Offender explanations of crime were coded according to factors related to internal control, impaired internal control, randomized external control, external orchestration or provocation, fault in the legal system, external control, and equivocal statements. Information contained in presentence investigations was used to complete 13 subscales from the Hare Psychopathy Scale. It was hypothesized that increasing levels of psychopathy measured by these subscales would be negatively associated with explanations of internalized control and positively associated with other explanations. Previously and independently documented patterns of pathological lying, lack of remorse or guilt, callousness or lack of empathy, and failure to accept responsibility for their own behavior were significantly associated with the offenders not admitting responsibility for their crimes. Further, independently described histories of pathological lying were associated with criminals blaming their convictions on a faulty criminal justice system. Histories of failure to accept responsibility for their own behavior were associated with blaming someone else for index crimes. Study limitations and alternative theoretical interpretations of the results are examined. 54 references and 1 table