The Gainesville Ripper

In August 1990, five college students were brutally murdered in their apartments in Gainesville, Florida. They had been sexually assaulted, stabbed, and then their bodies were posed in ways to shock whoever discovered them. Investigators in Shreveport, Louisiana, heard about these murders and thought they sounded awfully similar to an unsolved triple homicide in Shreveport. They found that the perpetrator of the Shreveport murders and the Gainesville murders had the same blood type which was more evidence that the killings were connected. 

A few months later, police received a tip from a woman in Louisiana who suggested they look into a man she had met at her church: Danny Rolling. Danny had a history of sexual assault, robbery, and voyeurism. They were able to compare his DNA to the killers’ DNA, and it was a match.  

Come along with Hannah and Lainey as they discuss littering, the importance of putting a stick in your sliding glass door, and hair catching on fire during a candlelight church service. 

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains discussions of sexual assault, violence, homicide, child abuse, and animal abuse. Listener discretion is advised.

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Sources:

Barcella, L. (2025, October 24). How serial killer Danny Rolling influenced ‘Scream’ with his 1990 slayings. A&E. https://www.aetv.com/articles/how-serial-killer-danny-rolling-inspired-scream-with-his-1990-slayings

Crime library. (n.d.). Danny Rolling, the Gainesville ripper. Crime Library. https://crimelibrary.org/serial_killers/predators/rolling/

Helligar, J. (2025, July 5). The serial killer who inspired ‘Scream’ terrorized my college town 35 years ago (exclusive). People. https://people.com/serial-killer-gainesville-ripper-danny-rolling-exclusive-11763591

Mehrotra, K. (2021, April 8). Who were Daniel “Danny” Rolling’s victims? TheCinemaholic. https://thecinemaholic.com/who-were-daniel-danny-rollings-victims/

Ott, T. (2020, October 14). Danny Rolling: The true story behind the killer who inspired ‘Scream’. Biography. https://www.biography.com/crime/danny-rolling-scream-killer-gainesville

Robbert, A. (2025, July 31). Impacts of 1990 Gainesville murders remain strong, especially for college-aged women. The Independent Florida Alligator. https://www.alligator.org/article/2025/07/impacts-of-1990-gainesville-murders-remain-strong-especially-for-college-aged-women

Ruppel, G., Dooley, S., & Rivas, A. (2021, April 8). How a woman in Louisiana helped break the case of 5 student murders in Florida. ABCNews. https://abcnews.com/US/woman-louisiana-helped-break-case-student-murders-florida/story?id=76900692

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Danny Rolling. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Rolling