Serial Crime Research Articles

Copycat in Suicide: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Background: The “copycat effect” is a psychological phenomenon in which a person’s actions influence the behavior of others, leading to imitations of behaviors, events, or ideas. It is often observed in contexts such as crimes, suicides, or violent behaviors, where media coverage of an event can trigger similar reactions in other people. Usually, many studies associate the copycat phenomenon with homicide or serial crimes. Little attention is paid to the phenomenon of emulation in suicide and, therefore, to the copycat phenomenon in this context. Methods: In our study, a systematic review of the literature was carried out using keywords related to copycat and suicide. Subsequently, each study was read and analyzed. Results: The results were compared with each other and demonstrated how it is essential to mitigate the resonance of suicidal events, especially through the media and social networks. In particular, this risk of emulation is greater among young people who are exposed to a continuous external source of information through news from the web in an incessant and constant way. This risk increases most immediately after the publicity of the suicidal event in a limited period of time. Conclusions: Unfortunately, little attention is given to the analysis of the copycat phenomenon, which causes an underestimation of the data related to suicide emulation, especially from the preventive perspective of a phenomenon that is still widespread.

Comparative Study of International and Indian Approaches on Geographical Profiling Techniques in Serial Crime Cases

Comparative Study of International and Indian Approaches on Geographical Profiling Techniques in Serial Crime Cases

The fourth dimension: Time between crimes and impact on behavioral change in violent serial crime

While the time dimension is part of the definition of serial crime, little attention has been given to understanding offending timelines and the impact of patterns of shorter or longer delays between crimes on the evolution of series on the ability to link crimes. Given the scarcity of research focusing on the timelines of serial offenders, the current study aimed to (1) determine whether series can be classified based on their timeline trajectories (e.g., progressively shorter intervals or progressively longer), and (2) determine whether these timeline trajectories correlate with trajectories of behavioral consistency and change across series. Data included 43 homicide series encompassing 216 crime scenes. Trajectories were determined based on whether intervals increased, decreased, or remained consistent across series, and whether timeline trajectories and behavioral trajectories align. Results revealed that distinct timeline trajectories can reliably distinguish between series. Results also suggested a complex interaction between time between crimes and how this relates to behavioral consistency and change trajectories, thus, suggesting that time is a useful, but potentially separate dimension in the linkage process.

The weakest link? Investigative issues in serial sexual assault that lead to wrongful conviction

Wrongful conviction of an innocent person is an extreme type of injustice that plagues the criminal justice system today. Wrongful conviction for a sexual offense is especially traumatic for the individual due to the inherent stigma surrounding this type of crime; however, there is a dearth of research focusing on the unique aspects of both the offense and the investigation that may contribute to those convictions. The current study sought to answer the following research questions: 1-Are most sexual assault wrongful convictions in series inter-racial? 2- Does relational misattribution play a role in wrongful conviction for sexual assault? 3-Where in the series do wrongful convictions occur? 4-Do wrongful convictions in serial sexual assault cases occur primarily due to behavioral inconsistency on the part of the perpetrator (i.e., the crime for which there is a wrongful conviction appears to be significantly different from the rest of the series) leading to linkage blindness? 5-To what extent does police misconduct and other investigative issues play a role in mishandling of the offense as a one-off as opposed to part of series? Data for this study included 43 violent sexual series where a proven wrongful conviction was present for at least one of the crimes. Results suggest that thorough investigation, evidence testing, and the ability to reopen cases after similar incidents can reduce wrongful sexual assault convictions. Distinguishing between group and solo offending, stranger and acquaintance offenses, and developing investigative models that account for serial crime behavior change can improve investigative accuracy.

A MACHINE LEARNING CLUSTER MODEL FOR THE DECISION-MAKING SUPPORT IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE

In a modern digital society, information technologies play a crucial role in security policy. The increase in the number of criminals and the expansion of the range of crimes committed by them, which is observed all over the world, poses serious risks to the personal safety of citizens, the internal security of the country, and international security. Identifying links between the individual characteristics of prisoners and their criminal recidivism can help to solve serial crimes, develop new crime prevention strategies, and provide reliable support for public safety decisions.
 The presented work is a part of research on the development of information and analytical support for decision-making systems in criminal justice. This document presents a new analytical approach to criminal profiling. It is a case study of a unique real-world dataset of 13,010 criminal convicts. The k-means clustering technique was used to determine significant indicators (individual characteristics of prisoners) that determine the propensity of convicts to commit repeated criminal offenses. The built clustering model makes obvious the connection between the propensity for criminal recidivism and the following elements of the criminal profile: the number of previous convictions, the age at the time of the first conviction, the presence of conditional convictions, and early releases. The developed models can be applied to new criminal convicted datasets. The dynamic interaction of information technology and the criminal justice system will help reduce crime and strengthen internal security.

Analisis Yuridis Pertanggung Jawaban Pidana Terhadap Tindak Pidana Penadahan Di Dalam Kuhp

The criminal act of fencing in Dutch is called Heling, which is a serial crime, which means that the crime is a follow-up crime related to the predicate crime. Basically, the crime of collection does not stand alone, but is a crime that begins with a predicate crime, so whether or not a person is suspected of committing a crime of collection, it must first be clear what the predicate crime is, this is a condition for determining in advance. whether the goods he obtained were from crime or not. seen from the point of being responsible, only someone who is capable of being responsible can be held accountable for his actions. what he gets is the proceeds of crime, which often happens in society. Law enforcement that is created is directed at efforts to strengthen the law by realizing justice and certainty by harmonizing legal needs in society itself.

An open-source implementation of geographic profiling methods for serial crime analysis

An open-source implementation of geographic profiling methods for serial crime analysis

Repeated finds without head and tail - serial crime to animals?

Repeated finds without head and tail - serial crime to animals?

The Scientific Heritage of Professor A.A. Protasevich in Criminalistic Science

The article is devoted to the creative and scientific contribution of Doctor of Law, Professor Alexander Alekseevich Protasevich to the development of forensic science, the improvement of its conceptual provisions, as well as the development of legal education in Eastern Siberia. The authors analyze his main scientific works. In particular, the evaluation is given to the dissertation research for «the degree of Candidate of Legal Sciences, carried out on the topic «Methods of investigation of multi-episode self-serving violent crimes against the person» under the scientific supervision of Professor G.G. Zuikova. The article notes that Professor Protasevich did not ignore such issues as modeling and reconstruction of the investigated event, forensic recognition, questions of the theory of forensic diagnostics, which together is directly related to the general theory of criminology. At the same time, Alexander Alekseevich's contribution to the development of the fundamental foundations of criminology is also known. The article describes his reasoning about the object and methods of preliminary investigation, about the study of the method of reverse causal effect, which is to be used in all cases of crimes that have caused harmful material consequences and is technologically expressed in the establishment of signs (circumstances) characterizing the temporal, spatial and other parameters of the incident, then the nearest cause of the incident is found out, and after — the main (from a legal point of view) reason that caused the possibility of an immediate cause and the resulting consequences (incident). Through the analysis of scientific publications of Professor A.A. Protasevich, the article describes the creative path that led the scientist to research in the field of establishing a serial criminal, which was embodied in the dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Law in the specialty 12.00.09 — criminal procedure; criminalistics; theory of operational investigative activity in the form of a scientific report on the topic «Problems of the subject and means of solving serial crimes involving violence». In conclusion, an assessment of the author's scientific developments in the field of forensic profiling, the construction of search and psychological portraits, methods of investigation of serial violent crimes against the individual and tactics of individual investigative actions and operational search measures is given. The authors come to the conclusion that it is necessary to develop the ideas and concepts of A.A. Protasevich and the active implementation of his work in the practice of detection, investigation and disclosure of crimes.

Psychological profile and prerequisites for the formation of the killer’s personality

The relevance of the study is conditioned upon the elevated level of crime and scientific interest in determining the prerequisites for murders that are individual in nature, develop into a series of hidden intentions and have complex consequences for the life of society. Clarifying the psychological causes of serious crimes is important for preventive work in the defined area. The purpose of this study was to determine the personality traits of murderers, to identify the prerequisites for the formation of criminal behaviour, to investigate the classification and rating of serial crimes by cruelty and methods, to analyse statistical data on the commission of murders. In the study of the nature of serial murders, the following methods were used: the method of analysis and synthesis, the biographical method, the statistical method, and the generalization method. Using theoretical analysis, the psychological root causes of homicide drives, their main features and methods of implementation, and gender characteristics regarding the strength of committing a crime were identified; the data obtained were confirmed by real statistical indicators. The study highlighted the problem of increasing criminal cases caused by the mental state of the individual. The features of the psychology of the killer were covered, and the influence of childhood and life circumstances on the formation of the internal urge to commit murder was substantiated. The factors that encourage violence were identified. The types of serial killers were identified, and the “handwriting” of crime execution was analysed. The essence of impulsive and serial murder was delineated, and the concept of moral statistics as a provocative factor in committing a crime was covered. A psychological portrait of a serial killer was formed. Features of early research at the level of physiology and genetics were established. The presented theoretical material not only serves as an informational resource but can also be used in carrying out preventive measures related to early education, the methods of which have a preventive and correctional impact.

Значение психологического портрета в раскрытии неочевидных преступлений

The relevance of work is due to the complex study of the meaning of psychological portraiture in the detection of unobvious crimes. The purpose of work is to analyze the concept and essence of the psychological portrait and determine its significance in solving problems of criminal proceedings. The implementation of the purpose is achieved by the use of laws of dialectics, formal logic and the application of general scientific and private research methods. Analysis of disclosure and investigation statistics shows that the development of an effective and acceptable methodology for profiling an unidentified criminal is an urgent task for law enforcement agencies. Existing theoretical approaches to determine the links between the traces of a crime and the personality of a criminal, in particular, forensic, program-targeted, psychiatric and psychological, are explored. Their brief description is given. The concept and main purposes of drawing up a psychological portrait and its significance in the disclosure of unobvious crimes are investigated. The history of the development of this method both abroad and in Russia is considered. A comparative analysis of the method used abroad, in particular in the FBI, and in Russia is made, the differences and features in them are determined. The informational content of the method under study and the methodology for compiling a psychological portrait of a criminal are considered. It is concluded that a psychological portrait as a non-traditional method of cognition and the result of compiling a comprehensive description of an unknown criminal has a certain significance in solving the problems of revealing and investigating unobvious, unmotivated serial crimes. At the same time, it can be used in the investigation on an equal footing and in combination with other traditional methods and means.

‘ Two Sides of the Same Coin ’—A Proposed Model for Delivering a Whole System Serial Crime Reduction Plan

Abstract This article describes how existing and newly emerged research can be combined to develop a more systematic model for responding to serial crimes. We believe that the model offers police services a more efficient and effective way to optimize the deployment and scheduling of police resources, and their associated activity, to combat serial offending. We suggest that the likely subsequent prevention and reduction of demand achieved will go some way to alleviate the impact of serial offending behavior. To develop our model, we draw upon criminological literature including theories of routine activity, rational choice, and situational crime prevention. By incorporating existing methods of hotspot identification, and combining these with processes to identify and respond to serial offending, we propose a six-stage, Dual Offender—Victim, Crime Prevention and Reduction model, that includes (1) crime linkage to identify serial offending; (2) near-repeat pattern analysis to identify the areas experiencing, and at immediate risk of victimization; (3) THE prediction of future, spatially displaced hotspots at high risk of victimization; (4) geographical profiling to identify the area of the likely home or base of the offender; (5) suspect mapping, ranking, targeting, and early intervention; and (6) tracking of spatial displacement, and offender management to maintain model effectiveness.

Book Review: John Douglas and Mark Olshaker, Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit. New York, NY: Pocket Books. 1995

Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit is a first-hand account by retired Special Agent John Douglas who was one of the first criminal profilers in the FBI’s history. The book details his life’s work by focusing on the psychological profiling that he developed to study the most prolific serial killers in America, and understand the serial killer thought process. The prologue of the book begins by describing a sudden illness that he had never experienced before, and ultimately one that would come close to ending his life. During his time as a profiler, the Special Agent traveled around the country to lecture about the cases he has worked and to help other agencies solve cases. While working in Seattle, he was hospitalized for a high fever and a seizure that ultimately put him in a medically induced coma where he was expected to have permanent brain damage even if he survived the physical trauma.

Bayesian Geographic Profiling: A Fundamental Limitation

Geographic profiling is a criminal investigative technique that analyzes the locations of a crime series to determine the most probable area of offender residence. Police agencies employ the methodology for suspect prioritization and information management purposes in serial crime cases. Geoprofiles are probability maps generated by an algorithm that integrates distance decay functions originating from the point pattern of the connected crime sites. A more recent approach, known as empirical Bayes journey-to-crime estimation (or Bayesian geographic profiling), seeks to supplement these models with area-based historical offender and crime data. Spatial information from previous crime trips is used to calibrate analyses following the assumption that the unknown offender likely resides in the same neighborhood as past criminals who offended in the location of the new crime series. Inferring individual suspect rankings from historical area rankings, however, creates an ecological fallacy, and the greater the congruence between past offenders and future suspects, the more tautological the analysis. Although Bayesian models cannot be used to inform suspect prioritization—the main function of geographic profiling—the approach could have applicability for police strategies based on area prioritization. Surprisingly, this major limitation of the Bayes approach to geoprofiling has been ignored in the literature.

Predictive Policing: High-tech Modeling as a Method to Identify Serial Killers

The article considers the development of predictive policing in Russia through the creation of software, based on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to identify serial killers. Forensic modelling in crime investigation, in particular modern digital twin technology is analyzed. The system of the digital twin is trained on the basis of a set of mathematical models of various level of complexity and specified by results of full-scale experiments. Existing approaches to solving the serial killer portrait problem are investigated. Digital twins in conjunction with machine learning can predict the behavior of the object under study in the future, based on statistical data and accelerate the work of the investigator in the investigation of serial crimes.

Forensic Psychology: How Can Psychology Help Law Enforcement?

Aim: In this article, I would like to show how psychology, especially its forensic field, can help investigative authorities effectively detect individual crimes. Although most law enforcement psychologists work as primary care professionals, basically conducting psychological aptitude tests of colleagues and creating mental well-being, it is important to see that the science of psychology can be applied to law enforcement in a much more complex way.Methodology: Both domestic and international studies make researches with this topic, although in some criminal psychology and forensic psychology are used to be synonyms. In the present study, I review the literature on the means by which forensic psychology can assist in effective detection.Findings: Although the methodology of profiling specific offenders is not new, the procedure was developed primarily for the detection of serial crimes, but it has a great relevance in the detection of individual crimes. Furthermore, in addition to crimes against life, it can be used well in the analytical assessment of sexual offenses, as well as in the design of interrogation strategies.Value: In the present study, two methodological elements of forensic psychology, profiling and interrogation strategy, are analyzed in the light of sexual offenses.

The Use of Information Technologies in Crime Investigation

The digitization of various spheres of state and public life not only gives rise to new ways of committing crimes, but also presents new opportunities for crime investigation work. In the modern world, the products of digitization are an important source of evidentiary and search information, they also act as an instrument of detecting and studying digital traces in crime investigation. A separate sphere of research is algorithms of artificial intelligence, and the possibilities of using them in criminalistics and the investigation of criminal activities. Serial crimes are used as an example to showcase the possibility of applying AI algorithms to construct a search portrait of a serial offender, to find serial crimes in a mass of unsolved crimes, and to identify the suspect. Further improvement of preliminary investigation is impossible without the use of modern digital technologies, which sets new tasks for the science of criminalistics.

Board Games in Ancient Fiction: Egypt, Iran, Greece

AbstractBoard games are often used as a plot motif in modern genre fiction, especially in detective and adventure stories. In these types of narrative, a well-known pattern of storytelling or literary structure (e.g., the treasure hunt, the detection of serial crimes, the iniatory course, or the medieval tale collection) is reworked and adapted to the rules and phases of a board game such as chess,jeu de l’oie, or the tarot card pack. This literary practice is very ancient and may be traced back to a number of novelistic compositions of the ancient Near East, dating from the 1st millennium BC to late antiquity. In the Demotic EgyptianTale of Setne Khaemwaset, from the Saite period, the protagonist Setne plays a board game (probablysenet) with the mummy of a long dead and buried magician, in order to gain a powerful book of spells. The widespread Near-Eastern story-pattern of the magical competition is here superimposed on the procedure of a celebrated Egyptian game. In a late Hellenistic Greek novella inspired by theOdyssey(Apion of Alexandria,FGrH616 F36) Penelope’s suitors play an elaborate game of marbles (petteia) in order to determine which one of them will marry the queen. This is a playful rewriting of the famous bow contest of the Homeric epic. A Sasanian novelistic work, theWizārišn ī čatrang, adapts the age-old legend of the riddle contest of kings; the riddles are replaced with board games (chess and backgammon), which the opponents invent and propose to each other as difficult puzzles for solution. In all these texts the board game becomes a central symbol of the transformative and innovative power of literary narrative.

Thresholds learning of three-way decisions in pairwise crime linkage

Crime linkage is a difficult task and is of great significance to maintaining social security. It can be treated as a binary classification problem. Some crimes are difficult to determine whether they are serial crimes under the existing evidence, so the two-way decisions are easy to make mistakes for some case pairs. Here, the three-way decisions based on the decision-theoretic rough set are applied and its key issue is to determine thresholds by setting appropriate loss functions. However, sometimes the loss functions are difficult to obtain. In this paper, a method to automatically learn thresholds of the three-way decisions without the need to preset explicit loss functions is proposed. We simplify the loss function matrix according to the characteristic of crime linkage, re-express thresholds by loss functions, and investigate the relationship between overall decision cost and the size of the boundary region. The trade-off between the uncertainty of the boundary region and the decision cost is taken as the optimization objective. We apply multiple traditional classification algorithms as base classifiers, and employ real-world cases and some public datasets to evaluate the effect of our proposed method. The results show that the proposed method can reduce classification errors.

A supervised machine learning framework with combined blocking for detecting serial crimes

A supervised machine learning framework with combined blocking for detecting serial crimes