Lethal Outcome in Sexual Assaults: Predicting the Unpredictable?

This essay explores whether the sexual murderer is a unique type of sex offender. Two competing hypotheses of sexual homicide are outlined: the unique type hypothesis and the situational hypothesis. The essay discusses the heterogeneity of sexual murderers and reviews the different typologies of sexual homicide and the most common types. Differences and similarities between sexual murderers and non-homicidal sex offenders are reviewed, focusing on offender characteristics, criminal career, situational factors, and modus operandi/crime characteristics. The essay examines the factors leading to a lethal outcome in sexual assaults by looking at the most important factors, and the combinations of factors, leading to the death of the victim. Misconceptions about the modus operandi of sexual murderers are discussed along with the main behaviors they use to commit their crime. Finally the essay explores the differences between serial and non-serial sexual murderers.

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Death in Sadistic Sexual Crimes: A Neural Network Analysis of Factors Associated With a Lethal Outcome

Criminal Justice and Behavior ◽

10.1177/00938548211066911 ◽

2022 ◽

pp. 009385482110669

Author(s):

Julien Chopin ◽

Eric Beauregard ◽

Park Dietz

Keyword(s):

Neural Network ◽

Logistic Regression ◽

Network Models ◽

Sexual Assaults ◽

Neural Network Analysis ◽

Neural Network Models ◽

Lethal Outcome ◽

Sexual Crimes ◽

Factors Associated ◽

Practical Implications

This study aims to determine the factors associated with the victim’s death in sadistic sexual crimes. Specifically, this article examined whether the lethal outcome is more likely to be associated with an escalation of violence during the crime-commission process, an instrumental motivation, or the manifestation of specific sadistic fantasies. We used a database including 735 cases of sadistic sexual assaults. Among this sample, 100 sadistic sexual assaults ended with a lethal outcome. Bivariate analyses, logistic regression, and neural network models were used to identify how the different factors predicted the lethal outcome of sadistic crimes. Our results show that the expression of sadistic behaviors associated with torture and/or bodily punishment plays a fundamental role in the lethal outcome of sadistic sexual crimes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

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Risk Estimations of the Conjunction of Victim and Crime Event Characteristics on the Lethal Outcome of Sexual Assaults

Violence and Victims ◽

10.1891/0886-6708.27.4.470 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 27 (4) ◽

pp. 470-486 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Eric Beauregard ◽

Tom Mieczkowski

Keyword(s):

Sexual Assault ◽

Sex Offenders ◽

Fatal Outcome ◽

Protective Effects ◽

Sexual Assaults ◽

Lethal Outcome ◽

Sexual Crimes ◽

Crime Event

This study examines what factors may distinguish injury from death in sexual crimes. We suggest that victim characteristics may work in conjunction with the crime context to enhance or reduce a fatal outcome once a sexual assault is underway. Based on a sample of 201 sex offenders who either physically injured or killed their victim, we calculate risk estimations of lethal and injurious outcomes for various conjunctions of victim characteristics and contextual aspects of the crime event. One of the most interesting findings is the apparent protective effects of a victim’s criminogenic environment, which consistently appears to decrease the probability of a fatal outcome.

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