Are US serial killers harder to catch?

[OldClothes]

Had a random creepy thought today that Peter Sutcliffe might have never have been caught if he had been committing his crimes in a remote part of America rather than (mostly) northern England.

This of course could apply more generally - logically, serial killers operating in big, empty areas (e.g. Wyoming) would be harder to catch than those in well-populated areas such as, for example, West Yorkshire or Greater Manchester. But, do the stats support this?

There was the golden state killer/orig8nal night stalker who operated around Oregon. Recently caught after a family member joined 23andme. Ex police officer.

It’s definitely easier to get away with serial
murder in US.

UK has more ANPR coverage and less land so harder to dispose of bodies. Our police systems are more standardised, I don’t think that there is a countrywide equivalent of the HOLMES database which is used to record major crimes.

I think sadly one reason a lot of serial killers get away with it for so long is because they choose vulnerable victims who the police don’t have the resources or interest in looking for such as runaways and prostitutes. But I think the UK has a better welfare system than the US, so people disappearing are hopefully more likely to get noticed.

Have you heard of the Highway of Tears in Canada? It’s very shocking.

@Nekomata I saw part of a documentary about it. The bus service there is really bad as well isn't it?

@Criminologygraduate I think there were actually 3 men who served sentences for crimes that were potentially committed by the Ripper, if my memory serves correctly. I didn't know this until I watched the documentary series last year or so. Absolutely shocking

Sorry but that's a complete fabrication. I'm a police officer. There is more joined up thinking now in the uk across all44 police forces than ever before . This statement is just completely factually incorrect.

There are now intelligence systems in place for sharing information. Here in the uk .

Oh and if a police officer is fired for bad conduct they are placed on a "barred list" which means they can never ever serve as a police officer again anywhere.

Obviously I'm speaking of the uk .

America is more
Difficult due to separate states but that's what the FBI are for .

Interesting question!

There is hardly any ANPR in the USA in comparison, especially rurally… whereas in a lot of the U.K. you’d be hard pushed to drive a few miles without being caught on camera. Easier to go missing / live off grid in the USA.

Are you a police officer in the UK or the US @stillvicarinatutu?

Because the post you were replying to is about the US so the UK databases being more joined up is irrelevant.

Yep . Uk. Ignore me 🙂

I don’t know if the fbi would always be involved though. A basic murder isn’t a federal offence so the fbi wouldn’t get involved. A murder can be a federal offence but has to involve other laments such as crossing state lines or be part of drug trafficking.

The FBI can be brought in to serial killer cases by local law enforcement (Criminal Minds is completely inaccurate otherwise, but they are right about that). Suffolk County police brought in the FBI on their serial killer case, which is still unsolved.

I would say, having lived in both countries, that it is easier to get away with it in the US, but with some caveats. Policing is a local matter in the US, and the quality of departments varies; this is why small town departments bring in the state police or FBI. If you're, say, the Son of Sam and commit all your crimes within a city, you will get caught much more quickly than if you move around. Gary Ridgway (the Green River Killer) confused law enforcement by dumping bodies in Oregon.

I daresay this could be an issue in rural Canada too: the disappearance and death of Indigenous women in particular, and lack of police investigation, is a national concern, and a serial killer could have gone undetected.

My knowledge on serial killers is rather dusty,
For a fictional film of the profilers for serial killers, mindhunters, with Val Kilmer is a gooden.

That poster was talking about the USA.

It’s not true in the USA either. Perhaps forty years ago, but certainly not the case since the mid1990s.

There is, it’s the N-DEx: Law Enforcement National Data Exchange. It includes crimes, incidents and case reports from all levels of police forces: local, city, state, tribal, & federal.

The major cities & borders have ANPR, the rural areas have it at the petrol stations instead of along the roads.

Yes I know they have some, but outside the cities it’s not like here, where in a short distance you’d be passing ANPR as well as countless business premises CCTV and ring doorbells.

There's no centralised ANPR in the US. (I just looked it up.) DHS wanted to coordinate it, but was forced to back down because of privacy concerns. US laws and courts can be more negative to large scale surveillance.

Have to admit, I hadn't given much thought to ANPR but it's interesting to note the differences.

Must say, I'm not a student or anything, just curious.

The size and remoteness of many American towns definitely make it easier for serial killers to operate. Police forces don't speak to each other much or share, although I think this is changing. It was the same here which is why it takes a long time for drivers of vans and lorries who travel the country to get away with offences.

Hopefully someone will build the "machine" or Samaritan version of the machine , for national security.

With regard to wrongful convictions, we benefit from PACE (Police & Criminal Evidence Act 1984), which has made a big difference here.

It's not fool proof (nothing is), but it makes it harder for a wrongful conviction to happen here now and very few jurisdictions in the US have equivalent laws