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Criminal Profiling And Its Relevance In The Nigerian Criminal Justice System
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Put
simply, criminal profiling is a crime investigation technique whereby
information gathered from the crime scene, witnesses, victims, autopsy
reports and information about an offender’s behaviour is used to draw up
a profile of the sort of person likely to commit such crime. It is a
complementary technique and is usually taken up when no physical traces
were left at the crime scene. Criminal profiling does not point to a
specific offender. It is based on the probability that someone with
certain characteristics is likely to have committed a certain type of
crime.
Personality rests on the assumption that at least certain
offenders have consistent behavioural traits. Homant and Kennedy states
that this consistency is thought to persist from crime to crime and also
to affect various non-criminal aspects of their personality and
lifestyle, thus making them to some extent, identifiable.42 Mischel
points out that the traditional view of personality dispositions lead to
assumption that individuals are characterized by stable and broadly
generalized dispositions that Vernon J. Geberth, 1996, Practical
Homicide Investigations: Tactics, Procedures, and Forensic Techniques,
4th edition, 46 Boca Raton, CRC Press/ Taylor and Francis.39 Brent
Turvey, 2002, Criminal Profiling: Introduction to Behavioral Evidence
Analysis, 1, San Diego Academic Press
2 nd Edition 2002.40 Don Grubin , 1995, Offender Profiling, Journal Of Forensic Psychology 259
41 Ibid at 18
42Homant
& Kennedy, J; 1998: Psychological Aspects of Crime Scene Profiling;
Validity Research; Criminal Justice and Behaviour, 25. 319-343 endure
over long periods of time and that generate consistencies in their
social behaviour across a wide range of situations.43
Each
perpetrator commits his crime in a certain manner, therefore each time a
person commits crime he will do it in the same or at least a similar
fashion. This is a prodigious step in logic, and one that has been
validated by tradition and common sense, both however, less than
reliable sources of knowledge. Holmes and Holmes admit that not all
crimes are suitable for the profiling process. It is just one of many
tools and does not replace good investigative techniques. As profiling
is intended as an investigative tool, it attempts to go beyond the
reconstruction, to answer questions of intent and motivation.44 From
these admittedly subjective answers it can provide a clearer picture of
the offender.
Criminal profiling is used mostly by behavioural
scientists and the police to narrow down an investigation to those
suspects who possess certain behavioural and personality features that
are revealed by the way a crime was committed. Douglas and Olshaker are
of the opinion that behaviour reflects personality. Therefore, the
primary goal is to aid local police in limiting and refining their
suspect list so they can direct their resources where they might do the
most good.45
In his book ―Criminal Psychologyâ€, Gross illustrates the
importance of determining the offender‘s character, his wishes and
beliefs. He contended ―Is it not known that every deed is an outcome of
the total character of the doer? Is it not considered that the deed and
the character are correlative concepts, and that the character by means
of which the deed is to be established cannot be inferred from the deed
alone?… Each particular deed is thinkable only when a determinate
character of the doer is brought in relation with it – a certain
character predisposes to determinate deeds, another character makes them
unthinkable and un-relatable with this or that person‖46. There is no
simple way to predict the future behaviour of offenders.47
43Mischel,
W; 1990: Personality Dispositions Revisited and Revised; A View After
Three Decades; In L. Pervin (Ed), Handbook of Personality; Theory and
Research (2nd Ed)., pp. 111-134) New York; Guilford Press44 Holmes, R.,
& Holmes, S; 2000: Murder in America (2nd Ed), Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage
45 ibid
46 Gross. H. J. U. D, 1910, Criminal Psychology: A Manual for Judges, Practitioners And Students. Manybooks.net
47 ibid
14
Blau
and Rossmo assert that the profiling process is based on the premise
that the interpretation of crime scene evidence can indicate the
personality type of the individual(s) who committed the offence.48
1.7 STRUCTURE OF THE STUDY
Chapter
one focuses on the background and general introduction to the study. It
looks into the aim and objectives of criminal profiling, what its
goals, significances and how crucially needed it is in the Nigerian
criminal justice system.
Criminal profiling is an innovative but
worrying technique of crime investigation. There are numerous
conflicting arguments as to the appropriate discipline of offender
profiling. In order to have a better understanding of this technique,
this study therefore, presents a step by step analysis of the history
and development of offender profiling which is been discussed in chapter
two. In other jurisdictions especially the United States of America and
the United Kingdom, criminal profiling has developed and is still
constantly developing into a very effective and efficient technique of
criminal investigation. The various attitudes to the technique of
criminal profiling in a particular jurisdiction are quite different from
the other and their approaches differ. This is extensively considered
in chapter two of this study.
Since this study focuses mainly on the
importance of criminal profiling in the criminal justice system most
especially to that of Nigeria, the history, growth and development of
the criminal justice system is been extensively discussed in chapter
three. Criminal Profiling is mainly used by the police to narrow down
suspects list in cases where no physical evidence were left at the crime
scene. As such, focus will be placed solely on the Nigerian Police
Force since they are the users or proposed users of the criminal
profiling technique in their investigation processes to determine the
suspected offenders on the criminal acts. In the light of this, the
history, growth and development of the Nigerian police will be
discussed.
The current standard in criminal investigations in Nigeria
is been critically analyzed in order to determine where it stands
amongst its counterparts in other various jurisdictions. There is also
an in-48 Blau, T. H; 1994: Psychological Profiling. In T. H. Blau (Ed);
Psychological Services for Law Enforcement (pp. 261-274) New York:
Wiley; Rossmo, D. K; 2000: Geographic Profiling; Boca Raton; Florida;
CRC Press,
depth look on the perception of the police to Nigerian
citizens and their opinions on ways to resolve prominent issues faced by
the police and the criminal justice system, if any.
The techniques
and different approaches of criminal profiling are critically analyzed
in chapter four. This creates a clearer and easier understanding of how
criminal profiling works and the step by step process of making use of
criminal profiling in during criminal investigation by criminal
investigative analysts. There are certain offences that criminal
profiling is mostly effectively used and some that are not. The
technique was introduced to help law enforcement agencies solve serious
crimes such as serial rape or murder, and to a lesser extent arson and
property crime. At the heart of profiling lies the belief that it is
possible to identify the likely characteristics of an offender. This
research discusses the manifestation of criminal behaviour in the above
mentioned offences categorized into violent and sexual offences and,
cyber and property crimes. This will include several case analyses where
criminal profiling was used in various investigation processes.
Although
advances in crime detection are welcomed, the profiling field appears
engulfed with contradiction and disagreement. Social scientists argue
that the discipline is unscientific due to methodologically weak
research, while police officers appear skeptical about its benefits for
solving crime. Chapter four also includes an extensive analysis of the
various criticisms and skeptical views of experts, criminal justice
personnel and other relevant authorities on the use of criminal
profiling and why it may not be so useful in our criminal justice
system.
One of the aims of this study is to provide a comparative
analysis of the use of offender profiling in various jurisdictions.
Chapter four therefore, discusses the relevance of offender profiling in
England and the United States and how it has greatly assisted and
continues to assist investigators and the criminal justice system as a
whole in determining specific offenders of criminal acts. It also
examines the state of offender profiling in other countries.
The
study concludes in chapter five with a comprehensive summary of the
relevance of criminal profiling in criminal investigations in Nigeria.
Various recommendations is to be made as to ways this effective
technique can be inculcated by the Nigerian police and law enforcement
agencies, ways to improve the current standards of criminal
investigations in Nigeria and also ways to elevate the Nigerian police
force from the setbacks that currently pulls them underwater. The study
also looks at the future of criminal profiling and suggests areas where
further research is needed. This study conclusively argues for the
incorporation of criminal profiling techniques into criminal
investigations processes in Nigeria.
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]The Nigerian criminal justice system is not entirely ignorant or unaware of the use and the merits of the application of criminal profiling as a tool in crime investigation. However, criminal profiling in Nigeria has not nearly reached the level of recognition, functionality or institutionalization that it has attained in other jurisdictions.This study aims to increase the awareness, explore the import, feasibility and the practicality of offender profiling in criminal acts especially those of v ... Continue reading---
