Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit

Douglas discusses a case that involved an esteemed colleague, Judson Ray, whose wife attempted to have him killed in February 1982. Ray first worked with Douglas in 1978 on another serial homicide case dubbed the “Forces of Evil.” Ray was a shift commander in the Columbus Police Department, and he joined the FBI shortly after the case was resolved; he met Douglas during new-agent training. Ray was assigned to the Atlanta Field Office, and a few years later, he worked on the Atlanta child murders case. While he worked grueling hours, his thirteen-year marriage fell apart. His wife drank heavily and was often verbally abusive. During this time, Ray gave his wife an ultimatum—if she did not change, he would divorce her and seek custody of their young daughters. Mrs. Ray seemed to have a complete change of heart, and she became more attentive and family oriented.

Unbeknownst to Ray, his wife had hired hitmen to kill him. Her change in personality was merely a form of staging, a ploy to buy time and make arrangements. After observing him for several days, the assassins were unable to find an opportune time and place to accomplish the hit.