Cases in which a court convicted the defendant of, or accepted a guilty plea to, two or more murders committed on separate occasions.
This topic follows the FBI's definition of serial murder: "The unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s) in separate events." (Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators (FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime, 2008))
A case is listed here only on the strength of a court record: the convictions or guilty pleas themselves. Killings a person is suspected of but was never convicted of are not counted, and people who are charged but not yet tried are not listed or described this way.
State of Florida v. Wuornos · Volusia County, Florida · 1992 · Convicted of or pleaded guilty to 6 murders, each committed on a separate occasion.
People v. Manson · Los Angeles County, California · 1971 · Convicted of 9 murders, committed on at least 4 separate occasions.
State of Wisconsin v. Dahmer · Milwaukee, Wisconsin · 1992 · Pleaded guilty to 16 murders, each committed on a separate occasion.
People of the State of Illinois v. Gacy · Cook County, Illinois · 1980 · Convicted of 33 murders, committed on at least 2 separate occasions.
People v. Heuermann · Suffolk County, New York · 2026 · Pleaded guilty to 7 murders, each committed on a separate occasion.
Bundy v. State · Miami and Orlando, Florida · 1979–1980 · Convicted of 3 murders, committed on at least 2 separate occasions.