Anna and Gracie Sharpe were killed in a calculated double murder, committed by John Sharpe on the 23rd and 27th of March, 2004 [AAP, 2005]. After reportedly arguing with his pregnant wife Anna, Sharpe fired two spears into her head, instantly killing her while she was asleep. He then contemplated killing his 19 month old daughter, Gracie, for 30 minutes before shooting her in the head with the same spear gun he had used to murder Anna. Gracie survived this initial attack, however, as she reportedly ‘screamed’ in pain [Healey, 2004]. Thus, in order to silence her distress, Sharpe retrieved the two spears from Anna’s head and then fired them into Gracie’s head as well, before dismembering her body with a chainsaw and dumping it into a landfill [Hadfield, 2014]. He later returned to exhume Anna’s body where he mutilated her corpse, scattering her limbs at the same place where Sharpe had left Gracie. While these murders were explicitly “singular” in brutality it was Sharpe’s attempt to conceal the crime by playing the victim, which requires closer, criminological attention [Hadfield, 2014].
The underlying etiology of Sharpe’s behaviour is difficult to pin-point. There are, however, many proximate and cumulative factors that are believed to have contributed to the event. Namely, Sharpe was undergoing marital issues with Anna at the time. In confessing, Sharpe attempted to rationalise Anna’s death by blaming her “hot and cold” behaviour, which resulted in a “loveless marriage” [Healey, 2006]. He also reportedly resented her autonomous behaviour: “she would wear the pants in the family” [Healey, 2006]. This emasculated Sharpe in the relationship, threatening his control. In order to gain authority, Sharpe consequently killed Anna. ...
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...l madness washed over me': killer John Myles Sharpe.
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Fagan, Jeffrey. (1993). The Social Control of Spouse Assault. In: Adler, Freda and Laufer, William S New Directions in Criminological Theory. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. p187.
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“Following Footsteps of a Killer.” New York Post (Nov. 2002): 124: Proquest. Web. The Web.
A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of its business, cannot help making celebrities of the people who would destroy it. Unfortunately, such acts of rampage have become a prevalent factor in the Canadian culture. As a result of endless media coverage, Canadians now are constantly bombarded with numerous images of violence. Many of which often portray a victim avenging their opponent by means of force. Thus, indoctrinating a nation of individuals to believe that it is only through aggression that problems can be resolved. Rather than being punished for acts of violence, those who commit such offenses are often praised for their “heroism”. In addition, the success of films like The Godfather, Gladiator, and Troy further aid in reinstating the fact that we live in a society that praises violence. Furthermore, this ideology allows for individuals to partake in violent acts with little or no backlash from ones community. However, when an individual strays away from the “norm”, they are likely to then be viewed as a deviant. Such cases of rejection within a society, are often seen in the portrayal of serial killers. Although our society tends to condone violence when it is directed towards a specific individual(s), it does not allow the killing of innocent bystanders. Instead, crimes that are targeted against a number of people over a long period of time, entail the harshest forms punishments under the law. Sadly, in executing the law for said crimes, those in charge often face much public scrutiny. Such occurrences were apparent in the faulty murder investigations of Canada's most notorious serial killer Robert Pickton. This is due to the ...
A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of its business, cannot help making celebrities of the people who would destroy it, (Lapham, 1985). Unfortunately, such acts of rampage have become a prevalent factor in the Canadian culture. As a result of endless media coverage, Canadians now are constantly bombarded with countless images of violence. Many of which often portray a victim avenging their opponent by force. Thus, indoctrinating individuals to believe that it is only through aggression that problems are resolved. Rather than being punished for acts of violence, those who commit such offenses are often praised for their “heroism”. In addition, the success of films like The Godfather, Gladiator, and Troy further aid in reinstating we live in a society that praises violence. Furthermore, this ideology allows for people to partake in violent acts with little or no backlash from ones community. However, when an person strays away from the “norm”, they are likely to then be viewed as a deviant. Such cases of rejection within a society, are often seen in the portrayal of serial killers. Although our society tends to condone violence when it is directed towards a specific individual(s), it does not allow the killing of innocent bystanders. Instead, crimes that are targeted against a number of people over a long period, entail the harshest forms punishments under the law. Sadly, in executing the law for said crimes, those in charge often face much public scrutiny. Such occurrences were apparent in the faulty murder investigations of Canada's most notorious serial killer Robert Pickton. This is due to the fact that, the negligence of the Vancou...
Kemper felt that his grandmother treated him the same as his mother did, therefore making it easy for him to displace his anger onto her. On one August afternoon in 1963, Kemper shot his grandmother in the back of the head with a .22 caliber rifle and stabbed her repeatedly about the body. When his grandfather returned home, he also used the gun on him shooting him as he exited his vehicle (Fisher, 2003b). This was the first murders of the future serial killer known as the “Co-ed Killer”.
In the study involving 2,143 married couples living together completed in 1975 and the study involving 6,002 couples completed in 1985 these studies showed that females had a slightly higher rate of assaulting their spouse than men did (Straus & Gelles, 1986, 1990). The overall rates in the 1985 National Family Violence Survey was 124 per 1,000 women assaulted their male partners compared to 122 per 1000 men who assaulted their female partners (Dutton, 1988; Stets & Straus, 1990). These studies show that women have the same if not hig...
On August 20th, 1989 Lyle and Erik Menendez killed their parents inside their Beverly Hills home with fifteen shot gun blasts after years of alleged “sexual, psychological, and corporal abuse” (Berns 25). According to the author of “Murder as Therapy”, “The defense has done a marvelous job of assisting the brothers in playing up their victim roles” (Goldman 1). Because there was so much evidence piled up against the brothers, the defense team was forced to play to the jurors’ emotions if they wanted a chance at an acquittal. Prosecutor Pamela Bozanich was forced to concede that “Jose and Kitty obviously had terrific flaws-most people do in the course of reminding jurors that the case was about murder, not child abuse” (Adler 103). Bozanich “cast the details of abuse as cool, calculated lies” (Smolowe 48)...
Violent behavior by men against their family members were traditionally considered private matters. We recognize public violence as being morally wrong or socially destructive. Domestic violence and child abuse are two forms of private violence that were more or less immune from public scrutiny and considered inappropriate for "outsiders" to intervene in unless the problem reached extreme proportions.
Hilton, N Zoe, ed. Legal Responses to Wife Assault: Current Trends and Evaluations. Newbury Park: SAGE Pub. Inc. 1993.
Ted Bundy was an American born rapist, a necrophile; a serial killer and a kidnapper who assaulted and murdered several young women during the 1970’s. The criminal kept on denying the charges for more than ten years and later confessed of having committed the thirty homicide crimes in seven different states before his execution (Rule, 2009). Bundy’s handsome and charismatic appearance made it possible for him to easily win the confidence of young women who were always his targets. He broke into the dwellings of his victims at night and bludgeoned them as they slept. He also approached young women in public places where he impersonated as an authority figure or feigned injury on his victim before empowering and assaulting at a more secluded area where he left them dead (Rule, 2009).
Walker, Lenore. “Battered Wives, Battered Justice.” Cited by Gerald Caplan. National Review. February 25, 1991.
In Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Jeff Lindsay presents Dexter Morgan, a serial killer who kills only criminals, and in doing so, generates controversy about what constitutes morally justifiable behaviour. Lindsay’s protagonist blurs the lines between right and wrong, exposes the inherent flaws of justice systems, and ultimately forces the reader to evaluate his or her principles. While many North Americans believe that murder is unquestionably evil, I disagree on the basis that this stance overlooks the need to take into account the circumstances of the situation—such as who the victim is, who has committed the murder, and why he or she has done so—which are crucial factors in passing moral judgement on an offender’s actions. I argue that Dexter is correct to channel his sociopathy into something positive—disposing of individuals who have committed atrocious crimes in a vigilante fashion—because North American justice systems are incredibly flawed, as they allow heinous criminals to walk free too often due to prevailing social biases, systematic loopholes, and lack of manpower. Dexter compensates for this defect because, unlike justice systems, he eliminates criminals without prejudice towards the offender or the victim, operates on a straightforward basis free of political rigmarole, and achieves results in an efficient fashion, all of which make North American society a safer place, save lives of would-be victims, and spare their families mental anguish. Ultimately, this reveals that the line between what is right and wrong is not as clear as one might initially think, as well as the troubling notion that North American institutional structures are in need of reconstruction if readers are more confident in justice delivered by a ...
During the 1980s and 1900s, domestic violence was one of the most unreported crimes that involve females and males getting hurt and dying. Kicking, choking, killing, and saying brutal or despise words that could hurt the victims physically or emotionally are considered domestic violence. In fact, many victims are afraid to seek for help. According to “The Domestic Violence Resource Center (DVRC), women account for approximately 85 percent of all intimate partner violence, with women aged 20-24 at greater risk” (Batten, par.16). Most pregnant women are at risk as well. “But underlying approach is still one that assumes the perpetrators are men and the victims are woman” (Haugen, par. 1). Moreover, both males and females believe that domestic violence is a solution to their issues.
McHugh, M. C., & Frieze, I. H. (2006). Intimate partner violence. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1087, 121–141. doi: 10.1196/annals.1385.011
... policies have to be able to effectively deal with the crime. The results of this study can be used to formulate policy in the state and in other states. The study plays an important role in understanding the nature of domestic violence, and how enforcement of stricter laws against it will affect its prevalence in the community.
“Domestic violence is a violent confrontation between family or household members involving physical harm, sexual assault, or fear of physical harm” (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). In most places, domestic violence is looked at as one of the higher priorities when trying to stop crime. Domestic violence cases are thought to be influenced by the use of alcohol, drugs, stress or anger, but in reality, they are just learned behaviors by the batterer. These habits can be stopped as long as one seeks help (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). For instance, a child is brought up in a household that is constantly involved in criminal acts.