Intro My topic is on homicide or more specifically, serial killers.

Homicide is the act of one human killing another human and once this act is performed three times or more (with a cooling off period) by the same person, it is considered a case of serial killings. Motives The motives of a serial killer can be placed into four categories: visionary, mission-oriented, hedonistic and power/control. Visionary serial killers suffer from psychotic breaks with reality, believing that they are another person or are compelled to do the murder by entities such as the Devil or God. Mission-oriented killers justify their acts as ridding the world of a certain type of person perceived as undesirable (homosexuals, prostitutes) or people of a different religion. These killers are not psychotic. Hedonistic serial killers seek thrills and derives pleasure from killing. Power/Control serial killers aim to gain power over their victim. These killers are often abused in their past and left with a sense of powerlessness as an adult. Homicidal Triad Serial killers can be distinguished at a young age due to the Macdonald triad. The Macdonald triad also known as the Homicidal triad is a set of three characteristics that are seen during a serial killers childhood. These three things include, animal cruelty, pyromania and persistent bedwetting after the age of 12. Other characteristics of serial killers include: -trouble staying employed or if employed work in menial jobs (not requiring much skill) -come from unstable families -abused (either emotionally, physically or sexually) by a family member -frequently bullied as a child -involvement in petty crimes (theft, fraud, vandalism, dishonesty) -seek approval Serial killers are no different than regular people in the sense that they also seek approval from parents, sexual partners, friends and others. This need for approval is what influences children to attempt to develop social relationships with their family and peers, but if they are rejected or neglected, they are unable to do so. This results in the lowering of their self-esteem and helps develop their fantasy world in which they are able to control. Organized & Disorganized The FBI places serial killers into three categories, organized, disorganized and mixed. - Organized nonsocial offenders usually have above average intelligence. They plan their crimes methodically usually abducting victims, killing them in one place and disposing them in another. Organized serial killers often lure their victims by appealing to their

sense of sympathy. They often have a solid knowledge of forensic science that enables them to cover their tracks and therefore have a lesser chance of being caught. Organized offenders follow their crimes in the news media carefully and take pride in their actions. - Disorganized serial killers on the other hand have a average to below average intelligence. They are much more impulsive, doing the murder with any available weapon at any convenient time, and usually do not attempt to hide the body. The disorganized offenders are unemployed and highly unsociable. They often turn out to have a mental illness which causes excessive violence. - A mixed serial killer would have a combination of these two types of traits though it is usually quite defined as to which category they would fit under. Also, serial killers can change from being disorganized to organized or from organized to disorganized as the killings continue. Types of Serial Killers There are many different types of serial killers and the following are just a few of the most common ones. Mass murder is the act of murdering a large number of people (four or more), typically at the same time or over a short period of time (with no cooling-off period) between the murders. A mass murder typically occurs in a single location and ends with the death of the perpetrator, whether by direct suicide or being killed by law enforcement. An example of this is genocide. A spree killer is someone who embarks on a fatal assault on two or more victims in a short time at two or more locations with almost no time break between murders. "Angels of Mercy" are people with a pathological interest in the power of life and death and tend to be attracted to medical profession. Medical professionals will kill their patients for money, for a sense of sadistic pleasure or for a belief that they are "easing" the patient's pain. Thrill killers induce pain or terror in their victims, which provides stimulation and excitement for the killer. They seek the adrenaline rush provided by hunting and killing victims. Thrill killers murder only for the kill; usually the attack is not prolonged, and there is no sexual aspect. Usually the victims are strangers, although the killer may have followed them for a period of time. A sadistic killer is someone who obtains pleasure from inflicting pain on others and in the same category is a sexual sadist who is someone who receives sexual pleasure when inflicting pain on others.

There is controversy as to whether or not people are born serial killers or if they turn into serial killers as they grow older. The biological theory is suggesting that serial killers are born, not made and that their violent behavior is due to abnormal brain activity. Belief that brain damage to the frontal lobe can cause abnormal social emotions and a lack of empathy and compassions as the frontal lobe is responsible for behavior that makes possible stable and adequate social relations. Damage to the limbic system in the brain may also cause a person to become a serial killer as the limbic system controls a humans emotions and motivation. If the limbic system was to be damaged it could cause uncontrollable anger and aggression. The other theory is the Social Process Theory which suggests that offenders may turn to crime due to peer pressure, family and friends. A lack of family structure and identity could also be a main cause. This theory also believes that behaviors and violence are learned during childhood. Things such as abuse and bullying during childhood may cause a break in the person causing them to become a serial killer. What is your opinion on how a serial killer is formed? Now that it is established of what a serial killer is, this is the main techniques used to find and stop a serial killer. Psychological and Geographic Profiling Psychological profiling involves investigating an offender's behavior, motives and background in an attempt to further guide an investigation. Analyzing the criminal's habits and rituals allows investigators to trace similarities between previous crimes. When these details of their lifestyle are made public, friends, neighbors and colleagues may recognize them which would then help the investigators to solve the crime.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPNvATtE3vA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVCfABHnBHw Geographic profiling is a method in criminology which analyzes the locations of a connected series of murders to determine the most probable area of residence of the offender. This technique helps scale down the location of the murder and causes less time wasted looking in an area where the unsub may not be. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4_zv1wQ9yM Characteristics