About nine billion years ago, in a thread about criminals, someone observed that prison studies have shown that criminals in general have a lower IQ than the random population. A science-oriented person simply observed that all the study proves is that criminals who get caught and wind up in prison have a lower IQ in general than the random population... (My only point being that stats can't always be taken at face value.)
In regard to "...most serial killers are white men..." I'm dubious about how the label "serial killer" gets applied by PC officials and statisticians.
It seems to me that if a white person kills multiple people over time, that white person will get assigned the label "serial killer." If a black person kills multiple people over time he'll simply be called a "repeat offender." It seems to me there are an awful lot of black people who are repeat offenders.
Is there a "technical" way of separating people who are "repeat offenders" from people who are "serial killers?"
-- KotS
A more specific profile of a serial killer has been presented by Apsche (1993) stating that most are white males in their twenties or thirties, who target strangers near their homes or places of work. "According to criminologist Eric Hickey, who has assembled the most extensive database on demography of serial murder states that, 88% of serial killers are male, 85% are Caucasian, and the average age when they claim their first victim is usually around 28.5. In terms of victim selection, 62% of the killers target strangers exclusively, and another 22% kill at least one stranger. Finally, 71% of the killers operate in a specific location or area, rather than traveling wide distances to commit their crimes"(Apsche, 1993, p.16). Also, the F.B.I claims that to be classified as a serial killer, the person must first complete 3 separate murders, that are spaced by a duration they call "the cooling off period" which can vary from a few days to years, From I have read on this case, all of his victims were prostitutes and the murders happened within a few years.