Research Paper on Ted Bundy

Profiling Serial Criminals

When there are notoriouscriminal activities, whether a serial murder case or a terror attack, critics put pressure on the governments and law enforcers, criminal profiling has its fair share of critics and supporters. Also referred to as behavioral analysis, this aspect of the psychology discipline provides law enforcers with practical tools that help in apprehending serial criminals. This tactic has been in existence since the 1940sassisting local agencies' investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) though it was made formal in the mid-1970s (Holmes, 2008). Serial criminals are not easy to track because of the disconnected nature of local law enforcers, their high intelligence, as well as other factors. Criminal profiling thus creates a profile that then appliesin connecting ostensibly unconnected incidents.Criminal profiling utilizes the social attributes of the serial criminals as its premise. A standout amongst the most infamous murderers is Ted Bundy. Bundy was a heap of inconsistencies: he was a Peeing Tom that was explicitly unreliable, physically modest, enchanting, and good-looking that nobody could speculate of being engaged with the vanishings and killings of ladies around the states. This article discusses the aspect of criminal profiling and Ted Bundy's profile as a serial killer in the 1970's in the US who killed approximately thirty-six young women and girls.

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The process of criminal profiling as it refers to serial criminals is quite exciting and much more common. While studying these criminals, investigators have found that crime scene indicators of behavior forms helped the law enforcers to realize a lot concerning the wrongdoer (Holmes, 2008). Most crime scenes could provide detailed accounts, and with the right investigators on the case following all the details within the story, there is always a higher likelihood of falling into a conclusion on the matter. Investigators need to remember the fact that normal human behavioral patterns and traits usually remain consistent, irrespective of the activity being carried out (Riser &Kosson, 2013). Whether the serial criminal is aware or not, every act of murder they commit, they leave their unique mark in one way or another, and that makes it the leading key for criminal profilers to arrest the right offender.

Criminal profiling is thus an effective way of identifying and finding a criminal. The term serial means that several murders have occurred at various times. The main factors to a serial killer are the period, a number of victims, and the fact that every death in one way or another is systematic (Canter, 2010). Profiling could piece together an entire image of the criminal with the offender's traits comprising of the car they drive, home, marital status, upbringing, disorders, occupation, age, and sex. The great murderers of history were those who killed their wives, and possibly slaughtered their family members with no mercy or even strangers (Holmes, 2008). Ted Bundy is one of such serial killers, who faced prosecution for the rape and murder of over thirty-six women.

History of Ted Bundy

Bundy, born in 1946 in Burlington Vermont, was the illegitimate son of a woman named Eleanor Louise Cowell whose family was too embarrassed by the mother's single status that after delivering Bundy, his grandfather took him as his own (Mehrotra, 2015). He brought up Bundy making him address his mother as an older sister. At age thirteen, Bundy's cousin told him that the person he knew as his sister, was his birth mother. This revelation resulted in Bundy forming a resentment towards his mother for concealing such information from him for all those years. From this, Bundy is believed to have undergone a profound mix-up as an adolescent regarding his identity.Bundy went to school at the University of Washington and later worked as a political volunteer and a suicide hotline administrator (Mehrotra, 2015).

Additionally, one could think that Bundy's mother, while acting as his older sister, was more emotionally detached from him unlike if she was able to mother him openly. Consequently, maybe this could be the top influence of Bundy's serial killer characteristics. According to research, from birth to age six/seven, the most significant figure in the life of a young one in normal situations is the mother (Riser &Kosson, 2013). And this is the time that a kid develops his emotions and knows what love is. Family background of most serial killers presents a neglectful, unloving, distant relationship between the individual their mothers.

As a young boy, Bundy's grandfather was his role model since he was the only father figure around. When Bundy's mother migrated to Washington, he was separated from the grandfather. This separation from his beloved father figure could have also contributed to his antisocial behavior. At ages eight to twelve, every negative tendency present in early childhood tends to be reinforced and exacerbated. During this period, a boy child requires the presence of a father. Without this fatherly attachment, potential murderers become hardened in their solitude first during this age; this isolation in most cases could be the most significant factor of their psychological makeup (Riser &Kosson, 2013).

Even though Bundy's grandfather loved him, the church members labeled him as a very ferocious boy who never made peace with those around him. His grandfather could have influenced Bundy's behavior more than he would think. The grandfather was a very ferocious man who tortured animals and exhibited brutal behaviors toward his family members. Bundy, in his interactions with the old man, began piercing his bed with the butcher's knives and exhibiting other behaviors became a worry to the family members that they resorted to removing him from the environment.

Ted Bundy's Criminal Background

Bundy did not have biological inferiority, to the degree of it being visible. He was physically active with an athletic toned body. Bundy was also extraordinarily good-looking, outgoing, and even though Bundy occasionally cried when sad, Bundy was never depressed (Mehotra, 2015). Although shy, he reasonably had temper issues. Nevertheless, it was evident that Bundy never had the feeling of love towards others and had a hard time relating to others. Correspondingly, his wrongdoings could not be disregarded to anomie since he was aware of his expectations and those of others.

While in high school, Bundy began committing unlawful acts including burglary and shoplifting. He then proceeded to crimes of sexually abusing women which resulted in attacking and killing them. Based on his psychological profile, certain things were similar concerning his victims. They were thin, white, and single. There was a high likelihood that back then, women could not help or go out with men of an, unlike race. Criminals also targeted persons of similar race as theirs. The victims also came from various states including Florida, Utah, Idaho, Washington, and Colorado, concluding that he had his access of vehicles to move around (Mehrotra, 2015).

Bundy started terrorizing the people of US from 1974-1978. His murder counts are approximately thirty-six victims. He exploited his delightful nature and good looks in luring many women into his plans. Even though it is not exactly known as to when or where his killing spree began, the first documented murder was in 1974 when he was twenty-seven years old (Mehrotra, 2015).

Bundy broke into eighteen-year-old Joni Lenz's bedroom in the wee hours of 4th January 1974. He sexually abused her leading to adverse internal injuries. The young lady was left unconscious and later succumbed to the injuries. Apart from that, he also abducted another lady, lured her to his car before hitting her with a crowbar that made her unconscious, handcuffed her and drove to Issaquah. While there, Bundy strangled the lady slept with the corpse and went back the body on three several times later. In the middle of a major crime scene investigation, Bundy located and collected a shoe belonging to the lady as well as her earrings, which he dropped in the parking area, and left without anyone seeing him.

During his trial, Bundy made a confession to the investigators from Colorado, Idaho, and Utah that he was also involved in several other murderers, consisting of some that were not in the police records. He claimed that when in Utah, he would drag the women to his house, whereby he reenacted cases portrayed on detective magazines (Holmes, 2008). Anotherconcealedtactic then developed; he hid a lot of facts with hopes of forwarding the short details into yet another conviction of judgment. Remains of the victims were buried in Colorado as well, but Bundy refused to classify this fact. When he gave more details on his crimes, the investigators could not find anything. Through this, he created a conflict between his need to stay in full control and his wish to delay his execution by revealing information.

Bundy went on refuting the charges fora long time and later admitted to committing the thirty murders in several regions before his judgment. He broke into his victim's houses in darkness and hit them in their sleep. He used to approach the ladies in public areas as well while impersonating an authority figure or feigning injury on the targets before empowering and assaulting them.

In Florida, Bundy went into Lisa's bedroom - twenty-year-old lady - and hit her unconsciously, strangling her, touring her nipples, and sexually assaulting her. In the next room, he went on attacking Kleiner, deeply lacerating her shoulder and breaking her jaw. Chandler, yet another of Bundy's victims, had her fingers crushed, lost her teeth, had broken jaws, and a concussion.

The detectives in that region later found out that all the attacks happened within fifteen minutes. From there, Bundy broke into an underground room a few meters away attackingCheryl who was a scholar from FSU, fracturing her skull and jawbone in five regions and dislocating her shoulder. A few days later, the Alabama state line police apprehended him and found a stolen TV set, identification cards belonged to students in FSU, and credit cards in his car. The officer also recovered a pair of plaid slacks and non-prescription glasses that belonged to fire department officials; it was believed that he used these to impersonate authorities thus luring his targets even easier (Holmes, 2008).

Bundy's wrongdoings were systematized whereby he apparently thought out and strategized the offenses ahead, selecting his victims before time. Additionally, he carried with him the essential tools for helping him in executing the crime and applied tactics which shielded him from being known like impersonating authority figures and dragging the victims to isolated areas (Mehrotra, 2015). His attractive physical appearance influenced his plans making it easy for him to approach his female victims who would not suspect that he is a criminal. Basing on the criminal's well organized and premeditated acts, an account unfolding his psychological background could be made to incorporate the behavior measures for his dangerousness. The level of problem resolving skills and social competence, the extent that he portrays criminal propensities and anti-social tendencies, as well as the degree in which he demonstrates criminal thoughts (Riser &Kosson, 2013).

His killing spree spanned through years and hundreds of miles. In 1978, two Federal Bureau of Intelligence agents used their criminal profiling strategies to put him on the top ten most wanted list. Applying this assessment of his known movements, psychological makeup, and tactics, the Bureau pinpointed his victim's selection and killing patterns (Holmes, 2008). Bundy had a preference in places which...