Call Me God: The Untold Story of the DC Sniper Investigation
Published October 24th 2019 by Audible Original, Audiobook 8 pages
Wednesday, October 2, 2002.
Aspen Hill, Maryland. Northgate Plaza.
5:20 PM.
Inside Michael’s craft supply store, cashier Ann Chapman rings up another customer. Then it happens. A loud crack; a gust of wind; the light in register five goes dark.
Over the next 23 days, the entire DC area will be thrust into a reign of terror unprecedented in American history. Sniper attacks targeting and murdering everyday citizens will bring the entire region to its knees, as a nation still reeling from the recent attacks of 9/11 and the anthrax scare, are forced to confront a new type of brutal assault—this time in their own backyard. As law enforcement grapples with the mass carnage and chaos, media’s ravenous 24-hour cycle amplifies the very real fear, while steadily pumping new theories and bad leads onto a paralyzed public desperate for it all to end.
But who can stop it? And exactly how?
Call Me God is the never-before-told story of the fascinating and turbulent investigation that led to the diabolical and elusive killers' capture; one that pitted protocol against instinct, sacred institutions against individual insight. Told firsthand by those few who had the vision and expertise to solve it, and including a fascinating look into the behavioral, ballistic, forensic, and electronic analysis vital to cracking the case, FBI agent brothers Jim Clemente (former FBI behavioral profiler) and Tim Clemente (former FBI counter-terrorism expert) take us through every facet and flaw of a nationwide manhunt that pressure tested nearly every aspect of law enforcement capabilities—and its glaring vulnerabilities.
Anchored by harrowing accounts from victims, intimate conversations with family members of those deceased, as well as candid accounts from those who knew the perpetrators best, relive the haunting events of the DC Sniper attack and piece together a true crime phenomenon that's impact can still be felt today.
User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
This is hands down one of the best true crime audiobooks I’ve ever listened to! No kidding
It’s an Audible exclusive for those interested.
Rating: really liked it
This is a great audio program that's basically a long podcast. I remember the DC sniper shooting really well and almost can't believe it was so long ago. I think one day we need to grapple with what it means that so much of our FBI and federal crime money and energy went to rooting out every Muslim person with a tangential relationship to terrorism that didn't go into actually stopping crime. The law enforcement people did an excellent job tracking down this sniper, but I wonder about an alternative universe when we start looking first at men who have beat their spouses (which is such a great predictor of future violence) as opposed to Muslims who may or may not have been to the Middle East at some point in the last decade (which has much less to do with being prone to violence). Practically, every act of domestic terrorism starts with a dude killing and or hurting his girlfriend/wife/mother. Maybe if we took those acts of violence more seriously, we could stop more terrorists?
Rating: really liked it
LISTEN TO THIS NOW!October 2002. Maryland, Virginia, and Washington DC.
Today, we’re talking about the
DC Sniper. Thank you to Audible (Audible Ambassador) for this insane retelling.
Rating: really liked it
Call Me God: The Untold Story of the DC Sniper Investigation goes into the complete investigation of the DC Sniper from the beginning of the first murders to the final verdict in the court case.
This audiobook felt more like a podcast but I still enjoyed listening to this compilation.
FBI investigators, investigative journalists, family members of the deceased, and people that knew John Allen Mohammad & Lee Boyd Malvo all give their accounts of this terrifying situation that occurred in the Washington Metropolitan Area and along I-95 in Virginia.
Ten people were killed and three others were wounded in a three week rampage of killings and terror. Innocent bystanders just changing a tire on the side of the road, locking up a restaurant or getting gas at a convenience store were all targeted and no one felt safe.
Definitely recommend this to true crime fans and anyone who would like to know more about this whole investigation!
Rating: really liked it
My thanks to Audible for sending me an advance copy of this audio book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by the publisher.
Audible always knows how to use the audio format to its full potential, and that’s really exemplified in this audio book, bringing the first hand accounts of people directly impacted by the DC sniper and those who helped investigate the case directly to the listener. I’ve said before on this blog that I have a hard time with some elements of true crime; it can be so easy for the genre to fall into the trap of feeling voyeuristic or exploitative. Call Me God keeps first hand-accounts in the forefront of the storytelling in a way that always feels very respectful and human. We must always worry about ethical storytelling when it comes to true crime and this was a great example.
Beyond that, though, it was just so very well done. I could not stop listening and binged most of this one in a day. (Coming in at just over 7 hours, if you’re like me and listen to audio books with the speed bumped up a bit, you’ll fly through this one.) I was 12 when the DC sniper was active, so I had a vague recollection of the case and not much more. Most of the info I learned here was new to me.
One of the more interesting aspects of the case, which I hadn’t considered before listening to this, is how the zeitgeist of the time period impacted the way people perceived the case. This came on the tail of the first anniversary of the 9/11 attacks; law enforcement and the general public had been on guard due to the symbolic power of a potential attack on that anniversary. Random acts of violence designed specifically to terrorize an already on-edge populace rendered the city a powder keg.
Call Me God is a must-listen for true crime fans! Between the detailed accounts of the investigators and the statements from those who lost family members, there is something of substance in this for everyone, regardless of your level of familiarity with the case going into it.
Let’s discuss:
Lee Boyd Malvo (i.e., the DC Sniper) has been in the news again recently as he fights his life sentence without the possibility of parole. Malvo was a minor at the time of the crimes, and it has been ruled that mandatory life sentences for juveniles are unconstitutional. Let me know your thoughts in the comments; should he get a new sentencing? Are certain crimes too severe for rehabilitation regardless of age?
You can read all of my reviews on my blog, Jenna Bookish!
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Rating: really liked it
This is history-based crime fiction. Book talks about domestic violence and sniper's attack. Gave an impression of holding hostages of terrorists. Law enforcement agencies had hard times grappling the issue, sometimes it felt as if it is all out of control for them. Jim is an excellent storyteller, however, the sequence is meandering somewhere in this particular book. Otherwise, it gripped me in most other pages.
Rating: really liked it
This fantastic book told the story of the 2002 DC sniper case.
What I enjoyed most about this book was the format. This wasn’t a written book. It wasn’t an audio book. It was an audio documentary. The authors did audio recordings with all the real people who lived this dreadful drama. The first-hand accounts were amazing.
It was masterfully edited to create a captivating tale that captured just how frightening it was to live in the DC area while all of this was going on. I also admired the way the author structured the story. The book had cliffhanger after cliffhanger and it really kept me engaged and on the edge of my seat.
Solid writing, full characters and a real-life crime drama. So glad I read this book.
Rating: really liked it
OMG! Y'all need to listen to this book ASAP! I am not generally a true crime fan, but I was utterly captivated by this story. I remember hearing about the DC sniper case in the news when I was in high school, but I was ignorant to the sheer amount of tragedy and chaos that these two individuals unleashed on the DC area.
This story provides so much detail surrounding the investigation, tracking down the gunmen, as well as a look into their psyche. I was floored by the sheer amount of information. Additionally, we also hear from families of the victims.
I don't want to give away anything from this story because honestly, you just need to listen to it. It's that good!
Thank you to Audible for providing a copy for review. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Rating: really liked it
I had been meaning to read and/or listen to a true crime story for some time now. I'm so happy that this ended up being my first choice. The thing that initially drew me to this story was the fact that many of the events occurred right in my backyard. I can still vividly recall the concern and chaos that ensued during this time. This audiobook did a fantastic job at sharing the events that I remember as well as adding a wealth of new detail (truly untold) about the DC snipers and the investigation that occurred behind the scenes.
From my personal experience, the audiobook nailed it when it described the emotions felt throughout the DC metropolitan area during this time. I remember being in high school and having our outdoor and social events cancelled as safety precautions. Although it ended up proving to be a false positive, the white van haunted so many of us throughout this time. My friends and I would actually be frightened every time we passed by one. Additionally, the whole concept of running simple, everyday errands, such as filling up gas or running to the grocery story was terrifying.
I can always identify a good story or retelling when I feel strong emotions while listening to it or reading it. Throughout this book, I had moments of feeling sad, upset, and hopeful. I got goosebumps at various times listening to the families of some of the victims. I would highly recommend this audiobook, even if you didn't experience it the way I did.
Thank you to Amazon and Audible for a complimentary copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.
Rating: really liked it
A fascinating, disturbing, compelling and gut-wrenching listen.
Rating: really liked it
Audible did a great job on this "book." It's not really a book in the classic sense. It's really a podcast that they kept for their own platform. But it is excellent - with many interviews with investigators, family members of victims, and other key people involved in the DC Sniper events. There was a lot of new information that I had never heard before and I especially enjoyed hearing my co-workers (I work in federal law enforcement in the DC region) explain their part in the investigation.
I lived in the DC area during the DC Sniper scare. Those weeks were terrifying. Because the shootings were so random, literally no one felt safe. And then to learn there were 2 shooters and one was a teenager was mind-boggling. Learning more about their killing spree across the country was shocking. Somehow I don't remember hearing about more than the two women in Alabama.
God bless the families of the victims and the survivors and the investigators who worked tirelessly to catch the killers.
Rating: really liked it
Having lived in the Northern Virginia/DC metro area during this sniper spree, it had quite an unnerving affect on me and my family’s lives at the time. Our daughter was about to turn 11 with a planned birthday party at a local corn maze and pumpkin patch. We contemplated cancelling because no one wanted to be outdoors. In the open. Possible targets. We certainly didn’t want our children to be. School events were cancelled. Everyone was living in fear for nearly three weeks. I think you could probably feel the huge sigh of relief, states away, when they were ultimately caught. Years later, it’s kind of cathartic to finally learn about the details leading up to the tragic killings as well as the stories shared by those affected. Very well told.
Rating: really liked it
This is really a podcast that Audible has packaged together as an audiobook, which is why there's no print edition available anywhere. But as a podcast, it's fantastic. I'd take a half-point off because it focuses entirely on the FBI side of the investigation while mostly ignoring the MD state police side, but given how incompetent Chief Moose was, it's not a great loss.
Rating: really liked it
There is a new kind of true crime audiobook going on these days. Instead of a story being narrated by one narrator, these audios are produced (primarily by Audible) in a sort of podcast fashion. The real players each tell their side of the story and there are sound bytes of newscasts or other interviews. (See: Evil Has a Name, the story about The Golden State Killer told by the man who investigated it for decades.) I like this trend. It makes the whole thing three-dimensional. The production had one big issue though, and I'll talk about that in a bit.
This true crime narrative is about the DC Sniper attacks, which took place for three weeks in October of 2002. Many of us remember that time, as we were still on edge after 9/11. Why would anyone just randomly take out innocent folks of all shapes, sizes, colors and ages, seemingly without motive? It was terrifying, even if you didn't live in the D.C./Maryland/Virginia area. Of course, at the time we all thought it was International terrorism. We hear from the profilers and counter-terrorism experts (two of them brothers) who doggedly worked to profile and track these killings, giving us the faults and the breakthrough moments of the investigation. We also hear from the loved ones of the victims, the survivors, the witnesses...their heartache at such a violent and random death. Strangely enough, the perpetrators were John Allen Muhammad, a 42 year-old man, and Lee Boyd Malvo, a damaged 16 year-old Jamaican immigrant who was under the influence of Muhammad's crazy. All told, 10 people were killed in their shooting spree, 17 if you count those they killed crossing from the west coast to the east coast.
Again, like I said, I love this format so much. It's like a documentary for the ears. However, this production had one glaring issue. In between each chapter they featured this section of fairly long transition music that was extremely annoying. I'm not sure WHY they did this? But was distracting to the point of teeth clenching. Audible did not produce Evil Has a Name in this way, and I can't imagine anyone listening to it and thinking it's a great idea, so I have no clue. That lost it a star.
Rating: really liked it
Landed on this selection mostly by chance after I saw it heavily promoted on Amazon/Audible. I wouldn't say I'm a true crime junkie, but I've enjoyed a lot of the popular Netflix specials and wanted to know more about this infamous murder spree. I'm embarrassed to admit that I really knew very little about this event. I think I was suffering from fear fatigue after 9/11 and the constant threats of domestic terrorism we all lived under and was most likely trying to avoid additional triggers.
For the first chapter or two, I wasn't really that engaged with the storytelling, but I found myself drawn in with each new revelation and connection. The horror that plagued each of these communities and the usual methods employed to murder so many people while remaining undetected was both chilling and mysterious. True modern-day monsters, it's a relief that some form of justice was leveled on these deplorable men. And to think, our country STILL hasn't woken up to our gun problem with any substantive legislation.
