homicide-serial killers

Defining Homicide and Assault

Criminal Homicide Types (Modes of culpability)

  • Four key categories of murder and non-negligent manslaughter:

    1. First Degree Murder

    • Malice = Intended to kill a person (“conscious intent”).

    • Concept of “Malice aforethought” (premeditation).

    • Felony murder

    1. Second Degree Murder

    • Def: Cases where there is malice present but lack of “premeditation”.

    • Includes cases with no malice but intended Great Bodily Injury (GBI) (“depraved heart” situations).

    1. Voluntary Manslaughter

    • Def: Immediate killing out of intense emotion (“reasonable provocation”).

      • Malice need not be present and lacks “premeditation”.

    1. Involuntary Manslaughter

    • Def: Killing due to reckless behavior.

Assault

  • Types of Assault:

    • Aggravated Assault

      • Assault likely to produce GBI/Great Bodily Harm; often involves a weapon.

    • Simple Assault

      • Assault not likely to produce GBI.

Age, Race, and Gender of Offenders and Victims

  • Age: Older but younger (15-35)

  • Race:

    • Black people disproportionately

    • Vast Majority = Intra-racial

  • Gender:

    • Men are more likely to commit commit murder and be murdered

    • When women kill men, the majority kill battering husbands/boyfriends/ex

      • often a result of prolonged domestic violence.

    • Females still more likely to be murdered by intimate partner violence.

The Patterning and Social Dynamics of Homicide

Geographic Patterns

  • Homicide rates vary geographically

    • higher in urban settings.

    • highest in the south (Lowest in Northeast)

      • southern subculture of violence

      • history temperature, guns, economic inequality deprivation

The Victim-Offender Relationship

  • Overwhelmingly involves individuals known to each other.

    • Generally spatially and socially related, their relationship can significantly inform the dynamics of the crime.

  • Weapons Usage:

    • In over two-thirds of homicide cases (approximately 67-75%), weapons are involved.

    • Common weapons include firearms and knives.

Aggravated Assault vs Homocide

  • Main difference: A dead body, instrumentality, use of a weapon

Basics of Robbery

Defining Robbery

  • Involves taking property from a person through force or intimidation.

The Extent and Patterning of Robbery

  • The social patterning for robbery has similarities to homicide and aggravated assault, though differences exist.

    • Larger stranger component (especially for males) and location differences

  • Victims of robbery tend to be similar to those of homicide and aggravated assault

Robbery and Weapons

  • Strong-arm Robbery:

    • No weapon

    • Accounts for 44.4% of robbery incidents according to UCR data, and 48% based on NCVS data.

  • Armed Robbery:

    • Represents 55.2% of UCR incidents and 45.2% of NCVS.

  • Firearm Usage in Robberies:

    • Firearms were used in 36.4% of robberies according to UCR and 27.7% from NCVS.

  • Both Armed and Firearm are more serious and more likely to be reported

  • Non-stranger robbery’s are less likely to be armed and serious

Basics of Robbery III

The Costs of Robbery

  • Average losses from robbery:

    • $1797 in UCR (2019).

    • $1244 average loss reported in UCR (2009).

Resisting Robbery

  • Increases chance for unsuccessful robbery

  • Resistance can increase the chance of robbery leading to injury.

  • Circumstances of robbery:

    • More likely to be aggravated if the victim resists.

Multicide

  • Serial Killing (high stranger component)

    • Refers to multiple killings with inactive periods

      • Examples of notable serial killers: Green River Killer (Ridgway), BTK Killer (Rader), Night Stalker (Ramirez), Atlanta Child Murderer (Wayne Williams), and others.

Mass Murder

  • Multiple killings within one “event”

    • Spree Murders: multiple murders occurring in rapid succession with little time between each event.

  • less than 1% of homicides

  • Often occurs in common spaces such as homes, schools, and workplaces.

  • Most offenders in spree murders are armed, with non-stranger relationships being common.

  • usual offenders are male (93%)

Serial Killer Facts

Common Characteristics

  • Highly publicized incidents with no single type of serial killer are asserted.

  • Common traits among serial killers:

    • Predominantly murder strangers, often targeting vulnerable groups.

    • Tend to exhibit sociopathic tendencies, displaying no empathy or guilt.

    • Many have a history of violence, childhood animal torture, parental neglect, or brain injury.

Other Summary Findings

  • Workplace violence: Predominantly non-strangers affect females, often around 76%

  • Hate Crimes: highly underreported (NCVS 37x more than UCR)

  • Child and Elder Abuse: Risk factors involve poverty, cycle of violence, substance abuse and stressors.

    • highly underreported

Firearms, Crimes, and Violence

  • Trends report that mass shootings correlated with assault rifle access are a small percent of gun violence.

  • Notably, the safest conclusion at present is guns do both good and bad but do more harm than good

  • Need for improved strategies in firearm regulations and interventions to address underlying issues of violence.