Typologies
Murder is defined as the unlawful killing of a human-being by another (Oxford Dictionary, 1998); however, the definition of serial murder is not as simple. It was suggested that a serial murderer must kill at least two victims in temporally unrelated events. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) believed it is the killing of three or more separate murders with a cooling off period from a few days to years (Ressler, Burgess & Douglas, 1988); whilst, Dietz (1986) argued that a minimum of five murders must be committed. This essay aims to outline the FBI (1985) and the Holmes and DeBurger (1988) typologies of serial murder and critically evaluate with reference to Derrick Todd Lee (Baton Rouge Killer) who raped, violently beaten and murdered 7 women.
The organised and dis-organised typology is one of the most widely cited classifications of violent serial killers. This was introduced by the FBI upon examination of 36 sexual sadistic serial killers, based on the examination of the crime scene, victims and the forensic evidence. Whilst typologies may be used to categorise individual killers, it may also prove difficult to ascertain which category a killer falls into. For example, the case of the Baton Rouge killer
From an organised perspective: Lee was married with children, employed as a truck driver, pipe fitter and labourer, socially competent, plan crimes, had sex with live victims, drive to location and generally takes a knife. Whereas from a dis-organised perspective: Lee was often unemployed, low intelligence (IQ of 65), left a trail of evidence behind, did not always take a murder weapon, opportunistic- such as killing a jogger; although, sometimes bodies were left in secluded areas, all were left in open display.
Based on this typology, Lee exhibits various characteristics from both categories. It could therefore be argued that there is no such thing as a typical killer; as a result, classification attempts are misleading and tend to reinforce the
The organised and dis-organised typology is one of the most widely cited classifications of violent serial killers. This was introduced by the FBI upon examination of 36 sexual sadistic serial killers, based on the examination of the crime scene, victims and the forensic evidence. Whilst typologies may be used to categorise individual killers, it may also prove difficult to ascertain which category a killer falls into. For example, the case of the Baton Rouge killer
From an organised perspective: Lee was married with children, employed as a truck driver, pipe fitter and labourer, socially competent, plan crimes, had sex with live victims, drive to location and generally takes a knife. Whereas from a dis-organised perspective: Lee was often unemployed, low intelligence (IQ of 65), left a trail of evidence behind, did not always take a murder weapon, opportunistic- such as killing a jogger; although, sometimes bodies were left in secluded areas, all were left in open display.
Based on this typology, Lee exhibits various characteristics from both categories. It could therefore be argued that there is no such thing as a typical killer; as a result, classification attempts are misleading and tend to reinforce the