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A critical analysis of research related to the criminal mind of serial killers
Essays on the psychology of serial killers
A critical analysis of research related to the criminal mind of serial killers
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In the San Francisco Bay area, as well as in the rest of California, the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s was a time of terror and fear. What started out as a seemingly random, but brutal murder on the night of October 30th, 1966, turned out to be the start of a series of horrific murders that would span 2,500 suspects, 56 possible victims, and over 400 miles. On the calm, cool night of December 20th, 1968, a young seventeen year-old named David Arthur Faraday was getting ready to take a young sixteen year-old named Betty Lou Jensen on her first date. David arrived at Betty’s house, picked her up, and promptly proceeded to Lake Herman Road, a well known "lover’s lane" of the local teenagers. After a while, a car, possibly a blue Valiant, pulled up next to David’s 1961 brown and beige four-door station wagon, and a man got out. "Framed only in silhouette, the man appeared to be stocky in build and slightly heavy, with an eerie sense about him" (Tina 3). The man requested that the teens get out of their car, but they refused. Upon hearing David and Betty’s refusal, the man pulled out a gun, and fired a round into the right rear window, shattering it with incredible force. He then moved to the front of the car and fired another round into the left tire. Stricken with panic, David and Betty rushed out of the car, but the man was there to meet them. Betty was able to scramble out, but David wasn’t so lucky, as he was met with the cold, hard barrel of a gun pressing behind his left ear. "The shot made a deafening blast, as the bullet entered David’s head at a horizontal angle, blowing it apart" (Tina 3). With David out of his way, the killer turned his attention back to Betty. "He pursued her through the woods, his gun drawn, and shot her five times in the back from less than ten feet away." (Tina 3). The killer then got back into his car, and drove away as quickly as he had appeared. David, amazingly, was still alive, and bleeding profusely from his wounds, but Betty was dead. In the ambulance on the way to the hospital, David was able to give the police an account of the events that had taken place that night, but he died shortly after from his wounds. Upon investigation, the police came up with nothing, and ruled the murder a random homicide.Darlene Ferrin, a close friend of both Betty and David, was the next victim on the Zodiac’s list. On Friday... ... middle of paper ... ...nd most stunningly, the NSA deciphered cryptographs that contained his name; all pointing to him as the most likely, and the most probable culprit.The Zodiac was one of the most cold and calculating murderers of the twentieth century. His gruesome and violent ways of killing, along with the coinciding of his murders with moon phases, star appearances, radians, and the astrological chart, among other things, also make him the most terrifying murderer of the twentieth century. The scariest thing of all is that this maniac was never caught, and if not dead, is still living somewhere, potentially threatening the lives of the peaceful people around him. Works Cited: Mrazik, Tina. "The Zodiac Killer" Online. Internet. 1998. Available: href="http://crimelibrary.com/zodiac/zodiac/zodiacmain.html">http://crimelibrary.com/zodiac/zodiac/zodiacmain.htmlWorks Consulted:Graysmith, Robert. Zodiac New York: Berkley Books, 1987. Penn, Gareth. Times Seventeen: The Amazing Story of the Zodiac Murders in California and Massachusetts, 1966-1981 New York: The Foxglove Press, 1987.
The morning of November 15th, two of Nancy’s friends went to visit her and they found Nancy dead upstairs from being shot in the head. Law enforcement was called and they found
On August 23, 1980 in Conroe, Texas, is 40 miles north of Houston, a 16-year-old girl, Cheryl Fergeson, disappeared while searching for a women’s restroom at Conroe High School (Gores, 1991). Cheryl was the manager of the Bellville High girls’ volleyball team visiting Conroe High School for a preseason scrimmage. Later that day while searching for the girl two janitors, Clarence Brandley who is black, and Henry Peace who is white, found the girl’s body hidden under some scenery flats in the loft above the auditorium stage. Cheryl has been raped and strangled to death. Clarence and Henry were interrogated and made to sign statements. The two janitors were then taken to the hospital and made to give sperm, blood, and hair samples from their head
The death of Marie also altered the way that he thought about his father, in that before he thought that he was not a true sheriff, saying that he “didn’t even look like a proper sheriff” and that he carried “the wrong kind of gun for a sheriff.” However, after Marie passed away, David went on to realise that the “har...
When they finally arrived at Cadrain's home, David changed his pants, and they left to go to Alberta. Larry Fisher, who was later convicted of this crime (Miller's murder) was staying in the same home as Cadrain at the time.
These murders were indeed brutal. Herb lay sprawled on a mattress in the basement, stabbed, his throat slashed and a shotgun charge fired to his head. His hands were bound and his mouth was taped shut. Found on a couch in the adjacent room was his son, Kenyon, bound, gagged and shot in the head. Upstairs was Bonnie and Nancy. Bonnie was bound and gagged, Nancy was only bound. They had both been shot in the head.
Simon, Robert I. "Serial Killers, Evil, And Us." National Forum 80.4 (2000): 23. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.
...se events formed two rectangles held together by a solid line. This symbol, whose origin is the same as the Zodiac symbol used by the murderer, symbolizes the afterlife, and is placed on graves to hurry the souls to the afterlife. With Zodiac’s obsession with the afterlife, and the need for slaves in the thereafter, it is hypothesized that he is responsible for close to 100 murders across the area. The most resent developments to the Zodiac case have taken place on the East Coast. In 1998, a string of murders occurred in the New York metro area by someone claiming to be the Zodiac. Though police have assumed that this is a copycat case, it has not been ruled out that the Zodiac may once again be on the move.
The Zodiac Killer is one of the most popular murders. The fact that made him so infamous was that The Zodiac Killer was never identified. The mysterious killer was never caught and jailed for his crimes. The FBI have looked for the killer for decades, but still, even to this day, could not find him. The whole mystery of the killer and the name of the killer has made him popular across the United States. The Zodiac Killer was a mysterious killer, and he had a very unique way of going about the murders.
The murder of Lorraine Kelly and Mary Pryor still haunts the town of North Bergen because their disappearance was strange and rapid. This case has been closed due to the lack of evidence but was reopened again after forty years for the purpose of acquiring justice and answers to the death of both teenage girls. The last person to have seen and spoken to Mary Pryor was her sister Nancy Pryor when she was told by her sister that she would be back by eight o’ clock the latest. For the purpose of hiding her and her families’ identity, after the murder occurred she moved out of Hudson County and didn’t divulge her married name or current locality of residence because of the frantic fear that the murderer may plan an attack to her and or family. Prior to their killing both teenagers used to reside at 76st and were active hitchhikers. Both victims were found in a wooded area in Bergen County known as Montvale, and it was evident that they were beaten, sexually assaulted, and strangled by force. As a result, when the bodies were found they were in an early state of decomposition which allowed the medical examiners to see visible evidence on the body such as sperm and marks.
Three women, three murders. The first woman called the cops one night saying that there had been a horrible accident and she had shot her husband in the head. She told the story of the horrible accident to the police. They believed her. She said that when she was sleeping in her bed she heard a sound so she reached for the gun that her husband kept under the pillow for protection. When she was pulling it out she hit the trigger firing a bullet into the back of her husband’s head. She said it was a horrible accident and she couldn't believe it had happened.
An analysis of the most famous murderers and serial killers in the Chicago area shows varying degrees of psychopathy or mental illnesses, which ultimately contribute to homicidal conduct. Analysis also shows that the paths of serial killers have a tendency to converge.... ... middle of paper ... ...
The Zodiac changed his appearance to much to have a physical description his best known for the symbol he wore and wrote on his letters. There is no one yet responsible for the Zodiac killings. No one has been caught and proven to be the Zodiac killer but most agencies that took on the investigation have kept there investigation open and still haven’t closed it. The San Francisco Police Department closed their investigation in April 2004 but re-opened it in March 2007.
Serial killers are everywhere! Well, perhaps not in our neighborhood, but on our television screens, at the movie theaters, and in rows and rows of books at our local Borders or Barnes and Nobles Booksellers” (Brown). When people think of serial killers, names such as Dahmer, Gacy, Bundy, and Gein are cited. During the time Jack the Ripper was executing his victims in London, Holmes began his gruesome career in Chicago (America’s Serial Killers). “Despite being America’s first serial killer, Holmes is hardly a familiar name and until now we haven’t had any popular visual record of his crimes: (Spikol). Why is it that people only think of the more popular killers with higher known profiles? They are all very similar to one another because they share characteristics. H.H. Holmes was a successful serial killer because he was well educated, cunning and charming. Those are just a few traits Holmes ...
Still, police were unable to get Shawcross to admit to the murders until they confirmed that a piece of jewelry he had given to Clara Neal that previously belonged to the victim June Cicero (Ewing, 2008). When police threatened to connect her in the killings, Shawcross surrendered and admitted to most of the murders, giving detailed excuses about why he had been "forced" to kill each one (Ewing, 2008). He even admitted to the killing of two undiscovered bodies, those of prostitutes Maria Welsh and Darlene Trippi, leading investigators to their bodies. His formal confession was nearly 80 pages long (Ewing,
The Zodiac Killer is one of the most notorious serial killers in American history even though he hasn’t committed as many murders as other killers have. The Zodiac operated in northern California from the early 1960s to late 1970s. He is self proclaimed as the Zodiac Killer and is directly linked to the murders of five people and possibly more.