Sacramentans Remember Terror Caused By East Area Rapist In 70s And 80s

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Joseph DeAngelo pleaded guilty to 13 murders and admitted to dozens of rapes as the East Area Rapist, Monday.

Many people who grew up in Sacramento remember the headlines about the killings and tapes during the '70s and '80s.

"When we were kids, we couldn't walk alone anywhere. That was a big thing," Todd Gearou explained.

He thinks back to the fear many people lived in during the East Area Rapist's crime spree. One of the attacks he says happened just seven houses down from the Carmichael home where he grew up.

"It always bothered me like who is this guy could it be a neighbor; could it be a friend?" he explained.

READ: 'We Will No Longer Hide': Victims Speak Out After Facing Joseph DeAngelo In Court

After years of not knowing who was behind the years of terror, Gearou didn't think he'd still be alive to witnesses Joseph DeAngelo plead guilty.

"The day that they got that DNA and solved it was like finally. I didn't really think I'd ever really see it in my life," Gearou said.

Michael Fleming remembers the worry that echoed throughout his neighborhood growing up.

"I remember the girls next door, they were older than me, they were all scared and it's something that people have talked about continuously throughout my life," Fleming explained.

Now people wonder if the so-called East Area Rapist will start talking.

"Tell his tale because he hasn't at all he just went blank, mum," Gearou said.