Criminal Justice Professor Tod Burke from Radford University, Va. spoke about serial killers and suspected Versace murderer and "high-priced hustler" Andrew Cunanan yesterday in Collis Common Ground.
About 30 people attended the informal lecture and heard Burke's interpretations and predictions about Cunanan's crimes, as well as information on different types of serial killers.
Burke also shared his background with criminal profiling with the audience.
"Profiling does not tell you who did the crime," Burke said. "A profile is based on who would be most likely to do the crime."
Burke emphasized the distinction between a mass murderer, a spree killer and a serial killer.
He said a mass murderer kills two or more people at one event and a spree killer goes from place to place killing. Neither type of killer has an emotional cooling-off period.
A serial killer kills two or more people at different locations, but has an emotional cooling-off time. Burke said he thinks Cunanan is a "mixture between a serial killer and a spree killer."
Burke said 33 serial killers have been interviewed by profilers to obtain general characteristics about these murderers.
A typical serial killer, according to Burke, is a white male in his 20s or early 30s. He is often attractive, has average to above-average intelligence, has an antisocial personality, probably abused animals as a child, may have been abused himself as a child and is a chronic liar who feels no remorse for his crimes.
"They blend in with their environment," he said. "The person next to you could be a serial killer and you wouldn't know it." In fact, Burke said he met Cunanan last year while he was staying with a friend in San Francisco. He was introduced to him twice and had no idea Cunanan would become a serial killer.
But Cunanan fits a serial killer's profile, even though he also seems to be part spree killer, Burke said -- Cunanan is a five-foot-ten, 27-year-old white male, 160 to 180 pounds, smart and sophisticated. Cunanan attended an elite private school, wore expensive clothes, was known as a "name-dropper" and often picked up the tab for an acquaintance's meal.
Burke described different types of serial killers. One distinction has to do with organization.
An organized serial killer knows who his next victim will be and leaves a clean crime scene, Burke said. He often follows his crimes on the news, and it is typical for officers to find newspaper clippings about the killer's crimes at his house.
He said he thinks whoever apprehends Cunanan will find newspaper clippings with him. "He is eating this up," Burke said.
According to Burke, organized serial killers take trophies such as shoes, rings or wallets to remind themselves of their crimes. "After a number of serial killings, they don't remember their victims anymore," he said.
A disorganized serial killer, on the other hand, chooses his victims impulsively and leaves crime scenes in disarray. He might leave a weapon or a trail of clues and often dissects or mutilates the victim's body and takes a souvenir, such as a body organ.
But Burke warned that categories can be misleading, and it is dangerous to label criminals. He said Cunanan appears disorganized because he leaves crime scenes "messy" and has left an identifying trail, but he thinks Cunanan is "an organized killer trying to look disorganized," which could be a tactic to throw off the FBI and police.
Other classifications of serial killers separate those who are local or traveling and those who are visionary or missionary. A visionary killer kills because he hears voices telling him to do so, while a missionary killer has a goal to rid society of certain people and feels he is doing society a service, Burke said.
He said he thinks people spend too much time focusing on the serial killer and not enough time focusing on the victims. "To know who the suspect is, we have to know who the victims were," he said.
Burke pointed out most people know about famous serial killers Jack the Ripper and Jeffrey Dahmer, but hardly anyone can name any of their victims.
Cunanan was known for attaching himself to wealthy, elderly gay men and using them for money. His victims are former lovers or acquaintances, Burke said.
Cunanan shot Versace in broad daylight, and "this guy does not care anymore," Burke said. "He has nothing to lose ... He wants to get caught, he is enjoying this game of cat and mouse."
Burke said since Cunanan has not turned himself in nor killed himself, he thinks he will kill again. But he will need transportation, food, shelter and gasoline, Burke said, which might be difficult to obtain with his picture being flashed all over the country.
Cunanan is a master of disguise, and by next week his story will no longer be front-page news, giving him a greater opportunity to remain uncaptured, Burke said.
He said he thinks a copycat killer will surface, and he predicted Cunanan's next target area will be Atlanta or Savannah, Ga. But Cunanan can fit in anywhere, Burke said. A college could be a good place to hide because students do not always follow national news.
"Put a backpack on him and he'd look just like a student," Burke said. "He could be in your class."
Burke, who was originally a pre-medicine student at the University of Maryland, said he changed his major to law enforcement after taking a class taught by a Washington, D.C. police officer.
He worked for the Ocean City, Md. police department, then for a county department and taught at a police academy, before pursuing his Master's degree in forensic science at George Washington University in D.C.
Burke said he taught at a New Jersey college and then received a doctorate from the John Jay School of Criminal Justice in New York City.
