Socialization and Criminal Behavior
John Wayne Gacy is known today as one of the most disturbed serial killers in American history. Over the course of 6 years he claimed the lives of 33 men, brutally raping, torturing and eventually murdering them. Eventually, he was caught by police and was tried and convicted for his crimes. He was sentenced to die by lethal injection and was executed in 1994.
Gacy was born in Chicago during the 1940’s. As a child he was very overweight and shy. He was very close to his mother but felt the need to constantly seek approval from his father who never felt he was good enough to amount to anything. His father was very abusive verbally and physically. When he was a young child, a male family member molested him, which is what may have triggered his obsession with men.
He moved around to different high schools and eventually graduated from Northwestern Business College. His studies had focused on management and it led to apprenticeships and trainee positions in sales. It is common knowledge that Gacy presented himself as an intelligent, friendly individual and enjoyed entertaining children and being involved in community activities. It was obvious that Gacy took his involvement in community organizations very seriously and he devoted most of his free time to them. Many who knew Gacy at this time considered him to be very ambitious and eager to make a name for himself in the community. However, it has been suggested that he was very anti-social at times and might have suffered from multiple personality disorder. In business, he was very friendly with employees, especially male applicants that he was interested in personally. Eventually, he would lure them back to his house and would kill them. While on trial for the murders former employees testified that they survived sexual and usually violent encounters with their boss. Some of his ex-employees told of his mood swings and how he would trick them into being handcuffed. Others told of how he constantly made passes at
Gacy was born in Chicago during the 1940’s. As a child he was very overweight and shy. He was very close to his mother but felt the need to constantly seek approval from his father who never felt he was good enough to amount to anything. His father was very abusive verbally and physically. When he was a young child, a male family member molested him, which is what may have triggered his obsession with men.
He moved around to different high schools and eventually graduated from Northwestern Business College. His studies had focused on management and it led to apprenticeships and trainee positions in sales. It is common knowledge that Gacy presented himself as an intelligent, friendly individual and enjoyed entertaining children and being involved in community activities. It was obvious that Gacy took his involvement in community organizations very seriously and he devoted most of his free time to them. Many who knew Gacy at this time considered him to be very ambitious and eager to make a name for himself in the community. However, it has been suggested that he was very anti-social at times and might have suffered from multiple personality disorder. In business, he was very friendly with employees, especially male applicants that he was interested in personally. Eventually, he would lure them back to his house and would kill them. While on trial for the murders former employees testified that they survived sexual and usually violent encounters with their boss. Some of his ex-employees told of his mood swings and how he would trick them into being handcuffed. Others told of how he constantly made passes at