The "Happy Face Killer," a 70-year-old inmate serving four life sentences for murdering eight women, said he wants Idaho murderer Bryan Kohberger to be locked up with him in prison to help protect him from being killed.
Keith Jesperson, known as the "Happy Face Killer" for drawing smiley faces on letters he sent to the media and law enforcement, was a long-haul truck driver when he murdered eight women, mostly sex workers and transients, between 1990 and 1995. Now serving four life sentences at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, Jesperson recently wrote a letter to Keith Rovere, a former prison minister and podcast host of "The Lighter Side of True Crime," suggesting Kohberger, who pleaded guilty to killing four University of Idaho students in 2022, should be transferred to his facility for protection.
"His best hope is to be transferred (sic) to here, the max prison in Oregon to be away from those who want to make a name for themselves by killing him," Jesperson wrote in the letter, according to Fox News Digital.
"This prison gets inmates from other states in order to protect them from the drama," he added, referencing a network of western states that sometimes transfer inmates across state lines because of safety concerns, special housing needs, or overcrowding. Idaho, where Kohberger will serve his life sentence, is not part of the pact, however.
Rovere added that 30-year-old Kohberger is likely to struggle in prison, noting that he lacks both "street smarts" and "prison smarts." His awkward behavior was a recurring theme throughout court proceedings. One former inmate also described the Idaho murderer as a "f---ing weirdo."
On July 2, Kohberger pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of University of Idaho students Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20, as well as one count of felony burglary.
Prosecutors initially pursued the death penalty, but Kohberger entered the plea to avoid capital punishment. On July 23, 2025, he was sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, plus an additional 10 years for the burglary charge. It is unclear where he will be serving his sentence.
Originally published on Lawyer Herald
