Research Paper on Paul Bernardo: Canadian Serial Killer

Introduction

Paul Bernardo, also known as Paul Jason Teale, was born in 1964. He is a Canadian serial killer and a rapist, widely recognized for committing multiple rape incidences in Metropolitan Toronto city, Scarborough (Keppel & Birnes, 2003). Moreover, he was charged with numerous cases including torture, murder and sexual assault in collaboration with his then-wife Karla Homolka. Notably, his background led to his eventual manifestation as a serial killer and rapist. His father, Kenneth, folded a teen girl and was convicted with molestation in 1975 and also sexually harassed of his daughter. Therefore, the origin of Bernardo manifestation originated from his family background, which he later assumed (Keppel & Birnes, 2003). Moreover, his mother was devastated by her husband's ill actions; she departed from the family life and lived separately in a basement near their home in Scarborough. Though being happy, good looking, polite and doing well in school, Bernardo had developed evil dark sexual fantasies. He did not have a good foundational parental background that led to his eventual predicament. He stated humiliating, beating and harassing women that he happened to have relationship with.

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Bernardo Meeting Homolka (Sociogenic)

Bernardo met Homolka at a pet show in Toronto. At this time Bernardo was 23 and Homolka was 17 years. Bernardo was a charismatic, bold and persuasive personality and did convince Homolka on the very first day leading to the sexual relation (Stone, 2010). After the sexual relation, they both discovered that they shared sadomasochistic inclinations, where Bernardo without hesitation took the role of the master and Homolka willingly becoming his slave. Therefore, meeting Homolka also accelerated Bernardo sexual manifestation.

Encouragement (Psychotic Behavior)

Over the next few years, the relationship between the two intensified, full of encouragement of their psychotic behaviours and characteristics. Bernardo perceived his behaviour to be a culture after seeking approval from Homolka. He started raping women and particularly focused his speciality in attacking women who were getting off from the buses and later subjecting them to all sorts of assault (Stone, 2010). Many of the sexual humiliation and assault were committed in Ontario making the police to dub the incident as the "The Scarborough Rapist" therefore, approval of such actions by Homolka made Bernardo forge ahead with humiliation and assault. His actions received the much-needed backup and thus increased the extent of his behaviours.

A Surrogate Virgin (Paraphilia)

Bernardo had continued problems attached to his emotional disorders, which made him not to control his sexual impulse despite having Homolka as his spouse (Stone, 2010). Therefore, this caused friction between the couples and was accelerated by the fact that Homolka was not a virgin at the time she met Bernardo. Consequently, Homolka was already wary of Bernardo attraction to her 15-year-old sister Tammy. Tammy had no sexual experience but was yet to fall a victim of Bernardo assault. The couples made a plan to subject Tammy into becoming a surrogate virgin for her sister, Homolka. To ensure that this was achieved, Homolka was tempted in stealing an aesthetic injection from the clinic where she was working.

Therefore, it is worth noting that Bernardo sexual impulse also played a central role in his eventual manifestation. He would never be satisfied and was attached to young virgin teens. On December 1990, attending a Christmas party at his spouse family, they deliberately served Tammy with illicit drinks mixed with halcyon. After the party, they both took charge of Tammy, who was now unconscious and raped her. Tammy later became chocked on the incident and died as a result, and his death did not attract much suspicion as it was believed, it was an accident (Stone, 2010).

Bernardo and Homolka Shared Characteristics

The shared characteristic of both Homolka and Bernardo also led to more impending manifestations. For instance, Bernardo was always fascinated by presents from Homolka, which were in the form of young girls (Williams, 2009). The couples believed that their relationship was tied to their shared characteristics of assaulting and harassing women.

Another Present for Bernardo

After the couples officially moved in together, Bernardo started to blame Homolka for Tammy's death and regretting that Tammy was no longer around to satisfy him sexually. To wade this blame away, Homolka presented a young teen called Jane as a present to Bernardo. Homolka perceived Jane as an ideal replacement for Tammy to Bernardo (Williams, 2009). Just like Tammy, Jane was subjected to the same process as Tammy and eventually was assaulted by Bernardo. However, unlike others, Jane was unaware of the assault and managed to survive.

Common Rape Characteristic

There was an increased thirst of Bernardo to share his rape with his spouse and on June 1991, Bernardo Kidnapped Leslie Mahaffy. After which they brought her to their home. They repeatedly raped their prey for a period of more than seven days and eventually murdering Mahaffy after taking multiple videotapes. Moreover, they also chopped off Mahaffy's body into pieces and dumbed in a river.

References

Keppel, R. D., & Birnes, W. J. (2003). The psychology of serial killer investigations: The grisly business unit. Elsevier.

Stone, M. H. (2010). Sexual sadism: A portrait of evil. Journal of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry, 38(1), 133-157.

Williams, S. (2009). Invisible Darkness: The Strange Case of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka. Bantam.