Kai Hitchhiker

Everything you need to know about Caleb "Kai" McGillivary, the subject of Neflix's latest true crime documentary.

Wolfe says that he believes Kai had a difficult childhood and remembers him being prone to spells of rage. During the proceedings, he was combative during cross-examination and the judge called him “a powder keg of explosive rage.” “And in this case, Caleb gets crushed.” During the investigation, police found a piece of paper with Kai’s number and name on it underneath a laptop in Galfy’s home. To hear it in Kai’s words, which were caught on video by local news reporter Jessob Reisbeck and shared to YouTube the day of the incident, Kai said he hitched a ride with Jett Simmons McBride in Fresno, Calif. One minute he’d be strumming a guitar, and in the next he’d be peeing on Julio Iglesias’ star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Stromberg also shared that getting her son help over the years proved difficult. Galfy was when you murdered him.” that he started using the name. He had no problem shoplifting from stores in the Bay Area, but would turn around and give the stolen goods away to other homeless people. [attacked Galfy in self-defence](https://globalnews.ca/news/610102/not-guilty-plea-entered-for-kai-the-hitchhiker/) after the lawyer, whom he met in Times Square and offered him a place to stay, drugged and sexually assaulted him the night before. And it doesn’t matter your looks, skills or age or size or anything, you’re worthwhile.

Known as Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker, Caleb Lawrence McGillvary once found internet fame despite his dark reality shown in Netflix's new ...

He pleaded not guilty to the crime and was held on a $3 million bond after being deemed dangerous, At that point, Kai said he stepped in and stopped the attack by hitting McBride with a hatchet. He was regarded as a hero, per [Esquire](https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/a42386448/hatchet-wielding-hitchhiker-kai-true-story/), after memorably explaining how he "suh-mashed" a man while hitchhiking to stop the driver from attacking a woman. Kai then said that McBride hit a pedestrian with the car on purpose. Caleb Lawrence McGillvary, known as Kai, was introduced to the world via viral video in February 2013. Are You Asking It Already? "A guy that big can snap a woman's neck like a pencil stick. [viral](https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/viral-videos) 2013 interview that turned a homeless surfer into an overnight Internet sensation. [Esquire](https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/a42386448/hatchet-wielding-hitchhiker-kai-true-story/), after migrating from the West Coast to New York City, in May 2013. Smash, smash, SUH-MASH!" [People](https://people.com/crime/kai-lawrence-the-hatchet-wielding-hitchhiker-netflix-documentary/), when investigators found evidence in the house connecting Kai to the crime. [Decider](https://decider.com/2023/01/10/kai-the-hitchhiker-now-caleb-mcgivallry-true-story/).

'The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker' (Caleb McGillvary) went viral in 2013. Here's what to know about his family, their relationship, and where they are now.

In the interview, which blew up on the Internet and spawned memes, McGillvary talked about using the [blunt side of his hatchet](https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/g35204017/best-true-crime-podcasts-2021/) to protect the woman, [describing the blows](https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a42042587/texas-killing-fields-true-story-netflix-documentary/) he delivered as going, “smash, smash, suh-mash.” His father, Gil, was living in Ontario when he last spoke to the press. McGillvary is currently in prison for the murder of a New Jersey man until 2061, and family has largely stayed out of the spotlight. [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-canada-011d9c525bbf105f604c8bbcca732954), but prosecutors said he made inconsistent statements and noted that Galfy suffered from extensive injuries. Kai told the local news reporter in his viral interview that he didn’t have family. McGillvary was a 24-year-old hitchhiker who was picked up by a man named Jett Simmons McBride while hitchhiking in California in 2013. But McGillvary was arrested months later on charges that he beat New Jersey lawyer Joseph Galfy to death. The system let my son down.” [The Star-Ledger](https://www.nj.com/news/2013/05/mysterious_hitchhiker_from_can.html) said that McGillvary was “estranged” from his family, and Gil noted that his son was in treatment homes until he turned 18, at which time the centers “cut him loose and washed their hands of him.” Gil added, “Caleb made accusations that he was physically and mentally abused at one of the homes. “Kai the Hitchhiker.” [viral](https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a41926795/y2k-half-zip-amazon/) in 2013 after he used a hatchet to help save a woman from an attack, afterwards giving an expletive-laced interview with [KMPH](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16oUKdOUstU&t=0s) and [Fox26](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xa0NfCdLk4&t=61s). [The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker](https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a42464056/kai-the-hatchet-wielding-hitchhiker-now/) details the stunning viral fame and [quick fall](https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/g29028290/best-true-crime-shows/) of a young man named Caleb McGillvary, a.k.a.

Back in 2013, a man named Caleb McGillvary went viral after he used a hatchet to help save a woman from an attack. McGillvary, who calls himself Kai, ...

[This Is The Perfect Time To Do a Relationship Refresh](https://www.womenshealth.com.au/how-to-do-a-relationship-refresh/) [This Is The Perfect Time To Do a Relationship Refresh](https://www.womenshealth.com.au/how-to-do-a-relationship-refresh/) She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day. [Want To Keep Your Gut Happy Come 2023? [All The Mercury Retrograde 2023 Dates And What To Expect, According To An Astrologer](https://www.womenshealth.com.au/mercury-in-retrograde-dates-2023/) [All The Mercury Retrograde 2023 Dates And What To Expect, According To An Astrologer](https://www.womenshealth.com.au/mercury-in-retrograde-dates-2023/) He’s currently serving time in Trenton, N.J., according to At the time, claimed the verdict wasn’t justified by the evidence and that “prosecutors committed misconduct by mischaracterizing the evidence and McGillvary’s defense,” the outlet said. [Caleb McGillvary](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2r4vg3vdkM) went viral after he used a hatchet to help save a woman from an attack. The victim had several blunt-force injuries to his face, head, neck, chest, and arms, along with three skull fractures, four broken ribs, and severe contusions, abrasions, and bleeding, CBS New York reported. Three months later, in May of 2013, McGillvary was once again in the news, but this time for being arrested on charges that he beat New Jersey lawyer Joseph Galfy to death. McGillvary described to the reporter how McBride began threatening a woman who was trying to help the pinned man. McGillvary then said McBride started claiming to be Jesus Christ and crashed into a pedestrian in an intersection, pinned him against the back of a parked truck. Here’s what you need to know:

In the new Netflix documentary The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker, we meet Kai Lawrence, who we later learn was born Caleb McGillvary. In 2013, Kai, a homeless ...

Gil told the outlet that he lost custody of Kai after he and Shirley divorced. "He was in treatment homes until he turned 18 and then they cut him loose and washed their hands of him," Gil said. His mother Shirley appeared in the documentary to address these claims, arguing that it was never as severe as Kai made it out to be. "I believe that Caleb didn’t like the fact that I remarried, that I didn’t rescue him from the treatment home, that I have three kids from my present wife. Other than that, Gil doesn't seem to have had a huge presence in Kai's life. Shirley explained that while she did sometimes keep Kai in his room, it was to “stop the ability of him [Kai] getting out of the room too early" in the morning. in 2013, Gil claimed that his son grew up in Canada, where he was shuffled through homes for troubled teens. In The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker, we learn that Kai's parents split up when he was 4 years old. While Shirley hasn't seen Kai in years, she did express interest in reconnecting with her now-incarcerated son. But of course, that was far from the truth. What initially made Kai such an interesting news subject at the time he went viral was the fact that he said he was homeless. [Netflix](https://www.distractify.com/t/netflix) documentary [The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker](https://www.netflix.com/watch/81436777?), we meet [Kai Lawrence](https://www.distractify.com/p/kai-the-hatchet-wielding-hitchhiker-now), who we later learn was born Caleb McGillvary.