Homicide Studies

Although animal cruelty is often described as a warning sign of future human violence, particularly in the prediction of multiple homicides, prior studies reveal mixed support for this notion and lack conceptual clarity in the measurement of such cruelty. This study investigates the quantity and quality of cruelty present in a sample of 23 perpetrators of school massacres from 1988 to 2012. Findings indicate that 43% of the perpetrators commit animal cruelty before schoolyard massacres and that the cruelty is usually directed against anthropomorphized species (dogs and cats) in an up-close manner. The implications of these findings for reducing false positive cases of cruelty are discussed.

Several high-profile school shootings have emerged as significant discursive markers in a longer “disaster narrative.” This study applies the two-dimensional analytic framework introduced by Chyi and McCombs to examine the frame-changing differences between two highly salient school shootings. A content analysis was conducted using the New York Times coverage of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The findings of this study indicate that while Columbine set the precedent for how the media covers school shootings, the coverage of Sandy Hook illustrates a departure from this model and potentially reshapes the way that these events are covered.

Previous research has treated multiple family homicide, or familicide, as a uniform event. We sought to explore whether subtypes of familicide could be discerned, making use of a decade of Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR) coupled with newspaper articles. The resulting 238 cases were analyzed through a two-step cluster analysis, showing that the familicides can be subgrouped into four categories based on the perpetrator’s age, relationship between perpetrator and victims, and perpetrator’s suicide. The empirically grouped categories were labeled Despondent Husbands, Spousal Revenge, Extended Parricide, and Diffuse Conflict. Familicide is thus a heterogeneous phenomenon and must be viewed in unique terms to appropriately determine prevention strategies.

This study explores patterns among female family annihilators using a non-random sample (n = 7), where offenders killed four or more family members during a single homicidal event. Acts of maternal familicide are measured against the family annihilator profile. Overall, many variables remain consistent across gender, but there appear to be substantive differences in motivation, spousal murder attempt, and the role of alcohol. Findings suggest that research on the family annihilator needs to be more inclusive of women, including use of more gender-neutral language. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed, and a new definition of the family annihilator is offered.

Using data obtained from 165 mass murders in China, this research examines the crime of mass murder through a routine activities perspective as it relates to the location of where they occur (rural areas), while taking into consideration the motivation (revenge and profit), and most common weapon (knife) used. This adds to the literature on mass murders and routine activities theory from an area (China) where little academic research has been published regarding this crime.

Although researchers have questioned their coverage and accuracy, the media routinely are used as sources of data on mass murder in the United States. Databases compiled from media sources such as newspaper and network news programs include the New York Police Department’s Active Shooters file, the Brady Campaign Mass Casualty Shootings data set, and the Mother Jones database. Conversely, official crime data have been underutilized by researchers who study mass murder (for exceptions, see Duwe, 2007; Fox & Levin, 1998). In this study, we compare similarities and differences for mass murder cases in the United States as portrayed by selected mass media sources. Then, we turn our focus to a comparison of the Uniform Crime Reports’ (UCR) Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) and the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). Our primary focus is on mass murders involving four or more fatalities—not including the perpetrator—that have occurred between 2001 and 2010. Implications for enhancing the comprehensiveness and quality of mass murder data with the goal of increasing their usefulness for guiding prevention and risk mitigation efforts also are discussed.

Mass shootings at a Connecticut elementary school, a Colorado movie theater, and other venues have prompted a fair number of proposals for change. Advocates for tighter gun restrictions, for expanding mental health services, for upgrading security in public places, and, even, for controlling violent entertainment have made certain assumptions about the nature of mass murder that are not necessarily valid. This article examines a variety of myths and misconceptions about multiple homicide and mass shooters, pointing out some of the difficult realities in trying to avert these murderous rampages. While many of the policy proposals are worthwhile in general, their prospects for reducing the risk of mass murder are limited.