David Berkowitz and His Impact on the Criminal Justice System

David Berkowitz and His Impact on the Criminal Justice System

David Berkowitz is not a household name, however his media given title "Son of Sam" will ensure his memory as one of the most notorious serial killers of all time.

David Berkowitz was born on June 1, 1953 to a single unwed mother and immediately into adoption. He was adopted by Nat and Pearl Berkowitz, a loving Jewish couple unable to have children. Throughout his childhood, David was repeatedly informed that his birth mother had died during childbirth and these were his new parents (Essene, 2000). David had a relatively normal childhood; his parents loved him dearly and showered him with gifts on numerous occasions. However, he was socially uncomfortable, and possessed a low self esteem, David had frequent violent episodes in which he would often turn over furniture and throw temper tantrums.

As a teenager David remained primarily a loner, which came as little surprise considering his parent's reclusive nature and lack of outside social contact. He was remembered as a nice looking boy, possessing a violent streak, a bully who often assaulted neighborhood children for no apparent reason (Bardsley 2001). These are common prototype traits of many killers at a young age. Even in cases like Cash and Jeremy Stromeyer, there are small indications that the child will have future problems in dealing with people and developing relationships (Aspland, 10/15/01).

David loved his step- mother very much and was often jealous of her other commitments and lack of soul attention towards him. During his early teens, David was informed that his step- mother had been fighting breast cancer for some time. He was previously unaware, and felt betrayed by his uninforming parents. Pearl's steady decline left him devastated, and her death in 1967 found him suddenly alone with his father (Bardsley 2001). Traumatic events like David losing his mother does a great deal to an individual's development in society due to the fact that there is no longer a positive cohesive whole unit as a family. We find that many people who lack a solid family background struggle later in life. An example of this would be the two guest speakers that spoke to our criminal justice class on November 12, 2001. Both individuals had parents who were once in jail or they had a limited relationship with.