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The Incredible True Story of How a Teenage Girl Survived an Encounter with a Serial Killer Known as the “Mad Chopper”
Terror on the Open Road
In 1978, fifteen-year-old Las Vegas native Mary Vincent was going through a period of rebellion that had prompted her to run away to California with her equally restless boyfriend. Not long into their new adventure, he got into some trouble with the law and the two had parted ways.
In the aftermath of the breakup, rather than returning home, Mary had decided to hitchhike nearly four hundred miles to her grandfather’s place in Corona. Since she had thumbed rides in the past without incident, the teenager had no reason to believe that this time would be any different. She couldn’t have foreseen that she would soon be at the mercy of a madman.
After packing her belongings in a knapsack, Mary had set off on her journey. Young and pretty, she had no trouble getting rides, but most would only take her a few miles before dropping her off, forcing her to start the process all over again.
In the city of Modesto, she had joined a pair of fellow hitchhikers who had positioned themselves near a busy thoroughfare. Holding signs that indicated they were bound for Southern California, they waited patiently for a kindly good Samaritan to stop and offer them a lift.
