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Stevens promptly issued a statement from jail categorically denying police claims. "I am not the Green River killer. They have made me out to be a very bad person, and I am not," he declared. His lawyer Craig Beles says his client "is a colorful character, but he's no murderer." Students and faculty at Gonzaga, who describe Stevens as quiet and studious, were stunned by the allegations that he may have lived a secret life. Chris Bales, a former Gonzaga law professor who taught Stevens criminal law, characterized him as a "gentle fugitive" who posed no threat to society when he was arrested last winter. Stevens had worked in Gonzaga's law clinic, helping low-income clients.
Sirena Caruso, a tenant who lived in Stevens' house between 1981 and 1985, paints a different picture. "He was very bizarre," says Caruso. She moved out of the house soon after discovering bullet holes in Stevens' room. According to Caruso, Stevens had a collection of mannequins, X-rated videos, videotaping equipment and a secret room hidden behind a moving bookcase. Caruso and her boyfriend, she recalls, used to joke that Stevens was the Green River killer. One day she even asked Stevens about it. "Don't start that rumor," he reportedly answered. "People around here think I'm weird enough."
The facts that have surfaced about Stevens are eerily similar to those surrounding Theodore Bundy, the serial killer who was executed in Florida in January. Bundy and Stevens were both enrolled as students at the University of Washington; Bundy was a senior while Stevens was a freshman. Bundy was also a former law student in the Northwest who had a fixation on police badges. And both men were avid consumers of pornography.
Until this month's announcement, the Green River Task Force had been criticized for taking so long to solve the killings. Despite their suspicions, however, authorities are still not ready to charge Stevens with the crimes. "There's no way to know how long it will take to determine if Stevens is a bizarre victim of circumstance or the person responsible for some unsolved crimes," concedes Captain Robert Evans, head of the task force.
By making the affidavit public, the police clearly hope to bring in more evidence. Stevens has repeatedly refused to talk with them. At week's end authorities had begun the laborious task of sifting through the material gathered from Stevens' residences, searching for the clues that would solve the stubborn mystery at last.