Former FBI profiler says she knew it was time to quit after she hid every kitchen knife in her house

Aug 05, 2026 04:44 PM - 1 month ago 430

The turning constituent for erstwhile FBI supplier Jana Monroe came erstwhile her hubby couldn't find a azygous room weapon successful their home.

Monroe had spent years studying serial killers, convulsive crime scenes, and the psychology down immoderate of the country's astir disturbing crimes. By then, she realized she had started bringing those cases location pinch her.

"I'd been moving respective cases wherever a weapon was involved," said Monroe, who spent complete 20 years arsenic an FBI agent crossed respective units. "They were each stabbing victims, and each of them, the offender had travel successful and utilized their ain knives — the victim's knives."

She gathered each weapon successful the location and hid them successful the apparel dryer successful the basement of the family's three-story townhouse.

Psychologists and law-enforcement agencies sometimes picture this benignant of guidance arsenic occupational hypervigilance: the authorities of perpetually scanning for threat that tin beryllium useful astatine activity but difficult to move disconnected astatine home.

"I thought, 'Aha. Somebody breaks successful here, they're not going to usage our knives. They're going to person to bring their ain knife,'" Monroe told Business Insider for an section of its video bid "How Crime Works."

Jana Monroe, dressed successful a suit astatine a podium, astatine the U.S. Department of Justice successful Washington, D.C. successful 2004.

Her hubby came location while Monroe was distant interviewing female prisoners. Looking to make a peanut food and jelly sandwich, he called to inquire wherever each the utensils had gone.

"I told him and he said, 'I deliberation we request to talk erstwhile you travel home,'" Monroe recalled.

The infinitesimal crystallized thing Monroe had already begun to notice.

"I'd benignant of gone to the acheronian side," she said.

Looking astatine humanity done crime scenes

Monroe joined the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit successful 1985 aft becoming the first female assigned to the elite profiling group.

Fun fact, she advised and coached Jodie Foster's characteristic successful "The Silence of the Lambs," Clarice Starling.

Best Actor recipient Anthony Hopkins stands pinch Best Actress recipient Jodie Foster astatine the 64th yearly Academy Awards March 30, 1992 successful Los Angeles, CA.

During Monroe's tenure, she worked astir 850 cases involving homicide investigations, question and reply strategies, and behavioral analysis.

Eventually, she said, it began changing really she viewed different people.

The aforesaid instincts that helped Monroe spot behavioral patterns successful violent offenders besides made it harder to spot mean group arsenic safe. She recovered herself expecting the worst from strangers, replaying convulsive scenarios, and making decisions astatine location based connected crimes she'd investigated.

"I began to look astatine each quality quality arsenic bad," Monroe said.

Many of her friends and colleagues besides worked successful rule enforcement, meaning conversations often centered connected convulsive crimes, coercion investigations, aliases different disturbing cases.

"It became conscionable thing to maine that was for illustration a unreality aliases an anvil hanging over," she said.

Learning to spot the bully again

Old photograph of a young Jana Monroe connected the telephone successful an agency setting.

Monroe's guidance of hiding each the knives successful her location was extreme, but the occupational consequence down it is well-documented.

Studies person estimated that astir 4% to 19% of constabulary unit acquisition PTSD, though the complaint varies depending connected really researchers measurement it.

The Justice Department has besides warned that routinely operating successful a authorities of hypervigilance tin impact the tense system, while repeated vulnerability to trauma tin lend to burnout, slumber problems, depression, and difficulties successful individual relationships.

After the knives incident, Monroe yet decided to time off profiling and return to much accepted FBI assignments. She yet became the bureau's first adjunct head of the cyber division.

Looking back, she said she doesn't regret her years arsenic a profiler. "I wouldn't waste and acquisition it for anything," Monroe said.

However, stepping distant from profiling besides helped reconstruct thing she felt she had lost.

"I started looking for and uncovering the bully qualities successful people," she said. "It made maine much tolerant because I cognize what we're tin of arsenic quality beings, because I saw it, but I besides cognize that there's the bully portion too."

Jessica Orwig is simply a elder editor astatine Business Insider, wherever she collaborates pinch reporters, editors, and producers crossed teams to shape, write, edit, and people stories that link pinch a world audience. While her roots are successful subject and exertion journalism, her activity coming spans business, careers, culture, and the large ideas shaping the future.She earned her Master’s successful Science & Technology Journalism from Texas A&M University and holds a Bachelor’s successful Astronomy & Physics from The Ohio State University. Throughout her career, she’s helped lead sum connected everything from abstraction exploration and ambiance alteration to innovation, the early of work, and evolving taste trends.Career HighlightsLed sum connected technological milestones, including:

Blue Origin's inaugural New Glenn launch
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Carter Thallon is simply a NYC-based elder managing shaper for Business Insider's video team. He has antecedently worked astatine Vox, CBS, and A&E Networks.