Name _______________________________

Serial Killer / Cult Leader Presentation

For this project, you are going to delve into the world of a specific serial killer or other famous cult
leader. You may select an individual from the list below or you may choose a person not on the
list - with prior approval from me.

Possible Individuals:
 Ted Bundy
 Lizzie Borden  Ed Kemper
 John Wayne Gacy  Ed Gein
 Jeffrey Dahmer  Ted Kaczynski
 Wayne Williams  H. H. Holmes
 Albert Fish  John Christie
 Charles Manson  Albert Desalvo
 Richard Ramirez  Dorothea Puente
 David Berkowitz  Richard Trenton Chase
 Mary Ann Cotton  Aileen Wournos
 Marybeth Tinning  Henry Lee Lucas
 The Zodiac Killer  Gary Ridgway
 David Berkowitz  Amy Archer-Gilligan
 Andrew Cunanan  Belle Sorenson-Gunness
 Rodney Alcala  Charles Albright
 Richard Angelo  Genene Jones
 Bertha Gifford  Edward Spreitzer
 Jim Jones  Charles Manson
 Marshall Herff Applewhite  David Koresh
 Shoko Asahara
The Presentation:
A brief rundown:
 A Powerpoint, Wanted Poster, Cereal Box or other “creative” idea will work for this presentation.
 A minimum of five photos – one of which must be the person you are researching.
 Answer the following questions:
o What was their childhood like? Family? Siblings? Friends? Any family members who were
criminals?
o Race, age, gender, IQ?
o Were there any precursors to tell us that they might become a killer? Did childhood behavior
reflect problems?
o What was their adult life like? Did they finish high school/college? How did they do in
school? Did they marry? Have children? Were they loners? Join the military? What type of
job did they have?
o Were they ever diagnosed with a mental disorder? Did they ever receive treatment?
o What was the nature of their crimes (means, motive, opportunity)? What was the time span
for their crimes? Who were their victims? How many? Were the crimes well planned out?
How so? Were the controlled crimes or violent? Did they know their victims? How did they
choose their victims? Did they use any weapons?
o When/how were they caught? What was their behavior like when they were caught?
o Were they found capable to withstand trial?
o What were they charged with and sentenced to?
o Are they still alive? Or did they die differently than their sentence? Were they sentenced to
death and executed in prison? Did they speak of their crimes once they were imprisoned?
Were they remorseful?
 Refer to the rubric for what you will be graded on.

Interesting things to to include: Maps, Quotes, Photos, News clipping images, (sorry, we don’t have enough
time to include videos during our presentations), make your presentation interesting with color and fonts,
etc.

The Presentation
The presentation should be 5 minutes in length, and you should be able to speak about the serial killer/cult
leader without entirely reading off of your presentation. Also, be prepared to respond to additional
questions the class or I may have. You will be reviewed by me and your classmates on your presentation.
Use good eye contact and speak loudly and clearly. Refer to the rubric for what you will be graded on.

The Rubric
Presentation Due Date: