RT Article
T1 What differentiates sexual from non-sexual homicides? A case–control study
JF International journal of comparative and applied criminal justice
VO 49
IS 3
SP 249
OP 269
A1 de Oliveira, Gustavo Carvalho
A2 Valença, Alexandre Martins
A2 Jones, Tomos
A2 Eichinger, Michaela
A2 Valdés, Isabel Weise
A2 Davis, Michael
A2 Darjee, Rajan
LA English
YR 2025
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/193204230X
AB Research comparing sexual homicide (SH) and non-sexual homicide (NSH) has been rare outside North America and Europe and has contributed to addressing whether SH is primarily a sexual or homicide offence or a hybrid. This case–control study compared 142 SH and 142 NSH cases from Australia and New Zealand. Bivariate analyses indicated SH offenders more often had sexual problems, lacked intimacy, and appeared more prosocial, had less serious mental health problems, with lifestyles giving opportunities to access victims. Planning rather than reacting, sexual fantasies and arousal, time, and isolation to interact with victims privately, control of victims and crime scenes, lack of remorse, reliving the experience later, preventing detection, and more intrusive, intimate, and sadistic interactions characterised SH offences. Victims were more likely to be strangers, unrelated, single, and living alone. We developed multivariate models to predict SH, with the final model including: offender single, with a sexual disorder, but not a substance use disorder or major mental illness; offence long in duration, with expressive physical violence and unusual or ritualistic features, against a stranger, in an isolated location. These results are consistent with previous studies and indicate SH is different from NSH, supporting differential practice with SH. However, the findings could primarily reflect the over representation of sexual sadism in SH and the over representation of intimate partner victims in NSH. Future research needs to consider the heterogeneity of SH.
K1 Sadism
K1 Murder
K1 Sexual homicide
K1 Sexual Violence
K1 Homicide
DO 10.1080/01924036.2024.2397975