THE ROLE OF ANOMIE IN EXPLAINING SERIAL MURDER
The following research will explore the behavior of serial killing, or murder, from the anomie perspective in criminology. By the use of case study contrasts, an attempt will be made to analyze the different mindsets of various kinds of serial killers, and the results of this analysis will be used to shed light on various debates and controversies within the anomie perspective.
One of those debates is whether criminal offenders, like serial killers, suffer from some sort of mental imbalance or simply display an innovative adaptation to strain as outlined by Robert Merton, one of the chief theorists of anomie theory. Looking at the psychological differences between contrasting types of the same kind of offender also has important implications for other aspects of anomie theory.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Statistically, the average serial killers are white heterosexual males from
a lower to middle class background, usually in his twenties or thirties and who
are sexually dysfunctional and have low self-esteem. Many were physically or
emotionally abused by parents. Some were adopted. As children, fledgling serial
killers often set fires, torture animals, and wet their beds (these red-flag
behaviors are known as the "triad" of symptoms.) By some estimates,
60% of multiple murderers wet their beds past adolescence. As adults, many
serial killers have some type of brain damage and are addicted to alcohol and/or
drugs. Some are very intelligent and have shown great promise as successful
professionals. They are also fascinated with the police and authority in
general. They will either have attempted to become police themselves but were
rejected, or worked as security guards, or had served in the military.
Their
methodical rampages are almost always sexual in nature. Their killings are
usually part of an elaborate fantasy that builds to a climax at the moment of
their murderous outburst. Serial killers generally murder strangers with cooling
off periods between each crime. Many enjoy cannibalism, necrophilia and keep
trophy-like body parts as mementos of their work. Serial killers are sadistic in
nature. Some return to crime scenes or grave sites of their victims to fantasize
about their deeds. Many like to insert themselves in the investigation of their
crimes and some enjoy taunting authorities with letters or carefully placed
pieces of evidence. Serial killers tend to prey on women and children of their
same race. Prostitutes, drifters and hitchhikers are their victims of choice.
Some homosexual killers enjoy hunting young boys and gay men. Female serial
killers tend to be "black widows" who kill a succession of husbands,
lovers, or other family members. They can also be nurses or other medical
professionals who become self-appointed "angels of death" murdering
babies, elderly, or the desperately ill in a misguided effort to relieve their
suffering.
Serial
killers are highly mobile people with obsessive e compulsive characteristics.
Serial killers intend to kill and do so without the use of guns. There are four
main types of serial killers as well as the mixture of these types. Visionaries
hear voices. The usually say that either God or the devil or demons tell them to
kill. Missionaries think their job is to clean the scum out of society. Power
seekers desire a control over life and death. Hedonists are the most complex
type of serial murder. They are power oriented and divided into three
categories: lust, thrill and gain.
With rare exception, serial killers objectify and
humiliate their victims.
Because
of their psychopathic nature, serial killers do not know how to feel sympathy
for others, or even how to have a relationship. Instead, they learn to simulate
it by observing others. It is all a manipulative act, designed to entice people
into their trap. Serial killers are actors with a natural penchant for
performance.
Through case summaries and descriptions of the following selected serial/mass murderers, I will try to alleviate or maybe substantiate the opinions or debates in reference to the mental capacity of a serial killer.
Dr. Jack
Kevorkian
– Murdered count (130)
On March 26, 1999, Suicide advocate Dr. Jack
Kevorkian was convicted of second-degree murder for giving an ailing man a
lethal injection and putting it all on a videotape that aired on "60
Minutes." The jury took a day and a half to clear him of first-degree
murder, which would have meant a mandatory sentence of life in prison without
parole. They rejected his claim in his closing argument that some acts "by
sheer common sense are not crimes." Kevorkian, 70, has acknowledged a role
in some 130 assisted suicides since 1990, making him the most active known
serial killers in the nation Kevorkian has said his clients used his homemade
devices to start the flow of carbon monoxide or intravenous chemicals that
caused their death. Kevorkian compared himself to civil rights pioneers Rosa
Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. and invited the jury to disregard the law.
John Wayne Gacy-
The Killer Clown -Murder count (33).
Straight
out of the he's-such-a-nice-guy file, Johnny was the type of man who liked to
dress in a homemade Pogo the Clown outfit to entertain kids. A lonely and
sadistic contractor, Johnny also liked to entertain young boys privately in a
very different fashion. The prototypical organized killer, he had all aspects of
the murder worked out before each kill. Once he entered his murderous fantasy,
there was no turning back.
He enjoyed handcuffing his victims, anally raping
them, beating them to a pulp, offering to make peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches, reciting verses from the Bible and strangling them to death.
Serial
killer John Wayne Gacy was a born salesman with a natural charm. Kids loved him,
parents trusted him, First Lady Rosalyn Carter posed in a picture with him. All
the while, over a seven-year period, he sexually assaulted and murdered 33
teenage boys and young men, burying 28 of them under his house and garage in a
Chicago suburb.
Wayne Williams-
Murder count
(28).
Suspected
of being the Atlanta Child Murderer,
Wayne killed mostly young, black boys and dumped their bodies in the
Chattahoochee River. When he was arrested Wayne was described as the
"Pillsbury Doughboy." Unlike many other serial killers, he was
soft-spoken, mild-mannered and friendly. Williams was a 41-year-old freelance
photographer and talent scout.
His
thick glasses, soft features and delicate hands made him an unlikely candidate
for commiting 28 murders. Wayne emerged as a person emotionally capable of
murder with an "inadequate personality" and an "obsessive need
for control."
Ted Bundy-
Murder count (22+).
The Picasso of the serial killing community. Ted was
handsome, charming, intelligent, self-assured, with a brilliant future, and
deadlier than a rattlesnake. Using his good looks, he was able to invisibly
abduct and kill his victims and continue with his seemingly charmed life. From
early 1974 to early 1978, the stranger called "Ted" stalked young
women on college campuses, at shopping malls, in apartment buildings and grade
schools in Washington, Oregon, Utah, Idaho, Colorado and finally Florida.
This law student and Young
Republican liked to wear an arm sling to appear vulnerable and get women to help
him with his groceries. Once he lured his victims to the door of his car he
would bludgeon them and take them away to privately enjoy their death. He
favored killing pretty, dark-haired cheerleader types. He would attack his prey
with blunt objects and was fond of raping and biting them. The bite marks on one
of his victims were used as evidence against him at his trial in Florida.
As
a teen, Bundy was shy and sensitive. At a Seattle crisis center, he counseled
the depressed, the alcoholic, the suicidal. He graduated with a degree in
psychology from the University of Washington in 1972, designed a program for
dealing with habitual criminals and wrote a pamphlet on rape for the King County
crime commission.
Jeffrey Dahmer- The
Milwakee Monster-Murder count (17).
The
founding father of Cannibals
Anonymous. As a kid, Jeff liked to torture and kill little animals. As an
adult he did the same with humans. This Milwaukee chocolate factory worker lured
gay, black men to his apartment with the promise of sex and drugs and instead
killed them and had them for dinner.
Once
his victims were dead, Jeff came to life. He enjoyed sex with corpses and was
conscientious enough to always wear a condom. Sex with live beings was not as
good, he said, because they could get up and leave at any minute. He also
enjoyed mutilation and experimented with different ways of disposing of his
victims. He once tried to turn one of his victims into a zombie by performing a
homemade lobotomy on the man by drilling into his brain and pouring acid into
the holes.
Joseph P.
Franklin –
Murder count (15+).
A former
Klansman and neo-Nazi, Franklin is the embodiment of absolute bigotry. He
believed that interracial marriages where a sin against God and took it upon
himself to punish the guilty. He enjoyed sniper attacks on interracial couples
and killed for sport.
Born
James Clayton Vaughn, Franklin legally changed his name to honor Benjamin
Franklin and Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. His first known attack
was the bombing of Beth Shalom Synagogue in Chattanooga, Tenn., in July 1977.
From then until September 1980, he is suspected of killing at least 17 people --
three interracial couples, seven black men and boys, three female hitchhikers
and a Jewish man. During his spree, Franklin survived by robbing banks and
selling his blood
Jane Toppan
–Murder count- (31+).
Born in
Boston as Nora Kelly to typical future serial killer misery in 1854. When she
was still an infant her mother died and her tailor father was institutionalized
for trying to stitch his eyelids shut. After a brief stint in an orphanage, Nora
was adopted by the Toppan family and changed her name to Jane. From then on she
led a very normal life until, as a young woman, she was jilted by her fiancee,
had a nervous breakdown and unsuccessfully tried to commit suicide.
Although
she excelled as a student in Nursing School, she raised some eyebrows with her
morbid curiosity for autopsies. Eventually she was unceremoniously dismissed
after two patients died mysteriously under her care. Not the passive type, Jane
forged her nursing degree and went out looking for a job as a private nurse.
Jane was a considered a kind and sensitive nurse who regularly took care of the sick and elderly for Boston's best families. However, most of her patients and their families died mysteriously after ingesting some of her "special" potions. Over two decades, Jane blazed through the homes of New England society with her trusty morphine cocktails to the tune of a least 31 deaths. She was called America’s premiere female “Angel of Death”.
During
my research, I discovered a well-renowned questionaire by Chief Psychotherapist
Dr. Benjamin Karpman. It is a psychogenic inventory that Dr. Karpman developed
and designed whom, at the time of its completion (1954), was Chief
Psychotherapist at Saint Elizabeth's Hospital in Washington, D.C. His studies of
the sexual offender are extensive, and impressive. I will only document a few.
The complete survey contains 330 questions and is divieded into catergories.
1.
As a child, did you have a distinct fondness for one parent over the
other; or were you equally fond of both of them? I you had a decided preference
for one, which one and why?
2.
Can you remember anything about, or can you recall anything that you have
told about, the period of toilet training? Can you remember any thoughts or
feelings about, or reactions to, urine, feces, or toilet functions? Have you any
childhood memories associated with the bathroom?
3. Give a full and detailed account of your home
life, the general atmosphere which prevailed in the family circle, including the
following:
(a)
Your parents' attitude toward each other
(b) Your parents' attitude toward the children; any special favoritism or its
opposite shown toward any of the children;
(c) The economic circumstances, the influence of money or the effects of lack of
money;
(d) Your parents' attitude toward religion, and its effects on the children;
(e) The relations which existed among the children;
(f) The family activities, amusements, cultural interests, etc.;
(g) The effects of alcohol, gambling, social climbing, or any other unusual
factor which influenced the family life.
4. Do you know whether you have suffered from
enuresis ( bed-wetting )? If you did, have you been told anything about this
difficulty, e.g., the measures taken to combat it; how long it lasted, etc.? If
you have any conscious memory of this, tell as much about it as you remember. If
bed-wetting was a problem which persisted to a comparatively late period --
pre-puberty, puberty, adolescence, etc. -- give a full and complete account of
this, and state the precise age at which it ceased to become a problem.
5. . What were the sleeping arrangements that existed in your home when you were a child? Did you sleep in the same bed with your parents, or with either of them, and if so, for how long? For how long did you sleep in the same room with one or both of them? Did you sleep in the same bed with any of your siblings, and if so, for how long? For how long did you sleep in the same room with any of them? Describe any other sleeping arrangements not covered by the preceding questions
6. As a child were you bashful or bold; timid or
fearless? Were you seclusive, or did you make friends easily? Tell as much as
you can about how you reacted in the presence of others
7. . Can you remember, as a child, being especially
jealous of anyone else? If so, of whom, and why? What age is represented by this
period? Did such jealousy persist to any degree into adulthood?
8. . If you went to high school, did you graduate? If
not, how far did you go and why did you leave? Tell something about your life in
high school -- relations with other students, with teachers, your attitude
toward your studies, etc.
9.How did you obtain the first money that you earned?
Did you engage in any sort of work while you were going to school, e.g., paper
route, vacation jobs, part-time jobs, etc.?
10. To what extent has illness, alcoholism, a
quarrelsome disposition, sensitiveness to criticism, or some other factor,
interfered with your occupational adjustment?
11. Are you easily angered? Do you express anger
openly, or do you "bottle it up" and cherish silent resentment? So you
cool off fast or slowly? have you done any impulsive things under the stress of
anger which you afterwards regretted? Are you of a forgiving disposition, or do
you carry grudges, remember injuries?
12. As a child, did you indulge in any acts of
cruelty? Did you torment animals, insects, or other children? If so, give an
account of such behavior, stating the age at which it occured. Do you engage in
any cruel behavior at the present time, either physical or mental? Do you enjoy
belittling others or hurting their feelings? Are you given to cynicism, sarcasm
or mockery? Do you "bully" other people? Are you threatening or
belligerent?
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
Formative years may play a
role in the molding of a serial killer, but they cannot be the sole reason in
every case. Many killers blame their families for their behavior, seeking
sympathy. In true psychopathic fashion, serial killers are blaming someone else
for their actions. If their bad childhood is the primary reason for their
homicidal tendencies, then why don't their siblings also become serial killers?
And if these conditions truly created them, serial killers would probably be
unionized by now, there would be so many of them (a sad commentary on our
continuing neglect of children.) We must look at other components to see what
pushes a serial killer over the edge.
In
the 19th century, psychopathology was considered to be "moral
insanity". Today it is commonly known as "antisocial personality
disorder" or "sociopathology." Current experts believe that
sociopaths are an unfortunate fusion of interpersonal, biological and
sociocultural disasters.
Psychopaths/sociopaths are diagnosed by their purposeless and
irrational antisocial behavior, lack of conscience, and emotional vacuity.
Genetics and physiological factors also contribute to the building of a
psychopath.
Some
research has shown that violent offenders have higher trace levels of toxic
heavy metals (manganese, lead, cadmium and copper) in their systems. Excess
manganese lowers the level of serotonin and dopamine, which contributes to
aggressive behavior.
According
to many researchers, brain defects and injuries have been an important link to
violent behavior. When the hypothalamus, the temporal lobe, and/or the limbic
brain show damage, it may account for uncontrollable aggression.
According
to Joel Norris, there are 6 phases of the serial killer's cycle: 1) The Aura
Phase, where the killer begins losing grip on reality; 2) The Trolling Phase,
when the killer searches for a victim; 3) The Wooing Phase, where the killer
lures his victim in; 4) The Capture Phase, where the victim is entrapped; 5) The
Murder or Totem phase, which is the emotional high for killers; and finally, 6)
The Depression Phase, which occurs after the killing.
REFERENCES
http://serial-killers.virtualave.net/
www.mayhem.net/crime/serial1.html
www.crimemagazine.com/serial.html
www.digeratiweb.com/sociorealm
Killers Tick?
By Shirley Lynn Scott - www.crimelibrary.com/serials/what/whatmain.htm
Norris, Joel. Serial
Killers: The Growing Menace
Williams, Colin
and David Seaman, The Serial
Killers: A Study in the Psychology of
Violence. London: Virgin Publishing, 1997.