Day 59 - Monday December 6. 2010

A - Introduction to Law 9/10 - Tomorrow you have your third quiz in Law 9/10 yet today we will venture off to the library to continue work on your project about nasty people. Today is your last day to work on this assignment which is due this Wednesday in class. If you have completed the research for this assignment then you can print off your work and start to assemble your poster. The library sells poster paper (bristol board) for $0.80 each so you could purchase it there or elsewhere. If you finish this assignment you can finish your questions from Friday (profile of Dahmer and question on why we glamourize serial killers) or you could come see me to find out what we are working on next. Tomorrow we continue our look at crime scene investigations.

Whe looking for the typology of Serial Killers (for your assignment) consider the following excerpt from the book Serial Murder and the Psychology of Violent Crimes:

Serial Murder by Holmes, R. M., & DeBurger, J. E. (1988) identifies the following

1.Visionary Type—these murderers kill as a result of command hallucinations, delusions, or visions whose sources customarily include the forces of good or evil. These offenders are typically psychotic, leaving the crime scene in utter disarray. The homicides occur quickly with no extensive acts of torture. Frequently, the assailant relies on weapons of opportunity to commit his crimes and discards or locates the death instrument(s) in the victim’s body.

2.Mission-Oriented Type—the goal for these slayers is to kill certain types of people or to rid society of particular types of individuals. These serial murderers target victims based on their ethnicity, occupation (e.g., prostitutes), and/or age. Additionally, they determine whom to assail based on whether the person is deemed unworthy, undesirable, or somehow less than human. To illustrate, Jack the Ripper targeted prostitutes and viewed them as disposable. He dehumanized their bodies through mutilation in the process of killing them. In a letter written to the press by Jack the Ripper, he stated, “I am down on whores and shan’t quit ripping them.” Typically, the murders occur quickly and they are often planned. The mission-oriented offender does not engage in postmortem activities such as necrophilia or dismemberment and the weapon employed is not disposed of at the crime scene.

3.Hedonistic Type—these offenders murder as a result of sensation seeking or otherwise derive some sort of pleasure from their killings. Holmes and Holmes divided this type of assailant into two subcategories: the lust killer and the thrill killer. Both are summarily described below.

The lust killer murders principally for sexual gratification even if this does not entail traditional intercourse. However, sex or multiple sadistically erotic acts with a live victim are common. Sexually arousing behavior is the driving force for this offender, even after the person has killed the victim. Moreover, this attacker may also be sexually excited and/or satisfied from the murder itself. Ritualistic displays of sexual mutilation, facial disfigurement, cannibalism, body dismemberment, vampirism, and necrophilia are routinely featured in this type of homicidal act. The body is often concealed and the murder weapon taken. Close contact murder; specifically, beating or manual strangulation, are noted as most common.

The thrill killer murders for the visceral excitement the assailant experiences. However, once the victim is dead, the offender loses complete interest. As a result, the process of killing is prolonged as long as possible through extended acts of torture. The use of restraints and the presence of bite marks and burns on the victim’s body are characteristic behaviors for this type of slayer. Sadistic acts whose frequency is prolonged as long as possible prior to death, a concealed corpse, manual or ligature strangulation, and an animated victim during multiple sexual acts all characterize the patterns and motives of this type of assailant. manual or ligature strangulation, and an animated victim during multiple sexual acts all characterize the patterns and motives of this type of assailant.

4.Power/Control Oriented Type – these offenders harbor deep-seated feelings of inadequacy or attempt to compensate for a perceived lack of social or personal mastery over themselves by thoroughly dominating their victims. Holmes and DeBurger maintained that the primary motive for these offenders is not sexual in nature. Instead, these assailants desire complete and unfettered control over and subjugation of their powerless victims, including during the postmortem period. Consequently, torture, the use of restraints, strangulation, severed body parts, and decapitation are all routinely featured in these homicidal acts. A profound sense omnipotence – having the ultimate power of life or death over one’s victims as they cower and plead for their lives – fuels this type of serial killer. The act of murder is extended in order to increase the felt sense of gratification. The offender’s modus operandi is planned and organized, the body is concealed, and the weapon is absent.

D - Geography 12 - Today we look at mesoscale convective complexes and tornadoes. I'll show you some footage of a tornado captured on video by a Kansas television crew. This footage was actually detrimental to tornado safety as most people who saw it assumed that a highway overpass provides shelter and safety.

This proved deadly with the May 3, 1999 Moore Oklahoma F5 tornado. We'll also watch footage of the Moore tornado and see the damage it wrought. We'll watch the wind episode from the BBC Series "The Weather" and hear from a man that survived a direct strike from an EF5 tornado. At the end of the class you will need to work on questions 15 and 16 from page 248 of your Geosystems textbook.

C - Law 12 - Today is the last day to hand in work from the criminal law unit. You have a unit final quiz tomorrow which will include Friday's questions:

Define: absolute discharge, conditional discharge, probation, suspended sentence, concurrent sentence, consecutive sentence, intermittent sentence, indeterminate sentence, parole, day parole, statutory release, and pardon. Also page 162 questions 8 & 11; page 166 questions 1, 2, & 4; page 171 questions 4 & 7.

I'll give you time to work on the questions in class today and then we'll go over the answers at the end of the block. Clean out the "out bin" in class that has your marked work in it and please prepare for the quiz tomorrow.