The image of Louise Bundy, wiping away her tear and speaking to her son, Ted Bundy, for the last time, cuts deep. The way she tells him, “You will always be my precious son,” after everything he’s done—it’s heartbreaking. There’s something about a mother’s love that’s so raw, so unyielding, even in the face of unimaginable horror. And yet, here she is, a mother who loved a man capable of such monstrous acts, having to cope with that. It’s an emotional hell that most of us can’t even begin to fathom.
It’s hard to think of an old woman, who’s spent her entire life loving her child, now being forced to reckon with the truth of who he’s become. That’s not just a burden, it’s a soul-crushing weight. Imagine the torment, the guilt she must have felt. Did she somehow miss the signs? Did she fail him in some way? The question, “What could I have done differently?” is one no mother should ever have to ask herself.
It always messes with me to read about parents who have to face this brutal truth. Their child, once their baby, is now a killer. It’s impossible to comprehend the pain of loving someone so deeply, only to realize they’ve caused such unspeakable harm. And as much as we may try to point fingers at the parents of serial killers, the reality is—some of them are not deadbeats. They love their children, and when those children turn into monsters, they have to bear that shame, too. It’s not their fault, but they’re still left with the wreckage of a life they tried so hard to build.
Some mothers, no matter what, will always love their children. Louise Bundy loved Ted despite the world telling her she shouldn’t. And while some might view her as weak or naive, I see someone who was simply human, in the most gut-wrenching way possible. The fact that she still called him “her precious son” in his final moments—it’s a mother’s love, even when the world around her is telling her to hate him.
And yet, the truth is, family members of serial killers are victims too. They are forced to live with the actions of someone they loved, someone they once thought of as a child. For Louise, the grief of losing her son to the state’s justice system, along with the weight of his crimes, is something that will never be undone. It’s tragic, painful, and so deeply human.
