Lesson 2 - The Use of Criminal Profiling in Homicide Investigations

Types of Murderers

Types of Murderers

gun shot

History has proven that multiple murderers are of various types, each with distinct characteristics.

A mass murderer kills several people, typically at the same time and at one location. Mass murderers are sometimes divided into those who kill only members of their family and those who kill victims to whom they are not related. For example, a former computer programmer, Richard Farley, was fired for stalking one of his co-workers. He returned to his former workplace with a gun, killed seven, and injured four of his ex-colleagues. The female he had stalked was one of the four people injured.

A spree murderer kills several victims during a short time, usually in two or more locations. For example, spree killer Seung-Hui Cho, a student at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University better known as Virginia Tech, caused the Virginia Tech massacre. The tragedy consisted of two separate shootings about two hours apart in April 2007 on the Virginia Tech campus. Cho killed 32 people and wounded 25 people before committing suicide. The Virginia Tech massacre is the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history.

A serial murderer kills several victims in three or more separate events during a time that may be days, weeks, months, or even years. Many serial killers are psychopaths who are considered to have a personality disorder but appear quite normal and charming. Serial killers are motivated specifically by various psychological urges, primarily power and sexual compulsion. Serial murderers are further categorized into three sub-types:

  • Visionary: The offender hears voices or sees visions that tell him or her to kill.
  • Missionary: The offender goes on a hunting mission to rid Earth of a certain group of people.
  • Hedonistic: Offenders are of four types, all of whom take pleasure in the kill: comfort-oriented, lust-oriented, thrill-oriented, and power-oriented. The latter takes pleasure in domination and manipulation, getting a ‘rush’ from the victim’s misery.

Although rare, mass killings have occurred unintentionally without premeditation. For example, in 1990, Julio González set fire to a New York City nightclub after having a fight there with his girlfriend. His intention was to hurt his girlfriend. She was injured, but 87 people died in the blaze.

Behaviour Reflects Personality

In criminal profiling and especially in homicide investigations, the behaviour of an offender is thought to reflect the personality of the offender. Profilers try to predict the personality of the offender after analyzing the suspect’s behaviour before, during, and after the crime. To predict personality from behaviour, criminal profilers often try to answer the following questions:

Before the Murder:

  • What fantasy or plan did the murderer have before the act?
  • What triggered the murderer to act on some days and not others?

Method:

  • What type of victim or victims did the murderer select?
  • What was the method of murder (shooting, stabbing, strangulation, or something else)?

Body disposal:

  • Did the murder and body disposal occur at one scene or at multiple scenes?

After the Murder:

  • Did the murderer try to involve himself in the investigation by reacting to media reports or by contacting investigators?

Most serial killers are male, white, and in their twenties or thirties. Women rarely commit serial murders, but they tend to do so in spree fashion, killing people they know such as patients when working in a nursing home or hospital.
 

 

Glossary Term: Mass Murderer

  • a person who kills several or numerous victims in a single incident

Glossary Term: Serial Murderer

  • a person who attacks and kills victims one by one in a series of incidents