1. Offender Profiling
Are we all Crackers?

2. Offender Profiling The typical profiler seen as
“quintessential hero … pitted against our new and modern monster, the serial killer” (Oleson 1996)
It’s the new, sexy specialist job in forensic science.
But is its importance overrated?

3. Offender Profiling
Historically police and psychology have not had a good relationship.
Police (in particular CID) believe that only information that can be used easily in court is worth gathering.
Psychologists have not always been recognised by courts
Until recently, that is!

4. Criminal Profiling
1888 – Thomas Bond, a police surgeon created a detailed description of Jack the Ripper,
But the ripper was never apprehended.

5. Criminal Profiling
William Langer, (1942) a psychiatrist, produced a profile of Adolf Hitler, diagnosing his mental state and correctly predicting what would happen were he to be defeated – i.e. suicide.

6. The Mad Bomber of New York
George Metesky
Series of bombs in New York 1956
James Brussel was able to produce a psychological profile of the suspect
Google the name for full story
Accurate even to style of dress!

7. The Boston Strangler
Profiled as “two male schoolteachers living alone, one of whom was probably homosexual”
Albert DeSalvo – heterosexual construction worker living with his family

8. Criminal Profiling
So, one danger in profiling – possibility of “tunnel vision” of investigators.
Yorkshire Ripper – case in point

9. Offender Profiling Current Approaches
American
Incarcerated serial murderers (36) interviewed
Categorised into organised or disorganised
View crime scene for indicators

10. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - American
Basis of FBI Approach is:
crime scene and MO as indicators of individual pathology
compare with known offenders
may fit pattern

11. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - American
Organised and disorganised murderers
Obtained from interviews with serial murderers, e.g. Manson, bundy
Based on analysis of Crime scene, say whether offender fits any of the criteria, and produce profile
Can be used to detect, but also to predict and therefore prevent

12. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - American
Aims of American profiling approach are
Reduce scope of investigation
Allow some prediction of future offences
Provide a psychological evaluation of belongings found in the murderers possession, e.g. souvenirs from previous offences
Provide strategies for interviewing.

13. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - American
Known as “holistic” or “top-down” approach
Data from scene and from MO compared with previously known information
Mainly with murderers in USA, not so often with lesser crimes

14. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - British
British approach is less subjective
Called “bottom up” method, or “data-driven”,
Data is collected and analysed to produce definite, measured, specific associations between offences and offender characteristics.

15. Offender Profiling Current Approaches - British
Dominated by David Canter
Made his name with the “Railway Rapist” in 1985

16. David Canter
Traditionally, the only valuable clues at a crime scene were hard evidence, e.g.
blood,
semen
Fingerprints
Hair
etc.

17. David Canter
Profiling proposes that there are also less recognised clues—
the choice of victim,
the location,
the nature of the assault,
what is and isn't left behind,
what is and isn't said to the victim,
whether or not the victim is killed—
which also define the offender. The problem is to interpret these clues correctly.

18. David Canter
Over a period of four years, a series of sexual assaults and rapes, culminating in the murder of three women, had been committed in the London area.
The police had linked all these crimes to the same man but, despite extensive inquiries, had failed to make an arrest.

19. David Canter Canter went through each case in detail, looking at
the location,
time of day,
and the nature of the victim,
and drew up a profile of the likely suspect, including where he was likely to be living.

20. David Canter
As a result of this profile, the police were able to focus their investigation on John Duffy, a man who had previously ranked no higher than 1,505th on the list of possible suspects and, within a comparatively short period of time, had gathered enough evidence to convict.

21. Evaluation of Profiling
Undoubted potential if used properly by trained professionals
Some criticism is that it depends on over-reliance of “expert profilers” without the contribution of experienced police officers.

22. Evaluation of Profiling
Success rates?
1981 FBI report:
192 cases of profile generation, 88 arrests, of which 17% used the profile information.

23. Evaluation of Profiling
Success rates?
UK – Copson & Holloway – interviewed detectives.
184 cases involving profiling
Of these, 2.7% profiling led directly to identification of offender
16% where profiling had helped to solve

24. Useful or Not? Professional profilers vs detectives
Simulated detection of two cases, one sex, one murder

25. Useful or Not? Profilers produced loads of rich information,
More accurate than non-profilers
Profilers best with sex offence
Detectives best with murder

26. Useful or Not?
Conclusion is that productive liaison between psychologists and police is the way forward.