Abstract
The notion of sexual sadism and homicide was introduced by von Krafft-Ebing and refers to individuals whose sexual enjoyment is related to violence and cruelty. However, for schizophrenics it seems like this type of homicide is not related to sexual enjoyment, but to an attempt to neutralize an unbearable and uncontrollable sexual “tension”. In these cases, homicide aims at relief and liberation. The notion of catathymic crisis, which was initially developed by Wertham and Mayer, permits us to grasp the logic and the dynamics of sexual sadistic murders committed by schizophrenics. This opens a new perspective on the clinical and legal approach to such violent acts. The present paper illustrates this with the case study of M. X.
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