By Drew Johnson
Corrections1 Editor
A thriving trade has developed between the inmate community and several crime-focused websites. It’s not contraband -- it’s called ‘murderabilia,’ and it has a number of victims and victim-advocates angry.
Murderabilia can include anything from inmate-created art and writings to prison paraphernalia like envelopes, ID bracelets, fingerprint charts, and even hair. Users can bid on muderabilia on websites like serialkillersink.net and murderacution.com, whose owners say they are only catering to America’s fascination with crime.
A lock of serial killer Lawrence Bittaker’s hair is listed on Murder Auction for $25. A painting purportedly created by serial killer John Wayne Gacy is listed on the site with a current bid of $550. Artifacts from notorious killers Charles Manson and Ted Bundy are also listed on the site.
Some victims of the killers whose artifacts are up for sale are understandably upset by the trade. Missy Jenkins Smith, who was paralyzed from the chest down by Michael Carneal in a 1997 school shooting rampage, told the Louisville Courier-Journal that no one should be able to profit from Corneal’s crime. “It’s almost like glorifying what he’s done,” she told the Courier-Journal.
Serial Killers Ink is the web-based seller behind Corneal’s artwork. A signed color drawing by Corneal, named “Love from behind the zipper,” was recently sold for $25 on the site, according to the Courier-Journal.
“I don’t think anyone should be able to rob, rape and murder and make a buck out of it,” Houston-based victim advocate Andy Kaha told the Courier-Journal. “For victims, it’s like getting sucker-punched again.”
Have you observed any trade in murderabilia at your facility? Tell us about it in the comments.