title: Ritual and signature in serial sexual homicide.
abstract: Ritual and signature are fantasy-driven, repetitive crime scene behaviors that have been found to occur in serial sexual homicide. Notwithstanding numerous anecdotal case reports, ritual and signature have rarely been studied empirically. In a national sample of 38 offenders and their 162 victims, we examined behavioral and thematic consistency, as well as the evolution and uniqueness of these crime scene actions. The notion that serial sexual murderers engage in the same rituals and leave unique signatures at every scene was not supported by our data. In fact, the results suggest that the crime scene conduct of this group of offenders is fairly complex and varied. Implications of these findings for forensic assessments and criminal investigations are discussed.
authors.affiliation: John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 445 W. 59th Street, New York, NY 10019, USA. lbschlesinger@aol.com
authors.forename: Louis B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Schlesinger
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kassen
authors.forename: V Blair
authors.initials: VB
authors.lastname: Mesa
authors.forename: Anthony J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Pinizzotto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002562:Ceremonial Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005201:Fantasy; D006708:Homicide / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010262:Paraphilic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013239:Stereotyped Behavior; D014481:United States