This is an example of a good initial post from another class.

Note the use of in-text citations (that show where information came from), page numbers where direct quotes are used, and references that show the readers how they can find the information cited.

Paraphrased text must be cited, but does not have to have page numbers (just author & date).

Prompt:

Explain the importance of the disposal site when evaluating serial behavior. List 3 types of disposal sites and provide an example of each. Briefly discuss an example where one of these was used.

Disposal sites give insight into the motive and intent of an offender’s behavior and skill level (Turvey, 2012). The job of the criminal profiler is to establish the relationship between the victim’s body to the disposal site and the evidence that is in it. According to Turvey (2012),

“the disposal site aspects are useful in answering the following questions: whether an offender intended that the victim’s body be found, where an offender intended that the victim’s body be found, when an offender indented that the victim’s body be found, and whom an offender intended would find the victim’s body” (p. 561).

Three types of disposal sites are convenience, remorse and pre-selected. A convenience aspect refers to a disposal site that is chosen because it is available or less difficult to access than another location. This may apply when the offender has little time or is unable to move a victim’s body either physically or without being observed or detected. A remorse aspect is a disposal site where there is evidence that the offender experienced some regret after killing the victim. This can be observed in behaviors that “attempt to undo the homicide” (Turvey, 2012, p. 561) such as cleaning up the victim or putting them in a natural body position (sitting up, sleeping etc.). A pre-selected disposal site if one that is chosen prior to committing the crime, because it’s “particularly suitable for the activities with which the offender wishes to engage the victim” (Turvey, 2012, p. 561). These settings could be something like a well-traveled path in the woods or an outdoor clearing, as well as possible an indoor location that the offender would bring the victim to (Turvey, 2012).

Although this chapter discusses disposal sites in relation to serial behavior and murder, there is much research involved in disposal sites for varying crimes and criminals alike. In a unique study of neonaticide, the researchers found that for the majority of cases studied, the bodies of the victims were found within the offender’s residence and within close proximity to the delivery location, the bedroom or the bathroom (Shelton, Corey, Donaldson, & Dennison, 2011). Further, many newborns are “disposed like refuse, often placed in a bag(s) and put in a trash container (Shelton et al., 2011, p. 269). These cases could best be related to the convenience aspect, as the offenders are able to dispose of the children in a convenient place. Many times, if an offender wants to go undetected, they would choose this method as they would likely not be observed committing the crime. In this particular study, there was no evidence of a remorse aspect, as the offenders dumped the bodies either indoors (the majority of the time) or outdoors in a remote location seemingly with the intent of hiding the body so it would never be found. There was also very little evidence to support a pre-selected aspect as it seemed as though the offenders did not think out their crime. However, for those few cases where the body was disposed outdoors, it may be argued that the offender thought out a disposal site that was outside of the home.

References

Shelton, J. L., Corey, T., Donaldson, W. H., & Dennison, E. H. (2011). Neonaticide: a comprehensive review of investigative and pathologic aspects of 55 cases. Journal Of Family Violence, (4), 263.

Turvey, B. E. (2012). Criminal profiling: An introduction to behavioral evidence analysis (4th ed.). Amsterdam: Academic Press.