Chapter 5: Chapter Two: The Boogeyman

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

Richard Chizmar secures exclusive access to Joshua Gallagher through a deal with Maryland State Police. Gallagher, arrested in September 2019, confesses to seven murders and hints at more victims. The chapter details Gallagher’s adoption and seemingly normal childhood in Edgewood. Chizmar describes Gallagher’s ordinary appearance and the note card he tapes to his dashboard: “He’s wearing a mask underneath his mask.” Over time, Gallagher becomes a bizarre celebrity, receiving fan mail, inspiring a popular podcast, and sparking merchandise sales. Chizmar recounts three additional victims, including Shannon Degnim, and includes an interview transcript showing Gallagher’s methodical approach to Loretta Stamford. The chapter examines the public’s fascination with evil and the contrast between Gallagher’s mundane exterior and his monstrous inner world.

Key Events

Joshua Gallagher is arrested on September 7, 2019, and charged with four 1988 murders; he confesses to those four plus three additional killings (Louise Rutherford, Colette Bowden, Erin Brown).
Chizmar negotiates exclusive interviews with Gallagher, recording over seventy hours of conversation between December 2019 and March 2022.
Background is provided on Gallagher’s adoption by Russell and Catherine Gallagher and his happy childhood on Hawthorne Drive.
Chizmar describes his first impression of Gallagher: a tired, ordinary-looking man, not a monster. He writes the note “He’s wearing a mask underneath his mask.”
Gallagher evolves in prison: he loses weight, his limp disappears, and his eyes gain a “sparkle.” He becomes a celebrity, receiving more mail than any other inmate.
The Boogeyman Lives podcast, cohosted by Robin Frank and Gerald Whitty, capitalizes on the case with contests and tours of Edgewood.
Chizmar reveals three additional victims: Shannon Degnim (1999), presumed after Gallagher provides a map to her remains; the others are not named in full detail here.
An interview excerpt shows Gallagher first spotting Loretta Stamford at Rocks State Park in 2011, following her to the parking lot, and experiencing a vision of killing her.
Gallagher’s humming habit, his unusual gray eyes, and his “earthy” smell are noted.

Character Development

Richard Chizmar: The narrator grapples with the ethical tension of working with a killer. He forces himself to remember Gallagher’s hidden monstrosity by displaying the note card. His interviews reveal his growing unease, especially after researching Shannon Degnim’s resemblance to his childhood girlfriend.
Joshua Gallagher: Initially appears defeated and sad, but in prison he transforms into a confident, almost content celebrity. His physical improvements and the adulation he receives suggest a man relishing his notoriety. He remains evasive about certain topics (his father’s death, the meaning of the telltales), indicating he still controls the narrative.
Loretta Stamford: Though deceased, she is developed through the interview transcript as a kind, unsuspecting teenager whose murder was premeditated with chilling calmness.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

The Mask Beneath the Mask: Chizmar’s repeated phrase underscores the central theme of the mundane monster. Gallagher’s ordinary appearance is a facade hiding a predatory nature. The burlap masks sold online literalize this idea.
The Boogeyman as Cultural Icon: The nickname, drawn from horror films like John Carpenter’s Halloween, is dissected as a powerful archetype that the public finds both terrifying and alluring. The chapter argues that the nickname itself fuels fascination more than Gallagher’s personal charisma.
Public Fascination with Evil: The true-crime industry around Gallagher—podcasts, merchandise, fan letters—mirrors historical cases (Manson, Bundy) and shows how violence is commodified. The People magazine cover with a “THE BOOGEYMAN’S A STUD” tank top epitomizes this trend.
The Shape: Referenced from Halloween, it symbolizes the amorphous, legendary nature of the killer before he gained an identity. Gallagher becomes a vessel for collective fear.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter establishes the book’s central paradox: the killer is both monstrous and banal. It lays the groundwork for Chizmar’s moral struggles as an interviewer and provides the cultural context for Gallagher’s notoriety. The detailed account of three additional victims deepens the tragedy and shows how the investigation unfolds. Chapter 2 also introduces the motif of storytelling itself—Gallagher as a manipulative narrator, Chizmar as the recorder.

Study Questions

Why does Chizmar tape the note card reading “HE’S WEARING A MASK UNDERNEATH HIS MASK” to his dashboard?
Chizmar uses the card to remind himself that Gallagher’s ordinary appearance is a deliberate deception. He needs to resist the temptation to see Gallagher as just a tired, average man and instead remember the monstrous acts hidden beneath the surface.
What evidence does Chizmar present to show that the public’s fascination with Gallagher is not based on personal charm?
He notes that unlike younger serial killers such as Ted Bundy or Richard Ramirez, Gallagher is neither handsome nor charismatic. Instead, he attributes the fascination to the childhood-fear-inducing nickname “the Boogeyman” and the inherent thrill of confronting a real-life horror. The chapter lists websites, a popular podcast, and merchandise as proof.
How does Gallagher describe the moment he decided to kill Loretta Stamford?
While eating a hamburger at a park cookout with his family, Gallagher got ketchup on his shirt. Cleaning it triggered a vivid mental image of his hands around Loretta’s neck. He says it was not the ketchup itself but the same “pure clarity and stimulation” he experienced with previous victims, followed by sexual arousal.