Katherine Mary Caucasian F 45y

24/
10/
Knight (Aus)
55
NSW
Slightly Standard
Average Height Overweight
(5"5)
Auburn

Wore Glasses
Though there is little information on her clothing following arrest, Knight had
traversed into the town following the murder in order to withdraw money, suggesting
she changed out of the lingerie she used to seduce Price.

Suicidal,
claimed amnesia

See Below *

*
Dismembered victim
Cooked victim into soup
Left hand-written note addressed
to victim
Skinned victim

Image of
Suspect
 Hand-written Note

Katherine was not arrested conventially, as she allegedly committed

suicide following the crime, judging by the unwell state she was
discovered in. She was taken to hospital, but being the logical

N/A prime suspect in the case, following her recovery she was
immediately charged for Price's murder while she was still in
hospital. This is despite the fact that, following her suicide
attempt, she claimed that she had no memory of the murder.

N/A N/A

Katherine used a butcher's knife to stab her husband, John

Price, once while he was sleeping. He woke up and tried to
escape her, but she caught him and stabbed him another 36
times, at which he bled out. She then used the butcher knife
to cut up the remains of his body and make a stew.

N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A

John Price Home 44 Romantic Partner M

Katherine Knight was arrested following her

first and only murder, despite various other

N/A N/A
assaults on her past partners. She gained
infamy due to the intensity of her crimes and
that she was the first woman in Australia to
receive life imprisonment without parole.
 There were no witnesses inside the
residence, as Price's children from a prior
relationship were at a family friend's
N/A house. As, such no-one bore witness to the
crime. The body was discovered by policemen
after being alerted by concerned
neighbours.

Summary of the Crime

Katherine Knight planned to kill her partner, John Price, following him calling the police the
morning of February 29, 2001, to file a restraining order against her. Several factors suggested
that the crime was premeditated, including that the night of the crime, Knight sent the children
to a friend's house. Furthermore, Knight bought seductive lingerie, placed a knife in the
bedroom, and bought cookware to cook his corpse. Following his call with the police, Price left
work, and warned his co-workers that if he was to be absent the next day, Knight had killed him.
After Price went to sleep that night, Knight arrived, waking him up wearing the lingerie; they
had intercourse, after which he slept. Knight then stabbed Price with the pre-prepared butcher’s
knife, at which he woke up and tried to escape while being pursued. As he opened the front door,
Knight dragged him back into the house and stabbed him 36 times until he bled out. Knight then
wrote a note accusing Price of sexual assault, citing the crime as revenge. Knight skinned
Price’s body and hung the skin on a hook in the house’s entryway. Hours later she prepared and
cooked his body, making a stew, and placed it on the table for the children upon their return.

The day following the murder Price’s neighbour and co-workers became worried that his car was
still in the driveway. Both went to wake up Price by knocking on his window, but noticed blood
on the front porch, alerting the police. Katherine Knight was found in a pill-induced coma
alongside Price’s various body parts. She was brought to a hospital, however when she woke she
was arrested. On November 9, 2001, Katherine Knight was the first woman to be sentenced to life
in prison in Australian Law. Word Count: 299

Criminal Profiling SHE

The process of Criminal Profiling is defined by the American Federal Bureau of Investigation as
“A technique used to identify the perpetrator of a violent crime by identifying the personality
and behavioural characteristics of the offender based upon an analysis of the crime committed.”
This analysis is conducted through a critical observation of the scene(s) of the crime(s) -
including the practicalities of the crime and the identity of the victim - which then leads to
the formulation of a profile itself. This profile is of immense value as it summarises the
criminal’s actions, leading to conclusions about their identity outside of their crimes. By
having such an extensive profile, detectives and policemen are less likely to make arbitrary
decisions based on a small amount of evidence, as the knowledge of patterns can rule out a
variety of suspects. This has economic and judicial influence, as it acts to protect innocent
civilians and circumvents the costly and time-consuming process of arrest and interrogation.
Furthermore, criminal profiling’s benefits have immense social impact, as it protects public
confidence in the justice system through the collection of traits which can then be shared in
order for more people to be aware of potential dangers.
Word Count: 201
 Psychology Profile
Katherine Knight had a difficult upbringing which greatly influenced her later life. Her birth
itself was a scandal, as she was born to Barbara Roughan and her husband’s work colleague, Ken
Knight. Knight’s brother and one of the family members which Katherine liked (aside from her
twin), Oscar Knight, committed suicide when she was only 14, which she maintains affected her
profoundly. However, her rough childhood was also affected by Katherine’s parents’ tumultuous
relationship, where Ken was an alcoholic who continuously raped Barbara, who shared this with
Katherine accompanied with statements of hatred towards men. This social normalisation of toxic
and abusive relationships was extenuated by an alleged conversation where Knight informed her
mother that a current partner was attempting to engage in sexual acts which she did not consent
to. This was met with her mother’s response of: “Put up with it and stop complaining”. This
conversation, true or not, is likely representative of generational trauma between Knight and
Roughan, where Roughan’s mental issues resulting from her own experiences were inherited by
Knight- a social factor. Roughans appears self aware of her impact on Knight in a conversation
between her and Knight’s first husband, David Kellett: “You better watch this one [...] Stir her
up the wrong way [...] and you're f*cked, don't ever think of playing up on her, she'll f*ckin'
kill you,” Roughan allegedly claimed. “She’s got a screw loose somewhere.”

This claim of Knight’s violence was supported by her actions at school. Despite her usually
kind, studious nature, she was subject to sudden fits of rage, which would often result in a
peer’s harm. This violence may have been trauma release, as aside from verbal exposure, young
Knight was also subject to sexual abuse by several members of her family. Knight’s violence
continued into adulthood, evidenced by a variety of her failed relationships. Knight was raised
in an environment that was unsafe and nurtured ideas that sexual abuse and violence in a
relationship is normal, that the best way to resolve an issue was ambivalence and then violent
revenge. Her violence cannot be attributed to a biological or acquired condition, as court
psychiatrists determined that she was in a sound state of mind at the time of her crime. As
such, her crime is likely due to the sane and yet damaged brain of someone socially brought up
in harmful circumstances.
Word Count: 395

References
Criminal Profiling - A Viable Investigative Tool Against Violent Crime | Office of Justice
Programs 2023, Ojp.gov, <https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/criminal-profiling-
viable-investigative-tool-against-violent-
crime#:~:text=Criminal%20profilers%20at%20the%20FBI,provide%20testimony%20as%20expert%20witnesse
s>.

Juan Ignacio Blanco 2023, Katherine Knight | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers,
Murderpedia.org, <https://murderpedia.org/female.K/k/knight-katherine.htm>.

‌o,
t C 2023, John Price, Victims of Homicide Wiki, Fandom, Inc.,
<https://victimsofhomicide.fandom.com/wiki/John_Price>.

‌hat is Criminal Profiling And It’s Role in Law Enforcement? | UCF Online 2021, UCF Online,
W
<https://www.ucf.edu/online/criminal-justice/news/what-is-criminal-profiling-and-what-is-its-
role-in-law-
enforcement/#:~:text=Studying%20the%20psychology%20behind%20a,evidence%20for%20their%20legal%20c
ase>. [Original source: https://studycrumb.com/alphabetizer]