By 1977, Dahmer's grades had declined. [54] His parents hired a private tutor, with limited success. The same year, in an attempt to save their marriage, his parents attended counseling sessions. They continued to quarrel frequently. When Lionel discovered Joyce had engaged in a brief affair in September 1977, they decided to divorce, telling their sons they wished to do so amicably. The process of their divorce soon became increasingly bitter and acrimonious, and Lionel moved out of the house in early 1978, [55] temporarily residing in a motel on North Cleveland Massillon Road. [56] [57] In January 1979, [80] on his father's urging, Dahmer enlisted in the United States Army. [81] He underwent basic training at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Alabama, before training as a medical specialist at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. He was occasionally reprimanded for intoxication while stationed at Fort Sam Houston. On one occasion, an instance of insubordination resulted in his entire platoon being punished, earning Dahmer a severe beating from his fellow recruits. [82] The digital cable and satellite television channel Oxygen broadcast the two-part documentary Dahmer on Dahmer: A Serial Killer Speaks in November 2017. Produced and directed by Matthew Watts, the program features interviews with, among others, Dahmer's father, stepmother, former classmates, psychiatrists who testified at his trial, and a homicide detective involved in the investigation. [370] Johnson, Dirk (May 20, 1996). "Bid to Auction Killer's Tools Provokes Disgust". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012 . Retrieved November 24, 2018. A Father's Story runs chronologically from Jeffrey's birth until his arrest and imprisonment. Dahmer tries to figure out what made his son commit murder, practice necrophilia and cannibalism. He scrutinizes every possible contributing factor to his son's psychosis starting with himself. Dahmer judges himself a poor father because he was emotionally distant from his son. While reflecting, he "speculates that his own youthful shyness, fascination with bombs and fears of abandonment added up to a monstrous genetic inheritance." [7] Critical reception [ edit ]

On August 5, 1991, as the nature and scale of Dahmer's crimes initially came to light, a candlelight vigil to celebrate and heal the Milwaukee community [319] was attended by more than 400 people. Present at the vigil were community leaders, gay rights activists, and family members of several of Dahmer's victims. Organizers stated the purpose of the vigil was to enable Milwaukeeans to "share their feelings of pain and anger over what happened". [9]When asked in a November 18, 1991 interview to whom the altar was dedicated, Dahmer replied: "Myself ... It was a place where I could feel at home." He further described his intended altar as a "place for meditation", from where he believed he could draw a sense of power, adding: "If this [his arrest] had happened six months later, that's what they would have found." [248] Indictment On this occasion, Dahmer had only two sleeping pills to give his victim. Therefore, he killed Miller by slashing his carotid artery with the same knife he used to dissect his victims' bodies. Miller bled to death within minutes. [159] Dahmer then posed the nude body for various suggestive Polaroid photographs before placing it in his bathtub for dismemberment. Dahmer repeatedly kissed and talked to the severed head while he dismembered the remainder of the body. [159]

Officers Tell Jury of Letting Dahmer Keep Boy". The New York Times. February 13, 1992. Archived from the original on October 2, 2021 . Retrieved October 2, 2021. The Secret Life: Jeffrey Dahmer was released in 1993. Directed by David Bowen, this biographical crime drama stars Carl Crew as Dahmer. [353] Freyd, Jennifer; Birrell, Pamela (2013). Blind to Betrayal: Why We Fool Ourselves We Aren't Being Fooled. Nashville, Tennessee: Turner Publishing. p.40. ISBN 978-0-470-60440-3.Prud'Homme, Alex (August 5, 1991). "The Little Flat of Horrors". Time. Meredith Corporation. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013 . Retrieved August 19, 2012. Two soldiers have since claimed to have been raped by Dahmer while in the Army. In 2010, one stated that Dahmer had repeatedly raped him over a 17-month period while they were both stationed at Baumholder, while another soldier believes Dahmer drugged and raped him inside an armored personnel carrier in 1979. [86] [87] However, in numerous interviews following his 1991 arrest, Dahmer stated to both police and psychiatrists he did not sexually assault or engage in willing homosexual relations while stationed in West Germany. [88] Land, Olivia (January 17, 2023). "Jeffrey Dahmer's Stepmother Shari Dead at 81". The New York Post . Retrieved January 26, 2023. Buelow, Michael C. (December 16, 1994). "Bar From Weight Room Used to Kill Dahmer". Herald Journal. Logan, Utah: Adams Publishing Group. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021 . Retrieved April 29, 2018– via Google News.

A Father's Story by Lionel Dahmer". www.publishersweekly.com. 1994. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022 . Retrieved November 7, 2022. It was my way of remembering their appearance, their physical beauty. I also wanted to keep ... if I couldn't keep them there with me whole, I at least could keep their skeletons. These convictions were served concurrently in relation to Dahmer's September 1988 arrest for drugging and sexually fondling a 13-year-old boy. [2]Two months after his conviction and two months prior to his sentencing, Dahmer murdered his fifth victim, a 24-year-old mixed-race aspiring model, Anthony Sears, whom he met at a gay bar on March 25, 1989. According to Dahmer, on this particular occasion he was not looking to commit a crime; however, shortly before closing time that evening, Sears "just started talking to me". Dahmer lured Sears to his grandmother's home, where the pair engaged in oral sex before Dahmer drugged and strangled Sears. [5] Joyce Flint; Serial Killer Jeffrey Dahmer's Mother". Los Angeles Times. December 6, 2000. Archived from the original on October 1, 2019 . Retrieved May 20, 2017. Upon learning of his death, Dahmer's mother Joyce responded angrily to the media: "Now is everybody happy? Now that he's bludgeoned to death, is that good enough for everyone?" [313] The response of the families of Dahmer's victims was mixed: some celebrated the news, while others were saddened. Catherine Lacy, the mother of victim Oliver Lacy, remarked: "The hurt is worse now, because he's not suffering like we are." [171] The district attorney who prosecuted Dahmer cautioned against turning Scarver into a folk hero, saying that Dahmer's death was still murder. [301] On May 15, 1995, Scarver was sentenced to two additional terms of life imprisonment for the murders of Dahmer and Anderson. [314] Dahmer was then sentenced to life imprisonment plus ten years upon the first two counts. [287] The remaining thirteen counts carried a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment plus seventy years. The death penalty was not an option for Judge Gram to consider at the penalty phase, as Wisconsin had abolished capital punishment in 1853. [288] a b Rich, Rank (March 17, 1994). "Opinion | Journal; Loving Jeffrey Dahmer". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 7, 2022 . Retrieved November 6, 2022.

In a 2002 paper published in the Journal of Forensic Sciences, it has been suggested that Dahmer may have had Asperger syndrome. [40] Radcliffe, J.R. (September 23, 2022). "What's Real and What's Fiction in Netflix's Jeffrey Dahmer Series, 'Monster' ". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 23, 2022 . Retrieved October 6, 2022. On July 15, Dahmer encountered 24-year-old [206] Oliver Lacy at the corner of 27th and Kilbourn. [207] Lacy agreed to Dahmer's ruse of posing nude for photographs and accompanied him to his apartment, where the pair engaged in tentative sexual activity before Dahmer drugged Lacy. On this occasion, Dahmer intended to prolong the time he spent with Lacy while alive. After unsuccessfully attempting to render Lacy unconscious with chloroform, [208] he phoned his workplace to request a day's absence; this was granted, although the next day, he was suspended. [206] Starkey, Arun (October 27, 2022). "Revisiting Jeremy Renner's Portrayal of Jeffrey Dahmer". Far Out . Retrieved February 12, 2023.September 24: David Courtney Thomas, 22. Encountered Dahmer near the Grand Avenue Mall; he was lured to Dahmer's apartment on the promise of money for posing nude. Once a laced drink had rendered Thomas unconscious, Dahmer decided he "wasn't my type." Nonetheless, Dahmer strangled Thomas, taking Polaroid photos of the dismemberment process. No remains were ever found. [161] Expert Findds Few Clues in Dahmer 'Temple' ". The Chicago Tribune. February 5, 1992. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022 . Retrieved July 7, 2021. In January 1985, Dahmer was hired as a mixer at the Milwaukee Ambrosia Chocolate Factory, where he worked from 11p.m to 7a.m. six nights per week, with Saturday evenings off. [102] Shortly after he found this job, an incident occurred in which Dahmer was propositioned by another man while reading in the West Allis Public Library. The stranger threw Dahmer a note offering to perform fellatio upon him. Although Dahmer did not respond to this proposition, [103] the incident stirred in his mind the fantasies of control and dominance he had developed as a teenager, and he began to familiarize himself with Milwaukee's gay bars, gay bathhouses, and bookstores. He also stole a male mannequin from a store, [104] which he briefly used for sexual stimulation, until his grandmother discovered the item stowed in a closet and demanded that he discard it. [105]