AJCJ, Vol XIII, No. 1 (1988) INSIDE THE MIND OF THE SERIAL MURDER RONALD M. HOLMES, JAMES DE BURGER and STEPHEN T. HOLMES ABSTRACT This article approaches a position of delving into the thoughts of those who commit murder serially. The information comes lrom a variety of sources which include research literature, theory examination and most importanlJy, serial murderers themselves. More than 400 cases of serial fatal violence as well as interviews with incarcerated serial killers were utilized. Important issues such as locus of motives, expected gains, victim selection processes, planning of the event, the murder event itself, and erganization and disorganization of the kill are also discussed. While admit'ring that serial killers have never been rehabilitated, a call is directed toward a better understanding of the mind of the serial murderer. INTRODUCTION When one thinks of homicide in America, "smoking gun" or "dripping knife" murder immediately comes to mind. However, a new form of homicide, impersonal and stranger-perpetrated, is growing in frequency and notoriety (Holmes and DeBurger, 1985; Rule, 1986). This new form of multicide is "serial murder." Multicide comes in at least three forms: mass murder, spree murder and serial murder. Mass murder is the killing of a number of people at one time in one place. The McDonald's massacre in San Diego by James Huberty is an apt example of such an occurrence. Spree murder is the killing of a number of people in a very short period. The number is more than two usually within a month or so. Charles Starkweather is an example of a spree murderer when he killed nine people within four weeks. The serial murderer kills a number of people over a period of time, many times months and years. The large number who fall prey to the serial murderer has been estimated to be 5,000 a year, and the number of serial killers now at large is at least 35