MENTAL ILLNESS in SERIAL KILLERS: The Lovely Bones and My Friend Dahmer

Students in my Good Books class last week read Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones or Derf Backderf's My Friend Dahmer. Reading their postings led me to do a lot of research about mental illness in serial killers.

According to the FBI's "Serial Murder: Pathways to Investigation" report, myths about serial killers (that "all serial murderers are white males who are evil geniuses, and travel around the country killing multiple victims for sexual gratification") perpetuate stereotypes and can interfere with effective investigations (7) . A study of 480 cases of serial murder (from 1960-2006) involving 92 male offenders resulted in the following information: over 75% of victims were female and of those, about half were between the ages of 14 and 29. Before being arrested, about one-third of offenders had been diagnosed with a psychiatric illness, with personality disorder and psychotic disorder as the most common - 42.9% and 19% respectively(16). Most offenders knew their victims and used a ruse or con approach (16). Over 80% of the offenders were motivated by sex (18).

SERIAL MURDERS: PATHWAYS FOR INVESTIGATIONS

Jeffrey Dahmer had not been diagnosed with a mental illness before arrest and targeted male victims. He did use a ruse or con approach and was motivated by sex.

George Harvey has not been diagnosed with a mental illness (not arrested) and targeted female victims. He also used a ruse or con approach and was motivated by sex.

While Dahmer was apprehended, tried, convicted, and sent to prison, Harvey eluded apprehension and disappeared.

The Lovely Bones was turned into a film in 2009.

My Friend Dahmer premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival last month and is scheduled to be released in theaters in fall 2017.

I'll be watching.

Interview with Backderf about film