Homicide Offenders Research Articles

A heuristic study of the similarities and differences in offender characteristics across potential and successful serial sexual homicide offenders.

This heuristic study examined potential serial sexual homicide offenders (SSHOs), an unacknowledged offender group comprised of aspiring and probable SSHOs, and compared them with successful SSHOs. Data were collected on six aspiring SSHOs who each failed a single homicide attempt, 16 probable SSHOs who committed 17 homicides in separate events, and 13 successful SSHOs who killed 90 victims in separate events. The study results indicate that while potential SSHOs share more in common with successful SSHOs than they do with single-victim nonsexual homicide offenders, and that there is an overlap between potential SSHOs and successful SSHOs, there is currently insufficient evidence to suggest that there are discreet transitions among categories. While few potential SSHOs strive to become successful SSHOs, this may be due to weak or nonexistent emotional triggers. Being a potential SSHO does not appear to be a predictable first step on a pathway towards becoming a successful SSHO, as potential SSHOs cannot reliably be thought of as prospective SSHOs if all things were equal. The present study could not foresee all potential SSHOs becoming successful ones. An as yet unidentified number of factors still appear to separate potential SSHOs from successful SSHOs.

Integrating the Literature on Lethal Violence: A Comparison of Mass Murder, Homicide, and Homicide-Suicide

Although mass murder is traditionally examined as a separate construct from homicide generally, few studies have explored their similarities and differences. This study compares the incident, victim, and offender characteristics of: (1) mass murderers and homicide offenders; and (2) mass murder-suicide offenders and homicide-suicide perpetrators. Mass murderers are more likely to be male; commit suicide; kill young, white, and female victims; use firearms; co-offend; operate in public places; and kill as part of drug trafficking and/or gang warfare. The analysis demonstrates that mass murderers are distinct from both homicide and homicide-suicide perpetrators, and represent a unique type of violent offender.

A Scoping Review of Serial Homicide Geographic Mobility Literature and Four Typologies

The study of geographic mobility through geospatial analysis and journey-to-crime approaches has made progress in environmental criminology, finding most offenders commit crime close to their residence. However, extant literature on serial homicide and geographic mobility is scarce, specifically lacking a comprehensive appraisal of relative research. To gain a better understanding of the geographic mobility patterns of serial homicide offenders, we must determine the current status of literature in this area, to figure out where to go in terms of future research. Therefore, the following study is a scoping review of existing literature on geographic mobility and serial homicide and four associated typologies (Holmes & DeBurger’s Geographic typology, Hickey’s Mobility typology, Canter’s Circle typology, and Rossmo’s Hunting Style typology) to achieve the following: (1) Comprehensively evaluate literature regarding serial homicide geographic mobility and four associated typologies to establish the current status of research; (2) uncover potential literature gaps; and (3) provide future research recommendations. Literature sources ( N = 43) on serial homicide and geographic mobility (1985–2018) were examined. While findings recognize the relevance of mobility functions in serial homicide investigations, gaps in literature were evident regarding serial homicide geographic mobility and the four associated typologies. Findings also reveal that systematic research in this field is limited. Policy implications and future research recommendations are discussed.

Supplemental Material for An Epidemiological Analysis of Public Mass Shooters and Active Shooters: Quantifying Key Differences Between Perpetrators and the General Population, Homicide Offenders, and People Who Die by Suicide

Supplemental Material for An Epidemiological Analysis of Public Mass Shooters and Active Shooters: Quantifying Key Differences Between Perpetrators and the General Population, Homicide Offenders, and People Who Die by Suicide

Caractéristiques et particularités des homicides commis par des schizophrènes

Resume Objectif Decrire les caracteristiques des malades atteints de schizophrenie auteurs d’homicides, de leurs victimes et des modalites et des circonstances de leurs homicides. Et comparer ces homicides a ceux commis par des personnes indemnes de troubles mentaux graves. Materiel et methode Etude descriptive transversale concernant des homicides commis par des personnes atteintes de schizophrenie, selon les criteres du DSM-5, hospitalisees par un internement judiciaire d’octobre 2015 a mars 2018. Resultats Les schizophrenes auteurs d’homicides etaient des adultes jeunes d’âge moyen de 33,83 ans, de sexe masculin dans la majorite des cas (86,67 %), celibataires dans la majorite des cas (68,33 %), avaient des antecedents de violences physiques avant l’homicide dans 41,67 % des cas, avaient une mauvaise observance therapeutique dans la majorite des cas (68,33 %), avaient un abus ou une dependance a une substance dans 50 % des cas. Les victimes de l’homicide etaient d’âge moyen de 35,37 ans, de sexe masculin dans 60,50 % des cas, etaient connues des schizophrenes dans 82,90 % des cas. Le mobile de l’homicide etait delirant dans 55 % des cas. Le lieu de l’homicide etait dans 51,67 % des cas un lieu d’habitation. Dans 53,34 % des cas, l’homicide etait commis par arme blanche. Conclusion Cette etude a permis une meilleure comprehension de l’homicide commis par des schizophrenes et d’etablir un profil des patients a risque de passage a l’acte.

Patterns of Necrophilic Behaviors in Sexual Homicide: A Criminological Perspective.

This study aims to empirically explore the patterns of necrophilic behaviors in sexual homicide. More specifically, the study investigates offender, victim, and crime characteristics of sexual homicides where necrophilic acts were perpetrated, to determine whether the primary motivation to kill is associated with the attainment of corpses or whether the post-mortem sexual acts were secondary deviant behaviors. The sample used in this study consists of 109 cases of extrafamilial sexual homicides where post-mortem sexual acts were committed by offenders. Latent class analysis was used to examine each step of the crime-commission process of sexual homicide offenders involved in necrophilic behaviors. Our findings suggest that there are four different patterns of necrophilia in sexual homicide: Opportunistic, experimental, preferential, and sadistic. Preferential offenders are the only ones who specifically kill their victims in order to have sex with their corpses, while for sadistic, experimental, and opportunistic offenders post-mortem sexual acts were part of a secondary deviant process. Practical implications in terms of criminal investigations and offenders' treatment are discussed.

Psychopathy and pathological violence in a criminal career: A forensic case report

Extreme criminal careers illustrate the effects of multiple forms of psychopathology especially the confluence of psychopathy, multiple externalizing behaviors, and homicidality. Here, we present a forensic case report of Mr. Z, an offender whose antisocial conduct and criminal justice system involvement spans the late 1940s to the present, whose criminal career dovetails with significant events in correctional history in the United States in the middle to late 20th century, and who was a multiple homicide offender while incarcerated in both state and federal prisons. The case report method provides rich qualitative data to supplement quantitative findings on psychopathy, career criminals, the severe 5%, and life-course-persistent offender prototypes. Given the extraordinary behaviors and psychopathology of the most severe offenders, forensic case reports are useful to refine criminological theory and research, and inform correctional practice.

A statistical study of the time intervals between serial homicides

The “cooling-off period”, or inter-murder interval, has been used to differentiate between serial, spree, and mass murderers for decades. The present research examines the utility of this concept by studying the distribution of 2837 inter-murder intervals for 1012 American serial homicide offenders using data from the Consolidated Serial Homicide Offender Database. The distribution is smooth, following a power law in the region of 10–10,000 days. The power law is cut off in the region when inter-murder intervals become comparable with the length of human life. Otherwise there is no characteristic scale in the distribution. The decades long inter-murder intervals are not anomalies, but rare events described by the power-law distribution and therefore should not be looked upon with suspicion. This study found there to be no characteristic spree or serial homicide offender interval, only a monotonous smooth distribution lacking any features. This suggests that there is only a quantitative difference between serial and spree killers which represent merely different aspects of the same phenomenon.

The insanity defense in cases of homicide involving post-mortem dismemberment

Little is known about the success of the insanity defense in homicide cases involving posthumous dismemberment. Such seemingly bizarre conduct may suggest, at first glance, aberrant mental states. Drawing from a larger study of cases of single or repeat homicide followed by dismemberment on at least one occasion, we examined 38 in which offenders pleaded the insanity defense. These were compared to 30 cases in which no posthumous dismemberment was observed. Cases were drawn from print and online sources, as well as the Radford/Florida Gulf Coast Universities Serial Killer Database (SKD). Various motivations for both homicide and posthumous dismemberment among defendants who attempted to plead Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGRI) were analyzed.The most common style of mutilation and dismemberment observed was aggressive, occurring in the context of excessive emotion, such as rage or acute psychosis. Among those in the dismemberment group, 52.6% of the NGRI cases proved successful. In comparison, 33.3% of the NGRI cases were successful among those in the non-dismemberment group. A relationship between NGRI outcomes and motive for homicide was observed in both comparison groups.Our findings suggest that posthumous dismemberment may be an important characterological description in homicide offending, representing murderous impulses that may help to identify a sub-group of homicide offenders. Examination of posthumous dismemberment vis-a-vis NGRI verdicts also helps elucidate the degree to which posthumous dismemberment is, at least in some cases, a psychopathology-driven action.

Reactive and proactive aggression in sexual homicide offenders

PurposeThe reactive-proactive aggression dichotomy is a valid, reliable, and useful concept widely used in psychology and criminology but paradoxically largely ignored in the field of sexual offending research. The objective of this study was to test whether adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) as well as psychopathology relevant to physical and sexual violence (psychopathy and sexual sadism) predict the type of aggression (reactive/proactive) exhibited in the commission of a sexual homicide. MethodsData were collated from criminal case files held across 46 courthouses in France. Reactive sexual homicide offenders (SHO-R, n = 31) and proactive sexual homicide offenders (SHO-P, n = 58) were compared in terms of ACEs and psychometric measures of psychopathy (PCL: SV) and sexual sadism (SeSaS). ResultsThe findings indicated that ACEs and PCL: SV Factor 2 were associated with reactive aggression in the context of sexual homicide, whereas PCL: SV Factor 1 and sexual sadism were associated to proactive aggression. ConclusionsThis study emphasized the role of ACEs and personality traits in the development of different types of aggression exhibited in sexual homicide and highlighted advantages of applying mainstream psychological and criminological concepts to extreme violence phenomena.

Alcohol and drug problems among Australian homicide offenders.

Most homicide studies focus upon 'acute' situational intoxication as opposed to 'chronic' substance misuse. The aims of the study were to: (1) determine the extent of homicide offenders' alcohol and drug use in the year preceding the homicide; (2) compare the individual characteristics of homicide offenders across levels of problematic substance use; and (3) compare homicide incident characteristics across levels of problematic substance use. Observational study using data collected through face-to-face interviews in custodial and community correctional settings across Australia. Participants were recruited through an opt-in process. The data consist of 302 individuals convicted of murder or manslaughter. We used the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test and Drug Abuse Screening Test to determine problematic alcohol or drug use. We also used a range of self-report measures to ascertain offender characteristics [socio-demographics, developmental experiences, criminal history, personality] and incident characteristics (who was killed, and situational intoxication). Of the sample, 38.8% displayed high levels of alcohol problems and 30.8% displayed high levels of drug problems. Those displaying high levels of alcohol and/or drug problems were more likely than those without high levels of alcohol and/or drug problems to report adverse developmental experiences, low education, financial difficulties, extensive criminal histories and high levels of trait anger, impulsivity and risk-seeking. In addition, offenders with problematic substance use were more likely to have killed non-family and to have used substances at the time of the homicide. High proportions of homicide offenders in Australia appear to have problematic substance use in the year preceding the homicide offence, and such use appears to be associated with a range of other challenging factors, including adverse childhoods, criminal involvement, low socio-economic factors and low self-regulation.

“911 What’s Your Emergency?”: Deception in 911 Homicide and Homicide Staged as Suicide Calls

Emergency 911 calls are often the first indication a homicide occurred and serve as initial witness statements in an investigation. The current study explores deception among homicide and homicide staged as suicide 911 calls. One hundred suicides, 18 homicide staged as suicide calls, 31 homicides with uninvolved callers, and 26 homicide offender calls were compared. Little overlap was found in deception indicators between the current findings and previous studies. Caution is warranted when extrapolating from studies using only 911 homicide calls to equivocal death cases, where investigators consider if the manner of death is a suicide or a staged homicide.

The Meaning of Murder: Family Members in the Lives of Juvenile Homicide Offenders

Abstract This article underscores the litany of problems that arise for significant others when a juvenile is convicted of murder. It focuses on how these individuals confront the precise nature of their child’s criminality while simultaneously defending themselves against a series of attacks from a variety of intra- and extra-familial sources. A major conclusion of the article is that murderers’ relatives disappear into an eternal vortex of guilt, shame and anger with little, if any, formal or informal support as a means to manage or recover from the debilitating stigma and strain.

Sexual murderers' choice of weapons: Examining sexual homicides committed by males in China

PurposeThis study seeks to expand our limited understanding of sexual homicides committed in China, especially with respect to the murder weapons used. It explores the differences between opposite-sex (male-on-female) and same-sex (male-on-male) male sexual homicides. In addition, it examines how the weapon choice of sexual homicide offenders (SHOs) in opposite-sex murder relates to their modus operandi. MethodsData derived from police records and published case reports in three regions in China were used to analyze the characteristics of the offender, victim, and the offense in 84 sexual homicides (75 opposite-sex and 9 same-sex cases; 1988–2018) committed by males. ResultsThe findings indicated that where the victim was female, male SHOs were primarily motivated by sex and used relatively physically demanding weapons (e.g., personal weapons). Where the victim was male, SHOs were primarily motivated by financial gain and chose less physically demanding weapons (e.g., edged weapons). In opposite-sex cases, male SHOs who used con tactics to approach their victims were likely to have used personal weapons to kill them, and those who mutilated their victims were likely to have used contact murder weapons. Male SHOs who had premeditated their offenses and abducted their victims were likely to use less physically demanding weapons, and edged weapons in particular.Conclusions: These findings may provide some insights for police seeking to prioritize their investigative strategies.

Murder as Importation: An Empirical Study of the Continuity of Homicide Offending From Community to Confinement

Prison murder is the most severe form of institutional violence but its exceedingly low prevalence has limited prior research. Recent studies of prison murders make clear that serious, violent, and chronic career criminals are most likely to perpetrate inmate murders with equivocal evidence of the role of prior homicide offending on prison murder. Using retrospective administrative data from 1,005 prisoners selected from the southwestern United States, the current study examined whether homicide offending in the community is itself an importation factor that is useful for understanding prison murder and thus can be used to understand continuity in homicidal offending from the community to confinement context. Rare events logistic regression models found that individuals sentenced for first-degree murder are more likely to perpetrate prison murder. A separate rare events logistic regression model with any type of homicide commitment offense as a predictor provided similar findings suggesting these effects are robust to model specification. Given its gravity and fundamental threat to prison safety and security, we encourage data collection and additional research on prison murder and the inmates that perpetrate it.

How much damage do serial homicide offenders wrought while the innocent rot in prison? A tabulation of preventable deaths as outcomes of sentinel events

ABSTRACT The criminal justice system has allowed serial homicide offenders (SHOs) to commit additional homicides by failing to identify them after their initial homicide. Recidivism has been possible in instances where the SHO benefited from the wrongful incarceration of an innocent person for one of their homicides. Data from the National Registry of Exonerations was utilized to tabulate the full extent of these sentinel events, defined as the number of deaths that could have been prevented. Additional research was conducted to identify where victims fell in the offender’s killing sequence. This ancillary data revealed the number of victims whose deaths could have been prevented had the offender been apprehended earlier in their series of homicides. Sixty-two SHOs were responsible for 249 deaths, 114 of which were committed after an innocent person was incarcerated for the SHO’s initial homicide. To prevent further loss of life, law enforcement must: act upon accurate information; lower the SHO evidentiary threshold; prevent personal bias from influencing investigative steps; obtain training in the behavior of SHOs; admit mistakes; and re-examine convictions if wrongdoing is suspected.

Juvenile Homicide Offenders Look Back 35 Years Later: Reasons They Were Involved in Murder.

Murders committed by juveniles have been a serious concern in the United States for more than 50 years. Decisions by the United States Supreme Court during the 21st century have reduced the likelihood that juvenile homicide offenders will be sentenced to life without parole (LWOP). As a result of these decisions, hundreds of prisoners who were sentenced as juveniles for murder to LWOP under mandatory sentencing statutes or its equivalent are now eligible for the reconsideration of their sentences. In light of these changes in sentencing policies and practices, follow-up research on juveniles convicted of murder is essential. This research is part of a 35-year follow-up study of 59 boys who were convicted of murder and sentenced to adult prisons in a southeastern state, and initially interviewed in the early 1980s. Twenty of these men agreed to participate in clinical interviews during which they reflected upon the reasons (i.e., motives, circumstances) for which they got involved in criminal behavior as juveniles. These reasons, which broadly tap tenets of psychological and sociological theories, were analyzed in terms of predominance. Thereafter, the attention focuses on looking at the relationship of these 20 reasons to recidivism among the 18 juvenile homicide offenders (JHOs) who have been released from prison. JHOs who lived in neighborhoods where crime was routine and who engaged in crime because the opportunity presented itself were approximately 20 and 22.50 times more likely to be arrested post release and returned to prison, respectfully. The implications of these findings, the limitations of the study, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Crime and income trajectories preceding lethal and non-lethal violence

PurposeThis study analyzes the pathways leading to violent offending. We examine whether the lethality of a violent crime could be predicted based on individuals' prior history of violent crime and income, and whether the trajectories of lethal offenders are distinguishable from the pathways of non-lethal offenders. MethodsWe use a sample of police-reported violent crimes committed in Finland in 2010–2011 (N = 26,303) and contrast the pathways to homicide with the trajectories leading to petty assault, assault, aggravated assault, and attempted homicide. Group-based trajectory modeling is applied for identifying individuals with similar trajectories, and multilevel modeling is used for estimating the mean trajectories for offenders of differing severity. ResultsResults indicate that homicide offenders display a clear escalation in the frequency of violent offending and a slight decrease in income prior to the offense, but the pathways to homicide largely resemble the pathways to aggravated assault and attempted homicide. ConclusionsThe lethality of violent offending cannot be predicted from the offender's crime and income. The greatest divide in the violence severity continuum is between offenders of assaults and offenders of aggravated assaults, with the latter group largely resembling offenders of completed and attempted homicides.

Extreme sex-negativity: An examination of helplessness, hopelessness, and misattribution of blame among “Incel” multiple homicide offenders

Self-identified involuntary celibates, or “incels,” have congregated online in recent years as a way to discuss and promote a particular patriarchal and blatantly misogynist ideology that blames women, specifically, and feminist society, broadly, for the unmet sexual desires of men who feel entitled, based on gender, to sexual experiences. Thus, incel ideology is an obvious example of severe sex-negativity. While incel ideology is commonly filled with hate speech and threats of violence, there are very few, fortunately, who go on to commit extreme violence. The present study examines feelings of hopelessness and helplessness among seven incel offenders who committed or clearly attempted to commit multiple murder. Although these offenders invariably felt hopelessness and helplessness across major areas of life functioning, they grossly misattributed blame to women for their overall misery. Findings provide valuable insights into the psychology of an extreme form of sex-negativity that extends a mindset of revenge rape to pseudocommando-style mass murder.

조현병을 동반한 남성 살인 가해자에서 피해자의 성별에 따른 미네소타 다면적 인성검사-2 특성 비교

Objective: This study aims to identify personality characteristics according to victim`s gender in male homicide offender with schizophrenia by using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) test. Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed the mental appraisals and MMPI-2 scores of 32 male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed men and 44 male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed women, who were referred to National Forensic Hospital in Gongju city for psychiatric evaluation between January 2010 and August 2018. Results: The male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed men scored significantly higher on F (p=0.040) and Pa (p=0.028) than the male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed women. But, there was no statistically significant difference both the Mf (p=0.301) and Sc (p=0.502) in between the two groups. Conclusion: These findings suggest that the male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed men may have developed not masculinity and schizophrenic characteristics but paranoid characteristics, compared to the male homicide offender with schizophrenia who killed women.