Serial Murder and Pattern Crime

Question 1

What is the definition of serial murder?

Answer 1

A series of murders (at least two) that are USUALLY committed by ONE offender against ONE victim.
They are separated by time and have NO discernable motive.

Question 2

What are four characteristics of serial murder?

Answer 2

1. Offender has no association with the victim (or is just a slight acquaintance)
2. The murders are linked by victim type or certain behavioral aspects in the offender
3. There is no discernable motive (like money, jealousy, etc)
4. Offenders are usually male and there is a power component (can be sexual in nature)

Question 3

Why is it so difficult to investigate serial homicides?

Answer 3

Mainly because the offender has no association to the victim so doing a “victimology” won’t help. The offender won’t show up in the victim’s social media, phone records or won’t be a friend or close associate. Also serial offenders can be very mobile so the murders may be occurring in completely different locations and are hard to link to each other.

Question 4

How does mass murder differ from serial murder?

Answer 4

Mass murder is when many people are murdered at one time (examples include mass shootings and terrorist acts like 9/11). Serial murder is usually one offender murdering one victim and the murders are separated by time.

Question 5

List 5 examples of mass murder: (sadly there are WAY more than 5 and the number continues to
grow).

Answer 5

1. 9/11
2. Sandy Hook
3. Orlando Pulse nightclub massacre
4. Boston marathon bombing
5. Las Vegas music festival shooting

Question 6

What is the definition of “spree killings”?

Answer 6

Killing two or more victims at one time at multiple locations and the time between murders is very
short (most commonly occurs when offenders are on the run and trying to evade capture)

Question 7

Define the following:
Narcissism:

Answer 7

When a person has a very inflated, grandiose view of themselves; the person craves attention and is also very selfish

Question 8

Define the following:
Antisocial Personality Disorder:

Answer 8

Also known as sociopathy; person has a lack of empathy for others and shows no regard for right versus wrong. Sociopaths tend to manipulate others for their own gain and feel no remorse when they hurt others.

Question 9

Define the following:
Sadism:

Answer 9

Deliberate cruelty; deriving pleasure from purposely inflicting pain and cruelty on others (and
the others are NOT consenting to this treatment)

Question 10

Can psychopaths be “born that way”? What scientific evidence suggests this?

Answer 10

YES!!!! Psychopathy is a complex mixture of genetics, environment, mental disorders and brain
anatomy. Neuroimaging studies have shown that psychopaths have a distinct type of brain structure- they have a shrunken frontal cortex (which is the part of the brain which controls emotions and empathy). So psychopaths can be born with this type of brain anatomy.

Question 11

What is the main brain structure which is different in psychopaths?

Answer 11

They have a smaller frontal cortex so are unable to properly develop emotionally and can be devoid of
empathy.

Question 12

What is the difference between modus operandi (MO) and signature/trademark behaviors?

Answer 12

The MO behavior is something that helps the offender successfully complete the crime (like wearing gloves to not leave fingerprints behind) whereas the signature/trademark behavior is something that has meaning ONLY to the offender; it DOESN’T help the offender “get away with it”.

Also the MO behavior can change as the offender finds out what works and what doesn’t work in
terms of successfully committing crimes. The signature/trademark behavior DOESN’T change because it is important to the offender only and deeply ingrained in his psychology.

Question 13

What are 5 examples of signature/trademark behaviors?

Answer 13

1. raping the victim
2. binding and torturing the victim
3. post-mortem mutilation of the victim’s body
4. taking “trophies” from the victim
5. post-mortem posing of the victim’s body

Question 14

What are 7 personality characteristics of serial killers?

Answer 14

1. intelligent
2. good outward appearance (in terms of grooming and hygiene)
3. superficial charm
4. they known the difference from right and wrong (but they just don’t care)
5. have no conscience
6. have a need for power or control
7. they enjoy the terror and suffering of the victim

Question 15

What are 4 characteristics of organized serial killers?

Answer 15

1. offender plans the murder ahead for weeks, months or even years
2. offender is married or in a stable relationship
3. they bring a “murder kit” with them
4. highly intelligent and very well informed about the capabilities of law enforcement/forensics

Question 16

What are 4 characteristics of disorganized serial killers?

Answer 16

1. murders are committed spontaneously
2. they don’t plan their murders in advance
3. often unemployed and don’t own a car or have their own transportation
4. often of low intelligence and often psychotic

Question 17

What is a power oriented serial killer?

Answer 17

The WORST and most dangerous type of offender. They are narcisstic, sexually sadistic psychopaths who have no empathy for their victims and enjoy their suffering.

Question 18

List 4 examples of power oriented serial killers:

Answer 18

1. Ted Bundy
2. Dennis Rader (BTK)
3. John Wayne Gacy
4. Richard Ramirez (The Night Stalker)

Question 19

Define what a mission oriented serial killer is and give an example:

Answer 19

A mission oriented killer believes they are doing the world a favor by getting rid of a certain class of
people i.e. prostitutes. Example: Gary Ridgeway (The Green River Killer)

Question 20

Define what a visionary serial killer is and give an example:

Answer 20

A visionary serial killer kills because hallucinations instruct him to do so (or so claim).
Example is David Berkowitz (the Son of Sam)

Question 21

Define what a hedonistic serial killer is and give an example:

Answer 21

Receives sexual pleasure primarily from raping and torturing victims. The focus is NOT the actual
killing (like it is in power oriented killers)

Example is Jeffrey Dahmer

Question 22

Define what a comfort serial killer is and give an example:

Answer 22

Comfort serial killers are rare and unique because there is an actual motive (such as financial gain so
the killer can then live in a level of “comfort”).

Example is Golay and Rutterschmidt

Question 23

Define what a disciple serial killer is and give an example:

Answer 23

A disciple killer is basically a cult leader who instructs others to kill; the leader is very charismatic and
manipulative

Example is Charles Manson

Question 24

List the three parts of the MacDonald Triad:

Answer 24

1. bedwetting over the age of 12 (and for no medical reason)
2. fire starting
3. animal cruelty

Question 25

What is ViCAP and what is its purpose?

Answer 25

ViCAP stands for the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program. It is a computer database available to
law enforcement agencies that allows the pooling of clues found in suspected serial homicide cases.

Question 26

List 3 criteria for a case to be submitted to ViCAP:

Answer 26

1. homicides that are random, sexually motivated and appear to be part of a patten; the homicides
   can be solved, unsolved or attempted (with a living victim)
2. missing persons can be submitted if it is suspected that foul play is involved
3. information from unidentified bodies can also be uploaded if the manner of death is criminal
   homicide

Question 27

What are 3 advantages of ViCAP?

Answer 27

1. allows agencies to recognize a pattern of serial killings earlier (especially if the murders occur in
   different jurisdictions)
2. if one murder is solved, it may result in the solving of other cases that are currently listed as
   unsolved
3. allows for the pooling of MO and signature/trademark behaviors and so can generate investigative
   leads and get different agencies working together