Carl Buford

"You were always special, Derek."

Carl Buford was a pedophilic serial killer who appeared in Profiler Profiled.

History
"Look, Derek, I never hurt you. You could have said no."

Carl managed the Upward Youth Center in Chicago, Illinois, earning several awards for his work with local children. He was in fact a pedophile who would molest some regular visitors, among them Derek Morgan, who became close to him after his father had died. He was also responsible for getting Morgan's small criminal record expunged. Morgan kept the abuse a secret for several years, until Profiler Profiled. In the episode, Carl killed his third known murder victim, Damien Walters. Before that, he had killed a boy in December 1991 and another in 2002, both remaining unidentified to this day. After Damien Walters' murder, Chicago Detective Stan Gordinski, who had been antagonizing Morgan for years after arresting him during a brawl, arrested him again, this time on suspicion of all three murders, using a profile submitted to him by Gideon a few months earlier as evidence. Upon hearing of Morgan's arrest, the BAU went to Chicago to try and exonerate him.

As the questioning of Morgan went on, the team questioned Carl. Upon the discovery that Morgan didn't like talking about him, despite having been helped by him so much in the past, Hotch connected the dots and went to the Youth Center, which Derek had gone to after escaping his cell. He confronted Carl, who at first claimed Morgan was misremembering and denied any guilt. After eventually admitting, since the statute of limitations meant that he couldn't be charged with molesting Morgan, he argued that Morgan could just have said "no". Gordinski, who had overheard the the conversation, arrested Carl. When Carl asked Morgan for help, he simply replied "You go to hell" and watched him as he is hauled off.

Years later, Morgan brought up Carl while comforting a teenage boy in Arizona who escaped from his abductor. Later, Morgan tells JJ that without Carl and what he did to him, he wouldn't have joined the BAU. Carl will have some major significance in the Season Eight episode Restoration.

Modus Operandi
Carl would make sure the kids he molested would have a lot to lose if they told anyone. He would take some of them, including Morgan and a local kid named James Barfield, to his private cabin and go skinny dipping with them, eventually rubbing up against them. Carl had apparently only killed three children, by strangling them with his bare hands, later placing their bodies in some secluded area. His exact reason for killing them is not specified, except for Damien's murder which was intended to frame Morgan for all three murders.

Carl was able to inject himself into the investigation thanks to his friendly relationship with Detective Stan Gordinski (who had known Buford since he was a beat cop). Carl's status as a local hero/youth mentor and his friendship with Det. Gordinski also allowed him to evade suspicion and even manipulate the investigation.

Profile
The profile made by Gideon based on the first two murders said that the killer was a black male aged 25-35 years old with knowledge of the area. He's non-threatening to children, either because he knows them or is normal enough not to scare them. He probably has a criminal record. The way the first body was placed gently on a mattress instead of just thrown on the ground suggests feelings of guilt within the killer, meaning he will probably revisit the scene of the crime or even the victim itself. The killer would probably try to inject himself into the investigation and try to keep tabs on it.

Real-Life Comparison
Carl's murders may have been to some extent inspired by the Atlanta Child Murders, for two of which one Wayne Williams was found guilty; in both cases, the killer targeted African-American young boys and killed them by asphyxiating them.

Known Victims

 * Has presumably molested many children prior to Profiler, Profiled
 * 1983: Derek Morgan
 * 1991: An unidentified child
 * 2002: An unidentified child
 * 2006:
 * Damien Walters
 * James Barfield

Appearances

 * Season Two
 * Profiler Profiled
 * No Way Out II: The Evilution of Frank
 * Season Three
 * Lucky
 * Season Seven
 * Foundation
 * Season Eight
 * Restoration