Trespasses: Portrait of a Serial Rapist [Hardcover]

Howard Swindle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1996

Chronicles the career of rapist Gilbert Escobedo--known as The Ski Mask Rapist--a Dallas car salesman who assaulted as many as one hundred women between 1985 and 1990, based on two years of interviews with the criminal himself and his victims. National ad/promo. Tour.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Howard Swindle is a writer who feels strongly about oppression. In his award-winning previous book, Deliberate Indifference, he wrote about a crime of racial injustice. In Trespasses, he turns the same keen attention to the crime of rape, which he calls "the betrayal of intimacy ... an assault on the most personal, inviolate core of our souls." This book focuses on a suspenseful story about just one man--the "Ski Mask Rapist" whose long spree was part of why Dallas in the 80s had a per capita rape incidence that was twice that of New York City--but Swindle explores his subject with a broad-based perspective. He quotes and addresses the arguments of Susan Brownmiller, Andrea Dworkin, and other feminist writers on the subject of rape; and he educates the reader about different types of rapists and their motivations. Trespasses is nominated for a 1997 Edgar Award.

From Publishers Weekly

Gilbert Escobedo confessed to 48 rapes in Dallas between 1985 and 1990, although authorities conjecture that he may have committed twice that number. Physically attractive, compulsively neat, obsessive in every aspect of his life, Escobedo fit exactly the psychological profile used by forensic experts to identify a power rapist, whose crimes are marked by anger and sadism. In this searching analysis, Dallas Morning News editor Swindle (Deliberate Indifference) traces the influences that may have converted his vain, selfish and manipulative subject into a victimizer who sought out only young, beautiful and often well-to-do women as his prey. He shows how Escobedo's careful modus operandi enabled him to avoid arrest even after the police were certain of his guilt. Most intriguing are observations that upset widely held views about rape, such as the profile of a typical rapist, the contention that rape is not a sexual crime and the assumption that every victim is scarred for life (some are, some are not). Most depressing is the estimate that there are over half a million rapes in the U.S. each year, with only a small minority reported. Readers interested in true crime won't want to miss this one.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult (April 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067085879X
• ISBN-13: 978-0670858798
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,171,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW, March 17, 2003

By 

Chris Frost (Ingalls, IN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trespasses: Portrait of a Serial Rapist (Paperback)

Swindle has done an excellent job here of walking the reader through not only the investigation of the rapes committed, but the background and personality of the criminal, Gilbert Escobedo. The fact that Swindle was able to visit and interview Escobedo several times during his incarceration was, I am sure, immensely helpful. I feel that books like these can actually help prevent crime...in this case rape...by arming potential victims with crucial knowledge. The first thing they have to realize--and this is immensely obvious in the book--is that they ARE a potential victim. Escobedo committed upwards of 100 rapes, and even managed to maintain some "normal" relationships on the side...even going so far as to initiate not only an intimate relationship, but also a business relationship with an unsuspecting woman who, coincidentally, was previously one of his victims. She never even knew until he was finally arrested. You really can't make this stuff up.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing as it is disturbing. A must read., June 16, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Trespasses: Portrait of a Serial Rapist (Hardcover)

Swindle handles a disturbing and incomprehensible subject with the vivid and intriguing storytelling ability of a novelist. He presents his subject, which readers look at like they would observe a horrific scene with face-covered hands, barely seeing through the cracks of their fingers, with a reverence of the oppression women endure. He handles the gruesome facts without painting an unnecessary violent picture of the details, although the violence is very real, rather implied without being glorified, whenever possible.

We see into this sick world without having to re-live the victim's overwhelming and terrorizing experiences almost vicariously, which may be the reason I was able to not only eagerly finish the book, but even broach reading about the subject to begin with. Subjects such as stranger rape, being attacked in the supposed safety and sanctity of one's private space, chills most women (and probably most men; however, I would venture to point out that it is not a frequent occurence for most men and thus men probably do not share the same level of terror with women for themselves, but possibly share some level of fear for the safety of their loved ones.)

Reading a book about rape runs the risk a lot of women aren't willing to take: that this is a topic that, even though a part of life, women don't want to explore. Everyday experiences such as the trepedation of entering a home alone in the dark are all too frequent reminders of the fear that rape invokes. Many know that this subject runs a great risk of stirring up complicated emotions few women want to ponder.

This is a must read for the realistic and inquistive mind, ever wanting to know more about human nature and the psychological and social forces that drive us, even when those forces are severely disturbed. For some readers of the subject of rape, it is almost as if gaining ab understanding of an issue allows some readers to lose, somewhat, the level of fear usually associated with such topics. It is for those indiv! iduals who want to solicitously broaden their dimension of knowledge about rape that I would recommend this straight-forward and expert handling of an extremely sensitive and terrorizing subject.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Portrait Of a Rapist, December 6, 2009

By 

Dan Bogaty "Mr. Congeniality" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Trespasses: Portrait of a Serial Rapist (Paperback)

Howard Swindle's TRESPASS: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL RAPIST is a true crime book that also examines the psychology of rape. The main part of the book deals with Gilbert Escobedo, a juvenile thief and burglar in Dallas who transformed over the years into a combination burglar/rapist. Swindle's research into and reporting of Escobedo's childhood and of his family's dynamics both as a child and as an adult are thorough as is his coverage of Escobedo's life as an adult when not incarcerated, and the reader gets an in depth look into what made Escobedo the man he became. Interestingly, Escobedo was not the abused troll that many people might imagine. He was, rather, good looking, personally engaging, involved in some relatively long term relationsships, and a successful businessman. He was also a successful and professional burglar and rapist who did not remotely resemble the stereotype. And he was tough to catch. He was finally caught in the act of window peeping, an activity he routinely practiced as research preparatory to the comission rapes. By this time - he had been active over a period of years - the police had come to believe, correctly, that the only way he would be caught was in the act.

The best part of the book, in my opinion, is a 56 page chapter which details the results of Swindle's many hours of jailhouse interviews with Escobedo as well as the conclusions of a psychologist who examined Escobedo's responses in the light of the rapes - possibly numbering over 100 - he had committed. Escobedo is one of those convicts who claim to have given his life to Jesus while incarcerated, but whose responses during Swindle's visits show otherwise. Rather, it is obvious that Escobedo has no real feelings for anyone but himself, and while he claims to regret the pain he has caused to his victims, his unrehearsed statements belie those claims. He has no feelings for anyone but himself and is ultimately revealed as nothing more than a garden variety sociopath.

Swindle has done an exemplary job with TRESPASS. His writing contains no repetition, no soap opera, no personal asides. Swindle is simply an intelligent and talented reporter. This book in hardcover is 292 pages long, and those pages flew by. I highly recommend this book and once again must thank "mi senorita pequena" in Lubbock for her kindness in lending me her copy.