In episode 29 of the “How I Library” podcast, show host and I Love Libraries editor Phil Morehart speaks with Thien Ho, District Attorney of Sacramento County, California, whose new book, “The People vs. the Golden State Killer” (Third State Books, 2025), documents the hunt for and prosecution of serial killer Joseph DeAngelo, aka the Golden State Killer.
Ho was the lead prosecutor who led a team of law enforcement from six California prosecutor’s offices in the hunt for DeAngelo, a former police officer who committed 13 murders and at least 50 rapes between 1974 and 1986 throughout California. “The People vs. the Golden State Killer” is the first official account of how DeAngelo was apprehended and put behind bars for life.
The book also details Ho’s fascinating personal journey—escaping communist Vietnam on a fishing boat as a child, working his way up from an internship to an elite homicide division, and eventually becoming Sacramento County District Attorney.
Ho joins the show to discuss his book and the Golden State Killer case, our collective fascination with true crime, his inspiring life story, and how he libraries.
“How I Library” is available for download or streaming on Soundcloud, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Or listen below.
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