• Serial Killer: A person who kills a number of people (usually
over five) with a cooling off period between each murder
(usually one murder at one given time, but two murders at one
time occasionally happens); these murders may go on for a
period of months or years until the killer is caught.
• Throughout the last three decades the US serial killer rate has
risen 940%.
• In the next millenium serial killers will claim an average of 11
lives a day.
• There are at least 35 serial killers active in the USA today who
claim one third of the annual murder rate.
• The US has 6% of the world’s population but 3/4 of all serial
killers.
Criminal Profiling
There a many types of profiling.
FBI (VI-CAP), Investigative
Psychology; Behavioural Analysis;
Deductive & Inductive Method
Criminal Profiling - Approaches
• Top Down: F.B.I. Violent Offender
Investigation Unit (former Behavioral
Science Unit)
• Bottom up: Investigative psychology &
environmental Psychology (Canter et al.)
Criminal Profiling
• “The criminal personality profile is based on
good crime scene examination and adequate
information supplied to the profiler”
Gerbeth 1996
• "an educated attempt to provide investigative
agencies with specific information as to the
type of individual who committed the crime"
Gerbeth 1981
Criminal Profiling – Basic Aims
• Primarily fact finding in the context of the duty to
public safety in both the investigative and trial phase
aims of the profiler will vary.
• Investigation: reduce and prioritize suspect pool;
assist in linking; assess potential for escalation;
provide relevant leads and strategies; help focus the
overall investigation.
• Trial: assist evaluation of forensic evidence; assist
in interview strategy; help gain insight into offender
fantasy & motivation; insight into “states of mind”
before during & after the crime [planning;
precautions, remorse etc..]
First Profile?: ‘Jack the Ripper’
• First known case of killer
profiling-Dr. Thomas Bond
examined the victim-Mary
Kelly
• Determined some personality
traits of the killer from
victim
• Often considered the first
recorded serial killer because
of the nature of the crimes
(a typical sexual motive).
Dr. Bond, performed an autopsy on the
last victim of the ‘Whitechapel Killer’.
He noted that the killer must have had
knowledge of surgical skills as many of
the bodies were mutilated and internal
organs were removed. He attempted to
reconstruct the murder so discover the
behaviour patterns of the killer. He then
produced a profile on the murderer
stating that he is a ‘harmless-looking and
quiet man’ as well as ‘physically strong,
composed and daring even though he
was a loner with no real occupation.’
Jacob Fries (1773-1843) Enquires
began.
2. Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909) Body
type theorist
1.
Alphonse Bertillon (1853-1914) Body
type theorist
4. Hans Gross (1847-1915) Personality
Theorist
3.
Lombroso's & Kretschmer's Early Attempts at Profiling
1 An aquiline beak of a nose
2. Fleshy, swollen, or protruding lips
3. Small receding chin
4. Dark hair and bushy eyebrows that meet across the nose
5. Little or no beard
6. Displays an abundance of wrinkles
7. 4 to 5 times greater taste sensibility
8. A cynical attitude, completely lacking remorse
9. More likely to wear a tattoo
10. Attaches no importance to dress as is frequently dirty
and shabby (Lombroso-Ferrero 1972)
1. Cycloid Personality -- heavyset, soft body type,
vacillates between normality and abnormality, lacks
spontaneity and sophistication, most likely to commit
nonviolent property crime.
2. Schizoid Personality -- most likely to have athletic,
muscular body; some can be thin and lean, schizophreniclike, commits violent types of offences
3. Displastic Personality -- mixed group, highly
emotional, often unable to control self, mostly commits
sexual offences or crimes of passion (Kretschmer 1925)

The offices of OSS
requested the help of
Walter Langer to
develop the profile of
one Adolph Hitler he
came with....
“If Hitler is running the show, 
what kind of person is he?
What are his ambitions? How
does he appear to the German
people? What is he like with his
associates? What is his
background? And most of all,
we want to know as much as
possible about his psychological
make-up, the things that make
him tick. In addition, we ought
to know what he might do if
things begin to go against
him."
These were the words of
Colonel William J Donovan.
The result of the
investigation
established the
psychodynamic
personality profile
that not only pointed
out Hitler's oedipal
complex in needing to
prove his manhood to
his mother, but also
predicted that Hitler
would commit suicide
at war's end
FBI – top down
Crime scene data
• Survey of 36 cases
• Interviewed convicted
serial offenders
• Developed serial killer
typology = ‘types’
profile
• Later modified to 2
types
• Organised and
Disorganised
FBI Profile: Organized
• Show signs of planning and evidence of
control at the crime scene
• Offenders are • Intelligent
• Socially skilled
• Sexually competent
• Live with a partner
• Usually target strangers
• Antisocial and psychopathic personality
FBI’s Approach to Offender Profiling:
Disorganized
• Unplanned and disorganized behaviour & lack
of control at the crime scene
• Offenders are • Low intelligence
• Socially and sexually inept
• Live alone
• Severe mental illness
• Likely have been suffered from physical or
sexual abuse as a child
• Frightened or confused state of mind
Typologies of Murder and Motive
Willie (1974) Types
• Depressive
• Psychotic
• organic brain
• Disorder
• Psychopathic
• Passive aggressive
• Alcoholic
• Hysterical
• Juvenile
• Mentally retarded
• sex killers
Lee (1988) Motives
• Profit
• Passion
• Hatred
• Power / domination
• Revenge
• Opportunism
• Fear
• Contract killing
• Desperation
• Compassion
FBI Psychological Profile of Lust Killers
Organised Killer
• intelligent
• high birth order
• masculine image
• charismatic
• socially capable
• sexually capable
• occupationally mobile
• lives with partner
• geographically mobile
• experienced harsh
• childhood discipline
• controlled emotions
• interested in media
• model inmate
Dis-organised Killer
• below average IQ
• low birth order
• socially immature
• seldom dates
• high school failure
• unemployed father
• lives alone
• has secret hiding places
• nocturnal
• lives/works near crime
• unskilled worker
• behaviour change
• low interest in media
• little alcohol consumption
• high anxiety during crime
16
Basic Typology
A specific victims
B variety of victims
specific methods
specific methods
C specific victims
D variety of victims
variety of methods
variety of methods
Diagnosing psychotic
personalities
• DSM and ICD are the two classification
manuals used by psychiatrists to diagnoses
mental illness.
• It is now possible to identify certain
personality disorders that are associated
with criminal propensities.
Anti-social Personality Disorder
DSM - IVR: Diagnostic criteria
A. There is a pervasive pattern of disregard for and
violation of the rights of others occurring since
age 15, as indicated by 3 or more of the
following1. Failure to conform to social norms with respect
to lawful behaviours as indicated by repeatedly
performing acts that are grounds for arrest
2. Deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying,
use of aliases, or conning others for personal
profit or pleasure
3. Impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
Anti-social Personality Disorder
DSM-IVR: Diagnostic criteria II
4. Irritability and aggressiveness, as indicated by
repeated physical fights or assaults
5. Reckless disregard for the safety of self or
others
6. Consistent irresponsibility, as indicated by
repeated failure to sustain consistent work
behaviour or honour financial obligations
7. Lack of remorse , as indicated by being
indifferent to or rationalising having hurt,
mistreated, or stolen from another.
Hare’s Psychopathy Checklist (PCL)
Factor 1: Measures of selfish, callous & remorseless use of others &
includes most of the personality characteristics of the traditional
clinical concept of the disorder - traits are inferred rather than explicit.
• Glibness/superficial charm
• Grandiose sense of self-worth/narcissism
• Pathological lying & deception
• Conning (insincere), manipulative behaviour
• Lack of remorse or guilt
• Shallow affect
• Callousness/lack of empathy
• Failure to accept responsibility for actions
Psychopathy Checklist (PCL) 3
Other Factors:
• Promiscuous sexual behaviour
• Many short-term marital relations
• Criminal versatility
• Drug & alcohol not direct cause of antisocial behaviour
Cleckley’s (1962) “The Mask of Insanity” -machine man & insensitivity may have
physiological origins
Psychopathy Checklist (PCL) 2
Factor 2: Measures social deviance manifest as a
chronically unstable & anti-social lifestyle - more explicit
than Factor 1.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Need for stimulation/prone to boredom
Parasitic lifestyle/behaviour
Poor behavioural controls
Early behavioural problems
Lack of realistic long-term goals
Impulsivity
Irresponsible
Juvenile delinquency/criminal record
Revocation of conditional release or supervision
Psychopathy Vs Reactive Offender
PSYCHOPATH
Self-concept: Invulnerable
Superior
Pre-emptive
rights
Sees Others: Dupes/stupid
Inferior
Weak
Strategies:
Manipulative
Violence
Assumptions of British Profiling
• The crime scene reflects the personality
• The methods remain similar
• The signature remains the same
• The personality will not change
Four Stages of Crime: Serial Killers
1. Pre-crime Stage
2. Actual commission of crime
3. Disposal of body
4. Post-crime behavior
Assessment :Organized or Disorganized
David Canter’s Approach
Assumes - offfender’s actions at the crime scene can reveal
information about his background
• Bottom up approach
• Interpersonal Coherence
• Significance of time and
place
• Criminal Characteristics
• Criminal Career
• Forensic Awareness
Canter: Five Factors
1. Residential location
2. Criminal biography
3. Domestic / Social characteristics
4. Personal characteristics
5. Occupational / Educational history
Three methods: Facet Theory, Smallest Space
Analysis (SSA) & Circle Hypothesis of
Environmental Range
MO, Signature & Motivation
Signature - a pattern of distinctive behaviors that are
characteristic of and satisfy general emotional and
psychological needs. Generally the fall into themes:
• profit
• anger/retaliation
• reassurance/experimentation
• assertiveness
• sadism [anger excitation].
Signature behaviours - those acts done by the offender
which are not essential to the crime - they suggest
some special need of the offender.
MO, Signature & Motivation
MO & Signature difficult to distinguish because they
may overlap - offenders do the same thing for
different reasons
MO that enable successful completion [protect ID,
ensures success & enable escape] include:
• planning,
• selection,
• pre-surveillance,
• weapons & constraints,
• precautions,
• transportation etc.
MO, Signature & Motivation
MO evolves and devolves & is influenced by:
• general knowledge
• trade & professional experience
• prior criminal experience & confidence
• prior contact with the CJS
• the media, offender moods, and
• X factors [unpredictable events which alter
MO].
Victimology – the next wave of profiling
• Victim profiles help provide
context, connections &
investigative direction.
“What are the offender needs that
victim selection satisfies”
Turvey 1999
Victimology
•
•
•
•
•
Create a time-line to determine the point at which the
offender acquired the victim:
Place he/she attacked the victim;
Visibility of the attack location & need for familiarity;
was victim acquisition dependent on a routine or
schedule & indicative of surveillance?
Does the route/place of acquisition put the victim [or
the offender] at high or low risk?
Investigate the obvious - examine all connections &
relationships - especially the first [if known] crime.
Your turn……