PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Louis B. Schlesinger AU - Martin Kassen AU - V. Blair Mesa AU - Anthony J. Pinizzotto TI - Ritual and Signature in Serial Sexual Homicide DP - 2010 Jun 01 TA - Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online PG - 239--246 VI - 38 IP - 2 4099 - http://jaapl.org/content/38/2/239.short 4100 - http://jaapl.org/content/38/2/239.full SO - J Am Acad Psychiatry Law2010 Jun 01; 38 AB - Ritual and signature are fantasy-driven, repetitive crime scene behaviors that have been found to occur in serial sexual homicide. Notwithstanding numerous anecdotal case reports, ritual and signature have rarely been studied empirically. In a national sample of 38 offenders and their 162 victims, we examined behavioral and thematic consistency, as well as the evolution and uniqueness of these crime scene actions. The notion that serial sexual murderers engage in the same rituals and leave unique signatures at every scene was not supported by our data. In fact, the results suggest that the crime scene conduct of this group of offenders is fairly complex and varied. Implications of these findings for forensic assessments and criminal investigations are discussed.