Netflix’s My Father, The BTK Killer revisits the story of Dennis Rader from a perspective that explores a daughter’s struggle to make sense of a loving father who’s also a deranged serial killer. The Skye Borgman crime documentary chronicles the heinous deeds of Rader, who took pride in Binding, Torturing, and Killing (BTK) his victims until he was unmasked and arrested in February 2005. Rader terrorized his community for years and evaded authorities, thanks to his unassuming life as a family man and church leader.
The BTK killer murdered at least ten people around Wichita, Kansas, between January 1974 and January 1991. His killings began with the Oteros, a family of seven that lost four members to the cruel killer in a go. Getting away with the Otero murders emboldened Dennis Rader to target more victims. He grew cocky as the years went by without his crimes catching up with him. So he wrote letters taunting the authorities and inevitably helped the police unmask his identity.
Dennis Rader Is Still In Prison
The BTK Killer is paying for his crimes behind bars and is poised to spend the rest of his days there. After he was apprehended, Dennis Rader refused to speak at his arraignment, prompting the judge to enter not guilty pleas on his behalf. This changed before the scheduled trial date as he opted out of a trial, pleading guilty to the 10 counts of first-degree murder brought against him. With that, Rader was subjected to a psychological evaluation that eliminated the possibility of a mental disorder defense.
When his sentencing came around in August 2025, he was handed 10 life terms with a minimum of 175 years in prison. Due to the timeline of his killing, Dennis Rader’s sentencing sparked debates about restoring capital punishment, which the state laws had struck out in 1972. Kansas reinstated the death penalty in 1994, but hasn’t carried out any executions since 1965. So, the capital punishment wasn’t on the table when Rader was sentenced. He began serving his 10 consecutive life sentences on August 19, 2025.
The BTK Killer is incarcerated at the El Dorado Correctional Facility in Butler County, Kansas. His earliest possible date of February 26, 2180, guarantees he will never regain his freedom until the day he dies. Back in 2014, Rader decided to collaborate with Katherine Ramsland for a book he hoped would help the families of his victims. Having signed over his media rights to the families, Rader told The Wichita Eagle he understands he “can never replace their loved ones,” that his “deeds [were] too dark to understand, [but] the book or movies (about his crimes) is the only way to help them.” The book titled Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer, was published in 2016.
What Was The Motive Of The BTK Killer
Dennis Rader regarded his killings as projects, and Ramsland’s book is perhaps the most definitive attempt to uncover the serial killer’s motives. From the author’s correspondence with the killer, she traced his desire to stalk, torture, and kill to his childhood. Born into a decent family, Rader was raised by parents who were hardly around. This allowed him to indulge in sexual sadism as much as he wanted.
When he wasn’t stealing women’s underwear or peeping on neighbors during private moments, he would hang animals to arouse himself, cross-dress, or masturbate while strangling himself. Robert Mendoza, the psychologist who evaluated him, concluded he was sane and aware of the evil he perpetrated. He offered that Rader was a narcissist with an unrealistic sense of self-importance. Mendoza also diagnosed the serial killer with antisocial personality and obsessive compulsive disorders, mashed up with a desperate need for attention and lack of empathy.
Does Kerri Keep In Touch With Her Father?
For decades, the BTK killer’s family has struggled to come to terms with Dennis Rader’s atrocities. This is especially true for his daughter, Kerri Rawson, who signed up for the Netflix documentary to find closure and reclaim her identity. Like Borgman expressed, it’s more than a movie for Rawson, “who has spent her life trying to reconcile love, betrayal, and family.” Rawson kept in touch with her dad after he was incarcerated, helping investigators gain information for other crimes Rader might have committed.
However, it seems she’s now resolved to move on with life without him. Borgman told Tudum she hasn’t visited her father since filming concluded. “She has chosen not to maintain contact, and there haven’t been any revelations or confessions. That in itself has reinforced the boundaries that Kerri has set,” continued the director. “She has also consciously stepped back from being a conduit for information, recognizing that her healing cannot hinge on what her father does or does not reveal.” Check out Dexter Resurrection’s 5 most satisfying kills.
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