Revising the mental image of a serial killer

The serial killer is so misunderstood.

Don't mistake this for sympathy. It's just a fact, or so says the FBI. The federal agency has just released a breezy little read titled "Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators."

The study seeks to correct common myths about serial killers, whom the FBI thinks are glorified by a macabre media that love stereotypical Hannibal Lecter when the reality is Ralph From Down the Street. And it's not just a federal thing -- seasoned homicide detectives agree: The movies you've been watching about murderers are bogus, big time.

Here are five myths about serial killers, and why they're dead wrong.

Myth No. 1: All serial killers are dysfunctional loners.

Some serial killers hide in plain sight. Remember the BTK Killer, Dennis Rader? He killed 10 people. He was also married with two kids, a Boy Scout leader, an Air Force veteran, a government worker and president of his church. Or what about the Green River Killer, Gary Ridgeway? He admitted to killing 48 women in 20 years, all while living as a married man, working as a painter and attending church regularly.

Myth No. 2: Serial killers are all white males.

Contrary to popular belief, murderers are multiracial. What about Colombian Rory Conde, who killed six prostitutes in Miami? Or Charles Ng, a Hong Kong native who partnered with another man to kill an estimated 25 people in California? According to the FBI report, the racial diversity of serial killers largely mirrors that of the U.S. population.

Myth No. 3: Serial killers are insane and/or evil geniuses

Here's the Hollywood dichotomy: Serial killers are either brilliant and charming, or creepy and insane. Although the former is sort of fun to imagine, and the latter is almost expected, the reality is that most serial killers range in intelligence from borderline to above average. And though many suffer from various personality disorders, the FBI reports that most are not determined to be legally insane.

Myth No. 4: Serial killers want to get caught.

Sure, serial killers put a little more planning into their crimes, but the learning curve is still steep -- the logistics of getting away with murder are pretty complex, so it's not that they want to get caught, it's that it's easy to trip up and expose yourself. Alternatively, the more confident a killer is, the more careless.

Myth No. 5: Serial killers are all motivated by sex.

Not so. There are many motivations for serial murder, according to the report, including anger, thrill, financial gain and attention seeking. Take the case of Washington, D.C.-area serial snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo. The FBI says the pair killed out of anger and for the thrills. Then they attempted to extort money to stop the shootings. Then they got caught, and are now looking at an eternity behind bars. (See Myth No. 4.)

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)