Jeffrey Dahmer (Milwaukee Cannibal)

Born on May 21, 1960, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Jeffrey Dahmer’s early life was marked by instability. He was a quiet and withdrawn child with a fascination for dead animals, often dissecting them. As he grew older, his isolation and erratic behaviour became more pronounced. Despite this, he maintained a façade of awkward normality. Attempts at college and a stint in the army failed to provide structure, and his behaviour continued to deteriorate.

Dahmer committed his first murder at age 18, killing hitchhiker Steven Hicks. After a long gap, his violent urges escalated between 1987 and 1991, during which he murdered multiple victims at an increasing pace. He primarily targeted young men, many of whom were gay and from marginalized communities, whose disappearances often received limited attention. This lack of urgency contributed to his ability to continue killing undetected.

Dahmer lured victims by offering money, alcohol, or posing as a photographer. Once inside his apartment, he drugged and strangled them. After killing his victims, he engaged in necrophilic acts and preserved body parts as trophies. Police later discovered skulls, severed heads, and containers of human remains throughout his apartment, revealing the calculated and disturbing nature of his crimes.

On July 22, 1991, victim Tracy Edwards managed to escape Dahmer’s apartment and alerted police. Upon entering the apartment, officers discovered Polaroid photos documenting dismemberment and numerous human remains. Dahmer confessed in detail, showing little emotion while recounting his crimes. His arrest exposed the full extent of his actions and shocked investigators.

Dahmer was diagnosed with antisocial and borderline personality disorders but was found legally sane. He was convicted of 15 murders and sentenced to 15 consecutive life terms, totalling over 900 years. He was imprisoned at Columbia Correctional Institution in Wisconsin. On November 28, 1994, he was beaten to death by fellow inmate Christopher Scarver.

Jeffrey Dahmer - Killer Timeline

Jeffrey Dahmer's known killing period stretched across more than 13 years, but the timeline is dominated by one extraordinary feature: a nearly nine-year gap between his first murder and his second. After killing Steven Hicks in Ohio in June 1978, Dahmer did not murder again until November 1987. From that point onward, however, his killings became progressively more frequent, culminating in an extraordinary final phase in which eight victims were murdered between February and July 1991.

The timeline therefore shows three distinct phases: an isolated first murder in 1978, a gradual return to killing between 1987 and 1989, and a rapid escalation after Dahmer moved into his Milwaukee apartment in 1990. His final 14 months were particularly concentrated, with 12 of his 17 known murders occurring between May 1990 and July 1991.

Case Timeline (Brief)

• June 1978: Ohio - Steven Hicks becomes Dahmer's first known victim.
• 1987: Wisconsin - After almost nine years without a known murder, Dahmer kills Steven Tuomi.
• 1988: Wisconsin - James Doxtator and Richard Guerrero are murdered within three months of one another.
• 1989: Wisconsin - Anthony Sears becomes Dahmer's fifth victim.
• 1990: Wisconsin - Dahmer kills four victims, with the frequency of his murders increasing substantially.
• February-April 1991: Wisconsin - Curtis Straughter and Errol Lindsey are murdered less than two months apart.
• May 1991: Wisconsin - Anthony Hughes and Konerak Sinthasomphone are murdered only three days apart.
• June-July 1991: Wisconsin - Dahmer kills four more victims in a period of less than three weeks.
• July 22, 1991: Milwaukee - Tracy Edwards escapes from Dahmer's apartment, leading police to discover evidence of multiple murders and bringing Dahmer's killing spree to an end.

Case Timeline (Detailed)

June 18, 1978 - Steven Mark Hicks: Dahmer's known killing spree began in Bath Township, Ohio, when he picked up 18-year-old Steven Hicks, who was hitchhiking home from a concert. Hicks was taken to Dahmer's family home, where Dahmer killed him after Hicks attempted to leave. Dahmer subsequently dismembered the body and concealed the remains.

Case file: The Case of Steven Mark Hicks

November 20, 1987 - Steven Walter Tuomi: Almost nine years passed before Dahmer killed again. He met 24-year-old Steven Tuomi at a Milwaukee bar and took him to the Ambassador Hotel. Dahmer later said he had no memory of killing Tuomi and claimed he awoke to find him dead. The murder marked the beginning of Dahmer's sustained return to killing.

Case file: The Case of Steven Walter Tuomi

January 16, 1988 - James "Jamie" Doxtator: Only two months after Tuomi's murder, Dahmer killed 14-year-old James Doxtator. He had approached the teenager in Milwaukee and offered him money to accompany him, establishing a pattern of using money, photographs, sex or companionship to lure victims into private locations.

Case file: The Case of James "Jamie" Doxtator

March 24, 1988 - Richard Guerrero: Just over two months later, Dahmer killed 22-year-old Richard Guerrero after meeting him in Milwaukee. Guerrero was taken to Dahmer's grandmother's home, where he was drugged and strangled. Dahmer was now killing at intervals measured in weeks and months rather than years.

Case file: The Case of Richard Guerrero

March 25, 1989 - Anthony Sears: A full year passed before Dahmer killed again. Anthony Sears, 24, became his fifth known victim and the last person Dahmer murdered at his grandmother's house. Sears was also significant in Dahmer's offending because he began retaining parts of the victim as trophies.

Case file: The Case of Anthony Sears

May 20, 1990 - Raymond "Ricky Beeks" Smith: Dahmer's killing frequency increased sharply after he moved into his apartment at 924 North 25th Street. Raymond Smith, 33, became the first known victim killed at the apartment. His murder began a period of increasingly frequent killings that would continue for the next 14 months.

Case file: The Case of Raymond "Ricky Beeks" Smith

June 1990 - Edward W. Smith: Less than a month later, Dahmer killed Edward Smith, 27. The increasingly short intervals between murders marked a significant change from his earlier offending, with Dahmer now returning to murder repeatedly within the same year.

Case file: The Case of Edward W. Smith

September 1990 - Ernest Miller: After a gap of approximately three months, Dahmer killed Ernest Miller, 23. He encountered Miller in Milwaukee and brought him to his apartment, where he was drugged and killed. Dahmer subsequently retained portions of his remains.

Case file: The Case of Ernest Miller

September 24, 1990 - David C. Thomas: Only weeks after Miller's murder, Dahmer killed David Thomas, 22. Thomas became the ninth known victim and the fourth person Dahmer murdered during 1990. The interval between killings was continuing to contract.

Case file: The Case of David C. Thomas

February 18, 1991 - Curtis Straughter: After approximately five months without a known murder, Dahmer killed 17-year-old Curtis Straughter. The murder marked the beginning of his final and most concentrated period of offending.

Case file: The Case of Curtis Straughter

April 7, 1991 - Errol Lindsey: Less than two months later, Dahmer killed 19-year-old Errol Lindsey. Dahmer experimented with attempting to keep Lindsey alive while incapacitated, reflecting the increasing complexity of his behaviour and his desire to maintain control over his victims.

Case file: The Case of Errol Lindsey

May 24, 1991 - Anthony "Tony" Hughes: Three months after Lindsey's murder, Dahmer killed 31-year-old Anthony Hughes, who was deaf and communicated with Dahmer through writing. Hughes was taken back to the apartment and killed after Dahmer drugged him.

Case file: The Case of Anthony "Tony" Hughes

May 27, 1991 - Konerak Sinthasomphone: Only three days after Hughes was killed, Dahmer murdered 14-year-old Konerak Sinthasomphone. The case represents one of the most significant missed opportunities in the investigation: Sinthasomphone was found outside Dahmer's apartment in a heavily drugged state, and police returned him to Dahmer after accepting his explanation that the teenager was his intoxicated lover. Dahmer subsequently killed him.

Case file: The Case of Konerak Sinthasomphone

June 30, 1991 - Matt Turner: Just over a month later, Dahmer killed 20-year-old Matt Turner, whom he had met in Chicago. Turner was persuaded to travel to Milwaukee under the pretext of a photo shoot before being taken to Dahmer's apartment.

Case file: The Case of Matt Turner

July 5, 1991 - Jeremiah Weinberger: Only five days after Turner was killed, Dahmer murdered 23-year-old Jeremiah Weinberger. Weinberger travelled from Chicago to Milwaukee with Dahmer and remained alive in the apartment for a period before Dahmer killed him.

Case file: The Case of Jeremiah Weinberger

July 15, 1991 - Oliver Lacy: Ten days later, Dahmer killed 24-year-old Oliver Lacy. Dahmer had met Lacy in Milwaukee and brought him back to the apartment, where he was drugged and killed. Lacy became the sixteenth known victim.

Case file: The Case of Oliver Lacy

July 19, 1991 - Joseph Bradehoft: Four days after Lacy's murder, Dahmer killed 25-year-old Joseph Bradehoft. He was the seventeenth and final known victim. Dahmer was arrested only three days later, bringing the killing spree to an end.

Case file: The Case of Joseph Bradehoft

July 22, 1991 - Arrest: Dahmer's killing spree ended when Tracy Edwards escaped from his apartment and attracted the attention of two Milwaukee police officers. When officers accompanied Edwards back to the apartment, they discovered evidence linking Dahmer to multiple murders, including human remains. Dahmer was arrested that night.

The Pattern

Dahmer's 17 known murders span approximately 13 years and one month, but the timeline is misleading if viewed simply as a continuous killing career. His first murder, Steven Hicks, occurred in June 1978, followed by an extraordinary nine-year gap before Steven Tuomi was killed in November 1987.

After Tuomi, the pattern changed. Dahmer killed three victims between November 1987 and March 1988, followed by another murder in March 1989. The pace increased dramatically in 1990, when four victims were killed, and accelerated further in 1991.

The final phase was particularly concentrated. Eight victims were killed between February 18 and July 19, 1991 — an average of approximately one murder every three weeks. The final four victims were killed between June 30 and July 19, meaning Dahmer murdered four people in just 20 days.

The timeline also shows a major geographical and behavioural transition. Hicks was killed in Ohio, while the remaining 16 known victims were killed in Wisconsin. Dahmer's later murders increasingly centred around Milwaukee, particularly the apartment at 924 North 25th Street, where his final killing phase took place.

His victim selection also became increasingly consistent. The later victims were predominantly young men and boys whom Dahmer encountered in Milwaukee's gay bars, streets, bus stations and other locations before luring them to private residences. Promises of money, photographs, companionship or sexual encounters were repeatedly used to gain access to them.

The most striking feature of the timeline, however, is the acceleration. Dahmer moved from years between murders, to months, to weeks, and finally to days. The intervals between his last four murders were only five days, ten days and four days respectively. His arrest on July 22, just three days after Joseph Bradehoft's murder, stopped an escalation that had reached its fastest known rate.

Taken as a whole, Dahmer's timeline shows a progression from an isolated first murder, through a long period of intermittent offending, into increasingly frequent and eventually highly concentrated killing. His final 14 months account for the majority of his known murders, with the rapid succession of victims immediately preceding his arrest representing the most intense period of his offending.