Police Seek Link In Prostitute Murders Recent Deaths Renew Fears Of Serial Killer In Spokane

Two recent murders have resurrected fears that a serial killer may be stalking the streets of Spokane, preying on women who work as prostitutes.

Undersheriff Mike Aubrey said Tuesday that police and sheriff’s detectives are working together to find a possible link between the deaths of Heather Hernandez and Jennifer Joseph.

The decomposed bodies of Hernandez, 20, and Joseph, 16, were found in separate locations Aug. 26.

Both victims, who worked as prostitutes, were shot to death and dumped in remote spots.

Investigators also are comparing their murders to similar unsolved homicides, and they are beginning to compile a criminal profile of someone who might commit such crimes, Aubrey said.

Since 1990, five other women have met similar fates - shot to death and dumped, either along the Spokane River or in the woods and fields south of Mount Spokane.

“We’re concerned,” Aubrey said.

Since the Hernandez and Joseph killings, police officers and outreach workers have been warning prostitutes who work the corners along East Sprague and other areas of the city to be careful.

They’re also asking them to be on the lookout for suspicious customers.

The deaths of Hernandez and Joseph have rattled prostitutes.

“They’re very frightened, as well they should be,” said Lynn Everson, an outreach worker who compiles a list of dangerous customers that she distributes, along with condoms and AIDS prevention tips, to prostitutes.

“I didn’t hear nothing about this from cops,” said one prostitute who was working the corner of East Sprague and Helena on Tuesday afternoon. “But I heard somebody might be killing us. I’m scared.”

Another seemed resigned that danger came with the territory.

“You never know what you’re going to get,” she said.

There is no strong evidence tying any of the murders to any of the others, Aubrey said, just vague similarities that have piqued the interest of detectives.

Investigators are working hardest on the Hernandez and Joseph cases because they are the freshest and the most likely to produce witnesses, Aubrey said.

“We do not have a direct link between these two cases, but we were not discounting that there is a link, either,” he said.

Aubrey refused to disclose what type of gun was used to kill the women, how many times they’d been shot or where.

A man collecting aluminum cans discovered the body of Hernandez in an overgrown lot behind a business in the 1800 block of East Springfield.

Police detectives said she had been in the Spokane area for about a month, possibly moving here from California, Idaho or Arizona.

Hernandez was a thoughtful woman who had a good sense of humor, Everson said.

Two farmers found Joseph’s corpse in a brushy area near the intersection of Judkins and Forker roads in the northeastern part of the county.

She had a history or running away from her home in Tacoma, and had been arrested for prostitution in San Francisco and Salem, Ore., during the past year.

Detectives have few clues in the killings and are seeking the public’s help. Anyone with information about the crimes is asked to call Crime Check at 456-2233.

“We’re looking at pretty much everything right now,” Aubrey said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Looking for links Detectives are looking for links between seven unsolved homicides in the Spokane area during the past seven years. All the victims, who worked as prostitutes, had been shot and their bodies dumped in remote locations. Following is a list of the victims. Yolanda Sapp, 26, discovered Feb. 22, 1990, along the banks of the Spokane River near 4100 E. Upriver Drive. Nickie Lowe, 34, found under the Greene Street Bridge on March 25, 1990. Kathy Brisbois, 38, found May 15, 1990, along the Spokane River near Pines and Trent. Sherry Palmer, 19, discovered in a remote area near Bill Gulch Road and Mount Spokane Park Drive, May 1992. Shannon Zielinski, 38, found near the intersection of Holcomb Road and Mount Spokane Park Drive, June 1996. Heather Hernandez, 20, discovered in an overgrown lot behind the 1800 block of East Springfield on Aug. 26. Jennifer Joseph, 16, found near the intersections of Judkins and Forker roads in northeast Spokane County on Aug. 26.

The following fields overflowed: BYLINE = Adam Lynn Staff writer Staff writer Robin Rivers contributed to this report.