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Mind Games

Serial Crimes, no matter where they take place, are horrendous things that happen in
society. They have huge impacts on not only the victim, but leave friends and families alone to
grieve while also trying to maintain an acceptable way of living. This is not a healthy way to live,
and, although catching the criminal who tore a family apart, mentally or physically, will not
reunite families, it would be one step in the right direction for the family. Every year many
unsolved murders, and other serial crimes, are left unsolved. One way in which police have
been able to catch a rising number of serial criminals is through the process of Criminal
Profiling. Although Criminal Profiling is not a scientifically proven method of solving these
sensitive crimes, there are many correlations that exist between criminal activity and
mental and/or psychological disorders, as well as the size and functionality of the brain

itself, which could lead to a successful investigation and an arrest.

Figure 1: Retrieved
from clipartbest.com

Touching on the idea that many people do not trust the methods used in profiling,
the people displaying distrust in the process have a valid argument. Criminal Profiling and
Criminal Investigation, written by Christopher Devery, was published in the Journal of
Contemporary Criminal Justice that took a look into the development of criminal profiling and
why the process should be used very carefully by law enforcement. Devery starts the article by
giving background information about how criminal profiling was developed. He writes that
profiling was founded by an FBI psychiatrist named Howard Teten and after the foundation was
established, Teten then became the first head of the Behavioral Science Unit and started by

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gathering psychological information through a series of interviews with convicted serial killers
(Devery, 2010). The hope was that the information that was gathered would be helpful in the
analysis of future crimes. Progressively throughout the Development of Profiling section, Devery
continually mentions John Douglas and Bob Ressler who were the ones conducting the
interviews. Devery reports that ...there is no evidence that Ressler and Douglas had any
training or knowledge of research design. Devery went on the explain that, along with no
previous training, the interviews were, for the most part, ad hoc and differed depending on
who was being interviewed (Devery, 2010). Accompanying the previous complaints, is the
sample of criminals that were selected to be interviewed. The criminals that were selected
were subjects of opportunity because they were the only ones who agreed to talk and,
according to Devery, ...were the least reliable informants that could be imagined (Devery,
2010).
Moving through the article, Devery went on to explain the process of Profiling as cited
from the FBIs Criminal Classification Manual. The manual broke the process into seven steps,
Evaluation of the criminal act itself; Comprehensive evaluation of the specifics of the crime
scene(s); Comprehensive analysis of the victim; Evaluation of preliminary police reports;
Evaluation of the medical examiners autopsy protocol; Development of the profile, with critical
offender characteristics; Investigative suggestions predicated on construction of the profile
(cited in Devery, 2010). After referencing the seven steps, Devery quoted the Manual again
saying, that although criminal profiling unfortunately does not provide the identity of the
offender, it does indicate the type of person most likely to have committed a crime having
certain unique characteristics (Devery, 2010).

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To conclude the article, Devery displayed his thoughts and findings about why the
methodology of criminal profiling has not been looked into very deeply. He found that the FBI is
quite reluctant to release any information that indicated the use of criminal profiling. He then
explains that there is not a clear advantage to keeping the information secret, however, the it
does make assessing the advantages and disadvantages of profiling very difficult (Devery,
2010). Moreover, Devery also saw a lack of anecdotal evidence that profiling has ever made a
substantial contribution to an investigation. The case study he mainly describes is of a serial
killer who was caught as a result of DNA evidence and, after the fact, it was discovered that the
profile given by John Douglas was reasonably accurate but, Devery continued by saying that a
profile that can only be seen after the case is not making any real contributions to the
investigation (Devery, 2010).
Referring to the 7 step process of profiling, how does any of that relate to finding a
suspect? Step one, evaluation of the criminal act itself, can tell investigators a lot about how
the criminal thinks. A chapter from the book Profiling Violent Crimes, written by Ronald and
Stephen Holmes, relates specifically to the evaluation of a crime scene. When law enforcement
comes upon a crime scene, the most important thing for them to do is look beyond the physical
evidence (Holmes, 2009). From this nonphysical evidence the enforcement agency can move to
labeling the offender as disorganized asocial or organized nonsocial offenders. Characteristics
of a disorganized asocial offender include; below-average intelligence, unskilled, Anxious, and
has a very minimal interest in the media. On the other hand, an organized nonsocial offender
displays high intelligence, usually lives with a partner and is sexually competent (Holmes, 2009).
With this categorical approach, the authorities can also determine how the offender will

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behave after the crime. A disorganized offender will usually return to the crime scene, turn to
religion, and may also change jobs or his/her residence whereas, an organized offender will
return to the crime scene like a disorganized offender, however, the organized offender
becomes much more confident and may even insert himself into the investigation by giving up
information about the crime (Holmes, 2009).
Steps two through five are all evaluations that can give law enforcement an advantage
over the offender. Step two is the evaluation of the crime scene. A guide to crime analysis was
written by Rachel Boba that depicts the different ways law enforcement goes about the
investigation based upon different factors at the crime scene. These factors are then put into
categories that will later determine the level of aggression that is used for the remainder of the
investigation (Boba, 2001). The lowest level of aggression is used if only factors like
demographics, economic status, or physical patters are present at the scene. These things call
tell the police a lot but not enough to make a significant impact on the investigation (Boba,
2001). The next level is used when there has been very similar crimes within a small period of
time. This type of tactic is used to develop a trend and to compile leads to move on with the
investigation. The third tactic is used to integrate socio-demographic and spatial factors to
determine long term patterns of activity to research and evaluate procedures (Boba, 2001).
Finally, the most aggressive tactic is used when political issues come into question. Knowing
who the offender is targeting helps to narrow down the suspect list because law enforcement
can narrow the list down by referencing enemies of the target (Boba, 2001). Evaluating the
victim and the autopsy report, or victimology, can help develop patterns in the types of people
offenders will target. Many offenders will shy away from certain people until one fits their

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victimology, which is usually done to fulfill a type of fantasy or desire (Sr, 2014). Knowing the
types of people that are being targeted can help develop a strong profile by giving information
about how the offender thinks (Wayne, 2014). Finally, evaluating the police reports can also
help to save time in the process. If the police reports are studied they can show what has
already been done, in turn, this will keep to investigators from revisiting issues that were
already solved as well as give them the information they need to continue the case in about
half the time (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005).
The final two steps are both related to the profile and how the profile can give
suggestions and help develop a strategy. Developing a profile is just what it seems. It is the
synthesis of the information gathered in the previous five steps that describe the type of person
with specific and distinct characteristics (Devery, 2010).
Devery makes a strong case as to why criminal profiling should be used with caution.
Aside from Deverys findings about whether or not the methodology of profiling is as sound as
it needs to be, there are still many findings that indicate that behavioral traits and disorders
tend to heightened within serial criminals. For example, the FBIs Behavioral Analysis Unit
published an article reporting on serial murders and what they mean to investigators. The
article starts by listing myths about serial murder. Myths like, serial killers are all dysfunctional
loners, serial killers are all white males, serial killers are only motivated by sex, all serial
murderers travel and operate interstate, serial killers cannot stop killing, all serial killers are
insane or are evil geniuses, and serial killers want to get caught (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2,
2005). As the myths are introduced, the report immediately explains why they are just that,
myths. After debunking the myths, the article goes into defining what a serial killer is. According

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to the authors, over the years there has been many different definitions of the term serial
murder. The definitions shared many characteristics and usually varied on
the number or murders to be considered a serial murder ranging from 4 to
10 (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005). Next, the article described how
psychopathy relates to serial murder. Psychopathy is a personality disorder

Figure 2: Retrieved from dr-robert.com

manifested in people who use a mixture of charm, manipulation, intimidation, and occasionally
violence to control others, in order to satisfy their own selfish needs (FBI: Behavior Analysis
Unit-2, 2005). This definition introduced the idea that all or most serial killers have this trait
that could lead to a lack of remorse and empathy, making it much easier to commit these
violent crimes without their conscience becoming a factor. An understanding of psychopathy
and how it affects a murder is one of the most important things for law enforcements that are
investigating a serial murder because the behavior of psychopaths is very distinct and can help
to build a case by linking murders together (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005). After
distinguishing how psychopathy can help an investigation, the article addresses the issues. The
first issue addressed is investigative issues. The article provides a list of things that have to work
perfectly and together to lead to a successful investigation. The list includes, Identification of a
serial murder series, Leadership, Task Force, Resources, communication, data management,
analytical tools, medical examiners, administration, training, and officer assistance (FBI:
Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005). The forensic issues described are mostly time sensitive. The
section starts by explaining that the technological advancements have been key in making it
easier to catch serial criminals (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005). Then the article moves into

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media issues and how the media can have a negative impact in the investigation. The most
relevant impacts that the media has is that the media can increase a psychopaths feeling of
self-worth and if a profile is leaked, the media can, and will, possibly falsely accuse people who
may fit the profile (FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2, 2005).
So how does a distinct psychopathy relate to specific traits? The answer lies with the
specific psychopath. With a lack of remorse, psychopaths will kill at any place at any time, right?
Wrong. As stated in the previous paragraph, many serial killers have specific targets that are
used to fulfill a specific fantasy (Wayne, 2014). Knowing the traits of a psychopath can help
determine how a psychopath will act, leaving him/her vulnerable, to police detection that is
masked by the psychopaths feeling of self-worth.
With an emphasis on factors that may distinguish a serial criminal, another factor is the
size and functionality of the brain. A collaborative experiment was done in Germany that
studied the brain volume in psychopathic males compared to healthy males.

During the experiment, the regions-of-interest (ROIs, shown in figure 3)

were in the frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes. The results of the

Figure 3: Retrieved
from the Sunday
Times UK. Nov. 15,
2014

experiment were significantly conclusive. It was concluded that psychopaths had a lower brain
volume in the left and right frontal poles, and the left occipital cortex (Bertsch, et al., 2013). The
experiment concluded that, because of the lesser volumes the psychopaths showed a
heightened amount of aggression as well as a lesser amount of empathy, social cognition,
and moral judgment (Bertsch, et al., 2013).
Figure 5: Retrieved
from Why do Serial
Killers Kill? Nov 17,
2014

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Continuing on the idea that the brain itself is a contributing factor to psychopathy,
Figure 4: Retrieved
from Why do Serial
Killers Kill Nov. 17,
2014

it has been shown that legally psychotic persons show a lack of decision making skills that
derive from the lack of activity in the prefrontal lobes that are shown in comparison

between figures four and five. (Muller, et al., 2008).

Serial crimes are very sensitive crimes that can have an effect on many people. It is not
clear as to whether or not a solid profile can lead to an arrest, however, the profiling process
can be a beneficial base for the investigation to build upon. The criminal act and the crime
scene are important factors to the investigation. Both provide an idea about how the offender
decided to act and why he/she acted in this manner. Moving through then list, a solid
evaluation of the victim, police reports, and autopsy may be the most important steps.
Gathering information about who the offender decides to attack, along with police
cooperation, can lead to narrowing the suspect list in a timely manner. In order to narrow the
list even more, the investigative team should also have an idea about how the brain works as
well as how a specific psychopaths disturbed brain construction will cause them react to
attention being brought upon them. Meanwhile, with a profile constructed, knowing what can
be done to apprehend a suspect that feels no remorse, and may display violent, calm, or
suicidal tendencies when confronted, will lead to a successful arrest.

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Bibliography
Bertsch, K., Grothe, M., Perhn, K., Vohs, K., Berger, C., Hauenstien, K., . . . Herpertz, S. C. (2013).
Brain volumes differ between diagnostic groups of violent criminal offenders. European
Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 406-413.
Boba, R. (2001). Introductory Guide to Crime Analysis and Mapping. Washington D.C: Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services.
Devery, C. (2010). Criminal Profiling and Criminal Investigation. Journal of Contemporary
Criminal Justice, 26, 393-409.
FBI: Behavior Analysis Unit-2. (2005, August 29). Reports and Publications.
Holmes. (2009). The Analysis of the Crime Scene. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Kocsis, R. N. (Ed.). (2009). Applied Criminal Psychology. Springfield: Chales C Thomas, LTD.
Muller, J. L., Sommer, M., Dohnel, K., Weber, T., Schmidt-Wilcke, T., & Hajak, G. (2008).
Disturbed Prefrontal and Temporal Brain Function During Emotion and Cognition
Interaction in Criminal Psychopathy. Behavioral Sciences and the Law Behav. Sci. Law,
131-150.
Samenow, S. E. (2014, October 2). A "Crime" May not Be a Product of a "Criminal Mind."
Sr, M. E. (n.d). Criminal Minds: The Predatory Mind. Crime-Safty-Security.

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Wayne, P. (2014, April 3). Victimology: the Study of Victims in Criminal Investigations. Crime
Library.