The Dishonourable Killings of the Shafia Family
Commonly referred to as the ‘honour killings’ of the Shafia family is a murder plot that resulted in the death of three young female teenagers and their aunt (Maclean’s 2017). The murder was perpetrated by Mohammad Shafia, his wife and their oldest son. The three teenage sisters were killed due to their rebellion against their family’s traditions. The fourth victim was Rona Mohammad, who was referred to a collateral damage by the offenders (Maclean’s 2017). The police investigation lead to the three offenders all being found guilty on four counts of murder in the first degree (Chung and Dimanno 2012). The two theories this essay will discuss to explain why these murders occurred are one of Sykes and Matza’s techniques of neutralization, the denial of the victim, and the theory of Psychopathy (Broll 2017). The theories illustrate how Mohammad’s mentality, beliefs, and behaviour became factors that resulted in the crime. This essay will demonstrate how Mohammad Shafia’s corrupt notions of honour lead to one of Sykes and Matza’s techniques of neutralization and how his psychopathic personality indicative of his lack of guilt, aggressive behaviour and failure to conform to societal norms resulted in the heinous Shafia family murders.
On June 30th of 2009, officers from the Kingston police force
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Wilson, David. “What Makes A Born Killer?” The Mirror. 3 Star Edition. The Mirror (2011). Print.
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Eysenck, H.J., & Gudjonsson, G.H. (1989). The causes and cures of criminality. Contemporary Psychology, 36, 575-577.
Ricard, Suzanne, Thompson, Jennie. “Women’s Role in Serial Killing Teams: Reconstructing a Radical Feminist Perspective.” Critical Criminology 17(4): 261-275
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Kerns, Jeanne Marie. "Women Serial Killers and Their Motives." Associated Content from Yahoo! 24 Apr. 2007. Web. 4 May 2011. .
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