offender profiling

What is offender profiling?

• A behavioural and analytical tool that is intended to help investigators accurately predict and profile the characteristics of unknown offenders

• Aim to narrow the list of suspects

Jackson and Bekerian (1997) - inferences about the criminal can be made from the scenes and that it is these which enable a cause to be solved

What is the typology appraoch?

• Originated in USA

• Gathered info from 36 interviews with offenders to create a database of common characteristics - template for offenders

• Organised and disorganised

What are the 4 main stages of the typology appraoch?

Douglas et al. (1986)

1. Data assimilation - collection of all evidence available, crime scene photographs, post mortem reports

2. Crime classification - organised/disorganised

3. Crime reconstruction - reconstructing the crime in order to develop predictions about the offender and victim

4. Offender profile is generated from these assumptions

What is the difference between organised and disorganised offenders?

Organised

• Evidence of planning and control + little evidence left behind

• A ‘type’ of victim / chosen or known to the offender

• Skilled, professional full-time job

• Average/higher intelligence

• Experienced inconsistent discipline + high birth order

• Socially and sexually competent + monitors media coverage of crime

Disorganised

• Signs of spontaneity - left evidence behind

• Random victims

• Unlikely to have success in employment

• Below average intelligent

• Experienced harsh discipline + low birth order

• Sexual dysfunction and failed relationship + no interest in media coverage

What is the data driven approach?

• David Canter (1990)

• Statistical analysis from the crime scene + behaviour is consistent

• Geographical profiling + investigative psychology

• Based on facts

• Crime data compared with similar crimes

What is investigative psychology?

Generating hypothesis about the offender - Canter (2004)

• Forensic awareness - offenders who have an understanding of police investigations - committed crimes before?

• Interpersonal coherence - behaviour at crime scene reflects everyday life

• Villains characteristics - what the offender reveals about their experience and background - ‘type’ of victim?=preferences?

• Early criminal career - previous crimes - case linkage

• Space and time - when and where an offence takes place

What is geographical profiling?

Analysis of crime locations and time - Canter (2008)

• Crime mapping - spatial consistency, locations of the crime scenes - predict offender’s home/base - Rossmo (1997)

• Least effort theory - likely to commit crime in locations which requires least effort to reach

• Distance decay - less likely to commit crimes in locations further away

• Canter and Larkin (1993) - circle theory - offending location form a circle around the offender’s base - centre of gravity + commuter/marauder

• Jeopardy surface - predict where they are likely to commit a crime

= give insights - planned/opportunistic + offender’s mental maps, mode of transport, employment status, approximate age