" David B. Wilson Jr., 32, is charged with 79 separate charges . . . the night of Sept. 19 . . . police detectives arrested him as he cased out of the apartment of what they said would have been his next victim” (criminal profiling team).Without criminal profiling this man would not have been caught, in catching him another was saved. For many years people have not been able to understand what a criminal finds rewarding from committing a crime. As the world developed, so did the criminal psychology field forming a strategy used by criminal psychologist called criminal profiling. “ Criminal personality profiling is an investigative technique developed y the FBI. It is a technique for identifying the major personality, behavioral . . . of offenders based on an analysis of crimes the committed” (Cook, and Hinman 231). Many people think this strategy is not an accurate method used because it is not backed up by science, but the psychologists gut feeling of what the criminal is going to do next, or why they did what they did. From the research I have conducted I found that criminal profiling is a reliable method because it has led to many arrest of serial killers, murders, rapist, etc. As the years have gone by criminal psychologist developed different strategies but the most efficient seems to be criminal profiling.
Criminal profiling has many different factors that must be completed in order for it to work, but eventually the pay off is better. There are six steps when profiling a criminal, and those are: (1) profiling inputs (2) decision process model (3) crime assessment (4) profile (5) investigation (6) apprehension (Cook, and Hinman 231). Decision process model is when they pull apart the decisions made by the criminal and try to understand why they made those decisions. After doing that they then do the crime assessment, which is to go to the crime scene or look at the reports and photos from the crime scene, then they analyze what is found. Once it is analyzed they then apply it to what they came to conclusion with during the decision process to come to a hypothesis of the next move of the killer, rapist, etc. Then they start investigation witch means just trying to figure out what this person does next, the next place they go, and their actions. Now this may seem like a lot of work for only one end product, but it is really worth all the hard work to put away a criminal that has done some very horrific things, and could potentially continue to hurt people. All this hard work pays off in the long run by protecting the community.
Without criminal profiling the United States would have very low statistics in catching the most dangerous criminals? We would not have any idea what a criminals next move would be without criminal profiling. There would be more, and more victims not coming forward with what has happened to them because there would be no hope in catching the person without profiling. We would have more criminals than we do already because they would feel they could do anything and not get caught. Without criminal profiling we would have a world of hardcore criminals and even more victims.
Criminal profiling is an efficient tool because it helps more than just one person. It helps the psychologist, but police officers, victims, offenders, and future victims. It helps the psychologist because it makes sure they keep their job for a longer period of time and shows they know what they are doing. Criminal profiling helps the police officers because it cuts down the amount of work they have because when they catch a person it then cuts down the caseload (Aumiller, Gary, and David Corey 74). The victims feel at peace because the person who hurt them is put away. Sometimes it helps the offender because they have a chance to fix themselves (Lowman). This also helps people who would have been a future victim to the offender. Compared to Direct threat assessments which is where a psychologist evaluates a person to see if they are a risk to themselves criminal profiling helps more people then just the one person.
During my observations on youtube.com I watched four out of six parts of Robert Resslers serial killer criminal profiling documentary. While I was watching it I saw a lot of morgues which is a place where desist people go. I also saw police cars, officers, pictures of crimes (men and women), mug shots of criminals, and so on. There were lots of devastated families there due to the loss of a loved one. During my observations my argument was supported by this statement “with out criminal profiling we would have no idea what type of person, the age of them, sex, race, and personality.” This means with out profiling we would lose all these clues that we need in order to catch a criminal. There was also a point made that criminal profiling has been used for many year, but it was never given a name by anyone (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY4iRb1C9cg). I concluded from this observations that profiling is a useful tool, and that it is used to make things go faster even though there is a lot of work behind it, and without it we would be lost with out it, we need to appreciate it more. ("Robert Ressler - [Part 1,2,3,4] - Criminal Profiler - Documentary")
Some people do not always agree with criminal profiling being the best strategy. During my cyber interview I asked a few question to Nelson Hammond a graduated psychology major from Eastern Michigan University. He had a particular interest in this subject when he was younger, but never pursued it during his college years. “I do believe that criminal profiling works in that it gives the law enforcement a much better understanding of the criminal mind and how un-predictable it can be” Nelson said when I asked him is he believe in criminal profiling and if it works. Then I asked if he thought that it was the best way to go about it and he said “I believe it is very proficient however I am not sure if it is the most effective strategy used by a psychologist because until a criminal is apprehended and can be interviewed profilers can only make highly educated guesses about many aspects of that criminal” (24May2011). This is not true because criminal profiling has helped many people, but people are allowed to have their own opinions. If without criminal profiling we would not have such a safe place to live.
In conclusion we need to see that criminal profiling is a benefit to a large sum of people. Without it we would not have any idea of what the criminals next move would be, or even their age or sex. In order for people to see that this works I urge you to do more research on this idea to form your own Idea while still considering mine. Not only do we need to respect this profession more we should truly take an interest on what is going on in our communities, and nation. If we become more aware we will be able to understand the high demand for people like criminal psychologist that do the hardest work in the shortest amount of time (criminal profiling), so in return we respect their art of their careers.
Works cited:
Aumiller, Gary, and David Corey. "Defining the Field of police Psychology: Core Domains & Proficiencies." Springer Science + Business Media 22.65-76 (2007): 66-76. Web. 12 May 2011.
Cook, P, and D Hinman. "Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice." Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice n. pag.Web.31May2011.<http://ccj.sagepub.com.ezproxy.emich.edu/content/15/3/230.full.pdf>.
Criminal profiling team, . "Judge orders pyschological evaluations of serial rapist." criminal profiling.com, 12/12/2005.Web.31May2011.<http://www.criminalprofiling.com/Judge-orders-pyschological-evaluations-of-serial-rapist_s1041.html>.
Lowman, John. "“Prison Reform, The Rhetoric of Rehabilitation, And The Accountability of Custodians." 2.1 (2006):Web.31May2011.<http://www.jpp.org/documents/forms/JPP2_1/Lowman.pdf>.
Nelson Halmons May 24th 2011
"Robert Ressler - [Part 1] - Criminal Profiler - Documentary." Web. 31 May 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y606jNQRjro>.
"Robert Ressler - [Part 2] - Criminal Profiler - Documentary." Web. 31 May 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4gcq7IJplQ&feature=related>.
"Robert Ressler - [Part 3] - Criminal Profiler - Documentary." Web. 31 May 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY4iRb1C9cg&feature=related>.
"Robert Ressler - [Part 4] - Criminal Profiler - Documentary." Web. 31 May 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sc9l2v-8Ho&feature=related>.
Interveiw
- Me: I wanted to know what strategy used by a criminal psychologist is the most efficient? Also what you thought about criminal profiling, do you think that it works, if it is proficient, if it is the most effective strategy used by a psychologist. What is the hardest part of profiling a criminal? What are different factors that go into profiling a criminal or person? And finally what are the steps taken to successfully profile a criminal? Thank you so much for doing this, it is so hard to get into contact with someone who knows about this. While I was talking to my mom about it she said something about you, then I remembered that you majored is some type of criminal psychology!
- Nelson: Unfortunately I don't know enough about profiling to answer all of them. I do believe that criminal profiling works in that it gives the law enforcement a much better understanding of the criminal mind and how un-predictable it can be. Unlike the tv shows profilers may not be able to give a perfect image/life story for a criminal but they do provide valuable tips that allow officer in the field to narrow their of suspects and search areas. I believe it is very proficient however I am not sure if it is the most effective stategy used by a psychologist because until a criminal is apprehended and can be interviewed profilers can only make highly educated guesses about many aspects of that criminal. I'm not sure if the few questions that I could answer helped you at all but I hope they helped a little bit, and if I can help in any other way I'll do my best!!
Observation: #1 robert resllers learned how to find criminals in the army, and then was found by the FBI. Talking about a case where a man killed 5 women all with long brown hair and brown eye, and they were white. I saw a morgue in this part where criminal psychologist look for clues about their killer, there were also tools with a white floor.#2:using surveillance to watch the criminals moves like searching the houses. Lots of inside police work that goes on. They look for personal items they kept from their victims. Organized killers are the worst killers because they know what they are doing. They study the photos clues and connections to other crimes. Same pattern = organized killer Different pattern= young killer.#3 They know who their victims are they stalk them. There is a nation database where they put all the crimes in so that when people search a crime connections pop up. They look at the crime scene and anylize how the body is laid out, the abuse to it and so one/
McKenzie Bowers
June 1st, 2011
Blog readers
Blogger.com
Dear Blog readers:
As you can see I have written a research essay for my English 121 class. I wrote it one criminal profiling. This paper was challenging because I had a hard time finding sources to back up what I believed.
I believe that I accomplished the Research Practices, and Processes out come and Critical Reading and Analysis. I think I did that because I researched a lot not only for sources, but also for a person to interview and observe. Critical reading and analysis because I thought that I was really talking to criminal psychologist trying to persuade them that criminal profiling is the best way to go!
I did that by finding strong sources that would back up my claims like this source: (Cook, and Hinman 231). I used more than once because it really helped me.
I have learned that you cannot wait until the last minute to write a paper because you will not do a good job on it at all. You need to start a head so you give yourself more time, and it will also make it more fun.
I really like how I really explained what criminal profiling was in my paragraph #2. I felt like it needed to be important that it was explained.
I feel like I might need to find more sources which means continuing research. I would also really like to observe a profiler in action, but I understand that will not happen.
Thank you,
McKenzie Bowers
I found your blog about criminal profiling to be very interesting. I liked the introduction; it was intriguing and a creative way to start the blog off. I understand that you’re in the process of finishing it but so far you’re on a very good start. I think the blogs organization is unique and all together it's a really good read, I can’t wait until you finish it. I cant really be to critical on your blog because i feel like it'll be unfair to judge something not completed. So far i think i see where you are going. I also see the right MLA format and your lead ins and outs with your quotes. Reading your blog makes me feel like I'm reading a criminal investigation report and i like things like that so i enjoyed it. Like i said before i cant wait to read the finished product, I'm excited!!!
ReplyDeletePart 1: You had a good attention getter and made me want to read more. It was clear what your thesis was. You need to work on the word count, but once you get your interview and observation done that should help. You did a good job of using citations. It was also very organized but was a little confusing.
ReplyDeletePart 2: you did a good job of stating what your topic was in your introduction. You had a very good lead too, 79 cases is a lot. Some parts of the essay are a bit confusing, maybe just the way it is being explained, but you do use a lot of evidence to back up your claims. Maybe once you have your interview and observation done it will be helpful in making it more understandable. You use an appropriate tone for a blog post, and are pretty clear at times. Your closing paragraph does a good job at wrapping up your essay. I never knew criminal profiling was so important in catching a criminal.