James Fitzgerald’s most significant contribution in capturing the wanted criminal, Theodore John Kaczynski, a.k.a. Unabomber, however, came with its disadvantage in his personal life, which shattered his first marriage with Ellie Fitzgerald.
Parted After The Unabomber Case
While the nation was ecstatic and celebrating the end of the long-time chase of one of the most wanted criminals, Fitzgerald dealt with a failed marriage with his first wife, Ellie, on returning home.
The couple tied the knot in 1976 and had three sons together. But sadly, his job as an FBI agent, which consumed much of his time, did not fit well with his relationship with Ellie, leading the couple to part their ways after the closure of the Unabomber case.
Replying to a comment on his Twitter account in January 2018, the FBI agent said that the couple divorced post-Unabom, and it was a difficult time for the whole family. Also, he mentioned the couple are still on good terms and co-parented their kids after their divorce.
Unfortunately, my wife and I did divorce post-Unabom. It was very sad & difficult for both of us & our 3 boys. However, we remain friendly to this day. The raising of our sons to adulthood was our primary goal. We succeeded. She's a great person & we have 3 great kids. — James R. Fitzgerald (@JFitzJourney) January 27, 2018
Love Found Its Way Again
Moving on from the divorce, Fitzgerald got engaged to Natalie Schilling, a Linguistics Professor at Georgetown University. The couple came to the spotlight in 2017 after the release of the American drama series, Manhunt, which disclosed the Unabomber case.
The drama shows Natalie’s involvement in decoding Kaczynski’s writing, portrayed by Lynn Collins, while Sam Worthington performed Fitzgerald’s role.
End to The Unabomber Case
The terror that began in 1978 finally came to an end in 1995, when the FBI could crack the code and chase down Kaczynski, an American terrorist and a mathematical genius.
The nearly two-decades-long chase was concluded by the prominent contribution of the forensic linguist James Fitzgerald, whose analysis of the Unabomber Manifesto led the FBI to the criminal.
By the time the FBI captured the terrorist, his ruthless bombing had already resulted in twenty-four injured people and three deaths.
In fact, the Unabomber investigation was named the most expensive investigation to that date.
