ABSTRACT
To the world outside, the murders are the incomprehensible and inexplicable work of a madman who has suddenly gone berserk; to the killer, the crimes are logical, rationale, and moral, fitting retribution against his enemies or those who are surrogates for his enemies. Perhaps the most frightening type of homicide a society encounters are those murders where the killer or killers slaughter many victims whom they do not know. Three general types of homicides constitute this pattern: mass murder, spree murder, and serial murder. Mass, spree and serial murders constitute a different story. For the most part, the victims of these types of murders are arbitrary and random. Though there are obvious differences between the backgrounds, personalities, and psychological composition of terrorists, mass murderers, spree killers and serial killers, they share certain features in common. The chapter presents some case examples of multiple victim homicide.
