The worst predator

John Larson Correspondent

For generations parents have warned their children about “the stranger”: Don’t take candy, accept a ride, or even talk to somebody you don’t know.

But what if that somebody is a family friend? Somebody parents know and trust?

Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller, a suspected child molester, made a point of befriending parents to gain access to their children.  When he was arrested last year in San Jose, Calif., police found ledgers and diaries detailing thousands of sexual assaults against children.

But if so many crimes had taken place, how did Schwartzmiller, through the years, avoid arrest and prosecution?

John Larson has reconstructed the trail of the man who could be the worst child molester ever to be taken into custody.

It reads like a script to a horror movie, and it begins in Alaska and switches to Idaho, California, Oregon, and Washington.

But it is no movie. It is the horrifying, true story of a man police believe is the worst sexual predator of our time.

The full story of Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller was mostly unknown for 30 years, fragmented as Schwartzmiller jumped from one jurisdiction to another.  But Dateline pieced together legal files warehoused in a half dozen different states. We gathered thousands of pages of court documents, search warrants, and police reports—interviewing more than 60 victims, investigators and prosecutors.

What we found was a disturbing story of a sexual predator who kept getting away with it, year after year by manipulating the legal system.

The man used a brilliant intellect to befriend families, and then prey on their children. When discovered, he’d run, when caught, he’d jump bail. When taken to court, he would attack his victims. But along the way, no one knew he was keeping record of victims that could number into the thousands.

Early '70s:  Juneau, Alaska
His story began back in 1970, in Juneau, Alaska. Back then, this gold rush capitol city was booming. The Alaska Oil pipeline was being built, Nixon was in his first term as president, and a young Juneau detective was on duty one night, when a man walked into the station house.

Det. Jess Bulkley: He said, “My son has been  sexually molested by Dean Schwartzmiller.”  And he says, “I’m gonna kill him unless you can get him off the street.” 

Dean Schwartzmiller moved to Alaska shortly after graduating from high school. He became a successful building contractor and was one of Juneau’s young, upcoming citizens. Detective Bulkley knew him well. 

Det. Bulkley: I called Dean Schwartzmiller, had him down at the station in a few minutes.  Asked him if there any truth to it, and he says “yes.”

John Larson, Dateline correspondent: He said, “I had sex with an underage boy?”

Det. Bulkley: Right. 

Schwartzmiller pled guilty to a simple misdemeanor: contributing to the delinquency of a child. With no previous record, he was given probation and ordered to undergo counseling. The charges were eventually dismissed.

But two and-a-half years later, in 1972, Schwartzmiller was arrested again for molesting yet another boy from Juneau and again he confessed to Detective Bulkley. 

Larson: Was he sorry about this?

Det. Bulkley: Oh yes.  Dean was—every so often he would have to sob.  He couldn’t talk.  He’d have to sob for a while.  Then he’d get control again, and then start answering questions again.

The case against him was solid. There was a confession and a young victim willing to testify. But he never went to trial.

Det. Bulkley: Before they could indict him, he had skipped town. 

Larson: Gone?

Bulkley: Right.

Mountain Home, Idaho
Schwartzmiller fled from Juneau to Mountain Home, Idaho, a remote rural community, southeast of Boise, telling everyone his name was Tim Lewis. It was late 1972.

He coached football, befriended parents, and hired adolescent boys to work for his construction company.

Ken Madison: I thought I was gonna get some work. 

Ken Madison was 13 years old when he says Schwartzmiller hired him, befriended him and raped him.

Larson: Did you feel like you could stop it? 

Madison: I just let the creep have his way.  I don’t wanna talk about that part of it anymore.

Schwartzmiller befriended other lost boys arranging sleepovers, giving the boy’s beer and pot, and then targeting one child at a time.

Madison’s mom found out about the assaults and reported them to the  police. Schwartzmiller was arrested and charged with lewd and lascivious conduct with a minor. Despite the public shame, Madison was willing to admit in court that he had been raped by Dean Schwartzmiller. And police had found something else — a “checklist” of sex acts. Police believed Schwartzmiller was keeping record and believe there were many other boys who had been assaulted.

But before any of this could be introduced at trial, Schwartzmiller skipped bail for a second time. He escaped to Brazil for a year and a half, but authorities eventually tracked him down, and brought him back to Idaho.

During the trial, Schwartzmiller showed he was willing to use a new tactic: “attack the victim.”

Larson: [He was] Saying that you had come on to him.  That you had begged him for sex.

Madison: Yes.

Larson: You were 15 years old by the time of this trial.  And he’s blaming you for this?

Madison: Uh-huh (affirms). He was nothing but a big, ugly bad—real bad man to me then.  Yeah, I was scared of him. 

Ken Madison says he has never fully recovered. He can’t hold a job and now lives at a mission in downtown Boise.

Madison:  All, I know is, I tried to get high and stoned after that.  Just so I would feel good. 

Schwartzmiller was convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison. It looked like the law finally caught up with him. But that’s when Schwartzmiller adapted and changed again. He became an accomplished jailhouse lawyer, and began filing legal appeals.

He pointed out inconsistencies in Madsion’s testimony— for instance Madison said he had been tied up when he was first assaulted when he later admitted he had not. The Idaho Supreme Court accepted Schwartzmiller’s legal arguments and overturned his conviction after serving just two years of his sentence.

Even though he had been arrested three times in two states for molesting boys, Schwartzmiller was back on the streets the latest conviction erased from his records.

Boise, Idaho
Six months later, Schwartzmiller rented a house in a Boise neighborhood. Once again, he befriended a parent, dating a single mother with an immature 13-year-old son. The boy, according to court testimony, spent most of 1978 as Schwartzmiller’s sex slave.

That same year, Schwartzmiller raped another boy. This time, the family reported it to the police. Schwartzmiller was once again arrested for lewd and lascivious behavior with a minor. He been out of prison for less than a year. Schwartzmiller skipped bail for a third time—and hit the road.

Suspected of molesting 7 boys over an 8-year period, wanted in two states for sex crimes against children, Schwartzmiller would soon be the target of an FBI manhunt for suspicion of kidnapping and worse.

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