| “ | You have to understand! All I wanted to do was help her. | ” |
— Jane to Jerry Grandin during her arrest
| ||
Jane Gould is a budding serial killer, stalker, and abductor who appeared in the Season Six episode of Criminal Minds, "Today I Do".
Background[]
Jane was raised by her grandparents until they died when she was in middle school. After being placed in foster care, she began acting out by committing acts of vandalism and property destruction in desperate attempts to get attention. These acts caused her to get kicked out of two foster homes. When her attempts at seeking attention failed, she started cutting herself. Eventually, sometime in 2010, she realized that cutting herself wasn't going anywhere and decided to make her life meaningful, stalking Gail Langston around the Syracuse General Hospital, where she was being treated for depression. Using all of the information that she found out about her to her advantage, Jane befriended Gail and began advising her with her own self-help methods. When Gail started to recover from her depression, Jane realized that she would become redundant again and lose her sense of purpose. To rectify this, she abducted Gail, taking her to an old residence of hers by Lake Maple, where she continued "helping" her, beating her legs or feet with a hammer whenever she displeased her in some significant way. Jane eventually came to realize that her actions were futile and killed Gail, dumping her body in a lake. When she felt herself being completely meaningless again, she, during the following year, stalked Molly Grandin around the Syracuse General Hospital, where she was treated for anorexia; Molly was also being abused by her ex-boyfriend Lyle Donaldson. Again, Jane used the information she learned about Molly to befriend her, advised her with self-help methods, and abducted her when Molly began to recover, and she felt meaningless again.
Today I Do[]
In the episode, the BAU is called in when Gail's body is found, and Molly's disappearance is reported. When Molly displeases her again, Jane beats her feet with a hammer. Eventually, she finds out that Molly is still loyal to her ex-boyfriend Lyle forcing her to stalk Lyle around and learn some information about him. She later charms Lyle by giving him his favorite alcoholic beverage and the two drink together. Lyle becomes drunk, allowing Jane to get him to have sex with her at her house. Jane records the entire process on a camera and presents the video to Molly the following morning in order to convince her that Lyle isn't being loyal to her in return. However, Molly isn't convinced and reveals a stick she managed to sharpen out of a piece of wood. Jane isn't intimidated and suddenly, Lyle, having managed to break free from the shackles Jane placed on him, bursts in the room. Lyle attacks Jane, allowing Molly to escape, but she drops her sharpened stick in the process. Jane manages to grab the stick and stab Lyle in the neck with it, killing him instantly. Jane catches up with Molly in her car and hits her with it in a fit of rage, knocking her unconscious. Taking Molly to Lake Maple, she attempts to kill her by stabbing her with a screwdriver, when the BAU, having discerned her as the unsub and finding her with help from Garcia, arrive and try to convince Jane to stand down. She refuses just as Molly regains consciousness and manages to get out of Jane's arms, wading into the lake with Jane in pursuit. However, Jane is immediately arrested by local policemen who wade into the water. Just before she is taken into a police car, Jane apologizes to Molly's father, who arrives to watch Molly being taken away in an ambulance.
Modus Operandi[]
"I call this a humility check. It shatters those selfish thoughts so you can hear other people's feelings and needs."
Jane targeted Caucasian girls aged in their mid-20s, who were physically small, had very low self-esteem, were struggling with balancing a full-time job and university studies, and suffered from some kind of major burden (Gail Langston was depressed, Molly Grandin a former anorexic who was also abused by her ex-boyfriend). She found them when they were treated at Syracuse General Hospital for their condition and stalked them around the hospital in order to find out what kind of clothing articles, such as a scarf or a handbag, they possessed. Before the day they were discharged, she would buy the same clothing article and use it to bond with them when she met them coming out of the hospital. At first, she befriended them and helped them get back on their feet using simple self-help methods. She did this as a way to give herself a purpose and make herself meaningful. The victims did always get better, which is when Jane's initial plan failed, since they would now be able to manage on their own, making her help unnecessary.
She would then abduct the women from parking lots and take them to a house by Lake Maple where she used to live, hold them captive while restraining them to beds and chairs, and continue "helping" them. When one of them displeased or insulted her, she would beat their legs or their feet with a hammer (she called it "the humility check"). Roughly three days later, when Jane realized that what she was doing was ultimately futile, she would take her victims to the lake, fatally stab them in the chest with a screwdriver, and give them a water burial. When she killed Lyle Donaldson, she stabbed him in the neck with a piece of wood accidentally left behind by Molly when she created it to defend herself.
Profile[]
"No more self-loathing. You'll go into the light, and you'll feel loved. And I'll go on to help others who are lost."
The unsub is a blue-collar white woman aged in her mid-20s, who was most likely raised either by a single parent or in foster care and is a native of the area. She probably has a job in which she can act as a caregiver, such as a masseuse, personal trainer, or hairstylist. Women are comfortable enough around her to open up about their problems and insecurities, which she then uses to manipulate their trust. She is most likely not posing as a therapist or counselor since her narcissistic personality makes it impossible for her to talk about something other than herself for long. It is also unlikely that she has any kind of degree, being unable to accept new knowledge and being taught by someone who knows more than her. Though she would require some kind of certification for such jobs, her skills of manipulation have probably allowed her access to several jobs from which she was then fired from when her employers learned that her credentials were fake. She most likely worked at a gym, spa, salon, or yoga studio and was fired sometime in the past two years.
Real-Life Comparison[]
Jane is primarily inspired by Joe Clark - Both are murderers and attempted murderers targeting victims the same respective gender as themselves in their local communities, (allegedly in Clark's case) killed two victims, held victims captive for prolonged periods of time, tortured victims with severe injuries to their legs and feet that kept them from walking, left victims in isolated natural bodies of water, had one surviving victim who escaped despite their injuries and were rescued by police, and refused to take responsibility for their respective crimes.
Jane is heavily inspired by Genene Jones - Both are serial killers who were adopted as children, demonstrated attention-seeking behaviors in childhood, inserted themselves into patients' cases in medical facilities (Jane stalked adult female psychiatric patients at hospitals, Jones overdosed infants in pediatric hospital units), have at least two confirmed murder victims (though Jones was convicted of one murder after the episode's release), targeted victims of both genders, and have similar names.
Jane is also heavily inspired by Kristen Gilbert - Both are serial killers who self-harmed to seek attention, inserted themselves into patients' cases in hospitals (Jane stalked adult female psychiatric patients at hospitals, Gilbert overdosed veterans' hospital patients and were part of resuscitation teams), were prone to violent outbursts, assaulted victims using various nearby weapons before their murders, and targeted their respective victims to seek attention for "saving them".
Known Victims[]
The dates denote when the victims were abducted or attacked
- Unspecified dates: Unspecified acts of victimless vandalism
- October 9, 2010: Gail Langston (stalked for three months; later abducted and beat her hands and feet with a hammer; fatally stabbed her twice in the chest with a screwdriver three days later)
- 2011:
- February 15: Molly Grandin (stalked for three months like the previous victim; later abducted, beat her feet with a hammer, hit her with a car, and attempted to kill her by stabbing her with a screwdriver; was rescued three days later)
- February 18: Lyle Donaldson (Molly Grandin's ex-boyfriend; stalked; later stabbed him in the neck with a piece of wood when he assaulted her)
Notes[]
- Jane seems to be based on Annie Wilkes, the abductor from Stephen King's Misery. Like Annie, Jane would hold her victims captive at her home, assume the role of caretaker, and break her victim's leg with a hammer. Even their physical appearances are similar.