Ted Bundy The Making of a Murderer

Essay Assignment

Andrea Smith - 7018051 Criminology 101 6/15/2010

Ted Bundy The Making of a Murderer Between 1974 and 1978 the United States was in a state of terror as the countrys most prolific serial killer, Ted Bundy, was on the loose wreaking havoc. Bundy raped and killed women in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, and Florida. Bundy eventually confessed to 40 murders (Lohr, 2002), but others estimate that he is responsible for many more deaths, starting as early as 1961 (Shadow, 2008). The biggest question that many people pondered was how someone as intelligent, as highly accomplished, and as praised as Bundy commit such atrocities. Even though some people believe that Ted Bundy was born evil, he became a serial murderer of women because he suffered from anti social personality disorder, he failed to form bonds that would encourage conformity to societal norms and he viewed violent pornography which stimulated his aggression against women. The clinical definition of a sociopath is a person suffering from antisocial personality disorder. According to the 2007 edition of Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary antisocial personality disorder is characterized by antisocial behavior exhibiting pervasive disregard for and violation of the rights, feelings, and safety of others (Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary). It is stated in the DSM-IV (Psychiatric News, 2004), that people with antisocial personality disorder have met three or more of the seven criteria listed after they reach the age of 18. Bundy can be diagnosed as having antisocial personality disorder using three criteria from the DSM IV-TR (Psychiatric News, 2004). One criterion used to determine this is a lack of remorse, as indicated by being indifferent to or rationalizing having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another. Bundy most clearly showed this when he was quoted as saying, Whats one less person on the face of the earth anyway? (Aynesworth & Michaud, 1999) Another criterion of the DSM IV-TR Bundy met was failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviours as indicated by repeatedly performing acts that are grounds for arrest. Examples of this are when Bundy would peer into womans rooms (Aynesworth & Michaud, 2000), and when he stole skis and forged lift passes (Aynesworth & Michaud, 1999). The third criterion Bundy met is

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Ted Bundy The Making of a Murderer deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying, use of aliases, or conning others for personal profit or pleasure. To lure his victims to his car Bundy would use ruses such as needing help to carry his school books because of the injuries (Philbin & Philbin, 2009). Bundy usually approached his victims in broad daylight, in a public place and he would ask for help and found numerous ways of gaining a person's trust like the use fake casts, splints, and crutches to fake an injury to get his victims to help him. Theory of the bond is the extent to which a person is attached to others. Hirschis (1969) bond theory emphasizes the fact that there is an absence of social attachments among deviant people. In his book, Causes of Delinquency, Hirschi states as an individual becomes more attached to others they are much less likely to become delinquent (Hirschi, 1969). The primary attachments are with a childs parents. Bundy failed to form a bond with his mother due to the circumstances surrounding the truth about his parentage. Ted Bundy was born Theodore Robert Cowell on November 24, 1946 at the Elizabeth Lund Home for Unwed Mothers in Vermont (Holmes & Holmes, 2009). Bundys mother, Eleanor Louise Cowell, was not married and was only twenty-two years old when Ted was born (Lohr, 2002). Bundys grandparents were afraid of the damage that having a child out of wedlock would do to their daughters reputation, so Bundy was left in foster care for three months (Vronsky, 2004) while his mother and her parents decided what to do about his illegitimacy. It was decided that Eleanors parents would pretend that they adopted a son and raised him and his mother as brother and sister (Bell, No Date). When Bundy was four years old he was taken from his grandparents, who

he believed were his parents, when he and his mother moved to Tacoma (Rule, 1980). This
separation is said to have been a traumatic event for Bundy as he had formed a bond with his grandfather (Rule, 1980). In fact, the only person Bundy seemed to have bonded with in his early years was his grandfather, Sam Cowell. In her book, The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule wrote that Bundy identified with, respected and clung to his grandfather in times of trouble. In

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Ted Bundy The Making of a Murderer fact, Ted adored and greatly admired his grandfather while other family members would describe his grandfather as an ill-tempered tyrant, a bigot, a racist, and sadistic to animals. Even Sam Cowells own brother referred to him as crazy (Vronsky, 2004). Although his mother married Johnnie Bundy in 1951 and Teds last name was changed (Aynesworth & Michaud,

2000), Bundy never seemed to form a bond with his stepfather, and he continued to consider
himself a Cowell rather than a Bundy (Lohr, 2002). Bundy became a murder of women the same way he became anything else in life by learning. During childhood and adolescence children learn behaviour by observing, retaining and repeating the actions of others. Although learning can learning can take place at any stage in life, it is thought to be of greater importance during childhood, what we learn as children sticks with us throughout our lives. It is said that viewing pornography, especially violent pornography, led Bundy to view women as objects that were to be controlled and violently degraded. Some family members report that Bundy began viewing pornography as early as 3 or 4 years old when he and a cousin would sneak into the green house where his grandfather kept a relatively large collection (Rule, 1980). Bundy himself admits to being 12 years old when he came across some pornographic magazines in a dumpster and was instantly captivated by them (Bundy & Dobson, 2004). Bundy eventually had to seek out more potent, more explicit, more graphic kinds of material, to become excited. In his interview with Dobson he stated that he got his kicks from seeing women being tortured and murdered (Bundy & Dobson, 2004). Eventually viewing violent pornography alone was not enough and Bundy had to act out the fantasies he learned. While on death row Bundy made the statement, The last vestiges of restraint; the barriers to actually doing something were being tested constantlythrough the kind of fantasy life that was fueled largely by pornography (Bundy & Dobson, 2004). The night before he was to be executed Ted told interviewer, James Dobson, that watching pornography had led him to commit his crimes (Bundy & Dobson, 2004). Up until his last interview, Bundy maintained that

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Ted Bundy The Making of a Murderer pornography, especially of a violent nature, had a great impact on him and the evolution of his fantasies which led to the murders. Bundy had the ability to be or do whatever he put his mind to but instead used it for deviancy. As Judge Cowart said to Bundy immediately after he passed the death sentence, Its a tragedy for this court to see such a total waste of humanity (Rule, 1980). In his youth Bundy had been a Boy Scout (Aynesworth & Michaud, 1999) and later an honour student in psychology at the University of Washington (Bell, No Date). While in Seattle Bundy worked at Seattle Crisis Clinic (Lohr, 2002) and even held the position of an assistant director of the Seattle Crime Prevention Advisory Committee (Holmes-Stark & Lamar, 1989). Bundy seemed destined to live a charmed life; he was intelligent, attractive, and polished and possibly headed for a career in politics (Rule, 1980). But the circumstance of his life led Bundy on a very different path, one of murder. If

Bundy did not view violent pornographic material and was able to form a secure bond to a positive influence for conformity he may not have become an antisocial killer of women.

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