Writers, esp those writing true-crime books, are often drawn to serial killer stories. And so are everyday people since these stories both horrify and fascinate us frequently. As a service to my fellow writers, I'm providing another tutorial. This one deals with the facts and the myths of serial killers. Hopefully, writers will find them useful for their writing. And other readers may just find them interesting. Some facts. Serial killings account for very few of all murders committed in … [Read more...]
CRIME FRAUD Tutorial—Imposters Anna & Maddie —“Skilled” Criminals
Today's blog is one among my series on "skilled" criminals —fences, imposters, forgers, and art thieves. There's also a related series on "unskilled"criminals. The hope in this blog is to fire up writers, provide info to criminology students and true-crime fans, and to, well, have some fun. Recent Russian immigrant to the U.S. Anna Sorokin created the fictitious identity of Anna Delvey, pretending to be a wealthy German heiress. On May 10, 2019, a court sentenced her to 4 to 12 years in … [Read more...]
CRIME BURGLARY & HOME INVASION Tutorial — Info & Prevention Tips from Bad Guys
Welcome to this burglary and home invasion tutorial …with information and prevention tips from bad guys. It's another tutorial designed for Crime writers Crime researchers, and Curious worrywarts (includes almost all of us). Please scroll down and find something right down your alley, esp if you're in one of the above three camps. Crime writers: Most of us cringe at the idea of someone coming into our homes while we’re away. And downright terrified if this happens while we’re … [Read more...]
CRIME MASS MURDER Tutorial—The 5 W’s of Multicide—Definitions, Stats, Events
Homicide is the criminal killing of a human being, and this tutorial deals with the multiple killing situation known as multicide, or sometimes mass murder. By the end of this tutorial, you should have a handle on four of the five Ws—the who, what, where, when. The whys are for another blog. Also, since it's a different kind of multicide, serial killing is treated as a special category. MASS MURDER There are a wide variety of ways that homicides with more than several victims might … [Read more...]
Overindulgence and Bullying (e.g., Post Xmas Bargains & Boxing Day).
This Overindulgence & Bullying post is the third in a multipart series adapted from Hart and Caven's The Bullying Antidote, The book's chapter titled, “And How Are the Children?’ looks at the ways bullying connects with our worst societal ills. They asserts there's an overindulgence and bullying connection. See the important questions and comments below this guest post. How our material culture is connected to bullying. "Materialism is an equal-opportunity crisis. … [Read more...]
CRIME INVESTIGATION Tutorial— How the FBI does it.
Regrettably, a high profile FBI crime investigation seems to be opened on a regular basis these days. Mass killings like the recent one at a synagogue in Pittsburg are part of the reason. Counting the Thousand Oaks bar shooting this week, there have been 307 mass shootings so far in 2018. That's almost one a day in the U.S. according to the Gun Violence Archive.** Crime Investigation and the FBI. So, the FBI is heck-a-busy doing crime investigation and other things on top of … [Read more...]
Murdered while in prayer, while in school: The bullying connection.
Schools and houses of worship are two of the most revered places in our society. They are also among the most vulnerable since—unlike many places of business, transportation centers and the like—they've generally lacked guards and security. That's changing for schools, and sadly now, for places of worship. Yes, there've been other shootings and bombings at sacred places (to show the range, Charleston, SC in 2015; Birmingham, AL in 1963). But there've rarely been calls for armed protection for … [Read more...]