• Recently saw a short video about this, and data shows serial killers are all but disappearing. The absolute height of serial killers was around the 70s. The reasoning is more about investigations getting better at catching murderers after their first kill, preventing them from ever becoming serial killers.

    • CmdrShepard49@sh.itjust.works
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      1 day ago

      The reasoning is more about investigations getting better at catching murderers after their first kill, preventing them from ever becoming serial killers.

      But that isn’t what’s happening. It’s a 50/50 coin toss whether someone gets caught for murder. https://www.statista.com/chart/28644/rate-of-homicides-that-go-unsolved-in-the-us/

      What I’ve heard is that pollution (like lead and other chemicals) is what rotted children’s brains and made the murder rate skyrocket in the 70s, 80s, and 90s as they reached adulthood.

      • Proprietary_Blend@lemmy.world
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        20 hours ago

        Specifically in the Seattle/Tacoma area of the US. Nearly every notable serial killer was born in the region within a few years of each other. This was during the massive increase in smelting for WWII.