Geographic Profiling

• Developed by Kim Rossmo as his Ph.D dissertation at Simon Fraser based up the work of the Brantinghams

• Based on the assumption that crime locations are not random

Geographic Profiling

• Definition: an investigative technique used to determine the most likely location of a criminal’s residence based upon the geographic location of crime sites

• Suitable crimes:– Serial offences (murder, rape, arson, bombings)– Predatory crimes (child abduction, sexual

homicide)– Multiple location crimes (credit card usage,

property crimes)

Geographic Profiling

• Based upon principles of:– “least effort”– Routine activity– Distance decay

Requirements for Geographic Profiling

• Complete familiarity with the case file• Examination of the crime scenes (minimum of 5

crimes)• Interviews with investigators and witnesses • Study of area maps • Analysis of neighborhood demographics for both the

abduction site and body dump site

• Computerized analysis

Geographic Profiling

• Profiling software then produces a probability map to show the most likely residence locations for the suspect. Red indicates the most likely area to search.

Geographic Profiling

Once the area has been located, traditional investigative techniques are used:

– Address-based searches of police records– Increased patrols– Door-to-door searches/questioning– Tip prioritization– DNA screening prioritization