When Silenced Voices Speak: An Exploratory Study of Prostitute Homicide

摘要

The Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI's) National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC) recently cited an increase in consultations involving serial, or multiple, homicide of female prostitutes, including anecdotal evidence of distinct victimology and crime scene differences among the victims. Of particular interest to the NCAVC was whether such variables (e.g., work location, body disposal method) could classify a deceased prostitute case as being either 'single' (i.e., the only victim of a murderer) or 'serial' (i.e., one of several victims of a murderer) in nature. Because this phenomenon had not been examined empirically, this exploratory study investigated differences between samples of serial and single prostitute homicide victims. The NCAVC's anecdotal data and variables excerpted from relevant research literatures were included in an instrument designed for the study, the Prostitute Homicide Questionnaire. Psychopathy was measured retrospectively with the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R, Hare, 199 IC). Efforts were made throughout the study to control error variance. Trained raters examined 123 closed homicide files (49 single and 74 serial victims, respectively) submitted from U. S. law enforcement agencies, completing both instruments. The study's aims were largely fulfilled.