Jeffrey Dahmer
Information researched and summarized by
Valerie Casey, Liz Clagett, Bo Allen, Lauren Williams, Tanisha Duff, Jennifer Guthrie,
Crystal Hanger, Jennifer Glinisty, Kelsi Harrigan, A. J. Hoeflinger, Maura Logan, Jamie McGlothlin, Sarah Sebastian, Keith Michlik, Russell Ray, Michael Records, Heather Simpson, Sarah Smith, Andrea Bratton, Jennifer Skol, Sarah Smith, Kristen Tinsley
Department of Psychology
Radford University
Radford, VA 24142-6946
Date
Age
Life Event
5/21/60
0
Jeffrey Dahmer was born in Milwaukee, WI.
He was the first born child of Lionel and Joyce Dahmer.
His mother is reported having a difficult pregnancy.
1960
0-2
As a tot, he was a happy, bubbly youngster who loved stuffed bunnies, wooden blocks, etc.
He had a great number of ear and throat infections.
He and his father nursed and released a bird back to health.
1962
2
Family moved to Iowa where Lionel began working on his Ph.D. at Iowa State University
1964
4
Father swept out remains of small animals underneath the house, Jeffrey was thrilled by the sounds they made
1966
12/18/66
6
Family moved to Doylestown, Ohio
He began first grade at Hazel Harvey Elementary School in Barberton, OH.
Jeffrey’s brother David was born, teachers reported him feeling neglected
Parents move into separate bedrooms in the house.
Jeffrey suffered from a double hernia and had surgery to correct the problem. (some sources report the hernia operation occurred at age 4)
1967
7
Dahmer family moved into a new house
He developed a close relationship with a boy named Lee.
He was very fond of one of his teachers and took her a bowl of tadpoles; Later found out she had given them to his friend Lee. He killed the tadpoles with motor oil.
1968
8
Dahmer family moves to 4480 W. Bath Road, Bath, Ohio
Jeffrey attended Bath Elementary School.
Dahmer’s probation officer referred to a statement by Lionel that his son had been sexually abused by a neighbor at this age. Both Lionel and Jeffrey denied it
1968
8
Jeffrey was given a chemistry set, which he used to experiment with animals. He preserved insects in jars and later impaled cats and frogs on sticks.
Boyhood friends recall that Jeffrey was interested in the insides of animals, specifically how things worked underneath the skin. One day while fishing, he chopped his catch into little pieces so he could see the inner workings
1968
8
Steve Lehr, a boyhood friend, recalls playing a nighttime game with Jeffrey called “Ghosts in the Graveyard.”
Steve says that Jeff was a little strange.
1970
10
Started collecting road-kill, bleaching the bones of chickens, keeping insects in bottles of formaldehyde, decapitating small rodents, learned to use acid to strip meat of the bones of the dead animals
1972
12
Job at a nursery selling shrubbery
His boss said he was very enthusiastic.
1973
13
Began to drink alcohol
1974
14
Jeff attended Revere High School. He played clarinet in the school band his freshman year.
Dahmer reportedly had his first homosexual experience this year and confessed that he began to regularly fantasize about having sex with a corpse.
He began drinking alcohol more often.
1975
15
Jeffrey road around with plastic garbage bags and collected the remains of animals. He would strip the flesh from the bodies. He mounted a dog’s head on a stake.
Jeff had average grades in high school. Classmates considered him an alcoholic and a loner. He played intramural tennis his sophomore through senior year.
1976
16
Classmates say Dahmer developed a noticeable drinking problem.
He began drinking scotch in class.
Seen as desperate and lonely by his peers
He worked on the school newspaper his junior year.
1977
17
He went to the senior prom with Bridget Geiger.
School trip to Washington DC. Jeff made a phone call to the Vice Presidents office
Traces outlines of bodies on schoolroom floor with chalk for laughs
1978
6/18/78
7/24/78
August, 1978
18
Dahmer sneaked into National Honor Society yearbook picture, his prank was caught
His parents filed for divorced and had a custody battle over son David (age 12).
Father moves out
Committed first murder (Steven Hicks, 18)
Picked him up hitchhiking and invited him back for drinks; They got drunk and had sex. After trying to leave, Dahmer hit Hicks in the back of the head with a barbell and killed him.
The body was dragged beneath the house, where it was dismembered with a kitchen knife. The parts were placed in plastic bags and buried behind the house.
Divorce is granted, mother given custody of David
Joyce and her younger son left Jeffrey at home, and moved away; Father moved back in with Jeffrey. Father appealed for custody again, and won custody of son David.
Fall 1978
Jeffrey enrolls in Ohio State University.
Questioned in connection with the theft of a watch
Dropped out due to his drinking problem
12/29/78
Jeffrey enrolled in the army.
1/12/79
7/13/79
18
19
Dahmer reports for duty in the U.S. Army at Fort McClellan in Anniston, AL, hoping to become a military policeman.
He was reassigned to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, TX, as a medical specialist.
Dahmer sent to Baumholder, West Germany, to serve as a combat medic. Reported that he drank heavily and listened to Black Sabbath.
Coincidentally, 5 unsolved murders involving mutilation of victims occurred during Dahmer's stay there.
March, 1981
10/7/81
20
21
Pfc. Jeffrey Dahmer discharged under an army regulation concerning alcohol and drug abuse
Dahmer moved to Miami beach, where he worked in a sub shop called “Sunshine Subs.”
Coincidentally, four months after Dahmer moved to Florida, a 6-year-old boy named Adam Walsh was abducted and found decapitated in a nearby canal.
Dahmer never claimed the murder, it still remains a mystery.
Dahmer was arrested at the Ramada Inn in Bath, Ohio. He was charged with disorderly conduct, having an open container, and resisting arrest.
1982
January, 1982
21
Dahmer moved to West Allis, WI to live with his elderly grandmother.
Dahmer bought a .357 magnum revolver and used it for target shooting. Father, Lionel, took it away
August, 1982
22
Arrested at the Wisconsin State Fair for drunk and disorderly conduct
Fined $50
1983
23
Got a Job at the Milwaukee Blood Plasma Center
He took home a vile of blood, drank it and never tried it again.
January
24
Got a job at Ambrosia Chocolate Co. earning $9/hr.
Started attending church
Hid in a department store and stole a male mannequin, took it home and related to it in a sexual way. Grandmother found the mannequin, so he threw it away.
9/06/86
26
Dahmer arrested for lewd and lascivious behavior after masturbating in front of two 12-year-old boys on the banks of the Kinnickinnic River. Charged with disorderly conduct and sentenced to one year probation.
June, 1987
9/15/87
December 1987
27
27
Kicked out of Club Baths. Accused of drugging people in his private room
Dahmer picked up 25-year-old white male, Steven Tourmi, at a gay bar called Club 219. They went to the Ambassador Hotel, got drunk and passed out. When Dahmer awoke, he said Tourmi was dead and blood was coming out of his mouth. Dahmer stated he could not remember the previous night’s events. Dahmer bought a suitcase and put the corpse in it. He returned to his grandmother’s basement where he had sex with the corpse, masturbated on it, and sliced the flesh off of it. He then proceeded to dismember the remains, put them into plastic bags, and throw them away. (remains have never been found)
Tourmi was reported missing.
January, 1988
3/20/88
3/24/88
April
9/25/88
9/26/88
9/27/88
9/30/88
27
27
27
27
28
28
28
28
Dahmer kills James Doxtator (14).
Dahmer picked up the boy outside Club 219 and invited boy back to his grandmother’s house to earn some money posing nude, watching videos, and having a drink. They went back and had sex. Dahmer dropped sleeping pills in the boys drink. He strangled the boy in his sleep. He later dismembered the corpse with a knife, broke the bones with a sledge hammer, and threw the remains in the trash.
Probation ends
Kills Richard Guerrero (25)
Dahmer picked him up outside “Club 219”, brought him back to his grandmothers house. The two had oral sex. Then, Dahmer drugged him and strangled him to death. He had sex with the corpse, dismembered the body and threw it away.
Ronald Flowers reported to police that Dahmer had invited him to his grandmother’s house and had given him a drugged drink. He also reported stolen jewelry.
Jeffrey Dahmer moved into an apartment at 808 North 24th Street, Milwaukee
Approaches a 13-year-old Laotian boy and offers $50 to come to his apartment and pose for pictures. Dahmer convinced the boy to partially disrobe, took two Polaroid pictures of him, kissed his stomach, and touched his penis. The boy was drinking Irish Cream Liqueur laced with crushed tablets of Halcion. The boy did not fall asleep, so he returned home, and his family took him to the hospital.
Police arrested Dahmer at Ambrosia Chocolate Co. and searched his apartment
He was charged with exploitation of a child and second-degree assault.
Dahmer pleaded not guilty at his preliminary hearing and was freed on $2500 cash bail. Trial was set for May 1989
1/30/89
3/29/89
5/23/89
5/24/89
November, 1989
12/10/89
28
28
29
29
29
29
Dahmer changes plea to guilty.
Dahmer kills Anthony Sears (24).
Dahmer met Sears, a 24-year-old black male, at La Cage Aux Folles (a gay bar). He offered Sears money to be photographed. They went back to his grandmother’s house, had sex and Dahmer gave Sears a drink laced with sleeping pills. Dahmer strangled him, had sex with the corpse, and dismembered the body. After decapitating the corpse, he boiled the head, removed the skin and painted the skull gray. (He kept the skull)
Found guilty of 2nd degree assault in the case of the Laotian boy
In court, sentenced to eight years
Told inmates that he hated black people and would like to kill 1000 of them
Prohibited any contact with children
Given 12 hour pass to go home for Thanksgiving, went to a bar and got drunk instead. He awoke, tied up, to a man sexually assaulting him with a candlestick. He returned back to prison several hours late.
Dahmer wrote a letter pleading for leniency, served only 10 months
May, 1990
June, 1990
July, 1990
9/3/90
9/24/90
2/18/91
4/7/91
30
Dahmer moves to 924 25th Street.
Dahmer meets Edward Smith, 28 years old, at “The Phoenix Bar”. The two go back to Dahmer’s apartment to engage in sex, at his suggestion. Smith was drugged and murdered.
Just weeks later, Dahmer meets Raymond Smith, aka “Ricky Lee Beeks” at the “219 Club” his seventh victim. Smith is drugged, murdered, and dismembered. (He kept the skull)
24 year old Earnest Miller becomes Dahmer’s eighth victim. His entire skeleton was kept as a souvenir. Dahmer also keeps Miller’s biceps and later eats them.
David Thomas, 24 years old, is murdered and dismembered by Dahmer. Dahmer takes photographs while the murder is in progress.
19-year old Curtis Straughter engages in oral sex with Dahmer. He is later murdered and dismembered. (He kept the skull).
19-year old Errol Lindsey is drugged, strangled, and used to perform oral sex with Dahmer. Once again, he is dismembered and Dahmer keeps the skull as a souvenir.
5/24/91
5/26/91
6/30/91
7/5/91
July, 1991
7/15/91
7/19/91
7/24/91
31
Tony Hughes, deaf and mute, is passed a note from Dahmer at a club. Routinely, Dahmer invites him back to his apartment for drinks and pornography. Dahmer murders Hughes, dismembers him, and keeps the skull.
Dahmer offers money to 14 year old Konerak Sinthasomphone. He drugs the child, as he did with almost all of his victims, and performs oral sex while he is unconscious. The child stumbles out of Dahmer’s apartment, bleeding from the anus, and is spotted by two girls, who call the police. The police investigate, as the calm Dahmer explains that Konerak is his 19 year old lover. The police leave, and Konerak is later murdered and dismembered. (He kept the skull).
Matt Turner, another young victim of 20 years of age, is murdered and dismembered by Dahmer. The two originally met at a Gay Pride parade. Turner’s skull is placed in the freezer.
Jeremiah Weinberger, 23, meets Dahmer at a nightclub. Weinberger spends the night at Dahmer’s apartment. When Weinberger requested to leave the following day, Dahmer became angry and murdered and dismembered him. His head was also placed in the freezer.
Dahmer purchases a fifty-seven gallon barrel of hydrochloric acid, which he plans to use as a method of disposing his victims.
Dahmer is fired from Ambrosia Chocolate Company for poor performance.
23 year old Oliver Lacy spends some time at Dahmer’s apartment, where they engage in sexual activity and sensual body rubs. Like the others, Lacy is drugged, murdered, and dismembered. His heart and head are placed in Dahmer’s refrigerator.
Joseph Bradehoft is Dahmer’s last victim, 25 years of age and homosexual. The two men have sex, and Bradehoft is subsequently drugged, murdered, and dismembered. His head was placed in the freezer; other remains were stuffed in the barrel of acid.
Tracy Edwards, heterosexual and 31 years old, meets Dahmer and goes back to his apartment to have drinks. Dahmer slaps a handcuff around Edward’s wrist, and the victim quickly escapes. Edwards notifies the police, who visit an angry and resisting Dahmer. Further investigation leads to the frozen organs and the barrel of dissolved human remains. Dahmer is arrested.
07/25/91
January 13, 1992
2/15/92
31
32
32
Dahmer is charged with four counts of homicide, as a result of the police search through his apartment. Dahmer admits that his crimes are wrong and declined to shift blame. His bail is set for 1 million dollars.
Dahmer changes his plea from innocent, to guilty but insane.
Dahmer has acquired a total of fifteen counts of murder and is found guilty for all. He is sentenced to 941 years in jail.
November 28, 1994
34
Dahmer is sexually assaulted and murdered in jail, while cleaning a restroom, by convicted African-American murderer Christopher Scarver.
General Information
Sex
Male
Race
White
Number of victims
16
Country where killing occurred
United States
States where killing occurred
Wisconsin
Childhood Information
Date of birth
5/21/60
Location
Milwaukee
Birth order
1st of 2
Number of siblings
1
XYY?
No
Raised by
Both parents
Birth category
Oldest
Parent’s marital status
Divorced when almost 18
Family event
Divorce
Age of family event
Almost 18
Problems in school?
Failed out of college because of drinking
Teased while in school?
Made fun of on occasion for being different/wild
Physically attractive?
Above average
Physical defect?
No
Speech defect?
No
Head injury?
No
Physically abused?
No
Psychologically abused?
Parents divorce, mother may have had a mental illness, neglect
Sexually abused?
Possibly by a neighbor, but denied by Dahmer
Father’s occupation
Chemist
Age of first sexual experience
14
Age when first had intercourse
Mother’s occupation
Father abused drugs/alcohol
Mother abused drugs/alcohol
NA, but high strung from her father’s alcoholism
Cognitive Ability
Highest grade in school
13 (One semester in college)
Highest degree
High school diploma
Grades in school
IQ
75
Work History
Served in the military?
Yes
Branch
Army
Type of discharge
Dishonorable and early for habitual drunkenness
Saw combat duty
No, but was a combat medic in Germany
Killed enemy during service?
No
Applied for job as a cop?
Yes, military police
Worked in law enforcement?
No
Fired from jobs?
Yes
Types of jobs worked
Sub shop, chocolate factory, plasma center, nursery
Employment status during series
Employed at Ambrosia Chocolate
Relationships
Sexual preference
Homosexual
Marital status
Single
Number of children
0
Lives with his children
Living with
Self, grandmother
Triad
Animal torture
Unlikely, preferred dead animals, however, some sources say yes
Fire setting
No
Bed wetting
No
Killer Psychological Information
Abused drugs?
No
Abused alcohol?
Yes
Been to a psychologist?
No
Time in forensic hospital?
No
Diagnosis
Killer Criminal History
Committed previous crimes?
Yes- drunkenness, disorderly conduct, indecent exposure, child molesting
Spend time in jail?
Yes
Spend time in prison?
No
Killed prior to series? Age?
Yes, age 18
Serial Killing
Number of victims
16
Victim type
Homosexual male teenagers and young men
Killer age at start of series
27
Gender of victims
Male
Race of victims
Various, predominantly African- American
Age of victims
14-31
Method of killing
Drugging and strangulation
Type of serial killer
Organized lust
How close did killer live?
Typically occurred at his apartment or his grandmother’s house, where he was living
Killing occurred in home of victim?
No
Killing occurred in home of killer?
Yes
Weapon
Typically, no weapon was used to kill the victim.
Behavior During Crimes
Rape?
No
Tortured victims?
Not usually
Stalked victims?
NA
Overkill?
Yes
Quick & efficient?
Yes
Used blindfold?
NA
Bound the victims?
Sometimes
After Death Behavior
Sex with the body?
Yes
Mutilated body?
Yes
Ate part of the body?
Yes
Drank victim’s blood?
Tried it once
Posed the body?
Yes, took pictures before and after death
Took totem – body part
Yes
Took totem – personal item
NA
Robbed victim or location
No
Disposal of Body
Left at scene, no attempt to hide
No
Left at scene, hidden
Yes
Left at scene, buried
1st victim, but later dug him up
Moved, no attempt to hide
No
Moved, buried
No
Cut-op and disposed of
Yes
Moved, too home
Killed and kept at home
Sentencing
Date killer arrested
July, 23, 1991
Date convicted
February 15, 1992
Sentence
Life
Killer executed?
No
Name and state of prison
Columbia Correctional Institution, Wisconsin
Killer committed suicide?
No
Killer killed in prison?
Yes
Date of death
November 28, 1994
References
Books
Baumann, Edward (1991). Step into my parlor: The chilling story of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Chicago: Bonus Books (ISBN 0-929-38764-3)
Dahmer, Lionel. (1994). A father’s story. NY: Avon (ISBN 0-380-72503-7)
Davis, Don (1995). The Milwaukee Murders: Nightmare in Apartment 213. St. Martins (ISBN 0-312-92840-8)
Dvorchak, Robert, and Howlewa, Lisa (1991) Milwaukee massacre: Jeffrey Dahmer and the Milwaukee murders. Dell. (ISBN 0-440-21286-3)
Jaeger, Richard W., & Balousek, M. William (1991). Massacre in Milwaukee: The macabre case of Jeffrey Dahmer. Oregon, WI: Waubesa Press (ISBN 1-878-56909-0)
Masters, Brian (1993). The shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer. Dunton Green, Sevenoaks, Kent, UK: Hodder an Stoughton (ISBN 0-340-59194-3)
Murphy, Dennis, & Kennedy, Patrick (1992). Incident, Homicide: The Story of the Milwaukee Flesh-Eater. Boston, MA: Quimby World Headquarters Publications.
Norris, Joel (1992). Jeffrey Dahmer: A bizarre journey into the mind of America’s most tormented serial killer. NY: Pinnacle Books (ISBN 1-558-17661-6)
Schwartz, Anne E. (1992). The man who could not kill enough: The secret murders of Milwaukee’s Jeffrey Dahmer. Carol Publishing. (ISBN 1-559-72117-0)
Tithecott, Richard, & Kincaid, James (1999). Of men and monsters: Jeffrey Dahmer and the construction of the serial killer. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press (ISBN 0-299-15684-2).
Other Sources
Bacher, J.R. (No Date). Jeffrey Dahmer, [Online]. Available:
http://www.webzone.net/njulia.jd.htm [2000, November 19].
Boston, J. (No Date). Jeff Dahmer – The Crime Library, [Online]. Available:
http://www.crimelibrary.com/dahmer [2000 November 19].
Davis, J.A. (1998). “Profile of a Sexual Predator: A Pyschological Autopsy of an
American Serial Killer”. The Forensic Examiner, 28-33.
Derf, (No Date). Young Jeffrey Dahmer. {Online} Available:
http://www.derfcity.com/crap/jd1/html [2000 , November 19].
Martingale, M.(1993). Cannibal killers: The history of impossible murderers. New York, NY: Carrole & Graf Publishers, Inc.
Online Sources
http://crass.com/killer/dahmer.html
http://members.tripod.com/~lucy4ever/dhamer.htm
http://www~cgi.cnn.com/US/9604/24newsbreifs/index.html
http://www.computer-connection.net/~irving1/mw/mw35.html
http://www.sincity.com/penn-n-teller/articles/dahmer.html