Published: June 17, 2009 02:05 pm      

Seminar goes inside the minds of teen killers in Jeffersonville

Sheriff invites teenage murder expert to Jeffersonville

The images were disturbing, the music vulgar and the stories shocking.

Phil Chalmers, author of “Inside the Mind of a Teen Killer,” shared his insight with parents, teachers and law enforcement officers about what makes a teenager become a murderer and how to prevent it from happening in Southern Indiana.

Chalmers presented his findings from more than 25 years of research at a day-long seminar Tuesday at Kye’s in Jeffersonville.

Chalmers, a former police chaplain from Ohio, said his goal is to educate the community about warning signs. He told audience members that the seminar was not for people who are easily offended.

He showed crime-scene photos, images of graphic violence in video games and film and explained the hidden meanings behind lyrics in popular music. He told the stories of at least 100 teen killers.

Chalmers is a strong proponent that violence in popular culture can negatively affect teenagers, but glorifying violence is not a new problem, he argued.

“In America, we’ve always made killers out to be heroes and celebrities,” Chalmers said.

Local officers attending the National Association of School Resource Officers conference first heard Chalmers speak and told the sheriff it would be good to bring him to Clark County.

“Fortunately, we haven’t had to really deal with this problem here,” Clark County Sheriff Danny Rodden said. “Everyone that deals with young people knows the potential is always there.”

Rodden originally intended for the seminar to be for law enforcement officers, but decided to open it up to others in the community when extra seats were available. More than 125 people were in attendance, about one-third of them teachers and one-third law enforcement. Rodden said it was more than worth the small amount of money it cost the department.

“I have grandchildren, and I think it’s important that we know about our young people,” said Susan Steinberg, of Jeffersonville.

Chalmers said he has interviewed more than 200 teenage killers.

“The No. 1 warning sign is a threat,” he said.

He said 80 percent of the killers he talked to told at least one person, and half told more than one person, what he or she was planning.

“There are usually some screaming red flags,” he said. “Teen killers today don’t just snap.”

Even if they do not tell their parents, they may post a threatening message on MySpace or on a blog. Chalmers encouraged law enforcement to set up fake MySpace accounts in order to monitor what teenagers are posting. Parents also should monitor what their children are writing.

Chalmers said that five or six teenagers commit homicide each day and that the number peaked in 1993 when, 3,800 teenagers killed someone. He said that the 1980s was the decade of the satanic killers and the 1990s of the school killers.

“This is the decade of the family killers. ... People are killing family members over crazy stuff, like I don’t want to do more chores,” Chalmers said.

He said it is important for parents to stay involved. He said that the parents of many teenage killers think their children are going through a “fad” and ignore it. Some, he said, look like normal teenagers.

Killers also are getting younger. Numerous examples were cited of children as young as 4 years old shooting people.

While Chalmers tried to explain why different teenagers have killed, based on his interviews with them, sometimes there is no apparent reason, but warning signs may still exist.

Three predictors of sociopathic behavior, according to Chalmers, are bed-wetting into the teenage years, fascination with setting fires and torturing animals. He encourages everyone to get involved and ask for help if a young person exhibits warning signs.

“I don’t think we can save the world, but I think we can save one kid at a time,” Chalmers said.

Susan Wheatley is a pastoral associate at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Jeffersonville. She and others at the church decided to attend the seminar to see how they could help.

“I think it’s important for us all to work together as a community,” she said.

More information about Chalmers’ book and other materials is available at www.philchalmers.com.



TOP 10 CAUSES OF TEEN MURDER

(in order from greatest to least)

• Unstable environment — including bullying and abuse

• Violent entertainment

• Anger and depression — suicidal thoughts

• Drug and alcohol abuse

• Cults and gangs

• Easy access to or fascination with weapons

• Peer pressure

• Criminal lifestyle and poverty

• Lack of spiritual guidance and discipline

• Mental illness and brain injuries

— from Phil Chalmers’ “Inside the Mind of a Teen Killer”