The Baltimore Serial Killer Who Killed Four And Took a Family Hostage
Joseph Palczynski revealed we still don’t take domestic violence seriously
Joseph C. Palczynski was a serial killer not too far from where I live in Baltimore, except in the county, not the city. In the city, we often joke about the county — it’s a more wealthy place, a more white place, a place that’s much easier to teach, and a place that isn’t subject to the daily challenges of Baltimore City's notorious murder rate.
But about 21 years ago, Palczynski killed four people then held a family of three hostage in Baltimore County. I also live not too far from where Palczynski held the family hostage in Dundalk, on the eastern side of Baltimore County. During his standoff with police in March of 2000, Palczynski was shot 27 times while law enforcement tried to evacuate hostages. An autopsy found traces of Xanax in his urine, which was allegedly placed by one of the hostages to incapacitate him.
According to Danielle Rousseau at Boston University, Palczynski became more than just a serial killer, but a symbol for the nation’s failing mental health system. He suffered from bipolar disorder and wasn’t appropriately treated. But Palczynski had warning signs in the multiple teenage girls and women he battered, abused, and treated…
