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The man who has confessed to being the Golden State Killer is back in court this week as survivors had their chance to confront him.
They gave statements of anger, hate and pain, but also some of forgiveness and confusion.
A woman identified only as Peggy was 15 when she was raped repeatedly by Joseph DeAngelo after he broke into her Sacramento home in 1976 and tied up her sister in the next room.
"We were lucky he didn’t kill us," she said, and like many survivors, that thought has followed her for decades. "I still always look over my shoulder when someone approaches me from behind. I still sleep with two phones and the keys on the bed when my husband is away, and I still check windows and doors multiple times before going to bed when I’m alone."
She also spoke about how she has since become an activist, speaking out against rape and sexual assault and how she found a way to forgive her attacker so that she could find a way forward.
DeAngelo has admitted to 13 murders and 50 rapes from 1975 to 1986, along with kidnappings, robberies and other crimes. While the statute of limitations means that DeAngelo could not be charged for all of those crimes, he admitted guilt to them as part of a plea deal to avoid the death penalty.
"He told me over and over again that he would kill me, and I believed him," testified Kris Pedretti, who the former police officer raped in her home when she was 15. "The next morning, December 19, I woke up knowing I would never be a child again. And although I was truly grateful to be alive, I also felt that I had died."
DeAngelo notoriously told Pedretti during the attack that if she disobeyed him, "I’ll push the knife all the way in and I will be gone in the dark of the night."
"You hid in plain sight, but now you are visible for everyone to despise, loathe and abhor," Pedretti said Tuesday. "If I had it my way, DeAngelo would only be provided our impact statements as reading material for the rest of his days."
DeAngelo is scheduled to be formally sentenced Friday. According to his plea deal, he will face 11 life sentences without the possibility of parole.
Retired Sacramento County Detective Carol Daly read a statement on behalf of Kathy Rodgers.
"The nightmare has ended. He is the one, forever alone in the dark."