Most Evil
Most Evil is an American forensics television program on Investigation Discovery presented by forensic psychiatrist Dr. Michael H. Stone of Columbia University during the program's first two seasons, and by forensic psychologist Dr. Kris Mohandie its third season.[1] On the show, the presenter rates murderers on a scale of evil that Stone himself has developed. The show features profiles on various murderers, serial killers, and mass murder of various degrees of psychopathy.
| Most Evil | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Starring |
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| Narrated by | Tim Hopper |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 38 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Discovery Channel Revived series: Investigation Discovery |
| Original release | July 13, 2006 – April 7, 2008 Revived series: December 7, 2014 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Episodes
Season 1 (2006)
| No. in season | Title | Original air date [2] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Killer Lies" | July 13, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies four different criminals, most of which have been convicted of murder. Susan Smith kills her sons by driving into a lake and letting them drown, she claimed that someone hijacked her car and kidnapped the two boys. John List kills his entire family and went on to start a new life, a new family, and even a new name. Nathaniel Bar-Jonah was linked to a notorious search for a 10 year-old boy in which he was accused of possibly murdering, which he denies and is currently serving life imprisonment for molesting two other boys (Note: That was official by the time of this episode, Bar-Jonah would eventually die of a Heart Attack two years later, leaving the case unsolved). Dennis Rader was, for years, the notorious "B.T.K. killer", Rader also lived a double-life by being both a minister and a Boy Scout leader, leading the police to not view him as the possible suspect until 30 years later. | |||
| 02 | "Cold-Blooded Killers" | July 20, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies four Serial Killers. Ted Bundy rapes and kills 35+ women in the 1970s throughout the U.S., and was even proven to have a lust for it by escaping jail between his crime sprees. Gary Ridgway rapes and kills 49 prostitutes and usually dumps their bodies in the Green River in the state of Washington, giving him the name the "Green River Killer", and was at large for 19 years until his capture, and still to this day is considered the most "Prolific" serial killer in American history. Tommy Lynn Sells is put on Death Row for one murder, he confessed to killing many more, by linking to about more official murder cases through-out the States, so far 11 of them were confirmed following his death sentence (Note: This was also official of the time of this episode, Sells was then executed in 2014, so no one will knows how many he exactly murdered). John Wayne Gacy was responsible for 33 unknown murders in the Chicago area as he buried them in his crawlspace, most of which were teenage boys that worked for him. | |||
| 03 | "Murderous Women" | July 27, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies 8 different women. Marybeth Tinning was convicted for killing her ninth child who was only 4-months old at the time, and she even admitted to kill her previous eight children as well. Gwendolyn Graham and Cathy Wood were both nurses that worked together in killing 5 elderly patients. Aileen Wuornos was a serial killer who killed 7 men by shooting them, and claimed these brutal acts were for self-defense as the men attempted to raped her. Hungarian noblewoman Elizabeth Báthory was all considered to be the most prolific female serial killer in history with a total of 650 reported murders back in late 1600s and the early 1700s. Norwegian-born American Belle Gunness was one of the earliest serial killers in American history, and was the first female serial murderer. For over 3½ decades, Nannie Doss kills 11 people for lust, and eventually turned herself after her fifth husband's passing. Theresa Knorr kills two of her six children. | |||
| 04 | "Partners in Crime" | August 10, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies people who worked together in mostly murder cases. Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka early days of their relationship kills 3–4 people in Ontario, Canada, and were even married when still being at large. Ian Brady and Myra Hindley also spend time in their relationship murdering others by committing one of Britain's notorious and horrific murder cases, the Moor Murders. David Parker Ray been notorious for his sadistic project known as the "Toy box" where he lured women into for both torture and murder, and alongside him is his fiancée Cindy Hendy, who eventually turned both her and him in to police by letting go another victim, Ray despite being convicted of torture, was never tried for a murder. Leonard Lake and Charles Ng worked together into kidnapping, raping, torturing, and murdering 11-25 women at Lake's cabin. | |||
| 05 | "Psychotic Killers" | August 17, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies three killers with recorded psychotic symptoms. Ed Gein kills two women, and was official to be wearing his deceased mother's clothing as she always brainwashes Gein about the evil of other women growing-up. Arthur Shawcross began his murderous career by killing two children and was sentenced to twelve years in prison, only to kill 12 more, all prostitutes, upon his first release; Shawcross has claimed to have had an abusive childhood which led to a possibility of psychosis' issues such as hallucinations. Gary Heidnik kills two women and had four others kept as prisoners in his basement where he enjoyed torturing and raping them, Heidnik's IQ been reported to be almost that of a genius, but been also reported to have mental difficulties as he was brain-damaged at a young age by a father who was reported to be abusive and soon starting signs of psychosis such as being anti-social and delusional. | |||
| 06 | "Deadly Desires" | August 24, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone studies three serial killers that are so-called "Lust killers". Jerry Brudos killed at least four women and had sex with their corpses, and is reported to have a lust for their clothing as-well. Jeffrey Dahmer was known for 17 unknown murders of men who half of them he met at Gay bars. Dahmer admits that he didn't want these men to leave him and would drug them and then killed them and raped their corpses, and would save some of them later for a meal. Westley Allan Dodd molested children for years ever since he was a teenager, but eventually in his adulthood would turn his sexual desires into something more brutal, murder, as he kills two boys in a park without any parents nor witnesses around, and then kidnapped another boy and kills him in his house, the new murderous Dodd became so much of a habit that he plans to make a sadistic project before his capture. | |||
| 07 | "Science of Murder" | August 31, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stones studies killers who are great subjects behind the science found in the Criminal Activity, including Charles Whitman, an ex-marine who killed both his wife and mother, and then went to the University of Texas where he shot and killed 16 more people from the top of the campus' highest tower before being gunned down, Whitman was reported to have a brain tumor which might have been the motive behind his violent actions. | |||
| 08 | "Up Close" | September 7, 2006 | |
| Dr. Stone goes through the concept of "Up Close" which means interviewing a suspect or perpetrator of a murder, and getting into their side of the crime, by interviewing three already studied criminals: Tommy Lynn Sells, Cindy Hendy, and Nataniel Bar-Jonah. | |||
Season 2 (2007–2008)
| No. in season | Title | Original air date [2] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Jealousy" | August 12, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies killers that were motivated by jealousy. Samuel Collins killed his wife after discovering she was cheating through-out their years of marriage. Clara Harris kills her rich husband David, after discovering he was having an affair with someone else. Andrew Cunanan was jealous over two people, his best friend Jeffrey Trail for stealing his former boyfriend, and famous fashion designer Gianni Versace for having everything that Cunanan didn't. He travelled across the country to firstly kill Jeffrey and his ex-boyfriend David in Minneapolis, and then traveled down to Versace's residence, in Miami Beach, Florida, and while on his journey kills two other men. Then, succeeded in his second goal, which is assassinating Versace, and after being wanted by the FBI, committed suicide. | |||
| 02 | "Stalker" | August 19, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies four murderers who are all reported to be stalkers. Richard Farley was fired from his company for sexually harassing a female employee through emailing, and would eventually return to said workplace. Handling firearms, he shot and killed 7 workers, although his stalking victim was one of the few that survived his shooting. Robert John Bardo shot and killed actress Rebecca Schaeffer at her California apartment. He been stalking her since the first time he saw her in a film, and is fascinated with her, but was struggling in getting together with her again after constant letters which lead to him snapping. Mark David Chapman shot and killed musician John Lennon at his apartment. Chapman used to be a fan of Lennon and the Beatles until his infamous "We're more popular than Jesus!" quote made Chapman turn against Lennon based on his religious background. He planned the assassination for many years. Gerald Atkins wanted to marry a woman he met at a bar, but when Atkins' offer got rejected by her, he didn't give up trying to convince her, instead he believed this decision was influenced by her colleagues at a jewelry store she worked in, which he eventually shot-up, killing the manager and injuring a few others. | |||
| 03 | "Delusional" | August 26, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies killers with delusional minds. Herbert Mullin killed 13 people, and was motivated by delusional thoughts of earthquakes, which in reality were only headaches due to his constant drug abuse. Diana Dial used to be both a lovely wife and mother, until after a miscarriage, her former mindset shifted as she believed she is was being persecuted by Nazis, and despite being diagnosed as a schizophrenic, she stopped taking her pills and her family eventually abandoned her by sending her off to a new home with a roommate. AS she believed said roommate was a Nazi himself and was secretly poisoning her, she killed him. Eric Beishline had a life filled with drug abuse, and the medications he took made him change as the years went by. Eric was diagnosed as a psychopath beforehand, and as he became an adult with a high salary, his cocaine intake became worse as he believed he was being followed, and one day, when an elderly woman refused his sale pitch, Beishline broke into her home, subdued her with a chloroform soap rag, suffocated her and robbed her house. He then dumped her body in a river, but eventually was caught. Investigators stated he had been robbing other customers of his as well, and was suspected for two other killings. | |||
| 04 | "Unsolved Cases" | September 2, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies o murder cases that for the most part are unsolved. The Lipstick killer was active in the Chicago area, leaving a notorious message in lipstick on one of the victims. The murderer wasn't caught but sources state it might've been William Heirens as he confessed to three of the murders. California's most notorious murder case, the "Black Dahlia", also has been one of the most notorious unsolved cases in American history. However, physician George Hodel was suspected. James McVay, Jr. was found dead in his pickup truck, and it appears to not have been a robbery. His face was spray-printed blue, which left no DNA evidence. He had no reason to end up like he did. However, a witness said to have seen more than one car driving around McVay's truck, leaving the possibility that there were more than 1 person involved in his murder. | |||
| 05 | "Cult Followers" | September 9, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies cult followers. Jeffrey Lundgren was a member of the Community of Christ church and eventually started a cult alongside a close friend, Ron Luff, following the beliefs that were said in the church. But, instead of turning his fellow members into faithful followers of God, he turned them into murderers. Charles Manson started what is still known as California's worst killing spree, with his so-called "Family", and among these is an individual who is sitting on Death Row, "Charles "Tex" Watson. Jim Jones invited many who were part of his cult known as the "Peoples Temple" to Guyana, where they all drank Flavor-aid which contained poison, and a total of 918 died. This, according to Jones, was a form of sacrifice for God. | |||
| 06 | "Spree Killers" | September 16, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies Spree killers. Martin Bryant was responsible for multiple shooting sites in Australia, killing 35 people, and attempted to commit suicide by setting his own farm on fire, in Tasmania. He failed and was soon captured instead. Charles Starkweather, along with his underage girlfriend, went-out a killing spree in Nebraska for fun. Yusef Rahman shot and killed one person and injured three others in Riverhead, New York in a four-day spree. Seung Hui-Cho shot and killed 32 people at the Virginia Tech campus and eventually committed suicide. | |||
| 07 | "Attention Seekers" | September 23, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies killers who enjoyed bringing attention to a community. David Berkowitz terrorized New York City in the 70s as the "Son of Sam", killing 6 people before capture. During this same time period, the "Zodiac Killer" terrorized Northern California by killing five people and confessing to have murdered several more, sending encrypted letters to the police, which still haven't been decoded yet. He is still considered at large and his identity is still unknown, making his case to be one of the most notorious unsolved crimes in the state of California. Terry Driver attacked two teenage Canadian girls and killed one of them, he left both taunting letters and phone calls to the police, eventually being labeled the "Abbotsford Killer". The police made a smart move by presenting Driver's latest call to the public, leading to his arrest. Keith Jesperson travelled across the country, becoming known as the "Smiley Face Killer" and enjoyed playing games with the FBI. | |||
| 08 | "Masterminds" | September 30, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies killers that are considered highly intelligent compared to others. Edmund Kemper had his first taste of murder at a young age, by killing his grandparents and was soon sent to a mental institute but was released early due to good behavior. While serving there, however, he passed several IQ-related tests and became quite good friends with his psychologist. But, a decade after his release, he went back to killing and murdered seven women and soon his own mother before turning himself in, and during this period, he befriended police before going on his killing spree so he wouldn't be a reasonable suspect. H.H. Holmes was not just a serial killer but also a con artist, and his killing spree made him to be the first American serial killer. Ted Kaczynski was a highly intelligent man, with a high IQ, but however suffered severe delusional issues which made him to believe that his times' technology was harmful to mankind, so he decided to send letterbombs to Universities that worked on the development of computers and ended-up killing three people, injuring dozens and taking the name "Unabomber". While he was committing these acts of terrorism, he lived in a cabin out in the country, leaving fake addresses. Eventually, Kaczynski would be captured after a manifesto he made for the press went viral. His brother, who was reading a different topic-letter Kaczynski wrote for him, recognized the way it was written. | |||
| 09 | "Revenge" | October 7, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies killers whose reasons were all acts of revenge. Coy Wayne Wesbrook discovered his ex-wife with a boyfriend at a party. Being enraged at the sight, he decided to shoot-up the place killing her and a handful of others. Archie McCafferty was upset over the death of his infant son, so he decided to even it up by threatening to kill seven people. | |||
| 10 | "Cult Leaders" | October 14, 2007 | |
| Dr. Stone studies on Cult leaders. Shoko Asahara believes in the Apocalypse and wants to prove its existence, by setting-up a cult that was responsible for a few terrorist attacks, one of which was the notorious "Tokyo subway sarin attack" in 1995. Adolfo Constanzo started a cult located in the U.S. and Mexico border, the cult was set-up for both voodoo magicians and human sacrifice. | |||
| 1 | "Manson" | January 31, 2008 | |
| Charles Manson, Susan Atkins, Charles "Tex" Watson, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel | |||
| 2 | "Super Delusional" | February 7, 2008 | |
| Michael Owen Perry, Joseph Kallinger, Leonard Lake, Diana Dial, Colin Ferguson, Michael McDermott | |||
| 3 | "Schemers" | February 14, 2008 | |
| Diane Downs, Michael Swango, Randy Kraft, John Edward Robinson, Martha Ann Johnson | |||
| 4 | "Vampires/Cannibals" | February 21, 2008 | |
| Armin Meiwes, Andrei Chikatilo, Richard Chase, Rod Ferrell, Jeffrey Dahmer | |||
| 5 | "Murderous Women" | February 28, 2008 | |
| Dorothea Puente, Judith Neelley (Alvin and Judith Neelley), Betty Broderick, Latasha Pulliam | |||
| 6 | "Redemption" | March 6, 2008 | |
| Billy Wayne Sinclair, Karla Faye Tucker, Archie McCafferty, Daniel Nieto | |||
| 7 | "Gangs" | March 13, 2008 | |
| Richard Kuklinski, Philadelphia Poison Ring, Ismael Cisneros, Joseph Salcedo, Ervil LeBaron | |||
| 8 | "The Killer's Brain" | March 20, 2008 | |
| Samuel Collins, Clara L. Harris, Diane Downs, David Berkowitz, Richard Chase, Edmund Kemper, Susan Atkins, Charles "Tex" Watson, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel | |||
| 9 | "Face to Face" | March 27, 2008 | |
| Coy Wayne Wesbrook, Ron Luff, Diana Dial, Daniel Nieto | |||
| 10 | "Tracking Killers" | April 7, 2008 | |
| Andrew Cunanan, Keith Jesperson, Black Dahlia Murderer | |||
Season 3 (2014)
| No. in season | Title | Original air date [2] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Manipulators" | December 7, 2014 | |
| Glenn Helzer, Sylvia White, Elmer Wayne Henley, Dean Corll | |||
| 02 | "Control Killers" | December 14, 2014 | |
| Ronald Gene Simmons, Richard Angelo, Billy Wayne Coble | |||
| 03 | "Rage Killers" | December 21, 2014 | |
| Gerald Stano, Benjamin Atkins, Robert Lopez | |||
| 04 | "Stone Cold Killers" | December 28, 2014 | |
| Henry Lee Lucas, Maksim Gelman, Joseph Paul Franklin | |||
| 05 | "Sexual Deviants" | January 4, 2015 | |
| Wayne Adam Ford, Richard Hooten, Gerard John Schaefer | |||
| 06 | "Fantasy Killers" | January 11, 2015 | |
| Daniel Conahan, Angela Sanford, Harvey Miguel Robinson | |||
| 07 | "Deceptive Killers" | January 16, 2015 | |
| Darci Pierce, Doyle Kelley, Kendall Francois | |||
| 08 | "Egocentric Killers" | January 23, 2015 | |
| Robert Ben Rhoades, Paul Devoe, David Dowler | |||
| 09 | "Attention Seekers" | January 30, 2015 | |
| George Russell, Eddie Seda, Terry Caylor | |||
| 10 | "Predators" | February 26, 2015 | |
| David Elliot Penton, Jack Owen Spillman, Levi King | |||
Scale and criminals
Stone researched hundreds of killers and their methods and motives to develop his hierarchy of "evil".[3] The scale ranges from Category 1, those who kill in self-defense, to the Category 22, serial torturer-murderers. Dr. Stone described the categories of the scale in his book The Anatomy of Evil, published in 2009.[4] In a follow-up book, The New Evil: Understanding the Emergence of Modern Violent Crime, published in 2019, he and co-author Dr. Gary Brucato, a clinical psychologist and researcher, break down the individual categories of the scale in detail.[5]
Neurologists, psychologists, and other forensic psychiatrists are interviewed on the show in an attempt to examine and profile the minds of notorious killers. Partial re-enactments are shown along with news footage, evidence, and reports from locals. Neurological, environmental, and genetic factors are examined to help determine what drives a person to kill. Background history and pre-meditation are considered when placing an individual on the scale of evil. The show indirectly deals with the concepts of morality and ethics.
Only criminals profiled on the show to be included below
| Category | Criteria | People |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Those who have killed in self-defense, and who do not show murderous tendencies. | |
| 02 | Jealous lovers who committed murder as a result of humiliation; though egocentric or immature, they are not psychopaths. | Samuel Collins |
| 03 | Willing companions of killers: submissive personality, impulse-ridden, with some antisocial traits. | Leslie Van Houten |
| 04 | Those who have killed in self-defense, but started the violence first. | |
| 05 | Persons who killed as a desperate measure, but who show remorse for their crime and lack significant psychopathic traits. | Martha Ann Johnson, Elmer Wayne Henley |
| 06 | Individuals who killed out of aggression or with little to no foresight, yet without marked psychopathic traits. | Robert John Bardo, Billy Wayne Sinclair, Coy Wayne Wesbrook, Doyle Kelley |
| 07 | Highly narcissistic or psychotic persons who kill out of jealousy or hatred. | Marybeth Tinning, Mark David Chapman, Armin Meiwes, Diana Dial, David Dowler, Clara Harris, Michael Owen Perry |
| 08 | Non-psychopathic persons prone to wrath, and who kill when this anger is unleashed. | Charles Whitman |
| 09 | Jealous lovers with marked psychopathic features who may possess previous violent or extravagant tendencies. | Betty Broderick, Ron Luff, Robert Lopez |
| 10 | Killers of people perceived as an obstacle, such as witnesses. Extremely egocentric, but not distinctly psychopathic. | Rod Ferrell, Susan Smith, Darci Pierce |
| 11 | Psychopathic killers of people perceived as an obstacle, such as close friends or even family members. | Ismael Cisneros |
| 12 | Power-hungry psychopaths who kill in order to keep their power intact. | Ervil LeBaron, Angela Sanford |
| 13 | Psychopathic murderers motivated by a sense of inadequacy or uncontrolled rage, being one of them or both the reason of their killings. | Ed Gein, Herbert Mullin, Martin Bryant, Karla Faye Tucker, Latasha Pulliam, Richard Angelo, Maksim Gelman, Yusef Rahman |
| 14 | Ruthless and machiavellian psychopaths who kill to benefit themselves and won't hesitate on conning, stealing or kill anybody to get whatever they desire. | John List, Richard Farley, Diane Downs, Sylvia White, Herman and Paul Petrillo |
| 15 | Psychopathic cold-blooded spree killers or multiple murderers. | Andrew Cunanan, Charles Manson, Charles Starkweather, Susan Atkins, Charles "Tex" Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Colin Ferguson, Michael McDermott, Dorothea Puente, Archie McCafferty, Billy Wayne Coble, Benjamin Atkins, Paul Devoe, Jones' accomplices |
| 16 | Psychopaths committing multiple vicious acts, that may include rape, mutilation and murder. | Gwendolyn Graham and Cathy Wood, Karla Homolka, Myra Hindley, Terry Driver, Theodore Kaczynski, Shoko Asahara, Michael Swango, Joseph Paul Franklin, Richard Hooten, Kendall Francois, Heriberto Seda, Levi King, Gerald Atkins, Eric Beishline, James McVey killers |
| 17 | Sexually depraved serial murderers: Rape is the primary motive, there is no marked interest in systematic torture and the victim is killed to hide evidence. | Ted Bundy, Arthur Shawcross, David Berkowitz, Richard Chase, Aileen Wuornos, Wayne Adam Ford, Henry Lee Lucas, Gerald Stano, George Russell |
| 18 | Psychopaths who torture in the process, but seek to murder rather than brutally torture to death and prolong the victim's suffering. | Nathan Bar-Jonah, Gary Ridgway, Jerome Brudos, Keith Jesperson, Harvey Miguel Robinson, Terry Caylor, Taylor Helzer, Lipstick killer |
| 19 | Psychopaths driven to torment (both physical or psychological), if murdered, the victim is previously subjected to a brutal torture that was not prolonged. | |
| 20 | Psychotic torture-murderers who subject at least one of their victims to a fairly brutal prolonged torture. | Joseph Kallinger |
| 21 | Psychopaths who do not kill their victims, but do subject them to extreme torture. | |
| 22 | Psychopathic torture-murderers, where both sexual and non-sexual sadism are the primary motive. | Tommy Lynn Sells, John Wayne Gacy, Dennis Rader, Theresa Knorr, Charles Ng, Leonard Lake, Paul Bernardo, Ian Brady, Gary Heidnik, David Parker Ray, Westley Allan Dodd, George Hodel, Jeffrey Lundgren, Edmund Kemper, H. H. Holmes, Adolfo Constanzo, John Edward Robinson, Andrei Chikatilo, Jeffrey Dahmer, Gerard John Schaefer, Judith Neelley, Richard Kuklinski, Daniel Conahan, Dean Corll, Ronald Gene Simmons, Jack Owen Spillman, David Elliot Penton, Robert Ben Rhoades, Jim Jones |
Series return
On December 7, 2014, Investigation Discovery began airing new episodes with a new host, Dr. Kris Mohandie.
External links
- Dr. Stone featured on Real Law Radio with Bob DiCello Real Law Radio is a legal news talk radio program.
- Personality Disorders Institute
- Most Evil on the Internet Movie Database
- Review by Ellen Dendy
References
- INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY REVEALS WHO IS MOST EVIL WITH LEADING FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST DR. KRIS MOHANDIE -- ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 7
- "Most Evil : Episode Guide : Investigation Discovery". Investigation.Discovery.com. Retrieved 2008-02-17.
- Liptak, Adam (2007-04-02). "Adding Method to Judging Mayhem". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2018-10-27. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
Dr. Stone, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia, said he had put the scale together based on the biographies of hundreds of killers.
- Michael H. Stone. The Anatomy of Evil (Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books, 2009).
- Michael H. Stone & Gary Brucato. The New Evil: Understanding the Emergence of Modern Violent Crime (Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books, 2019).
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