June 29, 1979- Impromptu Bundy Press Conference

It is late Friday afternoon. The court is in brief recess, almost empty. And Ted Bundy, under guard, walks to the courtroom railing, sits on the defense table, and begins to chat. He is easy, friendly, grinning. He looks like the all-American boy. Unsaid is the belief of some law-enforcement authorities that he may well be the most prolific mass murderer in the history of America. Bundy is on trial in Miami for the 1978 slaying of of two Chi Omega sorority girls in their beds. "The final decision of all jurors is up to me," Bundy says. "That is the way it should be. I am very much involved in my defense. That is the way I keep myself honed-in." He talks of the jury selection process. "There is no such thing as an ideal juror," Bundy says. This is something I have to get away from. 'Anybody against the death penalty is going to be a good juror.' 'Anyone who is Black is going to be a good juror.' That is not so. You have to fight the stereotypes." He glances across the courtroom. There stands Ken Katsaris, the sheriff of Leon County. The sheriff sometimes calls Bundy "my favorite criminal." It is jest. He despises Bundy. He thinks he is guilty. "Now there," says Bundy, "is an ideal juror." Even if acquitted in Florida, does he ever expect to be free? "Well, you know. If I were a football coach, I'd say, when you are in the first game of the season, you don't start looking for the Super Bowl." Bundy speaks favorably of the Dade County Jail-- although he believes Sheriff Katsaris inspired the local police to employ "oppressive security... people are very uptight." And the food? Bundy knows very well that his lawyers and much of the trial media are ensconsed at the nearby Civic Center Holiday Inn and that they are not overwhelmed with its culinary delights. "If you like everything at the Holiday Inn, it is probably about the same. That is what I hear." Suddenly, Dave Watson, the white-haired bailiff, bellows "All rise!" Theodore Bundy's first Miami press conference is over. A probe-mike atop a television camera had caught much of it. Circuit Judge Edward Cowart walked into the courtroom. Bundy returned to the defendant's chair. In the corridor the judge had seen newsmen interviewing one of Bundy's lawyers. The judge was angry. "If I see any member of the defense or prosecution discussing this case again, then he goes to jail. Win, lose, or draw. That is the order of this court." Bundy, of course, is already a resident. --"No Doubt About it, Bundy Runs the Show;" Miami Herald; June 30, 1979 Much more archival footage on my Patreon:   / killerinthearchives