‘The Dating Game Killer”
April Smolkowicz
Criminology 3200
Georgia Gwinnett College
Introduction
Rodney James Alcala, a California convicted serial killer. Alcala is also known as the “Dating Game Killer”, from when he was chosen in 1978, as a contestant on the ABC prime time show, “The Dating Game.” Alcala served as a clerk in the U.S. Army from 1960, and in 1964 Alcala was discharged on medical grounds, after being diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder from the U.S. Army’s’ military psychiatrist. Rodney Alcala is a highly manipulating, using very persuasive skills and influential charm by posing as a photographer. Beginning in 1968, Alcala would use his photography as his abduction technique in order to abduct young
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Crimes are deliberate acts, with the intent of benefiting the offender. 2. Benefiting unsuccessfully in choosing the best decisions because of the risks and uncertainty involved. 3. Decision making significantly varies with the nature of the crime. 4. Involvement decisions are quite different from the commission (event decision) of a specific act. 5. Involvement decisions are divided into three stages: first time involvement (initiation), continued involvement (habituation) and ceasing to offend (desistance), 6. Event decisions include a sequence of choices made at each stage of the criminal act, involvement model, background factors and situational life styles, initiation (of becoming involved in a crime), habituation (deciding to continue with crime), distance (deciding to stop criminal behavior) and event model – criminal even …show more content…
While looking at the convergence in space and time of the three minimal elements of direct-contact predatory violations: 1. Motivated offenders, 2. Suitable targets, and 3. The absence of capable guardians against a violation (Cohen & Felson, 1979, p. 589).
References
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Offenders are able to identify weaknesses in a child’s personality or life circumstances and then exploit them. There can be many different characteristics a Child Molester or Pedophile uses for their selection process. The characteristics are the foll...
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Alcala is known to be very smart with a high IQ, but it was his charming ability that got him selected for ABC prime-time show, the dating game in 1978. Although Alcala was a convicted rapist and registered sex offender, he was accepted as a contestant. On the show he was introduced as a “successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the darkroom at the age of 13, fully developed between takes, you might find him skydiving or motorcycling. Please welcome Rodney Alcala!” Alcala won over Bradshaw with his charming personality, but she would later refuse to go out with him. This was not his first victims though as his first victim was an eight year old little
While the study of criminal justice and the formation of criminal justice theories are largely molded by several other disciplines such as psychology and sociology (Wellford, 2007), the study of criminal justice has grown and it is time for it to stand alone as its own scientific discipline. Crime theories are developed through studying individuals and assessing as well as their environment and other social aspects. These theories are then used to help form policies in order to deter the individual or group from committing further crimes. Criminal justice theories are not only used for crime but there are also theories which aid criminal justice personnel in the application of the practices that they use. The criminal justice policies are implemented
In today’s society, juveniles that commit a sexual assault have become the subject of society. It’s become a problem in the United States due to the rise of sexual offenses committed by juveniles. The general public attitude towards sex offenders appears to be highly negative (Valliant, Furac, & Antonowicz, 1994). The public reactions in the past years have shaped policy on legal approaches to managing sexual offenses. The policies have included severe sentencing laws, sex offender registry, and civil commitment as a sexually violent predator (Quinn, Forsyth, & Mullen-Quinn, 2004). This is despite recidivism data suggesting that a relatively small group of juvenile offenders commit repeat sexual assaults after a response to their sexual offending (Righthand &Welch, 2004).
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Therefore, those who study and carry out its theories are considered scientists. The theories and practices within the subject help criminologists determine the cause and consequence of criminal behavior; also why criminology is so highly regarded among law enforcement and the legal world. Socioeconomic status, psychological behaviors and of course, the legal aspect are just a few factors criminologists analyze when determining criminal behavior. The next few paragraphs will provide an explanation of rational choice theory and the various factors that are studied to determine how criminologists categorize crime and criminal behavior. Along with an explanation of the theory, this will be an example of how that theory is utilized in the justice system.
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Criminals use the rational choice theory in society when they are trying to avoid any kind of pain and are in a mindset of looking for pleasure. Criminals find the easiest way to have fun and find a ...
Rodney Alcala was a young dashing ladies man, said to have a near genius IQ, through utilizing his so called photography skills combined with his persuasive smooth talking charm in order to abduct, rape and kill his victims of young girls and women. In 1978 due to his influential charm, he was selected to compete with two other bachelors’ on the ABC prime-time show called, “The Dating Game”. On this particular episode the lady bachelorette whose name is: “Cheryl Bradshaw” chose Rodney Alcala to be her date. Only they never
Criminology is the study of crime and criminals; a branch of sociology. More accurately, it is the study of crime as a social trend, and its overall origins, its many manifestations and its impact upon society as a whole. That makes it more a form of sociology than a law enforcement tool. But the trends it studies have a huge impact on the way the police do their jobs, the way society treats its criminals, and the way a given community goes about maintaining law and order. The writer will describe and give examples of the three perspectives of viewing crimes. The perspectives that will be highlighted are the consensus view, the conflict view or the interactionist view. Each perspective maintain its own interpretation of what constitutes criminal activities and what causes people to engage in criminal behaviors (Siegel, p.12).
Hickey, T. J. (2010). Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Crime and Criminology, 9th Edition. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.