on August 20, 1986, and killed 14 employees before committing suicide. The term "going postal" has its roots in the case of one PATRICK SHERRILL, a disgruntled former postman who walked into the post office in Edmond, Ill. Cotton probably poisoned four of her husbands, a variety of her friends and in-laws, and several of her own children with arsenic. But MARY ANN COTTON (1832"“1873) was more prolific, killing as many as 21 people. When it comes to British serial killers in the 19th century, Jack the Ripper gets all the press. Some sources claim that Bathory, a Hungarian countess, tortured and killed 2,000 young girls (mostly peasants, but some lower gentry). Long before there was Aileen "Monster" Wuornos, there was ELIZABETH "THE BLOODY LADY" Bathory (1560"“1614). GILLES DE RAIS (1404"“1440): Once one of the richest men in France, Rais raped, tortured, and murdered between 80 and 200 boys-and a few girls-on the grounds of his various estates. Although there are records of serial killers going back to at least 1400, the term wasn't coined until the 1970s, when killers Ted Bundy and David "Son of Sam" Berkowitz were frequently in the news. It rather goes without saying, but serial killers tend to be pretty screwed up individuals. To qualify as a serial killer, one needs three victims. The killers usually don't know their victims (the opposite is true with mass murderers), they almost always have "cooling off " periods between murders, and they usually derive sexual excitement from the killings.
#What makes a serial killer kill series#
Serial killers, on the other hand, kill in a series of events. Terrorism and government-sanctioned murder often are considered mass murder. Kill three people at once, therefore, and you're merely a homicidal jerk.
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Department of Justice, Statistics Bureau (and yes, there really is such a thing), "mass murder" is a single event at one location involving the murder of four or more people.
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The difference here is all about the details-but then, any CSI fan knows that the magic of police work is in the little things. The Quick Trick: John Wayne Gacy was a serial killer because he committed many murders over a long period of time mass murderers commit many murders all at once.