A murderer is a murderer. There is no doubt about it, such a person deserves to be punished for the crime he committed. However, not all killers are the same; there are some who are mass murderers who continue to kill furiously for reasons of their own, and then there are serial killers who enjoy killing people because it makes them feel some sort of emotion. People often confuse these killers as being the same, but in reality they are completely different in the way they are profiled by the police, the way they commit their murders, and the effect they have on the community and the nation. Admitted mass murderers and serial killers are both killers, police profile them differently. Although each of them has a different killing style, both serial killers and mass murderers follow patterns. In an article written by RM and ST Holmes it is said that “the mass murderer is perceived as demented, mentally ill”. As the quote in the book says, Prendergast was obviously mentally ill like most other mass murderers. In The Devil in the White City, Larson says that “Holmes was warm, charming, and talkative, touching women with a familiarity that, while perhaps at home would have been offensive, now seemed quite right in the new city of Chicago” (Larson, 245). RM and ST Holmes observe that “serial killers have no distinctive traits compared to other people in society; they enter the lives of many, invited and then fatally eliminated with little concern. Just as Larson said Holmes invited himself into the lives of many, and while he may have stood out for the way he touched them, I'm sure that wasn't a major factor because this was the beginning of a new era and younger people. we are acting with mo... half of paper ...you commit, it's tragic, it doesn't matter the type of killer, but it's important to know the difference between a mass murderer and a serial murderer. Understanding their patterns can perhaps help law enforcement catch them before things get out of hand. It can also help police understand what makes killers who they are, so that police can eventually stop the things that drive them to become the killers they are. These killers are different in how the police see them, in how they kill their victims, and in how they scare the community and the nation. Works Cited Holmes, R. M. and S. T. Holmes. (nd): n. page Rpt. on federal probation. 1st ed. vol. 56. Np: np, nd 9-53. Ebsco guest. Network. February 21, 2013. Larson, Erik. The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America. New York: Corona, 2003. Print.