SELECTING FEATURES

When considering handgun models, departments must decide which features will prove most useful. Options exist pertaining to action, caliber, materials and finish, size and associated magazine capacity, safeties, sights and light mounts, and ease of care and maintenance.

Special Agent Kaestle serves as an instructor in the Firearms Training Unit at the FBI Academy.

Detective Buehler is a firearms instructor with the Modesto, California, Police Department.

Action

Each handgun represents one of three categories—single action, double action, or double action only. Single-action firearms feature a hammer that requires manual cocking for the initial firing and a trigger press that demands only a few pounds of pressure. After the first shot, the unassisted cycling of the slide, through recoil, automatically recocks the weapon. Because the shooter only fires with the hammer cocked, the gun always functions in single-action mode. The light trigger press may contribute to an unintentional discharge, requiring the user to operate a manual safety when carrying the weapon with the hammer cocked. For this reason, agencies generally issue these firearms to specially trained officers, such as emergency response, special weapons and tactics (SWAT), or hostage rescue team members.

Double-action-only handguns function in double-action mode for every shot, rather than just the initial one. As a result, the trigger press always remains the same. These firearms increasingly have become popular with law enforcement agencies. As departments switched from revolvers over the years, double-action-only handguns allowed for a largely seamless transition to semiautomatics because the double-action-only trigger system functions much like a traditional double-action revolver. As these weapons only require mastery of one trigger press, rather than two, officers can learn to use them more easily than other types. Additionally, the fact that few, if any, external safety or decocking levers exist makes them even easier to master.

The weight of the trigger press on double-action-only handguns varies by model. Some manufacturers offer different trigger options, allowing for either a heavier or lighter press to suit the requirements of a particular agency. Although some departments may favor a heavier trigger press for liability reasons, this may increase the time it takes for a shooter to fire the weapon, leading to decreased accuracy if the officer rushes the shot under stress.

Regardless of the trigger system selected, departments must ensure that officers receive training to keep their fingers off of the trigger until ready to fire the weapon. Appropriate, frequent, and documented instruction minimizes the risk of and associated liability from unintentional discharges.

Caliber

The four main handgun calibers used by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies today include 9 millimeter² and .40, .357, and .45 automatic. Although each differs in terms of cartridge size and ballistic capability, all can meet the needs of depart-ments—if firearms training emphasizes shot placement rather than the size or power level of one caliber versus another.

Handguns in 9 millimeter initially became popular with departments because of the high magazine capacities that many of the weapons offer— generally anywhere from 12 to 17 rounds—which allow officers to carry more ammunition than they could while using 6shot revolvers. Also, of all the aforementioned calibers, the 9-millimeter cartridge generally has the mildest perceived recoil.

For many years, American shooters have admired the .45 automatic as a powerful cartridge with applications in military service, law enforcement, self-defense, and competition. A major debate exists among officers, and the shooting community in general, about which cartridge holds superiority—the 9 millimeter, due to less perceived recoil and higher-capacity firearms chambered for the round, or the .45 automatic, with a larger, more powerful round but with heavier recoil. In the past, the .45 automatic generally was chambered in larger-frame handguns with lower cartridge capacities, though some models now offer a smaller-size frame or use a relatively high-capacity magazine.

The .40-automatic cartridge provides ballistic performance closer to the .45 automatic, while being chambered in handguns with 9-millimeter-size frames and offering magazine capacities higher than many .45-automatic handguns. This cartridge also has greater perceived recoil than the 9 millimeter but still remains manageable for many shooters. The .40 automatic has become a popular cartridge for law enforcement by offering some of the benefits of both the 9 millimeter and the .45 automatic.

Finally, the .357 automatic offers a cartridge with ballistic performance close to the .357 magnum for use in handguns with a larger magazine capacity. Basically, the .357 automatic represents a .40-automatic case redesigned in a bottleneck shape for fitting with a bullet similar in diameter to a 9 millimeter. Because this cartridge features a rim with the same diameter as that of the .40 automatic, users can chamber it in many .40automatic handguns by simply changing the barrel.

Materials and Finish

A variety of materials comprise today’s handguns. Some models feature a form of steel—either carbon or stainless—for both the frame and slide, while others have steel for the slide and either aluminum or polymer for the frame. Depending on the environment and carry method, duty firearms often become exposed to harsh conditions, such as water from rain, snow, perspiration, and other sources; dirt and sand; or numerous other hazards that can deteriorate handguns and affect proper function. For daily carry by either uniformed or plain-clothed officers, the materials and finish for weapons should be durable and easy to clean.

Stainless steel can offer more rust resistance than carbon steel (depending on the finish applied). Although stainless steel handguns often have a brighter, more reflective appearance than those with dark finishes, some models have a matte finish to reduce glare. Others even have a blackened stainless finish, offering the rust-resistant properties of stainless steel with the tactical superiority of a black, nonreflective finish. Generally, users find stainless steel handguns simpler to clean and maintain.

Blue finishes generally prove the least durable and rust resistant, although the dark color offers tactical advantages for law enforcement use. Proprietary durable black finishes form a protective coat over the metal, including hard and rust-resistant varieties, while also remaining nonreflective and relatively simple to maintain.

Handguns framed in steel tend to weigh more, which can impact ease of carry on a daily basis. Aluminum frames offer one solution. As another popular remedy, manufacturers offer handguns with frames made from polymer with imbedded parts, such as slide rails or other frame components, made out of metal. Handguns with polymer frames offer durability and ease of maintenance and often absorb some recoil from firing.

Size and Magazine Capacity

Law enforcement agencies can choose between full-size, compact, and subcompact handguns. Each has its own uses. The largeness of the weapon correlates with the magazine capacity. Some models feature single-stack magazines, which generally allow for a slimmer grip. Others have double-stack magazines that have a higher cartridge capacity but generally feature a thicker grip width as a result.

Full-size handguns, in either high- or standard-capacity models, can be useful for carry by uniformed and plain-clothed personnel with medium to large body sizes. Compact models tend to make better concealed-carry weapons because of their generally smaller size and light weight. Further, they may prove appropriate for general issue if a department desires only one firearm because officers more readily can carry compact weapons for off- and on-duty use. While normally not the best choice for general issue, subcompact handguns serve well for special applications (e.g., use by undercover officers) or as backup and off-duty weapons. Many of these models are the easiest to conceal in a variety of deep-cover holsters (e.g., ankle and ballistic vest). Often, quality compact and subcompact handguns on the market come with either single-or higher-capacity double-stack magazines, which give departments more latitude if they find grip width, as well as overall weapon size, an issue.

Safety Options

As much as possible, departments must seek to minimize unintentional discharges by their officers. Coupled with effective and repeated preventative training, handgun safety devices effectively help accomplish this goal. Manual hammer block, trigger safety, and de-cocking levers; internal firing pin, drop, and magazine disconnect safeties; and integral locking devices represent available options.

Manual safety devices, operated by the shooter, generally block the hammer from contacting the firing pin, disable the trigger mechanism, or perform both of these duties. Departments should ensure that officers easily can access the safety levers. Generally, single-action handguns come with manual devices that disable the trigger mechanism so that users can carry the weapon with the hammer cocked and ready to fire but locked so that it cannot be activated until the release of the safety—also known as “cocked and locked.” Model 1911 .45-automatic handgun variations also have a grip safety that makes the weapon inoperable until the officer holds and manually presses the lever. Double-action handguns tend to have either manual safety levers; decocking levers, which, when activated, safely lower the hammer of a cocked handgun, eliminating the potentially dangerous practice of manually lowering it by pressing the trigger; or a lever that combines both functions. Double-action-only handguns often have few, if any, manual safety devices because they only are cocked during firing. This benefit may appeal to some departments because no external levers exist that can snag on the clothing of officers who carry the handgun concealed.

Internal devices, such as firing pin and drop safeties, also represent useful features to look for in duty firearms; many handguns have them, regardless of the action type. Firing pin and drop safeties do not allow the firing pin to move forward until the user deliberately presses the trigger, thus preventing an unintentional discharge if the carrier drops the weapon.

A recent development with some handgun models is the addition of an integral locking device, which uses a type of key to actively lock the action of the handgun and render it inoperable. This proves especially useful if unauthorized users, such as young children, gain access to the weapon. This option is an alternative to aftermarket trigger or cable locks, also designed to lock a weapon’s action to prevent unauthorized use. Departments should consider selecting some type of locking mechanism— an integral part of the weapon or an external device—for issue to their personnel to help officers maintain control over their handgun at all times.

Sights and Light Mounts

Handgun sights vary by model. Some weapons have a rear sight featuring a white outline and a front sight that is either plain black or marked with a white dot. Other handguns have three white dots (two on each rear post and one on the front). Many manufacturers and some aftermarket companies offer glow-in-the-dark night sights to aid in low-light shooting. Generally similar to three-dot systems, these consist of sealed, small glass capsules, containing the radioactive isotope tritium as the source for the glow, fixed into each of the three posts.⁴ Usually, the capsules have white rubber seals around them; this allows for daytime use as a standard three-dot sight. Because a large number of law enforcement shootings occur in low-light conditions, night sights have become popular. They are particularly useful to officers at dusk when enough light exists for them to see the threat yet not enough for them to properly aim.⁵

Many handgun models also feature accessory rails on the frame, which allow mounting of factory or aftermarket flashlight, laser, or combination attachments. These components can be switched on intermittently or for a period of time and allow officers to maintain both hands on the weapon, rather than, for example, having to hold a separate flashlight with the support hand.

Care and Maintenance

Departments should select a general issue handgun that all personnel, regardless of background, can care for properly. Because the weapon serves as a tool for officers to employ to save their own lives or others, it must receive appropriate maintenance to function correctly. With this in mind, agencies should seek a firearm that personnel of all skill and interest levels will find easy to field strip, clean, and maintain. Departments should consider handguns that contain the least number of component parts as possible for personnel to disassemble and clean and that require minimal lubrication for proper functioning. Also, the less parts a handgun has, the fewer components there will be for department armorers to keep on hand and replace in the event of wear.

Some handgun models require the user to press the trigger to disassemble the weapon, while others require that the slide be locked to the rear before a lever can be activated and the handgun disassembled. This represents an important consideration due to the danger of unintentional discharge if an officer has not properly checked the weapon’s condition before pressing the trigger. Recurring training and reinforcement of proper gun handling techniques, especially checking for an empty weapon and pointing the muzzle in a safe direction before pressing the trigger, will mitigate this problem. Therefore, departments should not remove a certain handgun model from consideration because of this issue.

CHOOSING A SINGLE MODEL OR WEAPON SYSTEM

Just as one size of footwear will not fit the feet of every employee, the same firearm may not suit the variety of hand sizes within an agency. Several years ago, a particular police department decided to change a relatively open handgun policy and issue all officers a large-frame, double-column-maga-zine 9-millimeter handgun. The agency’s union representatives sought input from the firearms training staff because it became obvious that this firearm, due to its larger size, would not be appropriate for members of that department with smaller hands.

Administrators without knowledge of firearms may not have recognized the problems shooters would experience while operating a handgun too large for them. Range staff in most agencies can recall incidents where officers operating a weapon that did not properly fit their hands had difficulty manipulating a pistol’s controls, problems shooting a handgun accurately, or a lack of confidence in their ability.

Wisely, the administration viewed the detailed information about these potential problems and allowed input from firearms personnel. Then, they selected a weapon system that offered a basic design from a particular manufacturer with a variety of grip and magazine sizes and calibers, allowing options for the officers in the department.

This example illustrates how agencies can attempt to reasonably accommodate the differences among its personnel. For other departments, these issues may not be as prevalent and a single handgun model may be appropriate. In making this decision, agencies must consider the advantages and disadvantages of both options.

Single Model

If a department has a smaller number of officers—and all are reasonably compatible with a certain firearm for duty is-sue—it may find the selection of one specific model advantageous. For example, the agency would only have to train officers on one handgun, thus making the process easier. Also, departments that maintain, repair, and keep an inventory of parts for a particular model instead of several, perhaps incompatible ones, benefit from lower costs.

But, problems may occur if the agency hires a new officer who cannot demonstrate a suitable level of proficiency with the chosen handgun for physical reasons (e.g., small hand size). The selection of one firearm might not allow for a reasonable accommodation for such personnel. Also, the weapon may prove inappropriate for carry by employees in specialized assignments, such as detectives or undercover officers.

Handgun System

Issuing handguns from a system of firearms made by a manufacturer allows a department flexibility in meeting weapons training requirements and the needs of physically different personnel. For example, a heavy full-size, high-capacity handgun with a wider grip may not serve a smaller officer well; such an individual may have difficulty properly operating the weapon due to the inability either to maintain a proper grip or to reach and activate the control or safety levers. Likewise, a compact handgun may present difficulty for larger personnel. Other issues that departments must consider in regard to officer use include recoil from larger-caliber cartridges and the need for weapon concealment when necessary. Many manufacturers offer the same type of handgun in full-size, compact, and subcompact models with variations chambered in the popular law enforcement cartridges. Therefore, when officers have difficulty, for instance, managing the recoil of a .40 or .357 automatic, a department could issue them a 9 millimeter in a similar or same-size handgun that they may feel more comfortable with; hopefully, better marksmanship skills would result.

Weapons staff members frequently teach new officers who have no prior firearms experience. Instructors help students feel confident enough to use a firearm effectively and to conquer the timid feelings that may result from a lack of experience with recoil, muzzle blast, and gunshot noise. If officers do not overcome such concerns, they may not develop the interest, enthusiasm, and commitment toward continuous development of marksmanship abilities after their initial training and throughout their law enforcement careers. These skills will help them maintain a confidence level that will benefit them in a deadly force encounter. To this end, departments must recognize that a weapon’s caliber and size represent potential obstacles that may keep personnel from continuing to practice on their own.

The cost of a firearm system poses a disadvantage—a department has to purchase parts for more than one model and ensure its armorers can repair and maintain them as well. But, agencies could inquire about weapon systems from manufacturers that offer different models with interchangeable component parts. As another drawback, the agency would have to buy inventories of different caliber ammunition, furthering the financial burden. Also, training may become more difficult because of the differences between the weapons; therefore, departments may wish to consider choosing a system of handguns that have the same general operating levers and functions, despite the different sizes and calibers.

CONCLUSION

From time-to-time, law enforcement agencies face decisions concerning firearms, such as which model to use and whether to issue a single handgun or a weapon system. When going through this process, departments should strongly consider input from their firearms staff, a readily available and economical source of current information. Weapons instructors not only have on-the-job knowledge but frequently use handguns as a hobby in their off-duty time and read publications about the latest updates in firearms technology.

Every department realizes the importance held by decisions concerning firearms. When an agency bases its choice on the needs of the organization, as well as its personnel, officers will carry weapons that help them do their jobs effectively and, also, to protect themselves.

Wanted: Book Reviews

The Bulletin invites criminal justice professionals to submit reviews of recently published nonfiction books they have read on topics relative to their field of expertise for possible inclusion in its Book Review department. The magazine publishes only positive reviews of between 350 and 500 words or 1 ½ to 2 pages double-spaced. As with article submissions, the Bulletin staff will edit book reviews for style, length, clarity, and format.

Book reviewers should include two or three compelling points that the author makes, along with the complete title of the work; the names of the authors or editors; and the publishing company, city and state, and publication date. As a guide, the staff suggests that reviewers examine book reviews in past issues of the Bulletin to acquaint themselves with the magazine’s requirements. Reviewers should submit their book reviews typed and double-spaced on 8 ½- by 11-inch white paper with all pages numbered. Reviewers should include an electronic version of the review saved on computer disk. Send book reviews to:

Editor

FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin
FBI Academy Madison Building, Room 201
Quantico, VA 22135 telephone: 703-632-1952 e-mail: leb@fbiacademy.edu

Book Review

Problem-Oriented Policing: From Innovation to Mainstream by Johannes Knutsson, editor, Criminal Justice Press, Willan Publishing, Devon, United Kingdom, 2003.

Problem-oriented policing (POP), in some locales, has succeeded and supplemented existing crime prevention and community policing as main areas of law enforcement emphasis. POP is a police management philosophy that entails SARA: scanning to identify, specify, and describe specific problems to include analysis in which the causes of the identified problems are explored fully and response that refers to the search for “tailor made” solutions to remove the specific or general causes of the problems through implementation of concepts supported by assessment concerning the process where the solutions implemented are evaluated in terms of effectiveness and strategies. Many consider POP as a more analytical approach to conducting law enforcement business with a strategy to get away from a reactive, incident-driven mode to that of a preventive way of doing law enforcement business in general.

As examples, the book highlights the efforts of the San Diego, California, Police Department concerning its implementation of the concept, as well as the outstanding results by the Charlotte, North Carolina, Police Department in its concept application against the crime of thefts from cars in center-city parking facilities. The book also provides an “A to Z” approach on the concept in the United Kingdom as to its application to repeat victimization and dealing with and closing drug markets. The research papers in the book present an abstract section and contact information for the authors, along with cited references. Some chapters have a proposal to their findings or a conclusion to the research with final end-of-paper notes to the reader. Overall, the book has four major strengths: 1) a matrix example of a question-based, problem-solving protocol for beat-level, problem-solving officers; 2) a POP flow schematic on the sequence of analysis and its techniques based on actual situational scenarios in communities; 3) a study of the British crime reduction program that fostered problem-oriented policing and how it received funding to implement the concept through competitive bidding; and 4) a listing of organizational impacting factors in terms of police staff turnovers, middle management emphasis, and prioritization of police resources as obstacles to concept implementation, as well as front-line factors, such as officer critical thinking in decision making, imagination in responses, partner agency support, and phobias and syndromes.

The book directly applies to preventive police patrols, criminal investigations, emergency responses, ancillary public services, prosecutors, and defense bar and judiciary representatives. Mayors, city managers, other elected and appointed officials, and academics, as well as police research organizations, government funding agencies, the media, private industry, and local community groups would benefit from reading Problem-Oriented Policing: From Innovation to Mainstream.

Reviewed by Larry R. Moore Lifetime Certified Emergency Manager International Association of Emergency Managers Knoxville, Tennessee

Unusual Weapon

Focus on Investigations

Homicide InvestigativeStrategies
By John B. Edwards

© Charles Sikes

Experienced law enforcement officers know that the most important objectives in all homicide investigations are the ability to identify, collect, analyze, and process information quickly and effectively and, then, act just as efficiently on that data to achieve maximum results. The effectiveness of the investigation often depends on the investigative team’s ability to quickly process and complete prioritized leads to swiftly provide answers to the case agent. Uncovering information that establishes clues and generates leads that tailor the focus and scope of the investigative effort are critical issues. Further, investigative teams must be able to locate and interview people quickly to lock individuals into statements to provide the maximum indicia of credibility and reliability; locate and preserve valuable evidence; and obtain and document the most accurate observations and accounts, putting together specific timelines. Investigators should use “the fact-finding capsule,” a fundamental method illustrated by several investigative tactics completed under three important rules.

1) Haste: quickly accomplish all tasks to seize the initiative and promptly develop facts.

2) Specificity: precisely explore all issues t o obtain facts detailed enough to make objec- tive judgments and correlations.

3) Element of surprise: prevent interviewees from getting their stories together and deter the interjection of attorneys into an efficient interview process.

The tactical steps of a homicide investigation should include a specific interview, a timeline documenting the witness’ or suspect’s physical location, what happened at those places over a time period necessary and germane to the case, and a well-documented statement. If the suspect articulates an alibi, investigators immediately should conduct follow-up verification interviews, observing, inspecting, and documenting the suspect’s shoes, clothing, and physical appearance, as well as any premises and personal effects involved.

These basic investigatory steps remain critical to today’s criminal investigations; however, the advent of technologies and modern communications creates a need to apply these old strategies in a new fashion. In today’s world, almost every household has access to or possession of computers, and most individuals possess cell phones and pagers. Every technological asset, whether at home or work, has records, communications, tolls, or billings that may reveal valuable evidence regarding a person’s lifestyle, friends, associates, enemies, or businesses. This information quickly can identify motives and other articulative facts essential to determining an individual’s victimology or suspectology. Learning these details during traditional interviews proves essential to the investigative effort. The Fourth Amendment applies to many technologies and, therefore, investigators oftentimes need consent, court rders, or search warrants to develop the information. Experienced officers know that they must address all issues in an ongoing investigation and that the first 48 hours prove critical, leading to the prompt investigative trilogy.

INVESTIGATIVE TRILOGY

The prompt investigative trilogy has three particular areas: 1) specific focus (immediate); 2) general coverage (immediate); and 3) informative (pending). Teams of investigators must address each area simultaneously during the investigation and direct information from all three areas to the central clearinghouse (e.g., the lead investigator, case agent, or detective in the case). At that time, teams should process information, form theories, and take steps regarding the focus, scope, and need for additional resources.

Specific Focus

Witnesses, evidence, events, and facts make up the specific focus. These categories apply to those issues immediately identified at the inception of the investigation. For instance, at a crime scene, certain witnesses may have been present at the time of the crime. Distinctive pieces of evidence may be in plain view, and events or facts may exist that investigators must address. These immediately apparent issues demand specific focus whether in crime-scene processing or interviews.

General Coverage

While teams of investigators address those specific focus issues, a second team should handle the general coverage issue, which comprises four areas. First, they should conduct neighborhood canvasses, which deal with people in close vicinity to others, and make observations or assessments regarding situational environmental issues in connection with proximity. Second, interviews of friends, families, and associates may determine victimology or suspectology information while such information is fresh and untainted by the direction of the investigation. Third, coworkers or employers may provide other information regarding victims and suspects. Finally, construction of definite victim/suspect timelines should outline the environment, proximity, locations, and times.

Prompt Investigative Trilogy

A New Role for Universities

By TONY AEILTS

The high-tech industry is vital to the nation’s economy and its future. Industries, businesses, government agencies, and private households all benefit from a healthy and well-protected technological environment. And, everyone wants reassurance that communications, financial operations, and technological infrastructure are closely guarded. The rising fear of cyber-related crime not only inhibits the use of developing technology but adversely affects national economic conditions. The FBI estimates that the average loss for a technology-oriented crime is nearly $500,000, and, further, the added cost to the consumer is $100 to $150 per computer sale.¹ Other estimates indicate that losses related to high-tech crimes in the United States are $10 billion to $15 billion per year.² Further, 10 million Americans were victimized by identity theft in one year, with estimated losses exceeding $50 billion,³ and the Federal Trade Commission reported that of the 516,740 complaints received in 2003, over 41 percent regarded identity theft.⁴

Beyond the implications of cybercriminal activity, a new technological threat exists pertaining to terrorism. Since September 11, 2001, the nation has focused more on the issue of cyberterrorism because although terrorists typically have used traditional methods of physical attack (explosives, kidnappings, and hijackings), their attention may move, with increasing frequency, toward cyberterrorism. Various forms of technological infrastructure may be vulnerable to such attack; pipelines, power plants, transportation, and other hard assets rely on cybertechnology. Further, communication systems used for financial, military, police, and corporate purposes suffer from the same vulnerability. This not only includes threats against physical facilities and tangible equipment but remote cyberattacks that could disable national infrastructure as well.

Notable Speech

Crime Data

Bulletin Reports

Gangs

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) presents Gang-and Drug-Related Homicide: Baltimore’s Successful Enforcement Strategy, which examines inner-city gang characteristics and growth as well as traditional and new, effective gang enforcement by the police. This report presents several innovative strategies to combat inner-city gangs: prosecution of gang members, effective gang enforcement, and investigative approaches (controlled arrests, interviews of randomly arrested gang members, and grand juries as investigative tools). Sample case files from the Baltimore, Maryland, Police Department are discussed. This publication further stresses the importance of creating police gang units and implementing strategy reviews as effective law enforcement tools to deter gang activity. This report is available electronically at http://www.ncjrs.org/html/bja/gang.

Bulletin Reports is an edited collection of criminal justice studies, reports, and project findings. Send your material for consideration to: FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Room 209, Madison Building, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA 22135. (NOTE: The material in this section is intended to be strictly an information source and should not be considered an endorsement by the FBI for any product or service.)

 

 

Serial Murder in the Netherlands
A Look at Motivation, Behavior, and Characteristics
By ALAN C. BRANTLEY, M.A., and ROBERT H. KOSKY, Jr.

© Digital Stock

Something unusual was happening at a children’s hospital in The Hague, Netherlands. The hospital administrator did not want to prejudge the situation, but another patient of Lucy’s had died. Although her patients were extremely sick and sometimes terminally ill, the hospital staff did not expect them to die so suddenly. This, however, had happened more than once— actually, more than twice. Lucy’s supervisor and several of her colleagues had alerted the administrator about the number of patients that had died immediately after she left their rooms. Therefore, the administrator decided to suspend Lucy, pending a review.

The review determined that within a 3-year period, eight of Lucy’s patients had died while under her care. The hospital referred this information to The Hague Police Department on September 4, 2001. Investigators quickly discovered that Lucy had worked at another hospital where 19 elderly patients had died while under her care. Additionally, at least one patient had died at home after Lucy visited the person’s residence. Indicted for the murder of 13 patients, Lucy was arrested on December 13, 2001.

The Netherlands Public Prosecution Service had only once before charged anyone with multiple counts of murder. Many members of The Hague District Attorney’s Office, a component of the Prosecution Service, as well as the general public and the media simply could not understand how one person could be motivated to kill so many people. In fact, many believed that serial murder was an American problem; the Netherlands simply did not have serial killers.

The District Attorney’s Office, in conjunction with The Hague Police Department, oversaw the investigation and prosecution of this case. In May 2002, the District Attorney’s Office presented this case to the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) at the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC), an entity within the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group (CIRG). Subsequently, BAU personnel conducted an on-site review of the case in the Netherlands, which led to a request for and the eventual expert testimony by a BAU member regarding the motivation, behavior, and psychological characteristics of serial murderers.¹ Although this case illustrates the relatively rare phenomenon of a female serial murderer, the traits and characteristics of female serial murderers are more similar than unique when compared with the broader population of male serial murderers.

Mr. Brantley, a retired FBI agent with the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime Behavioral Analysis Unit, currently is the owner and executive partner of a behavioral consulting firm.

Special Agent Kosky is assigned to the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime Behavioral Analysis Unit at the FBI Academy.

 

Definition Difficulties

Like many other behavioral classifications that attempt to label complicated and complex sets of variables, efforts to standardize a definition of serial murder have failed to achieve a consensus. People often use serial murder, serial homicide, serial killing, multiple murder, mass murder, and sexual homicide interchangeably. The lack of a standard definition of serial murder, at times, may confuse those who investigate this subpopulation of lethal criminals, and it also negatively impacts attempts by the courts, the criminal justice system, and the public to understand the problem. In general, previous efforts to define serial murder have included criteria relative to the number of victims, time elapsed between crimes, motivation, geographical mobility, and victim selection. The major shortcoming of any behavioral typology or classification is that reducing something complicated to a concise label does not necessarily adequately explain the phenomenon.

The FBI derived its current definition for serial killing from legislation that describes serial killing “as a series of three or more killings, having common characteristics such as to suggest the reasonable possibility that the crimes were committed by the same offender or offend-ers.”² Stated in this manner primarily for jurisdictional/ investigative reasons, the definition also includes the requirement that at least one of the killings occur within the United States. The criteria include three or more victims, common offense characteristics, and common offenders. The FBI uses the term killing vis-à-vis murder because the bulk of its efforts are investigative and occur prior to an offender’s apprehension and adjudication.

The FBI’s definition of serial killing makes no reference to underlying motivation, behavior, and psychological characteristics. The agency kept the definition intentionally broad to encompass the full array of serial killers.

Motivational Factors

The FBI’s NCAVC has further classified homicides of all types and has addressed motivational factors. Historically, in criminology and behavioral science literature, motivation appeared as one of the earliest criteria used to classify homicides, with classification efforts focusing on the traditional motives of financial gain, revenge, elimination of an obstacle, jealousy, and sex. Much later, criminologists and other behavioral scientists recognized that serial murderers are motivated by a complex and complicated set of motives, often involving nontraditional ones. To describe a motivational model for a serial murderer as one-dimensional or in terms of only one motive would prove inaccurate. Rather, a serial murderer’s motivations are multifaceted and most often reinforced by internal desires for gratification versus external rewards, such as profit or financial gain. This can be described further in terms of a dichotomy for violence based on the offender’s desired outcome. This dichotomy involves the concept of instrumental violence versus affective violence. Instrumental violence occurs when the violence is a means to an end—an armed robber steals money from the cash register and kills the store employee to eliminate a potential witness. By contrast, affective violence is an end in itself, or, in other words, the death of the victim is itself the desired end.³

Serial murder also can be differentiated from other types of murder because it is more often predatory, premeditated, and deliberate. Serial murderers fantasize and plan the crime and pursue and ultimately kill their victims without the interpersonal conflict and emotional provocation common in other murderer-victim interactions and relationships.

The FBI continues to conduct interviews with serial murderers. In one study in the 1980s, the agency interviewed sexual murderers, the majority being serial murderers. The agency developed organized and disorganized typologies as a result of these interviews, primarily as a means to assess the level of an offender’s criminal sophistication.⁴ Generally, the organized offender commits well-planned and well-orches-trated offenses, whereas the disorganized offender commits more poorly planned and poorly executed offenses. For some time, criminal justice professionals have recognized these two rather broad categories of offenders who commit not only sexual murders but murders of all types.

The more organization demonstrated by an offender, the more likely the offender will be intelligent, socially competent, capable of skilled employment, evidence conscious, controlled, and able to avoid identification while accounting for a greater number of victims. Organized offenders also are more likely to select vulnerable victims to increase the probability of being successful and to avoid detection. They lack feelings of guilt or remorse and view their victims as mere objects that they can manipulate for their own perverse satisfaction and sense of power, control, mastery, and domination. Also, the murderers themselves reported that the excitement and stimulation that resulted from doing something forbidden, taboo, and illegal provided an additional motivational facet. According to some serial murderers, the more perverse or taboo the behavior, the more excitement and stimulation they experienced.

Organized serial murderers may kill in such great numbers due to fantasies that feed their predatory desires and lead them to compete with themselves in a perverted contest of “practice makes perfect.”⁵ In other words, they continue to kill, in part, due to a desire to improve upon their last murder. They also may compete with authority figures by continuing to operate undetected. They know something no one else knows, and the information is exclusive. A common belief is that information is power, and offenders can feel powerful because they know something authorities do not know. In addition, they understand their misbehavior, know the difference between right and wrong, and can choose when and where to act upon their urges.

 

 

Developmental Histories

Serial murderers, as well as other violent offenders, often have developmental histories that include childhood sexual or physical abuse; maternal or paternal deprivation, rejection, or abandonment; or exposure to violent role models in the home. However, many individuals have experienced childhood abuse, and the vast majority do not become criminals, much less serial murderers. Most abused children adjust and, as they mature, progress past their traumatic experiences. However, those individuals who become serial murderers do not adjust and put the trauma and its influence in the past. They ruminate about their mistreatment; dwell on their past experiences; and become frustrated, angry, and depressed.

They often express their chronic anger, which represents one of the internal motivational facets in the multifaceted motivational model, in their murders. A serial murderer once stated in a research interview that he was abused as a child and believed that he was mistreated all of his life. This made him angry, depressed, and miserable. He consciously decided to take revenge on society as a whole by committing his murders and making as many other people as he could just as depressed and miserable.

Depression and its collateral side effects are prominent in the histories of serial murderers. Behavioral scientists have recognized for some time that a fine line or close association may exist between murder and suicide. This association is illustrated, on the one hand, when depression is turned inward and manifests itself with symptoms of sadness, self-downing, apathy, hopelessness, helplessness, and ambivalence concerning living. Thoughts of self-harm and the act of suicide can result. Depression also can be turned outward and manifest itself with symptoms of irritability, hostility, and agitation. Thoughts of harming others and the risk of committing murder greatly increase as the result of these side effects of depression. In short, why would people who experience ambivalence concerning living or dying and have a state of mind that devalues life, including their own, place any value on someone else’s life?

Serial murderers are mentally abnormal and exhibit the traits and characteristics of a variety of mental disorders without reaching the threshold of mental illness necessary for exculpability. At the core, evidence of severe personality disorder or paraphilia will exist and may include, but is not limited to, traits associated with antisocial personality disorder, psychopathy, sexual sadism, borderline personality disorder, and pedophilia.⁶ The more organized serial murderers most often exhibit the traits and characteristics of the psychopath. Few, if any, organized serial murderers are psychotic at the time they commit their offenses.

© Digital Stock

 

Rare Phenomenon

Estimates of serial murder prevalence and the number of serial murderers are just that— estimates. No official statistics are maintained within the United States, and no known empirical data are available from international sources. What is known is that serial murder is a rare phenomenon and statistically, when compared with murders of all types, occurs infrequently. Like other types of murderers, serial murderers are predominantly male. Female serial murder, as a subset of serial murder, rarely occurs. When female serial murderers offend, they are more likely than their male counterparts to kill victims in close proximity to themselves. In other words, their victims are more likely to be family members, paramours, those who were in their custodial care, and tenants. Female serial murderers also are more likely to poison their victims in a more impersonal, detached manner than males, who more often strangle, stab, or beat their victims.⁷

Another subset of serial murder include those committed by health-care workers in hospitals and nursing homes throughout the United States and other countries. A large number of health-care worker serial murderers are female due, in part, to the fact that female health-care workers outnumber male health-care workers by a wide margin. The differential of power between doctors and nurses also may play a role in a motivational model where a desire for recognition, attention, revenge, power, and control are contributing factors. The desire for excitement, stimulation, and attention from colleagues also have been reported as elements contributing to the murder of patients.⁸ Additionally, some serial murderers in health-care facilities and elsewhere have reported that the act of murder relieved tension, stress, and frustration.⁹

Health-care worker serial murderers also are most often organized in their planning, victim selection, and efforts to avoid not only detection but also the suspicion of others. They are aware of risk factors that can increase the probability of being identified and apprehended. Vulnerable victims who are helpless and unable to resist, such as the seriously ill, elderly, or very young, are at greatest risk for victimization. Health-care worker serial murderers decrease risk to themselves by working independently and outside the observation of others. Working evening and night shifts when fewer workers are present frequently occurs in cases of health-care serial murder.¹⁰

Lucy’s Legacy

Lucy kept a detailed diary of her troubled life. Though she did not specifically mention her victims, she wrote often of giving in to her “compulsion.” In one instance, the date of these entries coincided with the death of one of her patients. Lucy recorded her struggles to understand her lack of feeling and compassion. She wrote of her “sociopathic” personality and her desire to understand this aspect of herself.

Lucy worked in critical care settings, and her patients were either elderly or children. In almost all of the cases, the victims were either comatose or had a diminished awareness of their surroundings. All were vulnerable and had impaired communicative abilities.

In the case of every victim, colleagues reported that Lucy developed a close rapport with either the patient or the patient’s family. She seemed to spend an extraordinary amount of time with them. But, in every case, she had been seen alone with the victims shortly before their deaths or, at least, had made an observation in the medical record not witnessed by another health-care worker. In more than a few cases, Lucy reported a marked deterioration in a patient’s status just before death. Strangely, a pattern developed where other nurses had made observations about patient progress that contradicted Lucy’s. Also, the hospital accused Lucy of stealing drugs that, coincidently, happened to be the drugs her patients were taking. Autopsies revealed high levels of potassium in some patients. In others, missing morphine, attributed to Lucy, seemed to coincide with several victims’ deaths. Though theft of drugs did not play a significant role in the evidentiary part of the verdict of the Court of Appeal, in the case of one victim, intoxication with the drug digoxine was established by expert witnesses beyond any doubt. The case of this little girl, and one other case in which intoxication with chloral hydrate was very likely, came to be important evidence for the court.

Though Lucy was indicted in the deaths of 13 patients and the attempted murder of 5 more, the investigation disclosed that 28 of her patients had died within a 4-year period, with 8 of those being children. Lucy was convicted on four counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder, as well as perjury, falsifying a high school diploma, and theft of several books from the prison library. Lucy received life imprisonment, the maximum sentence allowed in the Netherlands.¹¹

Conclusion

Serial murderers receive attention in American movies and television programs that is disproportionate to their frequency when compared with murders of all types. Sadly, law enforcement professionals in this country also know, all too well, the tremendous suffering these crimes can cause in real life. Officials in the Netherlands, however, never had faced the devastating effects that a serial murderer can create until a children’s hospital in The Hague reported an unusually large number of patients dying while under a certain nurse’s care.

While this case illustrates that of a female serial murderer, it also provides a glimpse into the equally infrequent sphere of the health-care worker serial murderer. Investigating a case involving an offender whose occupation places a premium on saving lives presents a bitter irony even for the most experienced law enforcement professionals. But, examining the motivation, behavior, and characteristics of such individuals can help investigators and prosecutors not only bring the guilty individuals to justice but also cope with the trauma of such horrific acts.

Endnotes

¹ The authors based this article on a report written for the Public Prosecution Service, The Hague, Netherlands, in preparation for one of the authors’ expert testimony at the subject’s trial.

² Title 28, U.S. Code, Section 540B.

³ A.H. Buss, The Psychology of Aggression (New York, NY: Wiley, 1961).

⁴ R.K. Ressler, A.W. Burgess, and J.E. Douglas, Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives (New York, NY: Lexington Books, 1988).

⁵ A.C. Brantley and F.M. Ochberg, “Lethal Predators and Future Dangerousness,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, April 2003, 16-21.

⁶ Ibid.

⁷ M.D. Kelleher and C.L. Kelleher, Murder Most Rare: The Female Serial Killer (New York, NY: Random House, 1998).

⁸ C. Le Duff, “Prosecutors Say Ex-Doctor Killed Because It Thrilled Him,” New York Times, September 6, 2000.

⁹ C. Linedecker and W. Burt, Nurses Who Kill (New York, NY: Pinnacle Books, 1990).

¹⁰ R.E Gaetjens, “A Review of Occupational, Behavioral, and Organizational Differences in Health-Care Worker Serial Homicide,” (unpublished manuscript, December 20, 2000).

¹¹The Dutch legal system allows appellate courts to essentially retry a case. Not only can a convicted party appeal a ruling but the government can appeal an acquittal. The convicted nurse appealed her conviction. On appeal, the defendant was convicted of seven counts of murder and four counts of attempted murder. Her life sentence was upheld.

The Bulletin Notes

Law enforcement officers are challenged daily in the performance of their duties; they face each challenge freely and unselfishly while answering the call to duty. In certain instances, their actions warrant special attention from their respective departments. The Bulletin also wants to recognize those situations that transcend the normal rigors of the law enforcement profession.

Sergeant Pedersen

Sergeant John Pedersen of the Vero Beach, Florida, Police Department responded to a medical emergency involving an infant who was having trouble breathing. Upon his arrival, Sergeant Pedersen found no signs of respiration at all and immediately began rescue procedures. After administering breaths and back thrusts to the baby, the airway became cleared and the infant began breathing on his own. Sergeant Pedersen then removed the blockage from the young boy’s mouth—part of an ink pen that the baby had swallowed. The child and his family are grateful for the actions of this quick-thinking and well-trained officer.

^{Officer Elliott}

^{Sergeant Hawkins}

A wildfire ignited by a lightning strike raged out of control and threatened a resort community. Numerous residences sat directly in the path of the blaze. Officer Mitch Elliott and Sergeant Harry Hawkins of the Black Butte Ranch, Oregon, Police Department hurried door-to-door through intense heat, flames, and smoke and evacuated the residents as firefighters battled the blaze. After stopping to receive treatment for smoke inhalation and heat exhaustion, Officer Elliott and Sergeant Hawkins returned to duty to help evacuate the community’s remaining residents and guests. The bravery of these two officers aided in the safe, orderly evacuation and allowed the firefighters to concentrate their efforts on battling the dangerous wildfire.

Nominations for the Bulletin Notes should be based on either the rescue of one or more citizens or arrest(s) made at unusual risk to an officer’s safety. Submissions should include a short write-up (maximum of 250 words), a separate photograph of each nominee, and a letter from the department’s ranking officer endorsing the nomination. Submissions should be sent to the Editor, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, FBI Academy, Madison Building, Room 201, Quantico, VA 22135.

Periodicals
Postage and Fees Paid
Federal Bureau of Investigation
ISSN 0014-5688

U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20535-0001

Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300

Patch Call

The patch of the Conway, Arkansas, PoliceDepartment reflects its city’s pride in being a cen-ter of higher education. Guided by the principles ofcommunity policing, the agency serves 3 four-yearcolleges, as well as the fastest-growing city inArkansas.	The Helena, Montana, Police Departmentserves the “Queen City of the Rockies.” Its patchfeatures the timber-covered, snow-capped RockyMountains. The Fire Tower, known as the “Guard-ian of the Gulch,” stands watch over the city.