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Revision about minors trafficked for exploitation in criminal activities. Forensic Science Club

By 5 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “‘Little Rascals’ or Not-So-
Ideal Victims: Dealing with minors trafficked for exploitation in criminal activities in the Netherlands”, by Breuil, B. O. (2021), in which the author revises the problem of minor trafficked in criminal activities in the Netherlands’ context.

We know that one of the great scourges in our society that still exists today is human trafficking. The best known is trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation, which drags millions and millions of people to cruel destinations, from which it is very difficult to get out.

However, there is also trafficking for criminal purposes, where the majority of victims are, once
again, the most vulnerable people: children and teenagers.

In the Netherlands, the context of this study, the defended idea is that the interests of minors should
be guaranteed in these types of cases, and that victims of trafficking should not be held responsible
or punished for the crimes they were forced to commit. However, society often regards these
punishments as deserved and fair.

So are front-line actors (police and authority figures) prepared to identify and deal with these cases?

This topic is discussed in the research carried out by the author in 2015 and 2016, about children
and young people exploited in criminal activities in the Netherlands.

At the time it was carried out, only five cases had been successfully tried in court. And although the
visibility of the phenomenon has increased in recent years, it is unfortunately a form of trafficking
that remains under-researched, in the Netherlands but also in the rest of the world.

The objective of the article is, therefore, to contribute to filling this gap, providing ideas that may be
relevant to public institutions for child protection.

The research revolves around two questions: first, what knowledge exists about the phenomenon, its
definition, characteristics, the profiles of the perpetrators and victims, and so on. On the other hand,
some cases were investigated in order to explore the different manifestations of the phenomenon.

One of the problems posed by this criminal typology is the reduced amount of literature on it. Based
on the limited data that exist, the most common crimes in this context would be: pickpocketing,
forced begging, robbery, shoplifting, illegal street vending or drug trafficking. Regarding the first four activities, there is a strong emphasis on research on Roma children, from Central and Eastern Europe, as the main victims of this exploitation.

However, the author mentions that we need to be skeptical about the “ethnitization” of the
phenomenon. The most important thing in the victimization of minors for these crimes are the
socioeconomic disadvantages of their families, living in segregated, impoverished and crime-prone
neighborhoods, with sick, unemployed parents, that sometimes can be alcohol or drug users. There
is no reason for children of other ethnic groups living in similar circumstances to not be victimized:
it is not about race, but about disadvantaged living conditions. This also has negative consequences on parents and the Roma culture, who are perceived as perpetrators.

A very interesting aspect that should be considered is that the assumptions about how the victims
should be, dissuade the authorities from granting the status of victim to minors who do not fit this
ideal, since there is a belief that these minors arrived with their families to the host country to enjoy
its social benefits, being this an assumption that can impair their ability to see them as victims.
In other words, although they may be identified as victims of trafficking for criminal purposes, this
does not guarantee that they are actually recognized as such, due to the stigmatization they suffer.

There is also a cognitive bias that makes it easier to consider women victims than men. Some of the
authority figures interviewed for the author’s study observed that the possibility of girls being
trafficked is more obvious.

On the other hand, it is difficult for cases of exploitation of minors for criminal activities to reach
the courts. According to the investigation, it is because at some point in the investigation of the
crime, the idea is lost, it is no longer considered trafficking.

Sometimes it happens because professionals prefer not to label the case as human trafficking in an
official way, in order to be as objective as possible and interpret the facts from a neutral role.

At other times, it is considered that labeling a case as human trafficking might not be in the best
interest and well-being of the child. This follows the argument that, in some cases, legally qualifying facts as a consequence of trafficking avoids addressing the structural causes (political, economic and social), to the benefit of punitive criminal justice reactions.

In other words, prosecuting and imprisoning parents for trafficking their children can have serious
consequences for children and worsen their living conditions. An intervention aimed at protecting
them, supporting parents in raising children, improving their living conditions, would produce
better results.

These combined efforts could pave the way for better identification of the trafficking of minors for
exploitation in criminal activities, and ensure that children’s rights are respected, including the right
to not be punished for crimes they were forced to commit. It would also be necessary to address
economic, social, cultural and gender inequalities, while keeping the best interests of children in the
spotlight.

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Aggressive defiant behavior in adults with intellectual disabilities: are there any factors influencing its development? Forensic Science Blog

By 4 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Blog, this week we present the paper “Aggressive challenging behavior in adults with intellectual disability: An electronic register-based cohort study of clinical outcome and service use”, by Smith, J.; Baksh, R. A.; Hassiotis, A.; Sheehan, R.; Ke, C.; Wong, T. L. B.; Strydom, A. and PETAL investigators (2022), in which authors compiled information about patients with intellectual disability to know better how aggressive defiant behavior is presented in this population.

 Intellectual disability is a lifelong condition, characterized by impaired cognition, language and social skills, affecting approximately 1% of the world’s population.

Challenging behavior, which includes self-injury, aggression, threats, physical violence, and sexually aggressive behavior, among others, is estimated to have a prevalence of approximately 10% among adults with intellectual disability, and tends to persist over time, with a rate of approximately 25% at 2 years. 

Aggressive challenging behavior is a common reason for referral of adults with intellectual disabilities to health services, and can have serious consequences, from family and caregiver stress to contact of the person with the disability with the criminal justice system.

Some previous studies that have explored factors associated with aggressive challenging behavior in adults with intellectual disabilities have shown that male gender, some comorbid autism spectrum disorder, communication problems, and disability aggravation are associated with higher levels of aggression. 

The authors’ aim in this study was to update the available information on factors associated with aggressive challenging behavior in adults with intellectual disabilities.

To this end, data from the South London and Maudsley (SLaM) National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust in the United Kingdom were considered. SLaM is one of the largest providers of mental health care in the European area. 

Data from patients older than 18 years old were considered. These had to have had an episode of outpatient care that included direct contact with a team specializing in mental health, more specifically, intellectual disability, all between January 2014 and December 2018. There were a total of 1,225 patient records analyzed.

Some of the most interesting insights the study yielded was that episodes with high frequency of aggression were of longer duration than those episodes with lower frequency (over 2 years vs. approximately 4 months). 

Younger adults, mean age approximately 31 years, had a higher frequency of episodes of aggression. 

Mood instability, irritability, and agitation were strongly associated with a higher occurrence of aggressive defiant behaviors. 

Nearly 60% of the patients had at some point a diagnosis of pervasive developmental disorder.

Authors found that aggressive challenging behavior occurs in the majority of clinical care episodes requiring the involvement of a specialized intellectual disability health care team.

It appears that, as discussed above, being younger, having a diagnosis of pervasive developmental disorder, and mood instability and irritability all play a role and are risk factors. 

Other risk factors included the presence of a common mental disorder, personality disorders, and agitation during aggressive episodes. 

The amount of social and health care provided, although very important for families, did not really prove to be a risk factor.

A very important point made by the authors, is that mental illness or mental health problems are often not diagnosed in people with disabilities because of atypical behavioral manifestations that already exist. That is, some behaviors that may inform a mental disorder are taken to be consequences of intellectual disability. Therefore, there is a high level of diagnostic uncertainty. 

In a recent study based on a group of 142 people with intellectual disabilities, it was shown that almost one third of the participants had some type of undiagnosed mental health problem, with major depressive and anxiety disorders being the most common. 

Authors point out the importance of devoting efforts and resources to research on people with intellectual disabilities, first, to understand the health condition with which they live and, second, to help bring their quality of life as close as possible to that of those with typical intellectual development. 

In addition, understanding why aggressive behaviors arise would help not only these individuals but also their environment and interpersonal relationships, which would gain stability and quality.

It is important to consider aggressive challenging behavior as a public health problem that needs more research and clinical investment, as well as more effective forms of individualized intervention and support.

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Women in prison and mental health: which are their experiences? Forensic Science Club

By 5 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Women’s experiences of prison-based mental healthcare: a systematic review of qualitative literature”, by Bright, A. M.; Higgins, A. and Grealish, A. (2022), in which authors carry out an investigation on recent and existing literature about women in prison and their experiences regarding mental health to know if the treatments and therapies they follow are effective. 

Since 2000, the number of women in prison has increased by around 53% worldwide, with an approximate population of 714,000 inmates. 

Internationally, there are increasing trends, although there are some exceptions. For example, in the United States a 700% increase in women in prison since 1980 has been seen, but Australia saw a 10% reduction between 2019 and 202. 

On the other hand, in the United Kingdom, an estimated 73% of women serving sentences of 12 months or less are reconvicted for another offense within a year of release. 

This is consistent with the position of many experts on short prison sentences: they are less effective in achieving rehabilitation than other sentences, such as community work.

Also in the UK, women experience particular difficulties once they enter prison as there are only 12 women’s facilities, so they are often forced to be a long way from their family and loved ones. 

Considering all this, it is not surprising for authors that the percentage of women with mental health problems is so high in the prison context: approximately 80% suffer from them. 

Women in prison are 5 times more likely to experience mental health problems than women in the general population. The most prevalent conditions are substance abuse (30-60%), alcohol addiction (10-24%), post-traumatic stress disorder (21.1%) and major depression (3.9-14.1%).

In addition, women in prison are up to 20 times more likely to commit suicide and, within one year of release, 36 times more likely to commit suicide compared to the rest of the population. 

In recent years, fortunately, there has been an increased demand for mental health care for women in prisons, calling for the revision of existing policies and services to meet the needs of women in this context. 

Authors aimed, in this study, to review existing literature on women serving custodial sentences in prison in order to identify their mental health conditions and to understand their experiences more deeply. They used a total of 7 studies, as recent as possible.

Authors obtained interesting conclusions, such as that women in prison are more likely to participate in mental health treatment programs compared to men in prison; however, they are less likely to be offered this possibility, or, in other words, to have access to treatment programs.

On the other hand, and taking into account that a more or less stable mental health is fundamental for their reintegration, rehabilitation once released from prison is seen as an elusive goal. 

Recovery in this context is a concept in which many factors are involved, but, in essence, it refers to people achieving a new meaning, a new purpose for their lives. 

In a 2011 study by Leamy and colleagues, 5 essential factors for recovery were identified: connection, hope, identity, meaningful role, and empowerment. It is therefore vital that women are empowered, for example, to be able to manage their own mental health while in prison and, thus, contribute to their recovery and rehabilitation. This can -and should- be supported by strength and skills development activities, and also by increasing self-esteem and self-efficacy. 

As a result of being in prison, a person loses the fundamental right to freedom; however, sometimes they also lose the right to privacy. In 5 of the 7 studies in the article, it appears that some prison workers were aware of requests from inmates for psychological treatment, where inmates talked about why they were requesting this care. This, of course, negatively affected the women’s mental well-being.

On the other hand, considering that female inmates are a particularly vulnerable population, it is of concern that in most studies they mentioned having difficulties with prison staff. They reported that these people seemed insensitive to their needs, contributing to the deterioration of the psychological well-being of the women in the center. 

Authors believe that providing mental health education to prison staff can help improve their understanding of how mental health problems manifest themselves and their specific vulnerabilities. It would also help them develop their empathy for women prisoners. 

In addition, there is a clear need to devote more effort and resources to research in this context, both to improve policy and service delivery, and to enable the voices of women in prison to be heard.

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Risk factors for the criminal career of sexual offenders compared to other type of offenders. Forensic Science Club

By 4 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Non-intimate Relationships and Psychopathic Interpersonal and Affective Deficits as Risk Factors for Criminal Career: a Comparison Between Sex Offenders and Other Offenders”, by Ferretti, F.; Pozza, A.; Carabellese, F.; Schimmenti, A.; Santoro, G.; Mandarelli, G.; Gualtieri, G.; Carabellese, F.; Catanesi, R. and Coluccia, A. (2021), in which authors carry out a study to know how the non-intimate relationships and psychopathic interpersonal an affective deficits can work as risk factors that affect the criminal career of sexual offenders, comparing them to other offenders.

Since the beginning of Criminology, the criminals’ personal history, the development pattern of their careers and the risk factors that lead them to these destinations have always been considered a topic of great interest.

For example, the relationship between the traumatic experiences of victims of sexual abuse and the emergence of dysfunctional sexual behaviors was investigated by numerous experts, leading to the conclusion that other underlying causes of sexual crimes should be sought, because the victim/aggressor paradigm is too reductionist.

Attention has also been paid to psychiatric disorders, which play an important role; in the case of sex offenders especially schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and mood and personality disorders.

On the other hand, psychopathy appears, whose relevance in criminal behavior and violent behavior is widely recognized in the literature. It is generally assessed using the Revised Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R), which covers the factors of interpersonal and affective deficits and antisocial behavior.

The association of psychopathy with sexual crimes is not new. In a study mentioned in the article, it was found that the presence of psychopathy in sexual offenders constitutes a predictive factor of criminal recidivism in this but also other types of crimes.

Other studies have shown that the relational failures of caregivers and attachment figures, can lead the child to experience difficulties in their interpersonal self-regulation. These difficulties can constitute a risk for adults by promoting aggressive behaviors, difficulties in emotional regulation and sexual problems, as can be found in many cases of psychopathy, sadism and paraphilias.

As we can see, there is such a variety of ideas that it is difficult to accurately identify the risk factors that can affect the dysfunctional sexual behavior of sex offenders.

The objective of this study was to explore the relevance of life events in the criminal outcome, comparing sexual offenders with other types of offenders. Experiences related to violence problems, antisocial behaviors, personal relationship problems, substance use, traumatic experiences and parenting styles were studied.

A total of 88 sex offenders and 102 people serving sentences for other types of crimes participated.

Among sex offenders, most of the inmates (76%) served time for child abuse.

In the category of other offenders, were convicts serving time for murder, assault, crimes against property and against the state, but not sexual crimes.

A set of items from the HCR-20 V3 scale was used to evaluate risk factors.

Non-sexual offenders were found to be more likely to have a history of violence and antisocial behavior problems in adolescence and adulthood, along with substance abuse problems. Only one risk factor, the absence of problems in non-intimate relationships, differentiates the criminal career of non-sexual offenders and sexual offenders.

These non-intimate relationships are defined as bonds with family members, friends, or acquaintances, which do not involve any type of sexual dimension. Social isolation, emotional distance, instability, conflict, manipulation of others, inappropriate sexualization, and violence in non-intimate relationships are indicators to consider.

Compared with the group of non-sexual offenders, sexual offenders showed higher levels of interpersonal and affective psychopathic deficits, and lower levels of antisocial behaviors.

With this study the importance of poor non-intimate relationships in predicting the criminal career of sex offenders is confirmed. Above all, inappropriate sexualization, violence and the escalation of problems are important in this context.

Authors consider that treatment programs for sex offenders should be aimed at preventing recidivism, and therefore should address these deficits in non-intimate relationships, and target psychopathic traits, specifically interpersonal and affective traits. For example, through cognitive behavioral therapy, which has been shown to be an effective treatment for psychopathic traits.

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General characteristics of serial murders in nursing homes and hospitals. Forensic Science Club

By 4 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Serial murder in medical clinics and care homes”, by Beine, K. H. (2022), in which the author compiles information about serial murders in nursing homes and hospitals carried out by nurses in the Germany, Austria and Switzerland context. 

We have seen in recent years a number of murders in clinics and nursing homes coming to light in courts around the world. 

Due to the darkness and lack of knowledge surrounding these types of crimes, we should take a look at the trials for the cases already uncovered and see if they yield clues to help in the prevention of the phenomenon, avoiding future cases. 

In addition, early identification, by co-workers, of those at risk of committing these crimes is crucial for patient safety. However, it appears that this detection is often blocked by the fact that colleagues and managers consider it “impossible” for such behavior to take place in their institutions.

In German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), a total of 12 such serial murders have been prosecuted. Worldwide, 57 have been documented. 

This study was limited to murders committed in Germany, Austria and Switzerland until February 2022. The author examined victim characteristics, crime scenes, types of murder, perpetrators and their motivations, among other points of interest. 

There were a total of 205 confirmed victims ranging in age from 31 to 96 years. 

In some cases of homicides in residences and hospitals it is not possible to confirm that some victims were murdered. This happens because there are long periods of time between the crime and the investigation. Therefore, it is possible that the actual number of victims is much higher. 

Only in a few cases the victims were in a process of irreversible death. On the other hand, there were others who were recovering and were even about to be discharged. 

In 8 crime scenes, important negligent handling of drugs was discovered. In most cases drugs considered lethal agents were used, such as insulin, sedatives and muscle relaxants, anesthetics, antiarrhythmics or potassium chloride, among others.

It is important to know that post-mortem examinations were not performed thoroughly or competently at these crime scenes, so it is possible that the reckless use of drugs occurred more frequently than could be proven. 

In addition, in several cases extensive bruising and visible puncture marks went overlooked. 

In all serial murders it was clear that co-workers had noticed strange behavior on the part of the accused. This behavior was even reported to bosses and managers.

The 17 perpetrators convicted in the 12 cases were 53% women. The remaining 47% were men. Their average age was between 33 and 34 years. All of them were nursing professionals. Most of them lived alone and 5 of them were prohibited from practicing their profession.

In terms of psychological characteristics, they were introverted persons, with a development of distant and cold interpersonal relationships, a reserved and tense personality, existence of denigrating comments and harsh language, as well as aggressive outbursts. 

Murderers were found to have higher than average insecurity and narcissistic personality traits. They perceived insecurity as a weakness incompatible with their image and, therefore, concealed and repressed it. 

In all cases there was no single determining motive for committing the crime, but rather unique combinations. For example: the quest for power, wanting attention from others or a supposed compassion for the victims. 

Due to the complexity of these types of cases, a thorough investigation is required to increase the effectiveness of prevention. 

In addition, there is a need for more reciprocal attention among coworkers, detailed information about each patient, teamwork and good communication.

Efforts to improve prevention efforts are imperative precisely because we know so little about the dark undercurrents of homicides in hospitals and nursing homes. 

In short, the author urgently calls for experts in the mind of the killer to get to work to curb the spread of this criminal phenomenon.

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The closer, the better: do criminals choose the location of their crimes based on their routine? Forensic Science Club

By 4 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Relationships Between Offenders’ Crime Locations and Different Prior Activity Locations as Recorded in Police Data”, by Curtis-Ham, S.; Bernasco, W.; Medvedev, O. N. and Polaschek, D. L. L. (2022), in which authors carry out an exhaustive study to know more about the patterns of geographical choice of criminals, to discover whether a relationship between them and the offenders’ routines exist. 

We know from routine activity theory and crime pattern theory that crimes occur when opportunity (that is, the presence of a suitable and available target) overlaps with offenders’ known locations through their routinary noncriminal activities, such as where they live, work, or socialize with family or friends.

Recent theoretical development suggests that some types of activity locations are more important than others for offenders’ crime location choices. Understanding which they are more likely to choose to commit their crimes has very important implications for crime prevention and investigation. It can help identify high-risk locations and inform the most appropriate risk management strategies. It can also help in geographic profiling for crime investigation. 

But, despite the practical importance of being able to predict, at an individual level, where a person will commit a crime, there is little research that empirically explores the extent to which various types of activity locations differ from one another in their influence on crime. 

Studies to date have only compared a limited subset of locations (e.g., the offender’s home, homes of family members, or locations of prior offenses). This study leverages a large national dataset of widely disparate locations pertaining to offenders’ pre-crime activities recorded in a police database in a previously unresearched context (New Zealand). 

Drawing on environmental psychology, crime pattern theory emphasizes the role of people’s routine activities in generating awareness of criminal opportunities. 

First, offenders might identify criminal opportunities more easily and more frequently near their places of activity, called nodes. Qualitative studies have confirmed that home, work, and other places of non-criminal activity have the potential to generate crime opportunity awareness. Recent quantitative studies have estimated the greater likelihood of offenders committing crimes near their homes, the homes of close relatives, and the locations of previous offenses, compared to other locations.

On the other hand, the role of routine activities in generating awareness of criminal opportunities means that the probability of offending tends to be highest near activity nodes and decreases with distance. This pattern of decreasing distance reflects that people are more familiar with areas closer than farther away from their activity locations, and familiarity is an important factor in the choice of crime location. 

All this also reflects the principle of least effort: in theory, people travel the shortest distance necessary to find the opportunity to commit a crime. 

The main objective of the article is to expand the understanding of how all these associations happen in reality. To do this, data on crimes and nodes of offender activity were collected from the National Intelligence Application (NIA), a New Zealand Police database. The offenses included were all residential and non-residential burglaries, commercial and personal burglaries, and extra-familial sexual offenses committed between 2009 and 2018. In addition, in all of these, an offender was identified with sufficient evidence to proceed against him/her. 

The results obtained revealed that almost all nodes were significantly and positively associated with the choice of crime location. 

Consistent with expectations based on crime pattern theory, crime was almost always more likely in the surroundings of activity nodes and decreased with distance. Crime near home showed the strongest associations, followed by immediate family homes. This information is especially relevant and novel for nonresidential burglary and extrafamilial sexual offenses.

In addition, it appears that individuals are more likely to offend near immediate family homes versus more distant relatives’ and intimate partners’. 

These findings, the authors note, are interesting because they may help to identify more accurately who is more likely to have committed a crime in a particular location, given the nature of the crime.

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Characteristics of sexual homicidals of children and teenagers: brief revision. Forensic Science Club

By 6 Mins Read

Friends of Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Characteristics of Sexual Homicide Offenders Focusing on Child Victims: a Review of the Literature”, by Page, J.; Tzani-Pepelasi, K. and Gavin, H. (2022), in which authors carry out a revision of existing literature about criminal profiles of sexual murderers, focusing specifically, in those cases where children or young teenagers are the victims.

Sexual homicide has become increasingly popular in recent years from the point of view of scientific research, especially those in which the victims are children.

Although sexual homicide is a rare phenomenon, representing only 1-4% of homicides recorded in North America and the United Kingdom in recent years, the public opinion considers these crimes as the most abhorrent, and tends to give them much more prominence. 

When the victim is a child, it also attracts intense levels of media attention, and the public scrutiny of investigating police forces and the pressure to make an arrest quickly are severe. 

However, there have been problems in defining sexual homicide, which has made it difficult to classify these crimes. Most of the studies reviewed in this article have used the FBI definition, which considers a sexual homicide one in which, at the crime scene there is: “victim’s clothing or lack of clothing, exposure of the victim’s sexual parts, sexual position of the victim, insertion of foreign objects into the victim’s body cavities, and/or evidence of sexual intercourse.” 

However, this definition may be a bit simple. In 2015, Chan expanded the concept by including criteria that may not be available at the crime scene, such as the offender’s confession or the offender’s personal effects, broadening the scope of what may qualify as sexually motivated homicide. 

The main objective of this study was to review the existing literature on sexual homicides and compare the findings with child sexual homicides to see if there are similarities. For this purpose, databases and online libraries were used, where relevant studies were found for review, reaching a total of 72. 

In 2002, Beauregard and Proulx developed a model of sexual homicides that suggested two types of modus operandi: sadistic and irate, then expanded this model to include the third type: opportunistic. 

The sadist had a tendency to premeditate murder, mutilation, humiliation and hiding the body. He had an anxious personality, with traits of an avoidant, dependent and schizoid personality, as well as some sexual deviance and hypersexuality. In addition, they were more likely to have low self-esteem. Their modus operandi of the crime would be characterized by the subject’s deviant sexual fantasies. 

Sadistic behaviors at the crime scene would include strangulation, insertion of foreign objects, mutilation, and use of restraints on the victim, which could demonstrate the offender’s sadistic sexual fantasies. 

The irate offender does not plan the crime, but is more likely to leave the body at the scene and experience loneliness prior to the murder. They have dramatic personality traits, including narcissistic and dependent personality traits, an antisocial lifestyle, and their modus operandi is based on their desire for revenge against people they believe are responsible for their problems, including high levels of anger, impulsivity, and extreme violence. Because of the latter, murder may occur, even though the sexual circumstances may have been consensual at first. 

The opportunist has a dramatic personality profile as well, including traits of narcissistic and antisocial personality disorder. They would have no problems in their life, but would be sexually dissatisfied. Their modus operandi would be characterized by their need for sexual gratification and the belief that other people exist only to satisfy their needs. Sexual assault is often a crime of opportunity, for example, the primary crime may have been a robbery and then a sexual assault occurred as a result of the victim’s availability. 

What about this type of crime regarding children? These same authors set out their own model in 2019, following a review of the existing literature, on 72 cases of sexual homicides committed in France. 

The first of the categories is that of the “intentional/prepubescent” killer (20.9%), with mostly male victims and of young age (9 years old). The offenders would be familiar with the crime scene and would attack their victims inside a residence. Most of them penetrated and sexually touched the victims and moved the body after death. This type of offender was the most likely to consume drugs or alcohol prior to committing the homicide. 

On the other hand, there was the “unintentional/pre-teen” type (11.1%), with mostly male victims. They targeted unknown victims (75%) and most were killed by strangulation, but were not sexually penetrated.

The most common group was “intentional/pre-teen” (22.2%). Male victims were also predominant. These offenders were prone to drug use prior to the crime. Sexual penetration was always performed and humiliation occurred frequently. In addition, the victims were also beaten assiduously. They did not attempt to hide the body and usually buried it partially. 

The “unintentional/pre-teen” aggressor (11.1%) was one of the least common and was characterized by the exclusivity of female victims, as well as choosing them because of their young age (10 years or younger). Most of the victims were unknown girls (75%). Sexual penetration was always practiced, they rarely moved the victim’s body and did not try to hide it. 

The “intentional/adolescent” type (16.7%) targeted victims approximately 12 years of age. They practiced sexual penetration and strangulation, moved the victim’s body after the crime, appeared to avoid social contact with others, and were the most likely to exhibit sadistic sexual behaviors at the scene. 

Finally, there is the “indiscriminate/adolescent” group (18.1%) that was characterized by criminality and prior history. The majority of victims were females of approximately 14 years of age, usually unknown.

This proposed model is quite good, as it mentions the age of the victims, behaviors at the crime scene, and provides approximate characteristics of the offender that the police could use in the early stages of an investigation. However, it could be expanded to include more details about previous criminal history or geographic data regarding the victims and the offender, which would strengthen the model and make it a much more useful investigative tool. 

If you want to know more about the criminal mind, criminal profiling, and forensic science, don’t miss our Master of Science in Criminal Profiling or our Master of Science in Anti-Fraud Behavioral Analysis, 100% online programs that can be taken in Spanish or English. Ask us about our grants!

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Associations between the Dark Tetrad and the fascination with fires. Club de Ciencias Forenses

By 4 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Bringing Light into the Dark: Associations of Fire Interest and Fire Setting With the Dark Tetrad”, by Wehner, C.; Ziegler, M.; Kirchhof, S. and Lämmle, L. (2022), in which authors carry out a study to know whether a relationship between the traits of the so-called Dark Tetrad and the fascination with fire or arson exists. 

Fire has always played an important role in humanity, whether as a source of heat and light, as a means of cooking, or as a source of entertainment. However, tragic cases such as forest fires, or the Notre Dame fire in 2019, bring to public awareness the destructive potential that fire also possesses. 

Whether deliberately or by accident, an uncontrolled fire causes serious damage to both people and property. Fires caused 3,655 deaths in the United States in 2018, and of those, 350 were the result of arson. 

Because of this destructive potential, there is a need to explore fire-setting behavior and investigate what factors lead an individual to that point. 

Research has identified several psychological vulnerabilities that qualify as potential risk factors. One of these is an interest or fascination with fire, as well as with starting fires. 

Many studies have focused on the importance of integrating findings on personality disorders and mental pathologies to the fire issue. A better understanding of the relationship between complex and dark traits and fire setting may improve prevention efforts, or may even help to develop theories about how a pathology that leads to this behavior develops. 

It has been hypothesized that two traits associated with interest in fire and fire setting are impulsivity and thrill seeking. The link between fire setting and impulsivity, in particular, has been empirically demonstrated.

Since psychopathy includes impulsivity as one of its core aspects, authors consider it potentially relevant to the prediction of fire setting. 

Other variables include other traits of the Dark Tetrad. This is better known as the Dark Triad, but some authors call it the “Tetrad” by adding one more factor, in total: psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism and sadism. 

When we think of arson, the first thing we think of is pyromania. This is classified by a great interest in fire, but also by experiences in which before setting a fire, one feels tension and excitement and after the act, a great relief. Because of these criteria, it is complicated to diagnose pyromania, so the vast majority of people with this disorder do not know about it and, worse, do not treat it. 

One theory that incorporated interest in fire as an important factor in triggering them is the Multi-Trajectory Theory of Firesetting (M-TTAF). It describes how psychological vulnerabilities and other factors, such as cultural or developmental aspects, as well as situational context and social learning, can trigger a fire. Authors suggested four possible trajectories within this theory: antisocial, grievance, interest in fire and need for recognition, with a fifth, which would be a combination of the other four. 

To this end, authors conducted a study in which 222 people participated and were given a series of questionnaires related to the fascination with fire, the Dark Tetrad and the M-TTAF. 

Psychopathy and direct physical sadism were found to be significantly correlated with interest in fire and the environment. Direct verbal sadism was positively correlated, on the one hand, also with interest in fire, and on the other hand, with fire provocation. 

The latter two tendencies correlated positively, in turn, with the M-TTAF, suggesting that interest in fire is an important factor for some people, but not for all. For example, someone who follows the grievance trajectory proposed by the model would be more motivated by revenge or retribution when committing a fire than by interest in the fire itself. 

Vicarious sadism was related, on the other hand, to the satisfaction produced only by seeing the fire of an active fire. 

In addition, the relationship between impulsivity and fire setting was seen once again. And psychopathy showed the strongest relationship among the other Dark Tetrad traits. Since impulsivity is a key facet of psychopathy, it seems logical to cautiously relate fire setting to psychopathy.

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What is being commented on social networks about sexual assaults? Forensic Sciences Club

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Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Masochist or Murderer? A Discourse Analytic Study Exploring Social Constructions of Sexually Violent Male Perpetrators, Female Victims-Survivors and the Rough Sex Defense on Twitter”, by Sowersby, C. J.; Erskine-Shaw, M. and Willmott, D. (2022), in which authors carry out an analysis of Twitter publications in which people talk about sexuality, violence, victims and gender, bearing in mind that, nowadays, social networks help to shape social collective thinking. 

We have already mentioned on several occasions that sexual violence is one of the major problems facing modern society. Crime statistics show the increasing prevalence of this type of violence around the world. Since 2014, countries such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand or Ireland have experienced increases in sex crimes recorded by police, while statistics in the United States reveal the same trend since 2013. 

These data are disconcerting, although one of the explanations proposed for them is that rates have increased due to a greater awareness of abuse cases, among other reasons, due to the emergence of awareness and sensitization campaigns, as well as support for victims gender and sexual violence, such as the #MeToo movement. 

It may also be due to an improvement in police training to deal with these types of cases, along with a greater willingness to investigate these allegations.

On the other hand, while it is recognized that both men and women experience sexual violence, the figures for reported crimes stand out for a gender gap, as, in general, men are the perpetrators of these crimes and women, the victims. 

In England and Wales, data reveal that 98% of those prosecuted for serious sexual offenses are men and women represent the 84% of the victims. 

Authors mention that there may be an unknown number of male victims who do not come to light because of the stigma that still surrounds male sexual victimization, and because of societal expectations around the male gender role. 

Interestingly, along with concerns about the prevalence of abuse against women, there is recent media coverage of numerous high-profile sexual crimes, which has brought the issue of women’s safety into the public consciousness. 

This has led to media coverage that reaches social networks, creating debates and generating opinions that are made public. 

And, despite the importance of the phenomenon surrounding sexual violence, there is very little research dedicated to exploring public attitudes toward it and relating them, in turn, to “rough sex”. 

And why rough sex? Research places particular emphasis on distinguishing between rough sex and sexual violence because the line between the two concepts is very thin. 

This type of sexuality, while involving a certain degree of force or aggression, has consent at its core. Violent fetishism, bodily harm, humiliation, domination or submission, are some of the experiences that can be lived by those who practice this type of sex safely, due to its dangerousness, which can be more or less extreme. 

To distinguish between sexual violence and violent sex, the important thing is, as we have said, consent. However, there are times when consent is precarious, especially in situations of trauma or with an abuse background. 

The research also mentions pornography, with an increasing success of the most violent categories, which contributes to blurring the differences between rough sex and actual rape or sexual assault. 

On the other hand, and returning to the media influence of social networks on collective thinking, authors mention the concept of “slut-shaming”, which is often used to blame the victims of sexual violence, especially if they are women. Slut-shaming, for example, uses the fact that a woman has been drinking alcohol or has a very active sex life as an “excuse” for the sexual assault experienced. This highlights the need for research on all of the above data, with special emphasis on gender roles and the influence of the hard sex on the perception of sexual violence. 

To do this, authors search inside of Twitter, which is one of the most popular social networks today. 

They found that the dichotomy “virgin-whore” often appears to talk about women, which categorizes them in an extreme way based on their sexual preferences and constructs negative and defamatory language. For example, those women who do not like rough sex, are often labeled as “saints” or “boring,” the opposite for those who do, who are insulted and humiliated. This is very interesting, above all, because it contributes to the blaming of the victims of sexual violence. 

On the other hand, rough sex is increasingly legitimized as a normative sexuality, downplaying its potential dangerousness. 

The conceptions associated with gender roles are also extreme, not only in the case of women, but also in the case of men, making it seem that it is in their biological nature to be aggressive and hypersexual beings. 

In short, efforts, resources and research are needed to better understand the phenomenon of social networks and how they shape public opinion. Moreover, given the magnitude of the problem of sexual violence, understanding it, preventing it and acting appropriately with the victims is an absolute priority.

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Differences between serial rapists and single-victim rapists regarding their modus operandi. Forensic Science Club

By 5 Mins Read

Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Predicting rapist type based on crime-scene violence, interpersonal involvement, and criminal sophistication in U.S. stranger rape cases”, by Mellink, I. S. K.; Jeglic, E. L. and Bogaard, G. (2022), in which authors carry out a study in which they investigate the particularities of serial rapists and single-victim rapists cases, to know which are the proper elements of each case and make a comparative analysis that helps in the criminal profile of similar cases. 

Sexual violence is a serious public health problem worldwide. Only in the United States, one in six women has been the victim of attempted or completed rape in her lifetime. Therefore, there appears to be an urgent need to better understand those who commit sexual assault in order to increase conviction rates. 

Physical evidence, such as DNA or fingerprints found at the crime scene, is often not found or, if found, may not be conclusive. Therefore, if we establish a link between the crime and the offender using other means, it will be valuable to the investigation by narrowing the list of potential suspects. 

Criminal profiling is one of many techniques that aid in the process of investigating, identifying, locating and arresting offenders in general and in rape cases in particular. 

In criminal profiling, crime scene characteristics are used to infer information to help narrow down the suspect list and apprehend the offender.

By attending to observable crime scene behaviors, police forces can identify clues about the type of offender they are dealing with, such as the likelihood that the offender is either a serial rapist or a single-victim rapist. 

Why is this last point important? Precisely because, if there are crime scene characteristics that associate the case with the offender being a serial rapist, this could indicate that he has committed other similar crimes, which, in turn, would give investigators the idea to search their databases for the criminal history of suspects and, thus, reduce the list of possible offenders. 

To better understand those who commit violations, offenders can be classified based on behavioral or modus operandi variables.

From the point of view of most experts, rape is viewed as an event in which the offender treats his victim similarly to how he would treat others in a non-criminal context. 

This, coupled with other findings, suggests that it is possible to link a crime and an offender by their behavior. This linkage is based on two ideas: consistency and variability. Consistency refers to the fact that a subject’s criminal behavior is consistent, meaning that the same person is likely to behave similarly in other crimes. And variability is based on the fact that two offenders will not behave in exactly the same way, which makes it possible to distinguish between them. 

Authors decide to focus on the differences that exist between serial rapists and single-victim rapists and that can be extracted based on their behavior at the crime scene. There is a dearth of empirical literature on this, but a 1987 study gives some interesting insights, such as that single-victim rapists are more likely to be known to their victims than serial rapists, and prefer to use a safe approach rather than a quick attack. With serial rapists the opposite would happen. 

In the present study, authors used data relating to the cases of 3,168 inmates in a New Jersey prison, who were serving time at the time of writing for sexual offenses. 

They found that single-victim rapists and serial rapists can, indeed, be differentiated from each other based on their behavior; and further, experts often classify the cases according to three categories: violence, criminal sophistication, and interpersonal behavior. 

Single-victim rapists are more likely to have a crime scene with violent characteristics, and are more likely to digitally penetrate and threaten their victims. 

Serial rapists, on the other hand, have a more criminally sophisticated crime scene, for instance, they incapacitate the victim or use a weapon. This is in line with previous research showing that serial rapists are more sophisticated in general. 

Serial rapists are more likely to use weapons, which tends to be a gun or knife, and, in addition to incapacitating their victim more often, as mentioned above, they also tend to groom the victim and guide or lure them somewhere. These types of rapists are also less likely to use drugs or alcohol during or immediately prior to the crime in order to remain criminally sophisticated and avoid detection, as it does not pay for them to risk their success by using these substances. 

Despite gaining some interesting insights, authors point out the need for further research on the entire criminological process of rape, from victim to perpetrator, and what is related to the crime scene, as only by knowing and understanding these data will we be able to improve prevention.

If you want to know more about the criminal mind, criminal profiling, and forensic science, don’t miss our Master of Science in Criminal Profiling or our Master of Science in Anti-Fraud Behavioral Analysis, 100% online programs that can be taken in Spanish or English, with special grants for the Forensic Science Club readers.

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Forensic Science Club