Criminal Profiling - Term Paper Example

The origin of criminal profiling can be traced back to the 19th century where researchers such as Alphonse Bertillon and Hans gross realized the potential of criminal profiling (Turvey 3). In the 1880s, the Metropolitan Police made the first examination in the murder of prostitutes. They were successful because they found Jack the Ripper guilty of the offence through the evidence gathered from the crime scene. To come up with a criminal profile the following approaches are followed. The first approach is the geographical approach whereby the patterns in relation to the location and timing of the scene of the crime are analyzed, which then helps in identifying the location of the offender.

Second is investigative psychology that uses the theory of psychology in analyzing and identifying the true characteristics of the criminal. This is achieved through looking at the analyzed offending style and behavior of the crime. Third is the typological approach, which focuses on the specific characteristics, portrayed by the scene of the crime and then the offender is categorized according to ‘typical’ characteristics identified. Finally is the clinical approach that is useful in identifying whether the criminal is suffering from psychological abnormalities.

In the case of a homicide, the FBI gathers the information about the offender(s) through four phases. The first phase is the antecedent, which involves investigating the fantasy or plan of the murderer before the act. The second phase is method and manner, which tries to determine the type of victim the murderer chose and the manner and method used in the murder such as stabbing, shooting, and strangulation. The third phase is the body disposal, which tries to identify if the murder and disposal of the body took place at multiple or one scene.

The fourth and final phase is the post-offence behavior, which investigates whether the murderer is trying to inject himself