Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True Believers - Hardcover

Snow, Robert L.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0275980529 ISBN 13: 9780275980528

Publisher: Praeger, 2003

Synopsis

How does a Vampire Cult differ from a Satanic Cult? How do seemingly normal or ordinary citizens suddenly find themselves committed to a group whose leader promotes criminal activities and isolation from families and friends? What should you do if a loved one becomes indoctrinated by a potentially dangerous cult? This book focuses on various cults and their often criminal belief systems. Most readers are shocked by stories of mass suicides and ritualized cult killings, but few understand how such crimes come to be committed. Snow, a seasoned police officer with experience working on cult crimes, examines those cults that commit offenses from murder and fraud to kidnapping and sexual assault.

By providing specific accounts of dangerous cults and their destructive acts, Snow illustrates how seemingly innocent groups can turn pernicious when under the sway of a charismatic leader with an agenda, or when members take things too far. He offers advice on how to avoid falling victim to cult indoctrination, concluding with chapters on how to identify cults, how to protect yourself and your family, and what to do if a loved one is ensnared by such a group.

About this title

About the Author

ROBERT L. SNOW has been a police officer with the Indianapolis Police for 34 years and is currently a captain and commander of the Homicide Branch. He is the author of The Militia Threat (1999), and Looking for Carol Beckwith (1999).

Reviews

In this insightful look at cults and their charismatic leaders, Snow (an Indianapolis police officer) relies far more on previously published material than on first-hand reporting. Although the book contains plenty of quotes from concerned parties (witnesses, experts, etc.), the majority of the material is drawn from newspapers, magazines, and other media. On the other hand, Snow handles his material perceptively, drawing sharp conclusions from his secondary sources and anecdotal evidence. The examples he chooses range from the well known (Jim Jones, David Koresh) to the obscure (Roland Robidoux, a religious cult leader whose followers let their own children die). His prose is one or two levels above workmanlike, and he infuses his narrative with enough drama to generate considerable empathy for the victims of cults. The book concludes with a lengthy and quite valuable section on the workings of a cult, laying out methods cult leaders might use to ensnare "converts" and offering tips on how to avoid becoming indoctrinated. Pricey for public libraries but useful for reports and personal research. David Pitt
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Edition details

• Publisher: Praeger
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0275980529
• ISBN 13: 9780275980528
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 248