From 1978 to 1991, the serial killer and sex offender Jeffery Dahmer killed 17 men and boys in a horrific fashion. Netflix revealed his gruesome actions in their series, “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” September 21, 2022. The series provides a realistic glimpse into the mind of a serial killer and the truth of the criminal justice system in the 1990s. Dahmer killed multiple people and evaded arrest for over a decade.

Dahmer showed no signs of psychological problems at a young age but as he grew older, he became withdrawn and uncommunicative. As a teenager, he showed great interest in examining animal carcasses and drank heavily for entertainment. His drinking continued throughout high school but did not stop him from graduating in 1978. During the years of Dahmer’s killing spree, the police arrested him twice for incidents of indecent exposure in 1982 and 1986, but he only faced probation and free of rape charges. Dahmer continued his murders because he escaped convictions from his encounters with ignorant police officers. 

When the police finally catch serial killers, investigations into their crimes reveal truths of the society that allowed their prolific offenses to occur. This series highlights the discrimination that families and witnesses faced throughout the years. With Dahmer living in a predominantly Black community, he targeted mainly people of color. Audiences point out the systemic failures that allowed him to kill multiple innocent Black men which represented the most terrifying aspect of the series. A serial killer may prey on overlooked communities or seek targets that lack familial connections, hoping that a lackluster police presence in an underserved area or the absence of concerned family members will allow them to kill without scrutiny.

When the judge finally convicted Dahmer of his crimes, the victims’ families received extreme backlash from critics. Similar to any serial killer, Dahmer’s murders fascinated thousands of people. Dahmer’s idolization upset people because as fans admire Dahmer, families grieved over their loved ones that lost their lives in a macabre way. His murders even touched the hearts of those in the same prison as him; as of November 28, 1994, Dahmer’s inmate Christopher Scarver beat him to death.

“There are a lot of similarities between John Wayne Casey‘s and Jeffery Dahmer’s cases. They both were homosexual and did not know how to express themselves in the society they lived in. The society at that time did not invite homosexuals as readily as modern times. This made a lot of homosexuals feel that something was wrong with them and that everything was out of their control and thus, they would try to control their kills by drugging them and treating them in whatever form that they pleased. They treated humans as objects just like how society treated them as nobodies [their homosexual part as nobody],” biology teacher Dhwani Patel said.

Dahmer killed his victims in a modus operandi through rape, dismemberment, necrophilia and cannibalism. Dahmer met the majority of his victims at a nearby bar and would take them back to his apartment to later offer them a laced beer. Once they passed out, he continued with his murder. The first episode unveils the police arresting Dahmer July 22, 1991. The next five episodes reveal what led to his mysterious acts. Onward, viewers receive a glimpse of the heart-wrenching emotions the families of the victims endured during court trials and after the judge convicted Dahmer of his crimes. 

“It hurts. I shed tears. They’re not tears of sorrow, and it’s not disbelief in the Lord. The tears [are] tears of hurt because it hurts. It hurts real bad. But you have to trust and pray and just keep going day by day,” mother of victim Tony Hughes, Shirley Hughes said.

The Chant’s Rating: A