At the age of 4, Dahmer underwent a double hernia operation; in the Netflix limited series, Lionel blames the procedure for his son's heinous criminal behavior, claiming he was never the same following the surgery. According to Entertainment Daily, Dahmer's real-life parents suggested their son's mood darkened after the operation.
Dahmer's parents claimed their son became a "withdrawn" and "shy child" who eventually developed a disturbing obsession with animals — he would often collect roadkill and dismember their bodies. The outlet also noted that Dahmer once "decapitated a dog's carcass and nailed its skull to a tree."
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Plus, Lionel appeared on Good Morning America in the '90s to delve more into his bizarre theory. He stated that "there were several events in his life, starting with the hernia operation," that may have influenced his wretched actions. Lionel also briefly noted that Dahmer experienced "a blow to the back of the head" as a child.
“All these things came to a cumulative ending, and ... I firmly believe [these incidents] hooked into his sexuality at age 14 or 15," he said on GMA. "There really were no overt signs. He wasn't foaming at the mouth, or talking to himself in his sleep, or acting in a weird fashion."
Currently, there is no scientific evidence that a hernia surgery can lead to murderous instincts.
