Identifying victim types in sexual homicide: A latent class analysis using interactional victimology theories.

Sexual homicide (SH) research has focused on those who commit these crimes and the crimes themselves. This leaves the victim, an equally crucial piece to the puzzle, left as a sort of afterthought, despite the valuable insight that victimology provides to the crime. For the current study, victim information related to their routine activities and lifestyles was taken from an international database containing 662 solved cases of SH. Nine victim variables were used in a latent class analysis to find hidden subgroups within the victim population. Three classes were identified-low-risk, homebody, and overt risk victims-which suggests that SH victimization varies depending on the victim lifestyles and routine activities. These groups were externally validated by examining their association with different phases of the crime commission process. Some sexual homicide offenders may be more drawn to a victim because they present as vulnerable and opportunistic, while others might be methodically targeted. The theoretical relevance of this typology, along with investigative and prevention strategies, is discussed.

What is suicide? Classifying self-killings.

Although the most common understanding of suicide is intentional self-killing, this conception either rules out someone who lacks mental capacity being classed as a suicide or, if acting intentionally is meant to include this sort of case, then what it means to act intentionally is so weak that intention is not a necessary condition of suicide. This has implications in health care, and has a further bearing on issues such as assisted suicide and health insurance. In this paper, I argue that intention is not a necessary condition of suicide at all. Rather, I develop a novel approach that deploys the structure of a homicide taxonomy to classify and characterise suicides to arrive at a conceptually robust understanding of suicide. According to my analysis of suicide, an agent is the proximate cause of his death. Suicide is 'self-killing,' rather than 'intentional self-killing.' Adopting this understanding of suicide performs several functions: (1) We acquire an external standard to assess diverging analyses on specific cases by appealing to homologous homicides. (2) Following such a taxonomy differentiates types of suicides. (3) This approach has application in addressing negative connotations about suicide. (4) As a robust view, adding intention is an unnecessary complication. (5) It is more consistent with psychological and sociological assessments of suicide than 'intentional self-killing.' (6) It has useful applications in informing public policy. This paper's focus is on classifying types of suicides, rather than on the moral permissibility or on underlying causes of suicidal ideation and behaviour.

Cluster analysis of child homicide in South Korea.

BACKGROUND: There has been an insufficient in-depth analysis of the nature and prevalence of the typologies of child homicide in Asia, particularly in South Korea. OBJECTIVE: In the current study, we sought to determine the prevalence and identify the heterogeneity of the child homicide phenomenon in South Korea. PARTICIPANT AND SETTINGS: All 341 original case files (i.e., hospital, police, and autopsy reports) of homicide incidents involving children aged 0-18 in 2016 were obtained from the forensic autopsy archives of the National Forensic Service (NFS), which handles 100 % of the medico-legal autopsies in South Korea. These were examined and reclassified based on our definition. METHOD: A cluster analysis using Gower's distance was applied, which has rarely been utilized in this field of research. By performing a qualitative analysis, we first extracted 70 (numerical, logical, categorical) crime, victim, perpetrator, and household relevant variables, which were later utilized in the cluster analysis. RESULTS: Among the 341 cases from 2016, 95 were judged to be at least suspicious child homicide cases. When applying the cluster analysis, eight sub-clusters were extracted: child torture, maternal filicide, neonaticide, death not related to previous abuse, paternal filicide, paternal infanticide, maternal infanticide, and psychotic killings. CONCLUSIONS: The commonality and the unique aspect of the child homicide phenomenon in South Korea, in comparison with the results from previous research from other countries, are discussed.

Urban violence and risk factors for femicide in the Brazilian Amazon. / Violência urbana e fatores de risco relacionados ao feminicídio em contexto amazônico brasileiro.

Femicide has received relatively little research attention, despite its severity. Estimates of femicide depend on the strategies used to define it within the sociocultural and political context. This study aimed to assess intentional homicides of women, focusing on femicides, highlighting the characteristics and risk factors. This was a cross-sectional study based on daily surveillance of homicides in the press and mortality records. The study considered fatal victims of assault in women over 11 years of age in Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil, in 2016-2017. Classification of femicide was based on Brazil's Law n. 13,104/2015. Relative risk was estimated by Poisson regression, and a hierarchical model was used to include variables in the models. Analyses were performed in the R statistical package. Of 138 fatal victims of assault, 52 were cases of femicide, or 37.7% (CI: 29.4-45.5). Each unit addition of age reduced the risk of femicide by 3% (CI: 0.95-0.99). Risk of femicide was 40% lower (CI: 0.40-0.90) in women with up to seven years of schooling, when compared to those with eight years or more. Women killed by bodily force showed 5.5 times higher risk (CI: 2.6-11.3) of femicide, compared to those killed with firearms. Relative risk of femicide was 1.4 (CI: 1.1-2.7) in women killed in daytime, compared to those killed at night. The proportion of femicide in this study was lower than in previous estimates in Brazil, and the local burden of urban crime appears to explain part of this discrepancy. This study showed that age, schooling, use of bodily force, and time of day when the assault occurred are associated with femicide.

Apesar de sua gravidade, o feminicídio é pouco investigado e suas estimativas dependem das estratégias usadas à sua caracterização, do contexto sociocultural e político. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar os homicídios intencionais de mulheres, com enfoque nos feminicídios, destacando suas características e fatores de risco. Estudo transversal, baseado em vigilância diária de homicídios na imprensa e em registros de mortalidade. Foram consideradas vítimas fatais por agressões, mortes de mulheres maiores de 11 anos, residentes em Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil, em 2016-2017. A classificação de feminicídios baseou-se na Lei nº 13.104/2015. O risco relativo foi estimado mediante regressão de Poisson e um modelo hierárquico foi empregado para a introdução das variáveis nos modelos. As análises foram efetuadas no software R. De 138 vítimas fatais por agressões, 52 foram feminicídios, 37,7% (IC: 29,4-45,5). A cada acréscimo unitário de idade o risco de feminicídio reduzia em 3% (IC: 0,95-0,99). O risco de feminicídio foi 40% menor (IC: 0,40-0,90) nas mulheres com até sete anos de escolaridade, em comparação às que tinham oito anos ou mais; as mulheres agredidas mediante força corporal tiveram risco 5,5 (IC: 2,6-11,3) vezes maior de feminicídio, em comparação às que foram agredidas com arma de fogo; e risco de feminicídio de 1,4 (IC: 1,1-2,7) nas que foram mortas durante o dia, em relação às que morreram de noite. A proporção de feminicídio deste estudo foi inferior a estimativas prévias no Brasil e a carga local da criminalidade urbana parece explicar parte desta divergência. Este trabalho demonstrou que idade, escolaridade, uso da força corporal e turno da agressão estão associados ao feminicídio.

A pesar de su gravedad, el feminicidio ha sido poco investigado y sus estimaciones dependen de las estrategias usadas para su caracterización, así como del contexto sociocultural y político. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar los homicidios intencionales de mujeres, centrándose en los feminicidios, destacando sus características y factores de riesgo. Se trata de un estudio transversal, basado en la vigilancia diaria de homicidios en prensa y en registros de mortalidad. Se consideraron víctimas fatales por agresiones, muertes de mujeres mayores de 11 años, residentes en Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil, entre 2016-2017. La clasificación de feminicidios se basó en la Ley nº 13.104/2015. El riesgo relativo se estimó mediante regresión de Poisson y se empleó un modelo jerárquico para la introducción de las variables en los modelos. Los análisis se efectuaron en el software R. De 138 víctimas fatales por agresiones, 52 fueron feminicidios, un 37,7% (IC: 29,4-45,5). Con cada aumento unitario de edad, el riesgo de feminicidio se reducía en un 3% (IC: 0,95-0,99); el riesgo de feminicidio fue un 40% menor (IC: 0,40-0,90) en las mujeres con hasta siete años de escolaridad, en comparación con las que tenían ocho años o más; las mujeres agredidas mediante fuerza corporal tuvieron un riesgo 5,5 (IC: 2,6-11,3) veces mayor de feminicidio, en comparación con las que fueron agredidas con arma de fuego; y un riesgo de feminicidio de 1,4 (IC: 1,1-2,7) quienes fueron asesinadas durante el día, en relación con quienes murieron de noche. La proporción de feminicidio de este estudio fue inferior a las estimaciones previas en Brasil y la carga local de la criminalidad urbana parece explicar parte de esta divergencia. Este estudio demostró que la edad, escolaridad, uso de la fuerza corporal y período del día de la agresión están asociados al feminicidio.

MATCH: A New Approach for Differentiating & Linking Series of Sex Worker Homicides and Sexual Assaults.

Sex workers as a group are one of the more common targets in serial homicide, yet the most likely to go unsolved. Part of the reason for this is the difficulty in linking individual crime scenes to a series, especially in those series where offenders not only target sex worker victims but also target non-sex worker victims. Inconsistencies in both victim targeting and behaviors engaged in across series add to the difficulties of linking and solvability in these types of crimes. The current study aimed to add to the current body of literature on serial crime linkage by examining not only the most salient behavioral indicators useful for crime scene classification of serial homicides that involve sex worker victims but also examine the trajectories of behavioral change that can help link apparently inconsistent crime scenes and proposes the new Model for the Analysis of Trajectories and Consistency in Homicide (MATCH). The study examines 83 homicide series, including 44 (53%) series where all victims were sex workers and 39 (47%) series that included a mix of sex workers and non-sex worker victims. Using the MATCH system allowed for the majority of series to be classified to a dominant trajectory pattern, over half as many as a traditional consistency analysis that focusses on behavioral similarity matching. Results further showed that Sex Worker Victim series were almost three times more consistent across their series than Mixed-Victim series, not only in victim selection but also in the overall behavioral patterns. Findings are discussed in line with theoretical and psychological issues relating to understanding the nature of behavioral consistency and the importance of going beyond simple matching toward a model that allows for the identification of consistency in seemingly inconsistent series, as well as investigative implications relating to linking serial crimes.

Sex Worker Homicide Series: Profiling the Crime Scene.

Contrary to popular misconceptions, offenders who kill sex workers as part of their series exhibit substantial variability in their victim selection and behavioral patterns, thus creating additional issues for the investigation of these crimes. This article first aims to outline differences in the demographics of crime scene actions present in homicide series with exclusively sex worker victims and series that includes both sex worker and non-sex worker victims, with the aim of understanding the crime scene aetiology of these two different types of series. Second, the research aims to determine between-series differences of victimology as well as crime scene action between sex worker series and mixed-victim series. Third, the research focuses on mixed-victim series and aims to determine the within-series similarities of victimology and crime scene actions, that is, what factors link sex worker victims and non-sex worker victims in the same series. Data were collected through a large-scale review of international media sources to identify solved serial homicide cases that have included at least one sex worker. Of the 83 series looked at, 44 (53%) included sex worker victims only, and 39 (47%) of the series included both sex worker and non-sex worker victims. The findings highlight the challenges that these types of crime present for investigation and the implications they have on current crime analysis research and practice, and results are discussed in line with theoretical and psychological issues relating to understanding differentiation and similarity, as well as investigative implications relating to linkage blindness and linking of serial crimes.

An Updated Sexual Homicide Crime Scene Rating Scale for Sexual Sadism (SADSEX-SH).

The Sexual Homicide Crime Scene Rating Scale for Sexual Sadism (SADSEX-SH) is a rating scale which dimensionally measures the degree of offender sexual sadism in suspected sexual homicide cases. Scoring is accomplished using crime scene and related investigative information. Preliminary norms for the SADSEX-SH prototype indicate that it correctly classified offenders with and without sexual sadism. This study further assessed SADSEX-SH sensitivity, specificity, and inter-rater reliability by comparing a larger sample of male sexual homicide offenders with (n = 20) and without (n = 20) sexual sadism. Two items generally undetectable at crime scenes were removed from the originally proposed 10-item scale, resulting in a final 8-item version. SADSEX-SH total scores for the two groups significantly differed (7.7 ± 3.5, range = 2-14 vs. 2.6 ± 2.0, range = 0-7, t = 5.58, p < .001). Inter-rater reliability was excellent (intraclass correlation coefficients [ICCs] = 0.6-1.0). Using a revised cutoff score of 6, sensitivity was 70.0% and specificity was 90%. This revised scale may prove useful for investigators, clinicians, and institutional professionals in helping to identify and address sexual sadism in sexual homicide offenders.

Sexual Homicide of Children: A New Classification.

The sexual homicide of a child is an unusual event, and very few studies have been conducted on the topic. Previous studies have mainly focused on the differences between sexual homicide of child and adult victims. The current study aims to identify a typology of sexual homicide of children based on modus operandi, offenders' and victims' characteristics. Using two-step cluster analysis on a sample of 72 cases of extra familial sexual homicide of children (aged 16 years or below) from France, six clusters have been identified on the basis of eight modus operandi variables: intentional/prepubescent, inadvertent/prepubescent, intentional/preteen, inadvertent/preteen, indiscriminate/teen, and intentional/teen. External validity of the classification was tested using 51 additional variables related to victims, offenders, and other modus operandi characteristics. Findings showed that sexual homicide of children is a heterogeneous phenomenon, largely influenced by the actual age of the victim and the type of violence used. Implications of the findings are discussed considering prevention, criminal investigation, and correctional practices.

The Unusual Suspects: Multiple-Perpetrator and Multiple Concurrent Victim Sexual Homicide.

Sexual homicide typically implies a crime involving two people: perpetrator and victim. Thus, multiple-perpetrator and multiple concurrent victim sexual murderers are unusual, empirically invisible due to their exclusion from (or burying within) research samples. The present study examines 21 such cases of male sexual murderers having perpetrated at least one sexual homicide either together with a co-offender or alone but killing two victims at once. The aim was to investigate just how unusual, or not, these cases may be in relation to current scientific understanding of sexual murderers and their crimes. A descriptive analysis of offenses (co-offender and offender-victim dynamics, modus operandi) and offender characteristics is presented. Main findings, that multiple-perpetrator and multiple concurrent victim sexual murderers are not so unusual in that they are well conceptualized through application of the established sexualized, grievance, and rape murderer typology, are discussed in relation to clinical and empirical implications.

Sexual Homicide Targeting Children: Exploring Offender, Victim, and Modus Operandi Factors.

Sexual child homicides are rare, even among sexual homicides, and no previous study has compared sexual child homicide with nonsexual child homicides. To address this gap in research, this study aims to compare sexual child homicide offenders (n = 8) with two comparison groups: sexual adult homicide offenders (n = 89) and nonsexual child homicide offenders (n = 176) regarding victim, offender, and modus operandi factors. Using bivariate analysis, the results show that although sexual child homicide offenders appear more similar to other sexual homicide offenders than to homicide offenders, sexual offenders targeting children differ from both groups on certain variables. Sexual child homicide offenders more often used strangulation as a method of killing, had intoxicated victims, used multiple locations, and destroyed evidence after the murder. The study concludes that sexual homicide offenders targeting children should be considered distinct from other offenders and that the salient characteristics linked to sadism and instrumentality should be further examined.

The Preference for Strangulation in a Sexually Motivated Serial Killer.

The existing literature on the killing method of choice for sexually motivated serial killers suggests strangulation as the preferable means of homicide, when the victim is female. When homicide victims are male, however, existing research suggests that firearms and blades are preferable methods of causing death. A case is presented here of a sexually motivated male serial killer who exclusively targeted males and who chose strangulation as his means of killing. Analysis suggests that not only is the psychological constitution of the killer an important factor in understanding how they kill victims but, also, the nature of the sexual act is an important determinant in the method of killing in male on male sexually motivated killing.

Violência urbana e fatores de risco relacionados ao feminicídio em contexto amazônico brasileiro / Violencia urbana y factores de riesgo relacionados con el feminicidio en el contexto amazónico brasileño / Urban violence and risk factors for femicide in the Brazilian Amazon

Resumo: Apesar de sua gravidade, o feminicídio é pouco investigado e suas estimativas dependem das estratégias usadas à sua caracterização, do contexto sociocultural e político. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar os homicídios intencionais de mulheres, com enfoque nos feminicídios, destacando suas características e fatores de risco. Estudo transversal, baseado em vigilância diária de homicídios na imprensa e em registros de mortalidade. Foram consideradas vítimas fatais por agressões, mortes de mulheres maiores de 11 anos, residentes em Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil, em 2016-2017. A classificação de feminicídios baseou-se na Lei nº 13.104/2015. O risco relativo foi estimado mediante regressão de Poisson e um modelo hierárquico foi empregado para a introdução das variáveis nos modelos. As análises foram efetuadas no software R. De 138 vítimas fatais por agressões, 52 foram feminicídios, 37,7% (IC: 29,4-45,5). A cada acréscimo unitário de idade o risco de feminicídio reduzia em 3% (IC: 0,95-0,99). O risco de feminicídio foi 40% menor (IC: 0,40-0,90) nas mulheres com até sete anos de escolaridade, em comparação às que tinham oito anos ou mais; as mulheres agredidas mediante força corporal tiveram risco 5,5 (IC: 2,6-11,3) vezes maior de feminicídio, em comparação às que foram agredidas com arma de fogo; e risco de feminicídio de 1,4 (IC: 1,1-2,7) nas que foram mortas durante o dia, em relação às que morreram de noite. A proporção de feminicídio deste estudo foi inferior a estimativas prévias no Brasil e a carga local da criminalidade urbana parece explicar parte desta divergência. Este trabalho demonstrou que idade, escolaridade, uso da força corporal e turno da agressão estão associados ao feminicídio.

Resumen: A pesar de su gravedad, el feminicidio ha sido poco investigado y sus estimaciones dependen de las estrategias usadas para su caracterización, así como del contexto sociocultural y político. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar los homicidios intencionales de mujeres, centrándose en los feminicidios, destacando sus características y factores de riesgo. Se trata de un estudio transversal, basado en la vigilancia diaria de homicidios en prensa y en registros de mortalidad. Se consideraron víctimas fatales por agresiones, muertes de mujeres mayores de 11 años, residentes en Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil, entre 2016-2017. La clasificación de feminicidios se basó en la Ley nº 13.104/2015. El riesgo relativo se estimó mediante regresión de Poisson y se empleó un modelo jerárquico para la introducción de las variables en los modelos. Los análisis se efectuaron en el software R. De 138 víctimas fatales por agresiones, 52 fueron feminicidios, un 37,7% (IC: 29,4-45,5). Con cada aumento unitario de edad, el riesgo de feminicidio se reducía en un 3% (IC: 0,95-0,99); el riesgo de feminicidio fue un 40% menor (IC: 0,40-0,90) en las mujeres con hasta siete años de escolaridad, en comparación con las que tenían ocho años o más; las mujeres agredidas mediante fuerza corporal tuvieron un riesgo 5,5 (IC: 2,6-11,3) veces mayor de feminicidio, en comparación con las que fueron agredidas con arma de fuego; y un riesgo de feminicidio de 1,4 (IC: 1,1-2,7) quienes fueron asesinadas durante el día, en relación con quienes murieron de noche. La proporción de feminicidio de este estudio fue inferior a las estimaciones previas en Brasil y la carga local de la criminalidad urbana parece explicar parte de esta divergencia. Este estudio demostró que la edad, escolaridad, uso de la fuerza corporal y período del día de la agresión están asociados al feminicidio.

Abstract: Femicide has received relatively little research attention, despite its severity. Estimates of femicide depend on the strategies used to define it within the sociocultural and political context. This study aimed to assess intentional homicides of women, focusing on femicides, highlighting the characteristics and risk factors. This was a cross-sectional study based on daily surveillance of homicides in the press and mortality records. The study considered fatal victims of assault in women over 11 years of age in Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil, in 2016-2017. Classification of femicide was based on Brazil's Law n. 13,104/2015. Relative risk was estimated by Poisson regression, and a hierarchical model was used to include variables in the models. Analyses were performed in the R statistical package. Of 138 fatal victims of assault, 52 were cases of femicide, or 37.7% (CI: 29.4-45.5). Each unit addition of age reduced the risk of femicide by 3% (CI: 0.95-0.99). Risk of femicide was 40% lower (CI: 0.40-0.90) in women with up to seven years of schooling, when compared to those with eight years or more. Women killed by bodily force showed 5.5 times higher risk (CI: 2.6-11.3) of femicide, compared to those killed with firearms. Relative risk of femicide was 1.4 (CI: 1.1-2.7) in women killed in daytime, compared to those killed at night. The proportion of femicide in this study was lower than in previous estimates in Brazil, and the local burden of urban crime appears to explain part of this discrepancy. This study showed that age, schooling, use of bodily force, and time of day when the assault occurred are associated with femicide.

Drowning mortality by intent: a population-based cross-sectional study of 32 OECD countries, 2012-2014.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the drowning mortality rates and proportion of deaths of each intent among all drowning deaths in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries in 2012-2014. DESIGN: A population-based cross-sectional study. SETTING: 32 OECD countries. PARTICIPANTS: Individuals in OECD countries who died from drowning. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Drowning mortality rates (deaths per 100 000 population) and proportion (%) of deaths of each intent (ie, unintentional intent, intentional self-harm, assault, undetermined intent and all intents combined) among all drowning deaths. RESULTS: Countries with the highest drowning mortality rates (deaths per 100 000 population) were Estonia (3.53), Japan (3.49) and Greece (2.40) for unintentional intent; Ireland (0.96), Belgium (0.96) and Korea (0.89) for intentional self-harm; Austria (0.57), Korea (0.56) and Hungary (0.44) for undetermined intent and Japan (4.35), Estonia (3.70) and Korea (2.73) for all intents combined. Korea ranked 12th and 3rd for unintentional intent and all intents combined, respectively. By contrast, Belgium ranked 2nd and 15th for intentional self-harm and all intents combined, respectively. The proportion of deaths of each intent among all drowning deaths in each country varied greatly: from 26.2% in Belgium to 96.8% in Chile for unintentional intent; 0.7% in Mexico to 57.4% in Belgium for intentional self-harm; 0.0% in nine countries to 4.9% in Mexico for assault and 0.0% in Israel and Turkey to 38.3% in Austria for undetermined intent. CONCLUSIONS: A large variation in the practice of classifying undetermined intent in drowning deaths across countries was noted and this variation hinders valid international comparisons of intent-specific (unintentional and intentional self-harm) drowning mortality rates.

Characterising violent deaths of undetermined intent: a population-based study, 1999-2012.

OBJECTIVES: Violent deaths classified as undetermined intent (UD) are sometimes included in suicide counts. This study investigated age and sex differences, along with socioeconomic gradients in UD and suicide deaths in the province of Ontario between 1999 and 2012. METHODS: We used data from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, which has linked vital statistics from the Office of the Registrar General Deaths register with Census data between 1999 and 2012. Socioeconomic status was operationalised through the four dimensions of the Ontario Marginalization Index. We computed age-specific and annual age-standardised mortality rates, and risk ratios to calculate risk gradients according to each of the four dimensions of marginalization. RESULTS: Rates of UD-classified deaths were highest for men aged 45-64 years residing in the most materially deprived (7.9 per 100 000 population (95% CI 6.8 to 9.0)) and residentially unstable (8.1 (95% CI 7.1 to 9.1)) neighbourhoods. Similarly, suicide rates were highest among these same groups of men aged 45-64 living in the most materially deprived (28.2 (95% CI 26.1 to 30.3)) and residentially unstable (30.7 (95% CI 28.7 to 32.6)) neighbourhoods. Relative to methods of death, poisoning was the most frequently used method in UD cases (64%), while it represented the second most common method (27%) among suicides after hanging (40%). DISCUSSION: The similarities observed between both causes of death suggest that at least a proportion of UD deaths may be misclassified suicide cases. However, the discrepancies identified in this analysis seem to indicate that not all UD deaths are misclassified suicides.

Modeling the Movement of Homicide by Type to Inform Public Health Prevention Efforts.

OBJECTIVES: We modeled the spatiotemporal movement of hotspot clusters of homicide by motive in Newark, New Jersey, to investigate whether different homicide types have different patterns of clustering and movement. METHODS: We obtained homicide data from the Newark Police Department Homicide Unit's investigative files from 1997 through 2007 (n = 560). We geocoded the address at which each homicide victim was found and recorded the date of and the motive for the homicide. We used cluster detection software to model the spatiotemporal movement of statistically significant homicide clusters by motive, using census tract and month of occurrence as the spatial and temporal units of analysis. RESULTS: Gang-motivated homicides showed evidence of clustering and diffusion through Newark. Additionally, gang-motivated homicide clusters overlapped to a degree with revenge and drug-motivated homicide clusters. Escalating dispute and nonintimate familial homicides clustered; however, there was no evidence of diffusion. Intimate partner and robbery homicides did not cluster. CONCLUSIONS: By tracking how homicide types diffuse through communities and determining which places have ongoing or emerging homicide problems by type, we can better inform the deployment of prevention and intervention efforts.

Double Parricide: An In-Depth Look at Two Victim Homicides Involving Parents as Victims.

The majority of studies examining the killing of parents and step-parents by biological and stepchildren involve a single victim and single offender. Little is known when parricide incidents involve multiple victims or multiple offenders. Using the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), this study examined double parricide incidents involving single or multiple offenders over the 20-year period 1991-2010 with the aim of investigating juvenile and adult involvement. Forty-five incidents of double parricide were identified and verified; in 35 of these cases, the offenders acted alone. Frequencies reported include offender, victim, and incident characteristics. The results indicated that the typical double parricide offender who acted alone was a White male approximately 30 years of age. When multiple offenders were involved, the offenders tended to be younger and were more likely to include a female accomplice. Newspapers were utilized to augment available case information. Study limitations, implications, and directions for future research are also discussed.

The mass murderer history: modern classifications, sociodemographic and psychopathological characteristics, suicidal dimensions, and media contagion of mass murders.

Multicide and other mass killings are sufficiently dramatic to excite great interest from clinicians, criminologists and behavioral scientists. This paper revisits the history of the mass murderer, an entity that has progressively distinguished itself from the serial killer. The functional difference between mass and serial homicide is quite obvious, particularly in setting, time, victim status and modus operandi. Classification of these acts requires a number of parameters. The causes of mass murders are multiple and complex: although they rarely seem to be related to psychotic mental pathologies, they are always an expression of suffering that manifests itself in a psychological crisis that is both homicidal and suicidal. Several research teams have studied the sociodemographic and etiopathogenic characteristics of mass murderers and, in particular, the perpetrators of school killings. In addition to prevalent personality traits, these actions often jointly include suicides and homicides, which are brought together in the same psychic crisis. In keeping with the theory of little identity support, previous crimes influenced some mass murderers. Suicides and mass-murders are likely to be imitated. The media appears to play a crucial role in preventing the occurrence of imitation or copycat tragedies. The WHO recommendation regarding how to transcribe suicide and by extension, homicide, in the media is necessary.

Single-victim and serial sexual homicide offenders: differences in crime, paraphilias and personality traits.

BACKGROUND: Information on psychopathological characteristics of sexual homicide offenders is scarce. AIMS: To investigate criminal, paraphilic and personality trait differences between serial and single-victim sexual homicide offenders. METHODS: All 73 single-victim and 13 serial sexual homicide offenders presenting within a cohort of 671 men sentenced for sexual crimes between 1994 and 2005 and serving their sentence in one high-security Canadian prison and who consented to interview were assessed and compared on their offending patterns, personality pathology and paraphilic behaviours. RESULTS: Serial sexual homicide offenders were more likely than the single offenders to report deviant sexual fantasies, having selected victims with distinctive characteristics, to have targeted strangers, structured premeditation and/or verbal humiliation of their victims during the offences. Personality pathology, defined by at least two Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV criteria for personality disorder, was common in both groups, but the serial offenders were more likely to have narcissistic, schizoid and/or obsessive-compulsive traits; they were also more likely to engage in sexual masochism, partialism, homosexual paedophilia, exhibitionism and/or voyeurism. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Samples of serial sexual homicide offenders will, fortunately, always be small, and it may be that more could be learned to assist in preventing such crimes if data from several studies or centres were pooled. Our findings suggest that an investigation of sexual homicide offenders should include strategies for evaluating premeditation as well as personality and paraphilic characteristics. Crime scene features that should alert investigators should include similar characteristics between victims and particular aspects of body exposure or organisation.