The behavior of investigators during crime scene investigation plays a crucial role in the identification of the criminal. The Milwaukee Police Department, on July 22, 1991, found a man near an apartment building at 25 North Street. A handcuff dangled from the wrist of the man, who claimed to have received threats from inside. The claims of the victim encouraged police investigation. FBI headquarters then passed orders for Jeffrey Dahmer’s arrest after receiving the report. Crime scene investigation revealed many pieces of evidence that portrayed Dahmer as a brutal serial killer. The FBI’s role was to provide forensic and investigative support. After the revelation of strange facts, the FBI was allowed to take investigations further. The Bureau, under the federal kidnapping statute, permitted laboratory and identification services and gave authority to the local police in Milwaukee. Investigators tracked the killer’s trail throughout Wisconsin to identify victims.
Investigations also involved behavioral analysts studying the profile of Dahmer. Through investigations, the team managed to find the remains of eleven victims killed by the offender. Tools used for torture and dismemberment were discovered in the apartment. The investigators sent the samples of the victims for forensic analysis. The evidence provided against the killer included photographic content, computer examinations, DNA profiles, and other tests. DNA analysis identified Dahmer as the killer of 17 people. To resolve the case, Bureau agents and analysts investigated Dahmer and revealed evidence that could link him to the murders of the victims. Investigators searched all places where Dahmer had lived, including Florida, Ohio, and Germany. After his arrest, he confessed to the murders he committed. He also accepted his involvement in torture, abuse, and mutilation of the victims and corpses. The overall assessment of the crime scene investigation exhibits that the investigators adopted a neutral role (Schwartz, 1992).
Behavioral And Environmental Factors
Investigating crime involves complex and psychologically intriguing scenarios. Proper investigation demands controlling behaviors and perceptions that could influence the case. The behavioral and environmental factors influenced the investigations as the crime scene portrayed a horrific picture. Fear and disgust are prominent factors influencing the investigation. Motivated by fear, the investigators were convinced that Dahmer was a killer before the inquiry. Fear and prejudgment are capable of affecting the neutrality of the investigations, while the crime department emphasizes adopting a neutral approach throughout the procedures. Environmental factors such as institutional pressures and social expectations provoked investigators to collect evidence that could prove the offender guilty. The existence of strange equipment and the remains of the dead bodies lead to a pre-judgment about the offender. External pressures, including time constraints and workload, motivated officers to create preferences related to the outcomes of investigative activities. Officers’ frequent encounters with criminal events promote adverse affective reactions. Past experiences influence emotions and human cognition. Investigative tasks often involve judgments about probabilities related to the event. Outcome knowledge inflates the perceived predictability of observed outcomes, causing differences in officers’ foresight and judgments (Ask & Granhag, 2005).
Role Of Psychological Profile
The psychological profile of the offender influenced him to murder, but he committed the crime under full consciousness. Violent criminal behavior was visible in the psychological profile of the offender. The problem of substance abuse also portrayed the offender as a mentally disturbed individual. The psychological profile influenced the subsequent court proceedings and investigations. Due to the exploration of the body parts and other strange things, the investigators were convinced that Dahmer was insane. The role of the offender’s psychological profile is also apparent as the investigation involved behavioral and psychological analysts. The psychological profile of the offender also affected the prosecutions as the court was unable to decide until receiving confirmation that crimes occurred under the conscious mind. The psychopathic tendencies of the offender influenced the legal proceedings. Law enforcement officials were least interested in assessing the mental state and the psychological complexities of the offender (Nichols, 2006).
Impact Of Biases And Assumptions
Biases and assumptions remained visible in Dahmer’s case, influencing the prosecutor’s assessment. The decision of the court to release the offender, irrespective of his sexual problems and dependence on substance abuse, exhibits biases in judgments. Though the judge was unaware of Dahmer’s engagement in the killings of five men, he ignored the probability of continuing crimes. The prosecution did not carry out investigations to find Dahmer’s involvement in suspicious activities. Release provided an opportunity for the offender to continue his killings. The facts indicate that investigations at that time could have uncovered the same evidence and prevented Dahmer from committing further killings.
Cultural-Based Behavioral Patterns
Investigators’ perception of whiteness exhibits culturally based behavioral patterns. The perception may or may not confirm the hypothesis of a homicide investigation. Delay in investigations depicts the tendency of investigators and prosecutors to preserve initial beliefs (Webber, 2007). Culturally biased patterns became more visible when Dahmer managed to get bail on $10,000 for assaulting a child for immoral purposes in 1988. The release may have encouraged him towards further crimes. The authorities identified issues with the offender but still allowed him a free life. He was involved in abusive acts before the revelations of his seventeen killings. The facts claim that he masturbated in front of the children at the Wisconsin State Fair. A black man also claimed that Dahmer drugged and robbed him, but the police department neglected him. The prosecution accepted the claim of Dahmer’s attorney that he was sick irrespective of the probability of re-offense. Culturally based patterns influenced the prosecution’s judgment as Dahmer was released shortly after the crime of assaulting a child.
References
Ask, K., & Granhag, P. A. (2005). Motivational sources of confirmation bias in criminal investigations: The need for cognitive closure. Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 2, 43-63.
Nichols, D. S. (2006). Tell me a story: MMPI responses and personal biography in the case of a serial killer. Journal of Personality Assessment, 86, 242-262.
Schwartz, A. E. (1992). The man who could not kill enough: The secret murders of Milwaukee’s Jeffrey Dahmer. New York: Birch Lane Press.
Webber, C. (2007). Revaluating relative deprivation theory. Theoretical Criminology, Vol 11, No 1.
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