Peter Woodcock
Encyclopedia
David Michael Krueger best known by his birth name, Peter Woodcock, was a Canadian serial killer
and child rapist
who gained notoriety for the brutal murders of three young children in Toronto
, Canada
in 1956 and 1957 when he himself was still a teenager. He was subsequently diagnosed as a psychopath
and placed in a psychiatric facility. Expensive treatment programs for Woodcock proved ineffective when he murdered a fellow psychiatric patient in 1991; after his death in 2010, he was dubbed by the Toronto Star
as "The serial killer they couldn't cure".
factory worker who gave him up for adoption. He spent the first three years of his life in various foster homes. He was later adopted by a wealthy family living near Yonge Street
and Lawrence Avenue
, who paid for a private school education, therapy and bikes for Woodcock. When he reached puberty, he began to travel around Toronto on his bike, fantasizing about becoming a gang leader and, in reality, sexually assaulting children in Parkdale
and Cabbagetown
. Ultimately, Woodcock would brutally murder three young children in 1956 and 1957.
Woodcock was apprehended for the murders in 1957, found not guilty
by reason of insanity, and placed in Oak Ridge, an Ontario
psychiatric facility located in Penetanguishene. There, he legally changed his name. Following the completion of a treatment program for Woodcock and other psychopathic individuals, he was deemed greatly improved, and sent to a medium-security hospital in Brockville, Ontario
in 1991. There, Woodcock claims, he fell in love with fellow psychiatric patient Dennis Kerr, who rejected his sexual advances. During the first hour of his first weekend pass in 35 years, Woodcock stabbed Kerr to death. Woodcock was being supervised on the pass by Bruce Hamill, a former patient who had killed an elderly Ottawa woman in 1977. Hamill was an accomplice in the Brockville murder, and both men were subsequently returned to Oak Ridge. Woodcock has told how the treatment program served only to make him more adept at manipulating others. Having spent 53 years in custody, the majority of that time at Oak Ridge, Woodcock died there on March 5, 2010, his 71st birthday.
Woodcock, billed as David Krueger, was prominently featured in the 2002 BBC
documentary, Mind of a Murderer: Mask of Sanity.
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
and child rapist
Child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
who gained notoriety for the brutal murders of three young children in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in 1956 and 1957 when he himself was still a teenager. He was subsequently diagnosed as a psychopath
Psychopathy
Psychopathy is a mental disorder characterized primarily by a lack of empathy and remorse, shallow emotions, egocentricity, and deceptiveness. Psychopaths are highly prone to antisocial behavior and abusive treatment of others, and are very disproportionately responsible for violent crime...
and placed in a psychiatric facility. Expensive treatment programs for Woodcock proved ineffective when he murdered a fellow psychiatric patient in 1991; after his death in 2010, he was dubbed by the Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
as "The serial killer they couldn't cure".
Life and crimes
Woodcock was born to a 17-year-old PeterboroughPeterborough, Ontario
Peterborough is a city on the Otonabee River in southern Ontario, Canada, 125 kilometres northeast of Toronto. The population of the City of Peterborough was 74,898 as of the 2006 census, while the census metropolitan area has a population of 121,428 as of a 2009 estimate. It presently ranks...
factory worker who gave him up for adoption. He spent the first three years of his life in various foster homes. He was later adopted by a wealthy family living near Yonge Street
Yonge Street
Yonge Street is a major arterial route connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. It was formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world at , and the construction of Yonge Street is designated an "Event of...
and Lawrence Avenue
Lawrence Avenue
Lawrence Avenue is a major east-west thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is divided into east and west portions by Yonge Street, the dividing line of east-west streets in Toronto....
, who paid for a private school education, therapy and bikes for Woodcock. When he reached puberty, he began to travel around Toronto on his bike, fantasizing about becoming a gang leader and, in reality, sexually assaulting children in Parkdale
Parkdale, Toronto
Parkdale is a neighbourhood and former village in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, west of downtown. The neighbourhood is bounded on the west by Roncesvalles Avenue, on the north by Queen Street. It is bounded on the east by Dufferin Street from Queen Street south, and on the south by Lake Ontario...
and Cabbagetown
Cabbagetown, Toronto
Cabbagetown is a neighbourhood located on the east side of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It comprises "the largest continuous area of preserved Victorian housing in all of North America", according to the Cabbagetown Preservation Association....
. Ultimately, Woodcock would brutally murder three young children in 1956 and 1957.
Woodcock was apprehended for the murders in 1957, found not guilty
Acquittal
In the common law tradition, an acquittal formally certifies the accused is free from the charge of an offense, as far as the criminal law is concerned. This is so even where the prosecution is abandoned nolle prosequi...
by reason of insanity, and placed in Oak Ridge, an Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
psychiatric facility located in Penetanguishene. There, he legally changed his name. Following the completion of a treatment program for Woodcock and other psychopathic individuals, he was deemed greatly improved, and sent to a medium-security hospital in Brockville, Ontario
Brockville, Ontario
Brockville is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Though it serves as the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, Brockville is politically independent and is grouped with Leeds and Grenville for census purposes only.Known as the "City of the 1000...
in 1991. There, Woodcock claims, he fell in love with fellow psychiatric patient Dennis Kerr, who rejected his sexual advances. During the first hour of his first weekend pass in 35 years, Woodcock stabbed Kerr to death. Woodcock was being supervised on the pass by Bruce Hamill, a former patient who had killed an elderly Ottawa woman in 1977. Hamill was an accomplice in the Brockville murder, and both men were subsequently returned to Oak Ridge. Woodcock has told how the treatment program served only to make him more adept at manipulating others. Having spent 53 years in custody, the majority of that time at Oak Ridge, Woodcock died there on March 5, 2010, his 71st birthday.
Woodcock, billed as David Krueger, was prominently featured in the 2002 BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
documentary, Mind of a Murderer: Mask of Sanity.
Victims
- Wayne Mallette – seven-year-old boy lured into the deserted Toronto Exhibition grounds on September 15, 1956. Originally another teen, identified only as "Ronald Mowatt", was charged with the child's murder.
- Gary Morris – nine-year-old boy lured to Cherry BeachCherry BeachCherry Beach is a lakeside park located at the foot of Cherry Street just south of Unwin Avenue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is on Toronto's outer harbour just east of the Eastern Gap....
on October 6, 1956. - Carole Voyce – four-year-old girl murdered by Woodcock on January 19, 1957 in a ravine under the Prince Edward ViaductPrince Edward ViaductThe Prince Edward Viaduct System, commonly referred to as the Bloor Viaduct or the viaduct, is the name of a truss arch bridge system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that connects Bloor Street East, on the west side of the system, with Danforth Avenue on the east...
. - Dennis Kerr – psychiatric inmate murdered on July 13, 1991 with a knife and hatchet by Peter Woodcock with the help of a former inmate, Bruce Hamill.
External links
- Peter Woodcock at the Crime Library