Below is a list of, what I think of as, some interesting facts about a bunch of different killers as well as the ‘job’ as a whole. Hope you enjoy…
1. A serial killer is someone who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with a cooling-off period between murders. The motive is usually based on psychological (often sexual) gratification, though the motives may also include anger, thrill, money, and attention seeking.
2. Many serial killers experienced sexually stressful events in childhood.
3. Jeffrey Dahmer pulled so many weird pranks in high school his classmates dubbed it “doing a Dahmer.”
He later went on to murder 17 young men and boys, cannibalise them, and store them in his apartment. Oh, what a prankster 👀
4. Strangulation and guns are the two most prevalent methods of murder.
5. Dr. Harold Shipman (1946–2004) is regarded as the most prolific serial killer in modern history, with over 250 murders ascribed to him. He was a British doctor who murdered his patients: the oldest was a 93-year-old woman and the youngest was a 41-year-old man. He hanged himself in his cell in 2004, a day before his 58th birthday.
6. Macedonian crime reporter, Vlado Taneski, who wrote stories about a serial killer actually turned out to the serial killer.
I do this for enjoyment and nothing more…
7. America’s first serial killer is considered to be Dr. H.H. Holmes, who confessed to 27 murders in the late 1890s. He claimed that he, “could not help being a murderer, no more than the poet can help the inspiration to sing.”
8. The U.S. had 20x more serial killers than the next most country, England.
As of 2013, America claimed 2320 serial killers compared to England’s 116.
9. The Pig Farmer Killer fashioned a dildo to the barrel of his .22 caliber revolver to act as a makeshift silencer to use on his victims. There we are then…
10. Former FBI Special Agent Robert K. Ressler (1937–2013) is the man credited with coining the term “serial killer” in 1971.
11. Many serial killers will keep “souvenirs” of their crimes. For example, when Ted Bundy was asked why he took Polaroids of his victims, he said, “when you work hard to do something, you don’t want to forget it.”
12. Americas most famous female serial killer, Aileen Wuornos, was an incredible artist who would draw pictures using a blue ball point pen. (Something I neglected to mention in my post about her. How could I not mention this!?)
13. Men constitute the overwhelming proportion of serial killers, at over 90%
14. In almost 15% of serial murder cases, the victims are chosen entirely at random.
15. Historians note that legends such as werewolves and vampires were inspired by medieval serial killers.
16. A Chicago band named Macabre has an entire catalogue of songs devoted to serial killers. The band calls their music “murder metal.”
I honestly think I’d rather be a victim of any of the killers I’ve mentioned so far than have to listen to a single minute of any of their songs, but its kinda cool I think 😊
17. Ted Bundy once saved a child from drowning. 🤷🏻♀️
18. Kansas serial killer, the BTK Killer, installed alarms as a part of his job. Many of his clients had booked the company to stop BTK from ever entering their homes, unaware that BTK himself was installing them.
19. Serial killer and cannibal Richard Chase only broke into houses that were unlocked. If they were locked, he thought it meant he was unwelcome but if they were not he saw it as an invitation to enter. Finally, I don’t feel insane for locking my door every time I come in!
20. Convicted rapist and murderer, Rodney Alcala won a TV Dating game in the 1970s.
Luckily the woman didn’t actually go on the date with him as she found him ‘creepy,’.
Perhaps, just a little bit…
21. Psychopaths do not feel guilt for their actions and they cannot feel empathy towards other people’s feelings. This is similar to a “sociopath,” but a true psychopath is very frightening and even dangerous. Ted Bundy was quoted saying, “I don’t feel guilty for anything. I feel sorry for people who feel guilt.”
22. The term “serial killer” was coined by FBI Special Agent Robert K. Ressler in 1971. The Netflix series “MINDHUNTER” is based on the true story of the early FBI agents who began to realise the nature of serial killers.
23. While drugs and alcohol do not turn people into serial killers, 70% of them have a history of substance abuse.
24. Ted Bundy underwent a psychological evaluation in the Utah State Prison. Since he had taken Psychology classes in college, Bundy knew exactly how to answer all of the questions to manipulate the results to make him seem completely normal. His psychologist, Dr. Carlisle, was so fascinated that he ended up writing two books on the minds of serial killers.
25. When studying the brains of psychopaths with an MRI, they tend to have a very thin amygdala. That is the part of the brain that is responsible for human emotion and stored memories of what you need to be afraid of. In a laboratory study, when the amygdala is removed from a rat’s brain, they will never run away. They’ll even climb on top of a cat.
26. Anyone who has been in love knows how addictive that uplifting, happy feeling can be. Well, the chemical in your brain that causes love is called “dopamine.” This chemical also causes those passionate feelings of lust, the urge to gamble, and motivation for success. It just so happens that serial killers and psychopaths have an overactive amount of dopamine going on in their brains. So they’re pretty much addicted to feeling that excited dopamine rush all the time. If life is just “OK”, and they’re they’re not feeling some kind of satisfaction from “winning” something, they find other ways to satisfy their addiction–like manipulating people into get what they want.
26. Charles Edmund Cullen, known as “The Angel of Death,” worked as a nurse in many hospitals. He had to keep switching jobs because he was regularly fired for “suspicious behaviour.” Suspicious, you say? He confessed to murdering 40 elderly patients in New Jersey. From the years 1984 to 2003, he killed his victims by poisoning his patients to death with un-prescribed medication. He stated that he wanted to relieve patients from suffering, much like an angel does. Experts who have listened to his post-conviction psychological exams believe he may have had more than 400 victims. Cullen, who may hold the deplorable title of most prolific killer in American history, is currently serving a life sentence.
27. At least 70% of serial killers had some sort of head injury when they were a child. There is usually damage to the prefrontal cortex, which involves planning and judgement. Combined with a thin amygdala, it’s very literally deadly.
28. The FBI has 3 categories of serial killers: organised, disorganised, and mixed. This helps them identify what sort of work and social life they may have outside of killing, and helps lead them to catching the killer. Organised serial killers have higher IQs, better social skills, and generally leave less evidence.
29. According to the FBI, there are between 35-50 active serial killers who just haven’t been caught yet.
30. The #1 career category that include psychopaths are CEO’s. Since they’re great at manipulation, they can move up the ladder as a chipper “yes man”, and their confidence can help them go far. Some of the other careers filled with psychopaths are lawyers, police officers, and surgeons.
Why So Serial? 