The Misconceptions of Serial Killers

The key thought when the topic of serial killers is mentioned, individuals generally think of the stereotypical blueprint that has been laid out of the loner, who doesn’t quite fit into society. Who stalks and hunts their victims and ultimately long to be caught to achieve notoriety. Along with this blueprint is that they are alone, separate from family and friends and are stereotypically white males and usually between the ages of 20-40. But what the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit is attempting to do is to break this misconception not only because of the fact that they see this as being an incorrect evaluation of a serial killer, but also they see it as being detrimental to the ultimate apprehension of the perpetrators of these types of crimes if law enforcement is looking in a different direction. It can also leave the public vulnerable if they have these stereotypes embedded in their head they may not see the true evil in time.

           I evaluated the types of serial killers and the validity of what the FBI BAU is suggesting compared to what current law enforcement and public opinion currently is. I also looked into if this allegation is true, then this raises an entire other situation involving a whole other set of victimology, that would be the family members of the serial killer. If the serial killer is truly an individual who is maintaining a typical suburban lifestyle; wife, kids, dog, picket fence, then how do those individuals deal with the fact that someone that they loved and trusted is a cold blooded killer? Then also, how do they deal with how the public now reacts to them.

The term ‘serial killings’ means a series of three or more killings, not less than one of which was committed within the United States, having common characteristics such as to suggest the reasonable possibility that the crimes were committed by the same actor or actors.

Behavioral Analysis

The mission of the Behavioral Analysis Units (BAU) is to provide operational support for complex and time-sensitive cases and other matters through the application of investigative case experience, education, specialized training, and research. Each unit has distinct responsibilities:

Behavioral Analysis Unit 1 (counterterrorism and threat assessment): Resources are focused on matters involving terrorism, threats, arson, bombings, stalking, cyber-related violations, and anticipated or active crisis situations.

Behavioral Analysis Unit 2 (crimes against adults): Resources are primarily focused on serial, spree, mass, and other murders; sexual assaults; kidnappings; missing person cases; and other violent crimes targeting adult victims. BAU 2 also provides assistance in potentially non-violent investigations, such as white-collar crime, public corruption, organized crime, and civil rights matters.

Behavioral Analysis Unit 3 (crimes against children): Resources are focused on crimes perpetrated against child victims, including abductions, mysterious disappearances of children, homicides, and sexual victimization.

Behavioral Analysis Unit 4 (ViCAP): Resources are focused on actual and attempted homicides—especially those that involve an abduction, are apparently random, motiveless, or sexually oriented, or are known or suspected to be part of a series; sexual assaults, especially those committed by a stranger, or those known or suspected to be part of a series; missing persons where the circumstances indicate a strong possibility of foul play; and unidentified human remains where the manner of death is unknown or suspected to be homicide. BAU-4/ViCAP also develops and maintains ViCAP Web, the national repository for these criteria cases.

Services provided by the behavioral analysis units include:

• Crime analysis;
• Profiles of unknown offenders;
• Linkage analysis;
• Investigative suggestions;
• Multiagency coordination;
•  Threat assessment;
• Interview strategies;
• Media strategies;
• Search warrant affidavit assistance;
• Prosecution and trial strategies;
• Expert testimony;
• Critical incident analysis; and
• Geographic profiling (provided through an agreement with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives).

The term ‘serial killings’ means a series of three or more killings, not less than one of which was committed within the United States, having common characteristics such as to suggest the reasonable possibility that the crimes were committed by the same actor or actors.

I.                   FBI Behavior Analysis Unit Description of a serial killer

a.       Examples of well-known serial killers that were really more mainstream than maniac

b.      Causality and the serial murderer

                                                              i.      How did this person become a serial killer

1.      Does how they became a serial killer influence whether or not they are a loner or family man?

II.                Serial killers likely to be family men not freaks

a.       FBI report is aimed at dispelling the common myths, which agents say can limit the public's potential to observe suspicious activity or become witnesses

b.      In regard to the stereo type of serial killers being white males, age 20-40, the actual racial diversification of serial killers generally mirrors the overall US population.

c.       The myths that serial killers are only motivated by sex are challenged

d.      Also that they travel in order to kill, or that they are evil, insane geniuses who cannot stop killing and want to get found out. "Serial killers do not want to get caught: over time, as they kill without being discovered, they get careless." (Leonard Doyle in Washington)

III.             Family members of serial killers

a.       Family members of serial killers – the forgotten victims

                                                              i.      This is a blog run my Maureen White in which she discusses her life after it was found out that her brother Richard Paul White was a serial killer. This is the first paragraph of her blog; “Nobody talks about the most forgotten victims of criminals - their families. Not only did they loose a family member as well as the victim´s families, they also feel all sort of blame. While the victim´s families will ask themselves forever "Why did this happen to our loved one?” the offenders families will ask themselves forever "What did we do wrong? Couldn´t we foresee/prevent what happened?"”

                                                            ii.      There is an article on a page “Lemondrop” that interviews Melissa G. Moore who is the daughter of the “Happy Face Killer.” She tells of the time when she was a child and her mother came home to tell her and her brother that her father was in jail, her brother asked for what, and all her mother said was, murder, before she locked herself in her room.

1.      In cases like this these children not only lose their father, but for a while at least, lose their mother until she builds her strength to cope with what has happened. 

The Story of Creation

In reading the differences between the two stories of the “J” story which focuses on the creation of Adam and Eve, and the “P” story which focuses on the creation of the actual world and seems to place the creation of humans as a side note, I prefer the “J” story. I think that I lean toward this story because it deals mainly with humans and the decisions that they were faced with in the Garden of Eden. Even as it starts it interestingly enough shows a more humanistic God than in the “P” story. With the visualization of God forming the clay into man, and then giving him life through passing his own breath through man’s nostrils, then in creating a suitable partner for man I feel shows that he cared for and wanted to ensure his happiness. 

The story then unfolds and represents curiosity and a “villain” per say to give justification to tempt Eve to allow her to do what she really wants to do. This way she can pass blame onto the serpent, in an attempt to get out of any wrongdoing. She then presents the fruit to her husband so that they are now both at fault for eating from the forbidden tree.

             I think that this story has many lessons to teach if the reader is not taking the wording of the story so literally. There are times in which it is better to follow the rules and instructions you are given, even if you truly do not know the true reason, or essentially agree with the reason. There is a great deal of representation in the “J” story more so than in the “P” story. Once Adam and Eve had eaten from the tree of knowledge of good and bad, they were given something that they were not ready to handle. Essentially a cold splash of reality, they had thought they were ready to handle what was forbidden to them, but they had realized that they had been mistaken. 

Latest Advances to Online Gaming

There has been an incredible stride concerning the advances of computer technology over the years which has led to many advances in the gaming world as well. From the pioneering of pong to avatars and virtual worlds, one could only wonder where we are headed next. It seems no matter the generation or the genre of the game, there are three main components that make the game popular. They are: (1) strategic and tactical objective oriented problem solving, (2) thematic and fantasy role-playing, and (3) testing one's reflexes in an immersive environment using special purpose interfaces. 

A component in games that has significantly changed is the size of the game. From the large coin operated game playing arcades, game playing has not only streamlined into the home, but into the palm of the hand with technology placing games into our cell phones. Game playing has also gone from a single individual playing against a machine to many individuals playing against each other in a virtual world. There has been a rise in development of virtual worlds since the early 1990’s; this has also coincided with the drop in home computer prices. The home computer gaming and social networking suddenly became much more accessible. 

With this sudden accessibility came a sudden rise in the frequency of gaming use. This rise in frequency would cause an addiction in some individuals. To define what a gaming addiction is, “That is the person needs more and more of a substance or behavior to keep him going and if the person does not get more of the substance or behavior, he becomes irritable and miserable.” 

 When there is addictive behavior there are also withdrawal symptoms, this is also the case in game addicts. "They become angry, violent, or depressed. If parents take away the computer, their child sits in the corner and cries, refuses to eat, sleep, or do anything." With a gaming addiction there is a difference between that and a drug or alcohol addiction. It is similar to a gambling addiction in that with a gambling addiction there is a release of dopamine levels and the individual can become addicted to that rush of dopamine. But in gaming the addiction becomes more of an addiction of the escapism that is included in the game. The individual can become someone else, or they are a “better” person in their eyes in the game so they spend more time in that virtual world because they are the person they want to be there. It eventually overshadows their real world because their real world soon just does not compare to the world that they create.  

When an individual participates in four to five hours of gaming per day they have no time for socializing, homework, or sports. In older addicts, compulsive gaming can jeopardize jobs or relationships. Warning signs for video game addiction include: Playing for increasing amounts of time, thinking about gaming during other activities, gaming to escape from real-life problems, anxiety, or depression, lying to friends and family to conceal gaming, and feeling irritable when trying to cut down on gaming.

With gaming becoming a huge market within all the generations, it is difficult to know who the industry leaders are for each target audience. Many of these leaders make games that target all age levels, as well as games that are specified to a certain audience. Market leaders like Electronic Arts, Activision Blizzard, and Bioware making games for everyone, there are many more smaller companies that have either been bought out by larger companies or are still in the running for a breakthrough game.

            But who is the target audience for all of these market leaders? Many follow the same stereotypical thoughts; a nerdy teen that stays home all the time. Today the average age of players in America, the biggest market, is 37, and 42% of them are female, according to the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), an American trade group. The reason for the age being higher than the stereotype is that they were the teenagers when gaming became popular. They have now grown up and are middle-aged adults though. It is not hard to advertise to them or younger groups, since it is a part of a lifestyle in families. The industry has only recently begun targeting woman and elders with online games like Farmville and Angry Birds, as well as with the Nintendo Wii Console.

            There are so many smaller developers trying to market their games now than before because of the use of internet. They are able to give the consumers their product without the use of a big publisher or having to go a store to buy a hard copy. With technology advancing, not just in consoles, but in computers and phones, the internet increases the availability of products.

            Video game technology is being used for more than just entertainment. There are so many developers out there in the industry that have brilliant ideas, they decide to branch off. Some offer to make video games that you can play and make money with, and other developers are targeting private companies or the government with simulation technology to help teach prospects.

So when asked who the market leaders are, and who they target to buy their games; the answer can be a variety of things. One could point out the ones that make the most money, or they say the ones that they are familiar with. The target audience varies with the type of game and what that game is played on.

Market leaders may not know about the addictive behaviors there games may cause, but even if they do, there is not much they could do about it. The economy is in a rut right now, and the gaming industry just wants to stay out of debt. The industry is always changing and will only keep changing to better itself.

Treatment and Recidivism of Adolescent Sex Offenders

Who Is the Adolescent Sex Offender?

The adolescent sexual offender is defined as a youth, from 12 to 17 years of age, who commits any sexual act with a person of any age, against the victim’s will, without consent, or in an aggressive, exploitative or threatening manner. While this depiction is a concise one, a case in which an adolescent is the perpetrator of sexual offense is seldom as black and white as this description yields.

The Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, registering and Tracking (SMART), abides by the  SORNA, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, which is Title 1 of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. SORNA provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States. While SORNA requires registration of children 14 and older, most states have their own registration requirements. Children as young as eight may be required to register as sex offenders for crimes ranging from rape to consensual sex, public nudity, and public urination.

Children who register as sex offenders must provide extensive personal information to state police, verify this information either in-person or electronically on a regular basis for the duration of their registration requirement. Regularly report changes in their appearance, residence, employment, and other habits. Some states also require community notification, which can mean those children’s names, addresses, and offenses will be listed on publicly accessible websites and the local law enforcement has authority to share information about the children with the public.

Introduction

            It seems to be a common idea that Adolescent/Juvenile sex offenders have the ability to overcome the tendencies of being a repeat offender which is the opposite thought of their adult counterparts. With proper acknowledgement that there is an offense occurring and then proper treatment issued, these individuals have a lower rate of recidivism than if they had never received treatment.

There are significant differences between the adolescent offender and an adult offender, some key points are, they have fewer amount of victims than that of adult offenders, and typically speaking their acts are less aggressive in nature. Adolescents generally do not have the deviant sexual arousal or fantasies that many of the adult offenders often display. Adolescent offenders are also not seen as being long terms perpetrators, whereas adult offenders typically will continues this behavior over long periods of time until they are discovered. Those adolescent offenders who do receive treatment have a low recidivism rate when compared to their adult counterparts, and that this recidivism rate holds lower for these adolescents when compared to other teens with rates of recidivism for other delinquent behavior. (NCSBY Fact Sheet)

Comparison of Adolescent Sex Offenders and Non-Sex Offenders

            The goal of this study was to aim for relationships between psychiatric disorder and specific offense category among young male offenders. It had determined that overall sex offenders made up a distinct group of juvenile delinquents and that developmental disorders were more common among non-violent sex offenders and child molesters. It was seen in the more violent offences that more typical delinquents were from immigrant backgrounds.

The conclusion came to be found that the differences in groups were in the types of psychiatric diagnoses may reflect differences in the study of the reasons for the factors for the various types of sexual and other delinquent behavior, and that this would constitute further study.

The Meaning of Life

I often wonder about my life, I know here we go with the “What is the meaning of life,” crap.  But I sometimes wonder why I feel the way I do toward certain things.  I feel sometimes as though I have no emotion towards certain events in my life.  I see people all around me, expressing how they feel or think about things in their life that are happening and how they express themselves to those they love so freely.  I suppose at times I feel detached from life itself, as though in some circumstances I need to try really hard to be involved instead of it feeling natural. 

This for me is reminiscent of family get-together’s. I feel that I need to make a conscious effort to be a part of things and not to just sit on the sidelines where I really want to be.  I feel as though I am not what I should be; confusing, right.  Well, I don’t know how to fully explain this other than I feel as though I am holding back on everything.  That the “Real” Tina has never really made an actual appearance, that sometime, long ago I apparently made a decision to shut down and put on a happy face for the world to see.  As long as I kept up this façade, I felt as though I would never get hurt.  How I came about feeling this way, as I said before, I don’t remember.

Even though I am afraid of what the answer is to the reason behind my particular personality type scares me, it is the not being a part of life that scares me more.  Because I feel as though I am not truly experiencing this life and since I am in my early forties, it is making it all the more troubling for me.  Because If I am unable to enjoy this life, when this life is over, I will have ended it with so many regrets of things that I should have done.  I want to be able to express my complete happiness and openness with those I love.  I do not want to feel so shut down all the time.  Because there are moments in which I truly feel happy, and I want to be able to feel like that more.  I want to be able to sing, dance and just be “Normal” and not worry about the fear of letting go.  I just want to live my life.

Psalm 86

I recently completed a reflection on Psalm 86; Prayer in time of distress. This Psalm is a prayer of an individual discussing with God their intention of praising and honoring him in hopes of receiving God’s love, walking in his truth and giving him answers in regard to his distress. This is one of the issues that I have with religious practice; this individual seems to be placing everything he has in what God can do to help alleviate his distress. There is no mention of what the individual himself is doing to help his own problem. I am a big advocate of people needing to be the main person involved in creating their own answers, instead of waiting for someone to tell them what to do. For individuals who believe in God I see him more along the lines of a counselor, maybe since that is my occupation, but he should be there to guide and offer suggestions and to not outright “fix” problems. If God was there to continually fix everyone’s times of distress, then we would never learn how to do for ourselves.

            In this regard God is also like a parent teaching us how to be self-sufficient. As parents, we cannot jump every time our children do something wrong, or not the exact way that we want it done. They need to make mistakes, learn how to fix their own problems and know how different emotions feel. I had written in a paper previously that I felt that individuals have such a belief in God and have such a need to have God tell them what to do that as adults subconsciously they see God as a parent who is someone that can fix everything for them. Even though many adults may still have their parents alive, it is not the same as when they were children, active prayer, going to church, prayers such as the one in Psalm 86, seem to me similar to that as a child requesting protection from a parent. 

Life in General

Generally speaking I am not a person that has many friends, or is even close to other individuals.  Even those that could be considered my friends, I really am not all that close to in the respect of sharing what would be considered “The true me.”  So to just share my life in casual conversation is not practical, or really all that safe for me since I have never really shared my complete life with anyone.  I can honestly say that there is not one single, solitary person out there that has the complete story of “ME”. 

Since I have never been my true self with anyone, I have always had my guard up in every situation.  Yes, that does take a toll to be in a constant “Red Alert” state. I think I always felt, subconsciously anyway, that with all my problems in the past that I have had, that if I let people see the real me they wouldn’t like or respect me. They would look at me with pity or shame or think of me as “ruined”. That may seem like an odd choice of words to use, but in my particular background, that’s how I truly looked at myself.  As being “ruined”. 

I am not exactly sure of the origin of these feelings, I just always felt this way for as long as I can remember.  I always felt as though I were less than everyone else around me.  That if everyone “knew”, then they wouldn’t like me and I would lose everyone.  Now whatever the “knew” thing had been, to this date I am puzzled by as to what this would have been.  It is quite possible that by the time I am done writing this it will come to light.  Because I suppose that may be my ultimate intention in this writing, hoping that if I stir things up enough something will break lose.  Hopefully it won’t be likened to that of a hornets nest and I ultimately wind up getting bit in the ass.