Starkweather And Fugate Case Study

Starkweather and Fugate June 25, 1959 Lincoln, Nebraska finally was able to rest. Charles Raymond Starkweather was executed after the terrible murders of 11 people and 2 dogs, 10 of the murders with his partner, and girlfriend, Caril Ann Fugate. From starting in Lincoln, Nebraska to ending in Douglas, Wyoming, the mystery of these murders were finally over, but left many scars and nightmares on the families that had loved ones taken from them. Charles Starkweather and his partner Caril Fugates showed many different personality traits, more or less they showed a lot of different behavior traits that could describe Starkweather being psychotic and Fugates showing Stockholm syndrome. Born with Genu varum, a birth defect that caused the legs to be misshapen and a speech impediment, Charles was teased and bullied in school. Finding P.E. to be something he did well at, he used his anger toward those who bullied him, and later on toward all who he disliked. From being a well-behaved boy to one of the most troubled teenager, Charles became a young man who …show more content…
Stockholm Syndrome according to a medical dictionary is “a group of psychological symptoms that occur in some persons in a captive or hostage situation” it is “a form of bonding between a captive and captor in which the captive begins to identify with, and may even sympathize with, the captor” (Medical Eponyms. 2012). Fugates was in a relationship with Starkweather, and could be the reason why she never left him. With a girl as young as she was, only being thirteen or so, she was very vulnerable. After seeing her family being murdered by this man who loved her for not allowing them to be together, she may have seen that as him trying to be there for her and protect her. She had many oppertunites to leave him through his killing spree and yet chose not to, thus maybe showing signs that she formed a bond with him and may have even sympathized