How New York’s First Terrorist Led to the Birth of Criminal Profiling | The New Yorker

Summary

From 1940 to 1957, New York City was terrorized by the Mad Bomber, who planted 32 bombs, causing widespread fear. Despite efforts from the police, they struggled to solve the case until psychiatrist James Brussels created a groundbreaking psychological profile. His insights into the bomber’s background led the NYPD to George Metesky, a former employee of Con Edison. Metesky’s motive was revenge after a workplace accident. Brussels' work revolutionized criminal profiling, influencing future criminal investigations and the FBI. This case marked the beginning of a new approach to understanding criminal behavior through psychology.

Takeaways

• 😀 Dr. James Brussels created a revolutionary criminal profiling method that helped solve the Mad Bomber case in New York City, influencing American criminology.
• 😀 The Mad Bomber, active from 1940 to 1957, set off 32 bombs in public places, mainly targeting movie theaters and other public spaces in New York City.
• 😀 Despite numerous bombings and investigations, the New York City Police Department struggled for years to catch the bomber due to outdated investigative methods.
• 😀 The New York City bomb squad, led by Captain Howard Finney, was tasked with defusing live bombs and sought alternative methods to solve the case after conventional approaches failed.
• 😀 Dr. Brussels was a psychiatrist with experience working with mentally ill criminals, and he used his expertise to analyze the evidence and form a psychological profile of the bomber.
• 😀 Dr. Brussels' profile of the Mad Bomber was incredibly specific, predicting that the bomber would come from a northern suburb, be of Slavic descent, never have had a girlfriend, and wear a double-breasted suit.
• 😀 The bomber's letters to the police, newspapers, and Con Edison were analyzed by Dr. Brussels, who identified signs of paranoid schizophrenia and delusional thinking.
• 😀 By publishing the profile in the newspaper, Dr. Brussels lured the Mad Bomber into responding, which allowed the police to gather more clues and narrow down suspects.
• 😀 After reviewing the suspect pool, the police identified George Metesky, a Lithuanian man who had worked for Con Edison and harbored a long-standing grudge against the company.
• 😀 The case of the Mad Bomber led to the development of modern criminal profiling techniques, which were later used by FBI agents like John Douglas and Bob Ressler in their work with notorious criminals such as Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy.

Q & A

Who was the Mad Bomber and what was his main act of terror in New York City?

The Mad Bomber was an individual who terrorized New York City from 1940 to 1957 by planting 32 bombs in public spaces, mainly in movie theaters. His bombings caused fear and disruption across the city.

How did the New York City Police Department initially approach solving the Mad Bomber case?

The NYPD struggled to solve the case and relied on traditional methods like roughing up suspects and informants. Their approach was pre-scientific, lacking the modern forensic techniques we have today.

Who was Dr. James Brussels, and how did he contribute to solving the Mad Bomber case?

Dr. James Brussels was a psychiatrist who was asked to create a psychological profile of the Mad Bomber. His groundbreaking work in criminal profiling helped the FBI and NYPD to understand the bomber’s motivations and behaviors, leading to his capture.

What were some of the key characteristics Dr. Brussels identified about the Mad Bomber through his profile?

Dr. Brussels identified that the Mad Bomber was likely a Slavic male with a history of workplace disputes, never had a girlfriend, and would be neat and well-dressed, often in a double-breasted suit.

How did Dr. Brussels predict the bomber’s background and behavior using his profile?

Dr. Brussels used clues from the bombings and letters, analyzing the bomber’s meticulousness and logical delusions. He deduced that the bomber was from a Slavic background, suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, and was influenced by past European practices of bombing.

What was the significance of the published criminal profile, and how did it help catch the Mad Bomber?

Dr. Brussels' profile was published in a newspaper, and the Mad Bomber responded to it in a letter. This interaction provided more details that helped the police narrow down their search, eventually leading them to the bomber.

Who was George Metesky, and how was he connected to the Mad Bomber case?

George Metesky was identified as the Mad Bomber. He was a former employee of Consolidated Edison who harbored a grudge over an accident in 1931. His background and behavior matched the profile Dr. Brussels had developed.

What was the Mad Bomber's motive for carrying out the attacks?

The Mad Bomber, George Metesky, was motivated by revenge against Consolidated Edison, believing that a 1931 plant accident had caused him to contract tuberculosis.

How did Dr. Brussels' approach to criminal profiling influence modern criminology?

Dr. Brussels' work was revolutionary in that it established criminal profiling as a useful tool in law enforcement. His method of analyzing criminal behavior from a psychological perspective laid the foundation for modern criminal profiling techniques.

What role did criminal profiling play in the development of modern FBI investigative methods?

Criminal profiling became a key component of FBI investigations, especially after the work of Dr. Brussels and later profilers like John Douglas and Bob Ressler. Their systematic approach to understanding criminal psychology has been integral in solving major criminal cases.