The Devil Behind the Badge: The Horrifying Twelve Days of the Border Patrol Serial Killer

In his first book, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Jervis recounts the horrifying crimes of an unraveling U.S. border patrol agent. Abusing his power and exploiting his badge, David Ortiz brutally murdered Melissa Ramirez, Claudine Anne Luera, Guiselda Hernandez, and Janelle Ortiz, four sex workers who lived harrowing lives in the border town of Laredo, TX. With the narrative focusing on the tragic loss of these four individuals, Jervis paints devastating portraits of the women’s lives, the misfortunes they experienced, the adversity they faced, and the demons that haunted them. Narrated by Timothy Andrés Pabon, Jervis’s words leave a lasting impact. Pabon’s smooth, no-nonsense delivery of the text allows for this gruesome tale to be ingested easily. While most passages drift to being quite somber, the accounts of the murders rely entirely on facts. Jervis’s exploration into Ortiz’s crimes exposes a deeper truth about law enforcement’s handling of the border crisis, while simultaneously providing a comprehensive look into the treatment and neglect of sex workers.