LibGuides: True Crime Book Club: March 2025

About the Author: Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess

Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess is a prominent figure in the field of criminal psychology, particularly known for her work in forensic psychology and criminal profiling. Here’s an overview of her biography:

Early Life and Education

Born: Ann Wolbert Burgess, on March 27, 1937, in the United States.
Education: Burgess earned her Bachelor’s degree in Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania. She later pursued graduate studies in psychology, earning her Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Clinical Psychology from Boston University.

Academic and Professional Career

Academic Positions: Dr. Burgess is a Professor of Psychiatric Nursing and a Clinical Nurse Specialist at Boston College. Her academic work has focused on trauma, victimology, and criminal psychology.
Clinical Experience: Throughout her career, Burgess has worked extensively with victims of violence and sexual assault. Her clinical experience includes providing therapy and support to individuals who have experienced trauma.

Contributions to Criminal Psychology

Pioneering Work: Burgess is renowned for her pioneering work in the field of criminal profiling and victimology. She has made significant contributions to the understanding of sexual violence and the development of investigative techniques for profiling violent offenders.
Collaborations with Law Enforcement: She has worked closely with various law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, to develop and refine criminal profiling techniques. Her work has been instrumental in shaping modern approaches to understanding and investigating violent crime.

Key Publications

"A Killer by Design: Murderers, Mindhunters, and My Quest to Decipher the Criminal Mind" (2021): This book combines Burgess’s professional insights with her personal experiences in the field of criminal psychology. It offers an in-depth look at the development of criminal profiling and the study of violent offenders.
Research Articles: Burgess has authored numerous research articles and academic papers on topics such as victimology, trauma, and criminal profiling. Her work is widely cited in the field of forensic psychology.

Honors and Recognition

Awards and Honors: Dr. Burgess has received various awards and honors for her contributions to the field of criminal psychology and forensic science. Her work is highly respected among both academics and law enforcement professionals.

Influence and Legacy

Impact on the Field: Dr. Burgess’s research and practical work have had a profound impact on the field of criminal psychology. Her insights into the nature of violent crime and her contributions to criminal profiling have been crucial in advancing the understanding of criminal behavior and improving investigative practices.

Personal Life

Family: Details about her personal life are relatively private, but her professional career and contributions have made a significant mark on the field of criminal psychology.

Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess is a trailblazer in forensic psychology, known for her extensive work in understanding and profiling violent offenders, and her contributions continue to influence both academic research and practical applications in the field of criminal justice.

MLN Materials

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Synopsis

Written by the forensic nurse who transformed the way the FBI profiles and catches serial killers, this thought-provoking book takes an intimate look at the creation of the Behavioral Science Unit.

In the 1970s, the FBI created the "Mindhunters" (better known as the Behavioral Science Unit) to track down the country's most dangerous criminals. In A Killer By Design , Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess reveals how her pioneering research on sexual assault and trauma helped the FBI capture some of history's most violent offenders, including Ed Kemper (The Co-Ed Killer), Dennis Rader (BTK), Henry Wallace (The Taco Bell Strangler), and Jon Barry Simonis (The Ski-Mask Rapist).

This book pulls us directly into the investigations as she experienced them, interweaving never-before-seen interview transcripts, crime scene drawings, and her personal insight about the minds of deranged criminals and the victims they left behind.

Haunting and deeply human, A Killer By Design forces us to confront the age-old question that has long plagued our criminal justice system: "What drives someone to kill, and how can we stop them?"

Discussion Questions

Personal and Professional Background:
- How does Ann Wolbert Burgess’s background and professional experience shape her approach to understanding criminal minds? What insights does her personal journey provide into the field of criminal psychology?
Development of Profiling Techniques:
- Discuss the evolution of criminal profiling as presented in the book. What were the key developments and milestones in the field, and how did they impact the study of criminal behavior?
Case Studies and Their Significance:
- Analyze some of the significant cases discussed in the book. How do these cases illustrate the principles and challenges of criminal profiling? What do they reveal about the nature of criminal behavior?
Psychological Theories and Concepts:
- What psychological theories or concepts does Burgess explore in relation to criminal behavior? How do these theories help in understanding the motivations and patterns of violent offenders?
Ethical Implications:
- What ethical considerations arise in the field of criminal profiling and forensic psychology? How does Burgess address these ethical issues in her work and research?
Challenges in Profiling:
- What are some of the challenges and limitations of criminal profiling discussed in the book? How do these challenges affect the effectiveness and accuracy of profiling?
Impact of Technology and Research:
- How has advancements in technology and research influenced the field of criminal profiling and forensic psychology? What future directions does Burgess suggest for the field?
Personal Reflections and Emotional Impact:
- How does Burgess reflect on the emotional and psychological impact of working in criminal psychology? What personal challenges and insights does she share in relation to her work with violent offenders?
Public Perception and Media Influence:
- How does media portrayal affect public perception of criminal profiling and forensic psychology? What impact does this have on the work of professionals in the field?
Comparative Perspectives:
- Compare Burgess’s approach and insights with those of other notable figures in criminal profiling and forensic psychology. What similarities and differences can be identified in their methods and perspectives?
Influence on Law Enforcement and Policy:
- How does Burgess’s work influence law enforcement practices and criminal justice policies? What recommendations does she offer for improving the effectiveness of criminal profiling and investigation?

ShadowMan by Ron Franscell
Call Number: 362.882 Franscell
The pulse-pounding story of the first time in history that the FBI Behavioral Unit created a profile to catch a serial killer. On June 25, 1973, a seven-year-old girl went missing from the Montana campground where her family was vacationing. Somebody had slit open the back of her tent and snatched her from under their noses. None of them saw or heard anything. Susie Jaeger had vanished into thin air, plucked by a shadow. The largest manhunt in Montana's history ensued, led by the FBI. As days stretched into weeks, and weeks into months, Special Agent Pete Dunbar attended a workshop at FBI headquarters in Quantico led by two agents who had hatched a radical new idea: What if criminals left a psychological trail that would lead us to them? Patrick Mullany, a trained psychologist, and Howard Teten, a veteran criminologist, had created the Behavioral Science Unit to explore this new voodoo they called 'criminal profiling.' At Dunbar's request, Mullany and Teten built the FBI's first profile of an unknown subject: the UnSub who had snatched Susie Jaeger and, a few months later, a 19-year-old waitress. They deduced that he was a white twentysomething who'd grown up without a father; an intelligent, local loner who had served in the military. They predicted he would contact Susie's parents on the anniversary of her murder, and when caught would attempt suicide. When David Meirhofer was arrested fifteen months after Susie's abduction, and confessed to four murders, the profile fit him to a T.
Hearts of Darkness by Jana Monroe
Call Number: 363.25 Monroe
An agent in the world-renowned FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit who consulted on more than 850 homicide cases, crossing paths with some of the world's most infamous serial killers, and the real-life model for The Silence of the Lambs's Clarice Starling, shares her incredible story for the first time.
I Am a Killer by Danny Tipping; Ned Parker
Call Number: 364.152 Tipping
What goes through the mind of a killer when they commit murder? Based on the massively successful Netflix documentary series of the same name, this book features ten of the most compelling cases from the series and is full of exclusive never-seen-before material. In each of the cases the inmate speaks openly about themselves and reflects on their life and their crimes. To gain a complete picture of the impact of the murders, the authors spoke to the families of both the perpetrators and the victims, and those in law enforcement who were involved in the case, leaving it up to the reader to make up their own mind about the killers and their crimes. This book paints and intimate and often disturbing portrait of these criminals, drawing on handwritten letters from the inmates, full transcripts of the interviews, personal pictures, crime scene images, and original police and court documents, this is a fascinating and detailed look at some of America's most gripping murder cases.
The Mind of a Murderer by Richard Taylor
Call Number: 614.15 T21M 2021
'Whodunnit' doesn't matter so much, not to a forensic psychiatrist. We're more interested in the 'why'. In his 26 years in the field, Richard Taylor has worked on well over a hundred murder cases, with victims and perpetrators from all walks of life. In this fascinating memoir, Taylor draws on some of the most tragic, horrific and illuminating of these cases - as well as dark secrets from his own family's past - to explore some of the questions he grapples with every day: Why do people kill? Does committing a monstrous act make someone a monster? Could any of us, in the wrong circumstances, become a killer? As Taylor helps us understand what lies inside the minds of his patients, using their own words to tell their stories, he presents us with the most important challenge of all: how can we find common humanity, even in the darkest of human deeds - and why it is so vital that we try? The Mind of a Murderer is a fascinating exploration into the psyche of killers, as well as a unique insight into the life and mind of the doctor who treats them.

What We Watched: What Happened to Her

WHAT HAPPENED TO HER is a forensic exploration of our cultural obsession with images of the dead woman on screen. Interspersing found footage from films and police procedural television shows and one actor’s experience of playing the part of a corpse, the film offers a meditative critique on the trope of the dead female body. The visual narrative of the genre, one reinforced through its intense and pervasive repetition, is revealed as a highly structured pageant. Concurrently, the experience of physical invasion and exploitation voiced by the actor pierce the fabric of the screened fantasy. The result is recurring and magnetic film cliché laid bare.

True Crime Book Club: March 2025