A recognized criminological typology of homicide in which an offender kills two or more victims in separate incidents, with a period of time, often days, weeks or longer, elapsing between each killing, distinguishing it from mass murder, in which multiple victims are killed in a single incident or closely connected series of incidents in one general time and place. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation's Behavioral Analysis Unit is among the bodies that study and define the pattern, which criminologists have documented as frequently, though not universally, associated with a distinctive underlying motive such as sexual gratification, power or control, and the study of serial murder has substantially shaped the modern practice of offender profiling within criminal investigation.
Facts
Elements of OffenseThe United States Federal Bureau of Investigation defines serial murder as the unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender or offenders, in separate events, a standard used to distinguish it from mass murder or spree killing, which lack a cooling-off period between killings. 1 Connections
Exemplified By Cases
Source Wikipedia: Atlanta Child Murders
The shootings are variously described as a serial or spree pattern in the secondary literature; the extended (10-month) span and repeated separate attacks place it within the serial murder offense as the atlas defines it, alongside its existing murder edge.
Source Wikipedia: D.C. Sniper Attacks
Source Wikipedia: Dennis Rader
Source Wikipedia: Joseph James DeAngelo
Source Wikipedia: Gary Ridgway
Source Wikipedia: Richard Ramirez
Source Wikipedia: Ted Bundy
Source Wikipedia: Zodiac Killer
Sources
1. Serial killer (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia, Serial killer, Etymology and Definition section, FBI definitionQuote, Wikipedia, Serial killer, Etymology and Definition section, FBI definition
The unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s) in separate events.
Wikipedia: Dennis Rader
Exemplified By Cases: BTK Case, Lead sectionQuote, Exemplified By Cases: BTK Case, Lead section
is an American serial killer and mass murderer who killed at least ten people in Wichita and Park City, Kansas, between 1974 and 1991.
Wikipedia: Gary Ridgway
Exemplified By Cases: Green River Killer Case, Lead section, opening sentenceQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Green River Killer Case, Lead section, opening sentence
Gary Leon Ridgway ..., known as the Green River Killer or the Green River Strangler, is an American serial killer who was convicted of murdering forty-nine women between 1982 and 1998 in the northwestern United States.
Wikipedia: Zodiac Killer
Exemplified By Cases: Zodiac Killer Case, Lead sectionQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Zodiac Killer Case, Lead section
murdered at least five people in the San Francisco Bay Area between December 1968 and October 1969
Wikipedia: Ted Bundy
Exemplified By Cases: Ted Bundy Case, Lead sectionQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Ted Bundy Case, Lead section
was an American serial killer who kidnapped, raped and murdered dozens of young women and girls between 1974 and 1978
Wikipedia: Richard Ramirez
Exemplified By Cases: Night Stalker Case, Lead section, opening sentenceQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Night Stalker Case, Lead section, opening sentence
was an American serial killer, sex offender, and burglar whose killing spree occurred in Greater Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area in the state of California.
Wikipedia: D.C. Sniper Attacks
Exemplified By Cases: Beltway Snipers Case, Lead sectionQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Beltway Snipers Case, Lead section
In total, the snipers killed 15 people and wounded 8 others in a 10-month span.
Wikipedia: Joseph James DeAngelo
Exemplified By Cases: Golden State Killer Case, Opening paragraphQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Golden State Killer Case, Opening paragraph
On April 24, 2018, California authorities charged 72-year-old DeAngelo with eight counts of first-degree murder
Wikipedia: Atlanta Child Murders
Exemplified By Cases: Atlanta Murders of 1979 to 1981, Lead section, opening paragraphQuote, Exemplified By Cases: Atlanta Murders of 1979 to 1981, Lead section, opening paragraph
Over the two-year period, at least 28 African-American children, adolescents, and adults were killed.
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