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When "48 Hours Mystery" Correspondent Harold Dow died suddenly last month, he was completing more than a year's work on the intricate tale of Rodney Alcala. "48 Hours Mystery" pays tribute to Dow when it broadcasts his final story, "The Killing Game," as its season premiere.
Featuring Dow's exclusive interviews with Alcala's ex-girlfriend, girls Alcala had approached, investigators, and victims' family members, the season premiere will be presented by Harold's nephew, Jay Dow, of WCBS in New York and a contributing correspondent for CBS News.
Alcala was twice convicted and twice sentenced to death for Robin's murder, but the verdicts were both overturned, infuriating Robin's still grieving family. But in the 30 years since Robin's murder, DNA technology had advanced and justice finally caught up with Alcala. He was linked to four other murders, giving weight to what investigators had suspected all along-he was a serial killer.
Los Angeles Prosecutors decided to combine the cases and Alcala stood trial for a third time. Finally, in March 2010, the 40-year saga came to a conclusion. The now 66-year-old photographer, who served as his own attorney, was sentenced to death for the murder, kidnapping and rape of five California women, including Robin Samsoe.
Yet the Alcala case continues today, as police across the country are still trying to identify hundreds of photographs of young women, and even some children, found in Alcala's storage locker. Already other murders in New York and California have been connected to Alcala, with perhaps more to come.
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