Killer Instinct: Having a mind for murder

Fact leaves fiction for dead.

Forensic psychiatrist Donald Grant asks, what is it about murder that fascinates us? Is it the chill whisper of fear reminding us we too can kill?

Grant describes ten true murder cases, each with unique triggers. For most of us, murder is an arm's length experience, close enough to frighten and fascinate yet far enough not to traumatise. For those directly affected, murder can be scarring.

Our restless chatter about murder, our state of heightened alert, our endless appetite for news, may all just be play therapy, reassuring us that our own killer instincts are under control.

Leading forensic psychiatrist Donald Grant was the first State Director of Forensic Psychiatry in Queensland and sat on the bench of the state's unique Mental Health Court for five years. His life's work has been understanding the murderous mind.