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Serial killers 3 (Click to select text)
At a time when violent crime is dropping, one category of deceptively dangerous people -- serial killers -- is causing alarm from coast to coast with seemingly motiveless murders. These people are not creatures or animals who can easily be identified. Serial killers are hard to find and virtually undetectable until they start murdering the innocent. Like all evolved predators, they know how to stalk their victims by gaining their trust. "Serial killers don't wear their hearts on their sleeve. Instead, they hide behind a carefully constructed faηade of normalcy." (Crime Library) Serial killers have been an integral part of American history and plagued this country for many years. With the hype and myth surrounding the phenomenon of serial murder, serial killers' crimes occupy a high profile category and occur at the end of the spectrum of normality. This paper will examine information on what a serial killer is and why they kill. Serial murder is defined as the killing of three or more people over a period of more than 30 days with a significant cooling off period between the killings (Seltzer 18). This cooling off period is the critical factor that separates the serial killer from mass and spree killers. A serial killer usually emerges from the pain and suffering of a life riddled with abuse, neglect, hormonal imbalances, and other numerous situations. Serial murder is a disease. There are valid explanations that help society realize that these individuals experienced events so traumatic in their early lives that they have become dead to their surroundings and have attained no sense of moral autonomy (Levin & Fox 52). To truly understand a serial killer, society must put aside their media-born misconceptions and look upon serial killers with an unbiased attitude. Serial killers are typically 25 to 30 years in age, with the overwhelming majority being white males; although, there have been several known cases of female killers. Most often, serial killers' choices of prey are white females who are strangers to the offender. Serial killers come from different professions and socioeconomic backgrounds. John Wayne Gacy was an active, outgoing figure in business and society and became a member of the local Jaycees. His fellow workers at the postal office saw nothing peculiar about him and described him as a boy scout type -- courteous, reliable, and helpful (Levin & Fox p. 198). Another documented serial killer said, "It is my belief that the reason I never came under suspicion is because I was so normal in every aspect." (Tithecott 206). These killers attack all over the United States, but western states have much higher rates than those of the north and east. In addition, rates vary over time within particular countries and regions (Seltzer 94-95). As these characteristics point out, a serial killer can be almost anyone. Several serial killers have had fixations with law enforcement and posed as officers or worked in positions as security guards and auxiliary police officers. Ed Kemper frequented a bar near police headquarters and questioned police officers about the murders he had just committed (Crime Library). John Wayne Gacy had a police radio in his home. What causes a human being to commit such heinous acts? Many serial killers were often exposed to childhood abuse. Albert DeSalvo, the Boston Strangler, was sold off as a slave by his alcoholic father. Others have lived abnormal adolescent lives. Ed Kemper beheaded his sister's dolls while playing execution games (Crime Library). Daydreaming, compulsive masturbation, isolation, chronic lying, and bed-wetting are common characteristics serial killers shared as youths. Research shows great similarities among the different killers, which suggests that they share a common illness. "An understanding of the nature of that illness and the ability to detect the appearance of this syndrome in children are the first steps in preventing the spread of serial murder." (Crime Library). Many serial murderers have intense, smothering relationships with their mothers and often these relationships are filled with abuse and sexual attraction (Furio 21). After a fight with his mother, Ed Kemper, stormed out of his house and vowed to kill the first good-looking girl he saw (Egger 11). Henry Lee Lucas was forced by his mother to watch while she had sex with her clients. Ed Gein's religiously fanatical, notorious mother convinced her son that women were vessels of sin and cause disease. In his own interpretation, Gein made literal vessels out of women and used their skulls for bowls and other domestic objects (Crime Library). Later, Kemper beheaded his mother and shoved her vocal cords down the garbage disposal. He then raped her headless body and placed her head on the living room mantel and used it as a dartboard (Crime Library). No clear-cut theory has ever been established on why serial murderers kill. Do serial killers lack a moral safety latch? Or are they being controlled by something unfathomable? Most experts believe that serial murderers have a clear-cut perception of reality and aren't insane. As on-lookers, society has the common misconception that people who commit such horrible acts must be mentally ill; however, less than five percent of serial murderers are mentally ill at the time of their offense (Crime Library). Serial killers are always looking to manipulate and will do anything to convince the authorities of their insanity. John High, the Acid Bath Murderer, drank his own urine in front of the jury (Crime Library). By murdering, serial killers are able to achieve a feeling of superiority over their victims and to triumph or conquer by destruction. Others may kill for thrill or happiness. "I wish I could stop, but I could not. I had no other thrill or happiness." Dennis Nilsen said. "It was an urge…A strong urge, and the longer I let it go, the stronger it got, to where I was taking risks to go out and kill people," said Ed Kemper (Holmes & Holmes 1). How can these people that commit these senseless acts not be insane? Peter Kurten claimed that his chief satisfaction in killing was to catch the spurting blood from a victim's wounds in his mouth and then swallow it (Crime Library). Jeffrey Dahmer and Demis Nilsen both tried to create companionship in corpses. After mutilating his victims, Dahmer, hoping for a mate that would never leave, kept their body parts in his freezer. Ed Gein tore apart women and wore their genitals around his body. John Wayne Gacy worked in a mortuary and slept in the embalming room alone with corpses. And Ed Kemper's statement, "With a girl, there's a lot left without a head but of course the personality is gone," should confirm insanity (Crime Library). Five key elements make the serial killer stand apart from others. The central element is repetitive homicide. Serial killers will kill again and again unless prevented. Ted Bundy first killed when he was 15 years old, his last at age 32. Second, the serial killer typically kills alone. Group serial homicide accounts for only 10 percent of all serial murders (Tithecott 38). Third, the relationship between the offender and the victim is generally non-existent. Fourth, the serial killer is motivated to kill. And last, an apparent and clear-cut motive for the murder may be missing (Seltzer 30). Serial murderers progress through various stages or phases. The aura phase is when the killer first begins losing grip on reality. Next is the trailing phase -- the killer searches for a victim. Third is the wooing phase -- the killer lures his/her victim --and then the capture follows. The fifth phase is the murder, which provides an emotional high. Occurring after the killing, the last phase is one of depression, which will trigger the beginning again. "The most profound thing about when I killed a woman was the emptiness I felt right after; I felt like I wasn't even human anymore. But after several days or sometimes weeks, I would want to destroy again and the whole process would repeat over and over" (O'Reilly-Fleming 157). Serial killers seek out different types of victims - female prostitutes from "red-light" areas, men involved in casual homosexual contacts, men frequenting skid-row areas of big cities, and women living on college campuses (Seltzer 24). Ted Bundy brutally murdered college-age women with long brown hair (Crime Library). David Berkowitz, "Son of Sam" hated all women. "I blame them for everything. Everything evil that's happened in the world - somehow goes back on them." (Crime Library). John Wayne Gacy entertained hospitalized youths in his Pogo the Clown costume. He used rope tricks from his performances to strangle unsuspecting young men who thought the worst they would endure would be some playful entertainment. Gacy replied, "You know, clowns get away with murder." (Crime Library) Killers also choose victims who are vulnerable such as prostitutes, runaways, migrant workers, and children. Victims may be self-selected only from their existence at a place and point in time. The victim may have "symbolic" value for the killer and the method of killing can reveal this meaning. With rare exception, serial killers shame and humiliate their victims. Ted Bundy deliberately kept conversations brief; he felt if he got to know the victims and saw them as real people, it would destroy the fantasy of murder (Crime Library). Many serial killers keep "souvenirs" of their crimes to later refuel their fantasies. Seeking perverse pleasure in torturing the victims, even resuscitating the victims at the brink of death so they can torture them more, serial killers are definite sadists (Crime Library). Serial killers usually fall into four types. The hedonist or sadistic murderer is the most common type. They are defined as killers who are apt to repeat their crimes and who mutilate or abuse their victim to achieve sexual pleasure (Seltzer 17) Hedonistic types have an aggressive movement towards obtaining pleasure. Lust, thrill, and control are all sub-categories of hedonistic murderers. Lust murderers are fueled by their sexual desires and may stop killing when sex in unimportant to them. They also kill because of the satisfaction they receive from the act of total violence. Using a knife or strangling their victims, lust murderers often dismember the victim's body afterwards. Thrill murderers need the victims alive and aware of the degradation before the victims are killed. They use torture in their methods and will dispose of the victim's body in a different location. The control killers' main purpose is to enjoy life. These types of murders are well planned and generally are the only types where the offender knows the victim. Visionary killers are psychotic and often hear voices telling them to commit the crime. They leave an abundance of physical evidence at the crime scene showing their rage. Killing their victims within moments, using whatever weapon is available, visionary killers are spontaneous. Missionary killers are no psychos to the outside world, but their inner selves feel the need to rid the world of those they consider unworthy. These killers believe that they have suffered an injustice at the hands of someone and that their victims are merely substitutes. Armed with their own weapons, missionary killers plan their murders with an organized crime scene. The last type of serial killers are the power/control killers. Stalking their victims, they are the most organized and deadliest. The common perception of the serial murderer is of a motiveless offender who kills purely for pleasure and is driven by some internal "bloodlust". This perception does not fit with our stereotypical female image, thus; the female is usually not considered to be capable of serial murder. However, closer studying of research proves otherwise. There are seven types of female serial murderers. The quiet killers, Black Widows, Angels of Death, sexual predators, revengers, profilers, and team killers. The Black Widows, typically killing many individuals (usually a husband or partner) over a long period of time, are the most common. Aileen Wuornos, the most famous female serial killer, was sentenced to death for killing seven men (Crime Library). With the combination of a very powerful media and a society fascinated with gruesome, sadistic crimes, modern serial killers have been put in the spotlight. A serial murder fulfills the criteria for a great news story -- fear, outrage, innocence, violence -- all attractive to the media (Gest 53). Henry Lee Lucas described being a serial killer as "being like a movie star"…you're just playing the part (Crime Library). Many serial killers state that the media goes out of its' way to glamorize murder and terrify the public. However, newspaper research within the media helps to provide an inventory of serial murders from each law enforcement jurisdiction. This type of research is the only current way to collect this data (Seltzer 11). Many movies, such as Silence of the Lambs, American Psycho, and Summer of Sam, have been made featuring serial killers. The serial killer novel is now a well-established subgenera in the mystery/thriller world (USA Today 7). Serial killers live on the other side of our social logic. Breaking human principles while crossing the line into a world of terror, they are not creatures of reason but of extreme carnal desire. Presenting a worldwide problem, serial killing isn't going away. REFERENCES Are serial killers on the rise? (1985, September). U.S. News and World Report, 14. Crime Library: What makes serial killers tick (2000). http:/crimelibrary.com/serials/what/whatmain.htm. Egger, S. (1990). Serial murder: An elusive phenomenon. New York: Praeger Publishers. Furio, J. (1998). The serial killer letters. Philadelphia: Charter Press. Gest, T. (1984, April). On the trail of America's serial killers. U.S. News and World Report, 53. Hickey, E. (1997). Serial murderers and their victims. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company. Holmes, R. & Holmes, S. (1998). Serial Murder. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications Levin, J. & Fox, J. (1985). Mass murder. New York: Plenum Press O'Reilly-Fleming, T. (1996). Serial and mass murder: Theory, research and policy. Toronto: Canadian Scholars Press. Seltzer, M. (1998) Serial killers. New York: Routledge Publishers. Serial killers grip Americans' imagination. (1994, August). USA Today, 123, 7. Tithecott, R. (1997). Of men and monsters. Madison, WS. The University of Wisconsin Press.
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