Customer Reviews

The Sexual Criminal: A Psychoanalytical Study

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While generally leery of the hipster tendency to glorify and aetheticize the seedy underbelly of urban life, I found "The Sexual Criminal" to be utterly compelling. Although I can't that say I enjoyed reading it, given what is essnetually horrifying content, I was gripped from start to finish. It's a terrific piece of history, especially for those interested in the development of forensic psychology. I could easily see it being serialized on CourtTV or the like, perhaps a different criminal each week, with the title, "Dr. De River Presents". And De River himself, WHAT a loon! His attempts to codify sexual pathology are incredibly interesting, especially given his almost entirely self-created credentials. He is a fascinating character, much more so than any of the creeps he studied. The book itself is beautifully designed and packaged, and editor Brian King's introduction neatly picks up on the utter creepiness of De River himself. For those with an interest in the history of Los Angeles, criminology, sexual pathology, and other related topics (don't they all work together?), this is a must-read.

"The Sexual Criminal: A Pyschoanalytical Study", ISBN 0-9650324-2-6 (S/C), Bloat 1956 2nd Ed. is a 438-page repository by J. Paul de River, MD, FACS. A brief lucid intro. by Eugene Williams (Frmr. DA of L.A.) precedes an imposing 50-page prelude (Brian King) which chronicles de River's background & initial employment by LAPD as psychiatrist who founded the first Sex Offense Bureau (1937) after preparing (perhaps the first recorded) forensic profiling (1937) of Albert Dyer, subsequently convicted & hung (1938) for triple sexual child slayings, decades in advance of FBI's VICAP. (Justice was swift in those days).

Captious exposition is provided on the politics and the corruption within LAPD and of the travesty & rumble caused by revelations on child killer Chloe Davis (1940) and murdered Elizabeth Short ("Black Dahlia", 1947). With 4 other brutal L.A. sexual slayings within 6 months, Cal. PC Sec. 290 was passed with the help of Dr. de River in 1947 & it required sex offender registration some 50 years before "Megan's Law". King's 39-page Appendix (Chap. 5) details 4 high-profile cases that de River studied.

Dr. J. Paul de River expatiates (4 chapters) the essentials & 10 sub-divisions of Sadism (algolagnia), Masochism, Criminal Investigation, and finally Study in Crime which compiles 6 viewpoints on the sexual criminal as seen from prision, justice system, police officer, crime writer, criminal attorney (sanity issues), and psychological interrogation and investigation.

The book did find use as a teaching text at the time it was written. It is a truly scholarly text written by a shrewd psychiatrist who was largely self-taught because no academic courses existed in medical schools on the criminal study of sexual deviants. It is dated, however, by obsolescence of certain terminology and a modernized & re-defined psychiatric classification, i.e. homosexuality is no longer considered sexual persions, etc.

The Book has many good features and documents the author rubbing shoulders and trading punches with some of the most well-know politicians and law enforcement peoples of that era (1930's - 1940's).

The 5 1/2" by 7" format, excellent & essential psychiatric glossary, and puissance of pertinent and grisly graphic photos puts it high on my recommended list. (Note is made that Ernest E. Debs made public notice de River's book was pornographic and its access should be limited). The author's personal convictions on seriousness of sexual criminal behavior, his prediction of its increasing prevalence in society, and his foresight in beginning and directing a Sex Offense Bureau, and use of sexual criminal profiling makes him a major contributor to the study of sexual criminals. He was flamboyant, he was brilliant, and he was a family man who adopted a daughter and cared for his sickly wife who succumbed to ALS. This is a must read -

The documented cases in this book, are very interesting and can horrorfy the reader. It is not for the weak of heart, or stomach for that matter. Great read for someone who is studying some form of criminology, or facet of law enforcement, especially homocide and criminal profiling. In my opinion, there needs to be a content "warning", because the pictures are "VERY" graphic, and should not be viewed by anyone under the age of 18.

You may think you have seen bizarre coffee table books in your life, but you have ssen none like this. Slickly designed, it is easy to forget you are reading the records of criminals from the 1930's and 40's. That is, until you read about the individuals arrested and convicted of homosexual behavior and participating in S&M. The photos are disturbing for anyone of any age, yet bring a humanity to the crimes detailed by the perpetrators. Definately not for the weak of heart.

It was a good effort and closely resembles the efforts of Hazlewood, Ressler and Douglas but with 1940's principles. Much of what was considered deviant is now acceptable today. I must say though that many of the criminals wrote about in this book were executed or jailed, unlike the criminals of today. Justice was swift back in 1940! This book is a quick read due to most of it being q & a with the psychologist. The book would be better if it were more up to date.