Defining Violence: Spree Killers

Spree Killers

The inhabitants of Hungerford fleeing in distress past the house of the mother of gunman Michael Ryan who fled from there into the town centre to continue his rampage of murder by firing a high velocity rifle at anyone who moved Dbase MSI (photo credit)

A Spree Killer is most frequently defined as someone who murders two or more victims in two or more locations within a short space of time with no breaks or cooling off period. This ‘cooling off’ period is the key characteristic which distinguishes the Spree Killer from the Serial Killer to whom it is central. We will discuss this further in the section pertaining to Serial Killers.

A Spree Killer must complete his spree within a short period of time. There are disagreements about what constitutes a ‘short’ space of time. Definitions have varied from 7 days to within 30 days though many Spree Killers will complete their act within one day, often walking or driving from victim to victim.

In Serial Murder, Ronald M. Holmes and Stephen T. Holmes define spree murder as “the killing of three or more people within a 30-day period”. Note the increase in required number of victims. Although the most frequently used definition of a Spree Killer states two victims, I concur that three victims is more indicative of a Spree.

Under this particular definition of spree murder, Richard Chase, someone who is famously regarded as a serial killer, would now be classified as a spree killer because he committed his murders within the required 30-day period. This case will be discussed in more detail later.