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Forensic psychology in criminal investigations
How are criminal psychologists used in criminal investigations
Forensic psychology in criminal investigations
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On September 25, 2005, Levi King went on a cross-country killing rampage. Driven by his desire to kill, he gunned down two innocent people in his hometown of Pineville, Missouri. Fourteen hours later while driving in Texas, he decided to recapture the sensation of killing and began scanning the area for more victims. The reason I chose Levi King as my serial killer was because he was never caught. He ended up turning himself and confessing to his crimes. The most interesting fact that caught my eye was that he functions in a different sphere than the rest of us. Killing gives him a sense of peace and relief. For normal people, it’s listening to music, playing sports, working out, watching movies, fishing, etc. However, in his case, killing gave him …show more content…
that sense of relief and satisfaction. It’s almost as if killing was a drug for him. The peace he felt after killing his victims only lasted for hours. Once that feeling was gone, he wanted to feel it again and the only way he can feel that is to kill again. Levi King lived a very difficult childhood, by just about any standard. The house he grew up in stood dark in isolation, in the backwoods of Pineville, Missouri. His home had no sewage, electricity, or running water. Guns and violence were common in his household and he witnessed his brothers get severely beaten by his father. He and his brothers and sisters lived in constant fear of their father. At a young age, he began to act in a very antisocial way. At age four, he set his sisters room on fire. He was angry at his sister, so he decided to set the curtains on fire and burn her room. As he grew up, his behavior got worse. He started smoking at roughly age ten, started drinking at age twelve, and popped pills at age fourteen. Levi and his brothers were taught how to shoot at an early age, which lead to Levi having a hobby of killing animals and pets. At age twenty, Levi was sentenced to fourteen years in prison for burglarizing his neighbor's home, then burning it down. King served seventeen months in prison before he was paroled and sent to a halfway house in St. Louis. In September 2005, he fled. He headed back home to Pineville, Missouri. When he arrived home, he wasn’t welcomed. His father didn’t care that he was there. Levi and his father had a history of fighting with each other and they didn’t get along. King argued with his father and got kicked out of his house. The next morning, he waited for his father to leave for work and he went into the house to vandalize his room. He was letting out the anger he had from the argument they had the night before. He then stole an AK 47, hunting rifle, and a nine millimeter handgun. Levi grew up without a mother which affected him greatly. At one point in his life, his father took him out into the woods with a box of puppies and a shotgun and started to shoot at the box. His hatred for his father grew and grew and he thought about killing his father. The only reason he didn’t kill him was because his brothers and sisters still lived there. He didn’t want to expose them to the death of their father. Levi King has a psychopathic personality. He masks his disturbance by being clean on the outside and relating to others. However, Levi lacks a human connection with other people which makes him the psychopath that he is. The types of homicide he commits have three stages: incubation, violent act, and a feeling of relief following the violent act. The incubation part means that the psychopath thinks that the only solution to his hostile, discomforting feeling is to kill. The violent acts are the murders he commits and the relief is a sense of peace and fulfilment from the killings that took place. After leaving his house armed, he notices his neighbors drive out of their driveway. The house belonged to Mr. Mccool and his daughter. While they were shopping, Levi King broke into their house. Soon, they returned back from shopping and Levi saw them from the window. Levi then decided to wait at the front door of Orly’s office and developed a plan on what to do next. Dawn Mccool entered the house first and went to the living room. When Orly Mccool entered the house, Levi King started to walk towards him. Orly caught sight of Levi, but before he had time to respond Levi, shot him in the left temple and he collapsed to the floor. Dawn witnessed what happened and froze at the bottom of the stairs. Levi’s view was obstructed by a pillar and cross beams and all he could see was her left leg. Levi then fired his firearm and hit her on the hip. She fell over to the bottom of the stairs. Levi quickly made his way to the bottom of the stairs and shot her until he saw there was no more sign of life. He stole the keys to the pick up truck and fled. The police were called after two people were found dead. They investigated the crime scene and found a receipt from the grocery they went to. They framed the timing of the murder and immediately linked it to the burglary case a couple of hours before. Levi’s dad reported his guns stolen. The police linked the burglary to the murder. Levi didn't take any money or anything, which meant that he executed his victims. He leaves southwest without a plan and enjoying what he just did. After driving for thirteen hours, he stopped to rest, but he couldn’t. He got back into the road and kept driving. The peace and tranquility he had after killing the Mccool's faded away and he wanted to feel that peace again. While on the road near Pampa,Texas he spotted a quiet farmhouse and he knew then that he wanted to kill again. The reason he chose the particular house was because it was very remote and there were no neighbors around to hear the noise he would make. He pulled into the farmhouse, took an Ak47 from his arsenal, and kicked the back door of the farmhouse in. Immediately to the left, he saw a bedroom with two people in the bed. The two people in the bed were Michell Conrad and Brian Conrad. Michell Conrad woke up and saw Levi standing there. The minute she stood up, Levi opened fire. Michell was five months pregnant. He shot a couple of rounds on her and afterwards, he turned the weapon to Mr.Conrad and started to fire at him. After executing Mr. and Mrs.Conrad he turned his attention to the rest of the rooms in the house. One of the bedrooms belonged to ten-year-old Robin Doan. Robin Doan woke up from her mother’s screaming and the sound of gunshots. She had a nightmare that night and when she woke up, she wasn’t sure if it was her nightmare or real life. So, Robin got out of her bed and crouched down by her door. As soon as she heard heavy footsteps in the hallway she ran back into her bed and pretended to be asleep. Seconds later, Levi approached her doorway. Levi pushed open the door and saw a silhouette moving across and so he pointed his gun and shot.
He didn’t see the silhouette as any threat so he didn’t turn on the lights. Robin saw a big flash by her left arm and leg and pretended to be dead. Then, Levi turned and open Robin’s brothers room, turned the light on, and fired at her brother. After executing Zach, Levi believed he had killed everyone in the household and he made his way into the living room. Before leaving the house he looked himself in the mirror and realized that the killings he just committed had no affect on him and it left him empty. It wasn’t fulfilling to him at all. He got into the pickup truck he had stolen from Mr.Mccool and drove off. He developed a fixed idea that his solution to his problem was to kill. Killing is enjoyable for him and had given him a sense of dominance. He knows what is right from wrong,but he set out to kill in order to fulfill his need of peace and tranquility for him. He thought he killed the entire Doan family. However, he did not kill everyone as he thought. He shot Robin Doan when she was on her bed, but she was only wounded and did not die. She ended up falling asleep due to body exhaustion and fear. She woke up the next
morning terrified and called 911 immediately. An officer arrived at the scene and found 10 year old Robin Doan outside of her house. He investigated the house and found everyone dead and the killer was nowhere to be found. After leaving the house, Levi went to a gas station to purchase gas and a map. He then thought it would be a good idea to go to Mexico since what he had done left him no alternative. While driving south to Juarez, Mexico he takes the wrong turn and so he was going north instead of south and didn’t realize it until he saw the Bridge Of The Americas. He tried to look for an exit but there was none. As he pulled up to the border checkpoint he was asked if he had anything to declare and he said he had guns in the back of his pickup. He was told to put the car in park and to step out of his vehicle. Essentially, turning himself in. After Pineville hears that Levi has been caught at the border, they immediately make plans to get Levi. They put him on trial and he confesses to the Mccool killings. Meanwhile in Pampa, the investigation grew cold and they still had no leads. However, at the Missouri jail, Levi befriends a deputy and tells him about what he did in Texas. He tells the deputy that there were four more bodies in Texas. What he didn’t know was that Robin survived. Levi King pleads guilty in Missouri,but Pampa wanted a trial. At age fourteen, Robin Doan makes the brave decision to testify against King. Levi also pleads guilty in Texas. The jury decided to not go with the death penalty, but instead to sentence him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. To this day, Levi King is serving life in prison.
John Wayne Gacy in his early years was shown to have a minor biological impairment. At the age of 11, Gacy was playing near a swing set and was hit in the head causing an accidental blood clot in the brain. The blood clot was not discovered until he was 16 years old and he suffered from blackouts from the clot from the ages of 11 until it was discovered. There was a brain blockage that medications were able to dissolve. Gacy also had a series of health problems that kept him hospitalized for a significant amount of his childhood. His health issues included a heart condition, an erupted appendix, and numerous blackouts and seizures. After Gacy was executed, there were many autopsies that were done on his brain to see if there were neurological impairments. After doing numerous biopsies, there was not a trace of evidence to conclude that John Wayne Gacy suffered from neurological issues.
It’s not that uncommon for people to kill each other, and it happens every day. What is not common, is for someone to kill for no apparent reason. Typically there has to be some sort of benefit behind the murder. Whether that may be to get that out of their way for some reason, or to get something that they want. This article was meant to show resemblance between serial killers and your average everyday murderers. He brings up serial killer Lou Ford as an example of someone who acts as if they are normal, yet deep inside are very dangerous minded. Instead of using his physical attributes to murder people, he satisfies his needs by psychologically tormenting people. He does this as long as he possibly can, but there is only so much they can take of
Simon, Robert I. "Serial Killers, Evil, And Us." National Forum 80.4 (2000): 23. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.
A majority of these individuals are linked through commonalities of their childhood as well as their personality traits and behaviors. The serial murderer’s personality is an intricate recipe of biological, environmental and social circumstances. Though early abuse can cause feelings of aggression and delinquency, childhood experiences alone cannot be to blame. Many people are abused early on as children, and never become killers. Similarly, biological issues, such as brain abnormalities, as we as certain personality disorders would not individually create a murderer. Rather, a distinctive combination of psychological issues, impairments in the brain, and personality disorders help mold a brutal serial killer. Killers cannot be simply born into this world, but under the right circumstances, they will be created.
He is known to have killed at least five prostitutes between August 7th and September 10th, although he is suspected of many other murders. He chose prostitutes as his targets on purpose. They were easily accessible and the prostitutes first initiated contact with him, which appealed to his asocial personality. The murder of prostitutes, or other lower class citizens, was not uncommon in London’s East End at the time. The district was known for the violence and crime brought over by immigrants looking to make a new start for themselves. However, these murders were different than any other violent crime of the time, because of the sadistic and sociopathic manner of the murders. However, the killer did not just murder these women, he mutilated their bodies by removing their organs. This action really stood out at that time because it showed the killer had a mind for violence that no normal citizen could even comprehend.
Each of a serial killer’s killings temporary gratifies whatever provokes the killer’s actions, and each subsequent killing terminates a separate sequence of behaviors. They are all motivated to for different reasons; some kill to gain or exert power over the victims, entertainment or mission. Some kill because they believe they have the responsibility to they society to do so (Julietta Leung N.D.) Frequently, homosexuals, prostitutes, and the homeless are viewed by serial killers because they might believe they are devalued in society or they view as being beneath humanity. They believe those kind of p...
Introduction: On the spectrum of criminal activity, serial killers are rather rare. Rarer still is a serial killer like Ted Bundy. Bundy confessed to killing 28 women in the 1970s in ghastly fashion and some believe he may have killed far more. It is hard to imagine what could cause any person to cross the mental boundary into such macabre behavior as Bundy perpetrated. Nevertheless, it is important to try to understand that behavior because only though such an understanding would society be able to identify and deter mass murderers in order to save lives.
Serial killers have long eluded law enforcement while simultaneously grabbing the attention of the public, and now more than ever, criminal psychologists are beginning to understand what makes a serial killer. In his true-crime documentary, In Cold Blood, Truman Capote depicts the horrifying murders of four members of the Clutter family and the search to find the criminals responsible for the deaths. Eventually, two killers are caught, one being Perry Smith, a detached and emotionless man. And although his carnage of the Clutters labeled him a mass murderer, many of Perry’s personality traits are characteristic of a serial killer. In fact, if detectives had not caught him, Perry could have easily become a serial killer.
Just a few months later, he kept to his promise that there would be more deaths. The Zodiac killer murdered a young couple, David Faraday and Betty Jensen, in Vallejo, California. David was killed by one shot to the head and Betty was shot five times ten feet away from the car. Police suspected Arthur Leigh Allen, a child molester, who fit the description of the Zodiac Killer almost to a T, but there was no incriminating evidence, so he was never charged. The Zodiac Killer was suspected of killing 2,500 people throughout his killing spree, and was never caught.
Serial killer is a person who kills three or more people with a cooling off period between murders and these murders may go on for a period of months or years. The murders that this person commits may have similar fashion or the victims may have something in common, for example, occupation, race, appearance, sex, or age group. Psychology is the science and study of human behavior and mental processes. Moreover, it is the study of human minds and its function.
As years go on so will the research on serial killers and hopefully we as a society will fully understand them and one day be able to cure whatever inside that makes them have the urge to kill. Works Cited The Electronic Journal of Sociology, published by the University of Guelph, Ontario. http://www.scribd.com/doc/167086215/How-Serial-Killers-Work. According to the article “10 Most Common Traits of Potential Serial Killers By Hestie Barnard Gerber. According to Comrade Chikatilo: The Psychopathology of Russia's Notorious Serial Killer.
'Serial murder'; has long been a term used to describe those human beings that repeatedly commit heinous crimes. It is rare that the average person probes the mind of a serial killer without bias. However, what lies behind the eyes of a serial killer deserves more than the cold hard look that society so often gives (Aaronson, Inter...
Mass Murderers and Serial Killers are nothing new to today’s society. These vicious killers are all violent, brutal monsters and have an abnormal urge to kill. What gives people these urges to kill? What motivates them to keep killing? Do these killers get satisfaction from killing? Is there a difference between mass murderers and serial killers or are they the same. How do they choose their victims and what are some of their characteristics? These questions and many more are reasons why I was eager to write my paper on mass murderers and serial killers. However, the most interesting and sought after questions are the ones that have always been controversial. One example is; what goes on inside the mind of a killer? In this paper I will try to develop a better understanding of these driven killers and their motives.
Serial killers have been a major problem in the United States for a long time. We don’t know why they kill human beings, but many people are trying to figure out why. A serial killer is a person that has murdered three or more people over a period of a month. There is also a period of time between the murders know as the “cooling off period”. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, there have been approximately four hundred serial killers in the United States within the past century. The number of these murderers have increased over the past thirty years, with around eighty percent of them emerging since 1950.
A serial killer's murdering spree is methodical and extremely well planned, and the motive usually is to get even (Douglas, p. 137). A serial killer often plans his crimes extremely carefully. He looks for a certain type...