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dominate others, regardless of the consequences; those who sexually assault after death (necrophilia) need the absence of life to have total domi- nation without fear of resistance and/ or rejection. In both cases, there is a high amount of sexua! dysfunction, most frequently ejaculatory failure. This inadequacy is projected onto the victim and may play a part in the es- calation to murder. Mutilation and Torture The act of mutilation may be predicated on a primary fantasy (sadism) of on a secondary fantasy (e.g., disposing of the body). A mutila- tion fantasy includes symbolic pat- terns to the cuttings and markings on a body or the amputation of the sexual parts of the body. This is in contrast to the practical aspect of dis- secting a body for disposal or trans- portation purposes. Torturing a victim is part of a sa- distic fantasy. Such fantasies include some type of stimulus enhancing an autoerotic condition and include slic- ing, cutting, burning, pulling out hairs or body parts, and biting. Murder Murder is the ultimate expression of dominance. The offender’s aggres- sion is self-generated from his own fantasies, not from any societal made! of strength or power. His idea of mas- tering other people emerges through his violence and aggression. For these murderers, sexual interest is linked with violence and exploitation rather than gentleness or pleasure. Murder fantasies range from = con- scious deliberate planning to a spon- taneous outburst of rage. Although the offender's fantasy life develops his predatory activities, the first actua- | ot el oe a Figure 1 Family Background Detachment Criminality Substance abuse Psychiatric problems Sexual problems Inconsistent discipline RESULTANT ATTITUDES AND BELIEFS Devaluation of victim and society World viewed as unjust Authority/life viewed as inconsistent Autoerotic preference Obsession with dominance through aggression Fantasy as reality lizing of the fantasy makes them real. Acting out the fantasy links the fanta- sy with reality, and the fantasy be- comes reality. The offender believes he can now control reality. Conclusion What, then, can we glean from an analysis of background information and interviews with 36 sexual murder- ers? Although any speculations are general in nature and will not apply to every sexual killer, our sample indi- cates that child/adolescent energies were funneled into fantasies rather than into goal-directed learning be- havior. Excessive involvement in solo sex, noted through the frequency of masturbation and the preference for visual isolated sexual experiences, such as fetishes and voyeurism, may have a link with the offender's domi- nant fantasy world. A high interest in pornography detracts from engaging in reality and relationships and further reinforces the fantasy. Excitement lies within the offender, not in his relation- ships with other people. The roots of the murderer’s ac- tions appear to stem from their back- ground experiences. The combination 101 «MN GI Eee + ae nO nae eae General Characteristics, Resultant Attitudes and Beliefs, and Deviant Behaviors of 36 Sexual Murderers BACKGROUND CHARACTERISTICS Individual Development Dominance of fantasy History of personal abuse Performance School failure Sporadic work record Unskilled employment Poor military record Solo sex DEVIANT BEHAVIORS Rape Mutilation Torture Murder of low social attachment, physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse, and a dominance of a violent, sexualized fantasy life sets into motion the atti- tudes and beliefs that trigger the devi- ant behavior of rape, mutilation, tor- ture, and murder. One of the major re- lationship deficiencies for these mur- derers is in their interaction with men, perhaps stemming from the absent, cold, and unavailable father. An understanding of some of the dynamics behind sexually deviant be- havior provides law enforcement offi- cials some insight into the suspects they are trying to identify and appre- Footnotes 1 M.E. Woltgang, A.M. Figho, and T. Seilin, Delinquency in a Birth Cohort (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1972). 2AM. Figlio and P.E. Tracy, “Chronic Recidivism in the 1968 Birth Cohort,” unpublished manuscript, Washington, DC, NIJJOP, 1983; DM. Hamparian. R Schuster, S. Dinitz, and J.P. Conrad, The Violent Few (Lexington, MA: D.C. Health & Co., 1978); L.W. Shannon, “A Longitudinal Study of Delinquency and Crime,” in Quantitative Studies in Criminology. ed. C. Wellford (Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1978).