Then .
the day after the murder happened, she called to say .
she was sorry and she wanted to see me. Knowing what .
I'd done and everything, I didn't want to see her. So .
I stayed away from her for about two weeks. I .
didn't [commit the murder] just because I was mad at .
my girlfriend. There was peer pressure; there was .
outside pressure from school. I had been slacking off .
in my studies because my girl and I started to have .
trouble a month or so before this all happened. I felt .
a combination of things as far as [causing] what .
actually took place. It was pressure from home to bring up .
my grades, to get a job, etc.
Frame of mind is a dominant emotional state .
that acts as a primary filter and interpreting mechanism .
regarding external events. The frame of mind of offenders .
just before the crime revealed highly negative emotional .
states such as: frustration (50%), hostility and anger .
(46%), agitation (43%), and excitement (41%). Along with .
these emotional states were internal turmoil related to .
nervousness (17%), depression (14.6%), fear (10%), calm .
(8.8%), or confusion (7%). These data suggest that there is .
little emotion experienced by the killer that reflects any .
sense of vulnerability, thereby permitting the killer to .
interpret the behavior of his victim in the most negative .
manner. The frame of mind and mood states demonstrate how .
the killer supports his negative cognitions and is able to .
justify his criminal acts. 50% of killers say that their .
murder is planned and intentional. They usually know who, .
when, and where they are going to murder before it actually .
takes place; when the right combination of the previous .
variables exists, they commit the crime and label it .
opportunistic. The pre-crime plans improve after each .
murder; each new experience gives the offender insight into .
his next murder. For example, the man who broke up with his .
girlfriend right before his first murder. He had not .
