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Mass murder is the killing of multiple people in one case or a short period of time. The number of homicides needed to be considered mass murder is not well established, but is generally four or more. Mass murder can be committed by an individual, small group, military force, state, or government. Motives for mass murder are rarely sexual. Categories for mass murder include genocide, political assassinations, military mass killings, and terrorism.
Mass murder is a legal term used to describe multiple murders committed in one case or in a short period of time by the same person or people. The exact number of homicides that must occur to warrant use of the term is not well established, although it is generally considered to be four or more if the homicides are committed by an individual or a small group. These killings can be committed on a small scale by an individual or a small group or on a large scale by a military force, state or government. A killing spree, the killing of an individual’s family, genocide, or the strategic bombing of a civilian area can all be termed mass murder.
A mass murderer is an individual responsible for the murder of large numbers of people in a single incident or in a series of closely related incidents. This is especially evident when a single individual commits the murders himself through a series of killings or through the execution of hostages. Interestingly, however, a political leader who orders a military move that results in a large number of intentional civilian deaths is also commonly considered a mass murderer, even if he has never harmed anyone.
Several categories are used to define and describe both large-scale and small-scale mass murder, although small-scale mass murder is not as well defined. Such murders are often defined by the setting or motivation of the killer. School or workplace shootings, for example, often stem from frustration with coworkers or fellow students or out of anger at the loss of a job. Some mass murderers are busy making some sort of political, philosophical, or moral point. While there are many different possible motives for mass murder, the motives are very rarely sexual in nature, as opposed to more conventional, small-scale, or even serial killings.
The categories used to define mass murders on a larger scale are much better defined. Genocide, for example, is the systematic elimination of a particular religious or cultural group or of all members of a particular nationality. Similarly, political assassinations involve the intentional elimination of a particular political group within a country. The ruling political group in a country can use this method to wipe out rivals. Military mass killings also occur through strategic bombing of civilian areas or massacres of prisoners or civilians.
Mass murder is also a common tactic in terrorism. The goal of terrorism is generally to inspire fear in a group of people, and highly visible and destructive acts with large numbers of deaths are effective in achieving this goal. Suicide bombing, for example, commonly occurs in highly civilian populated areas.
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