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Steven Fitzgerald

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“ No. I don't know Steven! I don't know Steven! Why do you want Steven?! Steven is stupid! He's... he's disgusting! He's filthy! Steven is filthy! He is filthy! ”
— Fitzgerald

Steven Fitzgerald is a psychotic robber, one-time cop killer, and serial-turned-spree killer who appears in the Criminal Minds Season Three episode "In Heat".

Background[]

Fitzgerald was raised in a strict household in Oakland Park, Florida. His father, David, was a prison guard who was deeply religious. He also had a sister named Sarah. It has been implied that Fitzgerald, at some point, developed homosexual urges and was physically abused by his father as a result. David claimed the abuse to be "protect[ion]" for Fitzgerald from himself, and that his killing skills were learned in the process. The repeated abuse and chastising led Fitzgerald to believe that he was "filthy" and caused him to hate himself. Wanting to help her brother and get him away from their father, Sarah gave him some money, which he used to go on a vacation to Miami in 2008. Later encountering a homosexual man named Robert Feeney on February while in the city, Fitzgerald murdered him and stole his identity, successfully disappearing afterwards, being listed as missing and presumed dead. After Feeney, Fitzgerald murdered four more men, taking their identities as well.

In Heat[]

Two months after leaving home, Fitzgerald, after killing the vacationing New Orleans detective Charles Luvet, picks up Deacon Rogers, a tourist from Texas, at an outdoor poolside bistro. Hours later, when Rogers attempts a sexual advance outside a bar, Fitzgerald hits him, saying that he is disgusting and dirty. He suddenly apologizes, then begins mocking Rogers, trying to copy his accent. Fitzgerald then begins to show affection to Rogers, but puts him in a stranglehold, killing him. Moments later, Fitzgerald is found with Rogers' body by a bus boy. Telling the bus boy that he is a cop and that he and Rogers were mugged, Fitzgerald runs off, claiming that he is going after the robber, and disposes Detective Luvet's badge before breaking into and trashing Rogers' hotel room, searching for IDs or anything else that can help him pass as Rogers. Fitzgerald is then seen driving away in Rogers' car. He passes a hitchhiker on the road, a German youth named Michael Aldridge. When Aldridge enters the car, Fitzgerald mimics his accent, foreshadowing the tourist's eventual murder.

After speaking to Fitzgerald's father and sister, the BAU realize that he is not a victim as previously thought and is in fact the killer. Realizing that he would be compelled to go to the youth hostel that Aldridge was hitchhiking to, Morgan and local detective Tina Lopez go there and clear the day room, leaving Fitzgerald sitting alone at a table. He begins reaching into his bag for the gun he stole from Luvet. When referring to him by his real name fails to work, Morgan addresses Fitzgerald as Michael Aldridge, gaining his attention. Growing agitated as Morgan and Lopez try and talk him into coming with them, Fitzgerald begins frantically screaming that he has done nothing wrong and that he is Aldridge and not Fitzgerald, whom he yells is stupid and filthy. As Fitzgerald rants on, Morgan manages to calm him down by mentioning Sarah, saying that she misses him and is worried about him. At the mention of his sister, Fitzgerald gives up peacefully and, while being led outside, desperately asks Morgan to tell his father that he never did anything sexual with the men he killed. He is likely institutionalized afterwards.

Profile[]

The unsub is a white male aged in his mid-to late twenties who is charismatic, charming, intelligent, and very familiar with the area, possibly offering assistance to those that are new to the city. He studies his victims' habits and learns how to gain their trust, and he also likely frequents or works in a gay establishment. How the victims were killed indicates that the unsub may have prior defense tactic training, meaning that he may possibly be in the military or was recently discharged. He steals his victims' possessions, but he doesn't pawn any of them. The victims all being homosexual men indicates that the unsub is either bigoted and/or struggling with his own sexuality.

He killed his latest victim out in the open because he is losing control emotionally and could be devolving. He may presumably be suffering from a Cluster B borderline-personality disorder. The unsub sees his victims living carefree lives without fear or judgment, and by killing them and taking their identity, he shed his own loathed personality. Something triggers his constant need to escape such as drugs, sex, or something that makes him feel vulnerable and he cannot allow himself to have that vulnerability. Escaping into his fantasy protects him from ever having to look at himself. After taking someone's identity, the unsub may also compulsively mimic them without intending to, an instance of this being when he hitchhiked to the youth hostel Michael Aldridge was heading to, despite having absolutely no reason to do so.

Based on his M.O. and the motivation for his crimes, Fitzgerald can be considered an organized control-oriented serial killer.

Modus Operandi[]

Fitzgerald targeted Caucasian homosexual men between the ages of 25 to 35, mostly tourists. He would pick them up around Miami and befriend them. The only exception to this is Michael Aldridge, who was killed after a spontaneous decision. After successfully learning how to mimic their mannerisms and accents if they have one, he would kill them in high-traffic areas when no one was around, using a choke hold (one that didn't do any damage to the hyoid bone), in which his right arm would be pressed against their throats while he was behind them, clasping his hands together. The choke hold was learned from his father, who used the same choke hold at the prison where he worked. He would initially immediately dispose of his victims' bodies close to where he killed them, but didn't do so with his last two victims. He would then take their car keys from their bodies and their hotel room cards, break into the rooms they were staying in, and take anything he would need to assume their identities. He then spent some time living under the identity of each victim before picking up another victim, killing him, stealing his identity, and repeating the cycle.

He also stole Detective Luvet's Smith & Wesson Model 442 Airweight revolver, but was talked down before he had a chance to use it.

Real-Life Comparison[]

Fitzgerald may have some similarities to Larry Eyler - Both were homosexual serial killers who were (possibly in Fitzgerald's case), abused by father figures, had protective sisters, they became angry at themselves for their sexuality, targeted homosexual men whom they would pick up on highways, and strangled them to death (though Eyler used other methods).

Fitzgerald is also similar to Andrew Cunanan - Both are gay serial-turned-spree killers who fought with their parents over their orientations, killed their partners, were active in Florida, changed their appearances while they were on the run, and got into armed standoffs with police.

Known Victims[]

  • 2008:
    • February 29: Robert Feeney
    • March 21: Benjamin
    • April 4: Unnamed victim
    • April 13: Paul Hayes
    • April 21: Daniel Brown
    • April 28: Detective Charles Luvet (also stole his gun)
    • April 29: Deacon Rogers
    • April 30: Michael Aldridge (killed after a spontaneous decision)

Notes[]

  • Steven Fitzgerald is the first of only nine serial killers in the show's history to have successfully kill all of the victims they targeted. This is a very rare occurrence, as almost all serial killers depicted on the show have at least one survivor. The rest are:

Appearances[]

Criminal Minds[]

Season Three[]

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