The crimes committed by serial killers horrify millions of people. Psychologist Katherine Ramsland tried to find out how the mothers of the criminals feel about these crimes.
Parents of murderers have different perceptions of what their children have done. Many of them are horrified: they do not understand how their child could turn into a monster. But some deny the facts and defend children to the end.
In 2013, Joanna Dennehy killed three men and attempted two more. After her arrest, she confessed that she committed these crimes in order to «see if she had the guts to do it.» In the selfie with the bodies of the victims, Joanna looked perfectly happy.
Dennehy’s parents were silent for several years, until her mother Kathleen decided to open up to reporters: “She killed people, and for me she is no more. This is not my Joe.» In the memory of her mother, she remained a polite, cheerful and sensitive girl. This sweet girl changed radically in her youth when she began dating a man who was much older. However, Kathleen could not even think that her daughter would become a murderer. “The world will be safer if Joanna is not in it,” she admitted.
“Ted Bundy never killed women and children. Our faith in Tad’s innocence is endless and always will be,” Louise Bundy told the News Tribune, despite the fact that her son had already confessed to two murders. Louise told reporters that her Ted was «the best son in the world, serious, responsible and very fond of brothers and sisters.»
According to the mother, the victims themselves are to blame: they teased her son, but he is so sensitive
Louise admitted that her son was a serial killer only after she was allowed to listen to a tape of his confessions, but even then she did not disown him. After her son was sentenced to death, Louise assured that he would «forever remain her beloved son.»
Arrested last year, Todd Kolchepp asked to see his mother before signing a confession. He asked her forgiveness and she forgave her «dear Todd, who was so smart and kind and generous».
According to the mother, the victims themselves are to blame: they teased her son, but he is so sensitive. She seems to have forgotten that he had previously threatened to kill her too. Colhepp’s mother refuses to call a spade a spade. She repeats that everything happened because of resentment and anger, and does not consider her son a serial killer, despite the fact that seven murders have already been proven and several more are being investigated.
Many parents try to find the reason why their children have become monsters. The mother of Kansas serial killer Dennis Rader, who hasn’t been caught in over 30 years, couldn’t remember anything out of the ordinary from his childhood.
Parents often do not notice what outsiders see. Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was an ordinary child, or so his mother says. But the teachers considered him too shy and very unhappy. The mother refutes this and claims that Geoffrey simply did not like school, and at home he did not look downtrodden and shy at all.
Some mothers felt that something was wrong with the child, but did not know what to do
Some mothers, on the contrary, felt that something was wrong with the child, but did not know what to do. Dylan Roof, who was recently sentenced to death for the murder of nine people at a Methodist church in South Carolina, has long been angry at the media’s one-sided coverage of cases of racism.
When Dylan’s mother, Amy, found out about the incident, she fainted. After recovering, she showed the investigators her son’s camera. The memory card contained numerous photographs of Dylan with weapons and a Confederate flag. In open court hearings, the mother asked for forgiveness for not preventing the crime.
Some mothers even turn in child killers to the police. When Geoffrey Knobble showed his mother the video of the murder of a naked man, she did not want to believe her eyes. But realizing that her son had committed a crime and did not regret his deed at all, she helped the police find and arrest Jeffrey and even testified against him.
It is possible that the reaction of parents to the news that their child is a monster depends on family traditions and how close the relationship between parents and children was. And this is a very interesting and extensive topic for research.
About the Author: Katherine Ramsland is a professor of psychology at DeSalce University in Pennsylvania.