Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: True Religious Belief or is it about Control?

11-year old Madeline Neumann went into a diabetic coma and died while her parents watched her. Wait, to be fair, they were praying while they were watching her. The question is, should they be prosecuted for child neglect? This is an extremely difficult question on a number of levels.

1. Does the state have a right to tell us how we should be handle family issues?
2. Does the state have a right to tell us how to deal with our health problems?
3. Can the government prove that going to the hospital is always going to be a better choice than praying?
4. And here is the big question - does the Mom and Dad have any record in the last eight years of visiting a doctor or going to the hospital (Madeline stopped receiving any medical care since she was three years old.)

Number four is what I would like to see the investigators work on when they get the case. The other questions are moral, ethical, or societal issues. However, IF, at any time during those eight years, Mom or Dad sought medical help - for pneumonia, for a broken ankle, etc., or took Excedrin for a headache or Alka-Seltzer for an upset stomach, then they did NOT rely on prayer for themselves and therefore were not convinced that this was the only solution for health problems.

If one or both of the parents used modern medicine for themselves but not for the children, then this is a control issue and their religious garments are just a cover for some very narcissistic parents who should then be brought up on neglect and abuse charges. It is such a sad case for the little Madeline Neumann who could have been saved by a simple visit to the doctor for insulin.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: A Blanket or a Suitcase? Name Two Items used to Transport a Body

The trouble with crimes that are not premeditated is that you often end up with a body you would like other people (read: the cops) not to find for a while. If you are camping when you strangle your wife to death, she can always end up in a ravine, but if you knock her off at home, boy, do you have a problem! If you think you can stage the crime as a stranger murder, well, then you can leave her in the house, sneak off, and come back another day to accidentally find her body (usually you coincidentally have a neighbor with you so you have a witness to your shock and horror at "discovering" her body- that is if you don't send the neighbor in first).

Of course, if there is going to be no question as to who killed the woman, well then, you will just have to move the body. This goes to prove why, if you are going to get into a relationship with someone you might off someday, you should pick a woman with a home (or move her into one) that is isolated and a single family dwelling. Then, all you need is a blanket and you can toss her into your trunk and drive her out to the countryside.

But, heaven forbid, you rent an apartment like the lover of Amy Giordano did! Her married lover (and father of her 11-month-old), Rosario DiGirolamo, found out what a mistake he made when he "allegedly" did her in June 7, 2007. How do you get the body down the stairs or the elevator and past any security or cameras? Yes, a very large suitcase is the only answer. Very large or you have to dismember the body in the bathtub and oh, what a chore that is. We haven't found out if poor Rosario had to go to those lengths as the suitcase with the body was just hauled out of the pond in New Jersey.

The other problem is actually moving the body. It helps if you are big and the woman is small and you don't have to haul her too far. DiGirolamo apparently had to enlist the help of his best friend who won't qualify for that status now that he has ratted Rosario out.

The moral of this immoral story is: if you are a psychopath and don't know what kind of trouble you are going to get yourself in, pick relationships with tiny women in isolated locations who live on the first floor of a detached dwelling. You can save yourself a lot of trouble.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profling Topic of the Day: What do James Frey and Barack Obama have in Common?

This is going to be my last bit of my three day Barack Obama commentary. I was going to move on to a different subject today, but then I ran across an excerpt from Obama's book, "Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance" (which I had already read and I remember thinking something rang wrong about that particular bit as did much of the book which seemed awfully narcissistic and self-serving). The story goes that Obama's white grandmother who was raising and supporting him, was hassled by a bum at the bus stop. She wanted a ride to her work from Grandpa.

"Her lips pursed with irritation. 'He was very aggressive, Barry. Very aggressive. I gave him a dollar and he kept asking. If the bus hadn't come, I think he might have hit me over the head."

Apparently, Grandpa doesn't want to give her a ride and feels a need to explain this to the teenage Barack who apparently is totally in the dark about what the big deal is.

"He (Grandpa) turned around and I saw that he was shaking. "It is a big deal. It's a big deal to me. She's been bothered by men before. You know why she's so scared this time. I'll tell you why. Before you came in, she told me the fella was black." He whispered the word. "That's the real reason why she's bothered. And I just don't think that right.

"The words were like a fist in my stomach, and I wobbled to regain my composure. In my steadiest voice, I told him that such an attitude bothered me, too, but reassured him that Toot's fears would pass and that we should give her a ride in the meantime. Gramps slumped into a chair in the living room and said he was sorry he had told me. Before my eyes, he grew small and old and very sad. I put my hand on his shoulder and told him that it was all right, I understood.
"We remained like that for several minutes like that for several minutes, in painful silence. Finally he insisted that he drive Toot after all, and I thought about my grandparents. They had sacrificed again and again for me. They had poured all their lingering hopes into my success. Never had they given me reason to doubt their love; I doubted if they ever would. And yet I knew that men who might easily have been my brothers would still inspire their rawest fear."

Obama then drives over to his Frank's house, an old black communist party member and friend of Grandpa.

"What I'm trying to tell you is, your grandma's right to be scared. She's at least as right as Stanley is. She understands that black people have a reason to hate. That's just how it is. For your sake, I wish it were otherwise. But it's not. So you might as well get used to it."
"Frank closed his eyes. His breathing slowed until he seemed to be asleep. I thought about waking him, then decided against it and walked back to the car. The earth shook under my feet, ready to crack open at any moment. I stopped, trying to steady myself, and knew for the first time that I was utterly alone."

OH, PUHLEESE! Didn't we not learn anything about fabrication and self-promotion from James Frey's "A Million Little Pieces?" Think about this. Barack Obama is raised up by this loving grandmother who he obviously never thought of as racist in all his growing years. She is threatened by a scary street man who "happens to be black" (and it surely would be unusual because they live in Hawaii so a black man on the street begging is likely to be doing so serious drugs like ice or crack). She mentions he is black because it IS unusual and the word black functions as a description of the man, not a condemnation of blacks everywhere.

I have said similar things around my kids. My black husband said similar things around our kids. My husband might have said, "Some crazy white man came into the store," or I might have said "Some drunk black guy at the hospital threw a urinal at me," and just as likely my husband might have said, " Some weirdo black guy started harassing me in the parking lot, " or I might have said, "I got freaked today because while I was walking to pick up the kids at summer camp, a bunch of lowlife looking white guys were hanging on the corner and made comments at me."

I guess my husband and I could have left out those descriptors and just said guys or men but humans tend to try to conjure up pictures when they talk so they add in color of skin, hair, clothing, and any other significant feature. None of this means the person giving the description is a racist.

My kids never felt "blows to their stomachs" or felt that "their brothers" were terrifying their Mom. They never were so torn up by such comments that they lost their sense of identify and felt utterly alone. Furthermore, if they had, they wouldn't have immediately been so humble and kind and reasonable as Barack purports he was, the peacemaker and forgiver::rolls eyes::Obama is forever the good guy, the victim and never the victimizer. He is either a saint or a liar.

First of all, I doubt the entire scene happened as Obama relays it. I have a hard time believing his Grandpa would have gotten that angry over a simple comment and request for a ride to work unless he were one heck of a bastard. Maybe he was, but, if that is the case, the issue should be about him, not Grandma. Grandma had every right to be afraid and if Grandpa was that bent out of shape because the man she was afraid of just happened to be black, then Grandpa was mixing his political ideology with reality. Grandpa's communist friend would be doing the same if he came up with the bit about Grandma should be afraid of blacks because of history and not simply because this one black man was possibly a violent, desperate drug user who happened to be lurking on her street. Grandpa's friend made that man into a racist as well when all he might have been whacked out druggie. Everything in life is not politics.

So, this supposed incident becomes a pivotal moment in young Obama's life. For god's sake, Obama. Either you are blowing up a little incident into a political issue or you are seriously a narcissistic wuss and a drama queen. I remember my black son (adopted) who was barred from leaving the church (because after the program ended, the very careful lady at the door only opened it when she saw the child's mom approaching). The woman kept telling him I wasn't his mother as I came up the walk to the church. He kept saying, "Yes, she is!" and the woman thought he was just pulling her leg. Finally, she realized her mistake and let my son go with me! We all had a good laugh over it! My son didn't have an epiphany and realize the horrors of racism and think the woman was demented by history. He learned that she hadn't met to many black kids with white moms.

So, either, the people around Obama blew up minor incidents or he did the blowing up to make a good story and forward his very socialistic values. My guess is the latter because he has hooked up with Reverend Jeremiah Wright.

James Frey and Barack Obama may have a lot more in common than just authoring books. Oprah apparently hasn't figured that out and neither have a lot of goodhearted Americans who want to see this man as a messiah and a fresh voice for the future of America. I hope they don't vote the man into office only to wake up one day and realize that they had been fooled by a bunch of pretty words and nice smile. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling of the Day: My Vote goes To Smokey Robinson

I have to admit, although I am fairly conservative when it comes to policy and economics (and definitely crime), I felt sad and betrayed when I found out about Obama's connections to Wright. I like the way Obama speaks and carries himself and I was proud that any man of color (as well as any female) can be a top contender for the presidency of my country. Although I would not have voted for Obama for reasons that are purely issue driven, I was still happy to see him running for president and to see so many in America (of all races and subcultures) be supportive of him. It was exciting to see America has come so far.

Or has it? Reading the information posted on Reverend Wright's church's website and listening to his speeches, I feel as though the rug that I had become comfortable with under my feet had just been pulled out from under me and I came crashing back to the 1970's. All the positive changes in race relations and in the lives of blacks in America have been insulted by Wright and by the Obamas (lest we forget Michelle who wasn't ever proud of America until this election campaign) who seem to feel so little progress has been made.

I remember when I was dating my black boyfriend (American) in the early seventies, I was considered quite radical. When the two of us went out as a couple, I felt people spent an inordinate amount of time staring at us. My parents were not all that happy about the situation and worried they might suffer condemnation and social shunning because of their daughter's "behavior." I remember going to a meeting at Howard University on Africa (where I had traveled) and finding out I wasn't welcome because it was a black power meeting and not really about the country of Africa at all.

Fast forward to the end of the decade. I married a Jamaican man and my parents shrugged and held the wedding at their home. Their friends gave us presents. My New England grandmother who had never spent time with a black person in her life simply said my husband was a good looking fellow. I never felt anyone stared at us and the few times people looked our way I assumed it was because we were an attractive couple!

My kids grew up with no racism of note in their lives. Our neighborhood, in a suburb of Washington in Prince George's County (PG to those that live here)is a racial mix with the richest black population in the country (which doesn't keep PG from being considered a ghetto by neighboring counties because we also have some very poor areas as well). Whites and blacks in this county mix quite well and in the last ten years, there has been a strong cultural blend and it is no surprise to hear rap music come out of the white boy's car and find the black kid is driving the Camaro. And, they hang together; close your eyes and you couldn't tell them apart by listening to the talk.

I don't object to Reverend Wright being community driven and if the folks attending his church happen to be 100% black because they live there, well, then he should be inspiring and working to improve the lives of these black church members because this is where he preaches. I don't have any problem with being proud to be of any race or culture if what this represents is just a love of what one happens to be or has experienced. Nothing is wrong with saying I am PG through and through, or I am a product of Washington DC where we have Go-Go (a unique DC sound coming out of the black community), we have WHUR (the most awesome radio station for decades), the Tom Joyner Morning Show, and we still love Mayor Barry no matter what he has done. Wright can be Chicago proud and church proud and community proud, but to be separatist, hateful of his country, and claim to be more African than American (I bet Africans would think this funny) is truly sad.

For a great commentary on this issue, Smokey Robinson nails it on the head : Smokey Robinson - A Black American

Barack Obama, the man that could have brought us even further forward in eliminating racial bias in this country has more likely started a "debate" that is going to put America in reverse. While the 1970s were an important part of the growth of our country and racial progress, reliving them is going to be detrimental. Obama may have missed growing up black in America but he shouldn't be hanging out with people who are angry, racist and anti-American just because he wants to know what it would have felt like if he had.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profling Topic of the Day: Barack Obama : When Wright is Wrong

It is a simple profiling concept that "behavior makes the man." It is also a long accepted rule that "actions speak louder than words." What a person says is not nearly as important as what he does and yet it seems like a good portion of America is disregarding this truism because Obama gave a pretty speech. I rather hate to admit Hillary is correct when she admonishes us to look at Obama's past record and base our voting decisions on that and not on a bunch of words cleverly put together to make us like him and make us feel good. It seems Barack Obama is snowing us.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is a racist and there is no question about that. Why anyone who is of a mixed racial heritage would want to hang around with a man who insults half of his relatives is beyond me. I would be appalled if any of my children (two biracial and one black and it wouldn't matter if they were all white like me) attended a church where the minister denigrated any race or the country in which they live. Discussing political issues is one thing but throwing out inflammatory remarks and engaging in unchristian attacks on any race or our country as a whole is totally unacceptable for any man of the cloth. Yet, Obama has hung around this pastor for twenty years and reveres him. Say what he will, but birds of a feather flock together and if Obama is a member of this man's flock, I don't want Obama as the President of my country.

Many people are quite unaware of Barack Obama's true background. He was raised by a white mother and by white grandparents in Hawaii, a state with a very Asian and local Hawaiian culture. His black African father vanished from his childhood before he had the chance to even know him. He spent part of his youth in the Indonesia in another Asian culture and then his teenage years back in Oahu, Hawaii where he attended Punahou, a school for mostly wealthy whites and Asians (which is why he snorted coke). Barack Obama had about zero exposure to the trials and tribulations of Black America until he went to Chicago and acquainted himself with a subculture of the black Chicagoan community with the help of his mentor, the Reverend Wright. Obama, the culturally white/Asian Hawaiian became a black man.

I am not saying there is anything wrong with identifying with a new community at some point in one's life. I have attended churches that were mostly white and churches that were mostly black (as it is hard to find an evenly mixed race church). I have spent a portion of my life attending Indian temples and hanging in the Indian (the country) community. I am comfortable with that culture. However, this fact does not make me repudiate my past communities nor my race (whatever that really is other than human). So if Barack Obama is comfortable in the black community at this point in his life, this is fine as long as the culture he in is not racist and hateful. It is fine if he does not pretend he grew up in it and therefore experienced what blacks in Chicago have experienced. He no more raised up in the African-American culture than I did.

Barack Obama could indeed be a fine bridge for a multiracial America. He could honestly state he has been a part of white, Asian, and black cultures in his lifetime. He could state he has learned much of the experiences of Americans in each one of these subcultures of our country. He can further add that he knows what it means to be a bit of all of these cultures as a mixed race American. But, for Barack Obama to align himself with a racist that hates and insults many Americans is foolish and concerning. And very sad. There is guilt by association and I want nothing to do with a person who keeps this kind of company.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Suicide Bombers are Social Outcasts

A new U.S. military study has determined that social outcasts are recruited by al-Qaida to become suicide bombers. One could say this is a rather "duh" conclusion because any time you have a school shooter in the U.S. you can be fairly well assured he is not fitting in well and making a great success of himself.

However, while I believe school shooters are America's version of suicide bombers, many people believe that the mentality of the suicide bomber has a deeper religious issue or a deeper historical motivation causing him to commit this violent and suicidal act. This study shows that this is likely not true at all and the only difference between the school shooter in American and the suicide bomber of the Middle East is that the school shooter is "recruited" by the anti-life community of the Internet/gaming/gore/death metal community to deliver their message and the suicide bomber is directly recruited by a more recognized and organized specific group.

What is important to learn from this study is that social outcasts are targets of those who want to attack society in an ongoing and continuous war. Suicide bombers are not just recruited once, but again and again as al-Qaida continues to attempt to destroy the West's influence - politically, economically, and socially - on their ,and the anti-life community continues to drum their message into the heads of our youth that their society is useless and needs to be destroyed as well.

Mass murderers who commit suicide in the process come in many forms but they all come out of lives of personal failure and are easy pickings for terrorist organizations of the domestic or foreign sort. In order to stop both kinds, we need to destroy the networks that recruit them and also ameliorate the societal conditions that cause these young folk to eventually turn agaisnt the human race and want to destroy them.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: How Behavioral Profiling is Done

One aim of criminal profiling is to identify the kind of person who would have committed a crime in order to narrow the investigation focus and the pool of suspects. The behaviors exhibited by the perpetrator at a crime scene are but examples of behaviors the perpetrator will exhibit in the other areas of his life. In other words, we are all creatures of habit and comfort and we cannot radically change our thinking and actions just because we are now involved in an illegal activity.

The murder of UNC student president, Eve Carson, is a very good example of this truism. I was asked to profile the suspect recenty on a CNN Headline News and I said this offender would undoubtedly already be in the criminal justice system with a long record of crimes and likely include a number of crimes committed as a juvenile. I further said he would have committed a variety of crap crimes (as I call them) including such things as burglaries, robberies, and drug offenses. In other words, he is a lowlife and a hood, with impulsive, stupid, and violent behavior, and the police and the courts would be very familiar with him.

How can one determine this? Let's look at the behavior this offender used in the killing of Eve Carson. First of all, he is roaming around in the middle of the night which means to me he doesn't have much useful going on in his life. Secondly, he appears to have no car of his own because after he finished committing his crimes that night he pretty much drove back to where he started....he didn't feel like walking home. He no doubt is a menace to his own neighborhood or any neighborhood on a bus or metro line.

He killed Eve Carson over a few hundred bucks. He needed or wanted the money and apparently couldn't wait to get it. This shows impulsiveness and desperation which means he probably isn't working nor is he willing to think through a plan that could bring him cash without violence. This makes him a thug of the lowest degree.

Next, he drives to the ATM and sits with his face in full view of the camera with that extremely identifiable ballcap sitting on top of his head. This means he is stupid and arrogant and uncaring about his own freedom. He doesn't think or worry about tomorrow and the inside of a jail cell is not a foreign or frightening idea to him (probably he will just feel at home when he gets there). This behavior shows he has graced the inside of an institution or two in his short lifetime and his carelessness indicates his crimes will be of the down and dirty type, those not requiring anything more than audacity.

When 17-year-old Laurence Alvin Lovette Jr. was arrested this week for Carson's murder, sure enough he had a criminal past including larceny, breaking and entering, car theft. He is also suspected of a homicide during a robbery. He was on probation at the time of Carson's death. His accomplice, 21-year-old Demario James Atwater, was also on probation at the time of his arrest and his criminal career included convictions for drug possession, breaking and entering, larceny, and felony possession of a firearm. Considering these two had these extensive records at their young ages, their juvenile records no doubt are lengthy as well.

Crime is a part of the normal rhythym of a criminal's life, not an aberration within it. Even so-called crimes of passion or one-off crimes committed by people with no criminal record are reflections of the perpetrator's mindset. This is why it is so important to not simply guess the offender's background and lifestyle by assigning him to some statisitical group but to really look at what he is doing when he is committing his crime. This is behavioral profiling and a study of behavior can be illuminating and useful within the context of a police investigation.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: (Don't) Stand by your Man, Mrs. Spitzer

Dina McGreevey, the ex-wife of sleezy ex-New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey who slept with his male employee, comments that Silda Wall Spitzer is suffering from public ridicule and shame because of her husband, New York Governer Eliot Spitzer's immoral and criminal behavior.

I say Silda should feel no shame for the errant behaviors of her creep of a husband, but she should be totally ashamed that she stood next to him when he addressed his constituents, stood there while he did not admit to his sins, while he did not resign from office, and while he did not say he will accept the punishment he deserves.

I lost all respect for Hillary Clinton when she stayed with Bill. After all, this wasn't about a man falling in love during a time when his marriage was in trouble, realizing he had done wrong, coming to his wife privately and begging her for forgiveness. In this private matter, a wife may decide to choose to give the man a second chance.

No, Bill Clinton was a womanizer who tarnished the image of the US Presidency, he was a liar, and he also violated the trust of the American citizens by putting himself in such a position that he could well be blackmailed for his behavior.

Hillary should be ashamed she stayed with a man of so little character, which makes her.... a woman of very little character.

So, Silda, are you planning to honor a hypocrite, an adulterer, a liar, an alleged money launderer, a prositute's john, and an all around sleezebag, by continuing to be his wife? Do you lack morals, character, and courage? Are you going to join the Hillarys of the world who stay with such despicable men because you don't want to give up whatever money or fame or political power they have to offer you?

Or are you going to realize when the shock wears off that staying with this poor excuse for a man makes you a lousy role model for your daughters and is an insult to women everywhere? I surely hope the next words I hear out of your mouth are, "The divorce papers are in the mail."

Women who stand by their criminal, unethical, and immoral husbands, whether they are drug dealers, killers, or politicians, don't deserve our sympathy or support. If they are going to make their bed with a known creep, let them lie in it alone.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Women in Crime Ink

As you may have noticed, posting has been scant lately here at The Profiler. That's because we've been busy working on some new endeavors, one of which we are proud to announce to you today. Pat and I will be back here hard at work at The Daily Profiler, but you can now read more from us, Kathryn Casey, and the rest of the fantastic group of contributors at Women in Crime Ink.

P R E S S R E L E A S E

Announcing a unique crime blog debuting this March:

WOMEN IN CRIME INK

COMING MARCH 10, 2008
http://www.womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/


Profiling the nation's most intriguing criminals . . . interviewing killers, survivors,witnesses, and lawyers . . . arresting suspects . . . prosecuting and locking up serial and sexual killers . . . safeguarding civil liberties and ensuring government accountability . . . recreating faces on skulls to help identify victims and solve cases . . . witnessing executions on Texas Death Row . . . covering the nation's top crime stories . . . and uncovering truth in the face of jail time and death threats.

These are the daily tasks of the women who make up Women in Crime Ink (WCI). Beginning March 10, they will share their day-to-day adventures and behind-the-scenes stories that are always stranger than fiction. WCI will also feature interviews as well as book and film reviews. Expect guest contributor blogs from those impacted by crime and a "Mystery Man" column, written by men in the crime biz. Additionally, WCI will host live chats with selected crime authors promoting their books.

Women in Crime Ink has assembled an impressive lineup of award-winning true-crime authors, print and broadcast journalists, crime novelists, a producer for CBS News, television personalities, and criminal justice professionals—including a forensic artist, a criminal profiler, a murder prosecutor, a police officer, a criminal defense attorney, a sex-crimes prosecutor, and a private investigator. From the West Coast to the Eastern Seaboard, they have crime covered. Meet the women of Women in Crime Ink:

PAT BROWN is a nationally renowned Criminal Profiler and author of Killing for Sport.

ANDREA CAMPBELL is a forensic artist who writes books about forensic science and law.

KATHRYN CASEY is a true-crime author whose first Texas Ranger novel debuts this summer.

TINA DIRMANN is a crime and entertainment reporter, a commentator, and a true-crime author.

STACY DITTRICH is a police officer and a crime novelist who's worked numerous murder cases.

DIANE FANNING is the Edgar-nominated author of 7 true crime books and 1 mystery novel.

JENNA JACKSON is a producer for 48 Hours whose first true-crime book was recently released.

VANESSA LEGGETT is a writer jailed by the Justice Dept. for protecting sources for a book.

MICHELE McPHEE is a best-selling true-crime author and host of a talk-radio show.

DONNA PENDERGAST is a prosecutor who put away the most prolific serial killer in US history.

ROBIN SAX is a deputy district attorney., a criminal law professor, legal analyst and author.

KATHERINE SCARDINO is a defense attorney who won Houston's first capital murder acquittal.

DONNA WEAVER is a P.I. whose career began with her husband's disappearance and murder.

For the real story on crime and media issues, bookmark http://www.womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/

Donna Weaver

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Pet Profiler Right on the Money

Somtimes you just need a laugh and this pet profiler is spot on! Of course, I am a cat owner (two Bengels)so this analysis just put me on the floor. I don't know who wrote it and it is all over the net, but just in case you missed it, enjoy!

Pet Diaries

Excerpts from a Dog's Daily Diary:

8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing
12:00 pm - Lunch! My favorite thing!
1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 pm - Milk bones! My favorite thing!
7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!


Excerpts from a Cat's Daily Diary:

Day 683 of my captivity:
My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling
objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates
and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I
make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless
must eat something in order to keep up my strength.
The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In
an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the floor.
Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at
their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts,
since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However,
they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little
hunter" I am. The audacity!
There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight.
I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event.
However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard
that my confinement was due to someone's "allergies." I
must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage.
Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of
my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I
must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs.
I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and
snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly
released and seems to be more than willing to return. He is
obviously a loser.
The bird has got to be an informant. I observe him communicating
with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every
move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an
elevated cell, so he is safe ........... for now...


Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: No Country is, quite simply, No Good

Everyone is raving today and claiming the Oscars have finally got it right because No Country for Old Men nailed the awards. I, however, am not thrilled. This means I am either out of tune with what people today think has merit or I am that little boy who says "But the emperor is naked!" Why No Country for Old Men won four Oscars and why almost every critic and filmgoer thinks this film is a masterpiece is totally beyond me. I hated the film. I really hated it.

Let me qualify my film tastes because if I only think movies like Mary Poppins are good, then one could understand I have limited scope and No Country would just be too far outside my mindset. This is not the case, however. I love "Reservoir Dogs" which would eliminate the idea I cannot handle a movie with blood, violence, and sick psychopathy. I also have always put the Coen brothers at the top of my favorite directors list: Blood Simple (clever mystery and great film noir styling), Fargo (gotta love the characters), The Great Lebowski (quirky issues), and even, O' Brother...because it was an amazingly feel good film that had one smiling when you came out of the theatre (quite the opposite of how I felt after No Country).

So, I saw No Country the minute it hit the theatres, before there was a buzz or any expections one way or the other. I went alone as well, so I had no one to worry about liking a Coen flick. I had popcorn and my soda and a good seat. Nothing helped me like this film. I hated it from first killing scene to the bitter grueling end. I thought it was gratuitously violent, pointless and terribly boring. It was nothing, in my opinion, but a teenage boy style gore film that dragged on and on. I found it offensive, to my sense of decency, my intelligence and my use of time. I was most offended that directors I respected had fallen so far from good film making that they jumped on the gore film obsession train out there and put together such a vile, useless film. I guessed maybe they were in a dual midlife crisis and desired to be cool "young" dudes again. I dunno.

I figured I was not going to be alone. A lot of people don't like the Coen's movies anyway, so I figured they would be trashed over this film. I figured many would be offended by the sickness of the film and the gore freaks, even if they like the killing scenes, would be bored by the tediousness of the rest of the film. I figured the film would bomb.

But, then I kept hearing the Oscar buzz, about how great No Country was and critic after critic rang out its praises. I thought, wtf? Did we see the same film? I googled all the way to the end of the search results and I googled the blogs searching for someone else out there in the vast universe who thought the film stunk. I found a few folks who felt as I did about the film, but, only a few.

I can't figure it out. If you hated this movie, please, give me a holler. In a year where the only other movie getting constant rave reviews was Superbad, No Country seems to seal the fate of the direction the American movie industry is going...straight into the crapper. No Country for Old Men may indicate this will become No Country for Decent Movie Going and the award for sending us to join the French goes to ::drumroll:: Joel and Ethan Coen::applause::.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Another School Shooting ::Yawn::

Gosh, whiz, a bunch of kids got shot down again while trying to get an education. That sucks. Wonder what the gunman's problem was. There will be a vigil tonight. Then we will bring in some grief counselors and the healing will begin for those lucky enough not to get shot. I guess a memorial wall will be constructed for the students that weren't so lucky. The sports events will go on because we can't let this get us down. There will be, of course, a moment of silence for the victims. Go, team! WHERE OR WHERE IS THE OUTRAGE AND THE DEMAND FOR THAT KILLINGS BE STOPPED?

WAKE UP AMERICA! Six more innocent students have lost their lives forever. Their familes have had their lives destroyed forever. This is not a couple of bad days for the college because a bunch of kids are came down with the flu. The only thing this most recent mass murder has in common with a virus is that it is sickness. This is a truth that we in the United States are ignoring over and over again.

Imagine this:

A man opens his mailbox and dies of anthrax. We are curious and worried.
A week later a woman opens her mailbox and dies of anthrax. We are very worried.
Another week goes by a third person opens up his mailbox and dies of anthrax. The country goes into a panic.

Now imagine this:

A armed youth walks into a school and opens fire killing twenty students. We shake our heads.
A week later a youth walks into a school and opens fire killing ten students. We shake our heads.
Another week later a youth walks into a school and opens fire killing fifteen students. We shake our heads.

WAKE UP AMERICA! SCHOOL SHOOTINGS ARE A NEW DEADLY DISEASE IN THIS COUNTRY AND OUR CULTURE IS GROWING THIS CONTAGEN.

The petri dishes are our disfuntional families and our irresponsible society. The contaminants are anti-life ideations with various presentations: death metal music, gore films, violent video games, and a constant stream of violence though the Internet and television. Add in negligent parents, cowed teachers, drugs, easily accessible guns, and a lack of morals and ethics, and it should be clear that our country is cultivating antisocial spores who are growing into full blown hateful sociopathic individuals who want to destroy the society who made them.

This is not the usual disease created in poverty and need, at least not the kind of poverty and need we associate with gang violence, drug crimes and prostitution. This new disease is being created in middle class, well-fed, well educated America because the poverty is one of morals and the need is one of decency, parenting, and responsibility.

This plague of homegrown terrorists is a far greater threat to our society than any terrorist from oversease. While we worry about far off madrassas creating suicide bombers, we are ignoring the mulitude of "MegaDeath Madrassas" we have created right here in the United States, right under our own eyes and in our own children's bedrooms.

WAKE UP AMERICA! The terrorist you need to fear lives next door and he is a twenty-year old white boy named Timmy.


Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic Of The Day: The Other Side Of The Coin

My long fascination with the use of DNA in forensic science has led me to contemplate the subject of genetically engineered persons. In all of the above examples, these individuals had some type of physical or mental imperfection. Yet they gave us some of the greatest gifts that society enjoys today through their talent, intellect, and scientific and artistic abilities. For example, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was one of our greatest presidents, bringing our country out of the great Depression by passing minimum wage laws, creating the Social Security Administration, starting initiatives to replant our country's forests, and promoting the arts. FDR was also confined to a wheelchair after being stricken with polio. If there was a television in every living room in the United States as there is today, it is doubtful that American voters would have elected a man in a wheelchair to lead our country. It is difficult to imagine how this would have altered our involvement in World War II, and consequently, the entire course of our nation’s history.

What makes the people shown in the above cartoon different from anyone else with the same conditions and diseases or even people without any of these afflictions? Is it an inner strength, a will to over overcome adversity? If so, could this strength of will be a result of factors such as environment, experience, or interactions with other people? Could it be some kind of inherited gene, or a combination of all of these things? The truth is we can't be sure. The human race is made up of individuals, each one unique. This is true not only in our DNA and in genetics, but also in something we call the soul, or the human spirit.

In reality, cloning takes place every day, all around us- even in us. For instance, the cells of our skin are constantly reproducing, creating exact copies of other skin cells. Many organisms reproduce by asexual reproduction, creating new organisms by making exact copies of themselves, which can be considered cloning. Our crops can be genetically modified in order to resist disease, pests, and to have more nutritional value. Scientists have attempted to clone mammals for many years. Some have even been successful after many failed efforts at a cost of millions of dollars. The method used is called nuclear transfer. This involves removing the nucleus of a cell, which contains the organism’s DNA, from the donor cell and implanting it in an unfertilized egg. However, can this truly be considered a clone? Even if the nucleus is removed and implanted without damaging any of the genetic material, it must still interact with the cytoplasm of the unfertilized egg host, which interprets the DNA encoding.

In the case of humans and cloning, the preferred subject would be intelligent, and healthy in mind and body. However, the cloned individual would have none of the experiences and memories of the original person. So we must consider what constitutes a “preferred subject” and what doesn't. Should it be based solely on an individual's physical and intellectual attributes, or does the spirit and the inner self come into play- their emotions, thoughts, ambitions, experiences, and their ability to overcome life’s adversities?

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: An Interesting Argument for the Death Penalty

The Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that by the year 2030, one-third of the prison population will be geriactric. The geezers behind bars are getting sympathy from some folks out there as they visualize the poor old fellahs hobbling around the jail with younger thugs pushing and shoving them around. Some of these men claim they are not receiving proper medical care and forced to do work that they are no longer able to physically handle. My heart doesn't bleed much for these psychopaths as I am sure their hearts weren't bleeding as their victims' hearts were (as they plunged knives through them).

However, ignoring any argument over whether these inhuman beings deserve any kind care in their twilight years, we must still deal with the fact that the cost of housing these felons is rising every year. It is expensive.

This fact has led some to say they should be released back to the community, that they are now harmless old men and society won't suffer if they are let back out.

Oh, no? A psychopath is always a psychopath and even wheelchair bound killers can violently attack someone or engage in verbal abuse and manipulation. I have worked in hospitals and walked out on patients who posed a threat to me if they weren't in handcuffs (lean over to check their breathing and get a pencil in the eye), thrown urinals at me, and let off stream after stream of vulgar or nasty thoughts.

So, if one lets these creeps out, someone is going to have to deal with them. Would you want one living in the nursing home with you? Would you want to take care of such a person? I bet nurses and family members would hardly be thrilled to have these old killers dumped on them. Furthermore, the cost financially to society on the outside is hardly going to be any cheaper than prison.

My opinion is that the only good psychopathic murderer is a dead one. The death penalty would cover this just fine except for the many folks who think killing killers is cruel and unusual punishment. But just think, if we DID have a well-enforced penalty, we wouldn't HAVE a geriatric population in our prisons. Not only would we reduce the prison population but we would reduce the numbers who are the worst of the worst and make prisons a much safer place for those living and working in them.

The death penalty saves lives: innocent ones on the outside because a dead offender is not going to recidivate, prison guards who risk their lives daily keeping control of these creatures, and other less violent prisoners who might actually return to society and become decent citizens.

Not only does the death penalty make life safer for all of us, if we execute killers quickly enough, the death penalty would save us a whole lot of money as well. I say this is one great argument in favor of the death penalty. Can I get an amen?

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: "There is a reason they call your mouth a trap, Joran."

A while back I got a bit of flack because I suggested Kate McCann might do herself a favor if she just shut up. Some thought I was being rude. But shutting up is often the smartest thing to do: not just speaking carefully, or toning it down, but just shutting the hell up because opening one's mouth is a good way to let stuff come out that will get you in trouble and make you look bad.

Joran van der Sloot should have followed this bit of advice himself. He has been on Greta Van Susteran, he has been on "A Current Affair" (where I tore him to shreds because of the stupid statements he made and the behaviors he exhibited), and now he apparently has been chatting up someone who had a recording device attached...and he is in one heck of a barrel of hot oil (and I do rather enjoy the visual)which may well cost him his skin.

Apparently, a journalist, one Mr. Peter DeVries of Holland, has some sound bite of Joran admitting he had sex with Natalee Holloway (in spite of his Current Affair interview where he parroted Bill Clinton's lies), she somehow died thereafter (and I doubt of sheer happiness), and he disposed of her body with a little help from his friends.

Oops! Don't you hate it when you accidentally let the cat out of the bag, Joran? He could claim there was no cat in the bag, but now he has opened his mouth yet again and clearly admitted to the existence of the statements because he is claiming he lied (yet again) when he made them.

It is only a matter of forty-eight hours before we find out if Joran will be hauled back to Aruba to face the music. I surely hope this time the symphony gets a full performance.

I have never doubted Joran killed Natalee during a rape; she didn't want sex, he did. He pinned her down, she died of suffocation in the sand. Joran's homies helped him get rid of the evidence. The one thing you can say for sure is that Joran sure had great friends. I doubt he would have done the same if the situation had been reversed.

I can't wait for Sunday and it's not because the SuperBowl is airing. I want to see justice finally takes its course.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown
February 1, 2008

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: "Let's Enjoy the Cruise and Talk about Serial Killers!"

Some of you have emailed me and wondered why the Daily Profiler went missing for a month. I really haven't an excuse for the first two weeks of the year but the next two weeks I was cruising the South Caribbean and I decided to give my posting brain a break.

Of course, that didn't mean I actually relaxed for the whole cruise and did nothing but lay about in the sun. I had to work (give lectures) to get that supercheap cruise deal (myself and a friend for free except for the agency booking fee and tips). I have a lot of people now wanting to become my "friend!" (Bribes will be accepted). If you don't make the Pat Brown best friend list by my next cruise date, you can still book straight through Norwegian Cruise Lines for the Alaska trip (July 20 out of Vancouver) or for the South American trip (December 21 out of Valpairaso for 14 days). Then you can join me for a great vacation and still get to learn about serial killers, psychopaths, CSI, and criminal profiling and if you want to discuss topics outside the lecture times, I do accept free drinks....

Some have asked why anyone would want to think about such things while on a cruise to exotic places. All I can say is, I saw lots of people reading mystery and true crime books while sunbathing and, by my last lecture, we had to turn folks away because we ran out of space in the room even for people standing in the back. I guess crime and the criminal mind never cease to be fascinating.

Well, I am back in the real world now, and until my next trip out of my regular life (this should be India in May), I will be back posting at The Daily Profiler.

I hope to see everyone back with me! I have missed your comments!

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown
January 31, 2008

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: The Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

It has been a while since any news item has brought me to tears, but today we have lost a great world leader to Islamic extremists and terrorism. Benazir Bhutto, ex prime minister of Pakistan and first female leader of an Islamic nation, was assassinated today during a campaign rally in Rawalpindi,leaving the best hope for democracy and reasonable thinking dead in Pakistan. Bhutto represented the kind of idealism, courage, and commitment we in the United States rarely see in our own leaders and citizens. Bhutto returned to Pakistan fully aware of the danger awaiting her and she was willing, for the sake of her people and the ideals of a democratic society, to put her life on the line.

Benazir Bhutto did not lead a life free of controversy and one cannot claim she was a perfect leader, but she offered the best hope for common sense and decency in a part of the world plagued by terrorism and oppressive mindsets. Peace, fair elections, democracy, equality for women - all of these concepts have been trampled on today and I cannot help but feel the whole world will suffer because of this horrific act of hostility against a woman who sought to make her country and the world a better place to live in.

May the people of Pakistan come out of this tragedy with a combined strength to fight back against extremism and not let the loss of Benazir Bhutto be the death knell of all freedom and decency, inshallah.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Mass Murderer Robert Hawkins - Music Lover

Hello everyone! I am back from holiday and doing a little catch up on crime news. I was running names through the Google search engine for updates and I came up with this interesting tidbit. It seems Robert Hawkins, the Omaha mall mass murderer, had a t-shirt in his car with a Mushroomhead logo. For those of you who aren't familiar with the band, Mushroomhead is a group of well-groomed young men wearing matching suits and ties who sing of love and kindness and the fellowship of mankind.

No, wait, I must have confused Mushroomhead with the Tijuana Brass or the Spinners. Mushroomhead is a nasty looking bunch of lads with faces painted as skulls who sing about hate and violence and death. Imagine that....Hawkins listened to negative, angry, vengeance filled music....what a surprise!

Of course, now that the news is out about Hawkins' taste in music, the supporters of this garbage are rolling their eyes and claiming the music is being unfairly targeted as violence provoking rather than just great riffs with thoughtful lyrics that have no negative effects on any of its listeners. I can't wait until some of these young men actually grow up and become fathers. I want them to send their kids music and videos that incessantly repeat the message, "Kill your stupid worthless parents" and let's see if they don't sleep with their bedroom door locked at night.

Well, that was a cheery return to the real world! Hope you all had a great holiday and the new year brings less crime and more peace on earth.

Cheers!

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Cybersquatting

Pigs seem to be a recurring theme here.

I have my doubts about the big, bad wolf. But I have seen evidence of an annoying little Chihuahua.

It has come to our attention that someone has engaged in malicious activity against The Daily Profiler blog site, and created several deceptive misdirects of The Pat Brown Criminal Profiling Agency Web site to false web pages with the title, “Criminal Profiling Agency: Criminal Profiler Pat Brown” in an attempt to interfere with Google search results and Web site traffic.

SUCH INTERFERENCE SUBJECTS THE OFFENDER TO CRIMINAL PENALTIES AND CIVIL LIABILITIES.

An enigmatic screen name and intrusive software do not shield the violator from identification. The events have been fully documented and reported to the proper authorities. Further investigation is underway to determine if there have been intrusion attempts into the personal computers of staff members or associates of The Pat Brown Criminal Profiling Agency. Not only is this a violation of ISP and Google terms of service agreements, it is a violation of Federal law.

Possible relevant sections of the U.S. Code include, but are not limited to:

Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act

15 U.S.C. § 1125(D)

Sec. 1125. - False designations of origin, false descriptions, and dilution forbidden

(a) Civil action

(1) Any person who, on or in connection with any goods or services, or any container for goods, uses in commerce any word, term, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof, or any false designation of origin, false or misleading description of fact, or false or misleading representation of fact, which -

(A) is likely to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive as to the affiliation, connection, or association of such person with another person, or as to the origin, sponsorship, or approval of his or her goods, services, or commercial activities by another person, or

(B) in commercial advertising or promotion, misrepresents the nature, characteristics, qualities, or geographic origin of his or her or another person's goods, services, or commercial activities,
shall be liable in a civil action by any person who believes that he or she is or is likely to be damaged by such act.

(d) Cyberpiracy prevention

(1) (A) A person shall be liable in a civil action by the owner of a mark, including a personal name which is protected as a mark under this section, if, without regard to the goods or services of the parties, that person -

(i) has a bad faith intent to profit from that mark, including a personal name which is protected as a mark under this section; and

(ii) registers, traffics in, or uses a domain name that -

(B) (i) In determining whether a person has a bad faith intent described under sub paragraph (A), a court may consider factors such as, but not limited to –

(V) the person's intent to divert consumers from the mark owner's online location to a site accessible under the domain name that could harm the goodwill represented by the mark, either for commercial gain or with the intent to tarnish or disparage the mark, by creating a likelihood of confusion as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of the site;

If these activities persist, expect criminal action. We will also pursue civil remedies to the fullest extent of the law, regardless the cybersquatter's employment status or lack thereof.

We know there’s a Chihuahua in our machine. What the Chihuahua needs to understand is that a Great Dane is watching, and it’s not Pat Brown. Word to the wise: Wrong is wrong and right is right. The government does not see in shades of gray—it’s only black or white.

Donna Weaver

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: When Pigs Fly!

Perhaps Corey Mitchell, editor of In Cold Blog, was thinking, quidquid Latine dictum sit altum videtur (everything sounds more impressive when said in Latin) when he wrote his Mea Culpa manifesto and posted it on ICB last week. Mitchell issued the formal apology in response to the protests, and ultimate defection, of several highly respected ICB contributors over his posting of a brutally violent video clip, which he labeled a “Thanksgiving Treat.“ (Please see Gore and Slasher Films Are No Laughing Matter to Victims of Violent Crime) However, this is what Mitchell had to say before finding out the victims' organizations he professed to be involved with had been contacted:

"…the site is far from sick or perverted because we post a FUNNY and FAKE movie trailer ABOUT A MOVIE that does not exist.

If you have problems with the site then you need to be professional enough to make a choice.

Meanwhile, I am more than happy to continue donating to charities, negotiating a deal with a syndicated news service to pick up our blog and pay our contributors, and also accept a job as a blogger for the Discovery Channel/New York Times.

If you do decide to quit over something so trivial as a fake movie trailer please let me know so I can find a replacement ASAP."

Mea Culpa? Ad astra per alia porci !!! (“When pigs fly!”) He might have been able to continue getting his jollies from getting as close to the real deal as he can, without actually participating in the horrific, degrading acts experienced by crime victims every day. That is, if he had only kept his mouth shut. But I am very glad you didn’t, Corey Mitchell. You had the gall to claim you donate part of the proceeds from sales of your books to support specific Victims' Advocacy organizations, who not only issued public statements to the contrary, but strongly denounced your self-proclaimed love of depictions of brutal acts of violence and murder for entertainment purposes. That was bad enough, but nothing could testify to your true nature better than your own words.

No matter how glibly stated, Mitchell’s incredibly bizarre, disturbed, and grandiose discourse leaves no doubt as to his arrogance, his egocentric perception of the world, and his place in it, as well as his confidence in his ability to manipulate others, and their perceptions of him and his behavior. But what gave him away more than anything else was his complete lack of empathy. It occurred to me that here was a successful author who had the skill to recreate the most despicable acts imaginable in such gruesome detail as to make some readers claim in their reviews that they are afraid to go to sleep at night. Yet there were parts of Mitchell’s little autobiography where expressions of empathy were appropriate- even expected- since he was attempting to convince people that there was nothing unusual about a man his age (41) proclaiming simultaneously to have both a love of gore and slasher films, and a genuinely deep concern for victims of violent crime. For example:

"My continuing love of all things horror has only increased after having experienced several tragedies of my own from being told at the age of 15 that my father would be dead in less than six months (he is still alive today – 26 years later) due to an enormous brain tumor. To say the least it always had me on edge and able to see that life could end at any moment."

One doesn’t hear of such miracles everyday, and I am very happy for Corey Mitchell and his family that his father is still with them 26 years later. Mitchell doesn’t say he is grateful for this miracle, but claims the experience is one of the reasons he finds solace in gore and violence. I just lost my second husband to cancer 3 months ago, and I would give almost anything to have even just 1 more day with him. Corey Mitchell’s father survives a brain tumor and he thinks directing “Blowtorch Lobotomy” is fun?

"Then I counseled my first wife, Lisa, in regard to her first sexual experience, which was being gang-raped by two paint-sniffing high school dropouts. I saw what being a victim of violence and violation did to her. Then I had Lisa die unexpectedly to Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome at the young age of 38 in 2002."

My deepest sympathies to Corey Mitchell and to Lisa’s family for her sudden death. To be so horribly raped as a young girl is tragic. Mitchell’s words make me feel her pain, but not his own. He “counseled” her?

As a survivor of a homicide victim, I am offended by you, Corey Mitchell. As someone who has worked for many years on behalf of the missing and murdered, I am offended by you-as are the victims' organizations you claim to support.

Let’s drop all the pretentious Latin crap, and I will put this in the simplest possible terms:

What Corey Mitchell is saying to victims of violent crime is, “I am very sorry that your child or wife was so brutally raped, tortured, and dismembered and I care about you and your loss, but I love to watch that stuff on the screen –it’s so funny!”

Mea Culpa, my ass…

Donna Weaver