applied what may have been one of the victim’s stockings, placed it around her neck, and strangled the victim.
The offender then removed the victim from his vehicle and dumped her on the grass shoulder along with her purse. Again, the offender’s last act was to place the victim’s coat over the lower portion of her body, very similar to what had occurred to victim Ellroy.
The distance between the location of where victim Ellroy’s body was found to that of victim Long’s is approximately four and one-half miles. Victim Ellroy’s body was found approximately one and one-half miles from the area where she was seen dancing and eating prior to her death. This area was less than a mile away from where victim Long’s body was discovered.
In both deaths robbery did not appear to be the motive. We believe that in victim Ellroy’s case, the offender simply forgot to discard the victim’s purse prior to leaving. The sex acts, blunt force trauma followed by strangulation with the victims’ nylons, and the covering of their lower bodies, appear to be the offender’s signature or calling card.
OFFENDER CHARACTERISTICS AND TRAITS
Statistically, crimes of violence are intraracial in nature, white on white, black on black. Therefore, without any physical evidence to the contrary, we would expect this offender to be a white male.
In consideration of the offender’s age, a number of facts pertinent to the crime are examined. The victim’s age, amount of control or lack of control exhibited by the offender, the degree of trauma inflicted, evidence taken or left behind, as well as sexual interaction, if any, with the victim, all become important factors. Based upon these factors we would anticipate this offender to have been in his late thirties. Age, however, is one of the most difficult categories to evaluate, as chronological and emotional age are frequently quite different. As we are evaluating age on the basis of behavior, which is a direct result of emotional and mental maturity, no suspect should be eliminated based upon age alone.
The offender in all probability is capable of having relationships with women. We would expect him to be single, however, and if he was married it was a troubled relationship and possibly marred by outbursts which may have included domestic violence. The offender could have been living with a woman in a common-law type relationship, but he would have continued to have sexual encounters with other women.
We would expect the offender to be of average to above average intelligence, to have completed high school, and been capable of college level work. He is more than likely employed and his employment history will be consistent with his academic background.
The offender in all likelihood is sufficiently familiar with the area where the victims’ bodies were found to know they would be “reasonably safe” places to dispose of the bodies. It has been our experience in analyzing similar cases that offenders such as these dispose of bodies where they have some degree of association and/or knowledge. Therefore, the offender lived, worked or frequently visited the area where the victims were found. If seen, he would be able to provide a reasonable explanation for being in the area.
The offender will be conscious of his appearance and clothing and be in good physical condition. Since crime scenes generally reflect the offender’s personality and life-style, we would expect the offender to be methodical and neat in his appearance. He has few close friends, but numerous acquaintances. He is frequently impulsive and seeks immediate self-gratification. He is a “lone wolf” rather than a loner.
The offender will appear to be confident but not overly “macho” to his peers. In his dealings with women, he will seek dominance and appear to be a very controlling individual. The offender might attempt to portray himself as being passive. He would avoid the appearance of having an explosive temper or being assaultive in nature. Episodes of explosive temper are intermingled with an indifference towards others. He will have shown aggressiveness in his dealings with people.
The offender will drink alcoholic beverages and may use drugs, but not to the point of total impairment. There is no indication of excessive use of alcohol or drugs at the time of the crimes, although he may have used one or both of these substances to lower his inhibitions.
The offender probably has a well-maintained vehicle which is consistent with the economic status of the individuals the victims previously dated. The offender enjoys driving and would be willing to travel outside the immediate area in which he resides to seek entertainment.
We don’t believe the offender has an extensive criminal history. However, he may have been arrested for domestic disturbances or assault.
The offender’s weapons of choice are believed to be items already on hand: a crescent shaped tool he most likely stored in his automobile; a piece of rope; and the victims’ nylon hosiery. This, considered along with the fact that the offender struck each victim repeatedly in the head as a means of control, shows that the murders were probably not planned for a significant period of time before they were actually committed.
POST OFFENSE BEHAVIOR
In view of the time lapse since the commission of these crimes, post offense behavior, which is often the most enlightening aspect of the analysis, will take on a lesser significance in this case. The specifics of this section will be to analyze that behavior which would have occurred immediately following the commission of these crimes.
The offender would have gone directly home or to some other safe place following these crimes. He most likely soiled his clothing and vehicle from the blunt force trauma delivered to both victims and the menstrual blood of victim Ellroy.
Having committed what he considered to be an unwitnessed murder on each occasion, the offender would not have been overly concerned or stressed for any length of time. He may have briefly feigned illness in an attempt to isolate himself and he may have called in sick the following day if he was scheduled to work. Other than this initial withdrawal, your offender’s daily routine would not have been altered significantly.
He would have avoided places he had been seen with either victim just prior to their death. These places include the Desert Inn, Stan’s Drive-ln and the Mexican restaurant he and victim Long may have gone to the night of her death.
He may have exhibited interest in television news accounts of the killings but would not have interjected himself into the police investigations. It is unlikely that he would volunteer theories about what happened. He would claim to have only vicarious knowledge of the crimes, gained through friends or the media.
Once the investigations began to wane, the offender would have been reassured that he was not seen with the victims and that he was not a suspect. He would not have felt any guilt or remorse for what he had done. These women were seen as “throw aways” and he had justified it in his mind that they were somehow to blame for making him do it. His only concern would be for himself and what effect the crimes could have on his life. By this time, he had probably forgotten most of the details of these incidents.
Unless the offender was arrested and incarcerated for some extended period of time, we would expect the offender to have continued killing, if not in this state, in others.
Carlos Avila
