Criminal Profiling Project
OBJECTIVE
Students will demonstrate the understanding of forensic criminal psychology by engaging in internet research and by creating a PowerPoint about a criminal’s actions and the criminal mindset.
• NOTE: The emphasis of this project is WHY these individuals committed these horrific crimes more than WHAT they did.
PROJECT REQUIREMENTS:
Using internet and library resources, you will create a PowerPoint individually. Use full sentences that is bulleted. Spell check and proofread your PowerPoint.
The PowerPoint should include multiple and detailed slides containing the following information:
• Cover Slide: which contains your name, the name of the criminal and at least 3 images of the individual
• Background information on the individual, his/her family background/history, education level, socioeconomic level, “abnormalities” in his/her childhood experience, etc.
• Detailed information about the crimes he/she committed (“Who, What, When, Where, How”)
• Your analysis of the psychological reasons he/she may have committed these crimes (“Why”). What “type” of profile(s) would be assigned to this individual? Does he/she possess all of the typical characteristics of that profile?
• “References” Slide
oDo not just write www.google.com or www.crimeIibrary.com O Use a minimum of 3 DIFFERENT sources for your research.
• DO NOT PLAGARIZE; PUT EVERYTHING IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
• PLAGARISM WILL RESULT IN A ZERO
You can choose from the following list. You should works on one topic.
1.David Berkowitz (’Son of Sam’ serial killer terrorized New York City in the late 1970s.)
2.Boston Strangler (serial killer and rapist Albert De Salvo)
3.Ted Bundy (stalked and murdered young college women)
4.Jeffrey Dahmer (necrophiliac and cannibal)
5.Butch DeFeo (responsible for Amityville Horror Murders on Long Island)
6.Albert Fish (cannibal model for Hannibal Lector)
7.John Wayne Gacy (contractor and murderer AKA The Clown Killer)
8.Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold (Columbine school shooters)
9.Jack the Ripper (serial killer) * NOT RECOMMENDED DUE TO LIMITED INFORMATION
10.Charles Manson (made followers, The Family, kill on command)
11.Timothy McVeigh & Terry Nichols: (responsible for Oklahoma City terrorist bombing)
12.The Zodiac Killer (mysterious serial killer) * NOT RECOMMENDED DUE TO LIMITED INFORMATION
13.Richard Ramirez (aka “The Night Stalker”)
14.Hillside Stranglers (serial killers that attacked during the late 1970’s)
15.Ed Gein (inspiration for the character Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs)
16.David Koresh (Branch Davidian cult leader in Waco, Texas)
17.Dennis Rader (aka BTK, the Bind-Torture-Kill serial killer)
18.Seung-Hui Cho (VA Tech shooter)
19.Aileen Wuornos (female serial killer)
20.Joel Rifkin (murdered prostitutes)
21.Gary Ridgeway (serial killer, murdered at least 49 women)
22.Harold Shipman (British serial murderer, doctor who killed his patients)
23.Charles Whitman (University of Texas mass shooter from bell tower)
24.James Egan Holmes (2012 Colorado theatre shooting, killed 24)
25.Adam Lanza (2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, killed 28
•SOME RESOURCES FOR THIS PROJECT: Court TV’s Crime Library http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/index.html http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/profiling/
http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal mind/psychology/index.html
•SERIAL KILLERS:
http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/complete_list.htmI
•NOTORIOUS MURDERS: http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/complete_list.html
•THE CRIMINAL MIND:
http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/complete_list.htmI
www.biography.com
Grading Rubric
Criteria
Points- 200
Cover Page
Name
The name of the criminal
At least 3 images of the individual
10
Background Information
Background information on the individual
His/her family background/history
Education level
Socioeconomic level
“Abnormalities” in his/her childhood experience, etc.
Accurate and not plagiarized
50
Crimes Committed
Detailed information about the crimes he/she committed (“Who, What, When, Where, How”)
Accurate and not plagiarized
50
Psychological Reasons
Your analysis of the psychological reasons he/she may have committed these crimes (“Why”).
What “type” of profile(s) would be assigned to this individual?
Does he/she possess all of the typical characteristics of that profile?
Accurate and not plagiarized
75
References Slide
Includes the exact sources and website links
3+ sources included
15
