Children First

Abstract

Investigations and prosecutions involving murdered and physically abused children are among the most serious and most complex faced by law enforcement professionals. These cases are complicated on legal, factual, medical, and scientific levels. Oftentimes, the evidence against the suspected perpetrator is solely circumstantial. Many of the problems inherent in these investigations can be overcome by prioritizing these cases. The local prosecutor's office can take the lead in ensuring justice by direct participation in the investigative phase and by ensuring continuity in the prosecution. In this article, I outline a model to ensure that this happens.     

Childhood and Offense-Related Trauma in Young People Imprisoned in England and Wales for Murder and Other Acts of Serious Violence: A Descriptive Study

This study describes the prevalence of traumatic childhood experiences and the extent of trauma-related symptomatology in a group of incarcerated young men within the Young People’s prison estate in England. Semistructured interviews using the Trauma History Interview, the Intrusions and Ruminations Interview, and the Impact of Events Scale–Revised were conducted with 34 young men aged 15 to 17 years who had either murdered or committed serious violence and were serving indeterminate or long-term sentences. Many of the young men had experienced high levels of childhood trauma, and some were still experiencing trauma related to the committal of their offenses approximately 18 months after their offenses had been committed. This is an important finding in relation to the prevalence of unrecognized and untreated traumatized young prisoners.     

Mass Murder: An Analysis of Extreme Violence

Mass murder involves the slaughter of four or more victims by one or a few assailants within a single event, lasting but a few minutes or as long as several hours. More than just arbitrary, using this minimum body count—as opposed to a two- or three-victim threshold suggested by others (e.g., Ressler et al., 1988, Holmes and Holmes, 2001)—helps to distinguish multiple killing from homicide generally. Moreover, by restricting our attention to acts committed by one or a few offenders, our working definition of multiple homicide also excludes highly organized or institutionalized killings (e.g., war crimes and large-scale acts of political terrorism as well as certain acts of highly organized crime rings). Although state-sponsored killings are important in their own right, they may be better explained through the theories and methods of political science than criminology. Thus, for example, the definition of multiple homicide would include the crimes committed by Charles Manson and his followers, but not those of Hitler's Third Reich, or the 9/11 terrorists, despite some similarities in the operations of authority.     

A Community Responds to Collective Trauma: An Ecological Analysis of the James Byrd Murder in Jasper, Texas

The brutal murder of James Byrd Jr. in June 1998 unleashed a storm of media, interest groups, high profile individuals and criticism on the Southeast Texas community of Jasper. The crime and subsequent response—from within the community as well as across the world—engulfed the entire town in a collective trauma. Using natural disaster literature/theory and employing an ecological approach, Jasper, Texas was investigated via an interrupted time series analysis to identify how the community changed as compared to a control community (Center, Texas) on crime, economic, health, educational, and social capital measures collected at multiple pre- and post-crime time points between 1995 and 2003. Differences-in-differences (DD) analysis revealed significant post-event changes in Jasper, as well as a surprising degree of resilience and lack of negative consequences. Interviews with residents conducted between March 2005 and 2007 identified how the community responded to the crisis and augmented quantitative findings with qualitative, field-informed interpretation. Interviews suggest the intervention of external organizations exacerbated the severity of the events. However, using strengths of specific local social institutions—including faith based, law enforcement, media, business sector and civic government organizations—the community effectively responded to the initial threat and to the potential negative ramifications of external entities.     

The homicidol effect: investigating murder as a fitness signal

This article extends homicide adaptation theory by investigating signal effects of a murder. In two experiments (N = 299 and N = 161) participants reported their perceptions of a described person. The first study manipulated the information about the person (including or excluding a single sentence stating that the person has committed a murder) and stimulus person/observer sex match (same vs. opposite sex). Results suggest that murder functions as a signal of the described person's fitness that enhances observers' evaluations and inclination to interact with the person. Opposite-sex observers evaluate the murderer's intent more favorably than same-sex observers, but these evaluations of intent produce differential (positive vs. negative) effects between the two groups. The second study replicated the findings and ruled out potential confounds.     

Behavioural Investigative Advice: Assistance to Investigative Decision‐making in Difficult‐to‐detect Murder

This paper considers the role of a Behavioural Investigative Adviser (BIA) in assisting with the decision‐making of a Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) in difficult‐to‐detect murder investigations. It outlines the need for transparent evidence‐based decision‐making from both the SIO and the BIA. The paper then details a piece of relevant, applied research that can assist in this end. The research utilised a pragmatic psychology approach to analyse 312 detected murder cases from the Serious Crime Analysis Section database. Some significant patterns relating what is known about the offence at different stages of an investigation and inferences regarding the offender were found, indicating that certain offence information can lead to some reliable predictions and these can be refined as more information becomes available. However, the findings also indicate that base rate frequencies and a ‘best‐guess’ methodology may be as, if not more, useful than more complex statistical techniques when providing advice to investigations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Primary shame,mortal wound and tragic circularity: Some new reflections on shame and shame conflicts

Invited to contribute some thoughts on recent developments in psychoanalytic thinking about shame, the author starts off with Aristotle's prescient analysis of shame and then focuses on accumulating experiences in the psychoanalytic treatment of patients with severe neuroses, in particular the close relationship of severe traumatization and chronic states of shame, and how this is reflected in shelfdestructive repetitions. Reminiscent of what we know from tragedy and the tragic dimension of human existence, this repetition compulsion shows a built‐in circularity. These circular dynamics have at their core struggles with deep woundedness that can variably be conceived of as primary pain, primary shame and primary anxiety. Consequently, throughout the experiences with these patients goes the absoluteness both of their conscience and of their ideal, what we know as the “archaic superego:”     

Self‐reported psychopathology in a convicted serial killer

The following paper presents a case study of a convicted serial murderer. Through data from personal correspondence, police reports, a true crime novel, witness statements, medical examiner reports, court appeals, and crime scene reports from the actual murder cases, and most important, a series of psychological self‐report measures, a case study was developed. Included in the psychological measures were tests of general psychopathology, specific tests of psychopathy, anger and aggression scales, and sociological measures related to family, individual, situational, and community risk factors, as well as previous criminal behaviour, including weapon and drug use. The results of these various measures are incorporated into the life history and criminal activity of the individual. The purpose of this research was to develop a more complete psychological report of a serial killer than any other previously reported. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hitmen and the Spaces of Contract Killing: The Doorstep Hitman

This exploratory paper considers the spaces where hits take place within Britain. It concentrates on those hits that have occurred on the doorstep of the victim and offers analysis of why this location might be chosen. It suggests an emerging modus operandi (MO) of doorstep hits and how knowledge of this MO might be useful to law enforcement. Two cold cases are re‐considered in light of this MO. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

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.