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Currently an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of New Haven, Keppel has consulted on over 2,000 homicide cases, many of which were associated with one of the 50-plus serial killers his work has covered. He has written or co-written numerous articles, book chapters, and books about homicide investigation; created software and databases for investigators; and crystallized best practices for interviewing offenders. As a consulting detective, he is eager to offer what he has learned to others in the field.
Among his books is the apdy tided The Psychology of Serial Killer Investigations: The Grisly Business Unit. In it, Keppel discusses the way jurisdictions either accept or deny that they have a serial killer operating in their area. He also describes issues that task forces face, especially as time passes without an arrest. They are not "profilers" who jump in from out of town to comment before moving on. They are stuck with the case until it is solved, and some are not happy about it. Keppel has seen resistance, despair, and even outright denial in the face of solid evidence. "Serial homicide investigations succeed or fail," he writes, "on whether the police know what they have on their hands, how they accept the truth, and how they manage it once they've accepted it."
Before he became an internationally renowned consultant, he gathered his experience as a detective. Surprisingly, this had not been among his career goals.
THE MAKING OF A DETECTIVE
Keppel grew up in Spokane, Washington, and graduated from Central Valley High School in 1962, where he was a star athlete. He attended Washington State University on an athletic scholarship, developing his skill as a high jumper, and he just missed making America's 1964 Olympic team. After getting a master's degree in police science, he joined the King County Sheriff's Department as a patrol officer, but was then drafted. "I was an Army drill sergeant," he says, "before going to Vietnam as a captain." As part of the Army's Military Police Corps for nearly a year, he acquired plenty of investigative experience. He then returned to the Sheriff's Department to resume his patrol duties. His father, who died when Keppel was a junior in college, had been a significant role model.