Bens….

Since we don’t know where Z went during his 40 minute break, we can’t really say it even implies he didn’t live close by. He just might not have gone home first. It for sure is a mystery to all of us, he could have gone anywhere within 20 minutes of the phone booth and then driven to the booth to make his call. Just no tellin what he did in that timeframe…..

I have a theory on the 40 minute break, but it has not been well accepted thus far…

Ok, there was a man on the scene, before during and after the shooting, he is a police officer named richard Hoffman. Not only was Hoffman in the area, but he had a similar vehicle to the shooters (his unmarked police car), he had a 9mm, he had a flashlight, and he fits Mike’s description of the shooter.

So let’s go out on a limb and ask "what if Hoffman could have done this?" And "how would events play out with Hoffman as the shooter?"

Before the shooting Hoffman is in the area, and he reports the area clear, (even though by all means he should have seen Mike and Darlene and the shooter enter the area) then the shooting occurs, and it takes Hoffman two minutes to reach the scene after responding by radio. So we can conclude that Hoffman is never more than a few minutes from the scene.

So, theoretically, Hoffman could have been the shooter, driving away after the shooting, then returning to the scene as an officer and not a killer.( He may or may not have had some words with Mike before ed rust and others showed up, who knows) Then Hoffman rides in the ambulance with Mike and Darlene to Kaiser hospital in vallejo, this explains that 40 minute gap.

the call from the payphone at the intersection of Springs Road and Tuolumne was logged at 12.47am. The journey time from Blue Rock Springs parking lot to the payphone is 10 minutes, but there is a shortfall of 40 minutes after the double shooting. http://www.zodiacciphers.com/zodiac-new … d-tuolumne

Getting Mike and Darlene into the ambulance, then the ambulance ride accounts for this gap in time…

Officer Hoffman rode in the ambulance with Mike and Darlene to Kaiser hospital in vallejo. Darlene was pronounced dead on arrival at Kaiser and Mike went immediately into surgery, giving Hoffman a free moment to make the call and return to the hospital. This places Hoffman in the area of the phone with the information that Darlene had died.

Darlene was pronounced dead at Kaiser hospital at approximately 12:38 a.m. , we do not have the exact time, only an approximation, which can make things difficult, but stay with me on this, so Hoffman leaves Kaiser near 12:38am and then takes Broadway st. south To Florida st., Hoffman then travels east on Florida st. To toulumne st. Then north on toulumne st. to springs rd. Reaching the pay phone at the gas station where he places the call at between 12:40am and 12:47am depending on which account of the sequence of events you are using

…hoffman could have made this trip from the hospital to the payphone in under 1 minute and 30 seconds.

Hoffman was detailed to wait at the hospital, but with Darlene dead and Mike n the operating room, he could have reasonable taken a "break", telling the hospital staff that he was going to grab a coffee or a pack of smokes, or whatever, and it would not have looked suspicious.

This theory has seemingly offended others, and I know that any time you are looking into a police officer for a homicide it’s bound to stir up certain emotions in some, I just want others to know I am looking into this theory with the utmost respect, and that I am not just throwing around frivolous accusations, but feel this theory may actually have some substance to it.

This theory has seemingly offended others,

What’s offensive is you stating things with no basis in fact and other things that are just wrong. I have addressed all of this here in this post…

viewtopic.php?p=59799#p59799

but you continue to ignore it and refuse answer to your mistakes about this.

If Richard Hoffman were the Zodiac, it would be pretty certain that his presence at the scene would have made Mageau freak out and it would have been noted at some point. But it has never come up during these years that Mageau would have anything to fear when it comes to Hoffman.

Richard Hoffman=RH. Ring a bell? Any connection between Hoffman and the Riverside area?

If Richard Hoffman were the Zodiac, it would be pretty certain that his presence at the scene would have made Mageau freak out and it would have been noted at some point. But it has never come up during these years that Mageau would have anything to fear when it comes to Hoffman.

I don’t think Hoffman was zodiac, but I do think that Hoffman potentially could have been the shooter at blue rock springs, I know it’s a long shot, but I have yet to conclusively rule him out.

I have also connected Hoffman to riverside, but since I do not know officer Hoffman’s middle name I can not be sure that I have the right guy.

Have you guys seen pictures of officer Hoffman from 1968 – 1972? Tell me he is not a dead ringer for the sketch! (The lake berryessa sketch, the lesser known one, also, looks identical to Hoffman)

(Curiouscat, I have addressed all of your "evidence" which is supposed to clear Hoffman in like three other threads, for the sake of the readers, lets not repeat the whole debate here)

Richard Hoffman=RH. Ring a bell? Any connection between Hoffman and the Riverside area?

I thought that the "RH" on the desk could stand for "richard Hoffman" as well.

I think I connected Hoffman to riverside as well, but might have the wrong guy.

I have really been trying to avoid discussing my investigation into Hoffman. First of all, I am building a complex case, and want to finish it before peer review and critique, and second, the theory doesn’t go over very well within the zodiac community.

————-

(Curiouscat, I am not ignoring anything, it’s just that most days I am not in the mood to debate over the case.

I know my investigation, and you only know the bits and pieces that I have posted, so I can understand that you have questions (though most had already been discussed ad nauseam in other threads)

If you give me hard evidence that Hoffman could not have been the shooter at blue rock springs I will drop the investigation, I have said this over and over again, yet have not been provided with any real evidence which clears Hoffman.

I have said that yes, maybe it was bad timing and sub-standard police work that made Hoffman look like he could have been the shooter, but if that was the case you figure there would be some real proof… )

If Richard Hoffman were the Zodiac, it would be pretty certain that his presence at the scene would have made Mageau freak out and it would have been noted at some point. But it has never come up during these years that Mageau would have anything to fear when it comes to Hoffman.

Ok, I have thought about this as well.

When Mike was shot, he thought initially that he was being stopped by a plainclothes police officer, he begins to grab his wallet and rolls down his window, then…BAM! Mike said at first he thought "why did you hit me?" Thinking that he had been punched in the jaw, then Mike realizes he is being shot, then the next thing you know the shooting is over and mike is falling out of the car watching the vehicle drive away.

My point here was that with the blinding light from the high-power flashlight in his eyes, and with the jolt, surprise, and shock generated by the unexpected attack, it’s reasonable to think that Mike would not have ever got a good look at his attacker.

Ok, now here is the "going out on a limb theory", it’s possible that when Hoffman returned to the scene before other officers arrived that he threatened Mike, so Mike gives a vague description of events to other officers and skips town.

Though in all likelihood, if it was Hoffman, I doubt Mike got a good look at the shooter or his car, and might not have even realized that the officer who came to help him was the same man who shot him.

(Curiouscat, I have addressed all of your "evidence"

No, you haven’t.

If you give me hard evidence that Hoffman could not have been the shooter at blue rock springs I will drop the investigation

I’ve given you hard evidence he could not have made the phone call, which you refuse to address. I have said if he did not make the phone call then he had an accomplice, now you have to name his accomplice and why they are entered into a conspiracy.

When Mike was shot, he thought initially that he was being stopped by a plainclothes police officer

No he didn’t, there you go just making things up out of thin air again. All Mike said was he thought it was a police officer because of the flashlight, which anyone else would have. He never said anything about a plain clothes officer, you added that yourself, just like you added the type of vehicle Hoffman was driving that night and the type of service weapon he had. You don’t know what type of vehicle he was driving or what type of weapon he had yet you keep stating it as fact.

It is increasingly difficult to obtain information on events that occurred 50+ years ago. I am at a standstill on finding corroborating evidence for this, but my theory is:

Z worked at Joe’s Union Service. He locked up at closing and wandered around town for a while. I suspect he was using fireworks to disguise the sound of his gunshots, in the event he stumbled upon good victims. After the shooting, he returned to Joe’s and put his vehicle inside the repair bay so as to disguise that it was present. He stayed inside the store and waited things out. Then he made the phone call and went back into the store to wait some more. Two or three hours later, when the coast was clearer, he opened up the repair bay and drove home, just before the morning shift arrived.

I think everything Z ever wrote was misdirection. The "shabbily dressed Negro" was a ploy to direct attention away from the fact that there was no vehicle nearby that could’ve plausibly belonged to Z. He needed law enforcement not to consider that Z lived/worked near that phone booth. The vehicle reference in the letter seems to have worked perfectly for the first 40 or 45 years.

Does anybody have suggestions about how to discover information about Joe’s Union Service? I’m particularly interested in hours of operation and names of employees.

It is increasingly difficult to obtain information on events that occurred 50+ years ago. I am at a standstill on finding corroborating evidence for this, but my theory is:

Z worked at Joe’s Union Service. He locked up at closing and wandered around town for a while. I suspect he was using fireworks to disguise the sound of his gunshots, in the event he stumbled upon good victims. After the shooting, he returned to Joe’s and put his vehicle inside the repair bay so as to disguise that it was present. He stayed inside the store and waited things out. Then he made the phone call and went back into the store to wait some more. Two or three hours later, when the coast was clearer, he opened up the repair bay and drove home, just before the morning shift arrived.

I think everything Z ever wrote was misdirection. The "shabbily dressed Negro" was a ploy to direct attention away from the fact that there was no vehicle nearby that could’ve plausibly belonged to Z. He needed law enforcement not to consider that Z lived/worked near that phone booth. The vehicle reference in the letter seems to have worked perfectly for the first 40 or 45 years.

Does anybody have suggestions about how to discover information about Joe’s Union Service? I’m particularly interested in hours of operation and names of employees.

James Silvia, aka Manuel James Silvia, owned the gas station at 700 Tuolumne St.

The name of the gas station in the 1969 Vallejo, California, City Directory, 1968-1969 was : Silvia’s union Service gas sta

In the same phonebook/year 1969 their privat address was:

M James (Charlotte M) (Silvia’s Union serv)
H1001 Valle Vista Av
Vallejo

Why it has always been called Joe’s gas station I have no idea.

They moved from Vallejo to Grant Pass, Oregon 1971.

Here is his 1996 obit:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/117240459

Manuel James Silvia
BIRTH 18 Jun 1903
Raynham, Bristol County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 9 Oct 1996 (aged 93)
Grants Pass, Josephine County, Oregon, USA
BURIAL
Hawthorne Memorial Gardens
Grants Pass, Josephine County, Oregon, USA

Manuel James Silvia, 93, of Grants Pass died Wednesday, Oct. 9, 1996, at Royale Gardens Health and Rehabilitation Center.
Services will be at 11 a.m. Friday, at Hawthorne Memorial Gardens. Chapel of the Valley Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
He was born June 18, 1903, in Raynham, Mass. In Aug. 1947, in Vallejo, Calif., he married the former Charlotte Grosso, who died Feb. 3, 1996.
He owned a automobile service station in Vallejo until his retirement. He moved to Grants Pass in 1971.
Survivors include a daughter, Lynn Cole of Eugene; three sisters, Mary Foley, Emily Dube and Dena Ennes, all of Raynham, Mass.;
two grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Family Members
Spouse
Photo
Charlotte Marie Grosso Silvia
1911–1996 (m. 1947)

And here link to his wife Charlotte Marie Grosso Silvia
1911–1996 (m. 1947) obit, nee name Grosso :

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/117 … rie-silvia

Any picture of this person?

Is there a 1970 Vallejo phonebook that is accessible online?

For what it’s worth, I also think Z lived within a pretty close proximity to that Springs & Tuolumne phonebooth. I think he likely went home, parked his car, stashed his guns, etc. Then walked to the phonebooth, I think it’s possible he lived within a 1/4 mile of that phonebooth

If you’re right about that, and you may be, then it is also very likely that he at least knew of Darlene Ferrin. She was a pretty young, outgoing waitress at a popular diner. He undoubtedly had been served by her at some point if he ever dined at her restaurant. He might have known Mageau, too. I still don’t think he specifically targeted either, though. It was probably pure coincidence that he happened upon them in BRS.