sister,
00:25:42
Ruth Ramos. She spoke of Sandra as a mother. I was actually a little surprised to see Amanda Funberg there.
00:25:50
She was the little sister of Melissa Bartholomew. And when she was 15 years old, right
00:25:57
after her sister disappeared in 2009, she gets a call and it looks like it's from her sister's phone, but when she
00:26:05
answered, it wasn't Melissa at all. It was a man. It was her killer. We now know that was Rex Huerman. Um, which
00:26:14
means that he has such an evil, sadistic streak because he threatened to do to Amanda what he had done to Melissa. What
00:26:23
was interesting was as Amanda is talking as we've mentioned Caroline all the way
00:26:29
through this, you know, he's looking down and she's looking over him and you could tell it was really upsetting her.
00:26:36
And so she tells him, you know, stop looking down. Look at me. >> You can look at me while I'm talking.
00:26:44
It's been about 17 years since we spoke. Don't forget. >> Yeah. I mean, talk about taking the bull
00:26:49
by the horns. I mean, this is her one shot, her one chance to finally get that closure, and she was not going to throw
00:26:56
it away. Amanda also specifically referenced Fureman's call during that sentencing hearing and then said
00:27:05
something that I don't know about you, Caroline, but it really took me back and showed how angry she really is.
00:27:12
>> You murdered my sister, and the things I do to you are far worse than anything
00:27:16
you've ever done to anyone or even thought of. And just because you have a few fans,
00:27:21
remember you are hated by so many. I know everyone spoke on heaven, but do me a favor, send me a spot in that. I'll
00:27:28
see you there. >> I mean, I really was I I was so sad at at her I think her statements the most.
00:27:37
>> You'll see a range of emotions from each victim. Some just extreme sadness obviously at the loss, but then others
00:27:45
really did have this angry side because there's obviously so much anger here and
00:27:50
it was almost like you know an emotional release for these victims to have their
00:27:54
day in court to have this justice to have this closure. >> After hearing from many of the victims
00:28:00
families the judge Timothy Maisie himself addressed Rex Yerman let's take a listen to that. I know that you're
00:28:08
sorry that you got caught. I assume that you're sorry for what you've done to your wife and children.
00:28:16
Are you a little bit sorry for what you did to these poor innocent women? Eight women that you strangled to death. At
00:28:22
least eight that we know of. Are you at least a little bit sorry for that? >> Yes.
00:28:28
>> Yes, I am. >> Yeah. And Erin, if you if you listen closely, you can faintly hear him in the
00:28:34
background saying, "Yes, I am." Um, the judge though didn't mince words at all. I mean, he seemed to be getting angrier,
00:28:44
didn't you think? >> Yeah. I mean, honestly, you don't see that that often at a sentencing. This
00:28:51
judge, again, you could hear the quiver in his voice. He was audibly yelling by the end.
00:28:57
>> You know what? You've been described as a very big man, but you're a disgusting and despicable
00:29:05
small man, if you're a man at all. And you're a coward. >> Um, you know, when we're when we watch
00:29:13
sentencings on television, typically it is for heinous crime. So, judge judges do get a little more worked up and
00:29:20
emotional, but typically at your average sentencing, a judge is much more tempered, much more um you know, really
00:29:29
uh a little bit more toned down and follows the uh sort of courtroom etiquette, which is not to raise your
00:29:36
voice, be controlled. Here, he just threw all caution to the wind and and really let loose on Hurman. So the judge
00:29:45
sentenced Hurman to three consecutive sentences of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the deaths
00:29:52
of Bartholomew, Waterman, and Castello and four consecutive sentences of 25 years to life for each of the murders of
00:30:00
Brainard Barnes, Taylor, Castillia, and Mack. >> I mean, just for those four, that 25 to
00:30:06
life, that's a hundred years. When he's dead, he'll still be serving. >> Yeah, absolutely. I mean, this obviously
00:30:13
is somewhat symbolic. The point being that this man is never going to see the light of day outside of a jail cell.
00:30:20
>> And with that, the judge concluded the hearing. >> Anything else, gentlemen? >> Nothing from the people,
00:30:27
>> Mr. Brown. >> Nothing further. >> All right, get him out of here. I mean, you can hear the cheers and
00:30:40
cheers in the courtroom, almost like this physical release for the victim's families who've just been waiting so
00:30:46
long for justice. >> But I even though you hear cheers, what I always hear after these kind of cases
00:30:53
is no one really wins. You know, uh they get to face them. They don't get their loved ones back. None of those women are
00:31:01
coming back. Uh, so that it's got to be frustrating, too, that he just sat there. Um, how does someone like Huan
00:31:10
compare to other infamous killers and serial killers and the sentences that they've gotten in the past?
00:31:19
>> Yeah. I mean, look, he really flew under the radar. This reminds me so much of
00:31:24
the BTK killer. In fact, Erin, the similarities are quite striking. Dennis Rider, better known as the BTK killer
00:31:32
for bind, torture, kill, even called Hummer a clone of himself in a letter to a news outlet in 2023. Raider was also
00:31:41
married with two kids, lived in his community undetected for years. I mean, they were both even 59 years old at the
00:31:48
time of their arrests. Also, I'm reminded of Joseph James D'Angelo, better known as the Golden State Killer.
00:31:54
He comes to mind. And believe it or not, I actually met Dennis Ryder. Um, I was trying to get an interview with him. So,
00:32:02
I went into the Witchah jail and spoke with him. And another comparison I could add to that is that lack of emotion we
00:32:10
saw in Rex Yerman. Um, I really saw it with Dennis Rder. He spoke so casually about what he did. And the only time he
00:32:19
cried was when he told me that his daughter would no longer speak to him. So it was all about him. He was only
00:32:26
crying about his loss, nothing about what he did. Um and I think it also now in that case uh Dennis Rder gave more
00:32:38
details about what he did to his victims. Um but in this case the victims families did not get to get the details
00:32:47
that they always wanted to hear. >> The fact is you know we we may never know those answers. I was somewhat
00:32:54
surprised that part of his plea agreement wasn't a more wholesome description potentially of what he had
00:33:01
done. Um, and that sometimes is why victims families actually want a trial. They want to know specifically what
00:33:09
happened. But I think in this instance, um, you know, just having this be done and over with for the victim's families
00:33:18
was sort of more, um, at at top of mind was was going to be, um, more preferential than going through the just
00:33:27
arduous and gut-wrenching nature of a trial. >> Here's what Lily Waterman had to say
00:33:33
afterwards at a press conference. This has been a long day coming. And from this day forward, stop saying his name.
00:33:40
Stop putting his face everywhere. Put the girls face, put their names, and make it known that we are the ones who
00:33:46
live on for them. So, I mean, I'm so happy for these families finally getting closure. Obviously, Aaron, like you
00:33:53
said, there will never truly be closure. They will never get their um loved ones
00:34:00
back. But I do have to admit I'm not sure this is the last we're going to hear about Rex Herman. Aaron, I I
00:34:07
personally feel that there may be more victims out there whose families are looking for accountability. He insists,
00:34:14
according to his defense attorney, that it was just these eight women, but we'll
00:34:19
find out. Um, I really appreciate you being here talking about this very, very tough and emotional hearing, but thanks
00:34:27
for being with us today. Thank you so much for having me >> and I want to thank all of you for
00:34:33
listening. Be sure to rate and review wherever you get your podcasts.