In Jennifer Hillier’s The Butcher, Edward Shank’s public persona as a heroic police officer falls away as the violent reality hidden inside it is exposed. The book shows how a badge, a leadership title, and long-standing community trust can hide predatory behavior. Edward uses the authority from his long tenure at the Seattle Police Department to commit and hide decades of crime. Instead of disappearing from the public eye so as to continue killing, he steps further into it, using his notoriety as a shield while he uses his insider knowledge to further his crimes.

From nearly the beginning of his career, Edward builds his heroic persona on a lie. He begins his career as the Butcher as a calculated bid for promotion, knowing that if he were to capture such a notorious serial killer, he would rise through the ranks. He killed his victims to plunge Seattle into panic so that he could rescue the city and hand them the killer. His plan works perfectly, and he admits that his killing of the supposed Beacon Hill Butcher, Rufus Wedge, in 1985 “had almost single-handedly made his career” (7). As he anticipated, the city’s praise transforms him into a “hero and Seattle legend” (7), and the medal and acclaim that follow lift him into the chief’s office. Although he continues to kill, his understanding of police methods ensures that he won’t be caught or connected to the Butcher. Edward’s increased status becomes a shield that allows him to kill without suspicion.

Even after retirement, Edward continues to use his reputation to hide his violence. He is known throughout Seattle simply as “the Chief” despite his retired status, illustrating how he continues to enjoy both his celebrity and its usefulness as a shield. The novel shows how this happens through Edward’s interactions with the residents of the Sweetbay Village Retirement Residence. His reputation as “the Chief” and his understanding of forensics and investigative methods allow him to kill Greg Bonner by slamming his head into a granite counter and staging the scene as an accidental fall. He later kills Donald Martini by slipping Viagra into Martini’s tea, knowing the drug will react with his heart medication and appear to cause a natural death. His identity as the former chief ensures that the authorities will look past him for suspects, something he understands and exploits.

Edward’s use of his power is also underscored by his control of the Butcher case itself. Sanchez eventually discovers that Edward ordered the medical examiner to remove the Butcher’s real “signature” from all official autopsy reports: the snipped lock of hair from each victim. This deliberate change distorts the killer’s pattern, secures the frame-up of Rufus Wedge, and lets Edward continue to kill after Wedge’s death without linking the crimes to the Butcher. Edward uses his authority to rewrite evidence and bend the investigation around himself, turning the police department into an unwilling extension of his violence. He exploits his heroic façade, which he systematically created, to continue a life of violent crime.