Jeffrey Dahmer Killed Three People In His Grandma’s Basement
Jeffrey Dahmer has been on everyone's minds for a minute now. The serial killer, who targeted and murdered 17 men, is the focus of Netflix's chart-topping miniseries, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which dropped last month and takes viewers through the serial killer's decades of undetected crimes.
Another three-part, Netflix docuseries, Conversations with a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes, premiered on Oct. 7, and the buzz around Dahmer, his life, and his family, has continued.
While living with his grandmother, Catherine Dahmer, in Wisconsin, Jeffrey Dahmer is thought to have killed four men in gruesome ways that involved cannibalism and necrophilia, per Encyclopedia Britannica. Three of the murders actually took place in her home.
Dahmer lived in Catherine's home through much of his killing spree, although she didn't know about the violent acts being committed in her basement. But she eventually threw him out in 1990 after roughly nine years of living together.
While there are never-ending questions about Jeffrey Dahmer, his horrific crimes, and his victims, you may also be curious about the relationship he had with his grandmother. So, here's what to know about Catherine Dahmer.
Who is Catherine Dahmer?
Catherine Dahmer, born Catherine Hughes, is the grandmother of Jeffrey Dahmer and the mother of Lionel Dahmer. She was born in 1904 and was one of seven children. Later in life she married Herbert Dahmer, and the couple were married until Herbert's death in 1971, per The Sun.
Where did Jeffrey Dahmer's grandmother live?
The address of his grandmother's home is 2357 S. 57th Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, according to Morbid Tourism.
Who plays Catherine, Dahmer's grandma, in Monster?
Michael Learned portrays Catherine Dahmer in Ryan Murphy's series, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
The 83-year-old actress has won four Emmy Awards and is most commonly known for her role as Olivia Walton in the CBS drama series The Waltons, per Distractify.
When discussing her work in Monster, Michael said "I have admired everything Ryan Murphy has produced so far," when talking to Fox News in March. She added that she feels "very privileged to have worked with him… In fact, I feel privileged to work at all, at my age."
How long did Dahmer live with his grandma?
After Jeffrey Dahmer was discharged from the military in 1981, he returned to Ohio to live with his father and his stepmother, Shari Dahmer. During that time, he continued to drink heavily and got arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct, per Biography.
Dahmer's family sent him to live with his grandmother in Wisconsin shortly after his arrest in the hopes that she'd provide a positive influence. While living with Catherine, Dahmer attended church with his grandma and helped with chores around the house, per Distractify.
But Dahmer was arrested again in 1982 for indecent exposure at a Wisconsin State Fair, per Biography. He was also charged with disorderly conduct in 1986 after masturbating in front of two boys.
Catherine told Dahmer to move out in 1988. However, he returned just months later and continued his crimes in her basement. He officially moved out in 1990, after living with his grandmother for around nine years, per Distractify.
Jeffrey Dahmer committed crimes in his grandmother's basement.
After killing his first victim at his parents' house in Ohio in 1978, Dahmer returned to his homicidal ways in 1987, Biography reported.
Although he killed his second victim, Steven Tuomi, in a hotel room, he later brought the body back to his grandmother's home where he dismembered it, according to Biography.
He then went on to lure and murder three more people in his grandma's basement, per Distractify.
Did his grandma know what was going on?
Catherine Dahmer was not aware of the murders occurring in her own home, but the limited series suggests she had some suspicions. On the show, she complains about the foul odors coming from her basement. In the series, Dahmer would tell her that the gross smells were just "taxidermy stuff."
IRL, Dahmer's late night antics and the unpleasant stench coming from her basement were why Catherine asked him to move out, per Distractify.
Did Jeffrey Dahmer kill his grandmother?
No. Dahmer did not kill his grandmother, and it's been said that Catherine was the only family member that he showed affection toward.
Additionally, criminal psychologists believe that because his crimes were sexually motivated due to his repressed homosexuality, he didn't have a reason to kill her, per Distractify.
Catherine Dahmer died on December 25, 1992, at the age of 88, according to photos of her headstone. She shares her burial spot in Highland Memorial Park with her husband.
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