John Edward Douglas of the FBI - The Mind Hunter


Apologies, for want of time, these are the notes as is.. (FYI, book starts off with his burnout incident)

  • Judd Ray - black cop - first FBI - one of our own - examine pre-crime behaviour for clues - in this case, wife started being nice..  He contaminated his own crime scene - where he was intended victim. Is perp preparing for a change in status quo? 
  • FBI HQ 60 ft below ground in Quantico VA. Wilkie Collins, Woman in White
  • Mad Bomber : Dr. James A. Brussel - paranoic who hated father, obsessively loved mother, lived in CT, look for heavy man, middle age, foreign born, single, lives with brother or sister, roman catholic, wearing double breasted suit, buttoned..
  • JD learned his craft (psych) very early - as a bouncer - while talking to the person whose ID he was holding, he would discreetly look at people 3-4 rows back preparing to be questioned - body language - nervous? tentative? reminds me of what you read in the Wikileaks article on how immigration officials try to find the people to select for secondary screening. 
  • How to manage fights - give them a look that says you're not predictable, or are overtly screwy, even the big guys will think 2x - you're not worried about your own safety. (football - taking on teams 40 lbs heavier). Assassin is more dangerous than serial killer - SK will choose a victim he can handle - whereas assassin is concerned with mission and ideology - willing to die. 
  • Gary Trapnell : act that way ALL the time - so you never have to prepare. 
  • FBI agent only shoots to kill - you've drawn - you'd made the decision.
  • bank robberies - case - no male workers? Good. No windows? Good - people inside can't identify getaway car, ppl outside can't see robbery in progress. Best perps - note works best and take note with you when leaving. Have car parked ahead of time so it isn't noticed pulling up. Walk up, rob, drive away. 
  • Signature - different from MO. Something based on personal compulsion that perp does to be satisfied..
  • George Zeiss - brought James Earl Ray back from UK to face US justice - headed firearms unit
  • Dick Alt, Robert Ressler.Teton, Maleny - first wave. Alt, Ressler - 2nd wave.
  • fake kidnapping to extort - know that spouse will be unreachable, and know some facts, then make the call.  Basic code system - one thing at a time - coast is clear signal for next person.. 
  • Returning home with your family - stagger entry - what if there's a gunman inside? Why make everyone victims? Communication is the key. 
  • robbers will not hit cold - so collect evidence during casing - ID..
  • Proactive methods - plant seeds in teh criminal's mind. Police buff? We need additional security guards for the funeral. Or get volunteers to man the tip hotlines. Or place souvenirs that you know the killer might come to collect. 
  • How to cross examine - wear him out - ask him about everything - where he went to school, etc, touch him, move in, "did you panic Wayne,when you killed these kids?" 
  • prosecutor Mallard : "what was it like W, when you wrapped your fingers around the victim's throat? Did you panic?"
  • Psychology : police leak about steps being taking at a particular store to protect customers there - get killer to visit to see the effect he had had. Variation - challenge - arrogant manager brags that his store is invincible. Another - a psychiatrist indirectly praises him, so the perp makes some kind of anonymous contact. --- proactive techniques. Eg - success - release to press in order 1. Describe crime and analysis 2. Describe extent of FBI involvement - and "we'll get this guy" 3. "Someone has to have seen something". If killer thinks someone HAS seen him, he'll inject himself to ward off suspicion from himself.  
  • Forensic science has evolved to the point that if the co strongly suspects product tampering, refuses to settle and comes to the FBI, odds are high that the tamperer will be found out and charged.
  • Extortionist following a script - good pretext - tell wife of bank president - we're from phone company investigating obscene calls - don't answer between 12-12:30 - we'll be running trap/trace. Why lights on and engine running? Gives an excuse - pretext! cover story. Extortionist - con-man. Kidnapper - sociopath. 
  • when you've got top people and you can't reward them monetarily, you've got to help them out in other ways : loose ship - if you see someone burning out - sign them out, give them time off. They'd be much more efficient.


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