Charles Jackson Jr.

Charles Jackson Jr. was born on February 12, 1937, in Louisiana. Shortly after his birth, his family relocated to Mississippi, where Jackson spent his early years in a poor and unstable household. His father was reportedly an alcoholic who behaved aggressively towards the family. Jackson grew up in a socially disadvantaged environment, which contributed to his early disengagement from school. He dropped out of high school in the early 1950s and turned to the streets, eventually becoming involved in criminal subcultures.

At age 16, Jackson was arrested for theft in 1953. His criminal behavior escalated over time. He and his mother moved to California in the late 1950s, where he continued to accumulate a lengthy criminal record. Between 1962 and 1978, Jackson was arrested numerous times on charges that included burglary, rape, assault, and child molestation.

Despite repeated incarcerations, Jackson was released from custody for the final time on September 12, 1981. He lived with his mother in Montclair and took on handyman jobs. Within months, he committed his final known murder and was arrested the following year.

Charles Jackson Jr. was responsible for at least eight murders between 1975 and 1982 in the San Francisco Bay Area. His first known victim was 19-year-old Sonya Higginbotham, found sexually assaulted and stabbed in her Oakland home in June 1975. In August that year, 27-year-old Ann Johnson was also sexually assaulted and stabbed in her Montclair home.

In April 1978, 11-year-old Cynthia Waxman disappeared while playing outdoors in Moraga. Her body was later found in nearby bushes by her mother. Jackson’s crimes resumed after his 1981 release from prison.

On November 22, 1981, Jackson broke into the Albany Hill home of 62-year-old Henry Vila and his wife, 59-year-old Edith. Both were stabbed to death, and Edith was sexually assaulted. DNA evidence would later link Jackson to this double homicide.

Just two weeks later, on December 4, 1981, 37-year-old Betty Jo Grunzweig was stabbed in her Oakland home. Before dying on the way to the hospital, she told her daughter, “I think he was a rapist.” Four days later, 34-year-old Gail Leslie Slocum was also found stabbed to death in her Oakland yard.

His final known victim was 44-year-old Joan Stewart, a biology professor at San Francisco City College, who was attacked on January 5, 1982. Stewart was raped, strangled, and stabbed near Montclair. The next morning, her body was discovered along with a half-eaten piece of Canadian bacon. Witnesses had reported seeing a suspicious vehicle in the area; police traced the license plate to Jackson. His mother told investigators she gave him Canadian bacon every morning. These details, combined with forensic evidence, led to his arrest.

In 1983, Jackson was convicted of Stewart’s murder and sentenced to life in prison. After a judicial error was identified, he was retried in 1986 and received the same sentence.

Jackson remained incarcerated at Folsom State Prison until his death from a heart attack on February 15, 2002. He was 65 years old. Posthumous DNA testing linked him to the murders of the Vila couple, Higginbotham, Johnson, Waxman, Grunzweig, and Slocum. Authorities believe Jackson may be responsible for additional murders, but investigations were complicated by the presence of multiple serial killers operating in Contra Costa County during that time.