7-2 Project Two Submission

docx

School

Southern New Hampshire University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

340

Subject

Sociology

Date

Feb 20, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by AgentWillpowerTapir16

Criminological Theory Applied 1 Serial Murder in America: Case Study The following are two case studies that involve individuals who committed murder. Outlined will be a summary of their crime, the criminal act they committed, and the theories applied to the offender. An analysis will be done to understand why the offender committed the crime, how classical school of thought has influenced criminal justice practices, the criminal behavior in each study focusing on how the positivist school of thought has influence criminal justice practices, how critical and interactionist theories interpret social structures and influences professional practice specific to each case, and the similarities and difference between the two cases. Case A: Offender Number One Offender Number One is a white male who was adopted and grew up in a large urban area. He had a limited dating history and had no long-lasting relationships. He has no record of treatment for psychological disorders. He resides in his mother’s home, has limited education, and has had a few sporadic low-paying jobs. He has grown accustomed to using female prostitutes to satisfy his sexual urges. The sexual acts would either be done in his vehicle or at his mother’s residence when she was away. He has a history of being arrested for solicitation but has no charges of violent criminal behavior. At the age of thirty (30), he began killing female prostitutes. He killed a total of seventeen (17) women, all by strangulation. The women he killed ranged in age from twenty-one (21) and forty-one (41) years of age. He varied his methods of disposing of the victims' bodies. He buried them; placed them under discarded items (e.g. a mattress); placed them in bodies of water; and hid them in wooded areas. He dismembered three, then scattered their remains in locations in and around the metropolitan area where he lived.

Criminological Theory Applied Classical school of thought is the idea that people have free will in their decision-making process and that consequences of their actions may deter them from committing a criminal act. In this study, we must consider his decision-making process based on learned behavior or biological. The offender stated, “his actions were influenced by several factors, among them family instability, the death of his father two years prior to the first murder, social isolation, and a deep resentment toward young women.” The offender admitted that he had consensual intercourse with all the women prior to killing them. “He could not articulate any specific reasons for the murders but did profess an intense interest in watching some of them die.” The offender admitted that his killings had become “a very problematic hobby” for him. When we look at the classic school of thought for Offender Number One, we would assume he was aware of the criminal acts he committed, understood the consequences, and punishment should fit the crime. But we should also consider his mental stability and the underlying issues that may have driven the offender to commit these crimes. The positivist school of thought is, “that human behavior is determined by forces beyond individual control and that it is possible to measure those forces. Unlike classical criminologists, who claim that people rationally choose to commit crime, positivist criminologists view criminal behavior as stemming from biological, psychological, and social factors,” (Adler, 2021). In this case, Offender Number One has shown psychological and sociological issues with his behavior. The offender stated, “He could not articulate any specific reasons for the murders but did profess an intense interest in watching some of them die.” This rationale is not normal behavior and would indicate that the offender has psychological issues. The offender’s choice in victim’s was that of a profession looked down upon in society. The sociological issues that arise from 2

Criminological Theory Applied prostitution and the offender’s choice to victimize that group, is another example of his psychological and sociological issues. The interactionist school of criminology is based on criminal behavior learned through social interactions with others. The offender in this case had a limited social life with just a few friends. The offenders’ social interactions appeared to be minimal. The offender’s choice of victims was a group of individuals that are viewed by society in a negative manner. Due to this, society would have less interest in this case, and it would not be an importance due to society’s view of prostitution. Labeling theory has a strong influence in this case due to the criminal acts committed, the victim’s profession, and the social economics of the offender. This would most likely be viewed as a crime that would only happen to the lower-class individual and only happen in a lower income community. Case B: Offender Number Five Offender Number Five is a black male who grew up in an unstable family, including his mother’s divorce and remarriage. The offender’s adult supervision would be his grandmother, but after her passing he was on a downhill spiral. As a youth, the offender got involved with street gangs that committed property crimes and assaults. The offender was arrested numerous times as a juvenile for burglary, assault, shoplifting, auto theft, trespassing, sex crimes, vandalism, disorderly conduct, and robbery. As a teenager, he committed his first murder when he and three accomplices suffocated an elderly white woman in her home. The offender was charged as an adult and was convicted and sentenced to twenty-five (25) years in prison. Upon his release, the offender immediately started killing again, beginning with elderly white women. “He bound her wrists and ankles with duct tape, sexually assaulted her with a stick, and left her for dead. Upon returning several minutes later and realizing that she was still 3

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help

Criminological Theory Applied alive, he "finished her" by stabbing her with a ballpoint pen six times, then beating and choking her. She died from manual and ligature strangulation and suffered fractures to her skull and several vertebrae.” Several days after this incident, the offender beat and killed a white male. During this same time frame, he repeatedly raped and beat another white woman, who survived the incident. When we look at the classical school of thought, the idea is that the offender in this study had free will in their decision-making process and that he understood the consequences of his actions. The offender, after killing his first victim, spent twenty-five (25) years in prison. He had the ability and time to understand his actions and the consequences he suffered due to the decision he made. The classic school of thought does not take into consideration how the act of murder in this study had a strong sexual reaction to the offender, which was a factor in him committing the criminal acts. These factors may have influenced the offender’s ability to understand that the consequences in his actions did not outweigh the sexual reaction he would achieve by committing the criminal acts. When we look at the positivist school of thought in this study, the offender’s behavior was driven by sexual gratification and lack of compassion for his victims. The offender had led a life of crime and had no remorse or compassion for his victims. “Based in part on his criminal history and violent behavior, he scored 33 on the PCL-R, surpassing the diagnostic criteria for psychopathy.” The offender clearly showed psychological and sociological issues. This theory could be applied to this study but should not ignore that social influences the offender had at an early age within the street gang he interacted with. This case study shows how social interactions, along with psychological issues, can help in the development of creating a criminal 4

Criminological Theory Applied mindset that has no remorse for their actions and does not relate to the human side of how criminal acts affect their victims. The social structures in this case study start with the offender’s upbringing in a broken home that involved no positive role models. His only role model was his grandmother, but her passing would have strong negative effects on the offender. His social interactions within the street gang he interacts with would lead to negative influences and drive him to commit criminal acts. Once the offender is incarcerated, he would spend a large portion of his early teenage and adult hood in prison. The social interactions within prison would have anything but a positive influence on his life and guide him to make appropriate choices in life. In this study, choice theory, life course theory, positivist theory, and social control theory are all theories that had an affect on this offender. The offender in this study had a negative social structure early in his life. He delt with a mother who was not a positive role model, and a divorce and remarriage by his mother that appeared to have a negative impact on his childhood. He would later get involved in a street gang that would lead him into committing criminal acts that eventually put him in prison. The offender had a choice and chose to follow his accomplices in committing the first murder, this would fall under choice theory. Life course theory, the offender’s upbringing led him into a mindset that affected his decision-making process and drove him into the gang lifestyle. The offender’s lack of compassion or remorse would lead one to believe that positivist theory had a place in this offender. The offenders’ social interactions with the street gang and influences within the prison system would lead us to believe that social control theory also had an influence on this offender. In Case A, the theories analyzed in that study were choice theory, life course theory, social control theory, and classic theory. In Case B, the theories analyzed in that study were 5

Criminological Theory Applied choice theory, life course theory, positivist theory, and social learning theory. These two studies were based on similar and different theories. Both offenders appeared to be driven by sexual gratification as their basis for committing their crimes, their underlying reasoning of how they got to that point in their lives appears greatly different. In Case A the offender appears to have a relationship with his mother, unlike in Case B. Case A has limited to no social interactions, while in Case B the offender has social interactions that have influenced his decision-making process. In Case A, the offender’s choice of victims as a group was looked down upon by society. In Case B, the offenders’ victims were more at random and may have been looked upon more prominently by society. In both cases, both offenders had a lack of compassion or remorse for their actions and the victims they chose. In both case studies, the offenders committed criminal acts that involved different methods but achieved the same goal of sexual gratification. The classic school of thought has played in both studies but in different ways. They both had the free will to think, they both came from broken homes, but they differ on their social interaction and how outside influences affected their behaviors. Both studies showed how positivist theory was displayed by their psychological and sociological issues. By understanding criminology and the theories developed behind criminal behavior, will help lead to developing programs and deterrents to prevent criminal acts. In both studies reviewed, programs reaching out in early child development from broken homes may have helped both offenders prior to them becoming criminal deviants. Early intervention in most cases can result in better decision-making by offenders prior to social interactions influencing their behaviors. 6

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help

Criminological Theory Applied References Adler, F., Mueller, G. O. W., & Laufer, W. S. (2021). Criminology . McGraw-Hill Companies. Criminology.com. (2021b, June 22). Understanding Criminology Theories - Criminology . Criminology. https://www.criminology.com/understanding-criminology-theories/ 7

7-2 Project Two Submission

Related Documents