Investigative (Psychological) Profiling

Criminal profiling, referred to as offender profiling, psychological profiling or criminal personality profiling, is the derivation of inferences about a criminal from aspects of the crime (s) that he or she has committed. Available information from a crime and crime scene theoretically should point to a psychological portrait of the unknown perpetrator inferring such things as the offender’s motivation for the crime and production of a description of the type of person likely to be responsible. The profiler, based on his or her technique and investigative experience, examines pertinent data from a specific crime scene including, but not limited to, crime scene photographs, detailed photos of bodily injuries to victims, photos of any mutilation evidence, information related to the condition of the victim’s clothing or absence there of, information regarding whether the crime scene was altered or unaltered, types of weapons employed, the medical examiner’s report and opinion, and any other relevant information concerning the crime. Additional information utilized in criminal profiling can involve geographical analysis of the crime and the areas beyond the immediate crime scene, including maps of the area, tracking data on how the perpetrator got to and from the crime scene, and relevant aspects of the residential location of the victim. Depending on the profiling technique, specific data collected is then categorized to produce predictive information regarding the suspect’s likely age, sex, race, weight, height, physical, mental, or psychological condition, and likely area of residence; as well as whether the victim was known to the offender, whether the suspect had a prior criminal record, and other details. Despite differences in profiling, the goal of the profiling process is to deduce enough behavioral,