Introduction

Abstract

Few things capture public attention more than serial killers. We are fascinated by individuals who apparently have no conscience and describe these seemingly emotionless killers as “cold-blooded.” People who commit murder out of anger, self-defense, or raw, impulsive emotion are at least minimally understandable. We can all imagine threats to loved ones or fear leading people to lose control. The seemingly dispassionate ones are the objects of fascination, both in fiction and nonfiction. The cycle is familiar: a murder, saturating media attention, then a series of “why did he (normally a ‘he’) do it?” pieces (in print or on TV) mixing pop psychology with pop sociology.

Those are my principles. If you don’t like them I have others.

Groucho Marx