Provide an introduction of the offender. Explain why the offender meets the legal criteria/definition and has been labeled a “serial killer.”
New heading-Provide a biographical background on the selected offender. Discuss the early predictors and factors that may have contributed to the offender’s propensity to kill. Include scholarly opinions regarding the Macdonald Triad (animal cruelty, bedwetting, and fire setting). Include the following information:
Date and place of birth
Gender, biological sex, sexual orientation
Birth order and number of siblings
Family structure (single-parent home, abandoned, adopted, raised by other family members)
Location of first human kill and age of offender and victim
Criminal history as an adolescent (arson, animal cruelty, or assault)
Modus operandi (How did the offender kill the majority of his victims)
New heading-Define and discuss the sociological and psychological theories that explain the offender’s behavior.
New heading-Discuss the “modus operandi” of the offender. Are they classified as organized or disorganized killers? (Fox, L., Extreme Killing, 2019) Further, expound upon their classification by using the Holmes and DeBurger (1988) classification system, discuss the offender’s typology. If the offender is a female use the Kelleher and Kelleher Typology assessment tool. Detail the core characteristics of the offender’s behavior that align with a specific typology/classification. Did the offender have a cooling-off period?
New heading- Several general myths surround the phenomenon of serial killers. Does the selected offender prove or disprove stereotypes surrounding serial killers in general?
New heading-The offender-victim relationship is essential to criminologists studying the act of serial murder. Discuss the offender’s victimology. Why and how did they choose their victims? What similarities did the victims share? What were the offender’s preferences? Were the victims strangers, acquaintances, or family members? Why is this information important to investigators?
New heading-There are several different types of profiling methods that aid in the apprehension of serial killers. (Hickey, 2010., p. 367)What methods of profiling were used during the investigation? Give an example of each type used. How was the offender captured/apprehended? Did police use the media to aid in apprehension?
New heading-What was the final disposition of the criminal cases? Was the offender sentenced to life in prison or capital punishment? Discuss the pitfalls of profiling serial killers and the use of capital punishment to deter behaviors.
New heading-Mass murder and serial killing are undoubtedly some of the most terrifying and fascinating phenomena of modern-day crime. It is also one of the most sensationalized areas of research within the fields of criminology, psychology, and sociology. What did society learn from the offender’s behavior? Were social or legal policies and laws created from the offender’s murderous acts? Did the offender’s behavior change how society views serial killers and their victims?
New heading-What could have been done by family members, society, mental health providers, educators, the criminal justice system, and other stakeholders in the offender’s life to prevent the occurrence of serial murder?
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