ta Clara County to ask if there had been any breaks in the case , but was told there was no new information . Of Terry ’ s book , King said : “ It didn ’ t surprise me that someone came out with some kind of conspiracy around her murder . I don ’ t know if I agree with the author that she was stalked from Bismarck to California . I remember a lot of weird religious stories going on around here in that time , like covens dancing under the full moon and rituals taking place down by the river bottoms . But in her case , I think she was at the wrong place at the wrong time .”
Jon Martinson , lifelong Bismarck resident and former psychology professor at Bismarck State College , remembered both the murder of Arlis Perry and alleged Satanic activity in the area . At one point , he actually assigned his students the task of tracking down cult activity in Bismarck . “ I believe it ’ s possible that people in North Dakota were involved in [ Perry ’ s ] murder in some way . Over the years , however , that ’ s been very difficult to prove .”
When The Ultimate Evil was published in 1987 , many in Bismarck were skeptical of Terry ’ s theories , but Martinson was convinced the author was on the right track , “ Folks would say : ‘ If something like this was going on around here , we ’ d know about it .’ And that those who knew Arlis would have said : ‘ If she was being stalked , we ’ d know about it . And how can the writer get information that we can ’ t ?’ North Dakotans are often suspicious of the outsiders investigating their city .”
Recalling the time when he and his students were attempting to track down local Satanists , Martinson said : “ It was like water running through your fingers . It was so elusive , you ’ d think there was something , you ’ d go , and there was nothing there . We would search for rituals in parks and cemeteries . In class we ’ d say that the [ cult members ] are one step ahead of us . Someone is telling them about us .” He believed it was possible someone in his psychology class was tipping off local cult members concerning the activities of the research project .
Kathleen Atkinson , a university employee , was quoted as saying : “ There was never any activity on the hill until this book used it as a reference point . Talk only came as a reaction to that , making the rumors selfperpetuating .”
Jon Martinson remained in contact with
Maury Terry and continues to believe there is a connection between the Son of Sam murders and the killing of Arlis Perry . The strongest link , he says , is that Berkowitz admitted to spending time with cult members in Minot , including John Carr , shortly after the Son of Sam murder spree began . This association was documented in Terry ’ s book . However , according to Martinson , what wasn ’ t documented is just as compelling : Berkowitz recognized a man from Bismarck during a jailhouse interview when he was shown a series of photographs of individuals whom Terry believed may have been involved in Mrs . Perry ’ s murder . Berkowitz identified the man in the photograph as someone he had met during a cult meeting in Minot . Martinson says he , too , has seen the photograph . “ When Berkowitz identified the man in the photograph , it confirmed [ Terry ’ s ] suspicions that that may have been the visitor at the law firm the day before Perry was killed . And it ’ s entirely possible that Berkowitz met that person while he was in North Dakota .”
* * *
Shortly after the body of Arlis Perry was found , a church official commenting on the murder described the scene as “ ritualist and Satanic .” No one can deny the sight of an attractive young woman lying on her back , her legs spread wide , with a 24-inch candle protruding from her vagina , is , indeed , a vision from hell . But the symbolism didn ’ t end there , for above the corpse was a huge cross carved years before into the wall of the Byzantineinspired place of worship ..
Over 40 years later , the killing of the young woman from North Dakota is as much a mystery as it was in the early morning hours of October 13 , 1974 , when her corpse was discovered and years of investigation has yielded nothing more than a series of unanswered questions .
* Sources : The Ultimate Evil by Maury Terry , The Great Plains Examiner , Before It ' s News , The San Jose Mercury , The Bismarck Tribune , Spawn of the Sphinx , Tripod and Chicago Reader .
* Note : Bruce Perry went on to become a child and adolescent psychiatrist and is currently affiliated with the Child Trauma Academy in Houston , Texas . He later remarried and he and his second wife have five children .