FILE 001Ted Bundy
A multi-state murderer whose public persona helped conceal a sustained campaign of abduction and violence.
Photos, sources & timelineCase files · Historical record · Responsible true crime
Beyond the headline: evidence, accountability, and the lives affected.
Explore sourced histories of serial-murder investigations and major mass-violence cases. Each record separates court findings from claims, corrects persistent myths, and examines the people and institutions behind the headline.
Explore the collections 40 researched records
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A research archive, not a rogues’ gallery
“Most famous” rarely means best understood. Public memory is shaped by nicknames, films, headlines, and offender claims. Our files ask more useful questions: What is established by a conviction or official inquiry? Which claims remain disputed? How did investigators connect the evidence—and where did institutions fail the people they were supposed to protect?
- 30
- serial-murder dossiers
- 10
- mass-violence records
- 10+
- countries represented
Research paths
Follow the evidence
Explore the cases
Compare location, period, documented counts, identification methods, convictions, and unresolved attribution across the archive.
View case indexCenter the victims
Understand why names, accurate counts, missing-person response, and the treatment of marginalized communities matter to the record.
Read our approachInterrogate notoriety
Learn how sensational labels, repeated myths, and entertainment can obscure evidence and turn perpetrators into cultural products.
Examine the mythologyIn-depth guides
Featured records
Cases readers begin with
FILE 001
FILE 002Jeffrey Dahmer
A Milwaukee murderer whose crimes exposed failures to protect marginalized young men and boys.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 003John Wayne Gacy
A Chicago-area contractor convicted of murdering 33 young men and boys.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 004Jack the Ripper
The still-unidentified offender associated with murders in London’s Whitechapel district.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 005Zodiac Killer
An unidentified killer who sent ciphers and letters to California newspapers.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 006Dennis Rader
A Kansas murderer identified decades later after resuming communications with the media.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 007David Berkowitz
The gunman whose attacks and letters terrorized New York City in the late 1970s.
Photos, sources & timeline
FILE 008Aileen Wuornos
A Florida murderer whose prosecution prompted debate over abuse, gender, and capital punishment.
Photos, sources & timelineHow to read this archive
Convictions, confirmed cases, and claims are not interchangeable.
Counts can refer to convictions, cases accepted by investigators, suspected victims, or statements made by an offender. Each dossier identifies which kind of number it uses and links to a starting source. When evidence is incomplete, we say so.