john Wayne Gacy

John Wayne Gacy, named after the American movie star, was one of America's most notorious and busy mass murderers. The man who was married, entertained political aspirations, and ran a successful contracting business took his sexual pleasure with and murdered at least 33 young males, all ranging in age from nine to 27 (John, 2000, 1). Gacy's psychology represents that of the mass murderer, including a history of child abuse, a depersonalization and lack of remorse for his victims, the keeping of trophies from his victims and other characteristics. Gacy was often beat as a child and called a "sissy" by his father. He experienced a childhood head trauma which he blamed for blackouts he suffered for years. Gacy worked in the restaurant business, as a community activist, a leader of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, a Jaycee-elected �Man of the Year' and he often entertained children while presenting himself as a clown in full makeup and costume (John, 2000, 1).

Most of Gacy's victims either worked for him or knew of him in the community. His usual modus operandi was to acquaint himself with the boys and offer them work or liquor and drugs. He would then tie them up and handcuff them and violate them for his sexual pleasure. The boys, "most of whom he buried in the crawl space beneath his home," saw some kind of scant attempt at justice for their lost lives when Gacy was given 21 life sentences and 12 death sentences in 1988 (John, 2000,

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