The Forgotten Killer: Rudy Guede and the Murder of Meredith Kercher (Kindle Single) Read Online Free PDF Page B

room searching for money and valuables.
    The UNSUB would be able to justify the killing in his own mind as necessary to protect himself; i.e., he tried to determine ahead of time if anyone was home and it is not his fault that someone came in later to interrupt his plan.
    Modus Operandi vs. Signature
    We divide the behaviors of the offender in committing the crime into two categories: Modus Operandi and Signature. Modus operandi, or M.O., encompasses those actions necessary to accomplish the crime. These might include surveillance, weapon, rope or other implements, mask or disguise, or even instructions to the victim such as keeping his face to the wall. Signature refers to those elements that make the crime emotionally satisfying or fulfilling to the offender, such as binding or torture, photographs, humiliation, “scripted” dialogue or other ritualistic behavior, sexually mutilating the body, or arranging it in a particular way.
    We generally see a minimum of signature behaviors in criminal-enterprise crimes. We tend to see much more in sexually motivated crimes. A sexual assault, by its very nature, is predominated by signature behavior; there is no “practical” purpose for the crime other than the offender’s emotional satisfaction. However, modus operandi is necessary to accomplish the crime.
    In the Kercher murder, we note an absence of signature indicators. Even the sexual assault is opportunistic and haphazard, rather than suggesting any particular preferences or intended behaviors.
    All key elements, including means of entering the premises and use of a knife, are modus operandi, or practical considerations.
    Ritual Aspects
    There is no evidence of sexual or religious ritual, or any kind of game or group orgy. There is no evidence of props such as candles, bibles, handcuffs or leather restraints, whips, masks or hoods, or symbolic writing or drawing, nor is there evidence of any preplanning of a sexual assault or homicide.
    There is no evidence of cult or satanic murder, nor has this classification ever been documented in the extensive experience or research of the FBI, nor in any reporting to the NCAVC. Use of religious or satanic symbolism in homicide has generally been associated with lone offenders manifesting severe mental illness.
    There is no evidence of “overkill,” such as repeated stab wounds in a tight pattern or intentional mutilation of the face that could indicate a close personal relationship and animus between victim and UNSUB.
    Certain wounds, such as the scalp trauma and bruising to the extremities, denote the offender’s attempt to gain physical control over the victim. All other wounds, including the mortal wounds to the throat, point to the offender’s efforts to dispatch the struggling victim as rapidly as possible. The mortal wound to the throat is not sufficientlyprecise or intentionally placed to indicate an intention to cut the victim’s throat for ritual or symbolic reasons. It is clearly inflicted in the midst of an intense struggle.
    There is no evidence of the offender taking time with the victim, mutilating breasts, pubic area, or buttocks, or any other action that would be associated with a primary sexual assault. It is clear from the disorder in the room, the copious amounts of blood, and the wound patterns themselves that as soon as the victim began resisting, the sexual aspect of the attack ceased.
    Staging
    Perugia police officials believed the rock and broken window might have been indicators of staging—that is, making the crime look like something other than what it actually was. We reject this conclusion based on crime-scene photos of the exterior window. Photos reveal that prior to breaking the window, the rock first struck the inside edge of the exterior shutter, indicating it was thrown from outside. Freshly exposed wood under chipped paint and mineral fragments imbedded in the wood surface substantiate this finding. Glass-fracture examination of the window