Signature murders: a report of the 1984 Cranbrook, British Columbia cases

Two females, Denean Worms and Brenda Hughes, were murdered in separate events in Cranbrook, British Columbia in 1984 within three months of each other. Terrence Wayne Burlingham was found guilty of both murders and he appealed. The Supreme Court of Canada granted Burlingham a new trial in the Worms case, but no evidence from Burlingham's confession nor the murder weapon could be used. The Crown counsel requested an evaluation of the two murders to determine if they were committed by the same person. The analyses of those murders revealed that they were linked by a personal "signature" of the killer. The murder cases reported here demonstrate a control-oriented signature. The killer used a .410 shotgun as his method of control and death, engaged in overkill of each victim by shooting them twice in the head, and left the victims in sexually degrading positions. Another signature feature was the absence of typical wounds to the victims which would be expected from a serial sex offender. All of these characteristics, in combination, accounted for this killer's personal expression.     

Murder Followed by Suicide: A Newspaper Surveillance Study Using the New York Times Index

Abstract: Murder–suicide is a relatively uncommon event but as reported by the New York Times, it has occurred and continues to occur yearly. Previous research has indicated that those who commit murder–suicides tend to be men, are in or have been in an intimate relationship with the victim, victims tend to be women, and a firearm is most likely to be used. This study uses a newspaper surveillance methodology to examine such cases. Articles from the New York Times as found in the New York Times Index were coded, analyzed, and examined. The cases, 166 in total, support the findings from prior research. The trend data was examined by cross tabulations and chi‐square analysis. The findings suggest that murder–suicides are rare events and when they occur they usually involve a male perpetrator and an intimate partner victim who is either a wife or girlfriend with the event occurring in a private home. A firearm is the most commonly used method for both murders and suicides, particularly if there was more than one murder victim. The authors conclude by suggesting that future research should focus on using the forthcoming data resource in the CDC’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) to examine the occurrence of murder–suicide.     

The Effect of Police Use of Lethal Force on Murder Levels in American Cities Before and After Ferguson

We assess the effects of police use of lethal force on subsequent murders by victim race and armed status before and after the August 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. We regress monthly murder levels on instances of police use of lethal force by race and armed status controlling for fixed effects, population, unemployment, and murders in the prior month using city-level data for 93 cities from 2013 to 2015. For 2013–2015, we find that a police lethal force incident predicts a 1.8% increase in murders 2 months following the incident. However, prior to Ferguson, a police lethal force incident increases murders by 4.5% (after 2 months) and we are unable to find any evidence of differential responses to police use of lethal force based on victim race. However, we find evidence of differential responses to police use of lethal force based on victim armed status. Post-Ferguson, police use of lethal force is associated with significant differential responses based on victim race. In addition, we see a shift in the aggregate-level response to police use of lethal force. Post-Ferguson, a police lethal force incident decreases the murder level by 3.8% 3 months following the incident. In addition, lethal force incident involving a non-black victim decreases the number of murders by 4.3% while an incident involving a black victim increases the number of murders by 2.1% (after a 2-month lag). Changes in policing following the events of Ferguson had a generally positive but uneven effect.     

The relationship between substance use, drug selling, and lethal violence in 25 juvenile murderers

The goal of the present study was to determine the relationship between substance use, drug selling, and lethal violence in adolescent male homicide offenders and their victims. The study employed a retrospective review of criminal justice databases and medical examiner records for murders committed by 25 adolescent males incarcerated in the Commonwealth of Virginia juvenile correctional centers from February 1992 to July 1996. The perpetrator sample was 84% African American and 16% white. The average age at the time of the offense was 15.0 years (range = 13.0 to 17.7 years). The victims were 84% male, 60% African American and 32% white. The median victim age was 28.0 years (mean = 34.8, range = 17 months to 75 years). The results indicated that 52% of the murders were committed by juveniles with identified involvement in drug selling, and 28% of the murders were drug-related. Toxicology results indicated recent drug or alcohol use in 27% of the victims; while 74% of the perpetrators reported substance use, 35% indicating daily use. Using discriminant analysis, it was possible to accurately classify 86% of the drug-related murders with the variables of recent victim drug use and perpetrator substance use history. The results indicated that adolescent males involved in the sale and distribution of illegal drugs comprised a significant percentage of those incarcerated for murder. Recent victim drug use and perpetrator substance use may be important variables in identifying drug-related juvenile homicides. These results underscore the link between substance use, drug selling, and lethal violence.     

Secondary victimization and the collective identity of crime victims: a qualitative analysis of Swedish crime news discourse

This article presents an analysis of how secondary victims of murder—in this context, the parents or close family members of a primary murder victim—are represented in Swedish crime news discourse. The study is based on a discourse analysis of media coverage of secondary victims, and statements made by them, in relation to four highly publicized murder cases during the last two decades. The analysis shows that portrayals of secondary victimization reinforce the conflictual character of victim–offender relationships in the news, but also limit the conditions for talking about the significance of social support, mediation and reconciliation for crime victims. News representations of crime victims become less clearly marked by the characteristics of the ‘ideal’ victim as secondary victims, and persons who are explicitly critical toward the legal system, claim victimhood. Furthermore, the identity of the crime victims’ movement as a collective becomes destabilized when the category of the victim is widened to include individuals whose interests are framed as subjective, rather than related to the needs of other crime victims or the general public. In sum, increased media focus on secondary victims may thus undermine the legitimacy of victim claims in public discourse.     

Identification of serial homicide victims in the "Green River Murder" investigation

The Green River Murder Investigation in King County, Washington, is currently the longest and most active serial murder investigation in U.S. history. To date, little information has been reported on methods used in identification of serial murder victims. In this paper, various methods used in victim identification are reviewed and difficulties encountered during the course of the investigation are described. The experience of the authors is presented in order to acquaint other agencies with problems of victim identification associated with these serial murder victims and to provide key methods that may be useful in other such investigations.     

An unusual pattern of gunshot injury linking two homicides to the same assailant

This case report describes an unusual pattern of gunshot firing that proved useful in convicting one assailant of two murders. The assailant fired into the first victim, successively through the same entrance hole at contact range. This technique of firing twice through the same hole was also demonstrable on his second victim in the bare skull of the decomposed body. This unusual pattern noted in two homicides found two weeks apart, in concert with other circumstantial evidence, led to the successful conviction of the man for both murders.     

Hanging: suicide or homicide?

Death by Hanging: Suicide or Homicide. Six cases of homicidal hanging and murder presented as suicidal hanging are recorded. Suspension followed strangulation by ligature or throttling and head injuries in 4 cases. Distinction between homicide and suicide was easy in 5 cases: two of the perpetrators gave themselves up to the police, one committed suicide immediately after he had hanged his 15 year old daughter; in two cases tracks of blood, heavy injuries of the victims, and traces of robbery were obvious. Unless the victim is an infant or an adult person incapacitated by drink, disease, or drugs, or unless there are several assailants murder is difficult to accomplish. Distinction between murder and suicide may be impossible by an examination of the body alone. Detailed investigation of the scene, reconstruction of the position of the suspended body, examination of the rope, the knots, the direction of the fibres on the rope may serve to discover homicidal hanging. - Compared to suicidal hanging homicide has a frequency of about 1% in our autopsy material. However, we cannot estimate the number of obscure cases.     

Female versus male perpetrated femicide: an exploratory analysis of whether offender gender matters

Femicide, the murder of females (most often at the hands of males), is an understudied area in homicide research. Furthermore, femicide perpetrated by females has been all but ignored. One reason this may be is because of the rarity of homicide victimization perpetrated by females. Rather, most homicide incidents consist of a male offender and a male victim. When a homicide does involve a female, either as a victim or as an offender, the other party implicated is generally a male. The primary goal of the proposed study is to provide an in-depth, albeit exploratory, examination of female-perpetrated femicide. Using homicide data taken from the Dallas Homicide Unit, 403 cases of femicide will be analyzed, with special attention devoted to comparing female-perpetrated femicide incidents (n = 39) against male-perpetrated femicide incidents (n = 364). Specifically, the current study will explore the similarities and differences in sociodemographic characteristics of victims and suspects, offense characteristics, and offense circumstances. Contrary to what was expected, results, at first glance, seem to suggest an overwhelming similarity between femicide suspects and victims, irrespective of gender. However, when the relationship between victim and suspect is considered, distinct differences appear. Implications from these findings as well as limitations and suggestions for further research are discussed.     

Child abduction murder: the impact of forensic evidence on solvability

This study examined 733 child abduction murders (CAMs) occurring from 1968 to 2002 to explore the influence of forensic evidence on case solvability in CAM investigations. It was hypothesized that the presence of forensic evidence connecting the offender to the crime would enhance case solvability in murder investigations of abducted children. This study examined the impact of CAM of different types of forensic evidence and the impact of the summed total of forensic evidence items on case solvability by controlling for victim age, victim race, victim gender, and victim-offender relationship. Time and distance theoretical predictors were also included. Binomial logistic regression models were used to determine whether forensic evidence was a critical solvability factor in murder investigations of abducted children. This research indicated that, while forensic evidence increased case solvability, the impact of forensic evidence on solvability was not as important as other solvability factors examined.     

Physician crimes and criminals. The historical and forensic aspects

The physician, like any other human being, is subject to emotional problems, greed, jealousy, and instability of an individual under stress as well as mental disease which may all bring out improper behavior or criminal activity. Over the last two centuries, there have been instances where physicians have committed deliberate acts of murder on wives, relatives, patients, and others. Their motivation has ranged from ridding themselves of a nagging wife or for insurance and inheritance gains to insane acts. The methods used have usually been associated with poisons and drugs, of which the physician may have great familiarity. The frequency of physician-involved murders seems to have increased in the past two decades with several sensational cases being the topics of media coverage and further review in books and visual media, including television and the movies. The investigation of these cases may be very difficult, especially when a drug may be given to a victim which could cause severe problems after small amounts are given. The detection of death as being a murder may be the first problem faced, the demonstration of the fatal agent in the body in the next problem, and probably the most difficult is finding a suspect with the medication in his or her possession or paraphenalia for injecting such as a syringe and needle. The stealth and cunning of the murderer may further complicate the picture for the investigator as well as the reputation of the physician in the community, which is often above reproach so that the public has to be convinced of the actual involvement of the suspect.     

Death after anal "fisting"

A 45-year-old homeless woman was found dead at her usual sleeping place. Apart from traces of blood on the lower abdomen of the body, the police investigations did not produce any clues pointing to an unnatural death. At autopsy, it was found, however, that death had been caused by extensive disruptions of the intestine. After being confronted with the results, the sexual partner of the victim admitted manual anal penetration, but claimed that this had been done by mutual agreement. The court did not accept that statement and sentenced him to life imprisonment for murder. The frequency of such fatal outcomes of anal penetration, the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim and the special features at the scene are discussed.     

Victims' Rights, Victims' Expectations, and Law Enforcement Workers' Constraints in Cases of Murder

Research on crime victims and their experiences with the criminal justice system suggests that victims' rights (e.g., victim impact statements) and victims' services (e.g., crime victims' compensation, counseling) have not significantly improved victims' satisfaction with the criminal justice system or their recovery from the crime. Thus, we appear to know little about how to satisfy and assist victims of crime. This study uses the symbolic interactionist perspective to examine victims' experiences with law enforcement workers (e.g., detectives, counselors) with a focus on people who have lost a loved one to murder ("bereaved victims"). The data come from in-depth interviews with thirty-two bereaved victims, seven law enforcement workers, and three crime victims' advocates in Union County (pseudonym). Bereaved victims define the victim role differently from law enforcement workers, creating two main points of conflict with workers: (1) a conflict over their deceased loved one's body, and (2) a conflict over the flow of information in the case. Bereaved victims' frustrations over these conflicts created problems for their recovery. Bereaved victims' efforts to see their deceased loved one's body, guide detectives' investigation, and learn information about the murder and the investigation took a back seat to detectives' interests in protecting the integrity of the investigation and building a strong case for the prosecution. Policy implications are discussed.     

Appearance of chemical burns resulting from the washing of a deceased body with bleach

The authors report on a case of postmortem washing of a body with bleach. An adult female victim was found nude in an alleyway with both hands removed in the City of Westminster, CO. Cause of death was attributed to severe blunt force trauma to the head. The victim had been dumped in the alleyway within 7 h of discovery. Evidence discovered at the crime scene and autopsy indicated that the murder and subsequent washing of the body with bleach occurred at a secondary location(s). The victim was wet to the touch, presenting a strong odor of bleach. Several "ribbon"-like burn patterns were observed on the victim's back and upper thighs. These burn marks were replicated by dowsing a deceased pig with an over-the-counter concentration of bleach.     

Dismemberment: a review of the literature and description of 3 cases

The authors describe 3 cases of dismemberment. Numerous methods of hiding a body and thus erasing proof of murder have been devised. Those most frequently described in the literature include: burial of the body in an unusual or impervious place such as a wood, grotto or mountain; charring the body by wrapping it in a tire, for example, to fuel the fire until all traces of the crime have been erased and identification of the victim is difficult; and dropping the weighted-down body in the open sea or in a well in the hope that it will never be found. Dismemberment is in reality a relatively rare method whereby, after killing the victim, the murderer uses a very sharp cutting weapon (a saw, axe, etc.) to sever the limbs and cut the body into small pieces. The operation is generally carried out immediately after the crime, although more rarely a long time may pass between the 2 events.     

Self-inflicted stab wound for simulating self-defense?]

During a violent conflict, a young man was shot dead in front of a bar. The offender stated that he had acted in self defence after having been attacked with a knife. Taking into account the testimonies, the medical findings (f. ex. sonotomogram of the left femur) as well as the crime scene regarding the position of the body, it could not be excluded from the forensic point of view that a knife attack of the later victim had taken place. Nevertheless, the court convicted the man who had shot for murder and gave a life prison sentence.