Robbery-homicides are also an example of crimes with a financially motivated serial killer. These killers are also known as comfort-oriented serial killers, and many female serial killers fall into this category. Some serial killers commit murder because they’re driven to do so by their own psychosis or mental illness. Also called visionary serial killers, they often suffer from delusions and hallucinations, thinking that something is telling them to commit murder. The female serial killers who killed on the orders of Charles Manson were examples of killers. Thrill motivated b. Mission oriented c. Expedience d.
- Examples Of Mission Oriented Serial Killers
- Serial Killer Motive Types
- Famous Mission Oriented Serial Killers
. A serial killer is typically a person who three or more people, usually in service of gratification, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant break (a 'cooling off period') between them. Different authorities apply different criteria when designating serial killers; while most set a threshold of three murders, others extend it to four or lessen it to two. The (FBI), for example, defines serial killing as 'a series of two or more murders, committed as separate events, usually, but not always, by one offender acting alone'. Although psychological gratification is the usual for serial killing, and most serial killings involve sexual contact with the victim, the FBI states that the motives of serial killers can include anger, thrill-seeking, financial gain, and. The murders may be attempted or completed in a similar fashion, and the victims may have something in common: age group, appearance, gender, or, for example.
Serial killing is not the same as (killing numerous people in a given incident); nor is it (in which murders are committed in two or more locations, in a short time). However, cases of extended bouts of sequential killings over periods of weeks or months with no apparent 'cooling off period' or 'return to normalcy' have caused some experts to suggest a hybrid category of 'spree-serial killer'. Contents. Characteristics General Some commonly found characteristics of serial killers include the following:. They may exhibit varying degrees of or, which may contribute to their homicidal behavior. For example, someone who is mentally ill may have breaks that cause them to believe they are another person or are compelled to murder by other entities. Psychopathic behavior that is consistent with traits common to some serial killers include sensation seeking, a lack of or, the need for control, and predatory behavior.
Unlike people with major mental disorders such as, psychopaths can seem normal and often quite, a state of adaptation that called the '. They were often —, or —by a family member.
Serial killers may be more likely to engage in, or, which are that involve a strong tendency to experience the object of erotic interest almost as if it were a physical representation of the symbolized body. Individuals engage in paraphilias which are organized along a continuum; participating in varying levels of fantasy perhaps by focusing on body parts (partialism), symbolic objects which serve as physical extensions of the body (fetishism), or the anatomical physicality of the human body; specifically regarding its inner parts and sexual organs (one example being necrophilia).
A disproportionate number exhibit one, two, or all three of the of predictors of future violent behavior:. Many are fascinated with. They are involved in activity; especially in children who have not reached sexual maturity, this activity may take the form of.
More than 60 percent, or simply a large proportion, beyond the age of 12. They were frequently or socially isolated as children or adolescents. For example, was ridiculed as a child and later cited the mass rejection by his peers as a cause for his hatred of everyone. Was teased as a child because he urinated in his pants, suffered twitching, and as a teenager was ignored by his peers.
Some were involved in petty crimes, such as, or similar offenses. Often, they have trouble staying employed and tend to work in menial jobs. The FBI, however, states, 'Serial murderers often seem normal; have families and/or a steady job.' Other sources state they often come from unstable families. Studies have suggested that serial killers generally have an average or low-average, although they are often described, and perceived, as possessing IQs in the above-average range.
A sample of 202 IQs of serial killers had a median IQ of 89. There are exceptions to these criteria, however. For example, was a successful professional (a working for the ). He was considered a pillar of the local community; he even won a professional award for a children's asthma clinic and was interviewed by 's. Was an ex-soldier turned civil servant and who had no previous criminal record when arrested. Neither was known to have exhibited many of the tell-tale signs., a crime reporter, was a career who was caught after a series of articles he wrote gave clues that he had murdered people.
Was a successful and respected career Colonel who was convicted of murdering two women, along with fetish burglaries and rapes. Serial killer with police detectives, November 1924 Development Many serial killers have faced similar problems in their childhood development.
Hickey's Trauma Control Model explains how early childhood trauma can set the child up for in adulthood; the child's environment (either their parents or society) is the dominant factor determining whether or not the child's behavior escalates into homicidal activity. Family, or lack thereof, is the most prominent part of a child's development because it is what the child can identify with on a regular basis. 'The serial killer is no different from any other individual who is instigated to seek approval from parents, sexual partners, or others.' This need for approval is what influences children to attempt to develop social relationships with their family and peers, but if they are rejected or neglected, they are unable to do so. This results in the lowering of their self-esteem and helps develop their fantasy world, in which they are in control.
According to the Hickey's Trauma Control Model, the development of a serial killer is based on an early trauma followed by facilitators (e.g., alcohol, drugs, pornography, or other factors that constitute a facilitator, depending on individual circumstances) and disposition. Family interaction also plays an important role in a child's growth and development. 'The quality of their attachments to parents and other members of the family is critical to how these children relate to and value other members of society.' Wilson and Seaman (1990) conducted a study on incarcerated serial killers, and what they felt was the most influential factor that contributed to their homicidal activity. Almost all of the serial killers in the study had experienced some sort of environmental problems during their childhood, such as a broken home caused by divorce, or a lack of discipline in the home. It was common for the serial killers to come from a family that had experienced divorce, separation, or the lack of a parent.
Furthermore, nearly half of the serial killers had experienced some type of physical or sexual abuse, and even more had experienced emotional neglect. When a parent has a or problem, the attention in the household is on the parents rather than the child. This neglect of the child leads to the lowering of their self-esteem and helps develop a fantasy world in which they are in control. Hickey's Trauma Control Model supports how the neglect from parents can facilitate deviant behavior, especially if the child sees substance abuse in action.
This then leads to (the inability to attach), which can further lead to homicidal behavior, unless the child finds a way to develop substantial relationships and fight the label they receive. If a child receives no support from those around him or her, then he or she is unlikely to recover from the event in a positive way. As stated by E.
Maccoby, 'the family has continued to be seen as a major—perhaps the major—arena for socialization'. Chromosomal make up There have been recent studies looking into the possibility that an abnormality with one's could be the trigger for serial killers. Two serial killers, and, came to attention for reported chromosomal abnormalities. Speck was erroneously reported to have an; in fact, his was performed twice and was normal each time. Hellen Morrison, an American forensic psychiatrist, said in an interview that while researchers do not have an exact gene identity, the fact that the majority of serial killers are men leads researchers to believe there is 'a change associated with the male chromosome make up.' Fantasy Children who do not have the to control the mistreatment they suffer sometimes create a new reality to which they can escape. This new reality becomes their that they have total control of and becomes part of their daily existence.
In this fantasy world, their emotional development is guided and maintained. According to Garrison (1996), 'the child becomes because the normal development of the concepts of right and wrong and towards others is retarded because the child's emotional and occurs within his self-centered fantasies. A person can do no wrong in his own world and the pain of others is of no consequence when the purpose of the fantasy world is to satisfy the needs of one person' (Garrison, 1996). Boundaries between fantasy and reality are lost and fantasies turn to dominance, control, sexual conquest, and violence, eventually leading to murder. Fantasy can lead to the first step in the process of a dissociative state, which, in the words of Stephen Giannangelo, 'allows the serial killer to leave the stream of consciousness for what is, to him, a better place'. Jose Sanchez reports, 'the young criminal you see today is more detached from his victim, more ready to hurt or kill. The lack of empathy for their victims among young criminals is just one symptom of a problem that afflicts the whole society.'
Lorenzo Carcaterra, author of Gangster (2001), explains how potential criminals are, which can then lead to their offspring also developing in the same way through the. The ability for serial killers to appreciate the mental life of others is severely compromised, presumably leading to their dehumanization of others. This process may be considered an expression of the intersubjectivity associated with a cognitive deficit regarding the capability to make sharp distinctions between other people and inanimate objects. For these individuals, objects can appear to possess animistic or humanistic power while people are perceived as objects. Before he was executed, serial killer stated media violence and pornography had stimulated and increased his need to commit homicide, although this statement was made during last-ditch efforts to appeal his death sentence. However, correlation is not causation (a disturbed physiological disposition, psychosis, lack of socialization, or aggressiveness may contribute to both fantasy creation and serial killing without fantasy creation generally contributing to serial killing for instance).
There are exceptions to the typical fantasy patterns of serial killers, as in the case of, who was a loving family man and the leader of his church. Organized, disorganized, and mixed.
In custody, Florida, July 1978 (State Archives of Florida) The 's places serial killers into three categories: organized, disorganized, and mixed (i.e., offenders who exhibit organized and disorganized characteristics). Some killers descend from being organized into disorganized as their killings continue, as in the case of or overconfidence due to having evaded capture, or vice versa, as when a previously disorganized killer identifies one or more specific aspects of the act of killing as his/her source of gratification and develops a modus operandi structured around those.
Organized serial killers often plan their crimes methodically, usually abducting victims, killing them in one place and disposing of them in another. They often lure the victims with ploys appealing to their sense of sympathy. Others specifically target, who are likely to go voluntarily with a stranger. These killers maintain a high degree of control over the and usually have a solid knowledge of that enables them to cover their tracks, such as burying the body or weighing it down and sinking it in a river. They follow their crimes in the carefully and often take pride in their actions, as if it were all a grand project. Often, organized killers have social and other interpersonal skills sufficient to enable them to develop both personal and romantic relationships, friends and lovers and sometimes even attract and maintain a spouse and sustain a family including children. Among serial killers, those of this type are in the event of their capture most likely to be described by acquaintances as kind and unlikely to hurt anyone.
Bundy and are examples of organized serial killers. In general, the of organized serial killers tend to be near normal range, with a mean of 94.7. Organized nonsocial offenders tend to be on the higher end of the average, with a mean IQ of 99.2. Disorganized serial killers are usually far more impulsive, often committing their murders with a random weapon available at the time, and usually do not attempt to hide the body. They are likely to be unemployed, a loner, or both, with very few friends.
They often turn out to have a history of mental illness, and their (M.O.) or lack thereof is often marked by excessive violence and sometimes or sexual violence. Disorganized serial killers have been found to have a slightly lower mean IQ than organized serial killers, at 92.8. Medical professionals.
Main article: Some people with a pathological interest in the power of life and death tend to be attracted to medical professions or acquiring such a job. These kinds of killers are sometimes referred to as 'angels of death' or angels of mercy. Medical professionals will kill their patients for money, for a sense of sadistic pleasure, for a belief that they are 'easing' the patient's pain, or simply 'because they can'.
One such killer was nurse, who admitted during her murder trial that she was. She would administer a drug mixture to patients she chose as her victims, lie in bed with them and as they died. Another medical profession serial killer is. It is believed she killed 11 to 46 infants and children while working at Bexar County Medical Center Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. She is currently serving a 99-year sentence for the murder of Chelsea McClellan and the attempted murder of Rolando Santos, and is eligible for parole in 2017 due to a law in Texas at the time of her sentencing to reduce.
Raped and murdered at least seven young women. Sex is the primary motive of, whether or not the victims are dead, and fantasy plays a large role in their killings. Their sexual gratification depends on the amount of torture and they perform on their victims. The sexual serial murderer has a psychological need to have absolute control, dominance, and power over their victims, and the infliction of torture, pain, and ultimately death is used in an attempt to fulfill their need. They usually use weapons that require close contact with the victims, such as knives or hands.
As lust killers continue with their murders, the time between killings decreases or the required level of stimulation increases, sometimes both., one of the ', murdered women and girls of different ages, races and appearance because his sexual urges required different types of stimulation and increasing intensity., who was repeatedly diagnosed with, searched for his perfect fantasy lover—beautiful, submissive and eternal. As his desire increased, he experimented with drugs, alcohol, and exotic sex.
His increasing need for stimulation was demonstrated by the dismemberment of victims, whose heads and genitals he preserved, and by his attempts to create a 'living zombie' under his control (by pouring acid into a hole drilled into the victim's skull). Dahmer once said, 'Lust played a big part of it. Control and lust. Once it happened the first time, it just seemed like it had control of my life from there on in. The killing was just a means to an end.
That was the least satisfactory part. I didn't enjoy doing that.
That's why I tried to create living zombies with acid and the drill.' He further elaborated on this, also saying, 'I wanted to see if it was possible to make—again, it sounds really gross—uh, zombies, people that would not have a will of their own, but would follow my instructions without resistance.
So after that, I started using the drilling technique.' He experimented with to 'ensure his victims would always be a part of him'. Main article: The primary motive of a thrill killer is to induce pain or terror in their victims, which provides stimulation and excitement for the killer. They seek the rush provided by hunting and killing victims. Thrill killers murder only for the kill; usually the attack is not prolonged, and there is no sexual aspect.
Usually the victims are strangers, although the killer may have followed them for a period of time. Thrill killers can abstain from killing for long periods of time and become more successful at killing as they refine their. Many attempt to commit the and believe they will not be caught. Took his victims to a secluded area, where he would let them loose and then hunt and kill them.
In one of his letters to newspapers, the wrote 'killing gives me the most thrilling experience it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl'. Was described by a surviving victim as 'excited and hyper and clappin' and just making noises like he was excited, that this was gonna be fun' during the 1982 attack. Slashing, stabbing, hanging, drowning, asphyxiating, and strangling were among the ways Watts killed. Comfort (profit) Material gain and a comfortable lifestyle are the primary motives of comfort killers. Usually, the victims are family members and close acquaintances. After a murder, a comfort killer will usually wait for a period of time before killing again to allow any suspicions by family or authorities to subside.
They often use poison, most notably, to kill their victims. Female serial killers are often comfort killers, although not all comfort killers are female. Killed her tenants for their checks and buried them in the backyard of her home. Killed for insurance and business profits. Professional killers (') may also be considered comfort serial killers. Charged tens of thousands of dollars for a 'hit', earning enough money to support his family in a middle-class lifestyle (Bruno, 1993). Some, like Puente and Holmes, may be involved in or have previous convictions for theft, and other crimes of a similar nature.
Was finally arrested on a violation, having been on parole for a previous fraud conviction. In 2016, the oldest prosecution and conviction of a suspected serial killer (Felix Vail) took place in Louisiana. He was convicted of murder fifty-four years after his wife's death in 1962, which had originally been ruled an accidental drowning, and which occurred only months after Vail took out two life insurance policies on her. He is a suspect in the disappearances of two other women – his girlfriend in 1973 and his second wife in 1984.
The prosecutors were allowed to present evidence of the two disappearances under the. Power/control. A policeman discovering the body of prostitute, one of 's victims The main objective for this type of serial killer is to gain and exert over their victim. Such killers are sometimes, leaving them with feelings of powerlessness and inadequacy as adults. Many power- or control-motivated killers their victims, but they differ from hedonistic killers in that is not motivated by lust (as it would be with a lust murder) but as simply another form of dominating the victim.
(See article for the differences regarding anger rape, power rape, and sadistic rape.) is an example of a power/control-oriented serial killer. He traveled around the United States seeking women to control. Media Many serial killers claim that a violent culture influenced them to commit murders.
During his final interview, stated that was responsible for his actions. Others idolise figures for their deeds or perceived justice, such as, who idolised, or and, who both idolised the actor. Many movies, books, and documentaries have been written about serial killers, detailing the lives and crimes that have been committed. The movie Bundy, which was released in 2002, focuses on serial killer 's personal life in college, leading up to his execution. Another movie, Dahmer, was released in the same year, and tells the story of. Serial killers are also portrayed in fictional media, oftentimes as having substantial intelligence and looking for difficult targets, despite the contradiction with the psychological profile of serial killers. Killers who have a strong desire for fame or to be renowned for their actions desire media attention as a way of validating and spreading their crimes; fear is also a component here, as some serial killers enjoy causing fear.
An example is the, who sought attention from the press during his murder spree. Theories Biological and sociological. The examples and perspective in this section deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a of the subject. You may, discuss the issue on the, or, as appropriate. (May 2010) Theories for why certain people commit serial murder have been advanced. Some theorists believe the reasons are biological, suggesting serial killers are born, not made, and that their violent behavior is a result of abnormal brain activity.
Holmes and Holmes believe that 'until a reliable sample can be obtained and tested, there is no scientific statement that can be made concerning the exact role of as a determining factor of a serial killer personality.' The 'Fractured Identity Syndrome' (FIS) is a merging of 's ' and 's 'virtual' and 'actual social identity' theories. The FIS suggests a social event, or series of events, during one's childhood or adolescence results in a fracturing of the personality of the serial killer. The term 'fracture' is defined as a small breakage of the personality which is often not visible to the outside world and is only felt by the killer. 'Social Process Theory' has also been suggested as an explanation for serial murder. Social process theory states that offenders may turn to crime due to peer pressure, family, and friends. Criminal behavior is a process of interaction with social institutions, in which everyone has the potential for criminal behavior.
A lack of family structure and identity could also be a cause leading to serial murder traits. A child used as a scapegoat will be deprived of their capacity to feel guilt. Displaced anger could result in animal torture, as identified in the, and a further lack of basic identity. Military. A dishonorably discharged Marine, participated in the kidnapping, sadistic torture, rape and murder of numerous victims The 'military theory' has been proposed as an explanation for why serial murderers kill, as some serial murderers have served in the military or related fields. According to Castle and Hensley, 7% of the serial killers studied had military experience.
This figure may be a proportional under-representation when compared to the number of military veterans in a nation's total population. For example, according to the United States census for the year 2000, military veterans comprised 12.7% of the U.S. Population; in, it was estimated in 2007 that military veterans comprised 9.1% of the population. Though by contrast, about 2.5% of the population of in 2006 consisted of military veterans. There are two theories that can be used to study the correlation between serial killing and military training: Applied learning theory states that serial killing can be learned.
The military is training for higher kill rates from servicemen while training the soldiers to be desensitized to taking a human life. Social learning theory can be used when soldiers get praised and accommodated for killing. They learn, or believe that they learn, that it is acceptable to kill because they were praised for it in the military.
Serial killers want accreditation for the work that they have done. In both military and serial killing, the offender or the soldier may become desensitized to killing as well as compartmentalized; the soldiers do not see enemy personnel as 'human' and neither do serial killers see their victims as humans. The theories do not imply that military institutions make a deliberate effort to produce serial killers; to the contrary, all military personnel are trained to recognize when, where, and against whom it is appropriate to use deadly force, which starts with the basic, taught during the, and may include more stringent policies for military personnel in law enforcement or security. They are also taught ethics in basic training. Investigation FBI: Issues and practices In 2008, the (FBI) published a handbook entitled Serial Murder which was the product of a symposium held in 2005 to bring together the many issues surrounding serial murder, including its investigation.
Identification. Who was a According to the FBI, identifying one, or multiple, murders as being the work of a serial killer is the first challenge an investigation faces, especially if the victim(s) come from a marginalized or high risk population and is normally linked through forensic or behavioral evidence (FBI 2008). Should the cases cross multiple jurisdictions, the law enforcement system in the United States is fragmented and thus not configured to detect multiple similar murders across a large geographic area (Egger 1998). The FBI suggests utilizing databases and increasing interdepartmental communication.
Keppel (1989) suggests holding multi-jurisdictional conferences regularly to compare cases giving departments a greater chance to detect linked cases and overcome linkage blindness. One such collaboration, the Radford/FGCU Serial Killer Database Project was proposed at the 2012 Annual Conference. Utilizing 's Serial Killer Database as a starting point, the new collaboration, hosted by Justice Studies, has invited and is working in conjunction with other Universities to maintain and expand the scope of the database to also include and. Utilizing over 170 data points, multiple-murderer and; researchers and Law Enforcement Agencies can build and profiles to further research the Who, What, Why and How of these types of crimes. Leadership Leadership, or administration, should play a small or virtually non-existent role in the actual investigation past assigning knowledgeable or experienced homicide investigators to lead positions. The administration's role is not to run the investigation but to establish and reaffirm the primary goal of catching the serial killer, as well as provide support for the investigators. The FBI (2008) suggests completing Memorandums of Understanding to facilitate support and commitment of resources from different jurisdictions to an investigation.
Egger (1998) takes this one step further and suggests completing mutual aid pacts, which are written agreements to provide support to each other in a time of need, with surrounding jurisdictions. Doing this in advance would save time and resources that could be used on the investigation. Organization Organization of the structure of an investigation is key to its success, as demonstrated by the investigation of the Green River Killer. Once a serial murder case was established, a task force was created to track down and arrest the offender. Over the course of the investigation, for various reasons, the task force's organization was radically changed and reorganized multiple times – at one point including more than 50 full-time personnel, and at another, only a single investigator.
Eventually, what led to the end of the investigation was a conference of 25 detectives organized to share ideas to solve the case. The FBI handbook provides a description of how a task force should be organized but offers no additional options on how to structure the investigation. While it appears advantageous to have a full-time staff assigned to a serial murder investigation, it can become prohibitively expensive. For example, the Green River Task Force cost upwards of two million dollars a year, and as was witnessed with the Green River Killer investigation, other strategies can prevail where a task force fails. Who claimed to be the ', after being caught in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1967. A common strategy, already employed by many departments for other reasons, is the conference, in which departments get together and focus on a specific set of topics. With serial murders, the focus is typically on unsolved cases, with evidence thought to be related to the case at hand.
Similar to a conference is an information clearing-house in which a jurisdiction with a suspected serial murder case collects all of its evidence and actively seeks data which may be related from other jurisdictions. By collecting all of the related information into one place, they provide a central point in which it can be organized and easily accessed by other jurisdictions working toward the goal of arresting an offender and ending the murders. Already mentioned was the task force, FBI 2008, Keppel 1989 which provides for a flexible, organized, framework for jurisdictions depending on the needs of the investigation. Unfortunately due to the need to commit resources (manpower, money, equipment, etc.) for long periods of time it can be an unsustainable option.
In the case of the investigation of Aileen Wournos, the Marion County Sheriff coordinated multiple agencies without any written or formal agreement. While not a specific strategy for a serial murder investigation, this is certainly a best practice in so far as the agencies were able to work easily together toward a common goal. Finally, once a serial murder investigation has been identified, utilization of an FBI Rapid Response Team can assist both experienced and inexperienced jurisdictions in setting up a task force.
This is completed by organizing and delegating jobs, by compiling and analyzing clues, and by establishing communication between the parties involved. Resource augmentation During the course of a serial murder investigation it may become necessary to call in additional resources; the FBI defines this as Resource Augmentation.
Within the structure of a task force the addition of a resource should be thought of as either long term, or short term. If the task force's framework is expanded to include the new resource, then it should be permanent and not removed. For short term needs, such as setting up road blocks or canvassing a neighborhood, additional resources should be called in on a short term basis. The decision of whether resources are needed short or long term should be left to the lead investigator and facilitated by the administration (FBI 2008). The confusion and counter productiveness created by changing the structure of a task force mid investigation is illustrated by the way the Green River Task Force's staffing and structure was changed multiple times throughout the investigation. This made an already complicated situation more difficult, resulting in the delay or loss of information, which allowed Ridgeway to continue killing (Guillen 2007). The FBI model does not take into account that permanently expanding a task force, or investigative structure, may not be possible due to cost or personnel availability.
Egger (1998) offers several alternative strategies including; using investigative consultants, or experienced staff to augment an investigative team. Not all departments have investigators experienced in serial murder and by temporarily bringing in consultants, they can educate a department to a level of competence then step out. This would reduce the initially established framework of the investigation team and save the department the cost of retaining the consultants until the conclusion of the investigation. Communication The FBI handbook (2008) and Keppel (1989) both stress communication as paramount. The difference is that the FBI handbook (2008) concentrates primarily on communication within a task force while Keppel (1989) makes getting information out to, and allowing information to be passed back from patrol officers a priority.
The FBI handbook (2008) suggest having daily e-mail or in person briefings for all staff involved in the investigation and providing periodic summary briefings to patrol officer and managers. Looking back on a majority of serial murderer arrests, most are exercised by patrol officers in the course of their every day duties and unrelated to the ongoing serial murder investigation (Egger 1998, Keppel 1989). Keppel (1989) provides examples of Larry Eyler, who was arrested during a traffic stop for a parking violation, and Ted Bundy, who was arrested during a traffic stop for operating a stolen vehicle.
Examples Of Mission Oriented Serial Killers
In each case it was uniformed officers, not directly involved in the investigation, who knew what to look for and took the direct action that stopped the killer. By providing up to date (as opposed to periodic) briefings and information to officers on the street the chances of catching a serial killer, or finding solid leads, are increased. Data management A serial murder investigation generates staggering amounts of data, all of which needs to be reviewed and analyzed. A standardized method of documenting and distributing information must be established and investigators must be allowed time to complete reports while investigating leads and at the end of a shift (FBI 2008). When the mechanism for data management is insufficient, leads are not only lost or buried but the investigation can be hindered and new information can become difficult to obtain or become corrupted. During the Green River Killer investigation, reporters would often find and interview possible victims or witnesses ahead of investigators. The understaffed investigation was unable to keep up the information flow, which prevented them from promptly responding to leads.
To make matters worse, investigators believed that the journalists, untrained in interviewing victims or witnesses of crimes, would corrupt the information and result in unreliable leads (Guillen 2007). The 'Blood Countess', as (1560–1614) Historical have suggested that there may have been serial murders throughout history, but specific cases were not adequately recorded. Some sources suggest that legends such as and were inspired by serial killers. In Africa, there have been periodic outbreaks of murder by Lion and. Of China, cousin of the Emperor, was made Prince of Jidong in the sixth year of the middle period of Jing's reign (144 BC). According to the Chinese historian, he would 'go out on marauding expeditions with 20 or 30 or with young men who were in hiding from the law, murdering people and seizing their belongings for sheer sport'. Although many of his subjects knew about these murders, it was not until the 29th year of his reign that the son of one of his victims finally sent a report to the Emperor.
Eventually, it was discovered that he had murdered at least 100 people. The officials of the court requested that Liu Pengli be executed; however, the emperor could not bear to have his own cousin killed, so Liu Pengli was made a commoner and banished. In the 15th century, one of the wealthiest men in Europe and a former companion-in-arms of, and killed peasant children, mainly boys, whom he had abducted from the surrounding villages and had taken to his castle. It is estimated that his victims numbered between 140 and 800. The aristocrat, born into one of the wealthiest families in, allegedly and killed as many as 650 girls and young women before her arrest in 1610. Members of the cult in India may have murdered a million people between 1740 and 1840., a member of the cult, may have murdered as many as 931 victims.
In his 1886 book, psychiatrist noted a case of a serial murderer in the 1870s, a named Eusebius Pieydagnelle who had a sexual obsession with blood and confessed to murdering six people. In modern times. The 'Nemesis of Neglect': Jack the Ripper depicted as a phantom stalking Whitechapel, and as an embodiment of social neglect, in a cartoon of 1888. The unidentified killer, who has been called the first modern serial killer, and possibly more, in in 1888. He was the subject of a massive manhunt and investigation by the, during which many modern criminal investigation techniques were pioneered.
A large team of policemen conducted house-to-house inquiries, forensic material was collected and suspects were identified and traced. Police surgeon assembled one of the earliest. The Ripper murders also marked an important watershed in the treatment of crime by journalists. While not the first serial killer in history, Jack the Ripper's case was the first to create a worldwide media frenzy. Purpose pattern and process ebook library.
The dramatic murders of financially destitute women in the midst of the wealth of, focused the media's attention on the plight of the urban poor and gained coverage worldwide. Jack the Ripper has also been called the most famous serial killer of all time, and his legend has spawned hundreds of theories on his real identity and multiple works of fiction. Was one of the first documented modern serial killers in America, responsible for the death of at least 27 victims at his hotel in in the early 1890s. Here as well, the case gained notoriety and wide publicity through 's newspapers.
At the same time in, became known as 'The French Ripper' after killing and mutilating 11 women and children. He was executed in 1898 after confessing to his crimes. Infamous serial killers of the 20th century include, and, and. 76% of all known serial killers in the 20th century were from the United States. Borgeson, Kevin; Kuehnle. Jones & Bartell Learning. Bartol, Curt R.; Anne M.
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Serial Killer Motive Types
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Schmid, David (2005). University of Chicago Press. Schmid, David (2007). Natural Born Celebrities: Serial Killers in American Culture. University of Chicago Press. Sitpond, M.
Addicted to murder: The true story of Dr Harold Shipman. Virgin Books.
Tithecott, R (1997). Madison, Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press. Seltzer, Mark (1998). Vronsky, Peter (2007b). New York: Berkley Publishing Group. Vronsky, Peter (2013). 'Serial Killer Zombie Apocalypse and the Dawn of the Less Dead: An Introduction to Sexual Serial Murder Today', in Serial Killers: True Crime Anthology 2014.
RJ Parker Publishing. Yudofsky, Stuart C.
American Psychiatric Publishing. Whittle, Brian; Jean Ritchie (2000). 'Prescription for Murder: The True Story of Mass Murderer Dr Harold Frederick Shipman'.
Further reading.; (Introduction); (Afterword) (2001). The Gates of Janus: Serial Killing and Its Analysis. DeFronzo, James; Ashley Ditta; Lance Hannon; Jane Prochnow (2007). Homicide Studies, 11(1), 3–14.; Mark Olshaker (1997).
Pocket Books. Douglas, John; Mark Olshaker (1997). Pocket Books. Douglas, John E.; Allen G.
Burgess; Robert K. Ressler; Ann W. Burgess (2006). (Second ed.). Geberth, Vernon J. Law and Order.
43 (4): 82–86. Retrieved 25 July 2013. Godwin, Grover Maurice (2000). Haggerty, Kevin D. Holmes, Ronald M.; Holmes, Stephen T. (Second ed.).
Holmes, Ronald M.; Stephen T. Holmes (2002). Jensen, Sybil (2014). Haselton Media Group. Milford Press. Lane, Brian (2006).
Facts On File. Leyton, Elliott (1986). Lukin, Grigory (2013). MacDonald, J. American Psychiatric Association. Archived from on 2013-06-16. Retrieved 2011-05-31.
Newitz, Annalee (2006). Duke University Press.
Norris, Joel (1990). Serial Killers: The Growing Menace. Arrow Books.
(2002) 1970.; Long, James O., eds. Ramsland, Katherine (2007). Ramsland, Katherine; Karen Pepper. Tru.tv Crime Library. Archived from on April 16, 2010. Retrieved April 2, 2010.
Ramsland, Katherine; Karen Pepper. Tru.tv Crime Library.
Famous Mission Oriented Serial Killers
Archived from on April 10, 2010. Retrieved April 2, 2010. Robinson, Bryan. Retrieved April 1, 2010. Rosner, Lisa (2010).
The Anatomy Murders. Being the True and Spectacular History of Edinburgh's Notorious Burke and Hare and of the Man of Science Who Abetted Them in the Commission of Their Most Heinous Crimes. University of Pennsylvania Press. Rushby, Kevin (2003). Children of Kali: Through India in Search of Bandits, the Thug Cult, and the British Raj. Walker & Company.
Schlesinger, Louis B. Serial Offenders: Current Thought, Recent Findings. Wilson, Colin (1995). A Plague Of Murder.
Constable & Robinson. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to. Official FBI publication.
A serial killer is usually defined as an individual that has murdered three or more people over a time period of more than a month, with a process known as a 'cooling off period' between the different murders. Their main motivation for killing is typically based on psychological gratification. Some sources disregard the 'three or more' criteria, and define the term as 'a series of two or more murders, committed as separate events, usually, but not always, by one offender acting alone' or, including the vital characteristics, a minimum of at least two murders. Often, a sexual element is involved in the killings, but the FBI states that motives for serial murder include 'anger, thrill, financial gain, and attention seeking.' The murders may have been attempted or completed in a similar fashion and the victims may have had something in common, for example, occupation, race, appearance, sex, or age group.Serial killers are not the same as mass murderers, nor are they spree killers, who commit murders in two or more locations with virtually no break in between. Characteristics The racial demographics regarding serial killers are often subject of debate. In the United States, the majority of reported and investigated serial killers are white males, from a lower-to-middle-class background, usually in their late twenties to early thirties. However, there are African American, Asian, and Hispanic (of any race) serial killers as well, and, according to the FBI, based on percentages of the U.S.
Population, whites are not more likely than other races to be serial killers. Criminal profiler Pat Brown says 'serial killers are usually reported as white because the media typically focuses on 'All-American' white and pretty female victims who were the targets of white male offenders, that crimes among minority offenders in urban communities, where crime rates are higher, are under-investigated, and that minority serial killers likely exist at the same ratios as white serial killers for the population.' She believes that the 'serial killers are always white' myth might have become 'truth' in some research fields due to the over-reporting of white serial killers in the media. Other typical characteristics of serial killers include:. Low-average intelligence. A sample of 174 IQs of serial killers had a median IQ of 93.
Only serial killers who use bombs have IQs significantly above the population mean. Often, they have trouble staying employed and tend to work in menial jobs. The FBI, however, states, 'Serial murderers often seem normal; have families and/or a steady job.' Other sources state they often come from unstable families.
As children, they are often abandoned by their fathers and raised by domineering mothers. Their families often have criminal, psychiatric and/or alcoholic histories. They were often abused — emotionally, physically and/or sexually — by a family member. They may have high rates of suicide attempts.
From an early age, many are intensely interested in voyeurism, fetishism, and sadomasochistic pornography. Fetishism, partialism, and necrophilia, are paraphilias which involve a strong tendency to experience the object of erotic interest almost as if it were a physical representation of the symbolized body.
Individuals engage in paraphilias which are organized along a continuum; participating in varying levels of fantasy perhaps by focusing on body parts (partialism), symbolic objects which serve as physical extensions of the body (fetishism), or the anatomical physicality of the human body; specifically regarding its inner parts and sexual organs (one example being necrophilia). A disproportionate number exhibit one, two, or all three of the MacDonald triad of predictors of psychopathy:.
Many are fascinated with fire setting. They are involved in sadistic activity; especially in children who have not reached sexual maturity, this activity may take the form of torturing animals. More than 60 percent wet their beds beyond the age of 12.
However, recent authorities question or deny the statistical significance of this figure. They were frequently bullied as children. Some were involved in petty crimes, such as theft, fraud, vandalism, dishonesty or similar offenses. Motives The motives of serial killers are generally placed into four categories: visionary, mission-oriented, hedonistic and power or control; however, the motives of any given killer may display considerable overlap among these categories Visionary Visionary serial killers suffer from psychotic breaks with reality, sometimes believing they are another person or are compelled to murder by entities such as the Devil or God. The two most common subgroups are 'demon mandated' and 'God mandated.' Mission-oriented Mission-oriented killers typically justify their acts as 'ridding the world' of a certain type of person perceived as undesirable, such as homosexuals, prostitutes, or people of different ethnicity or religion; however, they are generally not psychotic.
Some see themselves as attempting to change society, often to cure a societal ill. Hedonistic This type of serial killer seeks thrills and derives pleasure from killing, seeing people as expendable means to this goal. Forensic psychologists have identified three subtypes of the hedonistic killer: 'lust', 'thrill' and 'comfort'. Lust Sex is the primary motive of lust killers, whether or not the victims are dead, and fantasy plays a large role in their killings.
Their sexual gratification depends on the amount of torture and mutilation they perform on their victims. They usually use weapons that require close contact with the victims, such as knives or hands. As lust killers continue with their murders, the time between killings decreases or the required level of stimulation increases, sometimes both. Thrill The primary motive of a thrill killer is to induce pain or terror in their victims, which provides stimulation and excitement for the killer. They seek the adrenaline rush provided by hunting and killing victims. Thrill killers murder only for the kill; usually the attack is not prolonged, and there is no sexual aspect.
Usually the victims are strangers, although the killer may have followed them for a period of time. Thrill killers can abstain from killing for long periods of time and become more successful at killing as they refine their murder methods. Many attempt to commit the perfect crime and believe they will not be caught. Comfort (profit) Material gain and a comfortable lifestyle are the primary motives of comfort killers. Usually, the victims are family members and close acquaintances. After a murder, a comfort killer will usually wait for a period of time before killing again to allow any suspicions by family or authorities to subside. They often use poison, most notably arsenic to kill their victims.
Female serial killers are often comfort killers, although not all comfort killers are female. Power/control The main objective for this type of serial killer is to gain and exert power over their victim. Such killers are sometimes abused as children, leaving them with feelings of powerlessness and inadequacy as adults. Many power- or control-motivated killers sexually abuse their victims, but they differ from hedonistic killers in that rape is not motivated by lust but as simply another form of dominating the victim.