Psychology of the Crime

Psychology of the Crime “Timothy McVeigh” The Oklahoma City Bombing was a very eye opening event in American history. Timothy McVeigh bombed the Federal building, resulting in 168 deaths and many more injuries. Timothy McVeigh meets the criteria for Antisocial Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder due to his lack of remorse and thinking of doing justice to the government. The American Heritage Dictionary defines Narcissistic Personality Disorder as a pattern of traits and behaviors which signify infatuation and obsession with one’s self to the exclusion of all others and the egotistic and ruthless pursuit of one’s gratification, dominance, and ambition. We see all of these traits in Timothy McVeigh. McVeigh decided he would take his frustration out on others, out of anger, to give the country a “wake up call.” Sadly enough his anger was a devastating shock. McVeigh had a strong desire to get attention and seek admiration which helped him succeed in his attack. During his interview, McVeigh talked mainly about himself and how he achieved his goal and showed lack of interest in anything else. McVeigh had two partners, Fortie and Nichols, whom he met in the Army. They each played a significant role in carrying out his plan. With his self-importance, he felt like he had to be superior in all of his relationships, including the ones with Nichols and Fortie. He almost caused both of them to back out, but his controlling personality and the fear that they had of him kept them to carry out their part. With his fantasy about power and influence over the government, he carried out his plan successfully.
McVeigh had the typical family a father, mother and two sisters. His mother and father always clashed and eventually got a divorce. He stayed with his father and his sisters went with his mother. He loved his grandfather, who played a constant role in McVeigh’s life. McVeigh got bullied while he was in high school,