UNABLE to make an arrest in the case of the smashed statues of saints in Roman
Catholic churches in Brooklyn, New York police detectives have consulted with a fellow
who was once one of their own, the psychological profiler Raymond M. Pierce, and if you
think Mr. Pierce is going to speak about an ongoing investigation, you are a person of
extraordinary naivete.His
classes at the Police Academy -- where he makes politically incorrect jokes about the
400-pound murder victim found ''beached'' in her apartment, or reveals that the Son of
Sam killer, David Berkowitz, returned to his crime scenes for sexual satisfaction -- are
far more entertaining.''You look at the overview of the forensic and behavioral information present at the
crime scene to develop a list of the characteristics of the offender as we would have if we
had a friend of the offender giving a basic description,'' Mr. Pierce says, in the somewhat
stiff language he sometimes uses with people who have never been on the job.If, however, you want to get some idea of what a psychological profiler does, Mr. Pierce,
founder of the Police Department's Criminal Assessment and Profiling Unit and one of a
handful of people trained in profiling by the F.B.I., will be glad to give you an idea.