David Berkowitz's apartment

This is the apartment building where David Berkowitz lived.

It is located at 42 Pine Street in Yonkers, New York.

Berkowitz lived on the top floor, in apartment number 7E.

At the time of the murders, this rental building was called Pine Hill Towers.

The original address was 35 Pine Street. However, the owners changed the name and address of the building shortly after Berkowitz's arrest.

As you can imagine, they weren't too pleased to be associated with the notorious "Son of Sam"—the boastful serial killer who had terrorized New York City with his Bulldog revolver.

Between 1976 and 1977, Berkowitz killed six people in eight separate shootings.

His first victim was 19-year-old Donna Lauria, whom he shot to death in the Bronx on July 29th, 1976.

Following Lauria's murder, he continued to target young couples, often focusing his efforts on lovers' lanes. During his crime spree, he carried out shootings in the Bronx, Queens, Long Island, and Brooklyn.

In prison interviews, Berkowitz admitted that he drove around New York City for hours while he was looking for a suitable victim. If he couldn't find one, he would give up and try again the following night.

Originally, the media nicknamed him the ".44 Caliber Killer" due to the type of weapon that he was using. However, he became known as the "Son of Sam" after he identified himself as such in a letter that he left at the Esau-Suriani crime scene.

The murders, his taunting letters, and the creepy nickname that he gave himself created a media frenzy that lasted long after his arrest. It also led to one of the largest manhunts in New York's history.

His luck finally ran out after his yellow 1970 Ford Galaxie received a parking ticket close to the location where he shot Stacy Moskowitz and Robert Violante.

Upon realizing that the driver might have been the "Son of Sam", investigators trawled through records of vehicles that had been ticketed in the area until they eventually honed in on a 24-year-old Yonkers resident called David Berkowitz.

When the police arrived at Berkowitz's apartment building on Pine Street, they looked inside his car and saw a weapon in the back seat. During a search of the Ford, they found unsent letters from the killer and maps of the crime scenes.

Certain that they had finally found their man, they proceeded to wait outside until their suspect exited the building and got into his vehicle.

At that point, they moved in and arrested him.

When one of the officers asked Berkowitz who he was, he reportedly smiled and said, "You know."

Following his arrest, Berkowitz claimed that he had been taking orders from a demonically possessed dog that was owned by his neighbor, Sam Carr, who lived across the street.

However, he later admitted that he had made this story up. In reality, there was no demon dog. Instead, these attacks were his way of lashing out against a world that he felt had rejected him.

On May 8th, 1978, he pleaded guilty to all of the murders. One month later, he received six consecutive 25-year-to-life sentences.

He remains in prison to this day.

Photos

Photos of the apartment building and other related images.

42 Pine Street

The Horizon Hill apartment building is situated at 42 Pine Street in Yonkers.

When Berkowitz lived here, it was called Pine Hill Towers.

The address was changed from 35 Pine Street to 42 Pine Street in an attempt to sweep its infamous past under the rug. Notably, the current owners do not embrace its history and have refused to respond to questions from the media.

On the left, you can see a recent photograph of Berkowitz, who is now a born-again Christian. Over the years, he has been repeatedly denied parole.

He is now in his seventies.

Inside the apartment

These are colorized photographs of the inside of Berkowitz's apartment.

As you can see, it was extremely unkempt, with books and pieces of clothing strewn across the floor.

In the top right-hand corner, you can see that there is a hole in the wall.

On the wall beside it, he had written the following message:

"Hi. My name is Mr. Williams and I live in this hole. I have several children who I'm turning into killers. Wait until they grow up. My neighbors I have no respect for and I treat them like sh*t. Sincerely, Williams."

Berkowitz was a serial arsonist before he "graduated" to murder. During a search of the apartment, the police found a detailed diary that listed every fire he had set since the mid-1970s.

Arrest location

On the night of his arrest, Berkowitz's car was parked in this area. This is the exact location where he was finally apprehended.

It is situated about 200 feet south of the main entrance to the apartment building.

Coordinates: 40.945293, -73.894651

Google Maps

Apartment 7E

Apartment 7E is at the back of the building (on the western side).

The one-bedroom studio, which overlooks the Hudson River, is situated at the end of a hallway on the top floor.

Berkowitz initially claimed that he was receiving orders from a demon that was inside his neighbor's dog.

The neighbor in question was Sam Carr, who owned a black Labrador retriever.

As you can see in the aerial image above, he had a clear line of sight into Carr's yard.

Sam Carr's house

Sam Carr's former house is situated at 316 Warburton Avenue, which is on the western side of Pine Hill Towers (apartment 7E is visible in the background, just above the house).

Carr had a black Labrador retriever named Harvey, which Berkowitz reportedly hated because it kept barking.

On one occasion, he shot the dog and wounded it.

It seems as though Carr served as the inspiration for Berkowitz's self-given nickname, the Son of Sam.

Following his arrest, he claimed that the demon inside Harvey had ordered him to kill. However, he later admitted that he had concocted this story for his insanity defense.

Coordinates: 40.946537, -73.896379

Google Maps