In the 1950's, 1960's and 1970's, psychologists and psychiatrists were brought in to aid several highly publicized homicide investigations. The use of these professionals to help identify a 'type' of offender has led to a recognized interdisciplinary approach in investigations. Law enforcement's use of profiles remained sporadic until 1978, however. In that year, the FBI established a Psychological Profiling Program as part of its Behavioral Science Unit in Quantico, Va. The program interacted with professionals in psychiatry and psychology to develop profiles for use by local law enforcement agencies. In 1981, a system to identify serial murderers was introduced by Pierce Brooks, a retired police chief and homicide commander of the Los Angeles Police Department. This Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VI-CAP) was designed to gather and analyze investigative data using computer and communications technology. The success of these two programs produced Federal legislation to establish a National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime in July 1984. This center is based at the FBI Academy in Quantico and will permit local agencies to submit data for the analysis and identification of similar crime patterns in other jurisdictions. This effort should promote coordinated, multiagency investigations and more rapid apprehension of offenders.