Inside the Mind of Jeffrey Dahmer: The Cannibal Killer

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Jeffrey Dahmer was born on May 21, 1960, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, [10] the first of two sons to Lionel Herbert Dahmer, a Marquette University chemistry student and later a research chemist, and Joyce Annette Dahmer ( néeFlint), a teletype machine instructor. [11] [12] Lionel is of German and Welsh ancestry, [13] and Joyce was of English, Norwegian, and Irish ancestry. [14] Dateline NBC has also broadcast an interview with Dahmer. Conducted by Stone Phillips and first broadcast on March 8, 1994, this 90-minute episode—titled Confessions of a Serial Killer—features interviews with Dahmer and his father conducted at Columbia Correctional Institution. Dahmer's mother is also interviewed for this program. [364]

Despite Dahmer's insistence the race of his victims was incidental to him, some theorize the majority of his murders may have held a racial motive. [332] [333] Alternatively, his victim selection may have simply been a result of his living in an ethnically mixed area, and the demographics of the districts of Milwaukee and Chicago where he typically selected his victims. [40] Three weeks after the murder of Miller, on September 24, Dahmer encountered a 22-year-old father of two named David Thomas at the Grand Avenue Mall. [161] He persuaded him to return to his apartment for a few drinks, with additional money on offer if he would pose for photographs. In his statement to police after his arrest, Dahmer said that, after giving Thomas a drink laden with sedatives, he did not feel attracted to him, but was afraid to allow him to awaken, fearing that he would be angry over having been drugged. Therefore, he strangled him and dismembered the body—intentionally retaining no body parts whatsoever. He photographed the dismemberment process and retained these photographs, which later aided in Thomas's identification. [161]Bardsley, Marilyn. "Jeffrey Dahmer– Serial Killer and Cannibal– The Head in the Fridge". TruTV.com. TruTV Crime Library. Archived from the original on January 7, 2012 . Retrieved July 26, 2010. {{ cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL ( link) Several media accounts published following Dahmer's arrest reference claims purportedly made by Dahmer's father to a parole officer in April 1990 that his older son had been molested by a neighbor at age eight. Lionel would later deny having made such claims, and Dahmer himself would deny having been subjected to any form of sexual abuse. [30] Klotsche, Charles (1995). The Silent Victims: The Aftermath of Failed Children on Their Mothers' Lives. Los Angeles: Pan American Press. pp.19–20. ISBN 0-9673890-2-X. a b "Inmate Bludgeoned with Dahmer on Work Detail Dies". The New York Times. December 1, 1994. Archived from the original on January 25, 2014 . Retrieved August 31, 2020.

Some sources report Dahmer was deprived of attention as an infant. [15] Other sources, however, suggest that Dahmer was generally doted upon as an infant and toddler by both parents, although his mother was known to be tense, greedy for both attention and pity, and argumentative with her husband and their neighbors. [16] Inside his apartment and in an effort to verify his claim that he and Sinthasomphone were lovers, Dahmer showed the officers the two semi-nude Polaroid pictures he had taken of Sinthasomphone the previous evening. Though Balcerzak said he smelled nothing unusual, Gabrish later stated he noted a strange scent reminiscent of excrement inside the apartment. [196] This odor emanated from the decomposing body of Hughes. [197] [198] Dahmer stated that to investigate this odor, one officer simply "peeked his head around the bedroom, but really didn't take a good look." [190] [n 14] The officers then left, with a departing remark that Dahmer "take good care" of Sinthasomphone. [200] This incident was listed by the officers as a " domestic dispute." [190] [n 15] Milwaukee's gay scene was generally underground and transient in nature at the time of Dahmer's murders, with many sexually active gay men using aliases. [321] Many in the city's gay community were nervous of the intentions of others after the extent of Dahmer's murders became known, although the fear and distrust generated by Dahmer's crimes was short-lived. As the 1990s progressed, the usage of aliases became less common among members of Milwaukee's gay community. [321] Jeffrey Dahmer, recollecting his motivations for both photographing his victims, and retaining sections of their skeletal structure. February 1993. [157]Worthington, Rogers (February 1, 1992). "Dahmer Escapee Tells of Close Call". The Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022 . Retrieved October 29, 2021. The Netflix dark tourism documentary series Dark Tourist has broadcast an episode which features Dahmer's crimes. This 40-minute documentary was first broadcast on July 20, 2018. [371] Teen Describes Escape from Dahmer". Lodi News-Sentinel. Lodi, California. Associated Press. February 8, 1992. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021 . Retrieved December 5, 2013. Martens, Willem (August 2011). "Sadism Linked to Loneliness: Psychodynamic dimensions of the Sadistic Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer". Psychoanalytic Review. New York City: Guilford Press. 98 (4): 493–514. doi: 10.1521/prev.2011.98.4.493. PMID 21864144.

Bogira, Steve (August 27, 1992). "The Inner Life of a Psycho Killer". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on October 24, 2013 . Retrieved December 5, 2013. Fifteen counts of first-degree intentional homicide in Wisconsin and one count of aggravated murder in Ohio. Following the murder of Thomas, Dahmer did not kill anyone for almost five months, although on a minimum of five occasions between October 1990 and February 1991, he unsuccessfully attempted to lure men to his apartment. [162] He regularly complained of feelings of both anxiety and depression to his probation officer throughout 1990, with frequent references to his sexuality, his solitary lifestyle, financial difficulties, and—shortly before Thanksgiving—his apprehension regarding meeting and facing his father and younger brother. [163] On several occasions, Dahmer also referred to harboring suicidal thoughts. [164] 1991 murdersDahmer Found Religion, Played Pranks in Prison". The Beaver County Times. Associated Press. November 28, 1994. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021 . Retrieved December 5, 2013– via Google News. March 25: Anthony Lee Sears, 24. Sears was the last victim to be drugged and strangled at Dahmer's grandmother's residence; he was also the first victim from whom Dahmer permanently retained any body parts. [339] His preserved skull and genitals were found in a filing cabinet at 924 North 25th Street following Dahmer's arrest in 1991. [340] Channel 4 has commissioned a documentary focusing on the murders committed by Jeffrey Dahmer. Titled To Kill and Kill Again, this 50-minute documentary was first broadcast on December 12, 1993. [363] Stingl, Jim (February 12, 1992). "Dahmer Knew What He Was Doing, Expert Says". The Milwaukee Journal . Retrieved December 5, 2013– via Google News. [ permanent dead link] a b Imrie, Robert (January 31, 1992). "Detectives Detail Dahmer Confession During Killer's Sanity Trial With PM: Dahmer Trial". AP News. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021 . Retrieved April 23, 2021.