Randall Lockwood, Ph.D., Courtesy of Greater Birmingham Humane Society, Birmingham, AL
Checklist for Factors in the Assessment of Dangerousness in
Perpetrators of Animal Cruelty
Randall Lockwood, Ph.D.
The Humane Society of the United States
- High victim vulnerability
- Two or more victims in the same instance
- More than one instance or attack with 24 hours
- Injury resulted in death of victim(s)
- Multiple injuries inflicted on one or more victims
- Multiple types of injuries inflicted on one or more victims
- Act involved restraint of or direct contact with victim
- Victim was bound or otherwise physically incapacitated
- Use of fire
- Abuse or injury took place over a relatively long time frame
- Act was preplanned rather than reactive or opportunistic
- Act involved overcoming obstacles to initiate or complete the abuse
- Act was committed with high risk of detection or observation
- Other illegal acts were committed at the scene of the animal cruelty
- Individual was the instigator of an act involving multiple perpetrators
- Animal cruelty was used to threaten, intimidate, or coerce human victim
- Act of cruelty involved hypersensitivity to real or perceived threats or slights
- Absence of economic motive
- Past history of positive interactions with victim
- Animal victim was subjected to mutilation or postmortem dismemberment
- Animal victim was sexually assaulted or mutilated in genital areas or perpetrator indicated sexual arousal as a consequence of the abuse
- Act of cruelty was accompanied by sexual symbolism associated with the victim
- Perpetrator projected human characteristics onto victim
- Perpetrator documented the abuse through photographs, video or diary entries
- Perpetrator returned at least once to scene of the abuse, to relieve the experience
- Perpetrator left messages or threats in association with the act of cruelty
- Animal victim was posed or otherwise displayed
- Animal cruelty was accompanied by ritualistic or “satanic” actions
- Act of abuse involved staging or reenactment of themes from media of fantasy sources
- Perpetrator reportedly experienced altered consciousness during the violent act
- Perpetrator reportedly experienced strong positive affective changes during the violent act
- Perpetrator lacks insight into cause or motivation of the animal abuse
- Perpetrator sees himself as the victim and/or projects blame on other
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