Comparing serial homicides to single homicides: A study of prevalence,offender, and offence characteristics in Sweden

Multiple and serial homicides constitute around 1.6% of all homicides but have unusually tragic outcomes. The aims of this study were to report the prevalence serial‐homicide offences and the characteristics of serial‐homicide offenders in a non‐North American context. The study included all convicted serial‐homicide offenders in Sweden from 1973 to 2012 (n = 25), as well as a population‐based control sample of single‐homicide offenders collected during 2007 and 2009 (n = 201). Similar to U.S. findings, approximately 1.6% of homicides could be attributed to serial‐homicide offenders. Serial offenders were more often diagnosed with personality disorders and autism‐spectrum disorders compared with single offenders; and serial offences more often involved victims who were female and unacquainted with the offender, as well as planning, sexual motives, and asphyxia as method of violence. One third of serial offences involved actions aimed at disguising the manner of death; such actions were considerably less common in single‐homicide offences. Few offenders displayed the traditional profile of a serial‐homicide offender; however, one third displayed sexual motives, a rate roughly 10 times higher than that in the single‐homicide group. The study concludes that serial‐homicide offenders should be subjected to forensic‐psychiatric examinations and that research involving cross‐contextual differences and similarities in serial‐homicide offenders is needed.     

Testing Existing Classifications of Serial Murder Considering Gender: An Exploratory Analysis of Solo Female Serial Murderers

Serial murder is a genre of crime that has received a great deal of media and academic attention, yet, serial murder committed by women has only begun to garner a portion of this attention within the last 15 years. This study examines the reliability of Kelleher and Kelleher's classification rubric, the only classification system developed for female serial murderers, as well as considering Hickey's classification of serial offenders by location. Other variables associated with homicide research have also been examined to determine their roles in both these crimes and classifying offenders. The current research will demonstrate that offender motivation is not an ideal basis for the classification of female serial murderers, who tend to defy simple or singular classification within existing typologies. The other variables analysed indicate that victim–offender relationship and victim approach are important to understanding these female offenders and their crimes, as well as the possible development of more accurate classification systems. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How Long Do Offenders Escape Arrest? Using DNA Traces to Analyse when Serial Offenders Are Caught

Why is it that some serial offenders are arrested quickly and others only after a long period, or never at all? What characterises offenders who continue to escape arrest despite their continued involvement in crime? To be able to answer these questions, arrested (identified) offenders must be compared with never arrested (unidentified) offenders. In this paper, data from the Dutch DNA database are used to assess which characteristics of the criminal behaviour of unidentified offenders influence the probability that they will subsequently be arrested. DNA data offer a unique opportunity to compare crime series of identified offenders with crime series of yet unidentified offenders. Using the Cox proportional hazards model, we tested whether the number of crimes committed, offence specialization, and offence seriousness affect the probability of arrest of serial offenders. Results showed that as an offender commits more crimes, the probability that he will be arrested increases and that offence specialization decreases the probability of arrest. Another conclusion drawn is that DNA traces offer unique opportunities for criminological research. We discuss the limitations of this new data source and make suggestions for future research using DNA traces and for future research that might improve the current study. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

From Crime Scene Actions in Stranger Rape to Prediction of Rapist Type: Single‐Victim or Serial Rapist?

The differences in crime scene actions in cases of stranger rape committed by convicted offenders were examined between 31 single‐victim rapists and 35 serial rapists. Data were collected from police files, court verdicts, psychiatric evaluations, and criminal records. Findings indicate that the serial rapists were more criminally sophisticated than the single‐victim rapists, during their first and second rapes. The single‐victim rapists were significantly more likely to engage in the interpersonal involvement behavior of kissing the victim, and to engage in pre‐assault alcohol use, than the serial rapists. There was, however, no significant difference in physically violent or sexual behaviors. To investigate the possibility of predicting rapist type, logistic regression analyses were performed. Results indicate that three behaviors in conjunction, kissed victim, controlled victim, and offender drank alcohol before the offense, predicted whether an unknown offender is a single‐victim or serial rapist with a classification accuracy of 80.4%. The findings have implications for the classification of stranger rapists in offender profiling. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Commuters and marauders: an examination of the spatial behaviour of serial criminals

The demographic characteristics of serial offenders that distinguish between the commuter and the marauder offence styles were examined. Proposed by Canter and Larkin (1993) these two styles represent competing models of criminal spatial behaviour under which the home base plays a role in offence site selection. Data on serial burglars, arsonists and sex offenders were extracted from the criminal records maintained by the NSW Police Service. The offence style of each offender's crime series was identified in order to relate the offence style to the demographic variables, and to examine the offender's first and last offences in a series. A commuter offence style was more likely to be adopted by burglars and generally by adult males. A marauding offence style was apparent in sex offenders and metropolitan based offenders. There was a progression in the distance travelled to offend across all crime types, as the last offence was located further from the home base by comparison with the first. These findings serve to validate the conceptual distinction between commuter and marauder offence styles. Several implications for further research are addressed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Finding a serial burglar's home using distance decay and conditional origin–destination patterns: a test of empirical Bayes journey-to-crime estimation in the Hague

Can we tell where an offender lives from where he or she commits crimes? Journey-to-crime estimation is a tool that uses crime locations to tell us where to search for a serial offender's home. In this paper, we test a new method: empirical Bayes journey-to-crime estimation. It differs from previous methods because it utilises an ‘origin–destination’ rule in addition to the ‘distance decay’ rule that prior methods have used. In the new method, the profiler not only asks ‘what distances did previous offenders travel between their home and the crime scenes?’ but also ‘where did previous offenders live who offended at the locations included in the crime series I investigate right now?’. The new method could not only improve predictive accuracy, it could also reduce the traditional distinction between marauding and commuting offenders. Utilising the CrimeStat software, we apply the new method to 62 serial burglars in The Hague, The Netherlands, and show that the new method has higher predictive accuracy than methods that only exploit a distance decay rule. The new method not only improves the accuracy of predicting the homes of commuters—offenders who live outside their offending area—it also improves the search for marauders—offenders who live inside their offending area. After presenting an example of the application of the technique for prediction of a specific burglar, we discuss the limitations of the method and offer some suggestions for its future development. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Lessons from serial murder in South Africa

The systematic study of serial murder in South Africa is a newly developed field. This research demonstrates the similarities and differences between South African serial murderers and those found elsewhere. The most marked difference is the higher incidence of cross‐ethnic offending, the lower rate of ‘team killers’, and the lack of female serial murderers in South Africa. South African offenders display similar geographical behaviours to foreign serial murderers. Overall, South African offenders display more behaviour in common with their non‐European counterparts than serial murderers from the USA. South African serial murderers display certain diagnostic and developmental features that are different from those reported in North American serial murderers. Of these, the most notable is the seeming lack of sexually violent conscious fantasy. There are also fundamental similarities in experience: exposure to traumatic experiences, and profound interpersonal isolation and distance. This ambivalence is also noted in discussions of the evolution of behaviour in the offences, and in the discussion of motives in serial murder. This demonstrates areas that previous studies of serial murder need to explore further. This study also highlights the need for research into the ways in which offence behaviours are affected by the social environment. Finally, the analysis of serial murderers in South Africa suggests ways in which serial murder can be tackled. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Unravelling Crime Series Patterns amongst Serial Sex Offenders: Duration,Frequency, and Environmental Consistency

Crime linkage and the investigation of behavioural consistency amongst serial offenders has been a flourishing field of research over the past decade or so, especially with respect to serial sex offenders. The emerging research in this field has often portrayed serial sex offenders as a single, distinct, and homogeneous group. Such an assumption, however, has never been empirically examined. Using a criminal career approach and a sample of 72 serial sex offenders who have committed a total of 361 sexual assaults on stranger victims, the current study aims to examine and describe subgroups of crime series patterns amongst serial sex offenders in terms of duration and frequency of offending. The level of environmental consistency display (i.e. offender's choice of crime location and characteristics of the crime site selected) across subgroups of crime series patterns is also examined. Study findings suggest the presence and heterogeneity of crime series patterns amongst serial sex offenders, advocating for the consideration of subgroups of crime series patterns when studying serial sex offenders. Moreover, the offenders' level of environmental consistency varies across the different crime series patterns identified, allowing for the identification of subgroups of offenders showing a higher or lower level of environmental consistency. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Attachment,emotional loneliness,and bullying behaviour: A study of adult and young offenders

This research addresses the question of whether or not offenders who bully others and/or are victimised themselves can be distinguished by their attachment styles and the level of emotional loneliness that they report. Adult and young male offenders (n = 220) were required to complete a self‐report behavioural checklist (DIPC: Direct and Indirect Prisoner behaviour Checklist: Ireland, 1999a) that addressed the level of bullying behaviour at their present institution. Offenders were also required to complete a measure of attachment, namely the Three Attachment Style Measure [Hazan and Shaver, 1987] exploring secure, avoidant and anxious/ambivalent styles, and a measure of emotional loneliness, namely the revised UCLA Loneliness scale [Russell, Peplaw and Cutrona, 1980]. Young offenders were more likely than adult offenders to report behaviours indicative of ‘bullying others’ and of ‘being bullied.’ With regards to attachment style and bullying behaviour, significant differences were restricted to avoidant attachment; bully/victims reported higher avoidant scores than the other bully‐categories, with pure bullies and those not‐involved reporting lower avoidant scores. Finally, when considering emotional loneliness and bullying behaviour, bully/victims reported higher scores on emotional loneliness than the other bully‐categories, with the not‐involved group reporting significantly lower scores. Aggr. Behav. 30:298–312, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Geographic profiling: the fast,frugal, and accurate way

The current article addresses the ongoing debate about whether individuals can perform as well as actuarial techniques when confronted with real world, consequential decisions. A single experiment tested the ability of participants (N = 215) and an actuarial technique to accurately predict the residential locations of serial offenders based on information about where their crimes were committed. Results indicated that participants introduced to a ‘Circle’ or ‘Decay’ heuristic showed a significant improvement in the accuracy of predictions, and that their post‐training performance did not differ significantly from the predictions of one leading actuarial technique. Further analysis of individual performances indicated that approximately 50% of participants used appropriate heuristics that typically led to accurate predictions even before they received training, while nearly 75% improved their predictive accuracy once introduced to either of the two heuristics. Several possible explanations for participants' accurate performances are discussed and the practical implications for police investigations are highlighted. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Prognostische Validität des Level of Service Inventory-Revised

This study examined the validity of the level of service inventory-revised (LSI-R) for a sample of young violent offenders in Germany (N?=199) who were sentenced to more than 2 years imprisonment using a retrospective study design. Offenders with a migrant background from a predominantly Muslim country were compared to native German offenders. Both groups were similar regarding age, criminal history, socioeconomic status, education, current risk of subsequent offending and recidivism. For the group of young offenders with a migrant background from a predominantly Muslim country (n?=85), the LSI-R failed to validly predict problem behavior during imprisonment as well as to validly predict recidivism within 2 and 5 years after release from prison. In contrast, for native German offenders (n?=114) the LSI-R performed satisfactorily in predicting problematic behavior during imprisonment and achieved a moderate to high level of predictive power in predicting recidivism after release from prison. These findings stress the necessity for research on influencing factors, developmental dynamics and prognosis among young violent offenders with a migrant background from a predominantly Muslim culture.     

Classification of Planning and Violent Behaviours in Serial Homicide: A Cross‐National Comparison Between South Africa and the US

Recent literature suggests that different ‘styles’ of homicide will most appropriately be reflected in the different types of behaviours committed by offenders during the crime. In the last few years, there has been a move to standardise classification systems of single homicides and establish their cross‐national generalisability. Literature on serial homicide to date has mostly centred on homicides occurring in the US. However, national differences due to factors such as culture, national identity, political, and socio‐economic circumstances may decrease the applicability of these models or certain aspects thereof in other countries and thus must be evaluated. The present study tested the applicability in the South African context of a recently developed US‐based serial homicide crime scene classification framework. Specifically, this study compared the thematic differentiation in planning and violent behaviours that the offenders engage in and how this differentiation compares with that in the US. The sample consisted of 25 homicides that were in total responsible for the murder of 267 victims. Results indicated that overall, the framework is useful and applicable in the South African sample, but important environmental and contextual constraints must be taken into account. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pride and punishment: Entitled people's self‐promoting values motivate hierarchy‐restoring retribution

What is the purpose of punishment? The current research shows that for entitled people—those with inflated self‐worth—justice is about maintaining societal hierarchies. Entitled people more strongly hold self‐enhancing values (power and achievement; Studies 1 and 3). They are also more likely, when thinking about justice for offenders, to adopt a hierarchy‐based justice orientation: Perceptions that crime threatens hierarchies, motives to restore those hierarchies, and support for retribution (Studies 2 and 3). Further, the relationship of entitlement to justice orientation is mediated by self‐enhancing values when entitlement is measured (Study 3) and manipulated (Studies 4, 5 and 6). Together these studies suggest that entitlement—and the resultant preoccupation with one's status—facilitates a view of justice as a hierarchy‐based transaction: one where criminal offenders and their victims exchange power and status. These findings reveal the self‐enhancing and hierarchy‐focused nature of entitlement, as well as the roots of retribution in concerns about status, power, and hierarchies.     

An examination of behavioral consistency using individual behaviors or groups of behaviors in serial homicide

Establishing behavioral consistency in serial homicide offending behavior is essential when linking homicides together and to a common offender. An examination of 35 serial homicide behaviors utilized by 90 offenders in 450 serial homicide cases was carried out to identify whether these offenders consistently performed the same behaviors across their series of homicides and whether it is more effective to examine individual behaviors or groupings of behaviors in order to identify behavioral consistency. This study provides the first empirically based evidence testing the use of using single behaviors as linking factors in linking homicide cases in a series, and shows that this method has inherent difficulties in accomplishing this, thus providing the first wave of empirical testing that questions current theories in the literature on serial homicide, which has suggested that signatures or specific key behaviors are important in understanding the consistency in an offender's behavior across the crimes. Recommendations for future studies on linking using signatures are suggested, including a more in-depth qualitative empirical evaluation of individual series.     

Bayesian journey-to-crime modelling of juvenile and adult offenders by gender in Manchester

This study tested the Bayesian journey-to-crime (JTC) model by gender and age for serial offenders from Manchester, England. The data were 4056 crimes committed by 171 serial offenders between 2003 and 2006. The data were subdivided by gender and age group to examine whether accuracy and precision varied by these subgroups. In general, the centre of minimum distance was found to be the most accurate measure, but the Bayesian risk and product measures were found to be the most precise measurements. The traditional ‘distance decay’ type of JTC function did not produce estimates that are as accurate nor as precise as the Bayesian approach. Tests were conducted on whether specific gender and age group JTC functions and origin–destination matrices improved predictability. With the exception of juvenile male offenders, the general functions were more accurate and precise. In terms of building an accurate and precise geographical profiling methodology, the results point to the need to include information on the likely predisposition of neighbourhoods to produce offenders as well as information on the crime opportunities available to offenders. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Homicide offender recidivism: A review of the literature

While there exists an abundance of research on the criminal histories of homicide offenders, little is known about their future criminal behavior. This review outlines the current state of knowledge regarding recidivism among homicide offenders. It addresses the dominant theories found within the literature in this field and the prevalence of recidivism among both general and subgroups of homicide offenders. In this literary review, several shortcomings are revealed which point to potential directions for future research.     

Exploring the Online Communicative Themes of Child Sex Offenders

This exploratory study aimed to examine online communications between contact reality and non‐contact fantasy child sex offenders (CSOs). This research wanted to ascertain whether it was possible to differentiate between these offenders based on the content of their online communications, something which has not previously been examined. The sample consisted of five contact reality and seven non‐contact fantasy offenders, all convicted of a Child Sex Offence. Content analysis revealed 26 them. Results showed that non‐contact fantasy offenders discussed Adult sexual relationships significantly more than contact reality offenders. All other comparisons were non‐significant. The themes were then grouped into five higher order themes: (i) Adult relationships, (ii) Child sexual interest, (iii) Media, (iv) Sexual self, and (v) Rapport. The average largest proportion of the online communication related to Child sexual interest (34%) followed by Rapport (28%). There were no significant differences between the two types of offenders in relation to these five higher order themes. Explanations for the findings are discussed with implications for police investigations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Do criminal offenders specialize in crime types?

A common misconception exists that criminal offenders specialize in types of crime, such as serial murders, domestic violence, and sex offenses. This article explores the research on specialization in general criminal offenders, domestic violence offenders, and sex offenders. This review finds that although there are a few specialists, the majority of criminal offenders are generalists who exhibit wide versatility in offending. The implications for legal and mental health policies are discussed.