Clues from Killers: Serial Murder and Crime Scene Messages

by Dirk C. Gibson

Serial killers come from different backgrounds, attain different levels of education, and hold various types of jobs. However, many serial killers do have at least one thing in the desire to communicate regarding their crimes. Killers from Jack the Ripper to the Son of Sam often provide clues to their identities, their motives―even their future targets―through crime scene notes, letters to the media, calls to police, messages scrawled on victims, and, increasingly, email and other technology. Here, Gibson takes a look at ten notorious serial killers, their crimes, their victims, and their communications to uncover the hidden clues into the minds of these unusual and dangerous people.

What compels a serial killer to leave a crime scene message or to call the police to discuss their crimes? What are the purposes of the messages themselves? What do they say about the individuals? How can investigators use such communications to track down these elusive killers? How do killers use these communications to attract new victims? Through a careful examination of messages from such killers as the D.C. Snipers, the BTK Killer, the Zodiac Killer, Jack the Ripper, the Black Dahlia Avenger and others, Gibson reveals aspects of their communications that give us a window into the psyches of these criminals.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime

264 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2004

Reviews

[Elizabeth Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book felt like an introduction to killer communication, if there was such a class. It was outdated, in that at the time of publication, the BTK Killer had not been caught. The language was stilted, as though writing for a term paper. There was some interesting detailed information sprinkled throughout each case, though, enough so I didn’t put it down.

[Brandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn't get past the first section. Maybe it gets better after getting some material under their belt, but as far as the first section, on Son of Sam, there was no actual analysis. Gets two stars for having the notes all compiled in one place for me.

[Jaclyn Younger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its a pretty straightforward read, but the info is very interesting. Mr. Gibson was actually one of my professors in college and used this book in a course on serial killer communication.

[Deja]

i did not like the book, "clues from killers," at all. I expected more of a thriller, informative, or jaw dropping text. The book was plain and did not express the idea of "clues from killers." It only broke down the literary aspects of notes the serial killers left on crime scenes. The author, Gibson, also told the summary of the actual kills; all of them. I lost interest quickly; i would think anyone else would too. I wanted the book to give me clues to look for in a possible serial killer or what the people the killers did not notice. the events or issues that triggered the killings could also be a great topic in this book, but its not.

[Meaghan · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a remarkably shallow analysis of serial killer communication. In fact, it isn't really an analysis at all. The author presents letters and other communications from serial killers, then in his "analysis" he basically repeats what the letters said and parses them, like diagramming a sentence. In addition, the Jack the Ripper chapter was full of inaccuracies, not the least being that Gibson cites several letters the Ripper almost certainly did NOT write. Not recommended.

[Fishface · Rating 2 out of 5]

As I read this -- the book is little more than a collection of received knowledge gathered by the author from a variety of second- and third-hand sources -- I was strongly reminded of another recent book I read and disliked. Imagine my horror when this one turned out to be by the same author. This is more of the same. He barely bothers to interpret the evidence for you and makes no real point at all; he just lists other people's conclusions.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mr. Gibson starts from an intriguing premise, the communication of serial killers. However, his writing style is flat and uninspiring. I've read many academic authors who are able to engage the reader but, unfortunately, Mr. Gibson is not one of them. I did finish the book mainly because the overviews of the ten killers he profiled were compelling despite Mr. Gibson's writing style.

[Kristina Coop-a-Loop · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a rather stupid book. Mostly summaries of cases in which the author goes back and makes obvious statements/observations about how the serial murderer "communicated" his intentions. If you are interested in serial murderers/psychopathy, don't bother with this book.

[Angie Agerter · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I wasn't a huge fan of this book for the most part, it did have some interesting portions about serial killers and the clues they leave or rather the clues they broadcast themselves. Several of these 10 serial killers haven't even ever been caught.

[Mikaela Renz-Whitmore · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very badly written, but the author teaches at UNM and was featured in the alumni magazine. Seemed like he had a sense of humor, but ... painful to read.