Famous Crimes and Criminals
By Charles Montaldo, About.com Guide to Crime / Punishment
These are the cases books are written about and movies are made -- the heinous crimes, the serial killers, the shocking murder cases, the celebrity defendants and the cold case files, some of which have remained unsolved for decades. Get the background on these famous cases and find out if there have been any recent developments.
Unsolved Crimes and Cold Cases
Unsolved criminal cases can be as mysterious as they are compelling. Our fascination turns us into puzzle-solving sleuths looking for the one stone left unturned which will solve the crime. The cases are handed down from one detective to another until it ends up stored away as a cold case waiting for that one new clue which will bring it back to life.
- Allen-Cutshall Murders
- Bonny Lee Bakley
- Black Dahlia Murder Case
- Sherry Carey
- Chandra Ann Levy
- Jonathan Paul Luna
- Jack The Ripper
- JonBenet Ramsey Investigation
- Natalee Holloway
- Sam Sheppard Murder Case
- Thomas Crane Wales
- Zodiac Killer
Serial Killers
A serial killer is generally defined as someone who murders three or more people in three or more separate events over a period of time. Often their method of killing develops into a signature, as if receiving proper credit for their kill is a priority. They move through society, blending in with what we consider normal and brushing shoulders with unsuspecting family, friends, lovers and strangers alike. The following serial killers are some of the worst in history.
- Richard Angelo - The Angel of Death
- Cesar Barone - Rapist and Killer
- Herbert Richard "Herb" Baumeister
- David Berkowitz - The Son of Sam
- William Bonin - The Freeway Killer
- Jerry Brudos - The Shoe-Fetish Slayer
- Ted Bundy - The Campus Killer
- Angelo Buono - The Hillside Strangler
- Richard Chase - The Vampire of Sacramento
- Dean Corll - The Candy Man
- Juan Corona - The Machete Murderer
- Albert Fish - The Brooklyn Vampire
- John Wayne Gacy - The Killer Clown
- Donald Gaskins - Pee Wee
- Ed Gein - The Plainfield Ghoul
- Kristen Gilbert - Angel of Death
- Pedro Alonso Lopez - The Monster of the Andes
- Dennis Rader - The BTK Killer
- Richard Ramirez - The Night Stalker
- Richard Speck - Born to Raise Hell
Infamous Murders
What makes a murder infamous? Is it the number of victims? The brutality of the crime? Or possibly the realization that there are some who simply kill for pleasure. Highlighted below are cases that left a stain in history concocted of pure evil, lust and perversion. These are some of history's most infamous murders.
- Velma Margie Barfield
- David Berkowitz - The Son of Sam
- Ian Brady - The Moors Murders
- Ted Bundy - Ladykiller
- Colin Ferguson - The Long Island Railroad Massacre
- Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo
- Charles Manson and the Tate-LaBianca Murders
- Murder and Mayhem in the Osage Hills
- Charles Chi-tat Ng
- Dennis Rader - The BTK Strangler
- Michael Skakel and the Martha Moxley Murder
- The Black Dahlia Murder Case
- The Jessica Lunsford Case
- The Jeffrey MacDonald Murder Case
- The 'Mississippi Burning' Case
- The Scott Peterson Case
- The Trial of James Ford Seale
- The Trial of Andrea Yates
- The Zodiac Killer
Celebrity Defendants
Celebrities in trouble always catch the attention of the public eye. From drunk driving, spousal abuse, drug possession to more serious crimes of rape and murder, these celebrities managed to end up sitting across from a judge or a jury of public opinion.
- The Trial of Michael Jackson
- O.J. Simpson
- Profile of Phil Spector
- Tupac 2Pac Shakur
- Celebrity Mug Shots
- Famous Sports Stars Gallery
Female Offenders
The amount of crimes committed by females is growing and although the percentage of all crimes committed by females is small, the increase has some criminologists alarmed. The hardened female criminal is still an enigma, studied and publicly displayed as if she were an alien from outer space. The women below fit into a broad range of serial killers, rapists, baby killers, embryo snatchers, attempted killers, muggers and teachers who prey upon young students.
- Suzanne Basso
- Susan 'Sadie May Glutz' Atkins
- Velma Margie Barfield
- Serial Killer Debra Brown
- Amy Gilligan
- Belle Gunness
- Tiffany Hall
- Tanya Harding
- Karla Homolka
- Darlie Routier
- Mary Kay Letourneau
- Serial Killer Kristen Gilbert
- Patricia "Katie" Krenwinkel
- Amy Fisher, the 'Long Island Lolita'
- Janie Lou Gibbs
- Andrea Yates
- Kristen Gilbert - Angel of Death
- Women Arrested for Indecent Behavior With Kids
Child Killers
Child killers are considered the lowest of all criminals, even among other hardened prisoners in the prison system. Due to high profiled cases, such as Jessica Lunsford in Florida and Shasta Groene in Idaho, society is passing tougher laws to punish and monitor child molesters and other criminals who target children.
- Alejandro Avila
- Dennis Bagwell
- Kirk Douglas Billie
- Arthur Gary Bishop
- Richard Chase
- John Evander Couey
- Pedro Alonso Lopez
- Donald 'Pee Wee' Gaskins
- Dean Corll
- Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris
- Lydia Trueblood
- Janie Lou Gibbs
- Marc Dutroux
- Charles Ng
- Ian Brady
- Darlie Routier
- Jeffrey MacDonald
- Ward Weaver lll
Cannibals
Anthony Hopkins' character "Hanibal 'The Cannibal' Lector" made us uncomfortable, but in the end it was just a movie. Cannibalism refers to any species that consumes members of its own kind. When it is a human consuming another human, it seems particularly revolting and vile. These criminals are real.
Sadists
Sadists are those who receive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others. The level of pain can go from mild to extreme, such as those inflicted by the BTK Killer. The sadists listed here are those who inflicted extreme pain and misery on their victims before killing them.
- Nathaniel Bar-Jonah
- Robert Berdella
- Lawrence Bittaker & Roy Norris
- Ian Brady
- Ted Bundy
- Dean Corll and the Houston Mass Murders
- Juan Corona
- Marc Dutroux
- Albert Fish
- John Wayne Gacy the "Killer Clown"
- Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins
- Karla Homolka
- Charles Ng
- Dennis Rader The BTK Strangler
- Richard Ramirez
- Richard Speck
Parents Who Killed Their Children
It is difficult to understand what motivates a parent to kill their children. Some do it out of greed, some because their children interfere with the parent's day-to-day life, others suffer from postpartum depression and psychotic hallucinations.
