Inside the Mind of a Female Psychopath Serial Killer.
From netball team to psychopath: the strange descent of Joanna Dennehy
She grew up with no apparent problems but within a few years she was a sadomasochist, drifter and addict. What happened?
Joanna Dennehy could be charming, a good friend, and attractive to both men and women. But if she did not get her way, she was prone to explosive, frightening outbursts of temper and violence. She would punch and lash out at those closest to her and friends and lovers got used to getting out of the way quickly.
Over a fortnight in early spring last year, Dennehy went much, much further, killing three men, possibly only because she had been annoyed by their unwanted attention or grown bored by them after casual sexual liaisons. Having tasted and apparently been thrilled by violence, she went in search of more and only narrowly failing to murder two other men before she was caught.
Doctors who have examined Dennehy before and after her killing spree have diagnosed a range of conditions. A year before she struck she was found to have a psychopathic anti-social personality disorder that manifested itself in anger, aggression, impulsivity and irresponsibility. She did not care about the safety of others, felt no remorse when causing harm, and was a skilled deceiver and manipulator. Like many who have a severe anti-social personality disorder, Dennehy has frequently been in trouble with the law and has a long history of serious drug and alcohol abuse. Her sexual preferences disturbed some of her many partners – men and women – but added to her allure for others. After her arrest she was diagnosed as having paraphilia sadomasochism: deriving sexual pleasure from both giving and receiving pain and humiliation. She did not hide her tendencies, often wearing a pair of handcuffs attached to her trousers. She was a consumer of violent pornography and an habitual self-harmer, cutting her body, sometimes even during intercourse.
Joanna Dennehy
Police picture of serial killer Joanna Dennehy. Photograph: Cambridgeshire Police/PA
All that said, her murderous spree in the spring of last year was a huge shock to her friends, her very respectable home counties family and to police. Though she had significant mental health problems and a criminal record, there was nothing to suggest she should suddenly murder three times and try to kill twice more.
Born in August 1982 in St Albans, Hertfordshire, Dennehy grew up in nearby Harpenden. Her father, Kevin, worked as a security guard, while her mother, Kathleen, was a shop manager. She has a younger sister called Maria, who had a successful career in the army and went on to run her own IT company. Denneny has claimed that she was abused as a child but there is no evidence of this, and her family and friends insist she was always treated well.
Her childhood sounds comfortable and ordinary. As a little girl she shared a bunk bed with Maria, who was two years her junior.
