Albert DeSalvo—also known as “The Measuring Man,” “The Green Man,” and “The Boston Strangler”—murdered 13 women between 1962 and 1964. Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, in 1931, DeSalvo was forced to live in extremely impoverished conditions. Often neglected, he was subjected to cruel beatings at the hands of his alcoholic father. He was forced to watch while his father abused and beat his mother. On one occasion, he watched his father break each of his mother's fingers, one after the other. On another occasion, his father sold him and his sister into slavery to a farmer for several months. In 1944, Mrs. DeSalvo divorced her husband, taking her six children with her.

His love for his mother and his hatred for his father seemed to bring out ...