Classified Killers

I'd like to point out three things before I get started.
Point the first: This post is really me to getting really pedantic about terms that crime shows misuse. Well... just one term that really gets on my nerves.
Point the second: I did mention that due to my assignments I wouldn't be doing a proper Disturbing the Disturbed post this week, however I did find some really neat studies while researching this so they will go in a different post.
Point the third: Half of this blog is me giving my thoughts some sort of structure. So this is a bit of an organizing process.

Firstly the "one phone call" rule means one phone call to your lawyer - not to the helpful old lady who will find the real killer for you. Just wanted to clear that up.

Now, the ones that actually sparked my desire to explain terminology: mass murderer, spree killer, and serial killer. Now, most of you have probably heard of the first and last ones from crime shows. The fact is that most of the “serial killers” on television are, in fact, spree killers – if there is a serial killer on a show, it will likely be the “big bad” for the season and their crimes will be a overarching plot between different shows, in which the individual crime will play second fiddle to the murder-of-the-week until the big confrontation episode. An example of a TV serial killer is the Dollhouse Killer of from the CSI franchise.

However, what is the actual difference?

Let’s start with mass murder.

First thing about mass murder is that all the killings take place in one place over a continuous period of time. This time span ranges from a few minutes to a day. They have to have killed at least 3 (or 4) people. Most high school shootings fit under Mass Murder, as well as crimes that involve the killing of multiple family members at a time.
The mentality to do with a mass killing is different to serials and sprees. For starters, while the demographic of serial killers and spree killers are typically white males from the ages of 20 to 30, the mass murderer, while also a white male, is typically between the ages of 25 and 40. Their “plan” tends to be disorganized and the motive is usually revenge or rejection.
Cases of rape are rare, and sadism is not usually a factor. The greatest difference would be that the attitude towards being caught is uncaring, or even suicidal. Typically the mass murderer is a frustrated individual, has lots of weapons, likes violence, have no partner, and lives alone or with a parent.


Next is the spree killer.

The spree killer will have killed two or more victims in multiple locations in a short period of time. The common time frame is from a few days to a week but the formal definition is that “there is no cooling-off period”. Timing is the key difference between the three categories with mass murderers having no distinctive time period between kills and with the crimes of serial killers being definitely separate events – a spree killer’s kills, though in different locations, are considered a single event.

Spree killers tend to be disorganized, and also tend to be fueled by revenge/rejection. Sadism is not a factor in their kills but rape may factor in. Spree killers usually don’t plan on being caught but there are exceptions to this.

Both mass murderers and spree killers fall under “rampage killers” and their victim demographic is usually spread between men and women (though more women do tend to die in mass murders). However, spree killers and serial killers are more likely to have partners than mass murderers.


Finally we come to serial killers.

The serial killer commits 3 or more murders over a period of more than a month with a “cooling off period” between, and has a motive based on psychological gratification. Usually the victims have something in common, such as race or sex, but in some cases such as that of the Zodiac killer there is no pattern. Due to the large time difference between kills it can be months, years, or even decades before a serial killer is caught, if they are caught at all.

While spree killers and mass killers tend to use guns, a serial killer will commonly use a knife or employ some means of strangulation to kill their victim. Both rape and sadism can play a part in their crimes and serial killers do not intend on being caught.

In terms of personal characteristics, there have been many studies done on this.

• A sample of 174 serial killers revealed a mean IQ of 93, with only bombers having IQs significantly greater than average.
• Often abandoned by their fathers and were raised by domineering mothers.
• Their families often have criminal/psychiatric/alcoholic histories.
• They were emotionally/physically/sexually abused by a family member.
• May have a large history of suicide attempts.
• Frequently bullied as children
• Interested in voyeurism, fetishism, and sadomasochism from an early age.
• A disproportionate number exhibit one, two, or three of the MacDonald Triad (predictors of psychopathy):
• Pyromania
• Sadistic tendencies (especially in children who have not yet reached sexual maturity – usually takes the form of torturing animals)
• Bed wetting beyond the age of 12.
• More than 60% did this but there have been debates on the statitistical significance of this figure.

There are exceptions to this, such as Harold Shipman, Dennis Nilsen>/a>, Vlado Taneski, and Russell Williams. These are only guidelines.

Some serial killers exhibit various degrees of psychopathy, a condition that will be covered in a later post but is mainly defined by having traits of both narcissism and antisocial personality disorder (also covered later). 50-80% of criminals exhibit ASPD but only 15-30% score as primary psychopaths on the PCL-R test. There is no data to identify the prevalence of psychopathy amongst serial killers.
However, serial killers who exhibit ASPD are often aware of how to hide the characteristics in order to blend in – an infamous case is that of Ed Kemper who tricked psychiatrists into thinking he was cured.

While there are female serial killers they are very rare and primarily kill for money, are emotionally close to the victims, and generally have a relationship with them (wife/mother/nurse). Once again, there are exceptions such as Aileen Wuornos.

A common theory as to why serial killers keep killing is that they are trying to live out a fantasy and since reality never meets up to fantasy, they are compelled to keep trying.

Serial Killers can be both organized, disorganized, and mixed (a three to four ratio on the first two). What this means is that
Disorganized:

•  More impulsive, often use whatever weapon is available at the time, don’t usually try to hide the body
• They usually have a history of mental illness, below average intelligence (the mean IQ of disorganized killers is 92.5), may be unemployed or a loner, and their crimes can be very violent.

Organized:

• Plan methodically, usually have above average intelligence (mean IQ of organized killers is 113), usually abduct victims, have different kill and dump sites, and may lure out victims by playing on sympathy (e.g. Ted Bundy) or target prostitutes due to their being more likely to walk off with strangers.
• Occasionally they have forensic knowledge to help them control the crime scene and cover their tracks.
• They are socially adequate, has friends/lovers, and even a family. These are the ones who would be described as “they wouldn’t hurt a fly”.

Serial Killers obviously have a motive of some sort – recognized motives are:

• Visionary: having suffered a psychotic break from reality, they sometimes believe that they are another person or are being compelled to murder by another entity.
• Mission-oriented: justify their actions in that they are “ridding the world” of a type of person whom they deem undesirable on the basis of sexual preference, occupation, ethnicity, religion, etc. It is important to note that these kinds are generally not psychotic.
• Hedonistic: thrill seeker and see people as expendable in order to get said thrills.
• Lust: sex is the primary motive here regardless of whether the victim is alive or dead. The fantasy plays a large part in their killings and the will use close contact weapons like knives or hands. As the killings continue the time between victims will decrease and/or the stimulation required increases.
• Thrill: primary motive is to inspire pain/terror in victims and thus excitement for themselves. They murder only for the kill – the attack is not prolonged and there is no sexual aspect. The victims are typically strangers but prolonged stalking may proceed the attack. They can abstain from killing for a long period of time and tend to refine their techniques as they go on – they aim for the perfect murder.
• Comfort (profit): material gain is the main purpose, thus the victims are usually family members or close acquaintances. Long periods of time between victims in order to avoid suspicion. Poison is the most popular weapon – especially arsenic.
• Power/control: main objective is to exert power over the victim. These killers were usually abused as children and they are trying to make up for their lingering feelings of powerlessness and inadequacy. In these cases rape is not about sex but domination.

[looks at the page]
Well… that’s enough of serial killers for me. >_>

A great graph that mostly summarizes most of this can be found here. And I like this site but failed to include – just read.

DISCLAIMER: In regards to the demographics of the killer (white/male/age) one must keep in mind that these are derived from figures taken from the USA. When these statistics are compared with those of other countries, it is found that Caucasians are no more likely to be a serial killer than any other race. This can be attributed to the media’s tendency to focus on crimes where the victims are “pretty white females”. However, of America, South Africa, and Australia, the latter has a much lower incidence of serial murders.