Gangs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Gangs - Essay Example Different Approaches and Responses to Gangs Due to the negative effects of the gangs to the community, it is a challenging feat to deal with them, thus, there are different approaches that are being applied to prevent and to resolve problems related to gangs. The approaches and responses of the community to the gangs are based on the different factors related to the personal, the family, the social and the legal aspects of the society. The individual and family approach is the primary way to resolve gang behavior since the individual person can be isolated. For that matter, programs targeting the education of the family members and the individual gang member are included in the main actions undertaken to resolve gang problems. But there challenge in resolving gang related problem is the fact that teenagers and adolescents are very susceptible to gang membership and other delinquent activities due to peer pressure and the presence of different gangs in the community and in school. Bas ed on the survey of national schools, 7.6% of male and 3.8% of female in the secondary school students are gang members with activities such as fighting, stealing or selling drugs. Not only can these activities endanger them, gang membership can also affect the school performance and safety of the teenagers (Egley, Mason and Miller, 2006, p.362; (Gatti et al., 2005). Other reasons for gang membership and delinquency that are needed to be taken into consideration are the effects of â€Å"poverty, unemployment, and decline of the family in American cities† (Egley, Mason and Miller, 2006, p.313). The family-based policies and programs are effective to prevent the delinquent behaviors through parent support and guidance as well as personality development. Another approach to the gangs and their activities is through community-based programs and social interventions. The programs applied in such level are considered immediate and short-term responses to violence and crisis of the members and the victims of the gangs. The neighborhood, schools and localities are included in the programs implemented in the community-based levels. Commonly, local government units and NGOs in the localities are the groups working to find solutions to the problems. Their goals are specific to the needs of the community which includes crisis intervention, treatment and emergency medical care for the children and their families, and the law enforcement activities (p.313). An example of the community-based organization is the Boston Gun Project. It started as an organization to counteract gang activities in Boston by â€Å"assembling interagency work group, applying quantitative and qualitative research methods for the study and assessment of the problem related to gangs, developing, implementing and evaluating interventions† (p.338). The community based programs and policies are effective for immediate results and for solutions that are specific to the needs of the particula r community. The legal aspect is one of the most important approaches to the problems of gangs. Due to the rise of the gang problems in the 1980s, there had been a wake up call in the legislative needs in terms of gang problems. The California Street Terrorism Enforcement and

Is Thai Airways going to bankruptcy Research Paper

Is Thai Airways going to bankruptcy - Research Paper Example uld take up shares with the business, beginning April 1, 1988, to be the major shareholder with an estimated 51.03% of the company’s shareholdings, while the remaining 48.97% is owned by investors in the domestic and foreign markets, also including the company’s employees (THAI, 2013). Through the years, the company has experienced various challenges, benefits, and implemented different strategies to remain competitive and profitable in a highly competitive international market (Shoffner, Shelly, & Cooke, 2011). There is speculation that Thai Airways may be going bankrupt, following several challenges in generation of revenue. Different scholars and publications have closely followed the progress of the company, often making speculations, and detailing the actions taken by various entities in an effort to prevent the company from going bankrupt. The impeding bankruptcy of the airline follows a number of decisions made by the company, with respect to the market forces. T he extent to which the investors are willing to get involved in the recovery efforts will determine the probability and possibility of the company failing. In this study, the aim is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the company finances and situation to establish the basis of bankruptcy claims and probabilities. Thai Airways is an entity in the transportation industry, such that the ministry of transport manages the domestic, regional and international routes. The nature of the venture means that the products and services offered include air passenger, cargo and mail transport, warehouse, ground passage, ground equipment, and catering and maintenance services. Although the company is renowned for the air passenger services, the other services serve to support this core service. Under the service, the company has witnessed growth in the customers as well as fleet of airplanes, but challenges have resulted in premonitions on the company’s bankruptcy. Improvements to the services offered and

History Of Materials In The Aviation Industry Engineering Essay

History Of Materials In The Aviation Industry Engineering Essay Aircraft materials have faced an overwhelming phase of change since the takeoff of the first designed aircraft to the skies. This has seen aircraft designers changing the design materials from merely wood and fibre in the early days to composite materials and aluminium alloys in modern days aircrafts. Composite materials and aluminium alloys were introduced in the industry rapidly. Due to advancement in technology the use of wood in manufacturing aircraft structures is now history. This review covers the use of composite materials and aluminium alloys in the design of modern aircrafts, both civil and military. It also compares the usage of these two materials in aircraft structures. Table of Contents INTRODUCTION Aircraft materials have faced an overwhelming phase of change since the takeoff of the first designed aircraft to the skies. This has seen aircraft designers changing the materials of design from merely wood and fibre in the early days to composite materials and aluminium alloys in modern days aircrafts. Early aircrafts were constructed mainly of wood and fabric, the Wright flyer (1903) is an example. Manufacturers preferred relatively light and strong wood such as spruce and fabrics, which were normally linen or something similarly close-weaved. These materials were selected looking at different characteristics which include among other the weight, strength, cost and availability of the material. Due to advancement in technology the use of wood in manufacturing aircraft structures is now a thing of the past. The use of metals in aircraft structures had to await modern material development processes such as alloy development. This processes produced stronger and better materials which allowed high speed flight. Materials produced were better as they allowed heavy loads and they showed better resistance to stress corrosion cracking. The introduction of computers has been of massive input in the field of aerospace. These seen engineers perform deep analysis of strain; stress and fatigue on new materials before there are introduced in aircraft structures. And as a result, the number of aircraft accidents reduced drastically. This review aims to cover the use of composite materials and aluminium alloys in the design of both civil and military modern aircrafts, and compare the usage of the two materials in aircraft structures. COMPOSITE MATERIALS Composites have been the most important materials to have been introduced in the aviation sector since the use of aluminium in the early years. Wright et al (2003) defines composite materials as, a combination of linear elements of one material in a matrix of one another material. This implies that composites are engineered materials made from two or more ingredients with significantly differing properties, either physical or chemical. The application of composite date back in the 1940s to the F-15 (US Air Force) fighters, which used boron/epoxy empennages. Initially the percentage by weight of composite materials used was 2%.Since then, the use of composites has rapidly accelerated. In 1981, the British aerospace- McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier flew with over 25% of its structures made of composite materials (Schmitt, 2008). This shows that composite materials were introduced at a very high rate in the aviation industry. Though composites have been introduced in aviation with such a fierce rate, it was proved they are expensive to produce. They are also hard to inspect for flaws and some easily absorb moisture. Despite the above mentioned disadvantages, composites still play a major role in modern day aircrafts. This is so because of their greater strength and lighter weights. Callus (2007) claims that regardless of the disadvantages of composites, they were introduced because they allowed a quantum leap in aircraft performance. Performance is in the form of light weight, ability, useful payload and super high speeds. USES OF COMPOSITES IN AIRCRAFT STRUCTURES Since each aircraft is unique, it is impossible to generalise where various materials are being used in current aircrafts, but reference to a specific example illustrates the trend. Figure 1 below shows composite materials used in Boeing 787. http://people.bath.ac.uk/ck258/new%20materials%20documents/Composite%20materials_files/image002.jpg Figure 1. Composite materials used in Boeing 787 structures. Adapted from: http://people.bath.ac.uk/ck258/new%20materials%20documents/Composite%20materials.htm The above figure clearly gives a clear indication of the introduction of composites in aircraft structures. It can be confidently stated that composites form about 50% of the weight of the materials used in modern day aircrafts. This can be seen from the pie chart in figure 1. The commonly used composites are fibreglass, carbon laminate composites and carbon sandwich composite. Some composites include the Titanium and polymer matrix composites. COMPOSITION OF COMPOSITES Composite materials are made of two materials, one acting as the matrix and the other as the reinforcement material. These constituent materials determine the mechanical properties of the composite. The matrix has a lower density, stiffness and strength than the reinforcement material, and as a result the reinforcement of the matrix, to provide the majority of the strength and stiffness of a composite is accomplished by the fibres. They can be metallic, organic, synthetic or mineral. American Composite Manufacturers Association (2004) considers epoxy resins as one of the well known matrix material to have been used in a wide range of composite parts and structures. It further states that a major advantage of using Epoxy resins over other matrix materials is their lower shrinkage. http://navyaviation.tpub.com/14018/img/14018_593_1.jpg Figure 2. Aircraft advanced composite application usage. Adapted from: http://navyaviation.tpub.com/14018/css/14018_593.htm The table shows that the in early aircrafts composites were introduced in smaller quantities. This is the case with the F-14 aircraft which was first introduced in September 1974 (Hickman, 2012). Comparing the percentage of composite materials of the F-14 with the F/A-18, which was introduced in January 1983, one can notice that the F/A-18 contained a higher percentage of composites which is 20% as compared to the 0.04% of the F-14. This 19.96% difference may have been due to the introduction of modern material development processes. The mostly used reinforcement fibres are: glass fibre, carbon pitch based, Boron chemical vapour deposition (CVD) fibres, Alumina, Aramid, Carbon Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and Polyethylene. Baker, Dutton and Kelly (2004, pp. 57) claim glass fibres are used mostly in airframes of gliders and in secondary structures such as fairings. The trio further explain that this is the case because this is where their low specific stiffness is not a problem in the design process, and because of their low cost as compared to high performance fibres. Such high performance composites include carbon fibre reinforced carbon. This is a composite material made from carbon fibre reinforcement in a carbon matrix. Diagram of carbon-reinforced carbon Figure 3. Material properties of a carbon fibre reinforced carbon. Adapted from: http://www.materialsviews.com/understanding-carbon-reinforced-carbon According to Grolms (2011), carbon fibre reinforced carbon is used mainly in high performance and high cost applications in aerospace technology. He further explains that this composite material is used widely in nose cones, wing leading edges in space shuttles and in aircraft brake systems. ALUMINIUM ALLOYS Aluminium has been the main structural element since 1930. This was made possible by its lightness as compared to other metals which are referred to as heavy, steel for example. Also, aluminium has been selected because of its indomitable strength to weight ratio. Although aluminium is not the strongest of the pure materials, its alloys use other elements to bridge the gap and improve its strength. Starke and Staley (1995) claims that aluminium is still selected as a structural material for the fuselage, wings and supporting structure for commercial airliners because of its well known performance characteristics, known fabrication costs, design experience and established manufacturing methods and practices. The duo continue on saying low specific gravity of aluminium leads to high specific properties giving aluminium alloys an upper hand in weight critical applications. Weight and strength Figure 4. Weight and Strength- aluminium is approximately one third as dense as steel. Aluminium alloys have tensile strengths of between 70 and 700 MPa. Adapted from: http://www.powerofaluminium.com/page.asp?node=45sec=Properties . Aluminium alloys were mainly created to tackle the weight problems of aircraft structures, but due to modern research and studies they have been recently studied for use in liquid oxygen and hydrogen fuel tanks, application which Starke and Staley (1995,pp.167) referred to as cryogenic. The development of aluminium-lithium alloy replaced the conventional airframe alloys. Its lower density property was thought to reduce the weight and accelerate the performance of aircrafts. This development, lead to the introduction of commercial alloys 8090, 2090 and 2091 in the mid 1980s (Davis, 1993). Weldalite 049 and CP276 were introduced shortly thereafter. Davis (1993) further says that aluminium alloys have a superior fatigue crack propagation resistance as compared to other alloys. This is due to high levels of crack tip shielding, meandering crack path and the resultant roughness induced crack closure (Davis, 1993). ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON OF ALUMINIUM ALLOYS AND COMPOSITES USES IN AIRCRAFT STRUCTURES The future of aluminium alloys in the aerospace industry seems brighter than that of its competitors, the composite materials. Even though the use composite materials is continuously growing, it recently became clear that aluminium alloys will in the near future be the winners of the fierce competition between the two materials. The airbus A380 give a clear indication of this. It shows that 61% of its structure is composed of aluminium alloys, 22% being composites, 10% is titanium and steel, and 3% of the structure is made of fibre metal laminates (Key to Metal, 2012). http://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S1359645403005020-gr10.jpg Figure 5: Material distribution for Airbus A380 by percentage, Adapted from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359645403005020 It appears the rivalry between composites materials and aluminium alloys in the manufacturing of aircraft structures will continue to exist even in the future. This report claims aluminium alloys have the upper hand due to the fact that aluminium is less expensive as compared to composites, and recycling aluminium is not that difficult as compared to recycling composites, meaning that aluminium alloys are more environmental friendly. To support this claim, Arval (2010) pointed out that Bombardier has chosen Airware, a new aluminium alloy, for its upcoming CSeries, and Airbus has also shown that new aluminium alloys may be feasible for its next aisle aircraft. CONCLUSION In this report, the use of composite materials in aircrafts has been thoroughly discussed, pointing out their advantages and their disadvantages. The report identifies the main disadvantage of using composites in aircrafts being its high cost. The other disadvantage of using composite mentioned is their repair problems. It has been proved that composite can give a headache when it comes to repairing from ground damages, which usually avail themselves during baggage loading and other ground accidents. Nevertheless, the report also states that composites are still playing a major role in the aviation industry. This is due to their remarkable strength and their lighter weight. Also outlined in the report is the use of aluminium alloys in modern day aircrafts. Indicated in the report is that, even though aluminium alloys are not currently the main material for aircraft structure, they are awaited by a bright future. New aluminium alloys have been opted over composites for new aircraft technologies because they are recyclable, less expensive, and their characteristics and damage tolerance are well known. The development of new aviation materials since the 1980s was a major achievement in the industry since the number of aviation accidents reduced significantly. Carrying out more research on new aviation materials can see aircraft accidents reducing to probably zero, and this is a call for researchers to concentrate more on new aviation materials.

The Stanley Cup and Online Communities :: Internet Web Essays

The Stanley Cup and Online Communities What I Know, Assume, or Imagine I will start off by giving a bit of background as to why I chose this particular topic. I consider myself an amateur in online communities, and in particular chat rooms. I have always considered chat rooms places people with no friends can go. I have plenty of friends, so I never really saw the need to chat. The few times I have gone into chat rooms, they are usually sport related. The problem I have found is that the conversation is usually on everything except sports. I still feel this way. The first part of my hypothesis is that chat rooms don't always stick to the subject. I am a huge hockey fan, and consider myself somewhat of an expert in certain areas. This is why I chose the Stanley Cup as my topic for my I-search. I think that combining something I feel I have good knowledge of with the Internet will help me weed out the facts from fiction. Here are some things I know about hockey. The Stanley Cup is the oldest trophy in North American Sports. It gets passed from team to team, unlike some other trophies. In the NHL, the players play for the Cup, not for the championship ring, or the championship itself. The winning team gets it's names on the Cup for all time and each player gets to spend a couple of days with the Cup over the summer. The hall of fame provides a "Cup Keeper" whose job is to stay with the cup at all times. Most hockey players in the US and Canada have dreamt of hoisting the Cup since they first put on skates. (Simon) As you can see, I am very passionate about the Cup, and could write my whole paper on its rich history, which began in the late 1800's. I am sure there are other people like me on the Internet, so my goal is to find them. I will try to use message boards as well as chat rooms. I plan to ask them about stories they have heard about when the players had the Cup. I imagine I will get better results on message boards, so I will concentrate more on these than the chat rooms. Another assumption I have is that certain teams will be more receptive to answering questions from me.

Cell phones Essay

First, cell phones are impersonal and rather anti-social. If a kid were using their phone to text during class all the time, they would not need to be as good at actually talking to others, which would degenerate social skills, which are very important in life for jobs, creating good family relationships, and making and keeping friends. It is not just about safety or reassurance. Yes, I want my kids to call each morning when they arrive at school and each afternoon when they leave, and there are so few pay phones anymore on which to do that. However, my children’s lives are also enriched by the freedom to travel to a variety of extracurricular activities or social engagements without an adult chaperone. That is only possible because an adult is just a phone call away. If children are not allowed to keep their cell phones during the school day—off and in their backpacks or lockers—the school system is governing my parenting and my children’s behavior during non-school time. The affecting school has no such right. Besides, teachers should be teaching, not spending precious time tagging and bagging confiscated electronics. Secondly, the mobile phones can be a distraction to the students if the school allows them to bring. For instance, during lesson time, it is known that students cannot use it when the teacher is teaching. Some students may just use it underneath their desks or behind their textbook and ultimately this will affect their grades. Lastly, bringing mobile phones to school will only increase the temptations of other students to steal the phones. As some students have the newest, latest phones like the ‘iPhone 4s’ and ‘Samsung Galaxy S2†², some bad students may keep a look out and might steal from them. Not only will the victim be disheartened, the thief will think that he or she will be able to get away from it every time. However, there are some reasons why mobile phones should not be banned in schools. For example, if there is a family emergency like the student’s grandma is in the hospital, or his or her house caught fire, their parents will be able to contact them. In addition, it would certainly be distracting for the teacher trying to talk over student’s who are talking when they are. One of the best ways to get in trouble during class is to talk when the teacher is talking, for it district’s the teacher, the student, and their classmate’s; if cell phone  were allowed in school, they would increase the amount of time students are talking when they don’t need to, making the class more difficult to teach, take longer, and be less educational. Cell phones could also provide a means of cheating on tests. Almost all cell phones have texting, and kids have become good at texting without being caught. It would be easy for kids to text each other the answer’s to test’s during testing session’s if everyone is allowed to use their phone during class. If teachers ask what students are doing, they can just say that they are texting their mom. These days, mobile phones are everywhere on the streets. Mobile phones are not what they used to be for only calling or texting. Now, there are games, music and camera functions available in a mobile phone. Hence, I agree that mobile phones should be banned in schools, as there are disadvantages of students bringing their phones to school. Firstly, bringing their mobile phones to school is troubling matter. As students might misplace their mobile phones in the school canteen or their classrooms and forget them. There may be dishonest students who will take the mobile phone and not report it to the discipline head. This is one of the reasons why mobile phones should be banned. In a society where almost everyone over the impressive age of thirteen carries a cell phone, pager, or both, many school systems have banned these items from school grounds. Why? Many say it is due to the powerful ‘potential problems’, such as texting during classes. Others say it is because they interrupt the learning environment. Whatever the reason the powerful school boards give, should cell phones really be banned from school premise? In a day and age where everyone relies heavily upon modern technology for communication, cell phones are a good thing to have, especially for high school students. Many students have after-school activities, such as a sport or a club that they participate in after school hours, when most people, including the office staff, have already gone home for the day. The students need a way to contact their parents during and after these activities, and vice versa. If cell phones were banned from school grounds, even just during school hours, how would the kids contact their parents afterwards? With only one or two phones in the spectacular office or on a coach, having thirty or more students per activity coming in to use the phone one after the affecting other is just ridiculous. It would take hours, something that would take minutes overall if the kids each had their own cell phone. The board, principals, and teachers alike are concerned that if cell phones are allowed in school, there will be problems with texting in class. The solution to this is to make a rule that says cell phones have to be off and put away during school hours. If a student is caught texting in class, have the teacher take up the phone for the spectacular day, or maybe even until the next day. This seems like a reasonable compromise, because that way the kids are still able to contact whomever they need to after school, but are free from distractions during the day. So that they can call and let their parent’s know to come pick them up after a sport is over. So if they are sick or they are not felling so well so that their parents could come and pick them up if they do not feel so good. Cell phones, while they might seem like nothing but a distraction and a safety hazard for school across the country, are in actuality quite the opposite. Banning cell phones from the school premises will only ever have detrimental effects. As long as there is a sensible rule in place, such as †Students are required to leave cell phones off and out of sight during school hours†, there is no chance of distraction’s or of safety hazards because of them. After all, there is probably more of a chance a kid will trip and fall than the chance of a cell phone being a distraction when it is turned off, is not there. However, cell phones can also be used for less important reason’s, such as excessive amounts of texting. One big issue concerning cell phones and teenagers is the use of cell phones in school. Many teenagers believe that cell phone’s should be allowed in school, during class. However, cell phones should not be allowed during school, because they would provide distractions for students and teachers, allow for cheating on tests, and for other social reasons. If a student’s cell phone rang during class, it would obviously distract him from the class and whatever the teacher is teaching. If this continued, it could prove detrimental to that student’s education. In conclusion, considering all the reasons, I strongly stand with that mobile phones should be banned as it is a distraction to the students and their phones might be stolen. Should there be an emergency, the parents can call up the school and the school can immediately inform the student. Thus, mobile phones should be banned in schools. It would be quite distracting for those student’s, and for their classmate’s. Cell phones also can cause social â€Å"problem’s†, which would only increase if cell phones were allowed in school.

Facebook vs. Twitter Essay

In the age of technology, trends come and go almost instantaneously. The trend of the decade; Social Media. Ten years ago when someone thought of Social Media, he or she only thought about Myspace. Today, however, Myspace is an afterthought, and there are two new faces atop the Social Media world. These new faces are Facebook and Twitter. They may seem very similar but they are extraordinarily different in their overall structure, their friend/follower format and their communication layout. Even though Facebook and Twitter are both set up to make it easier for people to communicate, they are structured much differently. Facebook, on one hand, gives the operator the total ability to customize his/her wall. From favorite foods to relationship status, Facebook truly has it all. One can write a vague description of his or her life in the â€Å"about me† section or a detailed autobiography instead. After that, if one wants to tell what he/she is doing, he/she can write a post with no limits. Facebook, without question, gives the user the ability to completely customize his/her page; whereas Twitter is set up in a much more basic format using a Twitter Feed. A twitter feed is basically a wall in the vaguest sense. The user can write a brief biography, which has a maximum amount of characters about oneself on the top of his/her page. Also one can â€Å"tweet† his/her thoughts, in limited characters as well, to depict what he/she is thinking. So Twitter is far les s user friendly than Facebook. In addition to the differences in structure, Facebook and Twitter also have different friend/follower formats. Essentially, Facebook and Twitter are set up differently in the way friends are made. Facebook is set up in such a way that one can find his or her friends and send a friend request, and if one’s friend accepts, the website lists that person in the user’s friends list. Once that person has friends, he or she can use a privacy setting where only the user’s friends can see his or her wall. In this way, Facebook lets users know what his/her friends are doing. On the other hand, Twitter is set up with the concept of followers. This means if one wants to add another user as a friend, all the user must do is click â€Å"follow†. Any user can follow another user which will allow him or her to see what that user is doing. Lastly, Facebook and Twitter have different communication setups. Both Facebook and Twitter allow  users to send direct messages to f riends, but both websites have different ways to communicate. Facebook allows users to post on another user’s wall to start a conversation. As well as using posts, one can also comment on a friend’s post. If a user is interested in one of his or her friend’s posts, the user can simply click the comment button to say what is on his/her mind. Twitter on the other hand, does not give its users as many ways to communicate. In addition to the already stated direct messaging Twitter only allows its users to tag their friends in a tweet to talk. If they do not want to direct message, they can publically message them. So in the communication aspect, Facebook definitely has the advantage. On the surface, Facebook and Twitter seem alike but they are definitively different. Facebook and Twitter each have different structures, friend/follower formats, and communication layouts. Facebook is much more user friendly allowing its users to fully customize their walls and statuses in an unlimited amount of characters, giving the user complete control of their wall. Also, Facebook is much more private in the ability to accept a friend request which gives that user to view one’s profile. Twitter on the other hand has a much simpler layout with very little privacy.

Profile of Sean Vincent Gillis

Profile of Sean Vincent Gillis Sean Vincent Gillis murdered and mutilated eight women between 1994 and 2003 in and around Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Dubbed as the Other Baton Rouge Killer his arrest came after the arrest of his rival, Baton Rouge Serial Killer, Derrick Todd Lee. Sean Gillis Childhood Years Sean Vincent Gillis was born on June 24, 1962, in Baton Rouge, LA to Norman and Yvonne Gillis. Struggling with alcoholism and mental illness, Norman Gillis left the family soon after Sean was born. Yvonne Gillis struggled to raise Sean alone while maintaining a full-time job at a local television station. His grandparents also took an active role in his life, often caring for him when Yvonne had to work. Gillis had all the characteristics of a normal child. It wasnt until his younger teen years that some of his peers and neighbors caught a glimpse of his darker side. Education and Catholic Values Education and religion were important to Yvonne and she managed to scrape together enough money to enroll Sean into parochial schools. But Sean did not have much interest in school and maintained only average grades. This did not bother Yvonne. She thought her son was brilliant. High School Years Gillis was an odd teenager which did not make him very popular at school, but he did have two best friends that he hung out with a lot. The group would usually hang around Gillis house. With Yvonne at work, ​they could talk freely about girls, Star Trek, listen to music and sometimes even smoke a little pot. Computers and Pornography After graduating from high school Gillis got a job at a convenience store. When not at work he spent much of his time on his computer looking at pornographic websites. Over time Gillis obsession to look at pornography online seemed to fester and affect his personality. He would skip work and other responsibilities in order to stay at home alone with his computer. Yvonne Moves Away In 1992 Yvonne decided to take a new job in Atlanta. She asked Gillis to come with her, but he did not want to go, so she agreed to continue to pay the mortgage on the house so that Gillis had a place to live. Gillis, now 30, was living alone for the first time in his life and he could do as he pleased because no one was watching. Howling But people were watching. His neighbors saw him late at night sometimes in his yard howling at the sky and cursing his mother for leaving. They caught him peeping into the window of a young woman who lived next door. They saw his friends coming and going and could sometimes smell the scent of marijuana from his house on hot summer nights. Many of Gillis neighbors quietly wished that he would move away. Simply put, he gave them the creeps. Love In 1994 Sean and Terri Lemoine met each other through a mutual friend. They had similar hobbies and bonded quickly. Terri found Sean to be an underachiever, but kind and considerate. She helped him get a job at the same convenience store where she worked. Terri loved Gillis  but did not like that he was a heavy drinker. She also was confused by his lack of interest in sex, a problem she eventually accepted and blamed on his addiction to pornography. What she didnt realize was that Gillis interest in porn was centered around sites that focused on rape, death, and dismemberment of women. She also did not know that in March of 1994, he acted out on his fantasies with his first of many victims, an 81-year-old woman named Ann Bryan. Ann Bryan On March 20, 1994, Ann Bryan, 81, was living at St. James Place which was an assisted-living facility located across the street from the convenience store where Gillis worked. As she often would do, Ann left the door to her apartment unlocked before retiring to bed so that she did not have to get up to let the nurse in the next morning. Gillis entered Anns apartment around 3 a.m. and stabbed her to death after his attempt to rape her failed. He slashed at her 47 times, almost decapitating and disemboweling the small elderly woman. He seemed fixated on stabbing at her face, genitals, and breasts. Ann Bryans murder shocked the Baton Rouge community. It would be another 10 years before her murderer was caught and five years before Gillis would attack again. But once he started back his list of victims grew quickly. Victims Terri and Gillis began living together in 1995 soon after he murdered Ann Bryan and for the next five years, the need to murder and butcher women seemed to go away. But then Gillis got bored and in January 1999 he once again started to stalk the streets of Baton Rouge looking for a victim. Over the next five years, he killed seven more women, mostly prostitutes, with the exception of Hardee Schmidt who came from an affluent area of the city and became his victim after he spotted her jogging in her neighborhood. Gillis victims included: Ann Bryan, aged 81, murdered March 21, 1994.Katherine Ann Hall, aged 29, murdered January 4, 1999.Hardee Schmidt, aged 52, murdered May 30, 1999.Joyce Williams, aged 36, murdered November 12, 1999.Lillian Robinson, aged 52, murdered in January 2000.Marilyn Nevils, aged 38, murdered in October 2000.Johnnie Mae Williams, aged 45, murdered in October 2003.Donna Bennett Johnston, aged 43, murdered February 26, 2004. The Baton Rouge Serial Killer During much of the time that Gillis was busy murdering, dismembering and cannibalizing Baton Rouge women, there was another serial killer that prowled the college community. The unsolved murders were beginning to pile up and as a result, a task force of investigators was organized. Derrick Todd Lee was apprehended on May 27, 2003, and dubbed the Baton Rouge Serial Killer, and the community breathed a sigh of relief. What many did not realize, however, was that Lee was just one of two or maybe three serial killers on the loose in south Louisiana. Arrest and Conviction The murder of Donna Bennett Johnston was what finally led police to the Sean Gillis door. Pictures of her murder scene revealed tire tracks near where her body was found. With the help of engineers at the Goodyear Tire Company, the police were able to identify the tire and had a list of everyone who bought it in Baton Rouge. They then set out to contact all of the people on the list in order to get a DNA sample. Sean Vincent Gillis was number 26 on the list. On April 29, 2004, Gillis was arrested for murder after his DNA sample matched the DNA found on hairs on two of his victims. It did not take long for Gillis to start confessing after he was in police custody. The detectives sat listening to Gillis proudly describe the grotesque details of each of the murders. At times he laughed and joked as he described how he had cut off the arm of one victim, consumed the flesh of another, raped the corpses of others and masturbated with the severed parts of his victims. After Gillis was arrested a search of his home turned up 45 digital images on his computer of the mutilated body of Donna Johnston. Prison Letters During the time that Gillis remained in jail awaiting his trial, he exchanged letters with Tammie Purpera, a friend of victim Donna Johnston. In the letters, he describes the murder of her friend and for the first time even showed a glimpse of remorse: She was so drunk it only took about a minute and a half to succumb to unconsciousness and then death. Honestly, her last words were I cant breathe. I still puzzle over the post-mortem dismemberment and cutting. There must be something deep in my subconscious that really needs that kind of macabre action. Purpera died of AIDS not long after receiving the letters. She did, however, have the opportunity before dying to give all of Gillis letters to the police. Sentencing Gillis was arrested and charged with the murders of Katherine Hall, Johnnie Mae Williams, and Donna Bennett Johnston. He stood trial for these crimes on July 21, 2008, and was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. A year prior to that he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was convicted in the killing of 36-year-old Joyce Williams. To date, he has been charged and convicted of seven of the eight murders. Police are still trying to gather more evidence to charge him with the murder of Lillian Robinson.