Serial Murder in America: Case Studies of Seven Offenders
Behavioral Sciences and the Law Behav. Sci. Law 22: 395–414 (2004) Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/bsl.595
Serial Murder in America: Case Studies of Seven Offenders
James O. Beasley II, B.S., M.P.A.*
This article summarizes and compares information on seven interviewed serial killers in an ongoing project designed to study similarities and differences among these individuals. The aim of this article is to increase our collective knowledge of the dynamics of serial murder by examining the perpetrators’ backgrounds, as well as the unique ways in which they view themselves and the world around them. Although qualitative interview research alone is not sufficient to fully understand such behavior, it is useful in many ways. Some of the information discussed based on the seven offenders interviewed is compared with broader epidemiological studies, and the strengths and limitations of each type of research are discussed. Published in 2004 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The initial FBI study on sexual homicide and crime scene analysis, which included interviews with 25 serial murderers by the Behavioral Science Unit (BSU) at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, was published nearly 20 years ago (The Men Who Murdered, 1985). Since then, the phenomenon of serial murder has been mythologized in popular culture, sensationalized by the media, and increasingly scrutinized by academia. The results have been confounding, with fiction blurring with fact, and assumptions and guesses often treated as certainty. Many of these misperceptions are associated with the technique of profiling, which involves assessment of crime scenes to construct a set of behavioral traits likely to be found in a particular offender. Even today there is a common belief that profiling is an almost mystical experience, and that it is always accurate and clear cut. However, violent criminal behavior is extremely variable, making precise predictions
Serial Murder in America: Case Studies of Seven Offenders
James O. Beasley II, B.S., M.P.A.*
This article summarizes and compares information on seven interviewed serial killers in an ongoing project designed to study similarities and differences among these individuals. The aim of this article is to increase our collective knowledge of the dynamics of serial murder by examining the perpetrators’ backgrounds, as well as the unique ways in which they view themselves and the world around them. Although qualitative interview research alone is not sufficient to fully understand such behavior, it is useful in many ways. Some of the information discussed based on the seven offenders interviewed is compared with broader epidemiological studies, and the strengths and limitations of each type of research are discussed. Published in 2004 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The initial FBI study on sexual homicide and crime scene analysis, which included interviews with 25 serial murderers by the Behavioral Science Unit (BSU) at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, was published nearly 20 years ago (The Men Who Murdered, 1985). Since then, the phenomenon of serial murder has been mythologized in popular culture, sensationalized by the media, and increasingly scrutinized by academia. The results have been confounding, with fiction blurring with fact, and assumptions and guesses often treated as certainty. Many of these misperceptions are associated with the technique of profiling, which involves assessment of crime scenes to construct a set of behavioral traits likely to be found in a particular offender. Even today there is a common belief that profiling is an almost mystical experience, and that it is always accurate and clear cut. However, violent criminal behavior is extremely variable, making precise predictions
References: Alison, L., Bennell, C., Mokros, A., & Ormerod, D. (2002). The personality paradox in offender profiling: A theoretical review of the processes involved in deriving background characteristics from crime scene actions. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 8(1), 115–135. Beyer, K. R., & Beasley, J. O. (2003). Nonfamily child abductors who murder their victims: Offender demographics from interviews with incarcerated offenders. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18(10), 1167–1188. Boudreaux, M. C., Lord, W. D., & Dutra, R. L. (1999). Child abduction: Age-based analyses of offender, victim, and offense characteristics in 550 cases of alleged child disappearance. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 44(3), 539–553. Boudreaux, M. C., Lord, W. D., & Jarvis, J. P. (2001). Behavioral perspectives on child homicide: The role of access, vulnerability, and routine activities theory. Trauma, Violence and Abuse, 2(1), 56–78. Cleckley, H. (1982). The mask of sanity. St. Louis, MO: Mosby. Egger, S. (1998). The killers among us: An examination of serial murder and its investigation. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Farrington, D. P. (1982). Longitudinal analyses of criminal violence. In M. E. Wolfgang, & N. A. Weiner (Eds.), Criminal violence (pp. 171–200). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Fox, J. A., & Levin, J. (2001). The will to kill: Making sense of senseless murder. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Godwin, G. M. (2000). Hunting serial predators: A multivariate classification approach to profiling violent behavior. Boca Raton: CRC Press. Goldberg, C. (2000). The evil we do: The psychoanalysis of destructive people. Amherst, NY: Prometheus. Gottfredson, M. R., & Hirschi, T. (1990). A general theory of crime. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. Hall, H. V. (1999). Overview of lethal violence. In H. V. Hall (Ed.), Lethal violence: A sourcebook on fatal domestic, acquaintance and stranger violence (pp. 1–51). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Hare, R. D. (1993). Without conscience: The disturbing world of the psychopaths among us. New York: Guilford. Hare, R., & Hart, S. (1997). Psychopathy and the PCL-R: Clinical and forensic applications. North Tonawanda, NY: Multi-Health Systems. Hickey, E. (1997). Serial murderers and their victims (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Holmes, R. M., & Holmes, S. T. (2002). Profiling violent crimes: An investigative tool (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Homant, R. J., & Kennedy, D. B. (1998). Psychological aspects of crime scene profiling: Validity research. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 25(3), 319–343. Kocsis, R. N., Hayes, A. F., & Irwin, H. J. (2002). Investigative experience and accuracy in psychological profiling of a violent crime. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 17(8), 811–823. Malmquist, C. P. (1996). Homicide: A psychiatric perspective. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press. Men Who Murdered, The. (1985, August). FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 2–31. Pinizzotto, A. J., & Finkel, N. J. (1990). Criminal personality profiling: An outcome and process study. Law and Human Behavior, 14(3), 215–233. Protection of Children From Sexual Predators Act of 1998, Public Law No. 105–314, 105th Congress, page 112, Title VII, Section 703. Ressler, R. K., Burgess, A. W., & Douglas, J. E. (1988). Sexual homicide: Patterns and motives. New York: Lexington. Safarik, M. E., Jarvis, J., & Nussbaum, K. (2000). Elderly female serial sexual homicide: A limited empirical test of criminal investigative analysis. Homicide Studies, 4(3), 294–307. Samenow, S. E. (1998). Straight talk about criminals. Northvale, NJ: Aronson. Skrapec, C. A. (2001). Phenomenology and serial murder: Asking different questions. Homicide Studies, 5(1), 46–63. Tithecott, R. (1997). Of men and monsters: Jeffrey Dahmer and the construction of the serial killer. Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press. Published in 2004 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Behav. Sci. Law 22: 395–414 (2004) 414 J. O. Beasley Warren, J. I., Hazelwood, R. R., & Dietz, P. E. (1996). The sexually sadistic serial killer. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 41, 970–974. Widom, C. S., & Toch, H. (2000). The contribution of psychology to criminal justice research. In D. H. Fishbein (Ed.), The science, treatment, and prevention of antisocial behaviors: Application to the criminal justice system (pp. 3-1 to 3-19). Kingston, NJ: Civic Research Institute. Wilson, P., Lincoln, R., & Kocsis, R. (1997). Validity, utility and ethics of profiling for serial violent and sexual offenders. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 4(1), 1–12. Witte, G. (2000). Serial homicide: An interdisciplinary review. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, MCP Hahnemann University & Villanova School of Law. Published in 2004 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Behav. Sci. Law 22: 395–414 (2004)