Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - The I-5 Killer

The I-5 Killer
The I5 Killer
Author: Ann Rule, Andy Stack
As a young man, Randall Woodfield had it all -- a star athlete, good looks, and an award-winning student. Working in the swinging West Coast bar scene, he had more than his share of women. But he wanted more than just sex. — An appetite for unspeakable violent acts led him to cruise the I-5 highway through California to Washington, leaving a trai...  more »
Info icon
PBS Market Price: $8.09 or $4.19+1 credit
ISBN-13: 9780451165596
ISBN-10: 0451165594
Publication Date: 3/1984
Pages: 296
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 106

3.9 stars, based on 106 ratings
Publisher: Signet Book
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
Other Versions: Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 4 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
Ann Rule is simply the best true crime author of our generation. Highly recommend, could not put down.
reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 48 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
A readable account of the crimes of Randall Woodfield. Of particular interest is the way Woodfield continued to manipulate numerous women after he was convicted, by mail, from his prison cell. I found the chronology hard to follow, and as a student of personality disorders, I would have liked more psychological analysis and detail on Woodfield's formative years. The book was written in 1984, so a revised edition would be useful.
reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 51 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
This is another one of Ann Rule's hits. You would never expect this man to be a killer. I couldn't put it down.
Abbey avatar reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 31 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Very good book. I was amazed at this guy and how he just thought he'd never get caught. Sooner or later they always do something to get themselves caught. Excellent read, I'd reccomend to anyone who likes true crime.
reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 29 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
If you like Ann Rule and true crime stories, you'll love this book.
Read All 21 Book Reviews of "The I5 Killer"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

surfin-sweetie avatar reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 12 more book reviews
For me this one was scary. I am familiar with a lot of the places this guy because when I was stationed up in Washington State I drove up there from California and I took I-5. I drove through Oregon and all the way up to Washington. This book was creepy to me. Aside from the personal feelings this was a great book that was really in depth about this case. Ann Rule also delve into Randy Woodfield's past to set the foundation for the book. She is one of the best true crime authors ever. I have yet to read a book of hers I did not like.
14truecrime avatar reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 4 more book reviews
Interesting read. Put together well.
reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 102 more book reviews
I love true crime and this was a good one.
reviewed The I-5 Killer on
This book was well paced and I liked that it showed how the whole case came together in the end.
jjares avatar reviewed The I-5 Killer on + 3405 more book reviews
This story was fascinating to read. Randall Woodfield was gifted in so many ways. He was a handsome, all-around athlete with a bright future in front of him. The author talks about the family dynamic, which is critical to understand how Randall went off the rails.

Randall came after two older sisters. He envied them because they got to do things he couldn't do. His parents had high expectations for Randall. However, he kept seeing women as controlling and rejecting. He could not handle it. So he looked for younger women who would pour adulation over him with no negative vibes. However, life isn't like that.

Randall started his deviant behavior (exposing himself), and his coaches covered it up. When the Green Bay Packers recruited him, they dropped him because he continued his abnormal behavior.

Before Randall was permanently removed from society, he had disrupted at least 44 women's lives. Moreover, because he ranged over I - 5 Highway, from Oregon through California, he committed more crimes than one might expect before he was apprehended.

The author did a masterful job of laying out Randall's story. I hope he never gets paroled; he is a danger to all women -- particularly younger females. Amazingly, Randall continues his maneuvering with women despite being in prison.

Ann Rule is one of the foremost authors of true crime. She helped mold the genre into what it is today. Ann comes from a long line of law enforcement officers, a prosecuting attorney, and a medical examiner. Ann started as a Seattle policewoman. She died in 2015.


Genres: