Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives (Hardcover)

by Robert K. Ressler (Author), Ann W. Burgess (Author), John E. Douglas (Author) "Interpersonal violence spans a wide range of human behaviors of which murder represents one of the terminal disruptions in the equilibrium of a society..." (more)
Key Phrases: postcrime behavior, profile generating process, investigative profilers, New York, Behavioral Science Unit, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Pierce R. Brooks Captain, L.A.P.D. (Retired) Provides an indispensable source of information and a clear understanding of the behavioral traits and psychological motives of the sexual killer. Sexual Homicide is by far the outstanding book in this field of study. -- Review --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Review
FBI Law Enforcement BulletinSexual Homicide offers an enlightening and practical, yet academically sound, view from the law enforcement investigator's viewpoint -- a powerful tool for identifying and apprehending sexual killers.

Pierce R. BrooksCaptain, L.A.P.D. (Retired)Provides an indispensable source of information and a clear understanding of the behavioral traits and psychological motives of the sexual killer. Sexual Homicide is by far the outstanding book in this field of study. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 234 pages
• Publisher: Free Press; 1 edition (March 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 066916559X
• ISBN-13: 978-0669165593
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #164,872 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mind-set & Fantasies in Sexual Murder, April 20, 2002

By	Russell A. Rohde MD "Owl" (West Covina, California USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives- Paperback (Paperback)

"Sexual Homicide - Patterns and Motives by Ressler, Burgess & Douglas is a 234-page text which sets forth group characteristics of sexual murderers and consequential societal responses elicited in/by affected families, victims, legal system, law enforcement, & forensic investigators.

Core of the text is based on interrogation of 36 incarcerated sexual killers of 1 or more of 118 victims & critical analysis of these victims by interviews with familes, associates, etc. Study revealed killers were male, 92% white: 80% killed 2 or more victims (82% female) with 73% 15-28 years in age.

Attention is given to assess child/adolescent formative events, societal perceptions & pressures which may be motivational to sexual killers who exhibit aberrant thought patterns, deviant behavior, and aggression linked to sexual expressivity.

The study discusses FBI Behavioral Science Unit profiling of murderous acts: organized, disorganized or (mixed). And, distinguishes sexual homicide from motivated murders (felony, argumentative, etc.). Discussed is sexual and aggressive motivations in rape and subcategorizes compensatory (fantasy), exploitive/impulsive, displaced (anger/rage) and sadistic fantasies of rapists.

Crime scene and criminal profiling is reviewed noting this "is at the cutting edge of modern law enforcement" and "There is no place for speculation in forensic science." Chapters are devoted to police artist composite drawing and victim's family response to trauma (excellent).

Discussion is given of VICAP & establishment of NCAVC in 1984 as a joint project of DOJ & FBI to create Behavioral Sciences Services & 4 programs to analyse, identify and track violent crime & killers. It concludes with VICAP Crime Analysis Report (186 questions).

The book is well-organized, factual, and written with illuminative descriptions of the aberrant mind-set and fantasies of sexual murderers including chapter 14 on what to do if you should become a potential victim. The authors are recognized experts and have done admirable service to this work.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Landmark Research Book, March 22, 2005

By	Frank Black (Seattle, Wa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives- Paperback (Paperback)

The pioneering research work of Robert Ressler, Ann Burgess and John Douglass is presented in startling statistical detail. Thirty-six sexual murderers were interviewed: the data about their motivations, drives, and fantasies was catalogued and indexed in insightful graphic detail. Perhaps the psychological, predatory horror that lurks in the minds of serial killers will never be fully understood, but Douglass, Burgess, and Ressler's work offers some stunning insights into the mind-set of some of today's most horrific sexual killers.

With nearly 16,000 homicides in the U.S. each year, the highest of any country in the industrialized world, there is no doubt we are in the midst of an alarming social epidemic. If any biological pathogen killed as many Americans each year, we would be under a state of national emergency.

The rise in the number of so-called "lust murders" is particularly disturbing. To understand and apprehend the criminal, we must first understand both the crime and the victim- something criminologists refer to as "victimology." Child abuse, anti-social behavioral indicators, psychological triggers, and paraphilia obsessions: this book delves into the dark impulses that drive so many of these horrific homicides. This book is an essential tool for the homicide investigator and criminal profiler.

The disturbing nature of some of the numerous homicide cases, indexed in this book, should be a wake-up call to all of us. Something dark, sinister and cancerous is eating away at the fabric of our society- disturbing the equilibrium of its life-force.

This book quantifies sexual homicide with scholarly clarity. "Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives" is a landmark investigative tool in the field of criminology.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must-read" on the behavior & psychology of serial killers, August 24, 1996

By A Customer

This book is a valuable resource for mystery authors or anyone else who is interested in the subject of serial murder.

Written by three experts in the field, the book covers the behaviors that occur before, during and after the murder, as well as insight into the techniques used to profile and capture serial killers.

Crime scene analysis, forensic pathology, and interviewing techniques are also discussed.