.Inside the Minds of Serial Killers


No one really knows what lurks just beneath the surface of a “normal’’- looking person. “Normal people” can be anything from rapists, to killers or to your next door neighboor. Picture yourself in a crowd, or just in the grocery store,its never occured to you that any one of these strangers could be a serial killer. These individuals go out of their way to perfectly blend in and seem normal... atleast while people are watching. Whether you just simply going about your day you have the chance of seeing 16 possible killers. We always imagine criminals to look a certain way or act in a specific manner. Throughout history dozens of serial killers have proven that stereotype wrong.

Human behaviors are extremely captivating. What we see on the outside is never really what most are like on the inside.Pyscopaths and sociopaths truly belive they are suprerior to everyone else.So much so, they believe laws do not apply to them.Their lies become their twisted reality, making horrible decisions with no turning back. Once they complete their “mission” they start obsessing about their next victim.Whether it is planned or not serial killers have a deep motive as to why they kill. Ted Bundy is the perfect example of what it means to be a serial killer. Bundy was a college graduate and an almost law school graduate. Aside from being a brilliant a young man, he was also extremely clever and charming.So charming that Bundy had two wives in his life time.  In Bundy’s mind he aquated killing with sexual pleasure. Over the course of Bundys life he was a serial killer, kidnapper, rapist, burglar and a necrophile. His killings were so brutal that no one would have ever guessed it could have been a man like him. He was so good at manipulating young woman it became an easy routine.Bundy killed his victims by strangling them so feircly that their bodies would be contorted from the force he applied. The force he used on his victimes was so severe he would snap their necks, and bite them so fiercly he pierces the skin removing chunks of flesh.Sometimes while raping his victims he would proceed to use one of his many methods to kill them. Even after victims were dead Bundy derived sexual pleasure from their lifeless bodies. Bundy had an exact image of who he wanted to kill, she was approximately 18-22 , and long brown hair. Bundys first love break up sparked this enormous rage and hatred that led him to kill  brutally mutualate young women’s bodies. He believed he was the best, and superior to everyone. He wanted everyone and anyone to be under his control. The fascination to knowing what flips the switch in that person’s mind turning thoughts into action is extremely captivating. how can someone kill with no regret, how do they live there everyday lives knowing that they ruined young women’s lives and families.

Killing, the action, and the process are both chilling and fascinating. While most write off serial killers as horrible people, they fail to realize the complexity of a killer’s psyche that leads them to kill. I’ve always wondered how one can be responsible for another’s death. Going day to day as normal as the next. Some showing very noticeable signs of Psychopathic behaviors, not feeling guilt, small but many impulsivities and the constant earning need for control.

Known serial killers are put in the category of mentally ill or evil geniuses. Although it’s a way to understand , these are inaccurate diagnoses about these cold blooded killers. Most serial killers are likely to exhibit personality disorders, such as sociopathy, but most commonly psychopathy. These disorders can be a compilation of other mental issues , like depression, anxiety or manic-depressive disorders or behaviors. Sociopathy manifests itself with being extremely antisocial and behaviors of inconsistencies. Although sociopaths are antisocial they are extremely manipulative. Being charming was a skill they used to create their extravagant lies.They can be so controlling making everything go the way they want it to is an easy job , because they don’t care what they have to do to get it. Whether it’s emotionally, physically sociopaths will abuse anyone to get their way. Another trait that killers is being a  psychopath. It is one of the hardest things to spot in a person because they blend in with the “normal” person. Being a psychopath is almost the same thing as a sociopath but you have violent behaviors. The bar for clinical psychopathy is a score of 30 or above. An infamous killer Ted Bundy scored 39. The testing is based off of a 20 item checklist that includes traits such as sexual promiscuity , parasitic lifestyle, and impulsive behaviors.

Often what leads people to psychopathy is an abusive childhood, kids whose parents consistently punished them for no reason.If the people around feel or show no empathy or guilt in their wrong doing they can adapt to the abuse by displaying psychopathic tendencies.  In the netflix series called Evil Genius it says most likely people inherit these traits from selective and rare genes that are X-linked MAOA gene.

One huge factor that psychopaths have is they are fearless, and have no reaction to punishments. They have no sympathy or empathy, which makes it just that easy to kill their victims. They are driven by their own fascinations and their desire for feeling they are searching for. They feel superior to others and feel it’s their own way of showing they are superior.

John Wayne-Gacy was an American serial killer with 33 guilty counts of murdering boys and young men. He had an a former job of dressing as a clown at children’s parties, an alter ego soon formed from that former job. Gacy would frequently dress as “Pogo the Clown” to murder his victims.

John Gacy had an abusive childhood that included troubles with his sexuality growing up.His father was an alcoholic that would beat his children while intoxicated and full of rage. He would spank John and his siblings with a razor strap. All throughout Johns childhood he seemed to search for acceptance from his classmates and father. He suffered from a congenital heart condition that held him back from playing with the other kids. John received no sympathy from his cruel father about his circumstances, in fact he made John feel a failure because of it. He grew up with a cold hearted personality because of his lack of human affection from the people around him.But Gacy grew up to then marry and move with his wife to Iowa, the couple had two children over their marriage.This would soon change because Gacy's wife filed for divorced after John was charged with sexually assaulting a male that was also one of his employees in 1968. John Wayne Gacy was handed 10 years in prison, but was released due to so called “ good behavior”. After serving time Gacy moved back to his hometown Chicago he restarted his own contracting company, and also remarried. John was a seemingly normal person even after his sexual assault, he was living a double life. He committed his first murder in the year 1972. Johns victims were either male prostitutes or young males who worked for his company, he would typically put his victims in handcuffs and lure them to the back of his house to then knock them out with chloroform. What came after is what leaves him to be the evil and sick minded man he was. After his victims were helpless he would rape them, torture them and kill them. Gacy would soon be a main suspect for the death of a male teenager who was last seen with him, he denied all claims and continued his spree. There were searches and notices about the stench coming from Gacy's home but he claimed it to be the sewage pipes. In reality it was 29 buried corpses, all of which were recovered after Gacy confessed his crimes, he had also stated he’d thrown 4 bodies in a nearby river due to lack of space. John Wayne Gacy, a sick and twisted killer brutally killed his victims and had sexual associations with his victims. He was a psychopath, he killed for the power over homosexual individuals, even though it was believed he identified as one himself.


The Zodiac killer was an infamous killer, with no known identity. He was most famous for his dozens of unsolved crimes, and the long eire cryptograms,which were primarily written in his own “code”. He seemed to target teenage couples that were far off from anyone who could stop him. One of the many strange aspects about this killer was that he would call almost immediately to confirm it was him that had done it , identifying himself as the “Zodiac killer”.

I’ve spent so many hours thinking about how he has never been caught. How could he possibly go by day to day with no one picking him out or noticing the truely evil man he was. He even called multiple times to the police station using his real voice to speak to them.These confusing crimes had taken place in California between the years of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. The Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa, and San Francisco. Throughout his whole time killing he relentlessly mocked the police through phone calls and letters.These stories and details were covered in the Netflix movie “ZODIAC” . Making threats to the areas newspapers to take down all stories or information about the crimes.In one letter the Zodiac Killer  expressed his love and passion for killing. He only had five murders completely connected to him but , about two dozen other murders claiming to be him. He believed those who he killed will end up in his after life as his slaves who will worship him forever.

A Cannibal, a sex offender, serial killer all under the same name. The most viscous man to ever live, murdering 17 males between 1978 to 1991. Dahmer not only sought out men, he mostly targeted black men.He began being interested in necrophilia and murders just as a young boy. he never began acting strange right away as a child, he began strange behavior after a surgery at the age of four for hernia. At some point after it was documented from others around him he began to seem estranged and distant.Growing up with divorced parents and moving all over all the time he seem to never have any friends. he was described as disengaged tense and largely friendless.At the age of 14 his parents divorce started some mental break down, he started serious compulsions toward necrophilia, But it took a few years before he began to act upon his overtaken thoughts. Jeffrey Dahmer‘s first killing happened just after graduating high school. Dahmer had picked up hitchhiker of the name Steven Hicks in the summer of 78.He then proceeded to take Steven to his parents house where Dahmer got Steven intoxicated, and as soon as Steven tried to leave Dahmer made his moves. Dahmer had struck Steven in the head with a barbell then strangling him he them soon dismembered the body putting his body parts in plastic bags, burying the parts of his victims body and his parents backyard.

Jeffrey Dahmer seeks his victims through gay bars rest stops in hitchhikers anyone he could find that was vulnerable enough to be his victim. He made promises to these people with money and sex. Soon after drugging his victims he strangles then and then performs sexual acts with the lifeless bodies. He often kept parts of his victims bodies like genitalia,and skulls for souvenirs. Another vile act he performed during his victims death was photographing them at various stages of the murder process.

After dropping out of Ohio State University because of excess alcohol consumption. His father persisted in him going into the army, Jeffery later enlisted that December of 1978. He was placed in Germany where his drinking problem continued, the army later discharged Jeffrey Dahmer in the year 1981. Soon
after Dahmer was charged with the multiple murders he committed his name was connected with multiple casualties in the German town he was stationed, although there is no hard evidence to actually charge Dahmer it is still an eerie thought. The years after he was discharged from the army started his cruel and criminal behaviors. He soon moved in with his grandmother after being kicked out of his home by his father. In the summer of 1986 Dahmer was arrested when two boys accused him of masturbating in front of them, Dahmer faced up to one year of probation. In September 1987 Dahmer took his second victim, Steven Tuomi. although this case was very different from his other victims, Jeffrey had taken Steven to a hotel where they drank and in the morning after Steven was dead. Jeffrey confesses that he has no memory of that night or how Steven died. although not remembering he took his chance, please Steven’s body in a large suitcase and brought it down into his grandmothers basement. Dahmer was a sick individual who thoroughly enjoyed the horrific and gory things he did. he almost did the unspeakable, dismembering bodies, contorting them, pleasuring himself with them and more. He was doing all of these things under the roof of his own grandmother, since his second victim he was responsible for two more murders while living with his grandma. But with no knowledge of Dahmer’s late night activities his grandma forced him to move out in 1988.

Jeffrey Dahmer was a killer, a pedophile, and a child molester. Each victim has his own horrific tails, gruesome details in the same question, why did he do it?. He craved feeling in charge and like one feared him. Having physical and sexual control over his victims made him do inhuman things that only those who feel no empathy would do. Over the years the 17 victims he compiled up each has their own record of his “rituals” . He developed a ritual of how to murder his victims, through different mixes of chemicals, drilling holes into victims skulls and then pouring muriatic acid in the hole. He came up with a way of torturing conscious or unconscious he still believed he had to have complete control over his innocent victims. He chose people who were fringes of society making a disappearances almost unnoticeable. His actions were nothing less than pure evil. Dahmer knew exactly what he was doing and how evil it was, he didn’t care as he still proceeded to do it over and over again. He didn’t care about the authority, or the higher power in his mind he was the power. Dahmer pleaded guilty of all charges and was faced with 15 consecutive life terms in prison.    

Aileen Wuorno's is known as one of the world's most terrifying female killers. Wuorno's childhood sculpted her to be the cold blooded woman she was, years of abuse and sexual abuse turned on her. At a very young age Aileen started prostitution in elementary school for small favors, like cigarettes or food. Performing sexual acts on others to receive these small but “needed” items. These astonishing acts Aileen picked up on wasn’t just out of the ordinary, Wuorno's father was a convicted sex offender. Although he was out of picture before she was born, at the young age of 13 she heard the news that her father hung himself in his prison cell. Aileen not only had no father, but her mother had neglected her up until her mother fully abandoned her. She was left under the care of her grandparents who weren’t in good health or right minded people. A year living with her grandparents Aileen’s grandmother passed away of liver failure, leaving her in the hands of her abusive grandfather. According to Aileen her grandfather had been beating and raping her for years, leaving her no choice but to live her life under constant abuse and neglect. At the age of 15 Aileen Wuorno's was impregnated by a family friend, she dropped out school to live in a home for unwed mothers. After having the child she'd had it with the abuse and her grandfather, and was left to live in the woods just outside the home and to give up her son for adoption. Leaving her both physically and mentally unstable. Aileen went on to continue prostitution and get in trouble with the law. After spending time with a wealthy business man that lived in Florida she became abusive to the man that cared for her and gave her a home to live in. Aileen would get into fights into bars, coming home many nights so drunk she would beat up the man she lived with , with his own cane. She moved onto a relationship with a hotel maid that was included in her theft and crimes. Wuorno's was arrested in 1986 for pulling a gun on a male on an attempted robbery.

Aileen’s Victims were all men that she had claimed had tried to rape her, even though she admitted she was a prostitute at the time. She would tell her side of the story in different variations depending on who she was talking to. Aside from claiming the men were trying to rape her , she admitted to trying to rob them. She killed 5 men all by shooting them at point blank, tossing the bodies in nearby woods or bodies of water. Sometimes pawning their belongings to get the needed money , but leaving fingerprints on the items that she gave. Wuornos so called “partner in crime” and lover had been contacted by the police to turn into Aileen, she agreed. It was a full investment to try and get every detail out of Aileen. Setting up phone calls that police could listen on, and over a few days they had enough to arrest Aileen. Her confessions and crimes gave her 3 death sentences.She faced her sentence on June 6th, 2006.

Gary Ridgway, a serial killer with a count of 49 convicted murders. Most often related to Ted Bundy he shared similar obsessions and crimes.Gary was born on the 18th of February,1949 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Growing up in a deprived neighborhood he struggled in school and at home. He lived near Seattle’s Pacific highway. Gary was sent to Vietnam after finishing high school ,after returning from his terms in the war he struggled to find work which led him to a job of painting trucks.He kept this job for a confusing time , for about 30 years Gary Ridgway painting trucks for days and nights.Throughout Gary’s life he married three times , he consistently victimized women. He also remained in touch with multiple prostitutes during all three of his marriages.

Ridgway's killings were well planned, and in fact left with no evidence left behind. He often left small things behind to mislead any investigation, eventually doing exactly that. Gary specifically only killed female prostitutes in the hopes that the police wouldn’t investigate these types of women. He killed these innocent women to feel an invincible power over not only his victims but the law. Ridgway believed he was above the law in every way, he spent all day carefully covering up his traces. Gary Ridgway truly believed killing these women was his job , his profession.He began his evil career in the year 1982, targeting young female runaways and prostitutes in King County , Washington. Taking them back to his home where he would then strangle , torture and kill these helpless girls. Leaving their lifeless bodies where no one would find them, some eventually being found in the Green River. As he continued his mass murders a case was opened and the DNA of Ridgway had been found on just few of the bodies he killed in the year 2001. It took 19 years for the dozens of  people reported missing for Ridgway to be caught. Even though Gary was convicted of 48 murders , he admitted and confessed to investigators he murdered as many as 75-80 women, leaving him with the name of The Green River killer and multiple life sentences.

As I’ve been researching and writing about infamous serial killers I’ve learned a lot and have gotten into the very details of their crimes. Each killer has its own story and a different count of victims, but all share similar motives. My goal and aspiration to write about serial killers really stemmed from the Psychological aspect. I’ve seemed to only understand a few I’ve looked into, but mostly because no one really looked into it themselves. Most were just labeled a sick criminal who was cold blooded, instead of the deep mental analyses that they should’ve received.In many cases serial killers are mostly males, in which i believe the world of male dominance turns certain males insane. They crave complete power and sick control over people. Whether their victims are the same sex and opposite almost all serial killers find sexual power as a way to dominant. Being a psychopath does not indicate you are a killer, but can lead you to have tendencies that serial killers have. I’ve found that serial killers are more then just what they are labeled, they had a life before hand , they had family and friends who loved them and had no idea about their second life. I find it compelling and fascinating that the closest people in a person’s life won’t even know. I find it mind blowing that one can kill that many times, looking those people in the eyes and seeing the life inside of them vanish.Over and over again. What made them in that moment decide it was that person’s last day?. Whether they are mentally ill or have a deep motive, these are the evil people we can walk by day after day.