Smiley face murder theory
The smiley face murder theory (also known as the smiley face murders, smiley face killings, and smiley face gang) is a theory advanced by retired New York City detectives Kevin Gannon and Anthony Duarte, as well as Dr. Lee Gilbertson, a criminal justice professor and gang expert at St. Cloud State University. It alleges that a number of young men found dead in bodies of water across several Midwestern American states from the late 1990s to the 2010s did not accidentally drown, as concluded by law enforcement agencies, but were victims of a serial killer or  killers. The term "smiley face" became connected to the alleged murders when it was made public that the police had discovered graffiti depicting a smiley face near locations where they think the killer dumped the bodies in at least a dozen of the cases. Gannon wrote a textbook case study on the subject titled "Case Studies in Drowning Forensics." The response of law enforcement investigators and other experts have been largely skeptical. Gannon and Duarte's investigation. As recently as 2017, Gannon and Duarte were examining evidence going back to the late 1990s that they believe connects the deaths of  45 college-age males whose dead bodies were found in water in 11 states, often after leaving parties or bars where they had been drinking. The men, according to the former detectives, often fit a profile of being popular, athletic and successful students, and most were white. Gannon and Duarte have theorized that the young men were all murdered, either by an individual or by an organized group of killers. The term "smiley face" became connected to the alleged murders when it was made public that Gannon and Duarte had discovered graffiti depicting a smiley face near locations where they  think the killer had dumped the bodies in at least a dozen of the cases. Reception of the theory. Other police forces that have investigated the deaths dispute the conclusion that the cases are linked. Police departments that are involved do not currently view the deaths associated with smiley faces present at the scenes as serial-killer activity. The La Crosse, Wisconsin police department, which was in charge of eight of the investigations, concluded that the deaths were accidental drownings of inebriated men, and stated that no smiley-face symbols were found in connection with any of the cases. The  Center for Homicide Research published a research brief that also attempted to scientifically refute the theory. In March 2009, Lee Gilbertson, a criminal justice faculty member at St. Cloud State University, voiced his support for the theory on an episode of "Larry King Live" in which the alleged murders were discussed. Criminal profiler Pat Brown calls the serial-killer theory "ludicrous," arguing that the evidence does not fit what is known about serial killers. Brown also believes that the smiley-face images found in some of the cases are likely nothing more than coincidences based upon guesses as to where  the bodies entered the water, with smiley-face graffiti only found after a wide-area search. "It's not an unusual symbol," she told Minneapolis-based newspaper "City Pages". "If you look in any area five miles square, I bet you could find a smiley face." The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued the following statement: Ruben Rosario of the "St. Paul Pioneer Press" has questioned Gannon's motives, stating that Gannon has failed to provide any factual evidence that a group of killers exists. Rosario noted that Kristi Piehl, the original reporter on the theory, and some of the  parents of the deceased have since expressed scepticism despite initially supporting the idea. Another parent, Kathy Geib, is working with Piehl and others, but their main goal is to convince police to take a second look at cases of alcohol-related drownings. See also. General: