Memoirs Of A Serial Killer

A serial killer assassinated his 17th victim and is hunting for more victims. A peak into his early years consisted of a violent and abusive family. Even though he grew up in an unstable household, he lived a rather ordinary life. He was a three-sport varsity athlete in high school and had many friends. He was always an aggressive kid but used sports as an outlet. When prestigious colleges accepted him, he quit sports to focus on studying. The killer noticed a difference in his personality and the impulses that came over him. He got into lots of trouble in college. Ultimately, he committed his first murder just after graduating college. He overreacted to a fight with a friend, which resulted in an innocent man’s death. This unnamed man felt

People can not control what genes they have. When one has a mutated MAOA gene, one can become more impulsive and snap under pressure. When they commit a crime, they are not mentally there. Meaning something came over them, and they could not control it. Joshua Greene, an assistant professor of psychology at Harvard, says, “No one chooses their genes. No one chooses the circumstances of their early childhood…[but one] punish[es] people in order to prevent them and to deter others from committing crimes in the future” (“Can Genes and Brain Abnormalities Create Killers?”). Genes are indeed uncontrollable, but if killing, or crime in general, is in one’s genes, then one can snap under pressure again, which can cost the lives of innocent people. Recurring impulsive decisions are reasons not to give criminals a lighter sentence. Lisa Aspinwall is a psychologist at the University of Utah, and she believes judges “also conclude that there’s nothing to stop [one] from continuing to be violent in the future” ("Would Judge Give Psychopath With Genetic Defect Lighter Sentence?"). Preventing future crime is necessary for society. People with the MAOA gene who get a lighter sentence can easily commit another crime. Feeling safe in the community is so important to everyone living in it. If judges

Genes and the environment go hand in hand, so the blame can not be just on the gene. Past experiences program one’s genes; thus, genes are not the only thing that affect one’s behavior. Every human has the MAOA gene, and many men have the variant and do not act on impulsive thoughts. Genes are always a part of one’s life. When a criminal that has the mutation on the MAOA gene commits a crime, they are more likely to commit another crime in the future since it is genetic. In the past decade, the number of mass shootings has significantly increased. This number could increase if judges considered the MAOA gene when determining the sentences of criminals. Right now, in the United States, there were “45,222 total gun deaths in 2020 [which is] a 14% increase from the year before, a 25% increase from five years earlier and a 43% increase from a decade prior” (Gramlich). Not all of these deaths are attributed to the mutated MAOA, but it is reasonable to conclude some repeat offenders with the mutated MAOA gene caused these deaths by lighter sentences. If judges do not grant lighter sentences, it can keep these killers incarcerated longer, protecting society. Therefore, it is less likely they will commit another crime and pass on the