Years and locations: 1970s, multiple states including Washington, Utah, Colorado and FloridaĬharacteristics: Preyed on young women and sometimes lured victims by pretending to be injured. Number of confirmed victims: Unknown, confessed to more than two dozen murders before he was executed but he may have been linked to additional slayings. Currently incarcerated at the Shawangunk Correctional Facility in upstate New York. Pleaded guilty to murdering six people and sentenced to 25-years-to-life for each murder.

Berkowitz later said the dog story was a hoax.Īrrest, conviction and sentence: Arrested on August 10, 1977. Fewer than one percent of homicides during a given year are committed by serial killers, the FBI reports.Ĭharacteristics: Initially claimed a neighbor’s dog was possessed by an ancient spirit that commanded him to shoot people. Serial murder is defined by the FBI as two or more killings separated by a span of time. Here’s a select list of convicted American serial killers and notable open or unsolved cases.

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