1.
Motive
The Visionary
Acts in response to voices and are
instructed to perform acts of
murder
Usually schizophrenic or suffering
from psychotic break
They believe they are another person and are
compelled to murder; by God or the devil
The two most common subgroups
of visionary serial killers are:
Demon mandated
God mandated
Example: David Berkowitz (Son of
Sam)
1. Motive
The Missionary
The Clean Up Killer
This type of killer will
attempt to justify their acts
by saying they are ridding
the world of undesirables
Including: homosexuals, prostitutes, people
with different ethnicities and people with
different religions.
Mission-oriented serial
killers are usually not
psychotic;
See their role is to change the nature of
human society or cure a social ill
1. Motive
The Thrill Seeker
Primary motive = produce pain or create terror in
victims which provide stimulation and excitement
Seek the adrenaline rush produced by hunting and
killing
Murder only for the kill; attack is not prolonged and
there is no sexual aspect
Will try to commit what they see is the
perfect crime and believe they will not
be caught
Victims of thrill killers are usually
strangers
1. Motive
The Hedonist
Murder = pleasure
People are an expendable means feeling good
There are three subtypes of hedonistic killers
Lust killers: kill for sexual gratification
and acts are generally sadistic (John Wayne
Gracy)
Gain killers: kill for personal gain. Killer
premeditates the act hoping to gain
financially. (Doretha Puente)
Power seekers: kill for the desire to have
control over the life and death of others or
2. Mobility
THE STABLE KILLER:
Lives and works in one location for an
extended period and hunts and kills
within the local area.
Disposes of bodies in the same or
similar areas in order to conceal the
bodies. He may return to the crime
scene or burial scene.
Seldom travels (but when he travels it
is often for business, family visits or
2. Mobility
THE TRANSIENT KILLER:
Seldom stays in one spot more than a
few weeks so kills are spread out over a
large area.
Disposes of bodies in random locations
and disposal site is often selected for
convenience. He seldom returns to the
region of the crime.
Travels continuously - either for
pleasure, to confuse law enforcement
3. Planning
ORGANIZED KILLERS
They display above average IQ.
Plan their murder carefully and usually take their 'kit'
with them (rope, handcuffs, chloroform) if needed.
They try to establish contact with the victim (both
before and during murder - generally they keep them
for a while and talk to them)
May have solid knowledge of forensic science that
enables them to cover tracks
Burying bodies, weighing them down and sinking
in river
May take the victim's articles or parts of the body as
trophies.
3. Planning
ORGANIZED KILLERS
Often socially adequate; may have
friends, lovers, and children
Sometimes described as kind and
unlikely to hurt someone
Examples: Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy
3. Planning
DISORGANIZED KILLERS
They have average or lower than average IQ.
They do not plan their murders and consequently
choose their victims at random and do not bring any
tools except maybe a murder device.
They do not try to establish contact with the victim
prior to the murder.
They do not try to rape or torture the victims before
the murder.
They do not care for evidence justify at the crime
scene and will not move the body in an attempt to
hide or bury it.
Once the victim is dead, may abuse the body
(mutilation, necrophilia, cannibalism) and may also
3. Planning
MIXED
There are serial killers who do not fit neatly
into one category or the other and these are
the 'mixed' killers.
They display traits common to both organized
and disorganized killers
Can be far more difficult to track down
because they do not follow a given pattern
Example: Richard Ramirez (The
Nightstalker)
4. Nature and MO
Vampire
Drinking the blood of victims
Ex. Fritz Haarmann, Tsutomu Miyazaki, Nico
Claux
Cannibal
The act of eating human flesh and
internal organs
Ex. Anthony Morley, Tamara Samsonova,
Jeffrey Dahmer
