'Son of Sam' ready for parole? 'I don't know,' ex-mobster says

(NewsNation) — An interviewer says “Son of Sam” serial killer David Berkowitz has become a reformed prisoner, nearly 50 years after New York City police slapped the cuffs on him and ended his reign of terror.

But Michael Franzese won’t go so far as to say the public would be safe if Berkowitz is ever freed.

“Could it ever happen again? I don’t know. That’s a tough question,” Franzese told “Banfield” on Wednesday.

The 72-year-old Berkowitz reportedly is not angling to get out. Berkowitz goes to state parole hearings out of what he has said is an obligation to attend but told Franzese he’s not trying to get out and even suggested he doesn’t deserve it.

Who was the 'Son of Sam' killer?

People who lived through the "Son of Sam" era would not argue.

From July 1976 to August 1977, Berkowitz fatally shot six people and wounded seven others as he went on late-night hunts for women or couples sitting in cars. Initially known as the “.44 Caliber Killer” — a reference to the type of gun he used — the stalker later referred to himself as “Son of Sam” in taunting letters he wrote to police and journalists.

Detectives eventually zeroed in on Berkowitz, a postal employee, after examining parking tickets that had been left on cars near the final crime scene. He was arrested Aug. 10, 1977, outside his Yonkers apartment building and reportedly said to police, “You got me. What took you so long?”

During his decades behind bars, Berkowitz has embraced Christianity and granted occasional interviews.

Brooklyn, N.Y.: "Son of Sam," David Berkowitz, stands before Criminal Court Judge Richard Brown at the Criminal Court building in Brooklyn, N.Y. to hear charges accusing him in six random murders on August 11, 1977. (Photo by Stan Wolfson/Newsday RM via Getty Images)

David Berkowitz has blamed demons

Enter Franzese, a former Colombo crime family captain who served time for racketeering and likewise became religious. Through a mutual acquaintance, he was able to get an interview with Berkowitz. It ran last year on Franzese’s YouTube page, “Sit Down with Michael Franzese.”

During the talk, Berkowitz repeats his claims that demonic forces pushed him to become a serial killer. He says after leaving the Army as a young man, he wanted to find a girlfriend, get married and use the GI bill to obtain an education.

“I was living my life. Inwardly, I was just wrestling with these forces of darkness,” the convicted killer says.

Franzese said he found Berkowitz “sincere” during their meeting and noted the prisoner participates in Bible studies. He said Berkowitz told him he gets mail from would-be killers and discourages them from following in his earlier footsteps.

“He said, ‘I get hundreds of letters, and I try to discourage these people from doing anything crazy like I did,’” Franzese said.

Berkowitz is next eligible for parole in 2026.