Tracking a Real Murder Case with a Profiler

Geographical Profile with Offender's Home Base

As shown on this blog, back in 2005 I developed a geographical profile in the then unsolved Houma serial murders. As it turns out, my predicted offender home location is only blocks from where Ronald Joseph Dominique lived on Bayou Blue Road.

Only if police had logged on to my blog and followed my geographical profile maybe this serial killer could have been caught earlier.

Dr. Maurice Godwin

Map Showing Predicted Area in Red

Geographical Profile - Red Line represents police search area and killer is likely to live within the red square.

Geo-Forensic Analysis

My Predator geographical profiling predicted that the serial killer lives in the area of Gray.

Dr. Godwin

More Analysis

I am still in the process of doing additional analysis, which will be posted here soon. I'm also obtaining additioal information.

Dr. G

Why are criminals' travel patterns wedged shaped?

The reason for the directional bias is to due to the fact that human beings invest the landscapes they experience with symbolic value. The offender’s mental image is built up from repeated journeys to work, and the suburbs on the city fringe develop by visits to peripheral urban shopping centers. Porteous referred to these peripheral areas as orbit areas. The theory of directional bias is also supported by Johnston’s 1971 and 1972 research in Christchurch, New Zealand. Johnston found, for example, that choice of location for affluent citizens was influenced by a directional factor of availability of land on which to build. In another study on directional bias, Mercer suggests that the sectoral mental map may not be anchored on downtown, based on regular daily activities, but may instead focus upon recreation areas beyond the city which are visited weekly.

To be sure, there is ample basis for the argument that criminals’ spatial patterns depend on limited mental maps or mental images of the city and areas surrounding their homes. When they carry out their crimes, the locational choices are affected by reliable knowledge of the city or area which forms wedge shaped images that are shape in focus for places close to home or other parts of the home sector, and blurry or blank for distant places, such as the other side of town.

(c) 2005 Dr. Maurice Godwin

Overview of the murder case

Houma police, worried that the deaths of five men in the last 2 1/2 years may be the work of a serial killer, have asked the FBI for help in their investigation, a spokesman said Tuesday."The FBI's been called in to assist us with this and with using computer databases and profiling capabilities," Lt. Todd Duplantis of the police department said in a telephone interview.The victims were all from Houma and were found in or around the Houma area.The first of the five was found in October 2002, the last a little over two weeks ago.Duplantis said all five had records of involvement with illegal drugs or prostitutes or both. And they may have been vulnerable because of the places they frequented and their method of travel."They frequented high crime areas-often on foot or bikes-at night," Duplantis said.

Police chief Pat Boudreaux announced last Friday that they believe the deaths may be linked to a serial killer.The victims include Anoka Jones, whose body was found in October 2002 under a highway overpass in the St. Charles Parish town of Boutte.

Datrell Woods, 18, was found in May 2003 in an east-Houma sugar cane field next to the bicycle he relied on for transportation.Michael Barnett was found 17 months later, inside a mini-storage unit that was less than a mile away from the spot where Woods' body was found.Two bodies have been found so far this year: The remains of Leon Lirette were found on the Houma air base in February; August Watkins III's body was discovered in a Lafourche Parish ditch two weeks ago.

(C) 2005 AP

South Louisiana Serial Killings - Map 1

South Louisiana Serial Killings - Map 1 - Red dots represent where the victims' bodies were found. The locations of the victims' body disposal sites supports Dr. Godwin's wedge theory. More information on the wedge theory can be found in Dr. Godwin's second book entitled Criminal Psychology and Forensic Technology (CRC Press).Another map will be posted tomorrow.