NCJ Number
150276
Date Published
1992
Length
43 pages
Annotation
The Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VI-CAP) was created by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to address the problems posed by multijurisdictional serial murderers.
Abstract
The VI-CAP provides a central clearinghouse to which any jurisdiction can send reports of unsolved homicides. Experienced staff and special computer systems are used to match reported homicides which appear to have been perpetrated by the same offender. When matches are found, VI-CAP personnel can inform the involved jurisdictions and assist them in coordinating their investigations. The design of VI-CAP incorporates several concepts which make it particularly suited for matching unsolved serial homicides: standardized questionnaire to describe and report unsolved homicides, professional and support staff experienced in investigating serial murders, and computerized database of unsolved homicide records. Because the VI-CAP's workload and responsibilities have grown beyond its resources, the authors recommend that policymakers revisit the program's mission, establish priorities, and concentrate resources accordingly. Specific recommendations are made to improve the efficiency of VI-CAP and focus its work on three main tasks: (1) create and maintain a database of uncleared homicides, uncleared attempted homicides, and uncleared abductions and missing persons; (2) match crimes in the database and report such matches to involved local jurisdictions; and (3) provide assistance to serial murder and multiagency task force investigations.