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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Born to Raise Hell... Probably Going to Hell,
By Shanna McQueen "True Crime Valentine" (Lubbock, Texas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Born to Raise Hell: The Untold Story of Richard Speck -- The Man, The Crime, The Trial (Hardcover)
I wanted to enjoy this book a great deal more than I did. I assumed because the book was co-authored by Dr. Marvin Ziporyn, the psychiatrist who treated Richard Speck for depression and suicidal ideation while awaiting trial, that it would be and accurate portrayal of the man Speck was. Perhaps it is... but the story was lacking.
Ziporyn's opinion of Speck was that he suffered from organic brain syndrome resulting from countless and severe head injuries dating back to Speck's childhood. There is considerable evidence to suggest this may be true of Speck. Similarly, empirical research since then would support that a history of head trauma can cause irreperable damage to the human brain in terms of impulsivity, agressive behavior, and rational thought. Moreover, I do not discount Ziporyn's opinion that Speck was NOT a sociopath. Much of the conversations between Speck and Ziporyn would suggest Speck was simply a low-functioning, not-so-bright individual who had his moments as a likable individual. He was not manipulative as much as dimwitted, egocentric, and childish. However, Ziporyn also suggests that because Speck was sufffering from organic brain syndrome, this - combined with severe alcoholism and drug abuse - renders Speck not responsible for the murder of 8 student nurses in an off-campus housing unit in Chicago. This is where my sympathy ends. In fact, Speck himself also disagreed with Ziporyn. On page 196, Speck disclosed the following assessment of himself. "I'm guilty for three reasons: one, I had a job. I should have waited to get it [begin working], and not mess around [drinking and drugging]; two, I knew my mother had told me not to drink [for years]; and three, my sister Martha gave me money to live on, not to waste it on girls and whiskey." I could not agree more! Speck may not have had a choice about the head injuries and the irreparable brain damage this may have caused, but he did have a choice about whether or not to continue drinking. For years before the murders, Speck had a long history of alcoholism, blackouts, and aggressive and impulsive acting out when drunk. The murders he committed were not singly the result of organic brain syndrome OR alcoholism... but the combined effects of both. As a practicing psychotherapist, I found Ziporyn's analysis tedious and repetitive, if not somewhat more sympathetic than Speck deserved. I also grew impatient with Ziporyn's comments about the degree of clinical depression exhibited by Speck. When Ziporyn had a pleasant interaction with Speck, he assumed the treatment he was providing was successful in that Speck was less depressed and hopeless about his future. When Ziporyn found Speck in a hostile or negative mood, he maintained that Speck's depresson had returned. I work with depressed individuals regularly and can state that a person exhibiting clinical depression does not rapidly shift in and out of that depression. One pleasant conversation does not equal successful treatment. Ziporyn appeared to give no thought to the possibility that Speck had "good days" and "bad days." Was Speck depressed? Proabably. He knew he would never see the light of day again and would be convicted and, most likely, executed. Was he severely depressed once he adjusted to imprisonment? Doubtful. He was friendly with several other inmates and busied himself with reading, building models, and painting. These are not the actions of a severely depressed person. Also irritating to me, Ziporyn often came across as a "bleeding heart" mental health professional with little consideration given to personal accountability, responsibility, and the choices we are all afforded as individuals with free will. For those of you who are interested in the crime itself and the severe brutality exhibited by Speck, I would suggest you locate a copy of CRIME OF THE CENTURY. The account of Speck's crimes in BORN TO RAISE HELL was vague and abreviated. While the purpose of BORN TO RAISE HELL was less about providing a description of the crimes and more about the man behind the crimes, I felt the lack of detailed information about the heinous nature of these murders cheapened the lives of the student nurses who died and provided a one-sided, rather glossy picture of Speck. Did Speck intend to murder? No one will ever know. Speck claims througout the book that he has no memory of the murders. And, his history would suggest he committed many agressive and violent acts during previous blackouts. However, I must weigh this against a televised prison interview I saw several years ago in which Richard Speck is shown wearing a pair of blue, nylon women's underwear and sporting breasts... the result of voluntary exposure to oral female hormones. It seems Speck has become the resident "pretty boy" of the pen. In this recorded interview, he says nothing of having no memory of the murders of 8 women. Instead, he appears detached, callous, and uncaring - stating instead, "It just wasn't their night." This might have been braggadocio for the camera and the other inmate with whom he was conversing, but again, no one will ever know. What I do know is this. Richard Speck was an impulsive, violent man who regularly drank himself into a stupor and thought nothing of fighting with and severely beating his own friends. He once physically attacked his own mother in a drunken rage. Had he not committed the murders for which he is now infamous, I believe he would be in prison serving a life sentence for murdering some poor sucker who found himself in a drunken barroom brawl with Speck. Richard Speck was a loser who always seemed to find trouble. And, while Ziporyn mentions the deep hatred Speck felt for women, this is somewhat discounted as a motive for the crime. Having read both CRIME OF THE CENTURY and BORN TO RAISE HELL, I would suggest that the truth lies somewhere in the middle of both.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Detailed Study of A Mass Murderer,
By C. W. Emblom "Bill Emblom" (Ishpeming, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Born to Raise Hell: The Untold Story of Richard Speck -- The Man, The Crime, The Trial (Hardcover)
I vividly remember when the murders of the eight student nurses took place in Chicago on July 14, 1966, and have read various accounts of the crime. However, Dr. Marvin Ziporyn (Richard Speck's psychiatrist) along with Jack Altman have written a gripping account of the case. Dr. Ziporyn spent six and one-half months twice a week from one to three hours visiting with Richard Speck in the Cook County Jail in Chicago learning all he could about the infamous mass murderer. Much of the book relates verbatim accounts between Dr. Ziporyn and Speck, and Speck comes across as an insecure likable human being when not accompanied by alcohol and other drugs that set off his Mr. Hyde personality. In addition Dr. Ziporyn blames brain damage from various accidents Speck suffered over the years. Heredity and environment, Dr. Ziporyn believes, account for the way we are and we have no control over much that make us the way we are lest we boast. While certainly agreeing with the heinous crime committed by Speck, treatment, not punishment, Dr. Ziporyn believes should be the measure used for offenders. Speck claims he has no recollection of committing the murders, but the tragic resemblance of one of the nurses to his hated ex-wife may have contributed to murders taking place rather than simply robbery. This book was written with Speck's permission to Dr. Ziporyn with the hope that some learning about a deviant personality could be productive. In the book Speck appears to be remorseful over his actions. However, in an interview from prison several years later, when asked about the murders of the eight student nurses, Speck callously stated, "It just wasn't their night." Thankfully God allowed a ninth nurse, Corazon Amurao, to survive to speak for those whose lives were taken to convict Richard Speck.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Psychiatrist Looks at Richard Speck,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Born to Raise Hell: The Untold Story of Richard Speck -- The Man, The Crime, The Trial (Hardcover)
For the younger readers of this review, I will tell you that Richard Speck was an alcoholic, drug using, itinerant seaman who, on a July night in 1966, killed 8 student nurses in their Chicago residence. Older true crime devotees will not need this introduction.
BORN TO RAISE HELL, co-written by professional writer Jack Altman and psychiatrist Marvin Ziporyn, is a highly intelligent, highly professional, and highly fascinating study of the persona of Richard Speck. Speck's life is examined in detail and what results is Ziporyn's analysis of Speck as a person and consequently of the likely reasons for Speck's rampage. Ziporyn's analysis is presented by means of excerpts from over 100 hours of conversation between Ziporyn, who was at the time the psychiatrist for the Cook County jail, and Speck. It is particularly refreshing that the sole focus of the book is Speck. There is no nothing in the book which suggests even an attempt to glorify Ziporyn, who is basically little more than an outstandingly intelligent messenger. And it is interesting that Richard Speck, a brain damaged man who one night, with no initial intention to do so, committed an atrocious crime - as opposed to a cunning, methodical serial killer like, for example, Ted Bundy - comes across in many ways as a likeable though intellectually primative person. BORN TO RAISE HELL is really not true crime since there was little doubt as to Speck's having committed the murder and since he was arrested within days after its commission. The section dealing with Speck's trial is mercifully short, as was the trial itself, and deals with only that information which is necessary for the completion of the story. BORN TO RAISE HELL is a must read for those interested in the psychology and sociology of criminal behavior. This is the third time I've read it over the past 35 years, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
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