Why Do So Many Assassins Have Three Names? Inside the Strange Phenomenon

Throughout history, humanity has been up against the evils of assassins, killers, and other sorts of criminals. While people may get frustrated and disenfranchised by political issues, violence is never the answer. And yet, several three-named people have resorted to violence in an attempt to follow some sort of skewed belief system.

Take Lee Harvey Oswald, President John F. Kennedy’s assassin, or John Wilkes Booth, President Abraham Lincoln’s assassin. Both had three names. Now, Thomas Matthew Crooks, who shot former President Donald Trump’s ear in an attempt to assassinate him, is also referred to by three names. But why?

Assassins and killers are often referred to by three names, and there's a thory that using three names makes the wrongdoer more distinguishable from an innocent person who may share their first and last name.

For example, Thomas Crooks is likely a common name in America. In fact, we can all probably recall several people named Thomas, as well as one or two folks with the last name Crooks. This is even more common when it comes to serial killers. For instance, John Wayne Gacy was referred to by three names, alongside Robert Lee Yates, Donald Henry Gaskins, Carl Eugene Watts, and more.

According to Slate, however, several assassins went by three names before they ever became notorious for being an assassins. Other assassins and attempted assassins, like Richard Lawrence, are known by two names. So probably, it's just an odd coincidence that there are several assassins known by three names.

However, there is a practical reason all three of a killer’s names are often shared.

Typically, whenever a reporter is breaking a story about an assassin or killer, they refer to the official police report for the facts. In police reports, officials often write the full legal name of the suspect for both identification and legal purposes. If a killer has three names, the media will then read their full name off of the police report in order to keep the information as factual and unbiased as possible.

Police report quotes then can’t be misconstrued by media critics as any sort of theory regarding the case. As stories follow the media cycle, reporters will then use other outlets as sources, often resharing the full name first given to the assassins. While Thomas Matthew Crooks may not have made history the same way as his predecessors, he still made the cut for the three-named club.