Spree killer
Aspree killeris someone who commits a criminal act that involves two or moremurdersin a short time, often in multiple locations. There are different opinions about what durations of time a killing spree may take place in. TheUnited States Bureau of Justice Statisticshas spoken of "almost no time break between murders", but some academics consider that a killing spree may last weeks or months, e.g. the case ofAndrew Cunanan,who murdered five people over three months.
Definition
[edit]The general definition of spree murder is two or more murders committed by a person (or people) with no cooling-off period, in contrast toserial murder,where there is a period of time between killings.[1]The U.S.Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) has found the category to be of no real value to law enforcement because quantifying a "cooling-off period" is arbitrary. Serial killers commit murders in separate events, at different times.Mass murderersare defined by one incident, with no distinctive period between the murders.[1]
How to distinguish a spree killer from a mass murderer, or a serial killer, is subject to considerable debate, and the terms are not consistently applied even within the academic literature.
TheUnited States Bureau of Justice Statisticshas defined a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations with almost no time break between murders".[2][3]
TheEncyclopedia of Crime and Punishmentlists five different categories of spree killers and citesMark O. Bartonas an example of the second one.[4]He is also noted alongside mass murderers, such asPatrick Sherrill,in the respective entry about mass murder.[5]InThe Anatomy of Motive,John E. DouglascitesCharles StarkweatherandAndrew Cunanan(who murdered five people over three months) as examples of spree killers,[6]whileJack Levincalls Starkweather a mass murderer and Cunanan a serial killer.[7][8]
InControversial Issues in Criminology,Fuller and Hickey write that "[t]he element of time involved between murderous acts is primary in the differentiation of serial, mass, and spree murderers", later elaborating those spree killers "will engage in the killing acts for days or weeks" while the "methods of murder and types of victims vary".Andrew Cunananis given as an example of spree killing, whileCharles Whitmanis mentioned in connection with mass murder andJeffrey Dahmerwith serial killing.[9]
InSerial Murder,Ronald M. Holmes and StephenT. Holmes defines spree murder as "the killing of three or more people within a 30-day period" and add that killing sprees are "usually accompanied by the commission of another felony."[10]They citeCharles Starkweatherand theBeltway Snipersas examples of spree killers.[11]They defineserialmurder as "the killing of three or more people over a period of more than 30 days, with a significant cooling-off period between the killings."[12]Under this definition, Andrew Cunanan would be categorized as a serial killer and not a spree killer.
InSexual Homicide,Ressler, Burgess and Douglas gave more emphasis to killings being at more than one location, and less precision about the time span, saying that a single event can last a short or long time, citingChristopher Wilder's seven-week "murder event" or "killing spree".[13]
Douglas wrote that the identity of serial killers is generally unknown until they are caught, and a mass murderer's identity is learned only after they have committed the crime. The identity of the spree killer, on the other hand, usually becomes known by police while the spree is still in progress.[14][why?]
The termrampage killerhas also been used sometimes to describe spree killers,[15] especially when a single individual perpetrator:
A rampage involves the (attempted) killing of multiple persons at least partly in public space by a single physically present perpetrator using (potentially) deadly weapons in a single event without any cooling-off period.[16]
See also
[edit]- Active shooter
- Going postal
- Gun Violence Archive
- List of rampage killers
- Mass shooting
- Massacre
- Running amok
- Thrill killing
References
[edit]- ^abMorton, Robert J.; Hilts, Mark A., eds. (2008)."Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators".National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime,Federal Bureau of Investigation.p. 9.RetrievedJuly 20,2023.
- ^Zawitz, Marianne W., ed. (1988).Report to the Nation on Crime and Justice(PDF)(2nd ed.). Bureau of Justice Statistics. p. 4.Archived(PDF)from the original on August 7, 2021.RetrievedJuly 20,2023.
- ^Charalambous, Nick; Dillman, Meryl (December 17, 2006)."No evidence of spree killer yet, police say".The Anderson Independent-Mail.Anderson, South Carolina.Archived fromthe originalon December 30, 2008.RetrievedJuly 8,2008.
- ^Levinson, David (ed.):Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment, Vol. 4;Berkshire Publishing Group, 2002. p. 1565
- ^Levinson, p. 1038.
- ^Douglas, John E. & Olshaker, Mark:The Anatomy of Motive;Simon and Schuster, 1999.
- ^Levin, Jack & Fox, James Alan:Mass Murder: America's Growing Menace,Berkley Books,1991.
- ^Levin, Jack:Serial Killers and Sadistic Murderers,Prometheus Books, 2008. p. 49.
- ^Fuller, John R. & Hickey, Eric W.:Controversial Issues in Criminology;Allyn and Bacon, 1999. pp. 36.
- ^Holmes, R. M, & Holmes, S. T.:Serial Murder;SAGE Publications, 2010. pp. 35.
- ^Holmes, R. M, & Holmes, S. T.:Serial Murder;SAGE Publications, 2010. pp. 36.
- ^Holmes, R. M, & Holmes, S. T.:Serial Murder;SAGE Publications, 2010. pp. 6.
- ^Ressler, Robert K.; Burgess, Ann W.; Douglas, John E. (1988).Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives.Free Press.
- ^Douglas, p. 192.
- ^Sward, Susan (July 18, 1997)."Motive Mystery / Debate Over What Kind of Killer is at Work".SFGATE.
- ^Seeger, Thorsten (ed.)School Shootings: International Research, Case Studies, and Concepts for Prevention;Springer, 2012.
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