Steven Avery 's Criminal Life

In today’s world, murderers aren’t a surprising thing, as long as they are fictional. Plenty of TV shows and movies have plot lines around murder, but what about real life? As Scott Bonn states in his writing, of the approximate 15,000 murders in the United States, only 1 percent are serial killings, amounting to about 150 victims per year, with between 25 and 50 serial killers active at any given time. There are plenty of statistics on serial killers. 1 in 20 had the same three characteristics as a child: bedwetting, fire setting, and torturing animals. Animal torture is a common indicator that the child will be violent in the future. Also, over 30 percent of murderers use killing as a way for their sexual arousal (Stone). A murderer

Throughout history, criminal investigators have encountered different forms of serial killers. One of the many famous serial killers in the twentieth century was Theodore Robert Bundy (Ted Bundy). Ted Bundy was responsible for the Chi Omega killings and many more. When people think of serial killers, they visualize some dirty, crazy, looking individual that would stand out from everybody else. In Ted's case this was different. Ted Bundy was a very smart individual who had attended college at various colleges, studying law and finally receiving his degree in psychology from the University of Washington. He had volunteered for the Republican Party in California for a Governor campaign. His family and friends considered Bundy as

He was a serial killer as well. He was sadistic, which means he drove pleasure from inflicting pain upon others. He was also narcissistic which means he had an excessive interest in his own physical appearance. He killed around 30 people, or at least that’s what he confessed to. Another serial killer is Jeffrey Dahmer, who was a cannibal. When they found him, he was in a state of dissociation. When he is in a state of dissociation, he can forget things and there is a lack of connection in his thoughts, according to the article titled Dissociation and Dissociative

On November 27th, 1976 Mr. Adams’ car ran out of fuel and he was forced to walk to the nearest gas station (Radelet, 2011). Shortly after this Mr. Adams was given a ride by local teenager David Ray Harris who was driving a stolen vehicle. The two then spent the day together, even going to see a drive in movie. That night Mr. Adams returned to a motel where he was staying. Mr. Harris, now alone, was stopped by Officer Wood and his Partner Teresa Turko shortly after midnight. Officer Wood was shot and killed by Harris, who sped off too quickly for Officer Turko to get a plate number or a good look at the shooter. Directly after this Mr. Harris drove home and for the next few days, bragged to his friends

We hear in the news about police misconduct, use of excessive force, embezzlement, but one thing I found while researching what I should write this paper on is the Wrongful convictions of innocent men and women, that spend years in prison being innocent, and there is nothing that gets done till it’s too late. Some wrongful convictions are honest mistakes, but many times law enforcement and prosecutors lose sight of the obligation of ensuring truth and justice, and are focused on their conviction rates. As with any job, they are honest people and ones that just don’t care and are corrupt, this exists in the criminal justice system. One way to prove someone is innocent now is through DNA testing, but even at all levels of a criminal investigation there could be misconduct or mishandling of evidence, which then causes the evidence to become compromised.

Although Jefferson and Steven both accused of murder, their results were completely different. Jefferson was sentenced to death after shortly being in jail. Steven had life in prison. Steven also had another case before the murder, he was accused of sexual assault. Jefferson only had one but he was the bystander of the situation of the shooting of two people in the corner store. In Jefferson’s case he was also stealing after the shooting incident which in Stevens case had nothing to do with stealing or any of Jefferson’s problem.

As I step into the oversized building, I freeze in my tracks. I start to feel dizzy. I recognize this immediately as the courthouse I was in this summer, in Oconto County. This was the same lobby, I remember passing through it. I suddenly realize how long I’ve been standing there, and almost have to run to catch up with my class. When I catch up, my class is beginning to enter a courtroom, the same courtroom. I continue into the room with the class, and see the judge that I saw this summer. I already know, of course, that his name is Michael Judge, the main judge of this courthouse. He looks me straight in the eye, before turning back to the class. Indeed, he must remember what I said, before I had left this courtroom that day.

Serial killers have fascinated the imaginations of people for a long time. One of the most notorious serial killers is Jeffrey Dahmer whose gruesome murders shocked the nation. Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer also known as Milwaukee monster was a notorious American serial killer and sexual offender in the 1980s and early 1990s. Between 1978 and 1991 Dahmer had murdered 17 men. His victims were usually raped, tortured, dismembered, and cannibalism was also involved. Jeffrey was a troubled child psychologically and his social skills had a lot to be desired. All the way through his childhood he was ignored and had queer fantasies of cadavers. In his adulthood this psychosocial status quo didn 't change and was in fact aggravated.

The morning of September 17, 1996 in Louisiana changed my life forever. I was skimming through the daily Gambit when he came in. Mr. Callahan, the local policeman, walked into my office, holding a paper that was dated from this Friday.

The issue that I am going to concentrate on is Race Relations as it pertains to the OJ Simpson case. The case shaped Race Relations by the impact it had socially on African Americans and Race. The OJ Simpson case is viewed as a Symbolic Case toward Social Construction in America dealing with Race. The trail lasted 372 days and back in 1995 the division between races was split. Most Caucasians believed OJ was guilty, and most blacks believing him to be not guilty. “African Americans and whites believe that the verdict in the O.J. Simpson case will increase racial tensions in the United States. But while a majority of whites think that race relations will improve, a majority of blacks do not think that race relations will ever get better”.(CNN

Another example of how a traumatic childhood or adolescence can lead to becoming a serial killer is Ted Bundy. Ted was not a usual serial killer as he was handsome and educated. He had grown up with a family full of women; he never knew his father and people described him as being a lonely withdrawn child. His first girlfriend and first love Stephanie Brooks had a major impact on his life as too how he crimes started but it was be traced back to again to his childhood. Ted loved Stephanie a lot but after a few months of dating she left him as she felt he had no real life goals even he tried to persuade her that he did with lies which she rejected. After leaving Ted Stephanie moved away to California. Ted never got over the heartbreak and he then went around the United States alluring college women by various practices such as the famous “broken leg” where he would pretend he broke his leg and would ask for their help only to abduct them rape and kill them. Crime therefore resulted not from what criminals had in common with others in society, but from their distinctive physical or mental defects (Bartol, 2006).

The prosecution built their case against Simpson with various incriminating bits of evidence. This evidence included 85 pages documenting 50 domestic violence incidents over the course of 17 years were presented (CORA, 2015). The strategy of the prosecutors was to demonstrate that the murders were a logical culmination of increasingly abusive, obsessive behavior (Noble, 1995). This evidence did not match up with the crime, according to an interview from Time in which Rita Smith, the Executive Director of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence during the time of the murders. Smith suggested that jurors asked, “Why were they talking about domestic violence when this is a murder trial?” (Alter, 2014). During this time, the connection between domestic violence and murder was not seen as a realistic outcome. During the trial, prosecutors and domestic violence organizations were struggling to promote a general understanding of domestic violence to the public (Alter, 2014).

Many serial killers suffer from a mental illness or incapacity of some type, and more specifically, many serial killers suffer from Psychopathic Personality Disorder, or PPD, a mental disorder that causes the inability to empathize with others (Forensic Science 563). It is believed that infamous serial killer, Ted Bundy, suffered from Psychopathic Personality Disorder because he “…looked upon others as objects, not people to be loved or hated, just objects” (American Decades). People with PPD are very highly manipulative and intelligent, exceptional liars, and feel as if they are superior to everyone else and therefore disregard rules and laws. However, they do not have the capacity to feel emotional remorse even when they know their actions were wrong (Forensic Science 563), just as Perry knows he should not have killed the Clutters, but he does not feel sorry for doing it (Capote 358). Basically, a psychopath’s “main aim [in life] is self-gratification,” no matter the cost (Forensic Science 563). Serial killers suffering from Psychopathic Personality Disorder usually do not start their lives of crime with murder; they often start with small acts, such as systematic lying, animal cruelty or vandalism, as children (Forensic Science 563). Jeffrey Dahmer, a serial killer thought to have killed hundreds, collected and dissolved road kill in acid as a child

Serial Killers are among the most frightening group of criminal in today's society. Unrecognized as everyday human beings, serial killers scared and horrify the whole world. They are classified as murderer with more than three victims, one at a time in a relatively short break serial killer apparently takes action without reason. Among all of the terrifying killers one of the popular killer in the history of the US was Ted Kaczynski , who committed three murders and dozens injured.

“Making a Murderer” was immediately a big hit around the United States because of the drama and murder elements provided. Kathryn Schulz wrote an article aimed at the viewers of the documentary titled, “How ‘Making a Murderer’ Goes Wrong” where she discusses issues and misinterpretation of situations throughout the series. Schulz uses ethos, pathos, and logos to advocate that, though, there are problems in the court system and wrongful convictions do happen, the documentary only presents the evidence in favor of the convicted by creating false accusations of the police. She mainly follows the conclusion that the person who suffered the brunt of the case was not Stephen Avery, but his nephew, Brendan Dassey.