Hands up, I could be 100% wrong ,I have zero knowledge/experience in this area but if this is a depressed person with suicidal tendencies, then, by definition, it’s a huge cry for help. I can’t see someone advertising this, identifying him/herself to fellow students (having not made similar cries to friends or family first/also) and especially, NOT having been identified since. When this went public, surely everyone at that College and beyond were wondering who "rh" could have been. I would also be shocked if police did not make every possible effort to identify all with those initials, within the community.
In hindsight, was there no friend or family member who wondered if it couldn’t be someone close to them, if there was anything in their recent behaviour or not recognise the handwriting?
Surely too, if this person was identified "behind the scenes" we’d know about it. Not the identity obviously but that a person had been and it was not connected to the case.

There was a female student with the initials RH that went to RCC in 65-66. I wrote to her and asked if she may have authored the poem but never got a response.
Maybe a female here could reach out and get a response.

For what it’s worth, writing on desks is a guy’s habit I would venture to guess, I have never seen girls write on a desk but have seen many guys do it. Personally, I am with Sherwood Morrill on this and have little doubt Z wrote it, not to mention Trav’s fine detailed exam of the desk, i am sold on it

Handwriting aside and that I too think it’s Zodiac, the writing on desk’s thing being more of a guy’s thing is something I’ve felt too. That, and the language in the poem, it’s a bit visceral for what I wold imagine girls of the time to use in their vocabulary. Maybe not though but with two things in that respect leaning towards male I’d say it looks likely.

Or maybe rh_onda didn’t get to finish.

Strange poem though. Is there a poetic style that mixes two contradictory perspectives of the same subject? The subject here being ‘Death’. I ask because not only do people seem to have these polar interpretations of it but it reads that way even from the title. Sick of living / Unwilling to die – two titles, one subject matter. I also wonder because even though it’s in third person the last line seems very first person and threatening.

Never let it be said that I’m not impartial.

Ok I try not to be as best I can manage anyways lol.

So….here’s one for those of you that don’t think Zodiac wrote the desk poem.

"Just wait till next time"

I checked on the use of this and to be honest there seems to be a mix of opinion on this. Maybe someone else will reason something out of it but I couldn’t. Anywho I did look over Z’s letters and he doesn’t use it. He uses Untill. Now I thought that was a clear difference – hence this being for those of you that don’t think this is Z. I did muse on the possibility that we may change how we use that word over time but that’s pretty vague.

Now, as with all things Z related, the problem. I’ve realized that untill isn’t a word but that’s how Z spells it in all his letters. Until IS a word. So back to square one – is untill a more complete version of till in the same author’s mind?

I really did start this post as an impartial observation to aid those who don’t think this is Z but I may have stumbled on another reason for why it might be.

There was a female student with the initials RH that went to RCC in 65-66. I wrote to her and asked if she may have authored the poem but never got a response.
Maybe a female here could reach out and get a response.

For what it’s worth, writing on desks is a guy’s habit I would venture to guess, I have never seen girls write on a desk but have seen many guys do it. Personally, I am with Sherwood Morrill on this and have little doubt Z wrote it, not to mention Trav’s fine detailed exam of the desk, i am sold on it

Any chance latents were discovered on the desk that matched latents on a known piece of Zodiac evidence? TIA

BTW, you sounded on the radio program just like I imagined you’d sound.

Not sure, about prints on the desk.

My opinion is that (1) the poem does not refer to Cheri’s murder, (2) it was written long before she was killed, and (3) Zodiac was the author.

That’s an interesting take, Nacht. So this would be a fledgling Zodiac either thinking about a previous episode and/or fantasizing about future victims like CJB? I don’t agree with it but it does seem entirely consistent with what is written in the poem.

My opinion is that (1) the poem does not refer to Cheri’s murder, (2) it was written long before she was killed, and (3) Zodiac was the author.

That’s an interesting take, Nacht. So this would be a fledgling Zodiac either thinking about a previous episode and/or fantasizing about future victims like CJB? I don’t agree with it but it does seem entirely consistent with what is written in the poem.

I agree with NACH, 100%. I think Z wrote it,but that he didnt write it referring to bates’ murder,and had done it BEFORE her murder,and the Janitor found it like a needle in a hay stack.

My opinion is that (1) the poem does not refer to Cheri’s murder, (2) it was written long before she was killed, and (3) Zodiac was the author.

That’s an interesting take, Nacht. So this would be a fledgling Zodiac either thinking about a previous episode and/or fantasizing about future victims like CJB? I don’t agree with it but it does seem entirely consistent with what is written in the poem.

I agree with NACH, 100%. I think Z wrote it,but that he didnt write it referring to bates’ murder,and had done it BEFORE her murder,and the Janitor found it like a needle in a hay stack.

Or the janitor could have wrote it.

That’s an interesting take, Nacht. So this would be a fledgling Zodiac either thinking about a previous episode and/or fantasizing about future victims like CJB? I don’t agree with it but it does seem entirely consistent with what is written in the poem.

Pretty much, Entropy, only that I don’t necessarily think he’s talking about murder, or even something that actually happened in real life.

Or the janitor could have wrote it.

Sounds about right. I’ve seen people write on desks, even done it myself a few times. But, I’ve never seen anyone write on the underside of a desk. You know you have to do that from the floor or turn the desk over. Someone would have asked that person what they were doing, unless the writer didn’t have to worry about being seen because the place wasn’t open. So, yeah I would wager on the poem being written by someone that worked there.

Or the janitor could have wrote it.

Sounds about right. I’ve seen people write on desks, even done it myself a few times. But, I’ve never seen anyone write on the underside of a desk. You know you have to do that from the floor or turn the desk over. Someone would have asked that person what they were doing, unless the writer didn’t have to worry about being seen because the place wasn’t open. So, yeah I would wager on the poem being written by someone that worked there.

Any chances of getting RCC to verify a person with the initials "RH" was in their employ during 1965-1967?

Any chances of getting RCC to verify a person with the initials "RH" was in their employ during 1965-1967?

You’d think the cops would’ve done that from the get-go. Then again, I’ve since realized from my dealings with the Zodiac case that you can’t assume anything about the cops’ methods.

Any chances of getting RCC to verify a person with the initials "RH" was in their employ during 1965-1967?

You’d think the cops would’ve done that from the get-go. Then again, I’ve since realized from my dealings with the Zodiac case that you can’t assume anything about the cops’ methods.

Right? Or the author’s account of the investigation, as well.

Or the janitor could have wrote it.

Sounds about right. I’ve seen people write on desks, even done it myself a few times. But, I’ve never seen anyone write on the underside of a desk. You know you have to do that from the floor or turn the desk over. Someone would have asked that person what they were doing, unless the writer didn’t have to worry about being seen because the place wasn’t open. So, yeah I would wager on the poem being written by someone that worked there.

Agreed it would be hard for a student to write on the desk without getting noticed. Add the fact the janitor is the one that found the poem. Again would love to know his real name or like you mention any employs with the initials RH.