Defining what is sexual homicide
is not, however, as elementary an issue as one may initially anticipate owing
to the often synonymous conceptualization the term “sexual homicide” shares
with the crime phenomenon of “serial homicide.” The objective is to provide a
succinct and a broad conceptualization of what may constitute sexual homicide. It
might be described as:
“… a
sexual element (activity) as the basis for the sequence of acts leading to death.
Performance and meaning of this sexual element vary with the offender. The act
may range from the actual rape involving penetration (either pre- or postmortem)
to a symbolic sexual assault, such as insertion of foreign objects into a
victim’s body orifices…”
One of the earliest Police
examinations of sexual homicide offenders is portrayed from the perspective of law enforcement and is
particularly synonymous with the development of criminal profiling techniques. This
research is primarily derived from an examination of 36 sexual murderers. This
data set of 36 offenders consisted of 7 single sexual murderers, 4 offenders
who each committed two sexual murders, and 25 offenders who each committed
three or more sexual homicides. Outcomes from this research included the
development of a motivational model for sexual homicide offenders (7) as
well as a dichotomous typology on how offenders and crime scenes may be
assessed. This dichotomy is premised on the level of behavioral sophistication
exhibited in crime scenes. The categories to this dichotomy are labeled as
either organized or disorganized. The organized category is reflective of
crimes involving premeditation and planning with concomitant organizational
features said to be evident in these offenders. Conversely, the disorganized
category is proposed to be reflective of spontaneous, unplanned offense
behaviors, with concomitant features of disorder said to be observable in the
offenders. The key findings of this analysis was the development of two broad
offense templates that were labeled opportunistic-impulsive and sadist
calculator. The opportunistic-impulsive template is characteristic of an impulsive,
spontaneous offender who acts with little reflection. The sexual dimension to
crimes representative of this pattern are said to be impulsive, and the offender is merely seeking immediate
gratification when an opportunity arises. In contrast, the sadistic-calculator
template embodies an offense style wherein offenders plan and prepare for the
murder and are far more sadistic in its perpetration. Four behavioral themes have been identified—cognitive
object, affective object, cognitive vehicle, affective vehicle—that are said to
be discriminatory of behavioral patterns typically observable in these crimes. The cognitive object pattern is indicative of highly sadistic offenders who plan
their offenses, and the affective object is characteristic of a crime pattern
where the offender has some attachment to the victim as an object. In contrast,
the cognitive vehicle pattern is suggestive of an offense style wherein there
is said to be controlled, yet quite sadistic aggression, whereas the affective
vehicle pattern is said to be a totally unplanned emotional attack. Furthermore
it appears that the police classify serial murders based on such factors as
their choice of victims and modus operandi. Thus, offender categories are
described as “men who kill men,” “men who kill
children,” “men who kill the elderly,” and “team killers” to name but a
few. Another key factor such as cohesive
clusters of behavior. Four discriminatory clusters were identified—predator,
rape, fury, and perversion. Crime scene behaviors evident in the predator
pattern embodied a sadistic purpose to the murder, and the fury pattern was
demonstrative of an unfocused outburst of violence by the offender. Central
features to the rape pattern was sexual intercourse with the victim, and the
perversion pattern was suggestive of extreme aberrant motivations within the
offender. Be it as it may – it has been proven that sexual homicide offenders start their criminal
careers at a very young age and appear to have a highly disturbed childhood. Evaluations
for evident psychopathologies indicated that these offenders often showed a
history of sadism and/or voyeurism, fetishism, transvestism, and/or sexual
identity disturbance prior to committing murder. Additionally, one-fourth
(9/38) were diagnosed as psychotic, and almost all were diagnosed with
antisocial personality disorder as well as engaging in substance abuse such as
alcohol and especially drugs. The violence committed in both the sex homicides and
the attempted sexual homicides was generally the same. Regarding prior criminal
records (with particular reference to crimes of a sexual nature), it was found
that one-third of the 34 sex-homicide offenders and 44% of the 16 attempted
sex-homicide offenders had prior criminal records related to sexual offenses. Alcohol
or drug abuse played a role in only 6 of the 23 sex-homicide cases where there
was no history of sex crimes. Of the 23 sex-homicide cases without a sex crime
history, nearly all (n = 21) had a criminal
history of non-sex crimes, frequently violent crimes. Only 2 of the 50 offenders
had a psychiatric history or exhibited psychotic symptoms at the time of
examination. Of the 50 offenders, more than one-third (n = 18)
had a history of sex crimes arrests. The two-thirds of offenders who did not
have a history of sex crimes nonetheless frequently had an extensive criminal
record for other offenses. With respect to the age of these offenders, nearly
one-third were reported as being under 21 years of age.
‘…organized
crime scenes and are usually diagnosed with sexual sadism and
antisocial/narcissistic
personality disorders. They are chronically emotionally
detached, often primary
psychopaths, are autonomically hyper-reactive, and the
majority experience no early trauma…’
In clinical context there are some innovative and rare biological factors concerning sexual homicide offenders that offer much food for thought with respect to the classic nature-versus-nurture debate, especially given the high proportion of physiological irregularities found. At this time, perhaps the most unexplored issue is the specific treatment and recidivism of sexual homicide offenders. In the context of a crime that typically attracts a life sentence (often without the possibility of parole) concern for such issues may, on initial consideration, seem redundant. Consequently, unless the crimes of such juvenile offenders are tried within an adult jurisdiction these perpetrators are more than likely to be released back into the community, thus necessitating the exploration of these issues in the future.
Acknowledgements:
The Police Department;
https://www.politie.nl/mijnbuurt/politiebureaus/05/burgwallen.html and a
Chief Inspector – Mr. Erik Akerboom ©
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