Murder

Murder is the willful and unlawful killing of one human being by another. Whatever the circumstances, the act of murder affects many more people than just the victim. Issues related to murder include fear, navigating the legal system, and the victim's family members having little or no voice, often with their lives on hold as the criminal case unfolds. Family members are considered to be co-victims or survivors.

The loss of human life by murder inflicts enormous grief on the co-victims and survivors and is highly detrimental to the social order of communities. It is not uncommon for as many as 10 people to be seriously affected by each loss; thus, the estimated 15,240 murders in the United States in 2009 had the potential for affecting perhaps 152,400 people. The aftermath of murder continues to resonate over long periods; it is complex and horrific. At any given moment, the number of people suffering from the trauma of murder in the United States alone is likely to number in the millions. Survivors say they have joined a club they never wanted to belong to, requiring a mandatory [Page 401]lifetime membership, and that has resulted in them paying the highest of dues.

Murder is personal. One of the most difficult tasks for survivors to accommodate is that someone killed their loved one on purpose.

Who is affected and the degree of impact varies. It is based on one's relationship with the victim and the role a person plays after a murder has taken place. Besides family members and close friends, it may be a person on the cleanup crew, first police officer on the scene, medical examiner, parent, school or work mate, reporter, prosecutor, detective, advocate, crisis interventionist, judge, or jury member. Trauma specialist Charles R. Figley recognizes that all the family members are victims in the aftermath of a trauma; he has also addressed the issue of compassion fatigue for the larger community of service providers.

Factors that affect the responses to the murder of a loved one include the following:

• How did the victim die? How the victim died has unique parameters and contributes to the trauma as well. Was it by poisoning, stabbing, or shooting? Was the victim dismembered, buried, burned, blown up, or killed because of industrial negligence? Was the victim raped as well as murdered?
• Who did it? Was it a terrorist, neighbor, father, boyfriend or girlfriend, spouse, parent, stranger, robber, drug dealer, gang member, babysitter, mother, brother, drunk driver, cop, uncle, coworker, partner, minister, friend, doctor, realtor, or youth leader?
• Why was the victim killed? Co-victims ask themselves, why would someone, on purpose, kill my loved one? The reason may increase the trauma. Was it a contract killing, slaying, serial killing, execution, hate crime? Some seemingly senseless reasons given in real murder cases include these: He didn't hand over the pizza, she refused to go to the prom with him, he refused to give her a cigarette, he wouldn't stop crying, he was the wrong color, he tried to stop a theft, she

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