by Nitya Marimuthu
While researching serial killers, I came across two cases that dealt directly with insurance fraud and serial killing intentions. The first killer I discovered was Judy Buenoano. Known as “the Black Widow,” Buenoano poisoned her son, husband, and boyfriend to collect an estimated $240,000 in insurance policies. Though her intentions were chalked up to greed as she never expressed remorse, her true intentions are unclear due to her complicated childhood and unknown financial status during the killings.
The second serial killer whose intentions were hidden behind the guise of insurance fraud was Steven David Catlin. It is confirmed that Catlin poisoned two of his wives and his mother with paraquat, but there are also suspicions that he poisoned his father and some of his other wives. Though some psychologists believe that Catlin killed his partners for the insurance money as he used drugs and had no stable income to support this habit, others believe his intentions might be connected to his convoluted relationship with his adopted mother. Psychologist David Kirschner proposes in “Adoption: Uncharted Waters” that Catlin potentially sought to recreate the death of his biological mother, who committed suicide through poisoning, in the killing of his adopted mother. Kirschner also suggests that Catlin’s murder of Joyce Catlin, who was his first victim, could have been fueled by her choosing not to have a child with him, thus denying him the biological tie he craved. Further, since Catlin gathered relatively minimal amounts from the insurance fraud – only around $56,000 total – other perceived benefits could have played a larger part in his motivation to kill.
These two killers pose many questions about the internal narrative factor we have examined for each person. Is insurance fraud a consistent framework for a killer? Is so-called greed simply a cover for other motivations? For these serial killers and others, an unstable financial source, both in childhood and adulthood, might be a factor in their need to find money in any way. As we continue to analyze killers, connections between financial poverty in childhood and intentions behind the killing might be found.
Citations:
Kirschner, David. Adoption: Uncharted Waters : a Psychologist’s Case Studies : Clinical and
Forensic Issues : with Practical Advice for Adoptees, Parents, and Therapists. Juneau
Press. 2006