Criminal Profiling

1. Criminal Profiling LECTURE/DISCUSSION #14 Serial Murderers – Concluding Issues J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University

2. Interviewing Serial Killers • One of the biggest problems in studying serial killers is access to meaningful data. • Issues to consider • Low base rate behavior so can’t study in aggregate • Information (and researcher perception) influenced by media and pop culture • View of serial killer researchers as if they were similar to “groupies” • Offender “gaming” • Difficulty in determining the personal meaning of behavior for offender J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University

3. Hickey’s Suggestions for Interviewing/Studying Serial Killers • Maintain Objectivity • Acknowledge other perspectives • Recognize more important to ask the right questions than to acquire quick answers J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University

4. Serial Murder Across Cultures • Studying serial murder across cultures is difficult due to a number of factors: • Different definitions across cultures • Cultural differences influence manifestation of behavior, methods, motives • Profiles from the United States often differ from serial killer profiles elsewhere • What we know about serial murder across culture: • Serial murderer is a global phenomenon • Serial killers, regardless of where they are from, tend to report abusive backgrounds • Serial murders in other cultures (Germany, Japan) tend be more “place-specific” and US serial killers more mobile • In US and around world most serial killers target stranger victims • Many countries identify “super killers” but difficult to verify actual numbers • Other countries have identified a greater number of female serial killers than the US however as in the case in the US, most are not identified as sexual homicide offenders • Team killers more common in US • Non US serial killers rarely use firearms • Although psychopathy (and antisocial personality disorder) is a cross-cultural phenomenon, its definition, diagnosis, and manifestation differs across culture • In studying serial murder across cultures, it is important to keep in mind unique features of culture that can influence understanding and identification of serial murder (e.g., Muti murder in South Africa) J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University

5. Profiling, Apprehension, and Disposition of Serial Killers • Profiling is not yet a science and is so broad in terms of the different methods and approaches • Profiling has potential to generate false leads and false conviction • Investigating serial murder is fraught with problems: • Media • Management of resources • Jurisdictional Issues • Complexity of Cases • False Confessions • Copycat crime • Politics J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University

6. Discussion Questions • According to Hickey, what do we need to do in society to prevent and respond to serial murder? • Based on what you’ve learned about serial killers this quarter and in other courses, what do we still need to know about serial murder to more effectively prevent and respond to the phenomenon? • What remaining questions do you have about the phenomenon of serial murder? If you were to design a research study to fill in a gap in the knowledge about serial murder, what would the study involve? J.B. Helfgott Department of Criminal Justice Seattle University