ORANGE, Calif. — After sleeping with her 3-month-old baby girl in a friend’s car for the past week, Faith Reynolds heard two words that would push her to seek refuge in a shelter: serial killer.
Police and advocates have been urging those living on the streets to head inside or buddy up since three homeless men were stabbed to death in Orange County in recent weeks.
Reynolds, a recovering drug addict and former fast-food cashier, is heeding the call.
“I’m scared that he could do anything to anybody right now — us being alone,” said Reynolds, 28, while gently stroking her daughter’s forehead as she slept tucked inside a stroller at a soup kitchen.
Since the deaths, the number of homeless sleeping in each of two wintertime shelters in the county has jumped 40 percent, said Larry Haynes, executive director of Mercy House, which runs the shelters.
But he said it’s tough to know whether fear, coaxing from police or cold weather is behind the surge. Nearly 7,000 people out of 3 million county residents were homeless in a January 2011 count.
Word of the crimes has spread quickly among the homeless, many of whom keep up with the news and pass along tidbits at soup kitchens and shelters.
“The homeless grapevine has always been very active,” Haynes said. “Changing behavior is another thing.”
In Santa Ana, dozens of men and women slept on thin black mats covered by thick gray blankets in the cavernous National Guard Armory that doubles as a shelter in the winter.
Scott Melton, 24, wolfed down a chocolate-filled dough nut and sipped coffee. The unemployed loan processor was shocked to learn about the killer when he returned Monday night from working a two-week job at a mountain hotel.
“You could possibly not wake up. It’s a scary thing,” Melton said.
Chris Clay, 50, speculated that the killer might have a grudge against sex offenders or drug addicts — both found in large numbers on the street.
“I can’t let it change the way I think,” he said. “There’s what, 5,000 homeless out here? And there’s just one killer stalking the homeless? . . . Just don’t stalk me.”
The killing spree began with the stabbing of James McGillivray, 53, on Dec. 20. A week later, the body of Lloyd Middaugh, 42, was found on a riverbed trail. On Dec. 30, the body of Paulus Smit, 57, was discovered outside a library.
The way that the killer sought out lone victims in isolated places in different cities suggests these were the premeditated acts of a sociopath, said Brian Levin, a criminologist at California State University at San Bernardino. “This person is a fairly careful planner,” said Levin, director of the Center of Hate and Extremism. “For him, it’s like a hunt. He’s extremely dangerous and will probably do it again.”
In response, police are patrolling spots frequented by the homeless and distributing fliers with safety tips.
Police have started a tip line and are investigating the killings with the county sheriff’s department and FBI.
The Orange County Rescue Mission has passed out flashlights and whistles to help fend off attackers. Members of a Southern California chapter of the Guardian Angels have handed out fliers.
