Module 1 test - Serial Homicide

Question 1

1. One of the confounding myths of serial murder is that they are all, by definition _____.
   a. violent.
   b. committed by killers who report prior criminality and incarcerations.
   c. cases of sane individuals who commit atrocities on society.
   d. sexual.

Answer 1

d. sexual.

Question 2

2. Stereotypes of serial murderers that have formed in the minds of American society include:
   a. the murderer is ruthless.
   b. the murderer is blood-thirsty.
   c. the murderer lives a Jekyll-and-Hyde existence.
   d. all of the above

Answer 2

d. all of the above

Question 3

3. In his novel, American Psycho, Ellis did NOT explore which of the following?
   a. psychopathy
   b. obsessive-compulsive disorder
   c. narcissism
   d. sadism

Answer 3

b. obsessive-compulsive disorder

Question 4

4. Which of the following offenders has been identified as a serial killer?
   a. Richard Speck
   b. James Huberty
   c. Charles Whitman
   d. Jerry Brudos

Answer 4

d. Jerry Brudos

Question 5

5. Which of the following is NOT a myth surrounding serial killers?
   a. One in five U.S. serial killers is black.
   b. They are all male.
   c. They are all insane.
   d. They are all lust killers.

Answer 5

a. One in five U.S. serial killers is black.

Question 6

6. Which of the following is NOT a fact surrounding serial killers?
   a. Some victims are poisoned or shot.
   b. Most killers are of average intelligence.
   c. They have high mobility in the United States.
   d. Most offenders remain in a local area.

Answer 6

c. They have high mobility in the United States.

Question 7

7. According to Haggerty, which precondition for serial murder does not have its roots in modernity?
   a. mass media and the rise of celebrity status
   b. a society in which everyone knows everyone else
   c. a society void of value considerations that encourages extreme rationalization
   d. opportunity structures that afford serial killers more access to certain victims such as females who now often work outside their homes victims such as females who now often work outside their homes

Answer 7

b. a society in which everyone knows everyone else

Question 8

8. In 2012, males accounted for _____of all murder victims.
   a. Only 5 percent
   b. 25 percent
   c. Over half
   d. Over 77 percent

Answer 8

d. Over 77 percent

Question 9

9. Homicide offenders are mostly _____.
   a. male
   b. female
   c. each sex equally
   d. The sex of homicide offenders is not recorded.

Answer 9

a. male

Question 10

10. Females who were murdered by someone they knew accounted for _____ percent of female homicides.

a. 42.7
b. 68.3
c. 12.1
d. 98

Answer 10

a. 42.7

Question 11

11. When combining all mass murders, mini-mass murders, and attempted mass murders, the incidences of such murders remains _____.
    a. very high.
    b. very low.
    c. consistently stable.
    d. a mystery to explain.

Answer 11

a. very high.

Question 12

12. Women are _____ than men to commit mass murder.
    a. more likely
    b. just as likely
    c. less likely
    d. Women never commit mass murder.

Answer 12

c. less likely

Question 13

13. According to Holmes and Holmes, a person who plans an escape route following the killing aftermath falls into which mass murderer classification?
    a. ideological mass murderer
    b. disciple-type killer
    c. psychotic killer
    d. set-and-run killer

Answer 13

d. set-and-run killer

Question 14

14. With the exception of those who murder their families, mass murderers appear to _____.
    a. plan their attack like serial murderers
    b. give little thought or concern to capture or death
    c. commit their crimes in private places
    d. plan a detailed escape route

Answer 14

b. give little thought or concern to capture or death

Question 15

15. According to the FBI, what is killing four or more persons at one time considered to be?
    a. blanket homicide
    b. spree murder
    c. mass murder
    d. serial murder

Answer 15

c. mass murder

Question 16

16. In some mass killings an offender begins killing in one location, then moves to another location to continue. What is this phenomenon called?
    a. bifurcation
    b. bilocation
    c. bicyclation
    d. bilaterality

Answer 16

a. bifurcation

Question 18

17. Holmes and Holmes, in their mass murderer classifications, would place Mark Barton in which category?
    a. murderer for profit
    b. murderer for sex
    c. family slayer or annihilator
    d. disciple-type killer

Answer 18

c. family slayer or annihilator

Question 19

18. What are spree murders sometimes called?
    a. cluster killings
    b. group killings
    c. fun killings
    d. flash murders

Answer 19

a. cluster killings

Question 20

19. Compared to a mass murderer, a serial murderer _____.
    a. kills groups of people
    b. individualizes his or her murders
    c. makes his or her “final statement” in or about life through violence
    d. is the product of a stressful environment

Answer 20

b. individualizes his or her murders

Question 21

20. Which of the following characteristics are common to both mass and serial murderers?
    a. For both, murder is means of control over life.
    b. Both are usually arrested or killed at the crime scene.
    c. Both often commit suicide after the crime.
    d. Both elude arrest and detection.

Answer 21

a. For both, murder is means of control over life.

Question 22

21. Perhaps the single most critical stumbling block that currently stands in the way of understanding serial murder is the disagreement among researchers and law enforcement personnel about _____.
    a. how to keep track of all the serial murderers
    b. how to define the phenomenon
    c. who is considered the real “expert” on the matter
    d. how to draw jurisdictional lines in investigations

Answer 22

b. how to define the phenomenon

Question 23

22. What is the killing of a newborn within the first 24 hours of life called?
    a. infanticide
    b. prolicide
    c. parricide
    d. neonaticide

Answer 23

d. neonaticide

Question 24

23. This is sometimes referred to as “no fault” homicide, and usually involves the killing of someone out of necessity or duty.
    a. homicide
    b. necessary murder
    c. mercy killing
    d. justifiable homicide

Answer 24

d. justifiable homicide

Question 25

24. John is robbing Radio Shack with his partner Eric. Eric becomes impatient with the store owner and waves his gun, which goes off accidentally. The bullet ricochets off a metal table and strikes John, killing him. What crime has Eric committed?
    a. manslaughter
    b. felony murder
    c. negligent homicide
    d. accidental homicide

Answer 25

b. felony murder

Question 26

25. From a judicial point of view, the most serious of murders are those that are capital cases involving _____, or the willful, intentional killing of another person(s).
    a. premeditated murder
    b. serial murder
    c. unmeditated murder
    d. mediated murder

Answer 26

a. premeditated murder

Question 27

26. In California, the average length of time for an appeals process to be completed is _____.
    a. over 16 years
    b. over 10 years but less than 15
    c. 10 years or less
    d. 5 years tops

Answer 27

a. over 16 years

Question 28

27. Where was the Southside Slayer from?
    a. South Detroit
    b. Atlanta
    c. Los Angeles
    d. Seattle

Answer 28

c. Los Angeles

Question 29

28. Which of the following serial killers was convicted of the most murders in the history of the United States?
    a. Ted Bundy
    b. Gary Ridgway
    c. John Wayne Gacy
    d. Edmund Kemper

Answer 29

b. Gary Ridgway

Question 30

29. The Green River Killer, Gary Ridgway, in response to a detective asking him to rank himself on a scale of 1-5, with 5 “being the worst possible evil person that could have done this kind of thing,” viewed himself as a _____.
    a. 2 because he only chose women who deserved to die
    b. 3 because it wasn’t like he was a monster like Ted Bundy
    c. 4 because he considered Jeff Dahmer to be the worst
    d. 3 because he killed them fast and didn’t torture them

Answer 30

d. 3 because he killed them fast and didn’t torture them

Question 31

30. Which of the following categories by Holmes and Deburger would be most likely to have offenders who suffer from some type of psychosis?
    a. hedonistic
    b. power/control
    c. visionary
    d. mission oriented

Answer 31

c. visionary

Question 32

1. All serial killers are psychopaths.

Answer 32

False

Question 33

2. Law enforcement officials have been dealing with serial murder for only a few years.

Answer 33

False

Question 34

3. According to Holmes and Holmes, an institutional mass murderer commits mass murder as a crime of obedience when ordered to by his or her leader.

Answer 34

True

Question 35

4. All mass murderers are motivated by similar circumstances.

Answer 35

False

Question 36

5. Hickey, in noting the degree of mobility exercised by offenders, has delineated three distinct groups of offenders: traveling serial killers, local serial killers, and serial killers who never leave their homes or places of employment.

Answer 36

True