The statistics in this report are based on the serial killer definition derived by the FBI at its 2005 symposium in San Antonio, TX 2: The unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s), in separate events. 55 Interesting Facts about Serial Killers. By Karin Lehnardt, Senior. In 20th-century America, the serial killer has come to embody a host of gnawing anxieties—anxieties about runaway crime, sexual violence, and breakdown of civil conduct. The FBI distinguishes between serial killing and spree killing. A serial killer always.

Excerpted with permission from, by Scott Bonn. Skyhorse Publishing. Copyright © 2014.

Much of the general public’s knowledge concerning serial homicide is a product of sensationalized and stereotypical depictions of it in the news and entertainment media. Colorful story lines are written to pique the interest of audiences, not to paint an accurate picture of serial murder. By focusing on the larger-than-life media images of socially constructed “celebrity monsters,” the public becomes captivated by the stylized presentation of the criminals rather than the reality of their crimes. Media stereotypes and hyperbole create myths and great distortions in the public consciousness regarding the true dynamics and patterns of serial murder in the U.S.

The Reality of Serial Homicide in the U.S. Serial killings account for no more than 1 percent of all murders committed in the U.S. Based on recent FBI crime statistics, there are approximately 15,000 murders annually, so that means there are no more than 150 victims of serial murder in the U.S.

In any given year. 1 The FBI estimates that there are between twenty-five and fifty serial killers operating throughout the U.S. At any given time. If there are fifty, then each one is responsible for an average of three murders per year.

Serial killers are always present in society. However, the statistics reveal that serial homicide is quite rare and it represents a small portion of all murders committed in the U.S.

Persistent misinformation, stereotypes and hyperbole presented in the media have combined with the relative rarity of serial murder cases to foster a number of popular myths about serial murder. The most common myths about serial killers encompass such factors as their race, gender, intelligence, living conditions and victim characteristics.

Myth #1: All Serial Killers Are Men. Reality: This is simply not true but it is understandable why the public would hold this erroneous belief. As late as 1998, a highly regarded former FBI profiler said “there are no female serial killers.” The news and entertainment media also perpetuate the stereotypes that all serial offenders are male and that women do not engage in horrible acts of violence. When the lethality of a femme fatale is presented in book or film, she is most often portrayed as the manipulated victim of a dominant male. This popular but stereotypical media image is consistent with traditional gender myths in society which claim that boys are aggressive by nature while girls are passive. In fact, both aggressiveness and passivity can be learned through socialization and they are not gender specific. The reality concerning the gender of serial killers is quite different than the mythology of it. Kannada calendar 2013 pdf free download.

Although there have been many more male serial killers than females throughout history, the presence of female serial killers is well documented in the crime data. In fact, approximately 17 percent of all serial homicides in the U.S. Are committed by women. 2 Interestingly, only 10 percent of total murders in the U.S. Are committed by women.

Therefore, relative to men, women represent a larger percentage of serial murders than all other homicide cases in the U.S. This is an important and revealing fact that defies the popular understanding of serial murder.

Myth #2: All Serial Killers Are Caucasian. Reality: Contrary to popular mythology, not all serial killers are white. Serial killers span all racial and ethnic groups in the U.S.

The racial diversity of serial killers generally mirrors that of the overall U.S. There are well documented cases of African-American, Latino and Asian-American serial killers. African-Americans comprise the largest racial minority group among serial killers, representing approximately 20 percent of the total. Significantly, however, only white, and normally male, serial killers such as Ted Bundy become popular culture icons.

Although they are not household names like their infamous white counterparts, examples of prolific racial minority serial killers are Coral Eugene Watts, a black man from Michigan, known as the “Sunday Morning Slasher,” who murdered at least seventeen women in Michigan and Texas; Anthony Edward Sowell, a black man known as the “Cleveland Strangler” who kidnapped, raped and murdered eleven women in Ohio; and Rafael Resendez-Ramirez, a Mexican national known as the “Railroad Killer,” who killed as many as fifteen men and women in Kentucky, Texas, and Illinois. Myth #3: All Serial Killers Are Isolated and Dysfunctional Loners. Reality: The majority of serial killers are not reclusive social misfits who live alone, despite pervasive depictions of them as such in the news and entertainment media, including the socially challenged “Tooth Fairy” serial killer in the film Red Dragon. Real-life serial killers are not the isolated monsters of fiction and, frequently, they do not appear to be strange or stand out from the public in any meaningful way.