The Mulford Family

"We'll wait until first light. It's more fun when they're not expectin' it."

The Mulford Family was responsible for a number of murders committed in and before Open Season.

Background
Joe was born on April 16, 1950. He was drafted by the U.S. military in 1968 at the age of eighteen and was discharged two years later following reports of him hallucinating and upholding delusions. He later obtained a criminal record of assault and battery and eventually owned a service station on Highway 2. He then killed a man named Dustin Strafford for unspecified reasons, presumably by hunting and killing him in the woods, taking Dustin's driver's license afterwards, apparently as a kind of trophy. While Dustin is the only victim confirmed to have been killed by Joe, it is possible that he may have killed several more of the other seventeen victims shown below, and it is possible that others were killed before Paul and John were born. All that is confirmed is that at some point, after the killing of Dustin Strafford, Joe's brother/sister and his/her spouse died, leaving their sons, Paul and John, to be raised by Joe.

He raised and educated them completely on his own. He also taught them how to hunt and navigate through the woods and also shared his bizarre, psychotic beliefs. When he passed away, Paul and John inherited the station and started hunting and killing people in the woods, apparently as a result of being taught to do so by Joe, who had presumably killed Dustin Strafford and possibly several others the same way, though whether or not Joe actually intended for them to kill anyone is not clear: while Joe may have possibly had personal reasons for killing his selected victims, Paul and John's were selected completely at random, as they had come to view the act of hunting, torturing and killing anyone they could abduct as nothing more than a sport, a game for their amusement.

Open Season
The BAU are called in after Alex Harrison, a victim, is found killed in the woods. While they worked with the local police to find the killers, Paul and John picked up Bobbi Baird on Highway 2 when her car broke down and released her into the woods. As she ran, she came into contact with two camping couples. Realizing they wouldn't be able to keep track on so many at one time, Paul killed one of the couples. The other one, Luke Hamilton and his wife/fiancée Heather, fled together with Bobbi. Eventually, Luke was killed by Johnny. Bobbi then took a pocket knife from Luke's jacket and kept running with Heather. Understanding that they were only giving the Mulford brothers what they wanted by running, they stopped and set up an ambush which resulted in Johnny killing Heather before being stabbed in the stomach multiple times by Bobbi.

Paul left Johnny by a fireplace and left to kill Bobbi. At the time, the local police and the BAU had tracked them down and followed the trail to Johnny, who they believed to be another victim. Realizing that he had been stabbed, not shot with an arrow, Gideon told him that other law enforcement officers were looking for Paul with an order to shoot if necessary. Johnny then pleaded that they don't kill Paul, as he was all he had, and told them the direction Paul had gone. At the same time, Bobbi jumped on him from a tree branch and stabbed him in the back twice. Paul got up and shot an arrow at her, but missed. When he aimed again, Morgan arrived and told him to stand down. When Paul refused, Morgan shot and killed him. Meanwhile, Johnny bled out from his stab wounds and died.

Members

 * Joseph "Joe" Mulford . Portrayed by an uncredited actor via mugshot.
 * Paul Mulford . Portrayed by Jim Parrack.
 * John "Johnny" Mulford . Portrayed by Jake Richardson.

Modus Operandi
Paul, John, and presumably Joe would all hunt humans like wild animals in the Boise National Forest. Since nothing is specified about how and why Joe killed, it is safe to speculate that he may have known and had something personal against his selected victims, although Paul and John's victims were selected completely at random. Joe's weapon of choice is also not specified, but it was most likely a compound bow and arrow, a preference he passed on to Paul and John, who would abduct people whose cars broke down on Highway 2. The hunts could go on for several days, the victims surviving thanks to their instincts, while being psychologically tortured the whole time by the knowledge that Paul and John could kill them at any time. Unlike most regular hunters who prefer to put their game out of their misery once they're killed, Paul and John took delight in watching their victims die a slow death. The family originally had the habit of taking driver's licenses from the people they killed, presumably as trophies, although there is no evidence that Paul and John did this to their last few victims.

Profile
The unsubs are two male offenders in their mid- to late-twenties (later revealed to be three after the revelation of Joe) in good physical condition. They would have to be fit to make it through the terrain. No would go too deep into the woods without back up. Killing teams are like most partnerships, with one of the members being weak and the other one stronger. The lack of sexual activity seen on the victims' bodies suggests that they are either developmentally prepubescent or related, as close relatives wouldn't discuss, much less perform sexual acts in front of each other. If they are related, they may have an us-versus-them mentality and will have an unbreakable bond with each other because it is all they know.

Most hunters put their prey out of their misery; however, the unsubs don't show any mercy. They take pleasure in watching their victims die slowly. Every spring for the past five years, people went missing, so the unsubs waited for their victims to to migrate through the woods. Some of their victims were smart, healthy adults who survived for days by following their instincts. They likely obtain victims either by approaching in a non-hostile manner or by waiting for a moment of weakness, both in the middle of nowhere. These particular hunters are very seasoned and very effective. It's not unusual for them to have chosen to use a compound bow as their weapon of choice. It requires the utmost precision, and it provides them with a challenge every time. Like the trophy hunter, these men plan their killings with care. They decide what type of victims they want, how and where they want to kill them, and with what weapon. Hunting is their sport. Humans are their targets.

Real-Life Comparison
The Mulford Family might have been inspired by serial killer Robert Hansen, who would also abduct victims and hunt them in the wilderness as if they were animals, though they are similar in only that one aspect, with many differences outnumbering the similarities.

Mutual Victims

 * Pre-1980: Dustin Strafford
 * Pre-1988:
 * Josh Bridges
 * Randy Dillion
 * At least fifteen victims killed by Joe or Paul. Named ones are:
 * Post-2000: Phillip Fitzroy
 * Pre-2002:
 * Colin Bradford
 * Gloria
 * -her Osgood
 * Post-2002: Colby Freeman
 * Post-2003: Brad Jepson
 * Post-2004:
 * Hayward
 * David Sutterman
 * March-April 2005: Lydia Charles
 * March-May 2006:
 * Courtney Jacobs
 * Shane Everett
 * 2007:
 * April 28: Alex Harrison
 * April 30-May 2: Bobbi Baird
 * May 1: Joel and Taylor Brause
 * May 2:
 * Luke Hamilton
 * Heather

Appearances

 * Season Two
 * Open Season