Herbert Mullin (1947–2022) was an American serial killer responsible for the murders of 13 people in California between 1972 and 1973. Mullin claimed he committed the killings to prevent catastrophic earthquakes, citing severe paranoid delusions and mental illness. His murder spree overlapped with that of fellow serial killer Edmund Kemper in the Santa Cruz area, creating widespread fear and confusion during one of California’s darkest periods of true crime history.