FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, February 1992
http://www.fbi.gov/library/leb/leb.htm
THE CRIMINAL SEXUAL SADIST
By
Robert R. Hazelwood, M.S.
Special Agent
National Center for the Analysis of Violent
Crime
FBI Academy
Quantico, Virginia
and
Park Elliott Dietz, M.D.,
Forensic Psychiatrist
Newport Beach, California
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and
Biobehavioral Sciences
University of California at Los Angeles
and
Janet Warren, D.S.W.
Assistant Professor
Institute of Law
Psychiatry and Public Policy
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia
Any investigator who has taken a statement from
a tortured victim or who has worked the crime scene of a sexually sadistic
homicide will never forget the experience. Human cruelty reveals itself in many
kinds of offenses, but seldom more starkly than in the crimes of sexual
sadists.
This article describes the more commonly
encountered actions of sexual sadists and differentiates sexual sadism from
other cruel acts. It also describes the common characteristics of sexually
sadistic crimes and offers investigators suggestions that they should follow
when confronted with the crimes of the sexually sadistic offender.
WHAT IS SEXUAL SADISM?
Sexual sadism is a persistent pattern of
becoming sexually excited in response to another's suffering. Granted, sexual
excitement can occur at odd times even in normal people. But to the sexually
sadistic offender, it is the suffering of the victim that is sexually arousing.
The writings of two sexual sadists graphically
convey their desires. One writes:
"...the most important radical aim is to
make her suffer since there is no greater power over another person than that
of inflicting pain on her to force her to undergo suffering without her being
able to defend herself. The pleasure in the complete domination over another
person is the very essence of the sadistic drive."
Of his sexually sadistic activities with a
victim he killed, another offender writes:
"...she was writhering [sic] in pain and I
loved it. I was now combining my sexual high of rape and my power high of fear
to make a total sum that is now beyond explaining...I was alive for the sole
purpose of causing pain and receiving sexual gratification...I was relishing
the pain just as much as the sex...."
Each offender's account confirms that it is the
suffering of the victim, not the infliction of physical or psychological pain,
that is sexually arousing. In fact, one of these men resuscitated his victim
from unconsciousness so that he could continue to savor her suffering.
Inflicting pain is a means to create suffering and to elicit the desired
responses of obedience, submission, humiliation, fear, and terror.
PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SUFFERING
Specific findings uncovered during an
investigation determine if the crime committed involves sexual sadism. The
critical issues are whether the victim suffered, whether the suffering was
intentionally elicited, and whether the suffering sexually aroused the
offender. This is why neither sexual nor cruel acts committed on an unconscious
or dead victim is necessarily evidence of sexual sadism; such a victim cannot
experience suffering. For this reason, postmortem injuries alone do not
indicate sexual sadism.
Rapists cause their victims to suffer, but only
sexual sadists intentionally inflict that suffering, whether physical or
psychological, to enhance their own arousal. Neither the severity of an
offender's cruelty nor the extent of a victim's suffering is evidence of sexual
sadism. Acts of extreme cruelty or those that cause great suffering are often
performed for nonsexual purposes, even during sexual assaults.
SEXUALLY SADISTIC BEHAVIOR
The behavior of sexual sadists, like that of
other sexual deviants, extends along a wide spectrum. Sexual sadists can be
law-abiding citizens who fantasize but do not act or who fulfill these
fantasies with freely consenting partners. Only when sexual sadists commit
crimes do their fantasies become relevant to law enforcement.
Sadistic Fantasy
All sexual acts and sexual crimes begin with
fantasy. However, in contrast with normal sexual fantasies, those of the sexual
sadist center on domination, control, humiliation, pain, injury, and violence,
or a combination of these themes, as a means to elicit suffering. As the
fantasies of the sexual sadist vary, so does the degree of violence.
The fantasies discerned from the personal
records of offenders are complex, elaborate, and involve detailed scenarios
that include specific methods of capture and control, location, scripts to be
followed by the victim, sequence of sexual acts, and desired victim responses.
Sexual sadists dwell frequently on these fantasies, which often involve
multiple victims and sometimes include partners.
CASE: One offender, who is believed to have
kidnapped, tortured, and murdered more than 20 women and young girls, wrote
extensively about his sexually sadistic fantasies involving women. These
writings included descriptions of his victims' capture, torment, and death by
hanging. At the time of his arrest, photographs were found depicting the
subject in female attire and participating in autoerotic asphyxia. The offender
apparently acted out his fantasies on both himself and others.
Sadism Toward Symbols
Some individuals act out their sadistic desires
against inanimate objects, most often dolls, pictures, and clothing, but
sometimes corpses. As in the case of fantasy, the suffering in such activity is
imagined.
CASE: A female doll was found hanging outside
an emergency room of a hospital. Around its neck was a hangman's noose, and its
hands were bound behind its back. Needles penetrated one eye and one ear. Burn
marks were present on the doll, and cotton protruded from its mouth. Drawn on
the chest of the doll were what appeared to be sutures. An incision had been
made between the legs, creating an orifice to which hair had been glued and
into which a pencil had been inserted. Nothing indicated that a crime occurred.
Although it is commonly believed that sexual
sadists are cruel toward animals, it has not been determined that such cruelty
is related to sexual sadism. Violent men were often cruel to animals during
childhood, but without sexual excitement. Cruel acts toward animals may reflect
nonsexual aggressive and sadistic motives or may be sacrifices demanded by
religious rituals or delusional beliefs. Someone who is sexually excited by an
animal's suffering is probably both a sexual sadist and a zoophile (one
attracted to animals).
Consenting or Paid Partners
Sexual sadism may also be acted out with freely
consenting or paid partners, e.g., prostitutes who specialize in roleplaying
the "submissive" for sexually sadistic clients. The nature of the
acts varies from simulations of discomfort to actions that result in severe
injury. A consenting partner turns into a victim when her withdrawal of consent
goes unheeded or when an act results in unexpected injury or death. This is
when such acts come to the attention of law enforcement.
Compliant Victims
Some sexual sadists cultivate compliant
victims, i.e., those who enter into a voluntary relationship but are
manipulated into sado-masochistic activities for an extended time. These
victims are wives or girlfriends who underwent extreme emotional, physical, and
sexual abuse over months or years of a relationship that began as an ordinary
courtship. In these instances, the offenders shaped the behavior of the women
into gradual acceptance of progressively deviant sexual acts, and then, through
social isolation and repeated abuse, battered their self-images until the women
believed they deserved the punishments meted out by their "lovers."
CASE: One woman in her thirties advised
authorities that she had been coerced into an emotionally, physically, and
sexually abusive relationship over an 18-month period. At first, she considered
her offender to be the most loving and caring man she had ever known, and she
fell deeply in love. Having occasionally used cocaine in the past, she was
receptive to his suggestion that they use cocaine to enhance their sexual
relations. Eventually, she became addicted. After 6 months together, he began
to abuse her sexually. This abuse included forced anal sex, whipping, painful
sexual bondage, anal rape by other males, and the insertion of large objects
into her rectum. This abusive behavior continued for a full year before she
made her initial complaint to the police.
These cases pose special problems to
investigators and prosecutors because it appears as though the complainant
"consented" to the abuse. However, the transformation of the
vulnerable partner into a compliant victim resembles the process by which other
abusive men intimidate and control battered women into remaining with their
abusers.
BEHAVIOR PATTERNS CONFUSED WITH SEXUAL SADISM
Many crimes involve the intentional infliction
of physical and psychological suffering. Sexual sadism is only one of the
several motives for such crimes. To avoid misinterpretation, investigators
should be aware of those behavior patterns that appear to be sexually sadistic,
but which, in fact, arise from different motives and contexts.
Sadistic Personality Disorder
Persons with this condition usually exhibit
cruel, demeaning, and aggressive behavior in both social and work situations,
most often toward subordinates. They tend to establish dominance in interpersonal
relationships and convey a lack of respect or empathy for others. Such
individuals are often fascinated by violence, take pleasure in demeaning,
humiliating, and frightening others, and may enjoy inflicting physical or
psychological abuse. In this condition, the purpose of these behaviors is not
that of becoming aroused.
CASE: A woman left her husband because of his
verbal abuse, control over her relations with family members, intimidating
behavior, and violent outbursts when drinking. Vengeful that she left him, he
lured her back to the apartment under the pretext of dividing their
possessions. He then attempted to tie her to the bed, beside which he had
arranged a variety of torture instruments. In the ensueing struggle, he told
her of his plans to kill her as he stabbed her repeatedly. She eventually
persuaded him that she wanted to reconcile and convinced him to summon medical
assistance, whereupon he was arrested.
The husband did not have a history of sexual
offenses or deviations, nor did he give evidence of sexual sadism during the
psychiatric examination. He denied any sexual arousal in response to the
suffering or any sexually sadistic fantasies. Although it is possible that the
husband was a sexual sadist who only showed this tendency when he attacked his
wife, the absence of evidence showing a persistent pattern of sexual arousal in
response to suffering precluded this diagnosis.
Cruelty During Crime
While many crimes contain elements of cruelty,
the acts are not necessarily sexually sadistic in nature.
CASE: Two men, recently escaped from a State
prison, captured a young couple and took them to an isolated area. After
repeatedly raping the woman, they severely beat the couple and locked them in
the trunk of their car. They then set the car on fire and left the couple to
burn to death.
Although these men intentionally inflicted
physical and psychological suffering on their victims, there was no indication
they did so for sexual excitement. They beat the couple after the rape and left
as the victims were screaming and begging for mercy. Sexual sadists would have
been sexually stimulated by the victims' torment and would have remained at the
scene until the suffering ended.
Pathological Group Behavior
Cruelty often arises in offenses committed as a
group, even where the individuals have no history of cruelty.
CASE: A group of adolescents attacked a mother
of six as she walked through her neighborhood. They dragged her into a shed
where they beat her and repeatedly inserted a long steel rod into her rectum,
causing her death. Some of her attackers were friends of her children.
Most likely, the participants in this attack
tried to prove themselves to the others by intensifying the acts of cruelty.
Sanctioned Cruelty
History is replete with reigns of terror during
which powerful institutions sanctioned atrocious behaviors. Consider the rape
and plunder of defeated populations during the Crusades of the Middle Ages, or
the execution of women during the Salem witch hunts in colonial America. One of
the most notorious times of cruelty occurred in the 20th century, when millions
of people fell victim to the Nazis.
CASE: Commandant Koch, who headed the
concentration camp at Buchenwald, punished a man who tried to escape by
confining him in a wooden box so small he could only crouch. He then ordered
that small nails be driven through its walls so that he could not move without
being pierced. This man was kept on public display without food for two days
and three nights until his screams ceased to sound human. (1)
In all likelihood, sexual sadists volunteered
to perform such deeds, but the widespread deployment of such tactics was
politically and racially motivated.
Revenge-motivated Cruelty
Cruelty is often evident during acts that are
inspired by an obsessional desire for revenge over either real or imagined
wrongs.
CASE: A physician married a show girl and came
to believe that she was being unfaithful, even though there was no evidence to
substantiate this. Eventually, his obsession overcame his logic, and he decided
to ensure that no man would ever take her away from him. After lashing her to a
table, he poured sulfuric acid over her body and face. She survived 84 days in
agony before succumbing to her injuries.
The offender in this case wanted to punish his
wife and make sure that she would not be desirable to any man. His act was not
designed to gratify himself sexually.
Interrogative Cruelty
Torture during interrogation may involve sexual
areas of the body, which is sometimes misinterpreted as being sexually sadistic
in nature.
CASE: A government agent was captured in
another country. During his months in captivity, he was continually subjected
to physical torture, including beatings with clubs and electrical shocks to all
parts of his body, even his genitals.
The victim was tortured in this manner to
obtain information concerning his government's activities in that country, not
to enhance sexual arousal.
Postmortem Mutilation
The intentional mutilation of a victim after
death is often mistakenly attributed to sexual sadism. However, in a majority
of these cases, the offender kills the victim quickly and does not try to
prolong suffering, which is in total contrast to the actions of the sexual
sadist.
CASE: A father bludgeoned his adult daughter to
death. After her death, he attempted to dispose of the body. On the day of his
arrest, he bought a food processor. Investigators found portions of her remains
in the bathtub, the kitchen sink, in pots boiling on the stove, and in the
refrigerator.
The man killed his daughter either in
self-defense or because of his frustration over her disruptive and hostile
behavior caused by her chronic mental illness. His actions were not intended to
provide sexual satisfaction in seeing his daughter suffer.
STUDY CONDUCTED
We studied 30 male sexually sadistic criminals,
22 of whom were responsible for at least 187 murders. (2) Most of these cases
had been submitted to the FBI's National Center for the Analysis of Violent
Crime (NCAVC). Sources of information for the study included police reports,
crime scene photographs, victim statements, statements by family members,
confessions, psychiatric reports, trial transcripts, pre-sentence reports, and
prison records. We also reviewed evidence created by the offenders themselves,
i.e, diaries, photographs, sketches, audio tapes, videos, calendars, and
letters. These materials, which recorded their fantasies and represented
memorabilia of their crimes, provided windows into the minds of sexually
sadistic offenders.
In addition, we interviewed 5 of the 30
offenders. When interviewed, these men revealed less about their sexual desires
than they had in their writings and recordings of the offenses. This is
consistent with our experience when interviewing subjects during ongoing
investigations, that is, offenders speak much more readily about their violent
acts than about their sexual acts or fantasies.
Each of the 30 sexual sadists studied
intentionally tortured their victims. Their methods of physical torture
included the use of such instruments as hammers, pliers, and electric cattle
prods, and such actions as biting, whipping, burning, insertion of foreign
objects into the rectum or vagina, bondage, amputation, asphyxiation to the
point of unconsciousness, and insertion of glass rods in the male urethra, to
name a few.
Some offenders used a particular means of
torture repeatedly. Such actions could constitute an offender's signature,
which shows that this is the work of a single offender. However, the absence of
a common feature among crimes does not eliminate the possibility of a single
serial offender, for he may be experimenting with various techniques in search
of the perfect scenario or may be attempting to mislead investigators.
The 30 sexual sadists studied also inflicted
psychological suffering on their victims. Binding, blindfolding, gagging, and
holding a victim captive all produce psychological suffering, even if not
physically painful. Other psychological tactics used included threats or other
forms of verbal abuse, forcing the victim to beg, plead, or describe sexual
acts, telling the victim in precise detail what was intended, having the victim
choose between slavery or death, and offering the victim a choice of means by
which to die.
Offender Characteristics
All 30 of the sexual sadists in the study were
men, and only one was non-white. Fewer than one-half were educated beyond high
school. One-half used alcohol or other drugs, and one-third served in the Armed
Forces. Forty-three percent were married at the time of the offense.
Sexual deviations are often associated with
other sexual abnormalities, and our study confirmed this for sexual sadism.
Forty-three percent of the men participated in homosexual activity as adults,
20 percent engaged in cross-dressing, and 20 percent committed other sexual
offenses, such as peeping, obscene phone calls, and indecent exposure.
CASE: As a teenager, one sexual sadist
"peeped" throughout his neighborhood, masturbating as he watched
women undress or have sex. At home, he masturbated repeatedly to fantasies in
which he incorporated what he had seen while peeping. As a young adult, he made
obscene telephone calls, which lead to his first arrest when he agreed to meet
a victim who informed the police. He later exposed himself to a series of
victims, which he eventually explained was for the purpose of eliciting their
"shock and fear." He followed women home from shopping malls,
determined how much cover was available for peeping and entering the residence,
and eventually raped a series of women. In his early rapes, he depended on
weapons of opportunity, but later, carried with him a rape kit, which consisted
of adhesive tape, handcuffs, pre-cut lengths of rope, and a .45-caliber pistol.
He became progressively violent in his sexual assaults, torturing his victims
by beating, burning, and pulling their breasts. His violence escalated to the
point that he so severely pummeled one victim that she lost both breasts. He
forcibly raped more than 50 women and was contemplating murder when he was
finally apprehended.
Investigators should not be mislead by the fact
that the sexual sadist may have been involved in what are commonly referred to
as "nuisance" sexual offenses. A history of such activity is common,
but not universal, among sex offenders of all types. It is a myth that
individuals who engage in "nuisance" offenses do not have a
propensity for violence. (3)
Crime Characteristics
Careful planning epitomizes the crimes of the
sexual sadist, who devotes considerable time and effort to the offense. Many
demonstrate cunning and methodical planning. The capture of the victim, the
selection and preparation of equipment, and the methodical elicitation of
suffering often reflect meticulous attention to detail.
The overwhelming majority of offenders we
studied used a pretext or ruse to first make contact with the victims. The
sexual sadist would offer or request assistance, pretend to be a police
officer, respond to a classified advertisement, meet a realtor at an isolated
property, or otherwise gain the confidence of the victim.
Almost invariably, the victims were taken to a
location selected in advance that offered solitude and safety for the sadist
and little opportunity of escape or rescue for the victim. Such locations
included the offender's residence, isolated forests, and even elaborately
constructed facilities designed for captivity.
CASE: A white male entered a respected modeling
agency and advised that he was filming a documentary on drug abuse among
preadolescents. He made arrangements to hire two young girls from the agency,
and two elderly matrons accompanied them as chaperons. He drove them to his
trailer, and at gunpoint, bound the women and placed the girls in a plywood
cell he constructed in the trailer. The cell contained beds and additional
mattresses for soundproofing. He murdered both women, placing their bodies in
garbage bags. He terrorized the girls for more than 2 days before they were
rescued.
Twenty-three (77 percent) of the offenders used
sexual bondage on their victims, often tying them with elaborate and excessive
materials, using neat and symmetrical bindings, and restraining them in a
variety of positions. Eighteen (60 percent) held their victims in captivity for
more than 24 hours.
The most common sexual activity was anal rape
(22 offenders), followed in frequency by forced fellatio, vaginal rape, and
foreign object penetration. Two-thirds of the men subjected their victims to at
least three of these four acts.
Sixty percent of the offenders beat their
victims. Twenty-two of the men murdered a total of 187 victims; 17 of them
killed three or more people. The manner in which they killed varied.
CASE: Two men, who offended as a team, used a
variety of methods to kill a series of victims. One victim was strangled during
sex. Another was injected in the neck with a caustic substance, electrocuted,
and gassed in an oven. A third victim was shot.
Twenty-nine of the 30 men selected white
victims only. Eighty-three percent of the victims were strangers to the
offender. While the majority of the men selected female victims, one-fourth
attacked males exclusively. Sixteen percent of the men assaulted child victims
only, and 26 percent attacked both children and adults.
Evidence of Crime
These offenders retained a wealth of
incriminating evidence. More than one-half of the offenders in our study kept
records of their offenses, including calendars, maps, diaries, drawings,
letters, manuscripts, photographs, audio tapes, video tapes, and media accounts
of their crimes. For the most part, these secret and prized possessions were
hidden in either their homes, offices, or vehicles, kept in rental storage
space, or buried in containers.
Forty percent of the men took and kept personal
items belonging to their victims. These items, which included drivers'
licenses, jewelry, clothing, and photographs, served as mementos of the
offense, and some of the offenders referred to them as "trophies" of
their conquests. However, none of the offenders retained parts of their victims'
bodies, though some kept the entire corpse temporarily or permanently.
CONCLUSION
Sexually sadistic offenders commit well-planned
and carefully concealed crimes. Their crimes are repetitive, serious, and
shocking, and they take special steps to prevent detection. The harm that these
men wreak is so devastating and their techniques so sophisticated that those
who attempt to apprehend and convict them must be armed with uncommon insight,
extensive knowledge, and sophisticated investigative resources.
FOOTNOTES
(1) R. Manvell and H. Fraenkel, The
Incomparable Crime: Mass Extermination in the Twentieth Century--the Legacy of
Guilt (New York: Putnam's, 1967).
(2) P.E. Dietz, R.R. Hazelwood, and J. Warren,
"The Sexually Sadistic Criminal and His Offenses," Bulletin of the
American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 1990, 163-178.
(3) R.R. Hazelwood and J. Warren, "The
Serial Rapist: His Characteristics and Victims," FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin, February 1989, 18-25.
* * * * *
INVESTIGATING CRIMES OF THE SEXUAL SADIST
The law enforcement community's concern rests
with the criminal sexual sadist, who can be a noteworthy adversary. The sexual
sadist is cunning and accomplished at deception. He rationalizes his actions,
feels no remorse or guilt, and is not moved by compassion. He considers himself
superior to society in general and law enforcement in particular. And, while he
envies the power and authority associated with the police, he does not respect
it.
SOURCES
Invaluable sources of information about
suspects in sexual offenses are their former spouses or girlfriends. As noted
previously, sexual sadists sometimes force partners to become compliant
victims. However, because of the embarrassing nature of the sexual acts
involved, these individuals are often reluctant to divulge information.
SEARCH WARRANTS
Because offenders retain incriminating evidence
and crime paraphernalia, these items should be listed in search warrant
applications. This would include records and mementos, as well as photographic
equipment, tape recorders, reverse telephone directories, and weapons or other
instruments used to elicit suffering. Pornography, detective and mercenary
magazines, bondage paraphernalia, women's undergarments, and sexual devices are
other materials commonly collected by sexual sadists.
* * * *
INTERVIEWING THE SEXUAL SADIST
Sexual sadists are masters of manipulation.
Therefore, the investigator must be well prepared before conducting the
interview. The investigator must know the suspect intimately and be aware of
his strengths and weaknesses. Premature interviews of primary suspects often
fail.
Despite their seeming sophistication, sexual
sadists are likely to consent to be interviewed, even after being advised of
their rights. These offenders often have an exaggerated self-image and consider
themselves intellectually superior to the police. They believe they are in no
danger of divulging detrimental information about themselves. More importantly,
they expect to learn more information from the officer than they provide during
the interview. From the questions asked, they hope to determine how much the
investigator knows and the current status of the investigation.
The interviewer should be of detective status
or above, preferably older than the suspect, and superior to him in physical
stature, personality, and intelligence. The interviewer must appear confident,
relaxed, and at least as calm as the suspect. Any personal feelings about the
crime or the suspect must be suppressed. The interviewer should not attempt to
become "friends" with the suspect, as this will cause him to lose
respect for the interviewer and provide him with an opportunity to manipulate
the conversation. Instead, the interview should be conducted in a formal and
professional manner.
Because these offenders enjoy attention, the
interviewer should be prepared for an exhausting and lengthy interview.
Questions should be thought out in advance and be structured in such a way that
the offender cannot evade a line of questioning with a simple "no"
answer.
For example, rather than asking the suspect if
he likes to torture women, it is preferable to ask him his favorite instruments
for torturing women. Posing questions in this manner reflects the interviewer's
knowledge, does not provide additional information to the suspect, and may
facilitate incriminating disclosures by the subject.
Above all, the suspect must not be allowed to
provoke anger. In all likelihood, he will probably attempt to shock or
antagonize the interviewer, and if the interviewer yields to human emotion, the
suspect will score a significant victory.