Why did he do it? Was it "all or nothing" for him?

[vince]

Its a shame they didn't consider this theory and test the steering wheel for prints.

[capricorn]

Are you sure they didn't test the steering wheel for prints?

In looking again at the photo, it looks to me like the front seat is covered in a seat cover over the original upholstery. It looks like one of those thin stretchy ones that fit over furniture with a ribbed pattern. I see what looks like dirt but is probably blood on the back of the seat near the center BUT the covering appears to be unrumpled and intact.

Again, this may be neither here nor there but if my observation is correct and the cover was something that was just applied over the seat, I would think it would have become torn or disarrayed or more bloody if there had been a struggle.

If Zodiac was sitting on the right side of the back seat or towards the center, he could have had the gun all ready to take the shot just as Paul stopped the cab and either applied the emergency brake or turned the ignition off or put it in park. That would eliminate Paul's being able to defend himself or a struggle. Zodiac could have then pushed Paul aside towards the passenger side from the rear seat and then proceeded to exit from the rear and go to the front.

When I take cabs, I am usually travelling with luggage so am positive the driver has completely stopped the car but not sure how they would normally stop when discharging a passenger. It probably depends on what the passenger might request. Who knows, he could have used a ruse saying he was making a quick stop to pick something up and asked Paul to stop and wait for him when he began the ride.

[vince]

I find the position that Paul was left in, very odd.

The fact he wiped down the drivers door imo suggests that he opened it. I do not buy the "he leaned against it" theory, consider how often you actually unintentionally touch the door handle of a taxi drivers cab before you get into it, for me...never.

There must have been a reason why he opened it.

If he sat in the back and wanted the shirt and other items, then its very possible he opened the main door simply to get better access to Paul Stine.

[capricorn]

Vince, I think you are absolutely right. I have never approached a taxi driver's door or touched the handle.

Usually when you hire the cab, you tell them at the start where you are going and if there is anything out of the ordinary at the destination, such as stopping and waiting for you but this is usually done on the passenger side and from the back door.

The more I think about this, it seems like Z would have rehearsed this entire "thing" and planned in down to the last detail.

It is hard to imagine anyone just happening to have a gun and then arguing with a cab driver and in a rage impulsively shooting him and THEN, on an impulse, moving the body and taking the wallet and a piece of the shirt. Fabric is very difficult to tear unless there is a pre-existing hole such as in a sheet that you tear in pieces for rags. Usually one would take a pair of scissors and make a small cut in order to then rip the fabric.

IIRC, there is a tool called a Swiss Army Knife that guys carry, especially if they are the outdoorsy type and something like that would probably have a cutting instrument on it.

[vince]

Very true, it would have been rehearsed in detail, without the unforeseen things like if the taxi drivers foot happened to get stuck on the accelerator after he had been shot. Though I do not think that happened.

Consider:

1. Zodiac sits in the back, he originally asks for W&M.

2. Upon approaching W&M, he notices people and his instinct decides to instruct Paul to go a block further hoping it is quieter.

3. He shoots Paul at W&C as it is quieter. I think he would have decided to use a silencer in advance as he could anticipate that a gun shot in a neighborhood at like 10 pm is going to be heard and rouse attention (explains why the kids heard nothing).

4. If he is actually is sitting in the back, he then decides to get out and enter through the drivers door, pushing Paul towards the passenger side. He would have needed to be in the front to take the things which he did.

All seems very logical to me, though if you think hard enough about it, like everything in this case there will be a logical flaw somewhere.

[capricorn]

Yes Vince I think this has to be how it happened...almost exactly anyway!

Your theory about him seeing people at W & M and then instructing Paul to go a block further certainly makes sense EXCEPT if the reason he didn't stop there was because people were around, I think one block further would still be very dangerous! How would he know where the people were going to go? It has been many years since I've been in San Francisco but have walked around almost the entire downtown in my younger days!

As I recall, the blocks are not unusually long and many of them are hilly. IDK if I could tell by looking at the map but seem to remember thinking that W&C looked fairly flat.

I just wonder if there was a different reason for his changing the stop. We'll probably never know like so many other things but perhaps it was something like seeing a loose dog walking along or lights on in open windows at street level at W&C or indeed people as you say.

Seeing people out and about only one block from where you decide to murder someone seems very risky, but as you ask, he may have felt he had nothing to lose at this point and it was "all or nothing" and maybe he unconsciously wanted to get caught.

[vince]

Very good point you bring up there.

I have never been to San Fran, how far is the distance between W&M and W&C? These events tend to get fabricated, I am trying to think of the most logical, easy way, that these actions actually occurred.

I think he most likely touched the drivers door as he got in that way after he shot Paul Stine, he likely pushed him over and took his seat to do what he needed to do. Where exactly was Paul's body found? I haven't read the police reports in quite some time, though it would possibly back up this theory if he Paul was found no longer on the drivers seat.

Instead of 'clues' or subliminal intentions, I believe Zodiac did genuinely anticipate to commit this crime at W&M, though something on the journey forced him to improvise, and that is what he did. It was probably something relatively easy to explain; perhaps he simply wasn't ready when the car pulled up at W&M, or W&C was closer to his car, and he wanted a slightly lesser walk to it.

[Seagull]

Vince I posted a picture of the position Paul was found in on the previous page of this thread.

[vince]

I did clock that, thank you for the image Seagull.

It does back up my own opinion and belief that he was 'shifted over' to the passenger side. I believe Zodiac entered the front of the cab via Paul Stine's door, and took his seat briefly to remove his shirt and other items.

[UKSpycatcher]

The Zodiac Killer toyed with police and authorities, but by saying 'I am the murderer of the taxi driver over by Washington St + Maple St last night', he had little to gain. If he had killed Paul Stine at Washington and Cherry, he may as well have said it. No gunshot was heard at either location or it would have been reported and logic says that he indeed used a silencer. The fact he walked back on himself down Jackson Street, towards Maple, having already passed Washington and Maple moments earlier in the taxicab, suggests the initial premise, to commit the murder at Washington and Maple and head up Maple Street, where he belatedly did end up after probably passing Fouke and Zelms. Whatever happened to cause this change of plan is subjective, but why claim a murder at Washington and Maple, and then stop one block later and backtrack. The fact remains if it was the Zodiac Killer on the North side of Jackson Street, why would you want to be the rabbit in the headlights, walk on the side further away. Or the sighting of this person was not that of the Zodiac Killer, if it was then there has to be very good reason why you would present yourself closer to oncoming traffic and more importantly police cars approaching the scene of the crime. The destination that Stine entered in his log and called in to his dispatcher was at the corner of Washington and Maple Street, but something went awry, that is where he claims the murder, so it is logical why he backtracked.