ABSTRACT

It is widely agreed that the frequency of serial murder in the contemporary United States is very high in comparison with similar societies, and probably in relation to most historical periods as well (Egger, 1990; Jenkins, 1988; Levin & Fox, 1985; Lindsey, 1984; Newton, 1990). It is common to write of an American “ wave” of serial murder that began in the late 1960s. Murder sprees and serial homicide careers were by no means new in the 1960s, but events of this sort seemed to begin occurring with greater frequency and severity, establishing a macabre trend that continues unabated. Holmes and DeBurger (1988) have suggested a surge in “ multicide” dating from about 1960. Norris (1988) comments, “ Since 1960 not only have the number of individual serial killers increased but so have the number of victims per killer, and the level of savagery of the individual crimes themselves” (p. 19). Leyton (1986) suggests that reported acts of multiple homicide in the United States were 10 or 12 times more frequent after the 1960s than before. On a related topic, Fox has remarked that 1966 marked “ the onset of the age of mass murder” (quoted in “ Experts Say,” 1988, p. A3).