Safety Tips
HOW CAN WE PROTECT OURSELVES AGAINST SEXUAL PREDATORS LIKE WILLIAMS?
When I began writing Camouflaged Killer, there was a question that begged to be answered. Why did Williams allow two of his victims to survive, while he coldly ended the lives of two other women? Was it simply due to an escalation in his criminal behavior, or did the victims’ conduct have something to do with the different outcomes? I had hoped at the time that my research would provide some insight into the most effective responses that a woman could use if ever, God forbid, they became the target of a similar sexual predator.
And the threat is more common than you might think.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, every two minutes, somewhere in America, a woman is raped (one every seventeen minutes in Canada). Although more than half involve men known to their victims, the most serious – and life-threatening – of all attacks are committed by total strangers (who, according to statistics compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, account for 42.2 per cent of all sexual assaults). Very few (16%) of these unknown attackers get caught and, according to the latest available U.S. figures, only two percent are ever convicted.
So what can a woman do in such a situation to ensure her survival?
Unfortunately, there was no magic formula to be found. Neither complete compliance nor aggressive resistance worked with Williams – both responses ultimately failed. Seemingly, there was nothing that either Marie-France or Jessica could have done differently once the attacks had begun that would have changed their tragic outcomes. After all, the sexual sadist, who thankfully represents only five percent of the rapist population, is the most unpredictable and despicable of all sexual offenders. Seldom is there a “proper” response when dealing with them. In most cases, he feeds off the victim’s resistance, yet even when offered full compliance he still simply takes whatever it is he wants. Williams was no exception.
In their 1992 book, Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives, the authors (two FBI agents and a psychiatry professor) revealed the discouraging fact that physical resistance generally results in increased levels of violence from the attackers. But, on the other hand, all of the victims of their same study, who had offered full compliance, had been murdered.
And the threat is more common than you might think.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, every two minutes, somewhere in America, a woman is raped (one every seventeen minutes in Canada). Although more than half involve men known to their victims, the most serious – and life-threatening – of all attacks are committed by total strangers (who, according to statistics compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, account for 42.2 per cent of all sexual assaults). Very few (16%) of these unknown attackers get caught and, according to the latest available U.S. figures, only two percent are ever convicted.
So what can a woman do in such a situation to ensure her survival?
Unfortunately, there was no magic formula to be found. Neither complete compliance nor aggressive resistance worked with Williams – both responses ultimately failed. Seemingly, there was nothing that either Marie-France or Jessica could have done differently once the attacks had begun that would have changed their tragic outcomes. After all, the sexual sadist, who thankfully represents only five percent of the rapist population, is the most unpredictable and despicable of all sexual offenders. Seldom is there a “proper” response when dealing with them. In most cases, he feeds off the victim’s resistance, yet even when offered full compliance he still simply takes whatever it is he wants. Williams was no exception.
In their 1992 book, Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives, the authors (two FBI agents and a psychiatry professor) revealed the discouraging fact that physical resistance generally results in increased levels of violence from the attackers. But, on the other hand, all of the victims of their same study, who had offered full compliance, had been murdered.
Since different typologies of sexual offenders have different motives, what works with one type might only serve to aggravate another.
Different types of offenders (as outlined in Chapter 24 of Camouflaged Killer) require different responses. For example, by using resistance with a “power reassurance” offender (fully defined in Chapter 24 of my North American books), a victim would destroy his seduction-based fantasy. As his fantasy is not being realized, there is a possibility that he may choose to discontinue the attack.
However, the same resistance may serve to further antagonize a “power-assertive” rapist (who wants to assert himself as the dominator), or to fuel the primal urges of a sexual sadist like Williams. “It’s important to keep in mind that most rapists just want to sexually assault their victims,” says retired RCMP profiler Glenn Woods, who formerly served as director of the national police force’s Behavioural Sciences Branch. “When a victim becomes overly aggressive without understanding the offender, it could lead to more serious injury, or even death. I always tell them to err on the side of caution before taking aggressive action.”
So in order to decide upon an appropriate and effective response in any given situation, a female victim would have to be able to analyze, and properly classify, her attacker before taking action. This decision would have to be made in haste, and under the most terrifying of circumstances, when most people’s judgment is severely compromised. And even then there would be no guarantees.
One female police source advised “testing the waters” during an attack. She suggested that a victim should try various approaches and take mental notes of the types of responses that each generates – and then stick with the most promising. “Start by offering some resistance,” she says. “If that seems to arouse him or have no effect, then take a different approach. Act promiscuous and tell him to ‘give it to you good’. One of the approaches may be significantly more rewarding than the other.”
One unorthodox approach, suggested by the FBI, would be for the victim to ask her attacker to take her out for a beer first. Apparently this odd tactic has worked before (mostly likely on power-reassurance rapists).
When asked at a conference what advice he’d offer to a woman confronting a rapist, Roy Hazelwood, one of the founding members of the FBI’s famed Behavioral Sciences Unit, offered a clinical and calculated response. He replied that he could only recommend a course of action if the audience member could first answer the following three questions:
1. What is the location of the confrontation?
2. What is the personality of the victim?
3. What is the type and motivation of the rapist?
His response highlighted the fact that there is no all-encompassing answer that would serve the dynamics of every possible rape situation, and therefore his reluctance to give such generalized advice.
The key to surviving an attack is through understanding the offender and his motivations. But developing such ability requires an appropriate level of training. “Giving someone a crash course on the different types of offenders in my view could be counter-productive,” says Woods. “It’s better for the victim to use common sense once they have had an opportunity to get to know the offender, and then act accordingly.”
However, the same resistance may serve to further antagonize a “power-assertive” rapist (who wants to assert himself as the dominator), or to fuel the primal urges of a sexual sadist like Williams. “It’s important to keep in mind that most rapists just want to sexually assault their victims,” says retired RCMP profiler Glenn Woods, who formerly served as director of the national police force’s Behavioural Sciences Branch. “When a victim becomes overly aggressive without understanding the offender, it could lead to more serious injury, or even death. I always tell them to err on the side of caution before taking aggressive action.”
So in order to decide upon an appropriate and effective response in any given situation, a female victim would have to be able to analyze, and properly classify, her attacker before taking action. This decision would have to be made in haste, and under the most terrifying of circumstances, when most people’s judgment is severely compromised. And even then there would be no guarantees.
One female police source advised “testing the waters” during an attack. She suggested that a victim should try various approaches and take mental notes of the types of responses that each generates – and then stick with the most promising. “Start by offering some resistance,” she says. “If that seems to arouse him or have no effect, then take a different approach. Act promiscuous and tell him to ‘give it to you good’. One of the approaches may be significantly more rewarding than the other.”
One unorthodox approach, suggested by the FBI, would be for the victim to ask her attacker to take her out for a beer first. Apparently this odd tactic has worked before (mostly likely on power-reassurance rapists).
When asked at a conference what advice he’d offer to a woman confronting a rapist, Roy Hazelwood, one of the founding members of the FBI’s famed Behavioral Sciences Unit, offered a clinical and calculated response. He replied that he could only recommend a course of action if the audience member could first answer the following three questions:
1. What is the location of the confrontation?
2. What is the personality of the victim?
3. What is the type and motivation of the rapist?
His response highlighted the fact that there is no all-encompassing answer that would serve the dynamics of every possible rape situation, and therefore his reluctance to give such generalized advice.
The key to surviving an attack is through understanding the offender and his motivations. But developing such ability requires an appropriate level of training. “Giving someone a crash course on the different types of offenders in my view could be counter-productive,” says Woods. “It’s better for the victim to use common sense once they have had an opportunity to get to know the offender, and then act accordingly.”
Not all experts agree on the “don’t fight back” approach, however.
Christopher Roberts, CEO of SAFE International, a personal protection training organization, believes that you should never trust an assailant who promises not to hurt you if you comply with his demands. “It is very common for an attacker to reassure the victim that they will not be hurt or killed, hoping that they will choose not to resist,” he says. “But the moment someone says they ‘promise’ not to hurt you, it’s a big indication that they will do exactly that.”
While Roberts suggests a strategy of “playing along” with one’s attacker – talking to them and even co-operating by following their orders – he maintains that it should be done with the specific intent to gain the rapist’s trust so that he will let his guard down and provide an opportunity for the victim to strike back or escape. When that opportunity arises, he says, the victim must act as though it’s her only chance for survival – and adopt a no-holds-barred mentality of “attack the attacker.”
“When violence is the answer, it’s the only answer,” says Roberts. “With someone like Williams, you need to meet his violence with even more violence than he is using. There is no room for philosophy on what is right and wrong. There is no other way to survive. Any hesitation can be fatal.” You might have to do the most disgusting thing you can imagine in order to escape.
Hazelwood, however, recognizes the inherent limitations in such a response. “The success of resistance behavior depends largely on the victim’s ability to apply it,” he says. “A passive and dependent personality will have extreme difficulty implementing advice to be assertive and physically aggressive in a confrontation where a physically larger male has awakened her from sleep.”
Roberts also encourages the strategy used by Laurie Massicotte, of trying to get the attacker to talk about himself and his family and sharing familial experiences. That can sometimes introduce some degree of humanity into the encounter, and help humanize the victim. But don’t expect the perp to let you go, Roberts warns. It simply affords you the chance to find an opportunity to execute your escape.
“Again, with an offender like Williams, it would be important to deliver soft tissue strikes due to his strength,” says Roberts. “I always recommend attacking the head, particularly the eyes. By jamming thumbs or fingers into one’s eyes, you have the chance to blind them for short periods or do serious damage. Even the strongest man can’t take a finger (or pen) inserted two inches into his skull.”
Always continue surveying the immediate area for objects that could be used as improvised weapons. Pens, pencils, combs, knives, paperweights, pool cues, or broomsticks, can all be used effectively. It can be a grave mistake to attempt to flee without first debilitating your attacker. Running has been known to arouse sexual sadists like Williams, and chances are good that he would recapture you, tie you up, and never let his guard down again.
A victim should always do everything in her power to avoid being tied up. Don’t believe the attacker when he promises not to inflict harm to his prey if she submits to being bound. Once restrained, the woman’s chances of being able to escape or physically defend herself are virtually eliminated. “I would say if you get tied up, you are likely going to meet with the worst possible results,” says Roberts, who remains surprised that Williams did not kill his first two victims based upon what he had them do.
One must also avoid, through whatever means possible, being taken to a secondary crime scene. It is the most ominous of all places, and your chance of survival plummets significantly. The offender will ensure that the victim is taken to a remote area, an ideal spot for them, where no one will hear her cries for help. She may be subjected to prolonged sexual abuse and torture, as the attacker relishes the sounds of her screams, knowing that they cannot be heard or answered. Therefore, if an attacker attempts to take his victim to a location other than where the assault began, she should treat it as her last opportunity to escape.
For instance, Roberts says, when Williams untied Jessica Lloyd’s legs while preparing to drive her back to his cottage, she perhaps had a brief opportunity to start striking, kicking, and running. It might have been her last remaining chance for survival.
Some experts also suggest feigning unconsciousness, or pretending to either choke or suffer a seizure. However, as in the case with Jessica Lloyd, sexual sadists are likely to be either indifferent to their victim’s suffering or sexually excited as a result.
Of course, there were some preventive measures that Williams’s victims could have taken as well - and that all women who live alone would be wise to consider - that might have possibly lessened their chances of being victimized. This is never to imply fault on the part of any victim of course, but at the same time, we must always strive to be cognizant of the threats around us and conduct ourselves accordingly – even if it seems as though the precautions are intrusive and unfair. Some women choose to put themselves at risk based on the fact that they “shouldn’t have to do things differently”. But evil does not recognize fairness. Sometimes even the most undeserving people invite trouble through their actions or inactions. And predators have an uncanny ability to sense such an opportunity and seize upon it.
While Roberts suggests a strategy of “playing along” with one’s attacker – talking to them and even co-operating by following their orders – he maintains that it should be done with the specific intent to gain the rapist’s trust so that he will let his guard down and provide an opportunity for the victim to strike back or escape. When that opportunity arises, he says, the victim must act as though it’s her only chance for survival – and adopt a no-holds-barred mentality of “attack the attacker.”
“When violence is the answer, it’s the only answer,” says Roberts. “With someone like Williams, you need to meet his violence with even more violence than he is using. There is no room for philosophy on what is right and wrong. There is no other way to survive. Any hesitation can be fatal.” You might have to do the most disgusting thing you can imagine in order to escape.
Hazelwood, however, recognizes the inherent limitations in such a response. “The success of resistance behavior depends largely on the victim’s ability to apply it,” he says. “A passive and dependent personality will have extreme difficulty implementing advice to be assertive and physically aggressive in a confrontation where a physically larger male has awakened her from sleep.”
Roberts also encourages the strategy used by Laurie Massicotte, of trying to get the attacker to talk about himself and his family and sharing familial experiences. That can sometimes introduce some degree of humanity into the encounter, and help humanize the victim. But don’t expect the perp to let you go, Roberts warns. It simply affords you the chance to find an opportunity to execute your escape.
“Again, with an offender like Williams, it would be important to deliver soft tissue strikes due to his strength,” says Roberts. “I always recommend attacking the head, particularly the eyes. By jamming thumbs or fingers into one’s eyes, you have the chance to blind them for short periods or do serious damage. Even the strongest man can’t take a finger (or pen) inserted two inches into his skull.”
Always continue surveying the immediate area for objects that could be used as improvised weapons. Pens, pencils, combs, knives, paperweights, pool cues, or broomsticks, can all be used effectively. It can be a grave mistake to attempt to flee without first debilitating your attacker. Running has been known to arouse sexual sadists like Williams, and chances are good that he would recapture you, tie you up, and never let his guard down again.
A victim should always do everything in her power to avoid being tied up. Don’t believe the attacker when he promises not to inflict harm to his prey if she submits to being bound. Once restrained, the woman’s chances of being able to escape or physically defend herself are virtually eliminated. “I would say if you get tied up, you are likely going to meet with the worst possible results,” says Roberts, who remains surprised that Williams did not kill his first two victims based upon what he had them do.
One must also avoid, through whatever means possible, being taken to a secondary crime scene. It is the most ominous of all places, and your chance of survival plummets significantly. The offender will ensure that the victim is taken to a remote area, an ideal spot for them, where no one will hear her cries for help. She may be subjected to prolonged sexual abuse and torture, as the attacker relishes the sounds of her screams, knowing that they cannot be heard or answered. Therefore, if an attacker attempts to take his victim to a location other than where the assault began, she should treat it as her last opportunity to escape.
For instance, Roberts says, when Williams untied Jessica Lloyd’s legs while preparing to drive her back to his cottage, she perhaps had a brief opportunity to start striking, kicking, and running. It might have been her last remaining chance for survival.
Some experts also suggest feigning unconsciousness, or pretending to either choke or suffer a seizure. However, as in the case with Jessica Lloyd, sexual sadists are likely to be either indifferent to their victim’s suffering or sexually excited as a result.
Of course, there were some preventive measures that Williams’s victims could have taken as well - and that all women who live alone would be wise to consider - that might have possibly lessened their chances of being victimized. This is never to imply fault on the part of any victim of course, but at the same time, we must always strive to be cognizant of the threats around us and conduct ourselves accordingly – even if it seems as though the precautions are intrusive and unfair. Some women choose to put themselves at risk based on the fact that they “shouldn’t have to do things differently”. But evil does not recognize fairness. Sometimes even the most undeserving people invite trouble through their actions or inactions. And predators have an uncanny ability to sense such an opportunity and seize upon it.
“The best precaution to take,” says Woods, “is just simply to avoid putting oneself in a high risk situation.”
A majority of the victims of Williams’s crimes – including his break-ins, sexual assaults, and sex murders – had left the windows or doors of their homes unlocked or insecure. And, as all predators, he took full advantage of that.
The more difficult it is to enter a home, the more likely it is that intruders will move on to a different target. Each of the three times that an alarm sounded during Williams’s attempted break-ins, he quickly fled the scene.
Women living alone are of course at a higher risk for attracting the attention of a sexual predator. They should develop a routine of ensuring that all windows and doors are secured each night before dark. Don’t forget basement windows and any patio doors! It’s also a wise practice to close all blinds and curtains to prevent advertising the fact that they are alone in the house. Remember that while those inside the home are unable to see out into the darkness, the lights inside the house make the occupants very visible to those outside. And, never assume that because your room faces onto a wooded area that your privacy is ensured.
If your property is secluded, you should be aware of the higher degree of risk involved, and plan your home security accordingly. Place empty bottles on window sills to alert you to anyone attempting to climb through an open window. And be careful not to assume that all “country folk” are polite and harmless - the false sense of security could have dire consequences. Never take your safety for granted. Often, like Williams, predators will target rural homes since the isolation ensures their privacy during an attack and a convenient means of undetected escape.
If you live alone, a home intrusion alarm and motion-activated lights are very good investments – and can also provide the resident with a greater peace of mind. If you don’t have a dog, make a recording of a loud, angry barking, to play if you ever hear strange noises outside. Get a male friend to record a greeting on your voice mail or answering machine for you. Don’t answer the door to strangers, and certainly never, under any circumstances whatsoever, admit to an outsider – even “servicemen” or “delivery people” - that you are alone in the house. Remember to trust your intuition, but never rely on it.
While it’s important to remain alert and take precautions to protect yourself, your chances of being targeted by a serial killer or sexual predator are very slim. There is no need to live in a state of constant paranoia. Just use your common sense, stay vigilant, and take ownership of your own safety requirements.
The more difficult it is to enter a home, the more likely it is that intruders will move on to a different target. Each of the three times that an alarm sounded during Williams’s attempted break-ins, he quickly fled the scene.
Women living alone are of course at a higher risk for attracting the attention of a sexual predator. They should develop a routine of ensuring that all windows and doors are secured each night before dark. Don’t forget basement windows and any patio doors! It’s also a wise practice to close all blinds and curtains to prevent advertising the fact that they are alone in the house. Remember that while those inside the home are unable to see out into the darkness, the lights inside the house make the occupants very visible to those outside. And, never assume that because your room faces onto a wooded area that your privacy is ensured.
If your property is secluded, you should be aware of the higher degree of risk involved, and plan your home security accordingly. Place empty bottles on window sills to alert you to anyone attempting to climb through an open window. And be careful not to assume that all “country folk” are polite and harmless - the false sense of security could have dire consequences. Never take your safety for granted. Often, like Williams, predators will target rural homes since the isolation ensures their privacy during an attack and a convenient means of undetected escape.
If you live alone, a home intrusion alarm and motion-activated lights are very good investments – and can also provide the resident with a greater peace of mind. If you don’t have a dog, make a recording of a loud, angry barking, to play if you ever hear strange noises outside. Get a male friend to record a greeting on your voice mail or answering machine for you. Don’t answer the door to strangers, and certainly never, under any circumstances whatsoever, admit to an outsider – even “servicemen” or “delivery people” - that you are alone in the house. Remember to trust your intuition, but never rely on it.
While it’s important to remain alert and take precautions to protect yourself, your chances of being targeted by a serial killer or sexual predator are very slim. There is no need to live in a state of constant paranoia. Just use your common sense, stay vigilant, and take ownership of your own safety requirements.
Please note: Although the North American release of Camouflaged Killer discusses the classifications and motivations of the various types of sexual predators, and explores psychological issues associated with Russell Williams in particular, no direct personal safety advice is provided in the book.
