Research Note: Assessing the Perceived Seriousness of White-Collar and Street Crimes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piquero, Nicole Leeper; Carmichael, Stephanie; Piquero, Alex R.

2008-01-01

Controversy surrounds the ranking of crime seriousness of white-collar crimes relative to street crimes, with early research suggesting the general public is indifferent to crimes of the elite, whereas more recent research indicates that the public thinks certain types of white-collar crime are serious. Building on prior research limitations and…

Adapting a tourism crime typology: classifying outdoor recreation crime

Treesearch

Joanne F. Tynon; Deborah J. Chavez

2006-01-01

Using a qualitative aproach, the authors tested a crime typology developed for tourism destinations in a U.S. National Forest recreation setting. Specific objectives were to classify the attributes of crime and violence, examine the effects of crime and violence on visitor demand, and suggest methods of prevention and recovery. A key modification to the crime typology...

The Relationship of Campus Crime to Campus and Community Characteristics. AIR 1993 Annual Forum Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Volkwein, J. Fredericks; And Others

A study of campus crime trends from 1974 to 1990 examines the relationships between campus crime and college characteristics. The research drew on merged national databases containing federal crime statistics, community demographic data, and campus characteristics. The results show that campus rates of both violent crime and property crime are…

Crime and Psychiatric Disorders Among Youth in the US Population: An Analysis of National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement

PubMed Central

Coker, Kendell L.; Smith, Philip H.; Westphal, Alexander; Zonana, Howard V.; McKee, Sherry A.

2014-01-01

Objective Current knowledge regarding psychiatric disorders and crime in youth is limited to juvenile justice and community samples. This study examined relationships between psychiatric disorders and self-reported crime involvement in a sample of youth representative of the US population. Method The National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement (N=10,123; ages 13–17; 2001–2004) was used to examine the relationship between lifetime DSM-IV-based diagnoses, reported crime (property, violent, other), and arrest history. Logistic regression compared the odds of reported crime involvement with specific psychiatric disorders to those without any diagnoses, and examined the odds of crime by psychiatric comorbidity. Results Prevalence of crime was 18.4%. Youth with lifetime psychiatric disorders, compared to no disorders, had significantly greater odds of crime, including violent crime. For violent crime resulting in arrest, conduct disorder (CD; OR=57.5; 95% CI=30.4,108.8), alcohol use disorders (OR=19.5; 95% CI=8.8,43.2), and drug use disorders (OR=16.1; 95% CI=9.3,27.7) had the greatest odds with similar findings for violent crime with no arrest. Psychiatric comorbidity increased the odds of crime. Youth with 3 or more diagnoses (16.0% of population) accounted for 54.1% of those reporting arrest for violent crime. Youth with at least 1 diagnosis committed 85.8% of crime, which was reduced to 67.9% by removing those with CD. Importantly, 88.2% of youth with mental illness report never committing any crime. Conclusion Our findings highlight the importance of improving access to mental health services for youthful offenders in community settings given the substantial associations found between mental illness and crime in this nationally representative epidemiological sample. PMID:25062596

Spatial analysis of crime incidence and adolescent physical activity.

PubMed

Robinson, Alyssa I; Carnes, Fei; Oreskovic, Nicolas M

2016-04-01

Adolescents do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity. Crime is believed to be a barrier to physical activity among youth, but findings are inconsistent. This study compares the spatial distribution of crime incidences and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among adolescents in Massachusetts between 2011 and 2012, and examines the correlation between crime and MVPA. Eighty adolescents provided objective physical activity (accelerometer) and location (Global Positioning Systems) data. Crime report data were obtained from the city police department. Data were mapped using geographic information systems, and crime and MVPA densities were calculated using kernel density estimations. Spearman's correlation tested for associations between crime and MVPA. Overall, 1694 reported crimes and 16,702min of MVPA were included in analyses. A strong positive correlation was present between crime and adolescent MVPA (ρ=0.72, p<0.0001). Crime remained positively associated with MVPA in locations falling within the lowest quartile (ρ=0.43, p<0.0001) and highest quartile (ρ=0.32, p<0.0001) of crime density. This study found a strong positive association between crime and adolescent MVPA, despite research suggesting the opposite relationship. This counterintuitive finding may be explained by the logic of a common destination: neighborhood spaces which are desirable destinations and promote physical activity may likewise attract crime. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Spatial Analysis of Crime Incidence and Adolescent Physical Activity

PubMed Central

Robinson, Alyssa I.; Carnes, Fei

2016-01-01

Adolescents do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity. Crime is believed to be a barrier to physical activity among youth, but findings are inconsistent. This study compares the spatial distribution of crime incidences and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among adolescents in Massachusetts between 2011 and 2012, and examines the correlation between crime and MVPA. Eighty adolescents provided objective physical activity (accelerometer) and location (Global Positioning Systems) data. Crime report data were obtained from the city police department. Data were mapped using geographic information systems, and crime and MVPA densities were calculated using kernel density estimations. Spearman’s correlation tested for associations between crime and MVPA. Overall, 1,694 reported crimes and 16,702 minutes of MVPA were included in analyses. A strong positive correlation was present between crime and adolescent MVPA (ρ=0.72, p<0.0001). Crime remained positively associated with MVPA in locations falling within the lowest quartile (ρ=0.43, p<0.0001) and highest quartile (ρ=0.32, p<0.0001) of crime density. This study found a strong positive association between crime and adolescent MVPA, despite research suggesting the opposite relationship. This counterintuitive finding may be explained by the logic of a common destination: neighborhood spaces which are desirable destinations and promote physical activity may likewise attract crime. PMID:26820115

Analyses of Crime Patterns in NIBRS Data Based on a Novel Graph Theory Clustering Method: Virginia as a Case Study

PubMed Central

Nolan, Jim

2014-01-01

This paper suggests a novel clustering method for analyzing the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data, which include the determination of correlation of different crime types, the development of a likelihood index for crimes to occur in a jurisdiction, and the clustering of jurisdictions based on crime type. The method was tested by using the 2005 assault data from 121 jurisdictions in Virginia as a test case. The analyses of these data show that some different crime types are correlated and some different crime parameters are correlated with different crime types. The analyses also show that certain jurisdictions within Virginia share certain crime patterns. This information assists with constructing a pattern for a specific crime type and can be used to determine whether a jurisdiction may be more likely to see this type of crime occur in their area. PMID:24778585

Exploring the Ecological Association Between Crime and Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

PubMed Central

Kepple, Nancy J.; Freisthler, Bridget

2012-01-01

Objective: Routine activities theory purports that crime occurs in places with a suitable target, motivated offender, and lack of guardianship. Medical marijuana dispensaries may be places that satisfy these conditions, but this has not yet been studied. The current study examined whether the density of medical marijuana dispensaries is associated with crime. Method: An ecological, cross-sectional design was used to explore the spatial relationship between density of medical marijuana dispensaries and two types of crime rates (violent crime and property crime) in 95 census tracts in Sacramento, CA, during 2009. Spatial error regression methods were used to determine associations between crime rates and density of medical marijuana dispensaries, controlling for neighborhood characteristics associated with routine activities. Results: Violent and property crime rates were positively associated with percentage of commercially zoned areas, percentage of one-person households, and unemployment rate. Higher violent crime rates were associated with concentrated disadvantage. Property crime rates were positively associated with the percentage of population 15–24 years of age. Density of medical marijuana dispensaries was not associated with violent or property crime rates. Conclusions: Consistent with previous work, variables measuring routine activities at the ecological level were related to crime. There were no observed cross-sectional associations between the density of medical marijuana dispensaries and either violent or property crime rates in this study. These results suggest that the density of medical marijuana dispensaries may not be associated with crime rates or that other factors, such as measures dispensaries take to reduce crime (i.e., doormen, video cameras), may increase guardianship such that it deters possible motivated offenders. PMID:22630790

Exploring the ecological association between crime and medical marijuana dispensaries.

PubMed

Kepple, Nancy J; Freisthler, Bridget

2012-07-01

Routine activities theory purports that crime occurs in places with a suitable target, motivated offender, and lack of guardianship. Medical marijuana dispensaries may be places that satisfy these conditions, but this has not yet been studied. The current study examined whether the density of medical marijuana dispensaries is associated with crime. An ecological, cross-sectional design was used to explore the spatial relationship between density of medical marijuana dispensaries and two types of crime rates (violent crime and property crime) in 95 census tracts in Sacramento, CA, during 2009. Spatial error regression methods were used to determine associations between crime rates and density of medical marijuana dispensaries, controlling for neighborhood characteristics associated with routine activities. Violent and property crime rates were positively associated with percentage of commercially zoned areas, percentage of one-person households, and unemployment rate. Higher violent crime rates were associated with concentrated disadvantage. Property crime rates were positively associated with the percentage of population 15-24 years of age. Density of medical marijuana dispensaries was not associated with violent or property crime rates. Consistent with previous work, variables measuring routine activities at the ecological level were related to crime. There were no observed cross-sectional associations between the density of medical marijuana dispensaries and either violent or property crime rates in this study. These results suggest that the density of medical marijuana dispensaries may not be associated with crime rates or that other factors, such as measures dispensaries take to reduce crime (i.e., doormen, video cameras), may increase guardianship such that it deters possible motivated offenders.

Hate Crime in Los Angeles County 1990. A Report to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatcher, Bunny Nightwalker

A report on 1990 hate crimes in Los Angeles County (California) found 275 racially motivated hate crimes, 150 religiously motivated hate crimes, and 125 sexual orientation hate crimes. The data were collected primarily from law enforcement and community agencies. Of the racially motivated crimes, most were aimed at Blacks, followed by Asians. Jews…

Preventing Hate Crime and Profiling Hate Crime Offenders.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, James F.; Dyson, Laronistine; Brooks, Willie, Jr.

2002-01-01

Despite the Hate Crime Statistics Act, signed into law in 1990 to make hate crimes a federal offense, these types of crimes appear to be continuing in the new millennium. Provides hate crime statistics for 1996-98, presents theories on the cause and spread of hate, asserts that a general profile of those with a propensity to act on hate can be…

Statistical Bits and Pieces: Juvenile Arrests of Persons under Age 18 Reported by State and Types of Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Journal of At-Risk Issues, 2000

2000-01-01

This table reports on juvenile arrests in 1998 by state and type of crime (violent crime, property crime, drug abuse, and alcohol violation). The violent crime index includes the offenses of murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. The property crime index includes burglary, larceny-theft, motor…

The Impact of Racial Slurs and Racism on the Perceptions and Punishment of Violent Crime

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saucier, Donald A.; Hockett, Jericho M.; Wallenberg, Andrew S.

2008-01-01

When a crime is committed by an individual of one race against an individual of another race, there is the possibility that the crime is a hate crime. Legislation often mandates harsher penalties for perpetrators convicted of crimes determined to be hate crimes, yet this determination is difficult to make. This study used vignettes of violent…

Age of crime onset and psychopathic traits in female juvenile delinquents.

PubMed

Pechorro, Pedro; Gonçalves, Rui Abrunhosa; Marôco, João; Nunes, Cristina; Jesus, Saul Neves

2014-09-01

The aim of this study was to analyze the role of psychopathic traits in the age of crime onset of female juvenile delinquents. Using a sample of 132 young females from the Juvenile Detention Centers of the Portuguese Ministry of Justice and from schools in the Lisbon region, a group of early crime onset (n = 44), a group of late crime onset (n = 44), and a nondelinquent school group (n = 44) were formed. Results showed that early crime onset participants score higher on psychopathy measures, self-reported delinquency, and crime seriousness than late crime onset participants and school participants. Psychopathic-traits scores were significantly associated with age of crime onset, age at first trouble with the law, and frequency and seriousness of crime. © The Author(s) 2013.

Analysis of crimes committed against scheduled tribes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khadse, Vivek P.; Akhil, P.; Anto, Christopher; Gnanasigamani, Lydia J.

2017-11-01

One of the curses to the society is a crime which has a deep impact on the society. Victims of crimes are the one who is impacted the most. All communities in the world are affected by crime and the criminal justice system, but largely impacted communities are the backward classes. There are many cases reported of crime committed against scheduled tribes from the year 2005 till date. This paper states the analysis of Crimes Committed against Scheduled Tribes in the year 2015 in various states and union territories in India. In this study, Multiple Linear regression techniques have been used to analyze the crimes committed against scheduled tribes’ community in India. This study compares the number of cases reported to the police station and rate of crime committed in different states in India. It also states the future prediction of the crime that would happen. It will also predict the number of cases of crime committed against the scheduled tribe that can be reported in future. The dataset which has been used in this study is taken from official Indian government repository for crimes which include different information of crimes committed against scheduled tribes in different states and union territories measured under the population census of the year 2011. This study will help different Indian states and union territory government to analyze and predict the future crimes that may occur and take appropriate measures against it before the actual crime would occur.

Assessing Crime as a Problem: The Relationship between Residents' Perception of Crime and Official Crime Rates over 25 Years

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hipp, John R.

2013-01-01

This study compares the relationship between official crime rates in census tracts and resident perceptions of crime. Using a unique data set that links household-level data from the American Housing Survey metro samples over 25 years (1976-1999) with official crime rate data for census tracts in selected cities during selected years, this study…

Objective reports versus subjective perceptions of crime and their relationships to accelerometer-measured physical activity in Hispanic caretaker-child dyads.

PubMed

van Bakergem, Margaret; Sommer, Evan C; Heerman, William J; Hipp, James Aaron; Barkin, Shari L

2017-02-01

Crime and safety are commonly cited barriers to physical activity (PA). We had three objectives, 1) describe the association between objective crime measures and perceptions of crime, 2) analyze the relationships between each type of crime and accelerometer-measured physical activity in caretakers and young children (ages 3-5years), and 3) explore for early gender differences in the relationship between crime and physical activity in young children. Data are from the cross-sectional baseline data of an ongoing randomized controlled trial in Nashville, Tennessee spanning September 2012 through May 2014. Data was analyzed from 480 Hispanic dyads (adult caretaker and 3-5year old child). Objective crime rate was assessed in ArcGIS and perception of crime was measured by caretaker agreement with the statement "The crime rate in my neighborhood makes it unsafe to go on walks." The primary outcome was accelerometer-measured physical activity over seven consecutive days. Objective and perceived crime were significantly positively correlated. Caretaker vigorous PA was significantly related to perceptions of crime; however, its relationship to objective crime was not significant. Child PA was not significantly related to caretaker perceptions of crime. However, interactions suggested that the relationship between crime rate and PA was significantly more negative for girls than for boys. Objective and subjective measures of crime rate are expected to be important correlates of PA, but they appear to have complex relationships that are different for adults than they are for young children, as well as for young girls compared to boys, and research has produced conflicting findings. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Objective reports versus subjective perceptions of crime and their relationships to accelerometer-measured physical activity in Hispanic caretaker-child dyads

PubMed Central

van Bakergem, Margaret; Sommer, Evan C.; Heerman, William J.; Hipp, James Aaron; Barkin, Shari L.

2016-01-01

Crime and safety are commonly cited barriers to physical activity (PA). We had three objectives, 1) describe the association between objective crime measures and perceptions of crime, 2) analyze the relationships between each type of crime and accelerometer-measured physical activity in caretakers and young children (ages 3–5 years), and 3) explore for early gender differences in the relationship between crime and physical activity in young children. Data are from the cross-sectional baseline data of an ongoing randomized controlled trial in Nashville, Tennessee spanning September 2012 through May 2014. Data was analyzed from 480 Hispanic dyads (adult caretaker and 3–5 year old child). Objective crime rate was assessed in ArcGIS and perception of crime was measured by caretaker agreement with the statement “The crime rate in my neighborhood makes it unsafe to go on walks.” The primary outcome was accelerometer-measured physical activity over seven consecutive days. Objective and perceived crime were significantly positively correlated. Caretaker vigorous PA was significantly related to perceptions of crime; however, its relationship to objective crime was not significant. Child PA was not significantly related to caretaker perceptions of crime. However, interactions suggested that the relationship between crime rate and PA was significantly more negative for girls than for boys. Objective and subjective measures of crime rate are expected to be important correlates of PA, but they appear to have complex relationships that are different for adults than they are for young children, as well as for young girls compared to boys, and research has produced conflicting findings. PMID:27939263

Dynamic simulation of crime perpetration and reporting to examine community intervention strategies.

PubMed

Yonas, Michael A; Burke, Jessica G; Brown, Shawn T; Borrebach, Jeffrey D; Garland, Richard; Burke, Donald S; Grefenstette, John J

2013-10-01

To develop a conceptual computational agent-based model (ABM) to explore community-wide versus spatially focused crime reporting interventions to reduce community crime perpetrated by youth. Agents within the model represent individual residents and interact on a two-dimensional grid representing an abstract nonempirically grounded community setting. Juvenile agents are assigned initial random probabilities of perpetrating a crime and adults are assigned random probabilities of witnessing and reporting crimes. The agents' behavioral probabilities modify depending on the individual's experience with criminal behavior and punishment, and exposure to community crime interventions. Cost-effectiveness analyses assessed the impact of activating different percentages of adults to increase reporting and reduce community crime activity. Community-wide interventions were compared with spatially focused interventions, in which activated adults were focused in areas of highest crime prevalence. The ABM suggests that both community-wide and spatially focused interventions can be effective in reducing overall offenses, but their relative effectiveness may depend on the intensity and cost of the interventions. Although spatially focused intervention yielded localized reductions in crimes, such interventions were shown to move crime to nearby communities. Community-wide interventions can achieve larger reductions in overall community crime offenses than spatially focused interventions, as long as sufficient resources are available. The ABM demonstrates that community-wide and spatially focused crime strategies produce unique intervention dynamics influencing juvenile crime behaviors through the decisions and actions of community adults. It shows how such models might be used to investigate community-supported crime intervention programs by integrating community input and expertise and provides a simulated setting for assessing dimensions of cost comparison and intervention effect sustainability. ABM illustrates how intervention models might be used to investigate community-supported crime intervention programs.

Fear of property crime: examining the effects of victimization, vicarious victimization, and perceived risk.

PubMed

Cook, Carrie L; Fox, Kathleen A

2011-01-01

Fear of crime research has primarily focused on fear of crime in general or on fear of specific types of violent crimes. This study builds from this line of research by focusing exclusively on the night fear of six types of property crimes, including fear of burglary while away from home, vehicle theft, bicycle theft, property theft, vandalism, and vehicle burglary. This study examines the effects of victimization, vicarious victimization, and perceived risk on fear of property crime. Survey data from college students reveal that victimization and vicarious victimization were not significant predictors of fear of property crime, whereas perceived risk was a consistent and significant predictor of fear of all property crimes.

Should Hate Be a Crime?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobs, James B.

1993-01-01

Explores issues surrounding hate crime legislation and prosecution, with emphasis on motivation and first amendment issues. Hate crime legislation attempts to import the civil rights model into criminal law, but the very existence of the hate crime label raises social and political stakes in intergroup crimes. (SLD)

BRAC and Crime: Examining the Effects of an Installation’s Closure on Local Crime

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-12-01

BRAC. Third, demographic and economic variables also have significant effects on particular types of property and violent crime. 14. SUBJECT...crimes due to a BRAC. Third, demographic and economic variables also have significant effects on particular types of property and violent crime. vi...Bureau of Economic Research NCVS National Crime Victimization Survey NSA National Sherriff’s Association OEA Office of Economic Adjustment OLS

URBAN REVITALIZATION AND SEATTLE CRIME, 1982-2000.

PubMed

Kreager, Derek A; Lyons, Christopher J; Hays, Zachary R

2011-11-01

This study examines the relationship between crime and processes of urban revitalization, or gentrification. Drawing on recent urban demography research, we hypothesize that gentrification progressed rapidly in many American cities over the last decade of the 20 th century, and that these changes had implications for area crime rates. Criminological theories hold competing hypotheses for the connections between gentrification and crime, and quantitative studies of this link remain infrequent and limited. Using two measures of gentrification and longitudinal tract-level demographic and crime data for the city of Seattle, we find that many of Seattle's downtown tracts underwent rapid revitalization during the 1990's, and that these areas 1) saw reductions in crime relative to similar tracts that did not gentrify, and 2) were areas with higher-than-average crime at the beginning of the decade. Moreover, using a within-tract longitudinal design, we find that yearly housing investments in the 1980's showed a modest positive association with crime change, while yearly investments in the 1990's showed the opposite pattern. Our findings suggest a curvilinear gentrification-crime relationship, whereby gentrification in its earlier stages is associated with small increases in crime, but gentrification in its more consolidated form is associated with modest crime declines. Implications of these results for criminological theory, urban development, and broader crime patterns are discussed.

Crime and psychiatric disorders among youth in the US population: an analysis of the National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement.

PubMed

Coker, Kendell L; Smith, Philip H; Westphal, Alexander; Zonana, Howard V; McKee, Sherry A

2014-08-01

Current knowledge regarding psychiatric disorders and crime in youth is limited to juvenile justice and community samples. This study examined relationships between psychiatric disorders and self-reported crime involvement in a sample of youth representative of the US population. The National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement (N = 10,123; ages 13-17 years; 2001-2004) was used to examine the relationship between lifetime DSM-IV-based diagnoses, reported crime (property, violent, other), and arrest history. Logistic regression compared the odds of reported crime involvement with specific psychiatric disorders to those without any diagnoses, and examined the odds of crime by psychiatric comorbidity. Prevalence of crime was 18.4%. Youth with lifetime psychiatric disorders, compared to no disorders, had significantly greater odds of crime, including violent crime. For violent crime resulting in arrest, conduct disorder (CD) (odds ratio OR = 57.5; 95% CI = 30.4, 108.8), alcohol use disorders (OR = 19.5; 95% CI = 8.8, 43.2), and drug use disorders (OR = 16.1; 95% CI = 9.3, 27.7) had the greatest odds with similar findings for violent crime with no arrest. Psychiatric comorbidity increased the odds of crime. Youth with 3 or more diagnoses (16.0% of population) accounted for 54.1% of those reporting arrest for violent crime. Youth with at least 1 diagnosis committed 85.8% of crime, which was reduced to 67.9% by removing individuals with CD. Importantly, 88.2% of youth with mental illness reported never having committed any crime. Our findings highlight the importance of improving access to mental health services for youthful offenders in community settings, given the substantial associations found between mental illness and crime in this nationally representative epidemiological sample. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hate Crimes and Disability in America

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McMahon, Brian T.; West, Steven L.; Lewis, Allen N.; Armstrong, Amy J.; Conway, Joseph P.

2004-01-01

A hate crime is a criminal offense committed against person or property that is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender's prejudice. Hate crimes are sometimes termed "bias-motivated crimes." The theoretical bases for bias motivation and their implications for hate crimes against Americans with disabilities are outlined. The history of…

77 FR 50718 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Extension of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-22

...; Victims of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program State Performance Report ACTION: 30-Day Notice... (OJP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) will be submitting the following information collection... Form/Collection: Victims of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program, State Performance Report...

Sunday Liquor Laws and Crime

PubMed Central

Heaton, Paul

2011-01-01

Many jurisdictions have considered relaxing Sunday alcohol sales restrictions, yet such restrictions' effects on public health remain poorly understood. This paper analyzes the effects of legalization of Sunday packaged liquor sales on crime, focusing on the phased introduction of such sales in Virginia beginning in 2004. Differences-in-differences and triple-differences estimates indicate the liberalization increased minor crime by 5% and alcohol-involved serious crime by 10%. The law change did not affect domestic crime or induce significant geographic or inter-temporal crime displacement. The costs of this additional crime are comparable to the state's revenues from increased liquor sales. PMID:22125348

Modelling the fear of crime

PubMed Central

Bishop, Steven

2017-01-01

How secure people feel in a particular region is obviously linked to the actual crime suffered in that region but the exact relationship between crime and its fear is quite subtle. Two regions may have the same crime rate but their local perception of security may differ. Equally, two places may have the same perception of security even though one may have a significantly lower crime rate. Furthermore, a negative perception might persist for many years, even when crime rates drop. Here, we develop a model for the dynamics of the perception of security of a region based on the distribution of crime suffered by the population using concepts similar to those used for opinion dynamics. Simulations under a variety of conditions illustrate different scenarios and help us determine the impact of suffering more, or less, crime. The inhomogeneous concentration of crime together with a memory loss process is incorporated into the model for the perception of security, and results explain why people are often more fearful than actually victimized; why a region is perceived as being insecure despite a low crime rate; and why a decrease in the crime rate might not significantly improve the perception of security. PMID:28804260

Neighborhood Crime-Related Safety and Its Relation to Children's Physical Activity.

PubMed

Kneeshaw-Price, Stephanie H; Saelens, Brian E; Sallis, James F; Frank, Lawrence D; Grembowski, David E; Hannon, Peggy A; Smith, Nicholas L; Chan, K C Gary

2015-06-01

Crime is both a societal safety and public health issue. Examining different measures and aspects of crime-related safety and their correlations may provide insight into the unclear relationship between crime and children's physical activity. We evaluated five neighborhood crime-related safety measures to determine how they were interrelated. We then explored which crime-related safety measures were associated with children's total moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and MVPA in their neighborhoods. Significant positive correlations between observed neighborhood incivilities and parents' perceptions of general crime and disorder were found (r = 0.30, p = 0.0002), as were associations between parents' perceptions of general crime and disorder and perceptions of stranger danger (r = 0.30, p = 0.0002). Parent report of prior crime victimization in their neighborhood was associated with observed neighborhood incivilities (r = 0.22, p = 0.007) and their perceptions of both stranger danger (r = 0.24, p = 0.003) and general crime and disorder (r = 0.37, p < 0.0001). After accounting for covariates, police-reported crime within the census block group in which children lived was associated with less physical activity, both total and in their neighborhood (beta = -0.09, p = 0.005, beta = -0.01, p = 0.02, respectively). Neighborhood-active children living in the lowest crime-quartile neighborhoods based on police reports had 40 min more of total MVPA on average compared to neighborhood-active children living in the highest crime-quartile neighborhoods. Findings suggest that police reports of neighborhood crime may be contributing to lower children's physical activity.

Schools and neighborhoods: organizational and environmental factors associated with crime in secondary schools.

PubMed

Limbos, Mary Ann P; Casteel, Carri

2008-10-01

While crime and violence in schools are derived primarily from factors external to schools, violent behavior may also be aggravated by factors in the school environment, including the physical environment, its educational and social climate, and its organizational capacity and composition. The objective of this study is to examine the effect of the school's organizational and educational environment on crime rates in secondary schools and to examine how neighborhood factors influence these relationships. School and neighborhood crime rates for 95 middle (MS) and high (HS) schools were calculated using data from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Police Department and Los Angeles Police Department, respectively. School-level organizational and educational variables, including the academic performance index (API), were obtained from the California Department of Education. A measure of neighborhood dilapidation was created using variables collected on a neighborhood environmental survey. Linear regression was used to examine the relationship between organizational and educational school variables and school crime rates. Community crime and dilapidation were added to the model to examine the influence of the school-community context relationships. HS had higher crime rates than MS. As the percentage of certified teachers and student to staff ratios increased, school crime decreased (p < .01). An API of below basic performance was significantly associated with increasing school crime rates (p < .05). Neighborhood crime was not significantly associated with school crime, although dilapidation was positively and significantly associated with school crime even after controlling for community crime (p < .05). Both school- and neighborhood-level factors were associated with increasing crime rates in secondary schools. School violence prevention efforts should include school and community partnerships to address these potentially modifiable factors.

Young people’s differential vulnerability to criminogenic exposure: Bridging the gap between people- and place-oriented approaches in the study of crime causation

PubMed Central

Wikström, Per-Olof H; Mann, Richard P; Hardie, Beth

2018-01-01

The overall purpose of this study is to contribute to bridging the gap between people- and place-oriented approaches in the study of crime causation. To achieve this we will explore some core hypotheses derived from Situational Action Theory about what makes young people crime prone and makes places criminogenic, and about the interaction between crime propensity and criminogenic exposure predicting crime events. We will also calculate the expected reduction in aggregate levels of crime that will occur as a result of successful interventions targeting crime propensity and criminogenic exposure. To test the hypotheses we will utilize a unique set of space–time budget, small area community survey, land-use and interviewer-led questionnaire data from the prospective longitudinal Peterborough Adolescent and Young Adult Development Study (PADS+) and an artificial neural network approach to modelling. The results show that people’s crime propensity (based on their personal morals and abilities to exercise self-control) has the bulk of predictive power, but also that including criminogenic exposure (being unsupervised with peers and engaged in unstructured activities in residential areas of poor collective efficacy or commercial centres) demonstrates a substantial increase in predictive power (in addition to crime propensity). Moreover, the results show that the probability of crime is strongest when a crime-prone person is in a criminogenic setting and, crucially, that the higher a person’s crime propensity the more vulnerable he or she is to influences of criminogenic exposure. Finally, the findings suggest that a reduction in people’s crime propensity has a much bigger impact on their crime involvement than a reduction in their exposure to criminogenic settings. PMID:29416442

The Different Faces of Impulsivity as Links between Childhood Maltreatment and Young Adult Crime

PubMed Central

Shin, Sunny H.; Cook, Amy K.; Morris, Nancy A.; McDougle, Robyn; Groves, Lauren Peasley

2016-01-01

Crime is a major public health and safety threat. Many studies have suggested that early exposure to child maltreatment increases an individual's risk for persistent serious crime in adulthood. Despite these findings about the connection between child maltreatment and criminal behavior, there is a paucity of empirically-based knowledge about the processes or pathways that link child maltreatment to later involvement in crime. Using a community sample of 337 young adults (ages 18-25) in a U.S. metropolitan area, the present study examined the role of various facets of impulsivity in linking child maltreatment to crime. A series of factor analyses identified three types of crime including property crime, violent crime, and fraud. Structural equation modelings were conducted to examine the associations among childhood maltreatment, four facets of impulsivity, and criminal behavior, controlling for sociodemographic information, family income and psychological symptoms. The present study found that child emotional abuse was indirectly related to property crime and fraud through urgency while a lack of premeditation mediates the relationship between child neglect and property crime. Child physical abuse was directly related to all three types of crime. Personality traits of urgency and lack of premeditation may play a significant role in the maltreatment-crime link. Preventive interventions targeting impulsivity traits such as urgency and a lack of premeditation might have promising impacts in curbing criminal behavior among maltreatment victims. PMID:27083525

URBAN REVITALIZATION AND SEATTLE CRIME, 1982–2000

PubMed Central

Kreager, Derek A.; Lyons, Christopher J.; Hays, Zachary R.

2014-01-01

This study examines the relationship between crime and processes of urban revitalization, or gentrification. Drawing on recent urban demography research, we hypothesize that gentrification progressed rapidly in many American cities over the last decade of the 20th century, and that these changes had implications for area crime rates. Criminological theories hold competing hypotheses for the connections between gentrification and crime, and quantitative studies of this link remain infrequent and limited. Using two measures of gentrification and longitudinal tract-level demographic and crime data for the city of Seattle, we find that many of Seattle’s downtown tracts underwent rapid revitalization during the 1990’s, and that these areas 1) saw reductions in crime relative to similar tracts that did not gentrify, and 2) were areas with higher-than-average crime at the beginning of the decade. Moreover, using a within-tract longitudinal design, we find that yearly housing investments in the 1980’s showed a modest positive association with crime change, while yearly investments in the 1990’s showed the opposite pattern. Our findings suggest a curvilinear gentrification-crime relationship, whereby gentrification in its earlier stages is associated with small increases in crime, but gentrification in its more consolidated form is associated with modest crime declines. Implications of these results for criminological theory, urban development, and broader crime patterns are discussed. PMID:25505350

Kids, Crime, and Local Television News

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yanich, Danilo

2005-01-01

The vast majority of crime reporting occurs on local television news and in newspapers. Although crimes are extraordinary events, they assume an ordinariness that only daily reporting can give them. The obvious question is what does the news tell us about crime. This article compares the coverage of adult crime and the coverage of what the author…

Crime and Perceptions after a Decade of Democracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Louw, Antoinette

2007-01-01

Crime has become central to any discussion about the consolidation of democracy in South Africa. Concerns about crime intensified in the years after 1994, as the country attempted to grapple with the apparent "crime wave" that accompanied the transition. A decade later crime is still a priority for government and a concern among…

77 FR 8278 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Extension of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-14

...; Victims of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program Performance Report ACTION: 30-Day Notice of... for Victims of Crime (OVC) will be submitting the following information collection request to the.../Collection: Victims of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program, Subgrant Award Report. (3) Agency...

On the Prevention of Juvenile Crime

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lelekov, V. A.; Kosheleva, E. V.

2008-01-01

Crimes committed by juveniles are among the most urgent social problems. Juvenile crime is as prevalent as crime itself is, and it has not been solved completely in any society and cannot be solved through law enforcement measures alone. In this article, the authors discuss the dynamics and structure of juvenile crime in Russia and present data…

Black Women, Crime and Crime Prevention.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Elsie L.

Several factors indicate that there is a relationship between economic conditions and crime among black women. Crime statistics show that outside of the misdemeanors of drunkenness and disorderly conduct, black women tend to be arrested for larceny and prostitution, both economic crimes. The fact that black women are at the bottom of the economic…

[Determinants of information-seeking about crime and crime prevention: information-seeking on the Internet].

PubMed

Arai, Takashi; Fuji, Kei; Yoshida, Fujio

2013-06-01

This study explores determinants of information-seeking about crime and crime prevention on the Internet, including how it was influenced by personal conversations with others. An analysis of a web survey of mothers (N = 1,040) of 3-12 years old children in Japan indicated that many mothers briefly saw basic information about crime on the Internet, while only a few mothers sought further details. Structural equation modeling indicated the following results. Overall, an increased frequency of conversations about children's safety with family and friends made mothers realize their own responsibility for crime prevention. It also encouraged mothers to seek more information about crime prevention by increasing their willingness to cooperate with neighbors. However, when individuals' realization of responsibility for crime prevention strengthened their attitudes toward the responsibility of the police and government for crime problems, then these attitudes decreased mothers' information-seeking. Finally, while a heightened frequency of conversations about news contents directly increased information-seeking about crime, such conversations could indirectly weaken mothers' information-seeking when mothers emphasized the responsibility of the police and government.

48 CFR 1852.223-75 - Major breach of safety or security.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major...

48 CFR 1852.223-75 - Major breach of safety or security.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major...

48 CFR 1852.223-75 - Major breach of safety or security.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major...

48 CFR 1852.223-75 - Major breach of safety or security.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major... of safeguarding against espionage, sabotage, crime (including computer crime), or attack. A major...

Crime: social disorganization and relative deprivation.

PubMed

Kawachi, I; Kennedy, B P; Wilkinson, R G

1999-03-01

Crime is seldom considered as an outcome in public health research. Yet major theoretical and empirical developments in the field of criminology during the past 50 years suggest that the same social environmental factors which predict geographic variation in crime rates may also be relevant for explaining community variations in health and wellbeing. Understanding the causes of variability in crime across countries and across regions within a country will help us to solve one of the enduring puzzles in public health, viz. why some communities are healthier than others. The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework for investigating the influence of the social context on community health, using crime as the indicator of collective wellbeing. We argue that two sets of societal characteristics influence the level of crime: the degree of relative deprivation in society (for instance, measured by the extent of income inequality), and the degree of cohesiveness in social relations among citizens (measured, for instance, by indicators of 'social capital' and 'collective efficacy'). We provided a test of our conceptual framework using state-level ecologic data on violent crimes and property crimes within the USA. Violent crimes (homicide, assault, robbery) were consistently associated with relative deprivation (income inequality) and indicators of low social capital. Among property crimes, burglary was also associated with deprivation and low social capital. Areas with high crime rates tend also to exhibit higher mortality rates from all causes, suggesting that crime and population health share the same social origins. Crime is thus a mirror of the quality of the social environment.

Risk Factors for Women Being Under the Influence of Alcohol Compared With Other Illicit Substances at the Time of Committing Violent Crimes.

PubMed

Brewer-Smyth, Kathleen; Pohlig, Ryan T

We investigated women under the influence of alcohol compared with other illicit substances at the time of committing a crime to identify predictors of being under the influence of alcohol and female-enacted crime. Analyses of data, obtained from private interviews and examinations of female prison inmates, included regression analyses exploring predictors of being under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crime and predictors of violent crime. In addition, a reanalysis of a previously reported model, predicting conviction of a violent crime, was conducted including a new variable, being under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crime. Those under the influence of alcohol at the time of their crime had experienced greater nonfamilial childhood sexual abuse and traumatic brain injuries with loss of consciousness predating their crime. They were more likely to have committed a violent, rather than nonviolent, crime compared with those under the influence of other substances, with the latter being not significantly different for those not under the influence of any substance. Being under the influence of alcohol increased the risk of committing a violent crime, adjusting for other predictors of female violence. Women under the influence of alcohol are at a greater risk for committing violent crimes than those under the influence of other substances. Female nonfamilial childhood sexual abuse and traumatic brain injury victims were at a higher risk for being under the influence of alcohol, in comparison with other substances, at the time of committing a violent crime.

Population at risk: using areal interpolation and Twitter messages to create population models for burglaries and robberies

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT Population at risk of crime varies due to the characteristics of a population as well as the crime generator and attractor places where crime is located. This establishes different crime opportunities for different crimes. However, there are very few efforts of modeling structures that derive spatiotemporal population models to allow accurate assessment of population exposure to crime. This study develops population models to depict the spatial distribution of people who have a heightened crime risk for burglaries and robberies. The data used in the study include: Census data as source data for the existing population, Twitter geo-located data, and locations of schools as ancillary data to redistribute the source data more accurately in the space, and finally gridded population and crime data to evaluate the derived population models. To create the models, a density-weighted areal interpolation technique was used that disaggregates the source data in smaller spatial units considering the spatial distribution of the ancillary data. The models were evaluated with validation data that assess the interpolation error and spatial statistics that examine their relationship with the crime types. Our approach derived population models of a finer resolution that can assist in more precise spatial crime analyses and also provide accurate information about crime rates to the public. PMID:29887766

Social Disorganization Theory and the Contextual Nature of Crime in Nonmetropolitan Counties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnett, Cynthia; Mencken, F. Carson

2002-01-01

This research explores violent and property crime rates in nonmetropolitan counties. It is argued that crime rates are lower in these counties because of higher levels of social integration. We test the hypothesis that predictors of crime from social disorganization theory exert different effects on violent and property crimes at different levels…

3 CFR 8365 - Proclamation 8365 of April 24, 2009. National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, 2009

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... pledging to fight crime wherever it exists. This commitment begins by supporting the men and women working every day to reduce crime and assist crime victims. Often placing themselves in harm’s way and... anniversary of the bill’s bipartisan passage. An effective approach to fighting crime must include programs...

The Prosecution of Hate Crimes: The Limitations of the Hate Crime Typology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, Nickie D.

2009-01-01

Since the development of bias crime legislation over the past few decades, scholars have debated the merits of the legislation and questioned its enforcement. In light of such concerns, this study presents characteristics of all cases prosecuted as bias crimes in a New Jersey county between 2001 and 2004 and applies the hate crime typology…

Problems in Education about Violence: Factors Affecting the Perceived Increase in Violent Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mersky, Rebecca A.; Chambliss, Catherine

Although most national and regional statistics show that violent crimes have been declining, there is a widespread misperception among the public that such crimes are increasing. The Perception and Experience of Violent Crime survey, based on research on actual rates and perceptions of crime, was administered to subjects enrolled in a college…

29 CFR 18.609 - Impeachment by evidence of conviction of crime.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Impeachment by evidence of conviction of crime. 18.609... evidence of conviction of crime. (a) General rule. For the purpose of attacking the credibility of a witness, evidence that the witness has been convicted of a crime shall be admitted if the crime was...

Communities, Students, Schools, and School Crime: A Confirmatory Study of Crime in U.S. High Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Greg

2008-01-01

This study investigates how community characteristics, student background, school climate, and zero-tolerance policies interact to affect school crime. The study articulates and fits a school crime model to 712 high schools participating in the 2000 School Survey on Crime and Safety, confirming that school location and student socioeconomic status…

Race, gender, and sexual orientation in hate crime victimization: identity politics or identity risk?

PubMed

Dunbar, Edward

2006-06-01

This study examined the impact of hate crimes upon gay and lesbian victims, reviewing 1538 hate crimes committed in Los Angeles County. Differences between sexual orientation and other hate crime categories were considered for offense severity, reportage to law enforcement, and victim impact. The type of offense varied between crimes classified for sexual orientation (n=551) and other bias-motivated crimes (n=987). Assault, sexual assault, sexual harassment, and stalking were predictive of sexual orientation hate crimes. Sexual orientation bias crimes evidenced greater severity of violence to the person and impact upon victim level of functioning. More violent forms of aggression were predictive of gay and lesbian victim's underreportage to law enforcement. For sexual orientation offenses, victim gender and race/ethnicity differences were predictive of the base rates of crime reportage as well. These findings are considered in terms of a group-risk hypothesis, encountered by multiple outgroup persons, that influences help-seeking behavior and ingroup identity.

Unraveling the Determinants of Fear of Crime Among Men and Women in Istanbul: Examining the Impact of Perceived Risk and Fear of Sexual Assault.

PubMed

Özaşçılar, Mine; Ziyalar, Neylan

2017-07-01

Studies have examined university students' fear of crime focusing on the relationship between the fear of sexual assault and fear of other crimes, termed the shadow of sexual assault hypothesis; however, no study to date has examined the shadow thesis in a Turkish context. Drawing on the shadow thesis, using a sample of 723 university students in Istanbul, this study focuses on the effect of fear of sexual assault and perceived risk of crime to general fear of crime among university students in Istanbul. Also, the predictors of fear of crime are explored to examine the relationship between lifestyle characteristics, constrained behaviors, and fear. The findings of the study supported the shadow thesis, indicating that fear of sexual assault shaped the nonsexual crimes, especially crimes involving face-to-face confrontations between the victim and offender. Furthermore, lifestyle characteristics are correlated with the men's fear of nonsexual crimes, particularly fear of robbery, aggravated assault, and burglary home.

Does Child Maltreatment Predict Adult Crime? Reexamining the Question in a Prospective Study of Gender Differences, Education, and Marital Status.

PubMed

Jung, Hyunzee; Herrenkohl, Todd I; Klika, J Bart; Lee, Jungeun Olivia; Brown, Eric C

2015-08-01

Bivariate analyses of adult crime and child maltreatment showed that individuals who had been maltreated as children, according to child welfare reports, subsequently committed more crime than others who had not been maltreated. Analyses of crimes by category-property, person, and society-provided further evidence of a link between child maltreatment and crime at the bivariate level. Tests of gender differences showed that crime generally is more prevalent among males, although females with a history of maltreatment were more likely than those in a no-maltreatment (comparison) group to report having had some prior involvement in crime. Surprisingly, multivariate analyses controlling for childhood socioeconomic status, gender, minority racial status, marital status, and education level showed that, with one exception (crimes against society), the significant association between child maltreatment and crime observed in bivariate tests was not maintained. Implications for future research are discussed. © The Author(s) 2014.

The Phenomenology of Specialization of Criminal Suspects

PubMed Central

Tumminello, Michele; Edling, Christofer; Liljeros, Fredrik; Mantegna, Rosario N.; Sarnecki, Jerzy

2013-01-01

A criminal career can be either general, with the criminal committing different types of crimes, or specialized, with the criminal committing a specific type of crime. A central problem in the study of crime specialization is to determine, from the perspective of the criminal, which crimes should be considered similar and which crimes should be considered distinct. We study a large set of Swedish suspects to empirically investigate generalist and specialist behavior in crime. We show that there is a large group of suspects who can be described as generalists. At the same time, we observe a non-trivial pattern of specialization across age and gender of suspects. Women are less prone to commit crimes of certain types, and, for instance, are more prone to specialize in crimes related to fraud. We also find evidence of temporal specialization of suspects. Older persons are more specialized than younger ones, and some crime types are preferentially committed by suspects of different ages. PMID:23691257

Are psychological measures and actuarial data equally effective in discriminating among the prison population? Analysis by crimes

PubMed Central

Burneo-Garcés, Carlos; Marín-Morales, Agar; Pérez-García, Miguel

2018-01-01

The ability of a wide range of psychological and actuarial measures to characterize crimes in the prison population has not yet been compared in a single study. Our main objective was to determine if the discriminant capacity of psychological measures (PM) and actuarial data (AD) varies according to the crime. An Ecuadorian sample of 576 men convicted of Robbery, Murder, Rape and Drug Possession crimes was evaluated through an ad hoc questionnaire, prison files and the Spanish adaptation of the Personality Assessment Inventory. Discriminant analysis was used to establish, for each crime, the discriminant capacity and the classification accuracy of a model composed of AD (socio-demographic and judicial measures) and a second model incorporating PM. The AD showed a superior discriminant capacity, whilst the contribution of both types of measures varied according to the crime. The PM generated some increase in the correct classification percentages for Murder, Rape and Drug Possession, but their contribution was zero for the crime of Robbery. Specific profiles of each crime were obtained from the strongest significant correlations between the value of each explanatory variable and the probability of belonging to the crime. The AD model is more robust when these four crimes are characterized. The contribution of AD and PM depends on the crime, and the inclusion of PM in actuarial models moderately optimizes the classification accuracy of Murder, Rape, and Drug Possession crimes. PMID:29874264

Mediating the distal crime-drug relationship with proximal reactive criminal thinking.

PubMed

Walters, Glenn D

2016-02-01

This article describes the results of a study designed to test whether reactive criminal thinking (RCT) does a better job of mediating the crime → drug relationship than it does mediating the drug → crime relationship after the direct effects of crime on drug use/dependency and of drug use/dependency on crime have been rendered nonsignificant by control variables. All 1,170 male members of the Pathways to Desistance study (Mulvey, 2012) served as participants in the current investigation. As predicted, the total (unmediated) effects of crime on substance use/dependence and of substance use/dependence on crime were nonsignificant when key demographic and third variables were controlled, although the indirect (RCT-mediated) effect of crime on drug use was significant. Proactive criminal thinking (PCT), by comparison, failed to mediate either relationship. The RCT continued to mediate the crime → drug relationship and the PCT continued to not mediate either relationship when more specific forms of offending (aggressive, income) and substance use/dependence (drug use, substance-use dependency symptoms) were analyzed. This offers preliminary support for the notion that even when the total crime-drug effect is nonsignificant the indirect path from crime to reactive criminal thinking to drugs can still be significant. Based on these results, it is concluded that mediation by proximal reactive criminal thinking is a mechanism by which distal measures of crime and drug use/dependence are connected. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The different faces of impulsivity as links between childhood maltreatment and young adult crime.

PubMed

Shin, Sunny H; Cook, Amy K; Morris, Nancy A; McDougle, Robyn; Groves, Lauren Peasley

2016-07-01

Crime is a major public health and safety threat. Many studies have suggested that early exposure to child maltreatment increases an individual's risk for persistent serious crime in adulthood. Despite these findings about the connection between child maltreatment and criminal behavior, there is a paucity of empirically-based knowledge about the processes or pathways that link child maltreatment to later involvement in crime. Using a community sample of 337 young adults (ages 18-25) in a U.S. metropolitan area, the present study examined the role of various facets of impulsivity in linking child maltreatment to crime. A series of factor analyses identified three types of crime including property crime, violent crime, and fraud. Structural equation modelings were conducted to examine the associations among childhood maltreatment, four facets of impulsivity, and criminal behavior, controlling for sociodemographic information, family income and psychological symptoms. The present study found that child emotional abuse was indirectly related to property crime and fraud through urgency while a lack of premeditation mediates the relationship between child neglect and property crime. Child physical abuse was directly related to all three types of crime. Personality traits of urgency and lack of premeditation may play a significant role in the maltreatment-crime link. Preventive interventions targeting impulsivity traits such as urgency and a lack of premeditation might have promising impacts in curbing criminal behavior among maltreatment victims. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Childhood behaviour problems predict crime and violence in late adolescence: Brazilian and British birth cohort studies.

PubMed

Murray, Joseph; Menezes, Ana M B; Hickman, Matthew; Maughan, Barbara; Gallo, Erika Alejandra Giraldo; Matijasevich, Alicia; Gonçalves, Helen; Anselmi, Luciana; Assunção, Maria Cecília F; Barros, Fernando C; Victora, Cesar G

2015-04-01

Most children live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), many of which have high levels of violence. Research in high-income countries (HICs) shows that childhood behaviour problems are important precursors of crime and violence. Evidence is lacking on whether this is also true in LMICs. This study examines prevalence rates and associations between conduct problems and hyperactivity and crime and violence in Brazil and Britain. A comparison was made of birth cohorts in Brazil and Britain, including measures of behaviour problems based on parental report at age 11, and self-reports of crime at age 18 (N = 3,618 Brazil; N = 4,103 Britain). Confounders were measured in the perinatal period and at age 11 in questionnaires completed by the mother and, in Brazil, searches of police records regarding parental crime. Conduct problems, hyperactivity and violent crime were more prevalent in Brazil than in Britain, but nonviolent crime was more prevalent in Britain. Sex differences in prevalence rates were larger where behaviours were less common: larger for conduct problems, hyperactivity, and violent crime in Britain, and larger for nonviolent crime in Brazil. Conduct problems and hyperactivity predicted nonviolent and violent crime similarly in both countries; the effects were partly explained by perinatal health factors and childhood family environments. Conduct problems and hyperactivity are similar precursors of crime and violence across different social settings. Early crime and violence prevention programmes could target these behavioural difficulties and associated risks in LMICs as well as in HICs.

A Review of the Statistical and Quantitative Methods Used to Study Alcohol-Attributable Crime.

PubMed

Fitterer, Jessica L; Nelson, Trisalyn A

2015-01-01

Modelling the relationship between alcohol consumption and crime generates new knowledge for crime prevention strategies. Advances in data, particularly data with spatial and temporal attributes, have led to a growing suite of applied methods for modelling. In support of alcohol and crime researchers we synthesized and critiqued existing methods of spatially and quantitatively modelling the effects of alcohol exposure on crime to aid method selection, and identify new opportunities for analysis strategies. We searched the alcohol-crime literature from 1950 to January 2014. Analyses that statistically evaluated or mapped the association between alcohol and crime were included. For modelling purposes, crime data were most often derived from generalized police reports, aggregated to large spatial units such as census tracts or postal codes, and standardized by residential population data. Sixty-eight of the 90 selected studies included geospatial data of which 48 used cross-sectional datasets. Regression was the prominent modelling choice (n = 78) though dependent on data many variations existed. There are opportunities to improve information for alcohol-attributable crime prevention by using alternative population data to standardize crime rates, sourcing crime information from non-traditional platforms (social media), increasing the number of panel studies, and conducting analysis at the local level (neighbourhood, block, or point). Due to the spatio-temporal advances in crime data, we expect a continued uptake of flexible Bayesian hierarchical modelling, a greater inclusion of spatial-temporal point pattern analysis, and shift toward prospective (forecast) modelling over small areas (e.g., blocks).

A Review of the Statistical and Quantitative Methods Used to Study Alcohol-Attributable Crime

PubMed Central

Fitterer, Jessica L.; Nelson, Trisalyn A.

2015-01-01

Modelling the relationship between alcohol consumption and crime generates new knowledge for crime prevention strategies. Advances in data, particularly data with spatial and temporal attributes, have led to a growing suite of applied methods for modelling. In support of alcohol and crime researchers we synthesized and critiqued existing methods of spatially and quantitatively modelling the effects of alcohol exposure on crime to aid method selection, and identify new opportunities for analysis strategies. We searched the alcohol-crime literature from 1950 to January 2014. Analyses that statistically evaluated or mapped the association between alcohol and crime were included. For modelling purposes, crime data were most often derived from generalized police reports, aggregated to large spatial units such as census tracts or postal codes, and standardized by residential population data. Sixty-eight of the 90 selected studies included geospatial data of which 48 used cross-sectional datasets. Regression was the prominent modelling choice (n = 78) though dependent on data many variations existed. There are opportunities to improve information for alcohol-attributable crime prevention by using alternative population data to standardize crime rates, sourcing crime information from non-traditional platforms (social media), increasing the number of panel studies, and conducting analysis at the local level (neighbourhood, block, or point). Due to the spatio-temporal advances in crime data, we expect a continued uptake of flexible Bayesian hierarchical modelling, a greater inclusion of spatial-temporal point pattern analysis, and shift toward prospective (forecast) modelling over small areas (e.g., blocks). PMID:26418016

Teens, Crime, and Rural Communities. How Youth in Rural America Can Help Reduce Violent and Property Crimes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donovan, Erin; O'Neil, Jean F., Ed.

Featuring the Teens, Crime, and Community (TCC) program, this monograph focuses on youth crime and crime prevention in rural settings. TCC actively involves teens and adults in a partnership designed to reduce teen victimization and to encourage teens to be catalysts of change for community safety. The guide provides teachers, administrators, and…

Joint Utility of Event-Dependent and Environmental Crime Analysis Techniques for Violent Crime Forecasting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caplan, Joel M.; Kennedy, Leslie W.; Piza, Eric L.

2013-01-01

Violent crime incidents occurring in Irvington, New Jersey, in 2007 and 2008 are used to assess the joint analytical capabilities of point pattern analysis, hotspot mapping, near-repeat analysis, and risk terrain modeling. One approach to crime analysis suggests that the best way to predict future crime occurrence is to use past behavior, such as…

Crime Prevention Starts at Home! Setting the Stage for Community Action To Prevent Violence and Other Crimes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Crime Prevention Council, Washington, DC.

Crime prevention works. This simple fact is often forgotten in the ongoing debate over crime and its causes. Prevention works when individuals take common-sense actions to protect themselves, their families and property. The theme from Crime Prevention Month 1995 goes back to these basics: good home security, self-protection skills for kids and…

Mobilizing Support for Social Control in a Declining Economy: Exploring Ideologies of Crime within Crime News.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barlow, Melissa Hickman; And Others

1995-01-01

Extends exploration of ideologies of crime in the news by examining reports about the causes of crime and commands of what to do about crime in "Time" magazine. Argues that criminal justice policy and ideology have played an important role in developments within the postwar political economy in the United States. (LKS)

Split-Half Administration of the 2015 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Methodology Report. NCES 2017-004

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lessne, Deborah; Cidade, Melissa

2016-01-01

This report outlines the development, methodology, and results of the split-half administration of the 2015 School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The National Center for…

Examination of crime and similar concepts in the medical law

PubMed Central

Fathi, Mohammad Javad

2016-01-01

Crime is a human behavior that has captivated the thoughts of scholars of various disciplines throughout history. Philosophers, sociologists, psychologists and others have investigated and analyzed the concept of crime from different aspects. Crime is the main topic of criminal law, and in its legal meaning is a well-known term with a certain conceptual load that should not be confused with similar concepts such as guilt, civil crime (quasi tort), and particularly, the disciplinary transgression. Although crime has common points with all the above, it is an independent concept with unique effects, features, and descriptions that distinguish it from similar acts. This article aims to determine the difference between the concepts of crime, guilt, civil crime and disciplinary transgression through enumeration of the related issues as well as examples of medical disciplinary crimes and transgressions. Identifying and distinguishing these concepts can improve the procedure of prosecuting crimes and disciplinary transgression, bring punishment to criminals and transgressors, and facilitate compensation of pecuniary and non-pecuniary losses due to committers’ fault or failure. Thus we may avoid taking a wrong route that can lead to infringement of individuals’ rights. PMID:27471587

Generic and crime type specific correlates of youth crime: a Finnish population-based study.

PubMed

Elonheimo, Henrik; Sourander, Andre; Niemelä, Solja; Helenius, Hans

2011-09-01

The aim of this study was to examine the psychosocial correlates of various crime types among adolescent males born in Finland in 1981. Data on crime registered in the Finnish National Police Register between 1998 and 2001 were received for 2,866 boys, of whom 81% (n = 2,330) filled in a questionnaire at obligatory military call-up at age 18 in 1999. Crime was divided into five types: drug, violent, property, traffic, and drunk driving offences. Of the 2,866 boys, 23% had been registered for offending; 4% for drug, 7% for violent, 11% for property, 11% for traffic, and 5% for drunk driving offences during the 4-year period in late adolescence. All the crime types correlated with each other and shared many of the psychosocial problems. Small community size, parents' divorce, aggressiveness, daily smoking, and weekly drunkenness were generic correlates of crime, being independently related to various crime types. The results support general rather than specific accounts of youth crime. In particular, measures moderating the adverse effects of divorce, alleviating parental adversities and supporting parenthood, and tackling substance abuse seem relevant in social and criminal policy because they address psychosocial problems characterizing youth crime in general.

Crime, perceived safety, and physical activity: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Rees-Punia, Erika; Hathaway, Elizabeth D; Gay, Jennifer L

2018-06-01

Perceived safety from crime and objectively-measured crime rates may be associated with physical inactivity. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to estimate the odds of accumulating high levels of physical activity (PA) when the perception of safety from crime is high and when objectively-measured crime is high. Peer-reviewed studies were identified through PubMed, Web of Science, ProQuest Criminal Justice, and ScienceDirect from earliest record through 2016. Included studies measured total PA, leisure-time PA, or walking in addition to perceived safety from crime or objective measures of crime. Mean odds ratios were aggregated with random effects models, and meta-regression was used to examine effects of potential moderators: country, age, and crime/PA measure. Sixteen cross-sectional studies yielded sixteen effects for perceived safety from crime and four effects for objective crime. Those reporting feeling safe from crime had a 27% greater odds of achieving higher levels of physical activity (OR=1.27 [1.08, 1.49]), and those living in areas with higher objectively-measured crime had a 28% reduced odds of achieving higher levels of physical activity (OR=0.72 [0.61, 0.83]). Effects of perceived safety were highly heterogeneous (I 2 =94.09%), but explored moderators were not statistically significant, likely because of the small sample size. Despite the limited number of effects suitable for aggregation, the mean association between perceived safety and PA was significant. As it seems likely that perceived lack of safety from crime constrains PA behaviors, future research exploring moderators of this association may help guide public health recommendations and interventions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Does heightened fear of crime lead to poorer mental health in new suburbs, or vice versa?

PubMed

Foster, Sarah; Hooper, Paula; Knuiman, Matthew; Giles-Corti, Billie

2016-11-01

Fear of crime is implicated as a risk factor for poorer mental health, yet few studies have explored whether there is a causal relationship between fear of crime and health, or tested the direction of the relationship. Does, for example, heightened fear of crime lead to poorer mental health, or could poorer mental health exacerbate fear of crime? RESIDE participants in Perth, Australia, completed a questionnaire three years after moving to their neighbourhood (2007-2008, n = 1230), and again four years later (2011-2012, n = 531). The impact of fear of crime on psychological distress (Kessler-6) was examined in SAS using the Proc Mixed procedure (marginal repeated measures model with unrestricted variance pattern). Models controlled for demographics and time, and progressively adjusted for avoidance behaviours (i.e., walking, community participation, social cohesion). This approach was repeated with psychological distress as the independent variable and fear of crime as the outcome. For each increase in one standard deviation (SD) in fear of crime, psychological distress increased by 0.680 (p = 0.0001), however in the reversed models, for each one SD increase in psychological distress, fear of crime increased by 0.152 (p = 0.0001). To help explain these results, temporal order models examined whether baseline values predicted follow-up values. There was a significant association between psychological distress (at baseline) and fear of crime (at follow-up), but no association between fear of crime (at baseline) and psychological distress (at follow-up). The findings suggest a bi-directional relationship exists between fear of crime and mental health, however it appears that higher psychological distress over time leads to higher fear of crime, rather than the reverse. Furthermore, the pathway connecting fear of crime and mental health appears to be direct, rather than via constrained social and physical activities. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Crime victimization and the implications for individual health and wellbeing: A Sheffield case study.

PubMed

Tan, Su-Yin; Haining, Robert

2016-10-01

Public health and criminology have developed largely independently of one another at the research and policy levels so that the links between crime victimization and health status are not well understood. Although it is not difficult to support the idea of crime as a threat to the health of individuals and the wider community, the difficulty lies in quantifying the impact of crime on public health, while controlling other variables, including gender and ethnicity. We report the results of a study, the goals of which were to: develop an understanding conceptually of the relationships between different types of crime (violent and non-violent) and health; explore the impact of victimization on quality of life and physical and psychological wellbeing; investigate the role of social and demographic factors in shaping any relationships. The study is based on 840 responses from a postal survey administered to 4,100 households in Sheffield, England, located primarily in deprived areas where overall crime rates were high. Non-violent crimes were more frequently reported than violent crimes and in general, inner city neighbourhoods were associated with higher violent crime rates. Out of 392 victims of crime, 27% of individuals detailed physical injuries resulting directly from a crime event and 31% had taken some medical steps to treat a crime-related injury. 86% experienced at least one psychological or behavioural change, including stress, sleeping difficulties, loss of confidence, and depression. Logistic regression models estimated victimization risk based on various social and demographic variables. Violent crimes were consistently linked with higher odds of seeking medical treatment and a higher likelihood of experiencing psychological ill health effects or behavioural changes. In comparison, victims of non-violent or property crimes were not significantly associated with mental health or behavioural/lifestyle effects. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Factors influencing crime rates: an econometric analysis approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bothos, John M. A.; Thomopoulos, Stelios C. A.

2016-05-01

The scope of the present study is to research the dynamics that determine the commission of crimes in the US society. Our study is part of a model we are developing to understand urban crime dynamics and to enhance citizens' "perception of security" in large urban environments. The main targets of our research are to highlight dependence of crime rates on certain social and economic factors and basic elements of state anticrime policies. In conducting our research, we use as guides previous relevant studies on crime dependence, that have been performed with similar quantitative analyses in mind, regarding the dependence of crime on certain social and economic factors using statistics and econometric modelling. Our first approach consists of conceptual state space dynamic cross-sectional econometric models that incorporate a feedback loop that describes crime as a feedback process. In order to define dynamically the model variables, we use statistical analysis on crime records and on records about social and economic conditions and policing characteristics (like police force and policing results - crime arrests), to determine their influence as independent variables on crime, as the dependent variable of our model. The econometric models we apply in this first approach are an exponential log linear model and a logit model. In a second approach, we try to study the evolvement of violent crime through time in the US, independently as an autonomous social phenomenon, using autoregressive and moving average time-series econometric models. Our findings show that there are certain social and economic characteristics that affect the formation of crime rates in the US, either positively or negatively. Furthermore, the results of our time-series econometric modelling show that violent crime, viewed solely and independently as a social phenomenon, correlates with previous years crime rates and depends on the social and economic environment's conditions during previous years.

Neighbourhood crime and smoking: the role of objective and perceived crime measures

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Smoking is a major public health problem worldwide. Research has shown that neighbourhood of residence is independently associated with the likelihood of individuals' smoking. However, a fine comprehension of which neighbourhood characteristics are involved and how remains limited. In this study we examine the relative contribution of objective (police-recorded) and subjective (resident-perceived) measures of neighbourhood crime on residents' smoking behaviours. Methods Data from 2,418 men and women participating in the 2007/8 sweep of the West of Scotland Twenty-07 Study were analyzed. Smoking status and perceived crime were collected through face-to-face interviews with participants. Police-recorded crime rates were obtained from the Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics website at the datazone scale. Adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated for the likelihood of current smoking using logistic regression models. Adjusted mean daily amount smoked and F statistics were calculated using general linear models. Analyses were conducted for all respondents and stratified by sex and age cohort. Results Compared to individuals living in low crime areas, those residing in an area characterized by high police-recorded crime rates or those perceiving high crime in their neighbourhood were more likely to be current smokers, after controlling for individual characteristics. The association with smoking was somewhat stronger for police-recorded crime than for perceived crime. Associations were only slightly attenuated when adjusting for either the objective or subjective crime measures, suggesting that these indicators may exert an independent influence on the risk of smoking. Stronger effects were observed for women compared to men. Police-recorded crime rates were more strongly related to smoking status among older respondents than among the younger cohort, whereas the strongest effect for perceived crime was observed among younger participants. Conclusions Our findings highlight the relevance of paying attention to both objective and perceived neighbourhood crime measures when aiming to prevent smoking. PMID:22168151

Do community characteristics predict alcohol-related crime?

PubMed

Breen, Courtney; Shakeshaft, Anthony; Slade, Tim; Love, Stephanie; D'Este, Catherine; Mattick, Richard P

2011-01-01

Alcohol-related crime is a substantial community problem. There is evidence to suggest that certain geographic areas experience higher rates of alcohol-related crime and that both individual and community factors are associated with alcohol-related crime. There is limited research at the community level despite communities being the target of interventions designed to reduce alcohol-related harm. This study aims to determine whether there are differences in alcohol-related crime at the community level and examines whether certain community characteristics are associated with increased alcohol-related crime. Routinely collected police data from 20 rural communities in New South Wales, Australia were analysed. The ratio of alcohol to non-alcohol-related criminal incidents was used as a proxy for alcohol-related crime. Predictor variables were population-adjusted community characteristics, including demographic and resource variables. Regression analyses suggest that there are differences between communities in alcohol-related crime. Less socioeconomic disadvantage and more GPs and licensed premises (pubs and clubs) are associated with greater alcohol-related crime at the community level. Decreasing the socioeconomic well-being of a community is not appropriate; however, introducing additional taxes to increase the cost of alcohol may decrease consumption and therefore alcohol-related crime. Reducing or capping the number of licensed premises, specifically the number of pubs and clubs, may be an appropriate strategy to reduce alcohol-related crime in rural communities.

Aggregate-level lead exposure, gun violence, homicide, and rape.

PubMed

Boutwell, Brian B; Nelson, Erik J; Qian, Zhengmin; Vaughn, Michael G; Wright, John P; Beaver, Kevin M; Barnes, J C; Petkovsek, Melissa; Lewis, Roger; Schootman, Mario; Rosenfeld, Richard

2017-01-01

An increasing body of research has linked the geographic distribution of lead with various indicators of criminal and antisocial behavior. The current study, using data from an ongoing project related to lead exposure in St. Louis City, MO, analyzed the association between aggregate blood lead levels and specific indicators violent crime within the city. Ecological study. St. Louis, Missouri. Blood lead levels. Official reports of violent crimes were categorized as 1) crimes involving a firearm (yes/no), 2) assault crimes (with or without a firearm), 3) robbery crimes (with or without a firearm), 4) homicides and 5) rape. With the exception of rape, aggregate blood-lead levels were statistically significant predictors of violent crime at the census tract level. The risk ratios for each of the outcome measures were as follows: firearm crimes 1.03 (1.03-1.04), assault crimes 1.03 (1.02-1.03), robbery crimes 1.03 (1.02-1.04), homicide 1.03 (1.01, 1.04), and rape 1.01 (0.99-1.03). Extending prior research in St. Louis, results suggest that aggregated lead exposure at the census tract level predicted crime outcomes, even after accounting for important sociological variables. Moving forward, a more developed understanding of aggregate level crime may necessitate a shift toward studying the synergy between sociological and biological risk factors such as lead exposure.

Assessing the Role of Context on the Relationship Between Adolescent Marijuana Use and Property Crimes in Mexico.

PubMed

Vilalta, Carlos Javier; Allmang, Skye

2017-01-28

A limited amount of research has been conducted on the association between marijuana use and adolescent crime in developing countries such as Mexico, where crime rates are high and marijuana use is increasing. To examine the association between the frequency of marijuana use and the likelihood of committing of a property crime, and to identify contextual factors explaining individual differences in the likelihood of committing a property crime. The contribution of marijuana use to property crimes was examined based on two nationwide probabilistic surveys of public high school students, using a multilevel mixed effects logistic regression model. Marijuana use significantly increased the odds of committing a property crime. Differences between schools were observed in the random effects of marijuana use, suggesting that the likelihood of committing a property crime was differentially affected by contextual factors. In addition, students who were victims of bullying by peers and who had parents that abused alcohol had higher odds of committing a property crime. Perceived disorder in students' schools and neighborhoods also increased students' odds of reporting that they had committed a property crime. The importance of the effect of school context on the relationship between marijuana use and the commission of a property crime among Mexican public high school students seemed to increase over time. However, these results may also be due to changes in sampling designs over time.

77 FR 25345 - National Crime Victims' Rights Week, 2012

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-27

... the tools to rebuild their lives. Yet, when only about half of all violent crimes are reported to the... Crime Victims' Rights Week, we commemorate the efforts of all who bring hope to crime victims during...

Watching the detectives: crime programming, fear of crime, and attitudes about the criminal justice system.

PubMed

Kort-Butler, Lisa A; Sittner Hartshorn, Kelley J

2011-01-01

Research demonstrates a complex relationship between television viewing and fear of crime. Social critics assert that media depictions perpetuate the dominant cultural ideology about crime and criminal justice. This article examines whether program type differentially affects fear of crime and perceptions of the crime rate. Next, it tests whether such programming differentially affects viewers' attitudes about the criminal justice system, and if these relationships are mediated by fear. Results indicated that fear mediated the relationship between viewing nonfictional shows and lack of support for the justice system. Viewing crime dramas predicted support for the death penalty, but this relationship was not mediated by fear. News viewership was unrelated to either fear or attitudes. The results support the idea that program type matters when it comes to understanding people's fear of crime and their attitudes about criminal justice.

Impact of drought on crime in California: A synthetic control approach.

PubMed

Goin, Dana E; Rudolph, Kara E; Ahern, Jennifer

2017-01-01

Climate and weather have been linked to criminal activity. The connection between climatological conditions and crime is of growing importance as we seek to understand the societal implications of climate change. This study describes the mechanisms theorized to link annual variations in climate to crime in California and examines the effect of drought on statewide crime rates from 2011-2015. California has suffered severe drought since 2011, resulting in intensely dry winters and several of the hottest days on record. It is likely that the drought increased economic stress and shifted routine activities of the population, potentially increasing the likelihood of crime. We used a synthetic control method to estimate the impact of California's drought on both property and violent crimes. We found a significant increase in property crimes during the drought, but no effect on violent crimes. This result was robust to several sensitivity analyses, including a negative control.

Impact of drought on crime in California: A synthetic control approach

PubMed Central

Rudolph, Kara E.; Ahern, Jennifer

2017-01-01

Climate and weather have been linked to criminal activity. The connection between climatological conditions and crime is of growing importance as we seek to understand the societal implications of climate change. This study describes the mechanisms theorized to link annual variations in climate to crime in California and examines the effect of drought on statewide crime rates from 2011–2015. California has suffered severe drought since 2011, resulting in intensely dry winters and several of the hottest days on record. It is likely that the drought increased economic stress and shifted routine activities of the population, potentially increasing the likelihood of crime. We used a synthetic control method to estimate the impact of California’s drought on both property and violent crimes. We found a significant increase in property crimes during the drought, but no effect on violent crimes. This result was robust to several sensitivity analyses, including a negative control. PMID:28977002

Full moon and crime.

PubMed Central

Thakur, C P; Sharma, D

1984-01-01

The incidence of crimes reported to three police stations in different towns (one rural, one urban, one industrial) was studied to see if it varied with the day of the lunar cycle. The period of the study covered 1978-82. The incidence of crimes committed on full moon days was much higher than on all other days, new moon days, and seventh days after the full moon and new moon. A small peak in the incidence of crimes was observed on new moon days, but this was not significant when compared with crimes committed on other days. The incidence of crimes on equinox and solstice days did not differ significantly from those on other days, suggesting that the sun probably does not influence the incidence of crime. The increased incidence of crimes on full moon days may be due to "human tidal waves" caused by the gravitational pull of the moon. PMID:6440656

Aging and fear of crime: an experimental approach to an apparent paradox.

PubMed

Ziegler, Raphael; Mitchell, David B

2003-01-01

Many fear of crime studies have revealed an interesting paradox: Although older adults are less likely to be victims, they report a higher fear of crime than younger adults. In this study, we experimentally manipulated vicarious exposure to crime. Younger (ages 18-29) and older adults (ages 61-78) were randomly assigned to view either a vivid video reenactment of a violent crime or a crime report newscast. Subjects in the violent video condition demonstrated significantly higher fear than did control group participants, but this effect was reliable only for younger adults. The older adults appeared to be unfazed by the violent video, and reported significantly less fear than the younger group. This could not be explained away on the basis of age group differences in neighborhood crime rates, victimization experience, or media exposure. Thus, when greater fear of crime is found in older adults, "old age" per se is not the cause.

Split-Half Administration of the 2015 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey: Methodology Report. NCES 2017-004

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lessne, Deborah; Cidade, Melissa

2016-01-01

This report outlines the development, methodology, and results of the split-half administration of the 2015 School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The U.S. Census Bureau…

Does walkable neighbourhood design influence the association between objective crime and walking?

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Few studies have investigated associations between objectively measured crime and walking, and findings are mixed. One explanation for null or counterintuitive findings emerges from criminology studies, which indicate that the permeable street layouts and non-residential land uses that underpin walkable neighbourhoods are also associated with more crime. This study examined associations between objective crime and walking, controlling for the characteristics of walkable neighbourhoods. Methods A population representative sample of adults (25–65 years) (n = 3,487) completed the Western Australian Health and Wellbeing Survey (2006–2008) demographic and walking frequency items. Objective environmental measures were generated for each participant’s 400 m and 1600 m neighbourhood areas, including burglary, personal crime (i.e., crimes committed against people) in public space, residential density, street connectivity and local destinations. Log-linear negative binomial regression models were used to examine associations between crime and walking frequency/week, with progressive adjustment for residential density, street connectivity and local destinations. Results Burglary and personal crime occurring within a participant’s 400 m and 1600 m neighbourhoods were positively and significantly associated with walking frequency. For example, for every additional 10 crimes against the person/year within 400 m of a participant’s home, walking frequency increased by 8% (relative change = 1.077, p = 0.017). Associations remained constant after controlling for residential density and street connectivity, but attenuated after adjusting for local destinations (e.g., for personal crime in 400 m: relative change = 1.054, p = 0.104). This pattern of attenuation was evident across both crime categories and both neighbourhood sizes. Conclusions The observed positive associations between objective crime and walking appear to be a function of living in a more walkable environment, as the presence of destinations has the capacity to both promote walking and attract crime. This study provides a plausible explanation for some mixed findings emerging from studies examining crime as a barrier to walking. In some settings, the hypothesised deterrent effect of crime on walking may be insufficient to outweigh the positive impacts of living in a more walkable environment. PMID:25063998

Does walkable neighbourhood design influence the association between objective crime and walking?

PubMed

Foster, Sarah; Knuiman, Matthew; Villanueva, Karen; Wood, Lisa; Christian, Hayley; Giles-Corti, Billie

2014-07-26

Few studies have investigated associations between objectively measured crime and walking, and findings are mixed. One explanation for null or counterintuitive findings emerges from criminology studies, which indicate that the permeable street layouts and non-residential land uses that underpin walkable neighbourhoods are also associated with more crime. This study examined associations between objective crime and walking, controlling for the characteristics of walkable neighbourhoods. A population representative sample of adults (25-65 years) (n = 3,487) completed the Western Australian Health and Wellbeing Survey (2006-2008) demographic and walking frequency items. Objective environmental measures were generated for each participant's 400 m and 1600 m neighbourhood areas, including burglary, personal crime (i.e., crimes committed against people) in public space, residential density, street connectivity and local destinations. Log-linear negative binomial regression models were used to examine associations between crime and walking frequency/week, with progressive adjustment for residential density, street connectivity and local destinations. Burglary and personal crime occurring within a participant's 400 m and 1600 m neighbourhoods were positively and significantly associated with walking frequency. For example, for every additional 10 crimes against the person/year within 400 m of a participant's home, walking frequency increased by 8% (relative change = 1.077, p = 0.017). Associations remained constant after controlling for residential density and street connectivity, but attenuated after adjusting for local destinations (e.g., for personal crime in 400 m: relative change = 1.054, p = 0.104). This pattern of attenuation was evident across both crime categories and both neighbourhood sizes. The observed positive associations between objective crime and walking appear to be a function of living in a more walkable environment, as the presence of destinations has the capacity to both promote walking and attract crime. This study provides a plausible explanation for some mixed findings emerging from studies examining crime as a barrier to walking. In some settings, the hypothesised deterrent effect of crime on walking may be insufficient to outweigh the positive impacts of living in a more walkable environment.

Child and adolescent risk factors that differentially predict violent versus nonviolent crime.

PubMed

Kalvin, Carla B; Bierman, Karen L

2017-11-01

While most research on the development of antisocial and criminal behavior has considered nonviolent and violent crime together, some evidence points to differential risk factors for these separate types of crime. The present study explored differential risk for nonviolent and violent crime by investigating the longitudinal associations between three key child risk factors (aggression, emotion dysregulation, and social isolation) and two key adolescent risk factors (parent detachment and deviant peer affiliation) predicting violent and nonviolent crime outcomes in early adulthood. Data on 754 participants (46% African American, 50% European American, 4% other; 58% male) oversampled for aggressive-disruptive behavior were collected across three time points. Parents and teachers rated aggression, emotion dysregulation, and social isolation in fifth grade (middle childhood, age 10-11); parents and youth rated parent detachment and deviant peer affiliation in seventh and eighth grade (early adolescence, age 12-14) and arrest data were collected when participants were 22-23 years old (early adulthood). Different pathways to violent and nonviolent crime emerged. The severity of child dysfunction in late childhood, including aggression, emotion dysregulation, and social isolation, was a powerful and direct predictor of violent crime. Although child dysfunction also predicted nonviolent crime, the direct pathway accounted for half as much variance as the direct pathway to violent crime. Significant indirect pathways through adolescent socialization experiences (peer deviancy) emerged for nonviolent crime, but not for violent crime, suggesting adolescent socialization plays a more distinctive role in predicting nonviolent than violent crime. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

An Exploratory Study of Female Psychopathy and Drug-Related Violent Crime.

PubMed

Thomson, Nicholas D

2017-02-01

There is a clear link between drugs and violence, and the extensive burden drug-related violence inflicts on society. However, drug-related violence is largely understudied, especially in female populations. The aim of the present study was to explore whether women convicted of drug-related violent crime differed on individual-level risk factors from women convicted of a nondrug-related violent crime and women convicted of nonviolent crimes. One hundred and twenty-five female inmates were classified using official criminal records. Multinomial logistic regression indicated inmates higher in antisocial psychopathic traits and low level of educational attainment were more likely to be in the drug-related violent crime group. In comparison, inmates higher in callous psychopathic traits were more likely to be in the nondrug-related violent crime group. Using official records of prison misconduct, a secondary aim tested whether prison violence increased the likelihood of being in either of the violent crime groups. Results show inmates who had committed violent misconducts over a 6-month period were more likely to be the nondrug-related violent crime group. Prison violence did not differentiate inmates in the nonviolent crime group from the drug-related violent crime group. These findings are the first to explore the relation between psychopathy and drug-related violent crime, and drug-related violent crime predicting future violent behavior in female criminals. This study demonstrates the heterogeneity in female violent behavior. Furthermore, psychopathy is not only shown to be an important risk factor for violence in women but also highlights that the dimensional construct is essential for understanding context-dependent violence.

Perceived and Police Reported Neighborhood Crime: Linkages to Adolescent Activity Behaviors and Weight Status

PubMed Central

Wall, Melanie; Choo, Tse; Larson, Nicole; Van Riper, David; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2015-01-01

Purpose Inadequate physical activity and obesity during adolescence are areas of public health concern. Questions exist about the role of neighborhoods in the etiology of these problems. This research addressed the relationships of perceived and objective reports of neighborhood crime to adolescent physical activity, screen media use, and BMI. Methods Socioeconomically and racially/ethnically diverse adolescents (N=2,455, 53.4% female) from 20 urban, public middle and high schools in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota responded to a classroom survey in the EAT 2010 (Eating and Activity in Teens) study. Body mass index (BMI) was measured by research staff. Participants’ mean age was 14.6 (SD=2.0); 82.7% represented racial/ethnic groups other than non-Hispanic white. Linear regressions examined associations between crime perceived by adolescents and crime reported to police and the outcomes of interest (BMI z-scores, physical activity, and screen time). Models were stratified by gender and adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and school. Results BMI was positively associated with perceived crime among girls and boys and with reported crime in girls. For girls, there was an association between higher perceived crime and increased screen time; for boys, between higher reported property crime and reduced physical activity. Perceived crime was associated with reported crime, both property and personal, in both genders. Conclusions Few prior studies of adolescents have studied the association between both perceived and reported crime and BMI. Community-based programs for youth should consider addressing adolescents’ safety concerns along with other perceived barriers to physical activity. Interventions targeting actual crime rates are also important. PMID:26206444

Assaults, murders and walkers: The impact of violent crime on physical activity.

PubMed

Janke, Katharina; Propper, Carol; Shields, Michael A

2016-05-01

We investigate an underexplored externality of crime: the impact of violent crime on individuals' participation in walking. For many adults walking is the only regular physical activity. We use a sample of nearly 1 million people in 323 small areas in England between 2005 and 2011 matched to quarterly crime data at the small area level. Within area variation identifies the causal effect of local violent crime on walking and a difference-in-difference analysis of two high-profile crimes corroborates our results. We find a significant deterrent effect of violent crime on walking that translates into a drop in overall physical activity. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fear of Crime in the Elderly: Its Relation to Leaving One's Abode, Self Reported Health and Sense of Personal Control.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuentes, Max E.; Gatz, Margaret

Previous research has shown that heightened fear of crime in the elderly does not reflect actual crime rates as much as a perceived vulnerability due to diminished physical and economic resources. As part of a larger Los Angeles study on personal emergency response systems, this study examined the relationships among fear of crime, crime rates,…

Student Victimization in U.S. Schools: Results from the 2009 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. NCES 2012-314

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeVoe, Jill Fleury; Bauer, Lynn

2011-01-01

This report provides estimates of student criminal victimization as defined by the 2009 School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the 2009 National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The NCVS is the nation's primary source of information on criminal victimization and the victims of crime in the United States. The SCS is a supplement to the NCVS that was…

Statistical physics of crime: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

D'Orsogna, Maria R.; Perc, Matjaž

2015-03-01

Containing the spread of crime in urban societies remains a major challenge. Empirical evidence suggests that, if left unchecked, crimes may be recurrent and proliferate. On the other hand, eradicating a culture of crime may be difficult, especially under extreme social circumstances that impair the creation of a shared sense of social responsibility. Although our understanding of the mechanisms that drive the emergence and diffusion of crime is still incomplete, recent

Application of pattern recognition techniques to crime analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bender, C.F.; Cox, L.A. Jr.; Chappell, G.A.

1976-08-15

The initial goal was to evaluate the capabilities of current pattern recognition techniques when applied to existing computerized crime data. Performance was to be evaluated both in terms of the system's capability to predict crimes and to optimize police manpower allocation. A relation was sought to predict the crime's susceptibility to solution, based on knowledge of the crime type, location, time, etc. The preliminary results of this work are discussed. They indicate that automatic crime analysis involving pattern recognition techniques is feasible, and that efforts to determine optimum variables and techniques are warranted. 47 figures (RWR)

The Likelihood of Injury Among Bias Crimes: An Analysis of General and Specific Bias Types.

PubMed

Pezzella, Frank S; Fetzer, Matthew D

2015-06-18

In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Mathew Sheppard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Protection act and thereby extended the list of previously protected classes of victims from actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, disability and sex orientation to gender and gender identity. Over 45 states, the District of Columbia and the federal government now include hate crime statutes that increase penalties when offenders perpetrate hate crimes against protected classes of victims. Penalty enhancement statutes sanction unlawful bias conduct arguably because they result in more severe injuries relative to non-bias conduct. We contend that physical injuries vary by bias type and are not equally injurious. Data on bias crimes was analyzed from the National Incident Based Reporting System. Descriptive patterns of bias crimes were identified by offense type, bias motivation and major and minor injuries. Using Multivariate analyses, we found an escalating trend of violence against racial minorities. Moreover, relative to non-bias crimes, only anti-White and anti-lesbian bias crimes experienced our two prong "animus" criteria of disproportionate prevalence and severity of injury. However, when compared to anti-White bias, anti-Black bias crimes were more prevalent and likely to suffer serious injuries. Implications for hate crime jurisprudence are discussed. © The Author(s) 2015.

Statistical physics of crime: a review.

PubMed

D'Orsogna, Maria R; Perc, Matjaž

2015-03-01

Containing the spread of crime in urban societies remains a major challenge. Empirical evidence suggests that, if left unchecked, crimes may be recurrent and proliferate. On the other hand, eradicating a culture of crime may be difficult, especially under extreme social circumstances that impair the creation of a shared sense of social responsibility. Although our understanding of the mechanisms that drive the emergence and diffusion of crime is still incomplete, recent research highlights applied mathematics and methods of statistical physics as valuable theoretical resources that may help us better understand criminal activity. We review different approaches aimed at modeling and improving our understanding of crime, focusing on the nucleation of crime hotspots using partial differential equations, self-exciting point process and agent-based modeling, adversarial evolutionary games, and the network science behind the formation of gangs and large-scale organized crime. We emphasize that statistical physics of crime can relevantly inform the design of successful crime prevention strategies, as well as improve the accuracy of expectations about how different policing interventions should impact malicious human activity that deviates from social norms. We also outline possible directions for future research, related to the effects of social and coevolving networks and to the hierarchical growth of criminal structures due to self-organization. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Aggregate-level lead exposure, gun violence, homicide, and rape

PubMed Central

Nelson, Erik J.; Qian, Zhengmin; Vaughn, Michael G.; Wright, John P.; Beaver, Kevin M.; Barnes, J. C.; Petkovsek, Melissa; Lewis, Roger; Schootman, Mario; Rosenfeld, Richard

2017-01-01

Context An increasing body of research has linked the geographic distribution of lead with various indicators of criminal and antisocial behavior. Objective The current study, using data from an ongoing project related to lead exposure in St. Louis City, MO, analyzed the association between aggregate blood lead levels and specific indicators violent crime within the city. Design Ecological study. Setting St. Louis, Missouri. Exposure measure Blood lead levels. Main outcome measure Official reports of violent crimes were categorized as 1) crimes involving a firearm (yes/no), 2) assault crimes (with or without a firearm), 3) robbery crimes (with or without a firearm), 4) homicides and 5) rape. Results With the exception of rape, aggregate blood-lead levels were statistically significant predictors of violent crime at the census tract level. The risk ratios for each of the outcome measures were as follows: firearm crimes 1.03 (1.03–1.04), assault crimes 1.03 (1.02–1.03), robbery crimes 1.03 (1.02–1.04), homicide 1.03 (1.01, 1.04), and rape 1.01 (0.99–1.03). Conclusions Extending prior research in St. Louis, results suggest that aggregated lead exposure at the census tract level predicted crime outcomes, even after accounting for important sociological variables. Moving forward, a more developed understanding of aggregate level crime may necessitate a shift toward studying the synergy between sociological and biological risk factors such as lead exposure. PMID:29176826

IMPACT Youth Crime Prevention.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warrington, Georgina; Wright, Paul

2003-01-01

Four models of crime prevention are discussed that arise from differing views of the causes of crime: criminal justice, situational, developmental, and social development models. Two activity-based youth crime prevention projects in Queensland (Australia) use developmental and social development models and expand local youth service…

Hate crimes hurt some more than others: implications for the just sentencing of offenders.

PubMed

Iganski, Paul; Lagou, Spiridoula

2015-06-01

An accumulation of research evidence indicates that hate crimes are more serious than similar but otherwise motivated crimes in respect of the greater post-victimization distress for victims. Such evidence has been used by advocates of hate crime laws to justify greater penalties for hate crime offenders. However, in focusing on the commonalities of the post-victimization impacts inflicted by hate crimes, the research evidence to date has obscured the diversity of reactions between victims. Consequently, this article expands the evidence by illuminating the variation in reported victim impacts. The analysis presented uses data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales on racially motivated crime and reveals that not all victims report being affected by hate crime, not all victims are affected the same way, and some victims of racially motivated crime report less of an emotional impact than some victims of equivalent but otherwise motivated crimes. It is reasoned that in any individual case of hate crime the motivating sentiments of the offender provide an unreliable indicator of the harms inflicted on the victim. Therefore, a blanket uplift in penalty in every case which rests on the offender's motivations cannot be justified if the justification for sentence uplift is to give offenders their just deserts for the harms they inflict. Instead, the justification must rest on the culpability of the offender for the harms they may or may not actually inflict. Just as there is variation in victim impacts, there will be variation in offender culpability: Discretion and flexibility in sentencing is therefore necessary to ensure justice for offenders. © The Author(s) 2014.

Perceived and Police-Reported Neighborhood Crime: Linkages to Adolescent Activity Behaviors and Weight Status.

PubMed

Forsyth, Ann; Wall, Melanie; Choo, Tse; Larson, Nicole; Van Riper, David; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2015-08-01

Inadequate physical activity and obesity during adolescence are areas of public health concern. Questions exist about the role of neighborhoods in the etiology of these problems. This research addressed the relationships of perceived and objective reports of neighborhood crime to adolescent physical activity, screen media use, and body mass index (BMI). Socioeconomically and racially/ethnically diverse adolescents (N = 2,455, 53.4% female) from 20 urban, public middle and high schools in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota responded to a classroom survey in the Eating and Activity in Teens 2010 study. BMI was measured by research staff. Participants' mean age was 14.6 (standard deviation = 2.0); 82.7% represented racial/ethnic groups other than non-Hispanic white. Linear regressions examined associations between crime perceived by adolescents and crime reported to police and the outcomes of interest (BMI z-scores, physical activity, and screen time). Models were stratified by gender and adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and school. BMI was positively associated with perceived crime among girls and boys and with reported crime in girls. For girls, there was an association between higher perceived crime and increased screen time; for boys, between higher reported property crime and reduced physical activity. Perceived crime was associated with reported crime, both property and personal, in both genders. Few prior studies of adolescents have studied the association between both perceived and reported crime and BMI. Community-based programs for youth should consider addressing adolescents' safety concerns along with other perceived barriers to physical activity. Interventions targeting actual crime rates are also important. Copyright © 2015 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Alcohol-related crime in city entertainment precincts: Public perception and experience of alcohol-related crime and support for strategies to reduce such crime.

PubMed

Tindall, Jenny; Groombridge, Daniel; Wiggers, John; Gillham, Karen; Palmer, Darren; Clinton-McHarg, Tara; Lecathelinais, Christophe; Miller, Peter

2016-05-01

Bars, pubs and taverns in cities are often concentrated in entertainment precincts that are associated with higher rates of alcohol-related crime. This study assessed public perception and experiences of such crime in two city entertainment precincts, and support for alcohol-related crime reduction strategies. A cross-sectional household telephone survey in two Australian regions assessed: perception and experiences of crime; support for crime reduction strategies; and differences in such perceptions and support. Six hundred ninety-four people completed the survey (32%). Most agreed that alcohol was a problem in their entertainment precinct (90%) with violence the most common alcohol-related problem reported (97%). Almost all crime reduction strategies were supported by more than 50% of participants, including visitors to the entertainment precincts, with the latter being slightly less likely to support earlier closing and restrictions on premises density. Participants in one region were more likely to support earlier closing and lock-out times. Those at-risk of acute alcohol harm were less likely to support more restrictive policies. High levels of community concern and support for alcohol harm-reduction strategies, including restrictive strategies, provide policy makers with a basis for implementing evidence-based strategies to reduce such harms in city entertainment precincts. [Tindall J, Groombridge D, Wiggers J, Gillham K, Palmer D, Clinton-McHarg T, Lecathelinais C, Miller P. Alcohol-related crime in city entertainment precincts: Public perception and experience of alcohol-related crime and support for strategies to reduce such crime. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:263-272]. © 2015 The Authors. Drug and Alcohol Review published by Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd on behalf of Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

Understanding the associations between psychosocial factors and severity of crime in juvenile delinquency: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Taşkıran, Sarper; Mutluer, Tuba; Tufan, Ali Evren; Semerci, Bengi

2017-01-01

Juvenile delinquency is a serious and common problem. To date, several studies have focused on possible psychosocial risk factors for delinquency among youths and on the implications of childhood mental illness on child criminality. However, the literature on prevalence of psychopathology and predictors of crime severity among delinquent youths in Turkey is sparse. Therefore, the aim of this study was to show the associations between crime severity and psychosocial factors such as gender, age, criminal history, concomitant attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other comorbid psychiatric conditions, along with behavioral problem domains of Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). This analytical cross-sectional study sample consisted of 52 individuals (30 females and 22 males) who were sent to a pilot detention facility in Istanbul, Turkey. The participants' age ranged from 8 to 18 years ( M =13.4; SD =2.9). Self-rating scales were administered in an interview format, and the crime severity information was provided by participants' admission documents. No differences were found in terms of gender, age, children's past history of crime and substance abuse. However, family crime history was significantly higher in the high severity crime group ( P =0.026). Having one or more comorbid psychiatric disorder was associated with high crime severity ( P =0.018). The most common psychiatric disorders were found to be ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder (CD) and anxiety disorder. Findings suggest that a family history of crime comes across as a very strong predictor of severity of crime. Among psychiatric factors, ADHD and CD were associated with commitment of more severe crimes in delinquent youths in our sample. Anxious/depressed traits as depicted by CBCL are found to be associated with less severe crimes.

Understanding the associations between psychosocial factors and severity of crime in juvenile delinquency: a cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

Taşkıran, Sarper; Mutluer, Tuba; Tufan, Ali Evren; Semerci, Bengi

2017-01-01

Purpose Juvenile delinquency is a serious and common problem. To date, several studies have focused on possible psychosocial risk factors for delinquency among youths and on the implications of childhood mental illness on child criminality. However, the literature on prevalence of psychopathology and predictors of crime severity among delinquent youths in Turkey is sparse. Therefore, the aim of this study was to show the associations between crime severity and psychosocial factors such as gender, age, criminal history, concomitant attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other comorbid psychiatric conditions, along with behavioral problem domains of Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Participants and methods This analytical cross-sectional study sample consisted of 52 individuals (30 females and 22 males) who were sent to a pilot detention facility in Istanbul, Turkey. The participants’ age ranged from 8 to 18 years (M =13.4; SD =2.9). Self-rating scales were administered in an interview format, and the crime severity information was provided by participants’ admission documents. Results No differences were found in terms of gender, age, children’s past history of crime and substance abuse. However, family crime history was significantly higher in the high severity crime group (P=0.026). Having one or more comorbid psychiatric disorder was associated with high crime severity (P=0.018). The most common psychiatric disorders were found to be ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder (CD) and anxiety disorder. Conclusion Findings suggest that a family history of crime comes across as a very strong predictor of severity of crime. Among psychiatric factors, ADHD and CD were associated with commitment of more severe crimes in delinquent youths in our sample. Anxious/depressed traits as depicted by CBCL are found to be associated with less severe crimes. PMID:28572731

Crime, Violence, Discipline, and Safety in U.S. Public Schools. Findings from the School Survey on Crime and Safety: 2007-08. First Look. NCES 2009-326

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neiman, Samantha; DeVoe, Jill F.

2009-01-01

This report presents findings on crime and violence in U.S. public schools, using data from the 2007-08 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS:2008). SSOCS provides information about school crime-related topics from the perspective of schools by asking school principals about the frequency of incidents, such as physical attacks, robberies, and…

Crime, Violence, Discipline, and Safety in U.S. Public Schools: Findings from the School Survey on Crime and Safety: 2003-04. First Look. NCES 2007-302

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guerino, Paul; Hurwitz, Michael D.; Noonan, Margaret E.; Kaffenberger, Sarah M.

2006-01-01

This report presents findings on crime and violence in regular public schools in the United States, using data from the 2003--04 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS:2004). First administered in the 1999--2000 school year, SSOCS provides information about school crime-related topics from the perspective of school administrators. Developed by…

Crime, Violence, Discipline, and Safety in U.S. Public Schools. Findings from the School Survey on Crime and Safety: 2009-10. First Look. NCES 2011-320

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neiman, Samantha

2011-01-01

The National Center for Education Statistics collects data on crime and violence in U.S. public schools through the School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS). This First Look report presents findings from the 2009-10 School Survey on Crime and Safety data collection. Developed and managed by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)…

U.S. Policy Regarding the International Criminal Court

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-08-29

against humanity , genocide, and possibly aggression. While most U.S. allies support the ICC, the Bush Administration firmly opposes it and has...include genocide, crimes against humanity , war crimes, and potentially the crime of aggression, if the Assembly of States Parties is able to reach an...Kony, the founder and leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), with 33 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity ); see also Court Seeks

Schools, Neighborhood Risk Factors, and Crime

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willits, Dale; Broidy, Lisa; Denman, Kristine

2013-01-01

Prior research has identified a link between schools (particularly high schools) and neighborhood crime rates. However, it remains unclear whether the relationship between schools and crime is a reflection of other criminogenic dynamics at the neighborhood level or whether schools influence neighborhood crime patterns independently of other…

28 CFR 90.52 - Eligible purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (2) Developing, training, or expanding units..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (3) Developing and implementing more effective... convictions for violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (5...

28 CFR 90.52 - Eligible purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (2) Developing, training, or expanding units..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (3) Developing and implementing more effective... convictions for violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (5...

28 CFR 90.52 - Eligible purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (2) Developing, training, or expanding units..., including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (3) Developing and implementing more effective... convictions for violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence; (5...

Crime scene investigation, reporting, and reconstuction (CSIRR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Booth, John F.; Young, Jeffrey M.; Corrigan, Paul

1997-02-01

Graphic Data Systems Corporation (GDS Corp.) and Intellignet Graphics Solutions, Inc. (IGS) combined talents in 1995 to design and develop a MicroGDSTM application to support field investiations of crime scenes, such as homoicides, bombings, and arsons. IGS and GDS Corp. prepared design documents under the guidance of federal, state, and local crime scene reconstruction experts and with information from the FBI's evidence response team field book. The application was then developed to encompass the key components of crime scene investigaton: staff assigned to the incident, tasks occuring at the scene, visits to the scene location, photogrpahs taken of the crime scene, related documents, involved persons, catalogued evidence, and two- or three- dimensional crime scene reconstruction. Crime scene investigation, reporting, and reconstruction (CSIRR$CPY) provides investigators with a single applicaiton for both capturing all tabular data about the crime scene and quickly renderng a sketch of the scene. Tabular data is captured through ituitive database forms, while MicroGDSTM has been modified to readily allow non-CAD users to sketch the scene.

Crimes against the Elderly. Hearing before the Subcommittee on Children, Family, Drugs and Alcoholism of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources. United States Senate, Ninety-Ninth Congress, First Session on Oversight of the Problem of Crimes Committed against Senior Citizens and What Measures May Be Taken to Help Prevent Such from Happening (St. Petersburg, FL, December 9, 1985).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Congress of the U.S., Washington, DC. Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources.

This document contains the text of a Senate hearing on crimes against the elderly. Senator Paula Hawkins examines funding for day care of the elderly and discusses the crime of elder abuse and other crimes against the elderly. Two victims of abuse testify about their abuse, a victim of violent crime describes her victimization, and a…

Rethinking one of criminology’s ‘brute facts’: The age–crime curve and the crime drop in Scotland

PubMed Central

Matthews, Ben; Minton, Jon

2017-01-01

Examining annual variation in the age–crime curve as a way to better understand the recent crime drop, this paper explores how the age distribution of convicted offending changed for men and women in Scotland between 1989 and 2011. This analysis employs shaded contour plots as a method of visualizing annual change in the age–crime curve. Similar to recent findings from the USA, we observed falling rates of convicted offending for young people, primarily owing to lower rates of convicted offending for young men. In contrast to the US literature we also find increases in the rate of convicted offending for those in their mid-twenties to mid-forties, which are relatively greater for women than men. Analysis of annual change shows different phases in the progression of these trends, with falls in prevalence during the 1990s reflecting lower rates of convictions for acquisitive crime, but falls between 2007 and 2011 being spread across multiple crime types. Explanations of the crime drop in Scotland and elsewhere must be able to account for different patterns of change across age, sex, crime type and time. PMID:29805319

Psychological Effects of Urban Crime Gleaned from Social Media.

PubMed

Valdes, José Manuel Delgado; Eisenstein, Jacob; De Choudhury, Munmun

2015-05-01

Exposure to frequent crime incidents has been found to have a negative bearing on the well-being of city residents, even if they are not themselves a direct victim. We pursue the research question of whether naturalistic data shared on Twitter may provide a "lens" to understand changes in psychological attributes of urban communities (1) immediately following crime incidents, as well as (2) due to long-term exposure to crime. We analyze half a million Twitter posts from the City of Atlanta in 2014, where the rate of violent crime is three times of the national average. In a first study, we develop a statistical method to detect changes in social media psychological attributes in the immediate aftermath of a crime event. Second, we develop a regression model that uses historical (yearlong) crime to predict Twitter negative emotion, anxiety, anger, and sadness. We do not find significant changes in social media affect immediately following crime in Atlanta. However we do observe significant ability of historical crime to account for heightened negative emotion and anger in the future. Our findings have implications in gauging the utility of social media to infer longitudinal and population-scale patterns of urban well-being.

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Draper, Rick; Cadzow, Emma

2004-01-01

Applying CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) strategies to schools can significantly contribute to a safer learning environment by influencing the behaviour of students and visitors. CPTED has three overlapping primary concepts that are intended to reduce opportunities for crime as well as fear of crime: access control,…

Neighborhood crime and transit station access mode choice - phase III of neighborhood crime and travel behavior.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-08-01

This report provides the findings from the third phase of a three-part study about the influences of neighborhood crimes on travel : mode choice. While previous phases found evidence that high levels of neighborhood crime discourage people from choos...

How Crime in the United States is Measured

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-01-03

the screen questionnaire describe crimes in plain language, avoiding technical legal terms. To elicit an accurate response, respondents are provided...Order Code RL34309 How Crime in the United States Is Measured January 3, 2008 Nathan James Analyst in Crime Policy Domestic Social Policy Division...SUBTITLE How Crime in the United States is Measured 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e

Building little safe and civilized communities: community crime prevention with Chinese characteristics?

PubMed

Zhong, Lena Y; Broadhurst, Roderic G

2007-02-01

This article describes a community crime prevention program in China, set against a background of rapid economic development, large internal population migration, and increasing crime rates. Traditional social control in China has been transformed to adapt to the new reform era, yet some mechanisms remain intact. Crime prevention measures and strategies resemble those adopted in the West; however, the differences, constituting the so-called Chinese characteristics with community crime prevention are significant.

Impact of a Participatory Cyber Crime Prevention Programme on Secondary School Students' Attainment in Crime Prevention Concepts in Civic Education and Social Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amosun, Peter Adewale; Ige, Olugbenga Adedayo; Choo, Kim-Kwang Raymond

2015-01-01

Nigeria is considered by many to be a cyber crime hot spot, and is often ranked among the world's top cyber crime committing countries (e.g. advanced fee fraud is also known as Nigerian scams and 419 scams--419 is a section under the Nigerian Criminal Code Act that prohibits obtaining goods by false pretences). We designed a cyber crime prevention…

Crime, Violence, Discipline, and Safety in U.S. Public Schools: Findings from the School Survey on Crime and Safety: 2015-16. First Look. NCES 2017-122

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diliberti, Melissa; Jackson, Michael; Kemp, Jana

2017-01-01

This report presents findings on crime and violence in U.S. public schools, using data from the 2015-16 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS:2016). First administered in school year 1999-2000 and repeated in school years 2003-04, 2005-06, 2007-08, 2009-10, and 2015-16, SSOCS provides information on school crime-related topics from the…

The polymorphism of crime scene investigation: An exploratory analysis of the influence of crime and forensic intelligence on decisions made by crime scene examiners.

PubMed

Resnikoff, Tatiana; Ribaux, Olivier; Baylon, Amélie; Jendly, Manon; Rossy, Quentin

2015-12-01

A growing body of scientific literature recurrently indicates that crime and forensic intelligence influence how crime scene investigators make decisions in their practices. This study scrutinises further this intelligence-led crime scene examination view. It analyses results obtained from two questionnaires. Data have been collected from nine chiefs of Intelligence Units (IUs) and 73 Crime Scene Examiners (CSEs) working in forensic science units (FSUs) in the French speaking part of Switzerland (six cantonal police agencies). Four salient elements emerged: (1) the actual existence of communication channels between IUs and FSUs across the police agencies under consideration; (2) most CSEs take into account crime intelligence disseminated; (3) a differentiated, but significant use by CSEs in their daily practice of this kind of intelligence; (4) a probable deep influence of this kind of intelligence on the most concerned CSEs, specially in the selection of the type of material/trace to detect, collect, analyse and exploit. These results contribute to decipher the subtle dialectic articulating crime intelligence and crime scene investigation, and to express further the polymorph role of CSEs, beyond their most recognised input to the justice system. Indeed, they appear to be central, but implicit, stakeholders in intelligence-led style of policing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Understanding the Link between Social Organization and Crime in Rural Communities

PubMed Central

Chilenski, Sarah M.; Syvertsen, Amy K.; Greenberg, Mark T.

2015-01-01

Rural communities make up much of America's heartland, yet we know little about their social organization, and how elements of their social organization relate to crime rates. The current study sought to remedy this gap by examining the associations between two measures of social organization – collective efficacy and social trust – with a number of structural community characteristics, local crime rates, and perceptions of safety in a sample of 27 rural and small town communities in two states. Measures of collective efficacy, social trust, and perceived safety, were gathered from key community members in 2006; other measures were drawn from the 2000 Census and FBI Uniform Crime Reporting system. A series of competing hypotheses were tested to examine the relative importance of social trust and collective efficacy in predicting local crime rates. Results do not support the full generalization of the social disorganization model. Correlational analyses showed that neither collective efficacy nor social trust had a direct association with community crime, nor did they mediate the associations between community structural characteristics and crime. However, perceived safety mediated the association between community crime and both measures of social organization. Analyses suggest that social trust may be more important than collective efficacy when understanding the effect of crime on a community's culture in rural areas. Understanding these associations in rural settings can aid decision makers in shaping policies to reduce crime and juvenile delinquency. PMID:26120326

Depressive symptoms mediate the association between fear of crime and higher body mass index.

PubMed

Kodjebacheva, Gergana; Koleilat, Maria; Kruger, Daniel J

2015-01-01

To investigate pathways in the association between fear of crime and obesity. A cross-sectional survey was administered among residents aged 18 years and older across all Census tracts. Genesee County, Michigan. A total of 3192 residents. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated by using the respondents' reported height and weight. Composite fear-of-crime and depressive symptoms scores were calculated by using several survey items. ANALYSIS . Path analysis examined the effects of fear of crime on BMI. RESULTS . Fear of crime was associated with higher BMI. Depressive symptoms mediated the relationship between fear of crime and BMI (p < .001). Moderate exercise mediated the association between depressive symptoms and BMI (p < .001). Fear of crime was associated with depressive symptoms, which in turn were associated with reduced exercise and subsequently higher BMI.

Zoning Out Crime and Improving Community Health in Sarasota, Florida: “Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design”

PubMed Central

Carter, Sherry Plaster; Carter, Stanley L.; Dannenberg, Andrew L.

2003-01-01

Sarasota, Fla, used Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles to guide revitalization efforts in its crime-ridden North Trail area. A team of city planners, police officers, and architects examined land use and crime data and sought input from local businesses, residents, and community leaders. Beginning in 1990, interventions included increased police patrols to reduce prostitution and the creation of a new zoning district to encourage area redevelopment based on CPTED principles. Compared with the rest of Sarasota, from 1990 to 1998 the North Trail Corridor experienced decreases in calls for police service (P < .005), crimes against persons and property (P = not significant), and prostitution (P < .05). These results suggest that community design may be a useful tool for decreasing crime and improving community health. PMID:12948960

Spatial/Temporal Variations of Crime: A Routine Activity Theory Perspective.

PubMed

de Melo, Silas Nogueira; Pereira, Débora V S; Andresen, Martin A; Matias, Lindon Fonseca

2018-05-01

Temporal and spatial patterns of crime in Campinas, Brazil, are analyzed considering the relevance of routine activity theory in a Latin American context. We use geo-referenced criminal event data, 2010-2013, analyzing spatial patterns using census tracts and temporal patterns considering seasons, months, days, and hours. Our analyses include difference in means tests, count-based regression models, and Kulldorff's scan test. We find that crime in Campinas, Brazil, exhibits both temporal and spatial-temporal patterns. However, the presence of these patterns at the different temporal scales varies by crime type. Specifically, not all crime types have statistically significant temporal patterns at all scales of analysis. As such, routine activity theory works well to explain temporal and spatial-temporal patterns of crime in Campinas, Brazil. However, local knowledge of Brazilian culture is necessary for understanding a portion of these crime patterns.

Neighborhood crime and self-care: risks for aggression and lower academic performance.

PubMed

Lord, Heather; Mahoney, Joseph L

2007-11-01

This longitudinal study evaluated associations among official rates of neighborhood crime, academic performance, and aggression in a sample of 581 children in 1st-3rd grade (6.3-10.6 years old). It was hypothesized that the influence of crime depends on children's unsupervised exposure to the neighborhood context through self-care. Average weekly hours in self-care were trichotomized into low (0-3), moderate (4-9), and high (10-15). Moderate and high amounts of self-care were linked to increased aggression and decreased academic performance for children from high-crime areas (11,230 crimes per 100,000 persons) but not average-crime areas, when the authors controlled for neighborhood, family, and child covariates. In high-crime areas, academic outcomes were more favorable when self-care occurred in combination with after-school program participation. (c) 2007 APA.

Gendered Pathways From Child Abuse to Adult Crime Through Internalizing and Externalizing Behaviors in Childhood and Adolescence

PubMed Central

Jung, Hyunzee; Herrenkohl, Todd I.; Lee, Jungeun Olivia; Hemphill, Sheryl A.; Heerde, Jessica A.; Skinner, Martie L.

2016-01-01

Gender differences in externalizing and internalizing pathways from child abuse to adult crime were examined across four waves of an extended longitudinal study (N = 186 males and 170 females) using multiple-group structural equation modeling. Results show that child abuse was associated with both internalizing and externalizing behaviors in the elementary school years for both males and females. However, gender differences were found such that internalizing behaviors increased the risk of adult crime for females only, and externalizing behaviors increased the risk of adult crime for males only. Internalizing behaviors among males actually lessened the risk of adult crime, and externalizing behaviors were unrelated to adult crime among females. Findings confirm distinct pathways leading from child abuse to later crime for males and females, which is important for prevention and intervention strategies. PMID:26264725

Do drinking-age laws have an impact on crime? Evidence from Canada, 2009-2013.

PubMed

Callaghan, Russell C; Gatley, Jodi M; Asbridge, Mark; Sanches, Marcos; Benny, Claire

2016-10-01

International debate is ongoing about the effectiveness of minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) laws. In Canada, the MLDA is 18 years of age in Alberta, Manitoba and Québec, and 19 in the rest of the country. Surprisingly few prior studies have examined the potential impacts of MLDA legislation on crime, and the current study addresses this gap. Regression-discontinuity analyses of police-reported criminal incidents from the 2009-2013 Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey, Canada's crime database. Nationally, in comparison to males slightly younger than the MLDA, those just older than the MLDA had sharp increases in: all crimes, (7.6%; 95% CI=3.7%-11%, P<0.001); violent crimes, (7.4%; 95% CI=0.2%-14.6%, P=0.043); property crimes, (4.8%; 95% CI=0.02%-9.5%, P=0.049); and disorderly conduct, (29.4%; 95% CI=15.6%-43.3%, P<0.001). Among females, national criminal incidents increased sharply following the MLDA in: all crimes, (10.4%; 95% CI=3.8%-17.0%, P=0.002), violent crimes, (14.9%; 95% CI=6.4-23.2, P=0.001); and disorderly conduct, (35.3%; 95% CI=11.6-58.9, P=0.004). Among both males and females, there was no evidence of significant changes in cannabis- or narcotics-related crimes (quasi-control outcomes) vis-à-vis the MLDA (P>0.05). Release from drinking-age laws appears to be associated with immediate increases in population-level violent and nonviolent crimes among young people in Canada. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Disaggregating the Relationship Between Schools and Crime: A Spatial Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murray, Rebecca K.; Swatt, Marc L.

2013-01-01

Although an extensive literature exists on crime in schools, surprisingly few studies have examined crime within the vicinity of schools. Schools, like other urban facilities, can generate crime by providing youth opportunities to congregate with little supervision, particularly before and after school hours. Some noteworthy studies have…

Gun Attitudes and Fear of Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heath, Linda; Weeks, Kyle; Murphy, Marie Mackay

1997-01-01

Using three studies, examined the relationship between attitudes toward guns and fear of crime. Findings indicate a connection between fear of crime and attitudes toward guns: people higher in fear of crime favored gun control. Results also established a relationship between stereotypical beliefs about gun victims and support for gun control. (RJM)

31 CFR Appendix N to Subpart C of... - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Financial Crimes Enforcement Network...—Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 1. In general. This appendix applies to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). It sets forth specific notification and access procedures with respect to...

New Campus Crime Prevention Resources Available

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campus Law Enforcement Journal, 2012

2012-01-01

The Campus Crime Prevention Committee has compiled a list of university and college crime prevention agencies and resources, which includes contact information, links to agency crime prevention web pages, and a list of resources they offer (i.e., brochures, guides, PowerPoint programs, videos, etc.) as well as a spreadsheet showing organizations…

24 CFR 200.37 - Preventing crime in federally assisted housing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Preventing crime in federally... Regulations § 200.37 Preventing crime in federally assisted housing. See part 5, subparts I and J of this title, for provisions concerning preventing crime in federally assisted housing, including programs...

77 FR 12079 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Crime Victim...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-28

... Collection; Comments Requested: Crime Victim Compensation State Certification Form Request ACTION: 30-Day... Programs (OJP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) will be submitting the following information collection...: Crime Victim Compensation State Certification Form. (3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable...

76 FR 79219 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Crime Victim...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-21

... Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Crime Victim Compensation State Certification... (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) will be submitting the... information, please contact DeLano Foster at (202) 616-3612, Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice...

77 FR 43365 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested; Reinstatement...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-07-24

... statistics on the students' victimization, perceptions of school environment, and safety at school. (5) An... Approved Collection for Which Approval Has Expired: School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime... Form/Collection: School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey. (3) Agency...

32 CFR 11.6 - Crimes and elements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Defense Department of Defense OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE MILITARY COMMISSIONS CRIMES AND ELEMENTS FOR TRIALS BY MILITARY COMMISSION § 11.6 Crimes and elements. (a) Substantive offenses—war crimes. The... object of the attack was civilian property, that is, property that was not a military objective; (C) The...

32 CFR 11.6 - Crimes and elements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Defense Department of Defense OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE MILITARY COMMISSIONS CRIMES AND ELEMENTS FOR TRIALS BY MILITARY COMMISSION § 11.6 Crimes and elements. (a) Substantive offenses—war crimes. The... object of the attack was civilian property, that is, property that was not a military objective; (C) The...

32 CFR 11.6 - Crimes and elements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Defense Department of Defense OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE MILITARY COMMISSIONS CRIMES AND ELEMENTS FOR TRIALS BY MILITARY COMMISSION § 11.6 Crimes and elements. (a) Substantive offenses—war crimes. The... object of the attack was civilian property, that is, property that was not a military objective; (C) The...

Crime and Economic Incentives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Machin, Stephen; Meghir, Costas

2004-01-01

The role that economic incentives play in determining crime rates is explored. A number of experiments were carried out with different wage measures and the result that incentives were the most important factor was reinforced by the strong impact of crime of deterrence measures and of a measure of the returns to crime.

Off Balance: Youth, Race & Crime in the News. Building Blocks for Youth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dorfman, Lori; Schiraldi, Vincent

This report assesses findings from content analyses on crime news, investigating whether news coverage reflects actual crime trends; how news coverage depicts minorities and crime; and whether news coverage disproportionately depicts minority youth as perpetrators. Data came from searches of criminal justice and communications databases, which…

Central crime computer project draws mixed reviews.

PubMed

Shapley, D

1977-07-08

After committing a crime in Ohio, an offender from California, for example, may flee to Florida, having profitably disposed of his stolen goods in still another State. With all the marvels of modern transportation, all this can and does occur while the police pore over the fresh traces at the crime scene. To solve crime in the space-age tempo of today's society demands that law enforcement officers have available immediately the facts of crime whenever or wherever they are likely to confront suspected elements of it.

The nature of crime : Is cheating necessary for cooperation?

PubMed

Machalek, R; Cohen, L E

1991-09-01

The classical social theorist Emile Durkheim proposed the counterintuitive thesis that crime is beneficial for society because it provokes punishment, which enhances social solidarity. His logic, however, is blemished by a reified view of society that leads to group-selectionist thinking and a teleological account of the causes of crime. Reconceptualization of the relationship between crime and punishment in terms of evolutionary game theory, however, suggests that crime (cheating) may confer benefits on cooperating individuals by promoting stability in their patterns of cooperation.

Temporal distributions of crime and disorder in casino and non-casino zones.

PubMed

Barthe, Emmanuel; Stitt, B Grant

2009-06-01

Research on the relationship between casinos and crime has yielded mixed conclusions. Some authors argue that casinos are crime attractors and provide fertile grounds for disorder in the surrounding communities. Others claim that the impact of casinos on the crime problem has been over-stated and that casinos in themselves are not crime generators. Relying on calls for service and incidents known to the police, this research reveals the specific spatial and temporal characteristics of all criminal and disorderly behaviors around casino venues.

Modeling the Underlying Dynamics of the Spread of Crime

PubMed Central

McMillon, David; Simon, Carl P.; Morenoff, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

The spread of crime is a complex, dynamic process that calls for a systems level approach. Here, we build and analyze a series of dynamical systems models of the spread of crime, imprisonment and recidivism, using only abstract transition parameters. To find the general patterns among these parameters—patterns that are independent of the underlying particulars—we compute analytic expressions for the equilibria and for the tipping points between high-crime and low-crime equilibria in these models. We use these expressions to examine, in particular, the effects of longer prison terms and of increased incarceration rates on the prevalence of crime, with a follow-up analysis on the effects of a Three-Strike Policy. PMID:24694545

Fear of Crime in the Sanctuary: Comparing American and Ghanaian University Students' Fearfulness.

PubMed

Boateng, Francis D

2018-02-01

While much is known about fear of crime in the West, little is known about how fearfulness of crime develops in non-Western societies, especially among university students. Representing the first attempt to empirically compare levels of fear of crime between Ghanaian and U.S. college students, this article examined students' levels of fear of crime on campus, and tested the applicability of two evolving models of fear of crime-the vulnerability and reassurance models-using comparative data. The general finding is that Ghanaian and U.S. college students differ in terms of their rates of fearfulness on campus. This significant difference adds to the already existing differences between the two countries.

Crime scene units: a look to the future

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldwin, Hayden B.

1999-02-01

The scientific examination of physical evidence is well recognized as a critical element in conducting successful criminal investigations and prosecutions. The forensic science field is an ever changing discipline. With the arrival of DNA, new processing techniques for latent prints, portable lasers, and electro-static dust print lifters, and training of evidence technicians has become more important than ever. These scientific and technology breakthroughs have increased the possibility of collecting and analyzing physical evidence that was never possible before. The problem arises with the collection of physical evidence from the crime scene not from the analysis of the evidence. The need for specialized units in the processing of all crime scenes is imperative. These specialized units, called crime scene units, should be trained and equipped to handle all forms of crime scenes. The crime scenes units would have the capability to professionally evaluate and collect pertinent physical evidence from the crime scenes.

Gender, fear of crime, and attitudes toward prisoners among social work majors in a Hong Kong University.

PubMed

Chui, Wing Hong; Cheng, Kevin Kwok-Yin; Wong, Lok-Ping

2013-04-01

Fear of crime has been a dominant area of criminological inquiry, yet it is has been examined only recently in a Chinese context, and it is virtually unexplored in Hong Kong. Using a sample of 170 Hong Kong college students majoring in social work, the current study aimed to investigate the effects of gender on fear of crime and their relationships to attitudes toward prisoners. In general, women reported a significantly greater fear of crime than men for all offenses except for being cheated. Fear of rape/sexual assault was found to be a significant predictor of fear of serious crimes for women but a less significant predictor of their fear of minor crimes. The shadow of the sexual assault hypothesis was supported in this study. Fear of crime had little impact on attitudes toward prisoners.

Causal factors of corporate crime in Taiwan: qualitative and quantitative findings.

PubMed

Mon, Wei-Teh

2002-04-01

Street crimes are a primary concern of most criminologists in Taiwan. In recent years, however, crimes committed by corporations have increased greatly in this country. Employing the empirical approach to collect data about causal factors of corporate crime, the research presented in this article is the first systematic empirical study concerning corporate crime in Taiwan. The research sample was selected from a corporation with a criminal record of pollution caused by the release of toxic chemicals into the environment and a corporation with no criminal record. Questionnaire survey and interviews of corporate employees and managers were conducted, and secondary data were collected from official agencies. This research indicated the causal factors of corporate crime as follows: the failure of government regulation, lack of corporate self-regulation, lack of public concern about corporate crime, corporate mechanistic structure, and the low self-control tendency of corporate managers.

Modelling the dynamics of crime and punishment. Comment on "Statistical physics of crime: A review" by M.R. D'Orsogna and M. Perc

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abou Chakra, Maria; Hilbe, Christian

2015-03-01

The causes and consequences of crime have fascinated humans for centuries. What makes people break the law, and how does crime affect societies? To approach such questions, it may seem most natural to take the viewpoint of sociology or psychology. However, starting with the pioneering work of Nobel prize laureate Gary S. Becker [1], it has been increasingly emphasized that crime does not need to be the result of insane minds. Instead, committing a crime may be quite rational, given the right circumstances. Whether we are willing to break the law depends on the environment and on the incentives at stake: What are the chances of being caught after committing a certain felony? And how severe is the punishment? From the perspective of economics, crime can often be understood as a result of conscious decisions, as an equilibrium in a strategic game.

Teens, Crime, and the Community in Boys & Girls Clubs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carlson, Andrea

Teens, Crime, and the Community (TCC) curriculum creates an awareness among teens of the crime problems facing our communities and how they affect our nation. It encourages youth to take responsibility for reducing crime and victimization, making schools and neighborhoods safer. Boys and Girls Clubs offer a variety of programs for youth, and TCC…

Fear of Crime in the Elderly: A Longitudinal Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuentes, Max E.; And Others

To investigate correlates of fear of crime and physical mobility among physically vulnerable older adults, 42 community dwelling older adults twice completed a battery of tests, with 1 year intervening. The tests included Functional Health Status, Perceived Health Status, Sense of Mastery, Leave of Residence, and Fear of Crime. Crime statistics…

Fostering Diversity. Reflecting on September 11.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Constitutional Rights Foundation, Los Angeles, CA.

In this lesson, students examine issues surrounding hate crimes. Students read and discuss an article on hate crimes. In small groups, students role play state legislators and supporters and opponents of hate-crime legislation who must discuss and vote on a bill designed to increase sentences for hate crimes. Following an overview, the lesson plan…

Criminal Victimization and Attitudes toward Crime in Virginia: A Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryant, Clifton D.; Shoemaker, Donald J.

The purpose of this report is to present the results of a crime victimization survey conducted among Virginia residents. The description of the findings is divided into four sections: criminal victimization experiences, reporting of victimizations, attitudes toward crime, and crime prevention and protection measures. The report is offered as a…

Young People, Trouble, and Crime: Restorative Justice as a Normative Theory of Informal Social Control and Social Support.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bazemore, Gordon

2001-01-01

Reviews the normative theory of restorative justice in youth crime, highlighting three core principles: repairing the harm of crime; involving stakeholders; and transforming community and government roles in response to crime. Considers connections between restorative intervention theories and informal social control and social support mechanisms…

Crime, Culture Conflict, and the Sources of Support for Gun Control.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kleck, Gary

1996-01-01

Questions whether attitudes towards gun control are influenced primarily by exposure to high crime rates, prior victimization, and fear of crime, or result from membership in social groups hostile to gun ownership. Maintains that support for gun control is more a product of culture conflict than a response to crime. (MJP)

Social Disorganization Theory and Crime Rates on California Community College Campuses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ravalin, Tamara; Tevis, Tenisha

2017-01-01

Recent media attention concerning the escalation of crime on college campuses has created a sense of urgency to address how crime will impact the largest community college system in the United States, California Community Colleges. Crime can deter academic success and social engagement. This study utilizes social disorganization theory to examine…

31 CFR Appendix M to Subpart A - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Financial Crimes Enforcement Network... Crimes Enforcement Network 1. In general. This appendix applies to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). 2. Public Reading Room. FinCEN will provide a room on an ad hoc basis when necessary...

31 CFR Appendix M to Subpart A - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Financial Crimes Enforcement Network... Crimes Enforcement Network 1. In general. This appendix applies to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). 2. Public Reading Room. FinCEN will provide a room on an ad hoc basis when necessary...

Crimes against Children by Babysitters. Crimes against Children Series. Juvenile Justice Bulletin.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Finkelhor, David; Ormrod, Richard

This bulletin, part of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's "Crimes against Children Series," draws on the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System to provide data on the frequency and nature of crimes against children committed by babysitters. According to the bulletin, babysitters account for approximately 4 percent…

International Terrorism and Transnational Crime: Security Threats, U.S. Policy, and Considerations for Congress

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-18

Michael Jacobson and Matthew Levitt, “ Follow the Money ,” Los Angeles Times, December 23, 2008. . International Terrorism and Transnational Crime...221 See for example R. T. Naylor, “Wash-Out: A Critique of Follow - the - Money Methods in Crime Control Policy,” Crime, Law, and

31 CFR Appendix M to Subpart A - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Financial Crimes Enforcement Network... DISCLOSURE OF RECORDS Freedom of Information Act Pt. 1, Subpt. A, App. M Appendix M to Subpart A—Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 1. In general. This appendix applies to the Financial Crimes Enforcement...

77 FR 22805 - Meeting of the Compact Council for the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact; Correction

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-17

... Register of April 3, 2012, concerning the date and location of the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Council (Council) created by the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Act of 1998... National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact; Correction AGENCY: Federal Bureau of Investigation. ACTION...

Workplace Violence, Hate Crime and Free Speech: A Proactive Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romas, Ted; Parmer, Harry

For community colleges, crime on campus is a complex and pressing issue since most maintain open campuses with no physical security features, such as entry control points or fencing. Workplace crimes can take the form of robbery or other violent crimes, domestic and misdirected affection cases, employer-directed situations, terrorism, and hate…

Spatial and Temporal Aspects of Alcohol-Related Crime in a College Town

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brower, Aaron M.; Carroll, Lisa

2007-01-01

Objective: The authors aimed to clarify crime "movement" through the city of Madison to focus efforts to address consequences of student drinking. The authors examined all crime reported by police during the 2003 year. Methods: Using geographical information system (GIS) mapping and 2003 crime data from the University of…

Crime Scene Investigation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Barbara; Kohlmeier, Kris; Kiel, Robert D.

Casting students in grades 5 through 12 in the roles of reporters, lawyers, and detectives at the scene of a crime, this interdisciplinary activity involves participants in the intrigue and drama of crime investigation. Using a hands-on, step-by-step approach, students work in teams to investigate a crime and solve a mystery. Through role-playing…

77 FR 36009 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Extension of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-15

...; Victims of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program, State Performance Report ACTION: 60-Day Notice. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC... instructions or additional information, please contact DeLano Foster 202-616-3612, Office for Victims of Crime...

28 CFR 0.91 - Office for Victims of Crime.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Office for Victims of Crime. 0.91 Section...-Office of Justice Programs and Related Agencies § 0.91 Office for Victims of Crime. The Office for Victims of Crime is headed by a Director appointed by the Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice...

Policing Alcohol and Related Crimes on Campus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allen, Andrea N.

2013-01-01

Research shows that college students drink alcohol frequently and heavily. This can compromise their health and well-being. Student drinking is also tied to crime. While prior work explores the nature and extent of crimes involving alcohol on campus, to date no study has examined how police handle these incidents or crime generally. This study…

Student Reactions to Public Safety Reports of Hate Crimes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kahl, Jessica E.; Koenig, Anne; Smith, Ramon

2013-01-01

This study investigated participant's reactions to hate crime versus nonbiased crime incident reports that included more or less detail about the crime using a 2 (victim race: African American, unstated) × 2 (amount of information: vague, detailed) between-subjects factorial design. We hypothesized that participants would be more sympathetic,…

The Role of Perpetrator Motivation in Two Crime Scenarios

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sizemore, O. J.

2013-01-01

Undergraduate volunteers (n = 134) were randomly assigned in a 2 x 2 design that manipulated type of crime (rape vs. robbery) and perpetrator motivation (anger vs. desire). After reading one of the crime scenarios, participants responded to a series of attitude items regarding responsibility for the crime, assigned blame to agents mentioned in the…

Hate-Crime Hoaxes Unsettle Campuses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gose, Ben

1999-01-01

In recent months, police on a number of college and university campuses have investigated hate crimes that made headlines, only to discover that the crimes had been made up. While some feel the hoaxes are by individual students during difficult times in their lives, others feel leftists may be faking the crimes to influence the campus movement…

Examining gambling-related crime reports in the National Finnish Police Register.

PubMed

Kuoppamäki, Sanna-Mari; Kääriäinen, Juha; Lind, Kalle

2014-12-01

The aim of this study is to examine the connection between gambling and criminal activity in the National Finnish Police Register. First, a method was created that enabled the search for gambling-related police reports in the National Finnish Police Register. The method is based on finding gambling-related police reports by using gambling-related headwords. Second, all police reports from 2011 that included any mention of gambling were read through (n = 2,233). Suspected gambling-related of crimes (n = 737) were selected from these reports. Those suspected gambling-related crimes were then described and categorized into six different categories: suspected online-related crimes; suspected crimes that were related to lifestyle-gaming; suspected crimes that involved a gambler as a victim of a crime; criminal activity related to problem gambling; casino-connected crimes, and intimate partnership violence resulting from gambling problems. This study, being the first in Finland, generated information on the connection between gambling and criminal activity from the perspective of police reports. Moreover, the study highlights methodological issues that are involved in studying police reports.

DNA in the Criminal Justice System: The DNA Success Story in Perspective.

PubMed

Mapes, Anna A; Kloosterman, Ate D; de Poot, Christianne J

2015-07-01

Current figures on the efficiency of DNA as an investigative tool in criminal investigations only tell part of the story. To get the DNA success story in the right perspective, we examined all forensic reports from serious (N = 116) and high-volume crime cases (N = 2791) over the year 2011 from one police region in the Netherlands. These data show that 38% of analyzed serious crime traces (N = 384) and 17% of analyzed high-volume crime traces (N = 386) did not result in a DNA profile. Turnaround times (from crime scene to DNA report) were 66 days for traces from serious crimes and 44 days for traces from high-volume crimes. Suspects were truly identified through a match with the Offender DNA database of the Netherlands in 3% of the serious crime cases and in 1% of the high-volume crime cases. These data are important for both the forensic laboratory and the professionals in the criminal justice system to further optimize forensic DNA testing as an investigative tool. © 2015 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Social change, institutional anomie, and serious property crime in transitional Russia

PubMed Central

Kim, Sang-Weon; Pridemore, William Alex

2006-01-01

This study examined socioeconomic change, social institutions, and serious property crime in transitional Russia. Durkheim’s anomie theory and recent research on violence in Russia led us to expect an association between negative socioeconomic change and property crime. Based upon institutional anomie theory, we also tested the hypothesis that the association between change and crime is conditioned by the strength of non-economic social institutions. Using crime data from the Russian Ministry of the Interior and an index of socioeconomic change, we used OLS regression to estimate cross-sectional models using the Russian regions (n=78) as the unit of analysis. Results surprisingly showed no effect of socioeconomic change on two different measures of robbery, only very limited support for the hypothesis of direct effects of social institutions on crime, and obviously no support for the hypothesis that institutions moderate the effect of change on crime. We interpret these findings in the context of transitional Russia and conclude that rigorous research in other nations is important in determining the generalizability of criminological theories developed to explain crime in Western nations. PMID:17372622

Hazardous waste crime: a contextual analysis of the offense and the offender

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rebovich, D.J.

The goal of this study is to analyze hazardous waste offense and offender characteristics. Criminal case data were collected from four sample states (Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania). Files of disposed criminal cases charged between 1977 and 1984 were content-analyzed, and interviews were conducted with prominent hazardous waste crime enforcement personnel from the sample states. Areas of analysis include methods of crime commission, skills required for crime commission, patterns of criminal network relationships, and degree of syndicate crime influence. While there has been some previous speculation that hazardous waste criminal behavior is directed through centralized racketeering, the present studymore » of known offenders found little evidence of syndicate crime family infiltration. Crimes occurred within small, informal networks of waste generators, waste transporters, the employees of treatment/storage/disposal (TSD) facilities and certain non-industry peripheral actors. The study concludes that, while attempts have been made by syndicate crime operatives to infiltrate, these attempts have failed largely due to features of criminal commission methods and to the inherent fragmentation of hauling and TSD firm interests.« less

Sexual Violence in the Backlands: Toward a Macro-Level Understanding of Rural Sex Crimes.

PubMed

Braithwaite, Jeremy

2015-10-01

This research focuses on structural covariates of sex crimes in rural communities (using urban and urbanizing communities as comparison groups), with particular analysis on exploring how the magnitude and direction of such covariates differ with respect to type of sex crime. Using 2000 sex crime data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) for the population of reporting U.S. cities, negative binomial and logistic regression procedures were used to explore the relationship between resource disadvantage, local investment, and economic inequality and sex crime subtypes. For sex crimes that occurred almost exclusively in the home, urban and urbanizing community rates were largely influenced by resource disadvantage and local investment, while these measures did not reach significance for explaining rural rates. Conversely, local investment was a significant predictor of sex crimes that occurred outside the home in rural communities. This research indicates that a structural analysis of sexual victimization (widely absent from the scientific literature) does yield significant findings and that disaggregation of crime into subtypes allows for a more detailed differentiation between urban and rural communities. © The Author(s) 2014.

Guns, germs, and stealing: exploring the link between infectious disease and crime.

PubMed

Shrira, Ilan; Wisman, Arnaud; Webster, Gregory

2013-03-27

Can variation in crime rates be traced to the threat of infectious disease? Pathogens pose an ongoing challenge to survival, leading humans to adapt defenses to manage this threat. In addition to the biological immune system, humans have psychological and behavioral responses designed to protect against disease. Under persistent disease threat, xenophobia increases and people constrict social interactions to known in-group members. Though these responses reduce disease transmission, they can generate favorable crime conditions in two ways. First, xenophobia reduces inhibitions against harming and exploiting out-group members. Second, segregation into in-group factions erodes people's concern for the welfare of their community and weakens the collective ability to prevent crime. The present study examined the effects of infection incidence on crime rates across the United States. Infection rates predicted violent and property crime more strongly than other crime covariates. Infections also predicted homicides against strangers but not family or acquaintances, supporting the hypothesis that in-group-out-group discrimination was responsible for the infections-crime link. Overall, the results add to evidence that disease threat shapes interpersonal behavior and structural characteristics of groups.

Criminal offending among males and females between ages 15 and 30 in a population-based nationwide 1981 birth cohort: results from the FinnCrime Study.

PubMed

Elonheimo, Henrik; Gyllenberg, David; Huttunen, Jukka; Ristkari, Terja; Sillanmäki, Lauri; Sourander, André

2014-12-01

We describe the epidemiology of crime between ages 15 and 30 in a population-based sample. We received police register data for 5405 males and females, representing the children born in Finland in 1981. We classified crimes into drug, violent, property, traffic, drunk driving, and sexual crimes, excluding minor traffic offenses. Of males, 60% and of females, 25% were registered for offending. For males, prevalence peaked in late adolescence, while for females, there was no peak age. Offending frequency remained stable for male offenders but was lower among adolescent female offenders. All crime types overlapped each other. Crime accumulated: 1% committed 34% of male and 56% of female offenses. In conclusion, the adolescent peak in offending reflects peaking prevalence among males, not females, nor frequency of offending among offenders. The crime problem is focused on two key groups: late adolescent males and the few males and females in whom crime concentrates. Copyright © 2014 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Symbolic racism and Whites' attitudes towards punitive and preventive crime policies.

PubMed

Green, Eva G T; Staerklé, Christian; Sears, David O

2006-08-01

This study analyzes the determinants of Whites' support for punitive and preventive crime policies. It focuses on the predictive power of beliefs about race as described by symbolic racism theory. A dataset with 849 White respondents from three waves of the Los Angeles County Social Survey was used. In order to assess the weight of racial factors in crime policy attitudes, the effects of a range of race-neutral attitude determinants were controlled for, namely individual and structural crime attributions, perceived seriousness of crime, crime victimization, conservatism and news exposure. Results show a strong effect of symbolic racism on both types of crime policies, and in particular on punitive policies. High levels of symbolic racism are associated with support for tough, punitive crime policies and with opposition to preventive policies. Sub-dimensions of symbolic racism qualified these relationships, by showing that internal symbolic racism (assessing perceived individual deficiencies of Blacks) was most strongly predictive of punitiveness, whereas external symbolic racism (denial of institutional discrimination) predicted opposition to structural remedies. On the whole, despite the effects of race-neutral factors, the impact of symbolic racism on policy attitudes was substantial. Thus, White public opinion on both punitive and preventive crime policies is at least partially driven by racial prejudice.

The Effect of a Sunday Liquor-Sales Ban Repeal on Crime: A Triple-Difference Analysis.

PubMed

Han, SeungHoon; Branas, Charles C; MacDonald, John M

2016-05-01

This study investigates whether alcohol availability in state-run liquor stores affects crime nearby. In 2003, Pennsylvania repealed its Sunday alcohol-sales ban for a portion of its state-run liquor stores. We capitalize on this change in alcohol policy to assess the effect of alcohol availability on crime occurring within the vicinity of liquor stores that opened on Sundays in Philadelphia. We employed a difference-in-difference-in-differences model that compared reported crime before versus after the change in alcohol policy, Sundays versus other days of the week, and the fraction of liquor stores affected versus not affected by the repeal. We used crime incident data in Philadelphia between 1998 and 2011. The repeal was associated with a significant increase in total and property-crime incidents occurring around Sunday-open state liquor stores in low-socioeconomic-status neighborhoods. We found no evidence of the displacement of crime to nearby areas. This is the first triple-difference alcohol study that attempts to isolate the micro-spatial effects of a shift in alcohol availability on local crime patterns, and shows that the repeal of Sunday alcohol-sales restrictions may increase crime in poor urban areas. Copyright © 2016 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

The Effect of a Sunday Liquor Sales Ban Repeal on Crime: A Triple Difference Analysis

PubMed Central

Han, SeungHoon; Branas, Charles C.; MacDonald, John M.

2017-01-01

Background This paper investigates whether alcohol availability in state-run liquor stores affects crime nearby. In 2003, Pennsylvania repealed its Sunday alcohol sales ban for a portion of its state-run liquor stores. We capitalize on this change in alcohol policy to assess the effect of alcohol availability on crime occurring within the vicinity of liquor stores that opened on Sundays in Philadelphia. Methods We employed a difference-in-difference-in-differences model that compared reported crime before versus after the change in alcohol policy, Sundays versus other days of the week, and the fraction of liquor stores affected versus not affected by the repeal. We used crime incident data in Philadelphia between 1998 and 2011. Results The repeal was associated with a significant increase in total and property crime incidents occurring around Sunday-open state liquor stores in low socioeconomic status neighborhoods. We found no evidence of the displacement of crime to nearby areas. Conclusions This is the first triple-difference alcohol study that attempts to isolate the micro-spatial effects of a shift in alcohol availability on local crime patterns, and shows that the repeal of Sunday alcohol sales restrictions may increase crime in poor urban areas. PMID:27080017

The effect of objectively measured crime on walking in minority adults.

PubMed

McDonald, Noreen C

2008-01-01

Evaluate the relationship between neighborhood crime and the amount of daily walking by minority adults. This was a cross-sectional study of minority adult walking behavior and crime. Setting. Oakland, California was chosen as the study area because of the substantial spatial variation in levels of criminal activity combined with detailed information on walking trips. The study was restricted to minority adults who responded to the 2000 Bay Area Travel Survey and lived in Oakland, California (n = 359). Data on leisure and utilitarian walking were collected through the 2000 Bay Area Travel Survey and combined with crime data from the Oakland Police Department. A negative binomial model was used to test if violent, property, or quality of life crimes had significant associations with daily minutes walked, controlling for individual and neighborhood covariates. The model showed a significant negative association between violent crime and minutes walked per day (b = -.07; p = .016). Neither property nor quality of life crimes were correlated with amount of walking. Reductions in violent crime may increase opportunities for minority residents in urban areas to participate in physical activity such as walking, thereby providing another reason to pursue anticrime measures. Urban designers' efforts to increase physical activity by improving neighborhood walkability may consider violent crime prevention in their designs.

The Dynamics of Crime and Punishment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hausken, Kjell; Moxnes, John F.

This article analyzes crime development which is one of the largest threats in today's world, frequently referred to as the war on crime. The criminal commits crimes in his free time (when not in jail) according to a non-stationary Poisson process which accounts for fluctuations. Expected values and variances for crime development are determined. The deterrent effect of imprisonment follows from the amount of time in imprisonment. Each criminal maximizes expected utility defined as expected benefit (from crime) minus expected cost (imprisonment). A first-order differential equation of the criminal's utility-maximizing response to the given punishment policy is then developed. The analysis shows that if imprisonment is absent, criminal activity grows substantially. All else being equal, any equilibrium is unstable (labile), implying growth of criminal activity, unless imprisonment increases sufficiently as a function of criminal activity. This dynamic approach or perspective is quite interesting and has to our knowledge not been presented earlier. The empirical data material for crime intensity and imprisonment for Norway, England and Wales, and the US supports the model. Future crime development is shown to depend strongly on the societally chosen imprisonment policy. The model is intended as a valuable tool for policy makers who can envision arbitrarily sophisticated imprisonment functions and foresee the impact they have on crime development.

[Do daily newspapers of former West and East Germany cover crime in a different way?].

PubMed

Liebl, Karlhans

2007-01-01

The question investigated in the presented paper is whether crime is discussed differently in the media of former East and West Germany, how it is weighted and whether the real crime situation provides an explanation for any differences in press coverage. The study showed that there are no significant differences in the press coverage and that violent crime is not overrepresented. Coverage of offences like robbery, damage to property, sexual assaults or bodily injury, which are also categorized as violent crime, was of average frequency, so that again there was no overrepresentation in the newspapers of the two cities compared in this study (Stuttgart and Dresden). Surprisingly, sexual offences such as rape or sexual abuse played a minor role in the daily newspapers. Further interesting results of the analysis were that offences in the field of "intelligent crime" (e. g. white-collar crime) were of no importance in the print media, whereas the number of reports on crimes for which the general public assumes a higher probability to become a victim itself (e. g. burglary and robbery) was disproportionately high in relation to the recorded number of cases. Reports on drug offences played a more important role in the newspapers analyzed by us than violent crime.

An overview of waste crime, its characteristics, and the vulnerability of the EU waste sector.

PubMed

Baird, J; Curry, R; Cruz, P

2014-02-01

While waste is increasingly viewed as a resource to be globally traded, increased regulatory control on waste across Europe has created the conditions where waste crime now operates alongside a legitimate waste sector. Waste crime,is an environmental crime and a form of white-collar crime, which exploits the physical characteristics of waste, the complexity of the collection and downstream infrastructure, and the market opportunities for profit. This paper highlights some of the factors which make the waste sector vulnerable to waste crime. These factors include new legislation and its weak regulatory enforcement, the economics of waste treatment, where legal and safe treatment of waste can be more expensive than illegal operations, the complexity of the waste sector and the different actors who can have some involvement, directly or indirectly, in the movement of illegal wastes, and finally that waste can be hidden or disguised and creates an opportunity for illegal businesses to operate alongside legitimate waste operators. The study also considers waste crime from the perspective of particular waste streams that are often associated with illegal shipment or through illegal treatment and disposal. For each, the nature of the crime which occurs is shown to differ, but for each, vulnerabilities to waste crime are evident. The paper also describes some approaches which can be adopted by regulators and those involved in developing new legislation for identifying where opportunities for waste crime occurs and how to prevent it.

Pathways through which higher neighborhood crime is longitudinally associated with greater body mass index.

PubMed

Richardson, Andrea S; Troxel, Wendy M; Ghosh-Dastidar, Madhumita; Hunter, Gerald P; Beckman, Robin; Colabianchi, Natalie; Collins, Rebecca L; Dubowitz, Tamara

2017-11-09

Although crime and perceived safety are associated with obesity and body mass index (BMI), the pathways are less clear. Two likely pathways by which crime and perceived safety may impact obesity are through distress and physical activity. We examined data from 2013 to 2014 for 644 predominantly African-American adults (mean age 57 years; 77% female) living in low-income Pittsburgh, PA neighborhoods, including self-reported perceptions of safety and emotional distress, interviewer-measured height/weight, and physical activity measured via accelerometry. We used secondary data on neighborhood crime from 2011 to 2013. We built a structural equation model to examine the longitudinal direct and indirect pathways from crime to BMI through perceived safety, distress and physical activity. Long-term exposure to crime was positively associated with lack of perceived safety (β = 0.11, p = 0.005) and lack of perceived safety was positively associated with BMI (β = 0.08, p = 0.03). The beneficial association between physical activity and BMI (β = -0.15, p < 0.001) was attenuated by a negative association between crime and physical activity (β = -0.09, p = 0.01). Although crime was associated with distress we found no evidence of a path from crime to BMI via distress. Our findings suggest decrements in perceived safety and physical activity are important processes that might explain why neighborhood crime is associated with greater BMI.

Tests of the Attachment and Developmental Dynamic Systems Theory of Crime (ADDSTOC): Toward a Differential RDoC Diagnostic and Treatment Approach.

PubMed

Lindberg, Marc A; Zeid, Dana

2018-01-01

The Attachment and Developmental Dynamic Systems Theory of Crime was tested on 206 male inmates. They completed measures tapping attachments, clinical issues, adverse childhood events, peer crime, and crime addictions. A significant path model was found, going from insecure parental attachments to adverse childhood events, and then on to the behavioral crime addiction and criminal peers scales. Peer crime was also predicted by insecure parent attachments and the crime addiction scale. Finally, the crime addiction, peer crime, and insecure parental attachment scales predicted frequencies of criminal behavior. The model also fit a sample of 239 female inmates. The notions of crime addiction, in this context of adverse events and insecure parental attachments, offered newer and more powerful explanations than previously offered by social learning theories on why some individuals are more likely to associate with peers engaging in criminal behavior, and also how these combine to predict degrees of criminal behavior. By moving beyond main effects models, it was found that a focus on systems of interactions was robust in theory and application. However, profile data from the Attachment and Clinical Issues Questionnaire showed that individual differences in Research Domain Criteria diagnoses are fundamental to treatment settings. Such approaches to reducing rates of recidivism and substance abuse should also enhance outcomes in many domains, including HIV prevention, costs to health care, and at the same time increase overall public safety.

Patterns of acquisitive crime during methadone maintenance treatment among patients eligible for heroin assisted treatment.

PubMed

van der Zanden, Bart P; Dijkgraaf, Marcel G W; Blanken, Peter; van Ree, Jan M; van den Brink, Wim

2007-01-05

To determine the patterns of acquisitive crime during methadone maintenance treatment among chronic, treatment-resistant heroin users eligible for heroin assisted treatment in the Netherlands. We retrospectively assessed the type and number of illegal activities during 1 month of standard methadone maintenance treatment in 51 patients prior to the start of heroin assisted treatment. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview focussed on crime with special emphasis on property crime. Volume analyses consisted of frequencies and descriptives of mean numbers of offences per day and per type. In a Dutch population of problematic drug users eligible for and prior to commencing heroin assisted treatment, 70% reported criminal activities and 50% reported acquisitive crimes. Offending took place on 20.5 days per month with on average 3.1 offences a day. Acquisitive crime consisted mainly of shoplifting (mean 12.8 days, 2.2 times/day) and theft of bicycles (mean 5.8 days, 2.4 times/day); theft from a vehicle and burglaries were committed less frequently. The majority of these patients (63%) reported to have started offending in order to acquire illicit drugs and alcohol. During methadone maintenance treatment, 50% of criminally active, problematic heroin users eligible for heroin assisted treatment reported acquisitive crime. Shoplifting, thefts and/or other property crimes were committed on average two to three times on a crime day. This study discusses that the detail provided by self-reported crime data can improve cost estimates in economic evaluations of heroin assisted treatment.

Associations between substance use and type of crime in prisoners with substance use problems - a focus on violence and fatal violence.

PubMed

Håkansson, Anders; Jesionowska, Virginia

2018-01-01

The present study aimed to study the associations between substance use patterns and types of crimes in prisoners with substance use problems, and specifically whether substance use patterns were different in violent offenders. Interview data of prisoners with substance use problems (N=4,202, mean age 33.5 years, SD 9.8), derived from the Addiction Severity Index, were run against criminal register data on main types of crimes in the verdict. In binary analyses, compared to those with acquisitive and drug crimes, violent offenders had lower prevalence of illicit drugs and homelessness, but higher prevalence of binge drinking, and higher prevalence of sedative use than clients sentenced with drug crimes. Clients with violent crime had lower prevalence of injecting drug use, compared to all other crimes. In logistic regression, binge drinking and sedatives were positively associated with violent crime (as opposed to non-violent crime), whereas heroin, amphetamine, cocaine, and injecting drug use were negatively associated with violent crime. Among violent offenders only, sedatives tended to be associated with fatal violence ( p =0.06), whereas amphetamine, homelessness, age, and (marginally significant, p =0.05) heroin were negatively associated with fatal violence, as opposed to non-fatal violence. Treatment and risk assessment in violent perpetrators with substance use may need to address sedatives and alcohol specifically. Limitations of the study are due to self-reported and cross-sectional data and because a large majority of the prison sample studied here are men.

Crime victimization in adults with severe mental illness: comparison with the National Crime Victimization Survey.

PubMed

Teplin, Linda A; McClelland, Gary M; Abram, Karen M; Weiner, Dana A

2005-08-01

Since deinstitutionalization, most persons with severe mental illness (SMI) now live in the community, where they are at great risk for crime victimization. To determine the prevalence and incidence of crime victimization among persons with SMI by sex, race/ethnicity, and age, and to compare rates with general population data (the National Crime Victimization Survey), controlling for income and demographic differences between the samples. Epidemiologic study of persons in treatment. Independent master's-level clinical research interviewers administered the National Crime Victimization Survey to randomly selected patients sampled from 16 randomly selected mental health agencies. Sixteen agencies providing outpatient, day, and residential treatment to persons with SMI in Chicago, Ill. Randomly selected, stratified sample of 936 patients aged 18 or older (483 men, 453 women) who were African American (n = 329), non-Hispanic white (n = 321), Hispanic (n = 270), or other race/ethnicity (n = 22). The comparison group comprised 32 449 participants in the National Crime Victimization Survey. National Crime Victimization Survey, developed by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. More than one quarter of persons with SMI had been victims of a violent crime in the past year, a rate more than 11 times higher than the general population rates even after controlling for demographic differences between the 2 samples (P<.001). The annual incidence of violent crime in the SMI sample (168.2 incidents per 1000 persons) is more than 4 times higher than the general population rates (39.9 incidents per 1000 persons) (P<.001). Depending on the type of violent crime (rape/sexual assault, robbery, assault, and their subcategories), prevalence was 6 to 23 times greater among persons with SMI than among the general population. Crime victimization is a major public health problem among persons with SMI who are treated in the community. We recommend directions for future research, propose modifications in public policy, and suggest how the mental health system can respond to reduce victimization and its consequences.

The Association between Density of Alcohol Establishments and Violent Crime within Urban Neighborhoods

PubMed Central

Toomey, Traci L.; Erickson, Darin J.; Carlin, Bradley P.; Lenk, Kathleen M.; Quick, Harrison S.; Jones, Alexis M.; Harwood, Eileen M.

2012-01-01

Background Numerous studies have found that areas with higher alcohol establishment density are more likely to have higher violent crime rates but many of these studies did not assess the differential effects of type of establishments or the effects on multiple categories of crime. In this study, we assess whether alcohol establishment density is associated with four categories of violent crime, and whether the strength of the associations varies by type of violent crime and by on-premise establishments (e.g., bars, restaurants) versus off-premise establishments (e.g., liquor and convenience stores). Methods Data come from the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2009 and were aggregated and analyzed at the neighborhood level. Across the 83 neighborhoods in Minneapolis, we examined four categories of violent crime: assault, rape, robbery, and total violent crime. We used a Bayesian hierarchical inference approach to model the data, accounting for spatial auto-correlation and controlling for relevant neighborhood demographics. Models were estimated for total alcohol establishment density as well as separately for on-premise establishments and off-premise establishments. Results Positive, statistically significant associations were observed for total alcohol establishment density and each of the violent crime outcomes. We estimate that a 3.9% to 4.3% increase across crime categories would result from a 20% increase in neighborhood establishment density. The associations between on-premise density and each of the individual violent crime outcomes were also all positive and significant and similar in strength as for total establishment density. The relationships between off-premise density and the crime outcomes were all positive but not significant for rape or total violent crime, and the strength of the associations was weaker than those for total and on-premise density. Conclusions Results of this study, combined with earlier findings, provide more evidence that community leaders should be cautious about increasing the density of alcohol establishments within their neighborhoods. PMID:22587231

The relationship between mental disorders and different types of crime.

PubMed

Vinkers, David J; de Beurs, Edwin; Barendregt, Marko; Rinne, Thomas; Hoek, Hans W

2011-12-01

Previous studies of relationships between mental disorder and crime have tended to group the mental disorders, the crimes or both, leaving uncertainty about a more specific mental disorder: crime relationships. To examine the relationship between types of mental disorder and types of crime in pre-trial defendants. Data were extracted from 21,424 pre-trial forensic psychiatric reports made between 2000 and 2006 in the Netherlands. We compared the prevalence of axis I disorders, personality disorders, intellectual functioning and substance abuse in defendants charged with a range of crimes (homicide, attempted/threatened homicide, assault, battery, rape, sexual crimes, arson and/or property crimes) using chi-square tests. Relationships with diminished accountability, reflecting a direct relationship with underlying mental disorder, were calculated using multivariate regression models, adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity and history of judicial contact. Arson had the strongest relationship with mental disorders in our sample, then assaults, then homicidal attempts or threats. Sexual and property crimes had the weakest relationship with diminished or absent accountability. Diminished accountability had the strongest relationship with psychotic disorders, followed by organic psychosyndromes and developmental disorders, whereas other axis I disorders, personality disorders or an IQ score of <85 points were only moderately related. These relationships varied little according to the type of crime, although tended to be weaker for defendants in property crimes. Cannabis and hard drugs were significantly associated with decreased accountability only in respect of arson. Mental disorders are related to all types of crimes but especially to arson, battery and homicidal attempts or threats, with a court finding of diminished accountability providing some validation for perceived links between the disorder and crime in this study. Psychiatric assessment is likely to be the most useful for defendants under charges of arson, assault or attempted homicide, as these groups are most likely to suffer from a psychiatric disorder related to the alleged offence. Psychotic, organic and some developmental disorders appear to have the strongest relationship with diminished accountability. Findings with respect to illicit drug use are likely to have more varied implications between jurisdictions but, in the Netherlands, may sometimes be accepted as diminishing accountability in defendants of arson. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Substance use pattern, self-control and social network are associated with crime in a substance-using population.

PubMed

Skjaervø, Ingeborg; Skurtveit, Svetlana; Clausen, Thomas; Bukten, Anne

2017-03-01

Crime rates are high in substance-using populations; therefore, investigation of factors associated with crime in these populations is highly relevant. We describe crime prevalence and associations between crime, pattern of substance use and psychosocial factors, such as self-control and social network. This is a cross-sectional study including substance users (n = 549; mean age 34 years; 27% women) entering treatment at 21 treatment centres across Norway (December 2012 to April 2015). Data on demographics, substance use, psychosocial variables and crime in the 6 months prior to treatment were obtained through interviews. Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated through logistic regression. Sixty-four percent of participants had committed crime in the 6 months prior to treatment. Of these, 93% committed income-generating crime. Several factors were associated with increased likelihood of having committed crime: use of stimulants (aOR = 1.82, 95% CI 1.04-3.17), use of a higher number of different substances (aOR = 1.16, 95% CI 1.04-1.31) and spending most of their time with family or friends using addictive substances (aOR = 2.38, 95% CI 1.10-5.16 and aOR = 2.22, 95% CI 1.32-3.73). Protective factors associated with decreased likelihood of committing crime were being older (aOR = 0.95, 95% CI 0.92-0.97) and having higher self-control (aOR = 0.94, 95% CI 0.91-0.97). Stimulant use, higher number of different substances used, lower self-control, primarily a substance-using social network and being younger were associated with crime in this substance-using population. Treatment clinics should consider these risk factors for crime, and suitable interventions should be implemented and evaluated. [Skjaervø I, Skurtveit S, Clausen T, Bukten A. Substance use pattern, self-control and social network are associated with crime in a substance-using population. Drug Alcohol Rev 2017;36:245-252]. © 2016 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

The independent associations of recorded crime and perceived safety with physical health in a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of men and women in New Zealand

PubMed Central

Lovasi, Gina S; Goh, Charlene E; Pearson, Amber L; Breetzke, Gregory

2014-01-01

Objectives We investigated associations of officially recorded crime and perceived neighbourhood safety with physical health, evaluating potential effect modification by gender. Setting Nationally representative population-based survey in New Zealand. Participants Individual-level data from 6995 New Zealand General Social Survey (2010–2011) participants with complete data on physical health status, perceived neighbourhood safety, sociodemographic characteristics and smoking. Crime rate for each participant's home census was estimated based on data from the New Zealand Police (2008–2010). Primary outcome measure The Transformed Physical Composite Score from the SF-12, a physical health summary score based on self-report ranging from 0 to 100. Results We used cluster robust multivariable regression models to examine the associations among neighbourhood crime rates, perceived neighbourhood safety and the physical health summary score. Crime rates predicted adults’ perception that it was unsafe to walk in their neighbourhood at night: for each additional crime per 100 000 residents adults were 1.9% more likely to perceive their neighbourhood as unsafe (95% CI 1.2% to 2.5%). While relatively uncommon, the rate of crime with a weapon strongly predicted perceived safety: for each additional crime per 100 000 residents in this category, adults were 12.9% more likely to report the neighbourhood as unsafe (95% CI 8.8% to 17.0%). Police-recorded violent and night crime rates were associated with worse physical health among women: for each additional crime per 100 000 residents in these category women had a 0.3 point lower physical health score (95% CIs −0.6 to −0.1 for violent crime and −0.5 to −0.1 for crime at night, gender interaction p values 0.08 and 0.01, respectively). Perceiving the neighbourhood as unsafe was independently associated with 1.0 point lower physical health score (95% CI −1.5 to −0.5). Conclusions Gender may modify the associations of officially recorded crime rates with physical health. Perceived neighbourhood safety was independently associated with physical health. PMID:24613820

Security at the Expense of Liberty: A Test of Predictions Deriving from the Culture of Control Thesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pickett, Justin T.; Mears, Daniel P.; Stewart, Eric A.; Gertz, Marc

2013-01-01

In "The Culture of Control: Crime and Social Order in Contemporary Society," David Garland linked contemporary crime control policies and welfare reforms to a cultural formation that he termed the "crime complex of late modernity." According to Garland, once established, the crime complex exerts a contemporaneous effect on…

Compensating Victims of Violent Crime: Potential Costs and Coverage of a National Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garofalo, James; Sutton, L. Paul

Data generated from an ongoing national crime victimization survey and details about the circumstances and consequences of personal crimes form the basis for estimating the cost of a national program to compensate victims of violent crime. Victim compensation programs represent an attempt to rectify the neglect of the victim. Uncertainty about the…

Effects of Racism on Perceptions and Punishment of Intra- and Interracial Crimes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saucier, Donald A.; Hockett, Jericho M.; Zanotti, Danielle C.; Heffel, Sarah

2010-01-01

The majority of hate crimes in the United States are driven by racial bias. However, extra-legal factors such as the perpetrators' motivations, the races of the victims and perpetrators, and the presence or absence of hate symbols or slurs often result in ambiguity in the classification of crimes as hate crimes. This uncertainty evokes…

Colleges Report Rise in Violent Crime; Fact File: Crime Data from 796 Colleges and Universities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lederman, Douglas

1995-01-01

Data on 1993 campus crime from 796 higher education institutions with enrollments over 5,000, required by federal law, reflects a rise in robberies, aggravated assaults, arrests for drug and weapons violations though property crimes and murders decreased. Interpretation of data, seen as providing an incomplete picture, is debated. (MSE)

Close Cousins or Distant Relatives? The Relationship between Terrorism and Hate Crime

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deloughery, Kathleen; King, Ryan D.; Asal, Victor

2012-01-01

Prior research has frequently drawn parallels between the study of hate crimes and the study of terrorism. Yet, key differences between the two behaviors may be underappreciated in extant work. Terrorism is often an "upward crime," involving a perpetrator of lower social standing than the targeted group. By contrast, hate crimes are…

A New Perspective on Violent Crime Burden Index: Evidence from Indian Districts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chaudhuri, Kausik; Chowdhury, Payel; Reilly, Kevin

2013-01-01

Given limited resource availability in a developing nation like India, faced with high incidences of crime, it is important to optimize on the resources spent in combating crime by channelling them to proper direction. This requires an understanding of the actual and overall level of crime across India. Our paper provides a complete understanding…

Comparing Perceptions of Campus Crime Severity among Community College and Public Four-Year University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lundstrom, Loren M.

2010-01-01

In recent years violent crimes on several university campuses have been highlighted by mass media, drawing national attention to the issue of campus crime. Not all college campuses, however, experience the same level of crime. While community colleges serve roughly half of all undergraduates in the U.S., statistically these public institutions…

Tolerating Zero Tolerance?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Brian N.

2010-01-01

The concept of zero tolerance dates back to the mid-1990s when New Jersey was creating laws to address nuisance crimes in communities. The main goal of these neighborhood crime policies was to have zero tolerance for petty crime such as graffiti or littering so as to keep more serious crimes from occurring. Next came the war on drugs. In federal…

Distinctive Characteristics of Sexual Orientation Bias Crimes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stacey, Michele

2011-01-01

Despite increased attention in the area of hate crime research in the past 20 years, sexual orientation bias crimes have rarely been singled out for study. When these types of crimes are looked at, the studies are typically descriptive in nature. This article seeks to increase our knowledge of sexual orientation bias by answering the question:…

Crime on Campus. Legal Issues and Campus Administration. American Council on Education/Oryx Press Series on Higher Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Michael Clay; Fossey, Richard

This book discusses issues related to campus crime and offers administrators suggestions and checklists that can be used to evaluate current procedures and defuse potential problems. Chapters cover: (1) "The Campus: A Sanctuary?"; (2) "The Complexion of Campus Crime Today"; (3) "The Concept of Crime and the Shape of…

U.S. Department of Justice Funding Opportunities for Afterschool. Funding Note, June 2005

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dobbins, Dionne

2005-01-01

There are natural connections between the afterschool community and the law enforcement/crime prevention community. According to a recent report from the organization Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, the hours between three and six PM are the "prime time for juvenile crime." Afterschool hours are when teenagers are most likely to commit crimes, be…

Chemistry and Crime: From Sherlock Holmes to Today's Courtroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerber, Samuel M., Ed.

The application of the principles of chemistry both for committing crimes and for tracking down criminals interests audiences of all ages and walks of life. This interest is the reason for the long-standing popularity of fictional works that describe crimes made possible by the criminal's knowledge of chemistry and crimes solved by the sleuth's…

Reconsidering the Relationship between Race and Crime: Positive and Negative Predictors of Crime among African American Youth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Entner Wright, Bradley R.; Younts, C. Wesley

2009-01-01

Studies of race and crime have emphasized the effects of social disadvantage and discrimination on increasing crime among African Americans. The authors extend this literature by examining various beliefs and institutions that have developed within African American communities that, in contrast, decrease criminal behavior. A model of…

A Cure for Crime? Psycho-Pharmaceuticals and Crime Trends

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcotte, Dave E.; Markowitz, Sara

2011-01-01

In this paper we consider possible links between the diffusion of new pharmaceuticals used for treating mental illness and crime rates. We describe recent trends in crime and review the evidence showing that mental illness is a clear risk factor both for criminal behavior and victimization. We summarize the development of a number of new…

Crime and the Nation's Households, 1990. Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rand, Michael R.

The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) collects data on crimes that are not reported to the police as well as those that are reported. Because some crimes are difficult or impossible to examine in a general population survey, the NCVS measures only the personal victimizations of rape, robbery, assault, and theft, and the household crimes…

Are Anti-LGBT Homicides in the United States Unique?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gruenewald, Jeff

2012-01-01

An integral issue to the study of bias crimes is how violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) victims is different from other more common forms of violent crimes. Limitations in official bias crimes data have inhibited our understanding of the relative nature of anti-LGBT crimes. The purpose of this study is to examine the…

A Crime Analysis Decision Support System for Crime Report Classification and Visualization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ku, Chih-Hao

2012-01-01

Today's Internet-based crime reporting systems make timely and anonymous crime reporting possible. However, these reports also result in a rapidly growing set of unstructured text files. Complicating the problem is that the information has not been filtered or guided in a detective-led interview resulting in much irrelevant information. To…

76 FR 77258 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comments Requested: Extension of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-12

...; Victim of Crime Act, Crime Victim Assistance Grant Program, Subgrant Award Report ACTION: 60-Day Notice...), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) will be submitting the following information collection request to the...-3612, Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, 810 7th...

Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2013. NCES 2014-042/NCJ 243299

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robers, Simone; Kemp, Jana; Rathbun, Amy; Morgan, Rachel E.

2014-01-01

"Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2013" provides the most recent national indicators on school crime and safety. The information presented in this report is intended to serve as a reference for policymakers and practitioners so that they can develop effective programs and policies aimed at violence and school crime prevention.…

Keeping It Better in the Bahamas: A Nation's Socioeconomic Response to Juvenile Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nowak, Barbara J.

2001-01-01

Examines how the Bahamas, a nation that is over 85 percent of African descent, is dealing with juvenile crime, discussing: the historical and economic context of crime; the socioeconomics of juvenile crime; and the nation's socioeconomic response to delinquency. An important objective in this effort is to empower the next generation to become…

78 FR 63454 - Response Systems to Adult Sexual Assault Crimes Panel; Notice of Federal Advisory Committee Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-10-24

... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Office of the Secretary Response Systems to Adult Sexual Assault Crimes... Advisory Committee meeting of the Response Systems to Adult Sexual Assault Crimes Panel. DATES: A meeting of the Response Systems to Adult Sexual Assault Crimes Panel (``the Panel'') will be held November 7...

Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2008. NCES 2009-022/NCJ 226343

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dinkes, Rachel; Kemp, Jana; Baum, Katrina

2009-01-01

"Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2008" provides the most recent national indicators on school crime and safety. The information presented in this report is intended to serve as a reference for policymakers and practitioners so that they can develop effective programs and policies aimed at violence and school crime prevention. The…

Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 1999.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaufman, Phillip; Chen, Xianglei; Choy, Susan P.; Ruddy, Sally A.; Miller, Amanda K.; Chandler, Kathryn A.; Chapman, Christopher D.; Rand, Michael R.; Klaus, Patsy

This report provides detailed statistical information on crime in schools. It is a companion document to the "Annual Report on School Safety: 1999," which offers an overview of the nature and scope of school crime. This report is organized as a series of indicators, with each indicator presenting data on a different aspect of school crime and…

Feasibility of An 18 Month Tour: For Single/Unaccompanied First Term Soldiers in Long Tour Areas

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-03-01

USAREUR has a higher rate of crimes of violence and "other drugs" equivalent rates of marijuana offenses; and lower rates for crimes against property as...compared to CONUS (DA). Comparative Crime Rates (FY78, Rates per 1000) Violence Property Marijuana Other rugs USAREUR 8.7 67 27 9.6 CONUS 5.0 77 28...CINCUSAREUR stated on 19,,Jan 79,, "I would expect all indicators to improve for USAREUR rates of crimes of violence , crimes against property, marijuana use

Defining event reconstruction of digital crime scenes.

PubMed

Carrier, Brian D; Spafford, Eugene H

2004-11-01

Event reconstruction plays a critical role in solving physical crimes by explaining why a piece of physical evidence has certain characteristics. With digital crimes, the current focus has been on the recognition and identification of digital evidence using an object's characteristics, but not on the identification of the events that caused the characteristics. This paper examines digital event reconstruction and proposes a process model and procedure that can be used for a digital crime scene. The model has been designed so that it can apply to physical crime scenes, can support the unique aspects of a digital crime scene, and can be implemented in software to automate part of the process. We also examine the differences between physical event reconstruction and digital event reconstruction.

The crime prevention value of hot spots policing.

PubMed

Braga, Anthony A

2006-08-01

This paper reviews the available research evidence on the effectiveness of hot spots policing programs in reducing crime and disorder. The research identified five randomized controlled experiments and four non-equivalent control group quasi-experiments evaluating the effects of hot spots policing interventions on crime. Seven of nine selected evaluations reported noteworthy crime and disorder reductions. Meta-analyses of the randomized experiments revealed statistically significant mean effect sizes favoring hot spots policing interventions in reducing citizen calls for service in treatment places relative to control places. When immediate spatial displacement was measured, it was very limited and unintended crime prevention benefits were associated with the hot spots policing programs. The results of this review suggest that hot spots policing is an effective crime prevention strategy.

Environmental interventions to reduce fear of crime: systematic review of effectiveness.

PubMed

Lorenc, Theo; Petticrew, Mark; Whitehead, Margaret; Neary, David; Clayton, Stephen; Wright, Kath; Thomson, Hilary; Cummins, Steven; Sowden, Amanda; Renton, Adrian

2013-05-12

Fear of crime is associated with negative health and wellbeing outcomes, and may mediate some impacts of the built environment on public health. A range of environmental interventions have been hypothesized to reduce the fear of crime. This review aimed to synthesize the literature on the effectiveness of interventions in the built environment to reduce the fear of crime. Systematic review methodology, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidance, was used. Studies of environmental interventions which reported a fear of crime outcome and used any prospective evaluation design (randomized controlled trial (RCT), trial or uncontrolled before-and-after study) were included. Eighteen databases were searched. The Hamilton tool was used to assess quality. A narrative synthesis of findings was undertaken. A total of 47 studies were included, 22 controlled and 25 uncontrolled, with total sample sizes ranging from n = 52 to approximately n = 23,000. Thirty-six studies were conducted in the UK, ten studies in the USA and one study in the Netherlands. The quality of the evidence overall is low. There are some indications that home security improvements and non-crime-related environmental improvements may be effective for some fear of crime outcomes. There is little evidence that the following reduce fear of crime: street lighting improvements, closed-circuit television (CCTV), multi-component environmental crime prevention programs or regeneration programs. There is some evidence for the effectiveness of specific environmental interventions in reducing some indicators of fear of crime, but more attention to the context and possible confounders is needed in future evaluations of complex social interventions such as these.

The 1% of the population accountable for 63% of all violent crime convictions.

PubMed

Falk, Orjan; Wallinius, Märta; Lundström, Sebastian; Frisell, Thomas; Anckarsäter, Henrik; Kerekes, Nóra

2014-04-01

Population-based studies on violent crime and background factors may provide an understanding of the relationships between susceptibility factors and crime. We aimed to determine the distribution of violent crime convictions in the Swedish population 1973-2004 and to identify criminal, academic, parental, and psychiatric risk factors for persistence in violent crime. The nationwide multi-generation register was used with many other linked nationwide registers to select participants. All individuals born in 1958-1980 (2,393,765 individuals) were included. Persistent violent offenders (those with a lifetime history of three or more violent crime convictions) were compared with individuals having one or two such convictions, and to matched non-offenders. Independent variables were gender, age of first conviction for a violent crime, nonviolent crime convictions, and diagnoses for major mental disorders, personality disorders, and substance use disorders. A total of 93,642 individuals (3.9%) had at least one violent conviction. The distribution of convictions was highly skewed; 24,342 persistent violent offenders (1.0% of the total population) accounted for 63.2% of all convictions. Persistence in violence was associated with male sex (OR 2.5), personality disorder (OR 2.3), violent crime conviction before age 19 (OR 2.0), drug-related offenses (OR 1.9), nonviolent criminality (OR 1.9), substance use disorder (OR 1.9), and major mental disorder (OR 1.3). The majority of violent crimes are perpetrated by a small number of persistent violent offenders, typically males, characterized by early onset of violent criminality, substance abuse, personality disorders, and nonviolent criminality.

Prediction of crime occurrence from multi-modal data using deep learning

PubMed Central

Kang, Hyeon-Woo

2017-01-01

In recent years, various studies have been conducted on the prediction of crime occurrences. This predictive capability is intended to assist in crime prevention by facilitating effective implementation of police patrols. Previous studies have used data from multiple domains such as demographics, economics, and education. Their prediction models treat data from different domains equally. These methods have problems in crime occurrence prediction, such as difficulty in discovering highly nonlinear relationships, redundancies, and dependencies between multiple datasets. In order to enhance crime prediction models, we consider environmental context information, such as broken windows theory and crime prevention through environmental design. In this paper, we propose a feature-level data fusion method with environmental context based on a deep neural network (DNN). Our dataset consists of data collected from various online databases of crime statistics, demographic and meteorological data, and images in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to generating training data, we select crime-related data by conducting statistical analyses. Finally, we train our DNN, which consists of the following four kinds of layers: spatial, temporal, environmental context, and joint feature representation layers. Coupled with crucial data extracted from various domains, our fusion DNN is a product of an efficient decision-making process that statistically analyzes data redundancy. Experimental performance results show that our DNN model is more accurate in predicting crime occurrence than other prediction models. PMID:28437486

Prediction of crime occurrence from multi-modal data using deep learning.

PubMed

Kang, Hyeon-Woo; Kang, Hang-Bong

2017-01-01

In recent years, various studies have been conducted on the prediction of crime occurrences. This predictive capability is intended to assist in crime prevention by facilitating effective implementation of police patrols. Previous studies have used data from multiple domains such as demographics, economics, and education. Their prediction models treat data from different domains equally. These methods have problems in crime occurrence prediction, such as difficulty in discovering highly nonlinear relationships, redundancies, and dependencies between multiple datasets. In order to enhance crime prediction models, we consider environmental context information, such as broken windows theory and crime prevention through environmental design. In this paper, we propose a feature-level data fusion method with environmental context based on a deep neural network (DNN). Our dataset consists of data collected from various online databases of crime statistics, demographic and meteorological data, and images in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to generating training data, we select crime-related data by conducting statistical analyses. Finally, we train our DNN, which consists of the following four kinds of layers: spatial, temporal, environmental context, and joint feature representation layers. Coupled with crucial data extracted from various domains, our fusion DNN is a product of an efficient decision-making process that statistically analyzes data redundancy. Experimental performance results show that our DNN model is more accurate in predicting crime occurrence than other prediction models.

A micro-temporal geospatial analysis of medical marijuana dispensaries and crime in Long Beach, California.

PubMed

Freisthler, Bridget; Ponicki, William R; Gaidus, Andrew; Gruenewald, Paul J

2016-06-01

To determine whether the density of marijuana dispensaries in California, USA, in 2012-13 was related to violent and property crimes, both locally and in adjacent areas, during a time in which local law enforcement conducted operations to reduce the number of storefront medical marijuana dispensaries. Data on locations of crimes and medical marijuana dispensaries as well as other covariates were collected for a sample of 333 Census block groups. Long Beach, California, USA from January 2012 to December 2013. A total of 7992 space-time observations (from 333 Census block groups over 24 time-points). Outcome measures focused on block-group counts of violent and property crimes. Predictors were numbers of local and adjacent-area medical marijuana dispensaries. Covariates included markers of alcohol availability as well as area demographic and economic characteristics. After adjustment for covariates, density of medical marijuana dispensaries was unrelated to property and violent crimes in local areas but related positively to crime in spatially adjacent areas [incident rate ratio (IRR) = 1.0248, CI (1.0097, 1.0402) for violent crime, IRR = 1.0169, CI (1.0071, 1.0268) for property crime]. Using law enforcement to reduce medical marijuana dispensaries in California appears to have reduced crime in residential areas near to, but not in, these locations. © 2016 Society for the Study of Addiction.

A Neglected Population: Media Consumption, Perceived Risk, and Fear of Crime Among International Students.

PubMed

Shi, Luzi

2018-03-01

The 4.5 million international students worldwide bring in multifold benefits to the advancement of culture, economy, and national security in education host countries. Surprisingly, few prior studies have explored international students' fear of crime, which may harm their mental and physical health and undermine their educational achievements. The current study aims to fill in this research void by investigating international students' fear of crime in line with the cultivation theoretical framework, which postulates that media consumption cultivates fear of crime. The analyses draw on a sample of 398 international students attending nine different public and private universities across the United States. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), I investigate the extent and correlates of students' fear of crime. The findings reveal that international students are more fearful in the United States than in their home countries. SEM results show that controlling for students' fear in their home countries, attention paid to crime news is positively related to fear in the United States, through perceived victimization risk. The SEM results also suggest that exposure to non-U.S. social media (e.g., WeChat and Weibo) is positively related to respondents' fear of crime, whereas exposure to U.S. social media (e.g., Facebook and Twitter) is not related to fear of crime. The current study highlights the importance of studying the impact of fear of crime and social media use on international students.

[The M-cycle of crime].

PubMed

Antholz, Birger

2012-01-01

Crime development measured by means of the changes in police recorded crime statistics (criminal offences per 100.000 inhabitants) shows periodical cycles, which can be described by the capital letter M. Starting from a low rate of criminality, crime rises over 1-3 years followed by an interim decline lasting for about one year. Then crime increases again for approximately 2 years to a second peak. After that, crime strongly declines to the next low point over a period of about two years. The course of this development is not uniform with equal amplitudes, but resembles an M-curve. Since 1950, seven such M-cycles have been observed with the 3rd M-cycle from 1965-1973, the 4th M-cycle from 1973-1984, the 5th M-cycle from 1984-1994, the 6th M-cycle from 1994-2005 and the 7th M-cycle from 2005-2010 being particularly distinct. The M-curve of crime may be explained by the M-form of the business cycle. Since World War II, the M-cycle of crime and the M-cycle of the economy have run approximately parallel. Up to the first large oil crisis, the M-cycle of crime preceded the economic situation by 1-2 years, whereas since 1976 it has followed the economic development with a time lag of one to two years.

Understanding Recurrent Crime as System-Immanent Collective Behavior

PubMed Central

Perc, Matjaž; Donnay, Karsten; Helbing, Dirk

2013-01-01

Containing the spreading of crime is a major challenge for society. Yet, since thousands of years, no effective strategy has been found to overcome crime. To the contrary, empirical evidence shows that crime is recurrent, a fact that is not captured well by rational choice theories of crime. According to these, strong enough punishment should prevent crime from happening. To gain a better understanding of the relationship between crime and punishment, we consider that the latter requires prior discovery of illicit behavior and study a spatial version of the inspection game. Simulations reveal the spontaneous emergence of cyclic dominance between “criminals”, “inspectors”, and “ordinary people” as a consequence of spatial interactions. Such cycles dominate the evolutionary process, in particular when the temptation to commit crime or the cost of inspection are low or moderate. Yet, there are also critical parameter values beyond which cycles cease to exist and the population is dominated either by a stable mixture of criminals and inspectors or one of these two strategies alone. Both continuous and discontinuous phase transitions to different final states are possible, indicating that successful strategies to contain crime can be very much counter-intuitive and complex. Our results demonstrate that spatial interactions are crucial for the evolutionary outcome of the inspection game, and they also reveal why criminal behavior is likely to be recurrent rather than evolving towards an equilibrium with monotonous parameter dependencies. PMID:24124533

A Micro-Temporal Geospatial Analysis of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries and Crime in Long Beach California

PubMed Central

Freisthler, Bridget; Ponicki, William R.; Gaidus, Andrew; Gruenewald, Paul J.

2016-01-01

Aims To determine whether the density of marijuana dispensaries in California, USA, in 2012-2013 was related to violent and property crimes, both locally and in adjacent areas, during a time in which local law enforcement conducted operations to reduce the number of store-front medical marijuana dispensaries. Design Data on locations of crimes and medical marijuana dispensaries as well as other covariates were collected for a sample of 333 Census block groups. . Setting Long Beach, California, USA from January 2012 through December 2013. Observations A total of 7,992 space-time observations (from 333 Census block groups over 24 time points). Measurements Outcome measures focused on block-group counts of violent and property crimes. Predictors were numbers of local and adjacent-area medical marijuana dispensaries. Covariates included markers of alcohol availability as well as area demographic and economic characteristics. Findings After adjustment for covariates, density of medical marijuana dispensaries was unrelated to property and violent crimes in local areas but positively related to crime in spatially adjacent areas [IRR = 1.02, CI (1.01, 1.04) for violent crime, IRR = 1.02, CI (1.01, 1.03) for property crime]. Conclusions Using law enforcement to reduce medical marijuana dispensaries in California appears to have reduced crime in residential areas near to, but not in, these locations. PMID:26748438

Economic indicators selection for crime rates forecasting using cooperative feature selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alwee, Razana; Shamsuddin, Siti Mariyam Hj; Salleh Sallehuddin, Roselina

2013-04-01

Features selection in multivariate forecasting model is very important to ensure that the model is accurate. The purpose of this study is to apply the Cooperative Feature Selection method for features selection. The features are economic indicators that will be used in crime rate forecasting model. The Cooperative Feature Selection combines grey relational analysis and artificial neural network to establish a cooperative model that can rank and select the significant economic indicators. Grey relational analysis is used to select the best data series to represent each economic indicator and is also used to rank the economic indicators according to its importance to the crime rate. After that, the artificial neural network is used to select the significant economic indicators for forecasting the crime rates. In this study, we used economic indicators of unemployment rate, consumer price index, gross domestic product and consumer sentiment index, as well as data rates of property crime and violent crime for the United States. Levenberg-Marquardt neural network is used in this study. From our experiments, we found that consumer price index is an important economic indicator that has a significant influence on the violent crime rate. While for property crime rate, the gross domestic product, unemployment rate and consumer price index are the influential economic indicators. The Cooperative Feature Selection is also found to produce smaller errors as compared to Multiple Linear Regression in forecasting property and violent crime rates.

Drug 'hot-spots', alcohol availability and violence.

PubMed

Gorman, D M; Zhu, Li; Horel, Scott

2005-11-01

Ecological studies have shown a relationship between alcohol outlet densities and violence and between the location of crimes related to illicit drug use (so-called 'hot spots') and violence. To date, no study has compared the effects of alcohol outlets and drug hot spots on rates of violence. The present study examined this relationship in the City of Houston, Texas. An ecological study design was employed, using a sample of 439 census tracts from Houston, Texas. Neighborhood socio-structural, alcohol outlet density, drug crime density and violent crime density data were collected from archival sources and analyzed using multivariate and spatial statistics. Using ordinary least-squares analysis, the neighborhood socio-structural covariates explained about 40% of the variability in violent crime. Adding alcohol outlet density in the target census tracts explained an additional 6%, while the addition of drug crime density explained an additional 32%. In the final model, that controlled for the effects of autocorrelated error, both drug crime density in the target and adjacent census tracts remained significant predictors of violent crime, while only off-sale density in the target census tract remained significant in the model. The findings indicate that drug crime density explained a greater amount of variance in violent crime rates than the alcohol outlet density. The methodological and policy implications of these findings are discussed, along with the shortcomings of the analysis presented.

The Power of Prevention, Action Makes the Difference. Crime Prevention Month, October 1997.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirby, Judy; Marvin, Mary Jo

This resource guide, noting that October is crime prevention month, calls upon everyone to commit to working on at least one of three levels--family, neighborhood, or community--to drive drugs and violence from the world. Ways in which individuals can fight crime are presented, as well as materials for publicizing crime prevention month. The…

Mirth and Murder: Crime Scene Investigation as a Work Context for Examining Humor Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roth, Gene L.; Vivona, Brian

2010-01-01

Within work settings, humor is used by workers for a wide variety of purposes. This study examines humor applications of a specific type of worker in a unique work context: crime scene investigation. Crime scene investigators examine death and its details. Members of crime scene units observe death much more frequently than other police officers…

Student Reports of Bullying: Results from the 2015 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Web Tables. NCES 2017-015

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lessne, Deborah; Yanez, Christina

2016-01-01

This document reports data from the 2015 School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The Web Tables show the extent to which students with different personal characteristics report being bullied. Estimates include responses by student characteristics: student sex, race/ethnicity, grade, and household income.…

Mistake of Criminal Law and Its Influence on the Classification of Crime

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veresha, Roman V.

2016-01-01

The paper examines the characteristics of a mistake of the commitment of crime as an optional feature of the mental state of the crime. The analysis conducted offers an opportunity to state that in international criminal law, a mistake of law, although taken into account, does not generally affect the classification of crime. We uncovered and…

Quality of Life and Perceptions of Crime in Saskatoon, Canada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kitchen, Peter; Williams, Allison

2010-01-01

This article investigates the relationship between crime and quality of life in Saskatoon, Canada. The city has one of the highest crime rates in the country and has been referred to as the "Crime Capital of Canada", a label that comes as a surprise to many residents and causes considerable concern among others. The aim of this research…

The Relation between Youth Fear and Avoidance of Crime in School and Academic Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrett, Kimberly L.; Jennings, Wesley G.; Lynch, Michael J.

2012-01-01

Despite decades of research analyzing fear of crime among adults, little is known about youth fear of crime in general and youth fear of crime in school, specifically. Moreover, among existing studies most emphasize causes of fear, with little discussion of avoidance or the academic consequences of these feelings and behaviors in school. This…

Are "Sisters in Crime" Finally Being Booked? The Coverage of Women and Crime in Journals and Textbooks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Richard A.

1987-01-01

Compares coverage of women and crime in sociology journals published from 1956-1960 and from 1976-1980 with coverage in criminology texts published from 1956-1965 and from 1976-1985. Data shows despite recent increases in publication of research in journals, criminology texts show little improvement in their coverage of women and crime. Concludes…

Validation of the Crime and Violence Scale (CVS) against the Rasch Measurement Model Including Differences by Gender, Race, and Age

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conrad, Kendon J.; Riley, Barth B.; Conrad, Karen M.; Chan, Ya-Fen; Dennis, Michael L.

2010-01-01

In assessing criminality, researchers have used counts of crimes, arrests, and so on, because interval measures were not available. Additionally, crime seriousness varies depending on demographic factors. This study examined the Crime and Violence Scale (CVS) regarding psychometric quality using item response theory (IRT) and invariance of the…

The Economics of Crime: A Teaching Unit for Grades 7-12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luksetich, William A.

The major purposes of this teaching unit are to increase the students' understanding of economic concepts and economic reasoning, and to explain how economic reasoning can be applied to an analysis of the causes and remedies of crime. The unit examines the economics of crime in dollars as well as the causes of crime and programs to reduce criminal…

Changes in At-Risk American Men's Crime and Substance Use Trajectories following Fatherhood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kerr, David C. R.; Capaldi, Deborah M.; Owen, Lee D.; Wiesner, Margit; Pears, Katherine C.

2011-01-01

Fatherhood can be a turning point in development and in men's crime and substance use trajectories. At-risk boys (N = 206) were assessed annually from ages 12 to 31 years. Crime, arrest, and tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use trajectories were examined. Marriage was associated with lower levels of crime and less frequent substance use. Following…

Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2009. NCES 2010-012/NCJ 228478

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dinkes, Rachel; Kemp, Jana; Baum, Katrina

2009-01-01

A joint effort by the Bureau of Justice Statistics and National Center for Education Statistics, this annual report examines crime occurring in school as well as on the way to and from school. It provides the most current detailed statistical information to inform the Nation on the nature of crime in schools. This report presents data on crime at…

Natural Born Killers? Preventing the Coming Explosion of Teenage Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNulty, Paul J.

1995-01-01

Discusses the rise of juvenile crime in the United States, explores the failure of the juvenile justice system to stem the tide of youth crime, and examines the issue of prevention. The author argues the need to always hold youth offenders accountable for the crimes they commit and suggests several means by which restitution may be made. (GR)

Making communities safer from crime: An undervalued element in impact assessment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Glasson, John, E-mail: jglasson@brookes.ac.u; Curtin University, Perth; Cozens, Paul

Crime and safety are significant issues for individuals, communities and businesses but they have tended to be undervalued elements in the consideration of social impacts in impact assessment theory and practice. It has been argued that crime is a form of pollution and an externality of development. In principle, the precautionary impact assessment family of approaches should be very useful here. The paper explores first the coverage of crime and safety issues in both the longer history of EIA, followed by the much shorter history of SEA and Sustainability Appraisal (SA). It then considers several key issues for advancing bettermore » practice. These include: the recognition of the lifecycles of projects and plans and the relevant dimensions of the local safety and crime baseline; the need to employ meaningful data, including 'fear of crime' considerations; and the consideration of innovative approaches to the use of indicators. Evidence and theories from the field of environmental criminology are presented as crucial to understanding crime and its association with land-use. The paper concludes with an exploration of appropriate mitigation measures for anticipating and designing out crime. Examples draw in particular on evolving practice in the UK and Australia.« less

Applications of Remote Sensing and GIS(Geographic Information System) in Crime Analysis of Gujranwala City.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munawar, Iqra

2016-07-01

Crime mapping is a dynamic process. It can be used to assist all stages of the problem solving process. Mapping crime can help police protect citizens more effectively. The decision to utilize a certain type of map or design element may change based on the purpose of a map, the audience or the available data. If the purpose of the crime analysis map is to assist in the identification of a particular problem, selected data may be mapped to identify patterns of activity that have been previously undetected. The main objective of this research was to study the spatial distribution patterns of the four common crimes i.e Narcotics, Arms, Burglary and Robbery in Gujranwala City using spatial statistical techniques to identify the hotspots. Hotspots or location of clusters were identified using Getis-Ord Gi* Statistic. Crime analysis mapping can be used to conduct a comprehensive spatial analysis of the problem. Graphic presentations of such findings provide a powerful medium to communicate conditions, patterns and trends thus creating an avenue for analysts to bring about significant policy changes. Moreover Crime mapping also helps in the reduction of crime rate.

Built environment and Property Crime in Seattle, 1998-2000: A Bayesian Analysis.

PubMed

Matthews, Stephen A; Yang, Tse-Chuan; Hayslett-McCall, Karen L; Ruback, R Barry

2010-06-01

The past decade has seen a rapid growth in the use of a spatial perspective in studies of crime. In part this growth has been driven by the availability of georeferenced data, and the tools to analyze and visualize them: geographic information systems (GIS), spatial analysis, and spatial statistics. In this paper we use exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) tools and Bayesian models to help better understand the spatial patterning and predictors of property crime in Seattle, Washington for 1998-2000, including a focus on built environment variables. We present results for aggregate property crime data as well as models for specific property crime types: residential burglary, nonresidential burglary, theft, auto theft, and arson. ESDA confirms the presence of spatial clustering of property crime and we seek to explain these patterns using spatial Poisson models implemented in WinBUGS. Our results indicate that built environment variables were significant predictors of property crime, especially the presence of a highway on auto theft and burglary.

The effect of business improvement districts on the incidence of violent crimes

PubMed Central

Golinelli, Daniela; Stokes, Robert J; Bluthenthal, Ricky

2010-01-01

Objective To examine whether business improvement districts (BID) contributed to greater than expected declines in the incidence of violent crimes in affected neighbourhoods. Method A Bayesian hierarchical model was used to assess the changes in the incidence of violent crimes between 1994 and 2005 and the implementation of 30 BID in Los Angeles neighbourhoods. Results The implementation of BID was associated with a 12% reduction in the incidence of robbery (95% posterior probability interval −2 to 24) and an 8% reduction in the total incidence of violent crimes (95% posterior probability interval −5 to 21). The strength of the effect of BID on robbery crimes varied by location. Conclusion These findings indicate that the implementation of BID can reduce the incidence of violent crimes likely to result in injury to individuals. The findings also indicate that the establishment of a BID by itself is not a panacea, and highlight the importance of targeting BID efforts to crime prevention interventions that reduce violence exposure associated with criminal behaviours. PMID:20587814

The relationship between mental disorders and types of crime in inmates in a Brazilian prison.

PubMed

Pondé, Milena P; Caron, Jean; Mendonça, Milena S S; Freire, Antônio C C; Moreau, Nicolas

2014-09-01

This cross-sectional study conducted in prisons in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, investigated the association between the presence of psychiatric disorders in 462 prisoners and the types of crimes committed by them. Psychiatric diagnosis was obtained by means of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview. A statistically significant association was found between some psychiatric disorders and specific groups of crime: lifelong substance addiction with sex crimes and homicide; antisocial personality disorder with robbery and with kidnapping and extortion; borderline personality disorder with sex crimes; and lifelong alcohol addiction with fraud and conspiracy and with armed robbery and murder. It was concluded that the mental disorders considered more severe (psychosis and bipolar disorder) were not associated with violent crimes, suggesting that the severity of the psychotic disorder may be the factor that has caused psychosis to be associated with violent crimes in previous studies. © 2014 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

The impact of a natural disaster on altruistic behaviour and crime.

PubMed

Lemieux, Frederic

2014-07-01

Institutional altruism in the form of a public-sector intervention and support for victims and social altruism generated by mutual aid and solidarity among citizens constitute a coming together in a crisis. This coming together and mutual support precipitate a decrease in crime rates during such an event. This paper presents an analysis of daily fluctuations in crime during the prolonged ice storms in Quebec, Canada, in January 1998 that provoked an electrical blackout. Of particular interest are the principal crisis-related influences on daily crime patterns. A first series of analyses examines the impact of altruistic public-sector mobilisation on crime. A significant decline in property crime rates was noticed when cheques were distributed to crisis victims in financial need in Montérégie, and hence they were attributable to public intervention (institutional altruism). Moreover, the rate of social altruism (financial donations), which was more substantial in adjoining rather than distant regions, was inversely proportional to crime rates. © 2014 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2014.

Crime and punishment: Does it pay to punish?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iglesias, J. R.; Semeshenko, V.; Schneider, E. M.; Gordon, M. B.

2012-08-01

Crime is the result of a rational distinctive balance between the benefits and costs of an illegal act. This idea was proposed by Becker more than forty years ago (Becker (1968) [1]). In this paper, we simulate a simple artificial society, in which agents earn fixed wages and can augment (or lose) wealth as a result of a successful (or not) act of crime. The probability of apprehension depends on the gravity of the crime, and the punishment takes the form of imprisonment and fines. We study the costs of the law enforcement system required for keeping crime within acceptable limits, and compare it with the harm produced by crime. A sharp phase transition is observed as a function of the probability of punishment, and this transition exhibits a clear hysteresis effect, suggesting that the cost of reversing a deteriorated situation might be much higher than that of maintaining a relatively low level of delinquency. Besides, we analyze economic consequences that arise from crimes under different scenarios of criminal activity and probabilities of apprehension.

The effect of business improvement districts on the incidence of violent crimes.

PubMed

MacDonald, John; Golinelli, Daniela; Stokes, Robert J; Bluthenthal, Ricky

2010-10-01

To examine whether business improvement districts (BID) contributed to greater than expected declines in the incidence of violent crimes in affected neighbourhoods. A Bayesian hierarchical model was used to assess the changes in the incidence of violent crimes between 1994 and 2005 and the implementation of 30 BID in Los Angeles neighbourhoods. The implementation of BID was associated with a 12% reduction in the incidence of robbery (95% posterior probability interval -2 to 24) and an 8% reduction in the total incidence of violent crimes (95% posterior probability interval -5 to 21). The strength of the effect of BID on robbery crimes varied by location. These findings indicate that the implementation of BID can reduce the incidence of violent crimes likely to result in injury to individuals. The findings also indicate that the establishment of a BID by itself is not a panacea, and highlight the importance of targeting BID efforts to crime prevention interventions that reduce violence exposure associated with criminal behaviours.

Built environment and Property Crime in Seattle, 1998–2000: A Bayesian Analysis

PubMed Central

Matthews, Stephen A.; Yang, Tse-chuan; Hayslett-McCall, Karen L.; Ruback, R. Barry

2014-01-01

The past decade has seen a rapid growth in the use of a spatial perspective in studies of crime. In part this growth has been driven by the availability of georeferenced data, and the tools to analyze and visualize them: geographic information systems (GIS), spatial analysis, and spatial statistics. In this paper we use exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) tools and Bayesian models to help better understand the spatial patterning and predictors of property crime in Seattle, Washington for 1998–2000, including a focus on built environment variables. We present results for aggregate property crime data as well as models for specific property crime types: residential burglary, nonresidential burglary, theft, auto theft, and arson. ESDA confirms the presence of spatial clustering of property crime and we seek to explain these patterns using spatial Poisson models implemented in WinBUGS. Our results indicate that built environment variables were significant predictors of property crime, especially the presence of a highway on auto theft and burglary. PMID:24737924

Crime Seasonality: Examining the Temporal Fluctuations of Property Crime in Cities With Varying Climates.

PubMed

Linning, Shannon J; Andresen, Martin A; Brantingham, Paul J

2017-12-01

This study investigates whether crime patterns fluctuate periodically throughout the year using data containing different property crime types in two Canadian cities with differing climates. Using police report data, a series of ordinary least squares (OLS; Vancouver, British Columbia) and negative binomial (Ottawa, Ontario) regressions were employed to examine the corresponding temporal patterns of property crime in Vancouver (2003-2013) and Ottawa (2006-2008). Moreover, both aggregate and disaggregate models were run to examine whether different weather and temporal variables had a distinctive impact on particular offences. Overall, results suggest that cities that experience greater variations in weather throughout the year have more distinct increases of property offences in the summer months and that different climate variables affect certain crime types, thus advocating for disaggregate analysis in the future.

Patterns of local segregation: Do they matter for neighborhood crime?

PubMed

Krivo, Lauren J; Byron, Reginald A; Calder, Catherine A; Peterson, Ruth D; Browning, Christopher R; Kwan, Mei-Po; Lee, Jae Yong

2015-11-01

In this paper, we extend recent research on the spatial measurement of segregation and the spatial dynamics of urban crime by conceptualizing, measuring, and describing local segregation by race-ethnicity and economic status, and examining the linkages of these conditions with levels of neighborhood violent and property crime. The analyses are based on all 8895 census tracts within a sample of 86 large U.S. cities. We fit multilevel models of crime that incorporate measures of local segregation. The results reveal that, net of city-level and neighborhood characteristics, White-Black local segregation is associated with lower violent and property crime. In contrast, local segregation of low income from high income households is connected with higher crime, particularly neighborhood violence. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sexual Orientation in State Hate Crime Laws: Exploring Social Construction and Criminal Law.

PubMed

Valcore, Jace L

2017-09-15

Several studies have described and analyzed the development and diffusion of hate crime laws in the United States, but none specifically examined state-level differences in protected categories. Forty-five of the 50 states have a hate crime statute, but only 30 of those include sexual orientation. In this study the social construction framework is applied to the hate crime policy domain in order to determine whether or not variations in the social and political status of gays and lesbians are associated with the inclusion of sexual orientation in state hate crime laws. Content analysis of daily newspapers in six states revealed that a positive social construction is associated with groups seeking hate crime law protections, and that political influence may also be a key factor.

Income inequality and fear of crime across the European region

PubMed Central

Vauclair, Christin-Melanie; Bratanova, Boyka

2016-01-01

This paper aims to take a holistic approach to studying fear of crime by testing predictors at multiple levels of analyses. Data from the European Social Survey (N = 56,752 from 29 countries) were used to test and extend the Income Inequality and Sense of Vulnerability Hypotheses. The findings confirm that (1) individuals in societies with greater income inequalities are more fearful of crime, and (2) older or disabled people as well as women report greater fear of crime. Contrary to the hypotheses, ethnic majority and not ethnic minority members report greater fear of crime, if they reside in high income inequality countries. It is further demonstrated that fear of crime explains the inverse association between income inequality and subjective well-being in this particular subsample. PMID:28579924

Survey of Analysis of Crime Detection Techniques Using Data Mining and Machine Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prabakaran, S.; Mitra, Shilpa

2018-04-01

Data mining is the field containing procedures for finding designs or patterns in a huge dataset, it includes strategies at the convergence of machine learning and database framework. It can be applied to various fields like future healthcare, market basket analysis, education, manufacturing engineering, crime investigation etc. Among these, crime investigation is an interesting application to process crime characteristics to help the society for a better living. This paper survey various data mining techniques used in this domain. This study may be helpful in designing new strategies for crime prediction and analysis.

The incidence of defensive firearm use by US crime victims, 1987 through 1990.

PubMed Central

McDowall, D; Wiersema, B

1994-01-01

It is well known that many crimes in the United States are committed with firearms. Less adequately documented is the frequency with which victims use guns in self-defense. We used National Crime Victimization Survey data to examine incidents where victims employed guns against offenders. Between 1987 and 1990 there were an estimated 258,460 incidents of firearm defense, an annual mean of 64,615. Victims used firearms in 0.18% of all crimes recorded by the survey and in 0.83% of violent offenses. Firearm self-defense is rare compared with gun crimes. PMID:7998641

Antipsychotics, mood stabilisers, and risk of violent crime.

PubMed

Fazel, Seena; Zetterqvist, Johan; Larsson, Henrik; Långström, Niklas; Lichtenstein, Paul

2014-09-27

Antipsychotics and mood stabilisers are prescribed widely to patients with psychiatric disorders worldwide. Despite clear evidence for their efficacy in relapse prevention and symptom relief, their effect on some adverse outcomes, including the perpetration of violent crime, is unclear. We aimed to establish the effect of antipsychotics and mood stabilisers on the rate of violent crime committed by patients with psychiatric disorders in Sweden. We used linked Swedish national registers to study 82,647 patients who were prescribed antipsychotics or mood stabilisers, their psychiatric diagnoses, and subsequent criminal convictions in 2006-09. We did within-individual analyses to compare the rate of violent criminality during the time that patients were prescribed these medications versus the rate for the same patients while they were not receiving the drugs to adjust for all confounders that remained constant within each participant during follow-up. The primary outcome was the occurrence of violent crime, according to Sweden's national crime register. In 2006-09, 40,937 men in Sweden were prescribed antipsychotics or mood stabilisers, of whom 2657 (6·5%) were convicted of a violent crime during the study period. In the same period, 41,710 women were prescribed these drugs, of whom 604 (1·4 %) had convictions for violent crime. Compared with periods when participants were not on medication, violent crime fell by 45% in patients receiving antipsychotics (hazard ratio [HR] 0·55, 95% CI 0·47-0·64) and by 24% in patients prescribed mood stabilisers (0·76, 0·62-0·93). However, we identified potentially important differences by diagnosis-mood stabilisers were associated with a reduced rate of violent crime only in patients with bipolar disorder. The rate of violence reduction for antipsychotics remained between 22% and 29% in sensitivity analyses that used different outcomes (any crime, drug-related crime, less severe crime, and violent arrest), and was stronger in patients who were prescribed higher drug doses than in those prescribed low doses. Notable reductions in violent crime were also recorded for depot medication (HR adjusted for concomitant oral medications 0·60, 95% CI 0·39-0·92). In addition to relapse prevention and psychiatric symptom relief, the benefits of antipsychotics and mood stabilisers might also include reductions in the rates of violent crime. The potential effects of these drugs on violence and crime should be taken into account when treatment options for patients with psychiatric disorders are being considered. The Wellcome Trust, the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, the Swedish Research Council, and the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare. Copyright © 2014 Fazel et al. Open Access article distributed under the terms of CC BY. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Antipsychotics, mood stabilisers, and risk of violent crime

PubMed Central

Fazel, Seena; Zetterqvist, Johan; Larsson, Henrik; Långström, Niklas; Lichtenstein, Paul

2014-01-01

Summary Background Antipsychotics and mood stabilisers are prescribed widely to patients with psychiatric disorders worldwide. Despite clear evidence for their efficacy in relapse prevention and symptom relief, their effect on some adverse outcomes, including the perpetration of violent crime, is unclear. We aimed to establish the effect of antipsychotics and mood stabilisers on the rate of violent crime committed by patients with psychiatric disorders in Sweden. Methods We used linked Swedish national registers to study 82 647 patients who were prescribed antipsychotics or mood stabilisers, their psychiatric diagnoses, and subsequent criminal convictions in 2006–09. We did within-individual analyses to compare the rate of violent criminality during the time that patients were prescribed these medications versus the rate for the same patients while they were not receiving the drugs to adjust for all confounders that remained constant within each participant during follow-up. The primary outcome was the occurrence of violent crime, according to Sweden's national crime register. Findings In 2006–09, 40 937 men in Sweden were prescribed antipsychotics or mood stabilisers, of whom 2657 (6·5%) were convicted of a violent crime during the study period. In the same period, 41 710 women were prescribed these drugs, of whom 604 (1·4 %) had convictions for violent crime. Compared with periods when participants were not on medication, violent crime fell by 45% in patients receiving antipsychotics (hazard ratio [HR] 0·55, 95% CI 0·47–0·64) and by 24% in patients prescribed mood stabilisers (0·76, 0·62–0·93). However, we identified potentially important differences by diagnosis—mood stabilisers were associated with a reduced rate of violent crime only in patients with bipolar disorder. The rate of violence reduction for antipsychotics remained between 22% and 29% in sensitivity analyses that used different outcomes (any crime, drug-related crime, less severe crime, and violent arrest), and was stronger in patients who were prescribed higher drug doses than in those prescribed low doses. Notable reductions in violent crime were also recorded for depot medication (HR adjusted for concomitant oral medications 0·60, 95% CI 0·39–0·92). Interpretation In addition to relapse prevention and psychiatric symptom relief, the benefits of antipsychotics and mood stabilisers might also include reductions in the rates of violent crime. The potential effects of these drugs on violence and crime should be taken into account when treatment options for patients with psychiatric disorders are being considered. Funding The Wellcome Trust, the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, the Swedish Research Council, and the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare. PMID:24816046

Risk of Being Subjected to Crime, Including Violent Crime, After Onset of Mental Illness: A Danish National Registry Study Using Police Data.

PubMed

Dean, Kimberlie; Laursen, Thomas M; Pedersen, Carsten B; Webb, Roger T; Mortensen, Preben B; Agerbo, Esben

2018-05-23

People with mental illness are more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system, but research to date has focused on risk of offense perpetration, while less is known about risk of being subjected to crime and violence. To establish the incidence of being subjected to all types of criminal offenses, and by violent crimes separately, after onset of mental illness across the full diagnostic spectrum compared with those in the population without mental illness. This investigation was a longitudinal national cohort study using register data in Denmark. Participants were a cohort of more than 2 million persons born between 1965 and 1998 and followed up from 2001 or from their 15th birthday until December 31, 2013. Analysis was undertaken from November 2016 until February 2018. Cohort members were followed up for onset of mental illness, recorded as first contact with outpatient or inpatient mental health services. Diagnoses across the full spectrum of psychiatric diagnoses were considered separately for men and women. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were estimated for first subjection to crime event (any crime and violent crime) reported to police after onset of mental illness. The IRRs were adjusted for cohort member's own criminal offending, in addition to several sociodemographic factors. In a total cohort of 2 058 063 (48.7% male; 51.3% female), the adjusted IRRs for being subjected to crime associated with any mental disorder were 1.49 (95% CI, 1.46-1.51) for men and 1.64 (95% CI, 1.61-1.66) for women. The IRRs were higher for being subjected to violent crime at 1.76 (95% CI, 1.72-1.80) for men and 2.72 (95% CI, 2.65-2.79) for women. The strongest associations were for persons diagnosed as having substance use disorders and personality disorders, but significant risk elevations were found across almost all diagnostic groups examined. Onset of mental illness is associated with increased risk of exposure to crime, and violent crime in particular. Elevated risk is not confined to specific diagnostic groups. Women with mental illness are especially vulnerable to being subjected to crime. Individual's own offending accounts for some but not all of the increased vulnerability to being subjected to crime.

Safe haven laws as crime control theater.

PubMed

Hammond, Michelle; Miller, Monica K; Griffin, Timothy

2010-07-01

This article examines safe haven laws, which allow parents to legally abandon their infants. The main objective is to determine whether safe haven laws fit the criteria of crime control theater, a term used to describe public policies that produce the appearance, but not the effect, of crime control, and as such are essentially socially constructed "solutions" to socially constructed crime "problems." The analysis will apply the principles of crime control theater to safe haven laws. Specifically, the term crime control theater applies to laws that are reactionary responses to perceived criminal threats and are often widely supported as a way to address the crime in question. Such laws are attractive because they appeal to mythic narratives (i.e., saving an innocent child from a predator); however they are likely ineffective due to the complexity of the crime. These laws can have deleterious effects when policymakers make false claims of success and stunt public discourse (e.g., drawing attention away from more frequent and preventable crimes). This analysis applies these criteria to safe haven laws to determine whether such laws can be classified as crime control theater. Many qualities inherent to crime control theater are present in safe haven laws. For example, the laws are highly publicized, their intentions lack moral ambiguity, rare cases of success legitimize law enforcement and other agencies, and they appeal to the public sense of responsibility in preventing crime. Yet the goal of saving infant lives may be unattainable. These qualities make the effectiveness of the laws questionable and suggest they may be counterproductive. This analysis determined that safe haven laws are socially constructed solutions to the socially constructed problem of child abandonment. Safe haven laws are appropriately classified as crime control theater. It is imperative that further research be conducted to examine the effectiveness and collateral effects of safe haven laws. Longitudinal studies and a nationwide database to better determine the effectiveness of safe haven laws are suggested. It is also crucial that agencies implementing SHLs closely monitor the reasons parents abandon their children, and adopt policies that re-focus the attention safe haven laws receive to address more frequent causes of harm to infants. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Student Reports of Bullying and Cyber-Bullying: Results from the 2011 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Web Tables. NCES 2013-329

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lessne, Deborah; Harmalkar, Sayali

2013-01-01

This document reports data from the 2011 School Crime Supplement (SCS) of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The Web Tables show the extent to which students with different personal characteristics report bullying and cyber-bullying. Estimates include responses by student characteristics: student sex, race/ethnicity, grade, and…

Continuity and Contingency in USAF Posture Planning

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-01-01

with these adversaries. It also galvanized U.S. legislators , who dropped their normal objections to building bases overseas and resourced the efforts...Organized crime threats to El Savador gov Terrorism/piracy/crime Central America/Carb 81 Terrorists bomb Colombian parliament Terrorism/piracy/crime...Epidemic 4 2025-2034 Terrorists bomb Colombian parliament Terrorism/piracy/crime 81 2025-2034 Kosovo Civil conflict 18 2025-2034 Israel-Egypt in Sinai

Geo-Political Position and Importance of Turkey in the Crime Trafficking between the Continents Asia, Europe and Africa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keser, Nurdan; Ozel, Ali

2008-01-01

According to the 2006 data of Turkish National Police (TNP), throughout Turkey, 1742 cases comprised of organized crime, collective or individual smuggling, nuclear stuff smuggling were recorded. Between 2000 and 2006, 11600 organized crimes had been recorded. It is known that the high number of crime is closely related to the geo-strategic and…

Sources of Fear of Crime at School: What Is the Relative Contribution of Disorder, Individual Characteristics, and School Security?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schreck, Christopher J.; Miller, J. Mitchell

2003-01-01

While policymakers have granted a substantial commitment of resources in order to reduce fear of crime among U.S. school students, the research literature on fear of crime at school is in its infancy. This study investigates whether school security techniques reduce or exacerbate fear of crime among students, net of community and school disorder…

29 CFR 18.404 - Character evidence not admissible to prove conduct; exceptions; other crimes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...; exceptions; other crimes. 18.404 Section 18.404 Labor Office of the Secretary of Labor RULES OF PRACTICE AND... crimes. (a) Character evidence generally. Evidence of a person's character or a trait of character is not... evidence of the character of a witness, as provided in §§ 18.607, 18.608, and 18.609. (b) Other crimes...

20 CFR 10.739 - What kind of objective evidence of a potential Federal crime must exist for coverage to be extended?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... potential Federal crime must exist for coverage to be extended? 10.739 Section 10.739 Employees' Benefits...-Federal Law Enforcement Officers § 10.739 What kind of objective evidence of a potential Federal crime... circumstances, to conclude that a Federal crime was in progress, or was about to occur. This awareness need not...

Film Piracy, Organized Crime, and Terrorism

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

appointed Malaysian Inspector General of Police renewed efforts to fight organized crime by dedicating more resources to Operation Copperhead, originally...opera- tions in Kuala Lumpur.104 The Malaysian government singled out the dragonhead of the Ang Bin Hoey triad, Tee Yam (aka Khoo Tee Yam), as its...interviews with Serious Crime Division of Malaysian Police, August 1, 2005. Getting Down to Cases: Organized Crime and Film Piracy 71 in

Crime Victimization in Adults With Severe Mental Illness

PubMed Central

Teplin, Linda A.; McClelland, Gary M.; Abram, Karen M.; Weiner, Dana A.

2006-01-01

Context Since deinstitutionalization, most persons with severe mental illness (SMI) now live in the community, where they are at great risk for crime victimization. Objectives To determine the prevalence and incidence of crime victimization among persons with SMI by sex, race/ethnicity, and age, and to compare rates with general population data (the National Crime Victimization Survey), controlling for income and demographic differences between the samples. Design Epidemiologic study of persons in treatment. Independent master’s-level clinical research interviewers administered the National Crime Victimization Survey to randomly selected patients sampled from 16 randomly selected mental health agencies. Setting Sixteen agencies providing outpatient, day, and residential treatment to persons with SMI in Chicago, Ill. Participants Randomly selected, stratified sample of 936 patients aged 18 or older (483 men, 453 women) who were African American (n = 329), non-Hispanic white (n = 321), Hispanic (n = 270), or other race/ethnicity (n = 22). The comparison group comprised 32449 participants in the National Crime Victimization Survey. Main Outcome Measure National Crime Victimization Survey, developed by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Results More than one quarter of persons with SMI had been victims of a violent crime in the past year, a rate more than 11 times higher than the general population rates even after controlling for demographic differences between the 2 samples (P<.001). The annual incidence of violent crime in the SMI sample (168.2 incidents per 1000 persons) is more than 4 times higher than the general population rates (39.9 incidents per 1000 persons) (P<.001). Depending on the type of violent crime (rape/sexual assault, robbery, assault, and their subcategories), prevalence was 6 to 23 times greater among persons with SMI than among the general population. Conclusions Crime victimization is a major public health problem among persons with SMI who are treated in the community. We recommend directions for future research, propose modifications in public policy, and suggest how the mental health system can respond to reduce victimization and its consequences. PMID:16061769

The Shadow of Physical Harm? Examining the Unique and Gendered Relationship Between Fear of Murder Versus Fear of Sexual Assault on Fear of Violent Crime.

PubMed

Riggs, Samantha; Cook, Carrie L

2015-09-01

The shadow hypothesis regarding the impact of fear of sexual assault on fear of violent crime suggests that female fear of crime is characterized by concern about sexual assault as a contemporaneous victimization event during a violent crime event. Recent research has found that other types of crime, namely physical assault, may also be feared as a contemporaneous offense. We know of no research that has examined the unique impact of fear of murder versus fear of sexual assault on fear of violent crime. There is also a lack of research that explores how these two types of fear uniquely affect men and women. In addition to gender, we examine factors that have been suggested in previous research to correlate with fear of crime: race, victimization, vicarious victimization, and perceived risk. Through survey methodology, this research examines the unique relationship between both fear of murder and fear of sexual assault and fear of three types of violent crime for men and women. Results suggest differences in how fear of murder and fear of sexual assault are related to fear of other types of violence for men and women. Specifically, fear of murder is important in estimating male fear of robbery and aggravated assault. However, fear of sexual assault is almost as important as fear of murder for men in estimating fear of home invasion. Similarly, for women, fear of sexual assault and fear of murder both are significant factors associated with fear of violent crime, and differences between the levels of significance are marginal. This study is a first to examine whether murder may also be feared as a contemporaneous offense. The results are informative in identifying what drives fear of crime, particularly violent crime, for both men and women. Avenues for future research are discussed. © The Author(s) 2014.

Automated Guideway Transit System Passenger Security Guidebook

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1980-03-01

This uidebook provides AGT system planners, designers and operators with information on available crime countermeasures and their relative effectiveness against transit crime. : Crime countermeasures on current transit systems have been reviewed and ...

Violent crime rates as a proxy for the social determinants of sexually transmissible infection rates: the consistent state-level correlation between violent crime and reported sexually transmissible infections in the United States, 1981-2010.

PubMed

Chesson, Harrell W; Owusu-Edusei, Kwame; Leichliter, Jami S; Aral, Sevgi O

2013-11-01

Numerous social determinants of health are associated with violent crime rates and sexually transmissible infection (STI) rates. This report aims to illustrate the potential usefulness of violent crime rates as a proxy for the social determinants of STI rates. For each year from 1981 to 2010, we assessed the strength of the association between the violent crime rate and the gonorrhoea (Neisseria gonorrhoeae) rate (number of total reported cases per 100?000) at the state level. Specifically, for each year, we calculated Pearson correlation coefficients (and P-values) between two variables (the violent crime rate and the natural log of the gonorrhoea rate) for all 50 states and Washington, DC. For comparison, we also examined the correlation between gonorrhoea rates, and rates of poverty and unemployment. We repeated the analysis using overall syphilis rates instead of overall gonorrhoea rates. The correlation between gonorrhoea and violent crime was significant at the P<0.001 level for every year from 1981 to 2010. Syphilis rates were also consistently correlated with violent crime rates. In contrast, the P-value for the correlation coefficient exceeded 0.05 in 9 of the 30 years for the association between gonorrhoea and poverty, and in 17 of the 30 years for that between gonorrhoea and unemployment. Because violent crime is associated with many social determinants of STIs and because it is consistently associated with STI rates, violent crime rates can be a useful proxy for the social determinants of health in statistical analyses of STI rates.

Environmental interventions to reduce fear of crime: systematic review of effectiveness

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Fear of crime is associated with negative health and wellbeing outcomes, and may mediate some impacts of the built environment on public health. A range of environmental interventions have been hypothesized to reduce the fear of crime. Methods This review aimed to synthesize the literature on the effectiveness of interventions in the built environment to reduce the fear of crime. Systematic review methodology, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidance, was used. Studies of environmental interventions which reported a fear of crime outcome and used any prospective evaluation design (randomized controlled trial (RCT), trial or uncontrolled before-and-after study) were included. Eighteen databases were searched. The Hamilton tool was used to assess quality. A narrative synthesis of findings was undertaken. Results A total of 47 studies were included, 22 controlled and 25 uncontrolled, with total sample sizes ranging from n = 52 to approximately n = 23,000. Thirty-six studies were conducted in the UK, ten studies in the USA and one study in the Netherlands. The quality of the evidence overall is low. There are some indications that home security improvements and non-crime-related environmental improvements may be effective for some fear of crime outcomes. There is little evidence that the following reduce fear of crime: street lighting improvements, closed-circuit television (CCTV), multi-component environmental crime prevention programs or regeneration programs. Conclusions There is some evidence for the effectiveness of specific environmental interventions in reducing some indicators of fear of crime, but more attention to the context and possible confounders is needed in future evaluations of complex social interventions such as these. PMID:23663285

The geography of crime and violence surrounding tobacco shops, medical marijuana dispensaries, and off-sale alcohol outlets in a large, urban low-income community of color.

PubMed

Subica, Andrew M; Douglas, Jason A; Kepple, Nancy J; Villanueva, Sandra; Grills, Cheryl T

2018-03-01

Tobacco shops, medical marijuana dispensaries (MMD), and off-sale alcohol outlets are legal and prevalent in South Los Angeles, California-a high-crime, low-income urban community of color. This research is the first to explore the geographic associations between these three legal drug outlets with surrounding crime and violence in a large low-income urban community of color. First, spatial buffer analyses were performed using point-location and publically accessible January-December 2014 crime data to examine the geography of all felony property and violent crimes occurring within 100, 200, 500, and 1000-foot buffers of these three legal drug outlet types across South Los Angeles. Next, spatial regression analyses explored the geographic associations between density of these outlets and property and violent crimes at the census tract level. Results indicated that mean property and violent crime rates within 100-foot buffers of tobacco shops and alcohol outlets-but not MMDs-substantially exceeded community-wide mean crime rates and rates around grocery/convenience stores (i.e., comparison properties licensed to sell both alcohol and tobacco). Spatial regression analyses confirmed that tobacco shops significantly positively associated with property and violent crimes after controlling for key neighborhood factors (poverty, renters, resident mobility, ethnic/racial heterogeneity). Thus, study findings provide the first empirical evidence that tobacco shops may constitute public health threats that associate with crime and violence in U.S. low-income urban communities of color. Implementing and enforcing control policies that regulate and monitor tobacco shops in these communities may promote community health by improving public safety. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Three-dimensional measurement system for crime scene documentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adamczyk, Marcin; Hołowko, Elwira; Lech, Krzysztof; Michoński, Jakub; MÄ czkowski, Grzegorz; Bolewicki, Paweł; Januszkiewicz, Kamil; Sitnik, Robert

2017-10-01

Three dimensional measurements (such as photogrammetry, Time of Flight, Structure from Motion or Structured Light techniques) are becoming a standard in the crime scene documentation process. The usage of 3D measurement techniques provide an opportunity to prepare more insightful investigation and helps to show every trace in the context of the entire crime scene. In this paper we would like to present a hierarchical, three-dimensional measurement system that is designed for crime scenes documentation process. Our system reflects the actual standards in crime scene documentation process - it is designed to perform measurement in two stages. First stage of documentation, the most general, is prepared with a scanner with relatively low spatial resolution but also big measuring volume - it is used for the whole scene documentation. Second stage is much more detailed: high resolution but smaller size of measuring volume for areas that required more detailed approach. The documentation process is supervised by a specialised application CrimeView3D, that is a software platform for measurements management (connecting with scanners and carrying out measurements, automatic or semi-automatic data registration in the real time) and data visualisation (3D visualisation of documented scenes). It also provides a series of useful tools for forensic technicians: virtual measuring tape, searching for sources of blood spatter, virtual walk on the crime scene and many others. In this paper we present our measuring system and the developed software. We also provide an outcome from research on metrological validation of scanners that was performed according to VDI/VDE standard. We present a CrimeView3D - a software-platform that was developed to manage the crime scene documentation process. We also present an outcome from measurement sessions that were conducted on real crime scenes with cooperation with Technicians from Central Forensic Laboratory of Police.

The scaling of crime concentration in cities

PubMed Central

Bastos-Filho, Carmelo; Menezes, Ronaldo

2017-01-01

Crime is a major threat to society’s well-being but lacks a statistical characterization that could lead to uncovering some of its underlying mechanisms. Evidence of nonlinear scaling of urban indicators in cities, such as wages and serious crime, has motivated the understanding of cities as complex systems—a perspective that offers insights into resources limits and sustainability, but that usually neglects details of the indicators themselves. Notably, since the nineteenth century, criminal activities have been known to occur unevenly within a city; crime concentrates in such way that most of the offenses take place in few regions of the city. Though confirmed by different studies, this concentration lacks broad analyses on its characteristics, which hinders not only the comprehension of crime dynamics but also the proposal of sounding counter-measures. Here, we developed a framework to characterize crime concentration which divides cities into regions with the same population size. We used disaggregated criminal data from 25 locations in the U.S. and the U.K., spanning from 2 to 15 years of longitudinal data. Our results confirmed that crime concentrates regardless of city and revealed that the level of concentration does not scale with city size. We found that the distribution of crime in a city can be approximated by a power-law distribution with exponent α that depends on the type of crime. In particular, our results showed that thefts tend to concentrate more than robberies, and robberies more than burglaries. Though criminal activities present regularities of concentration, we found that criminal ranks have the tendency to change continuously over time—features that support the perspective of crime as a complex system and demand analyses and evolving urban policies covering the city as a whole. PMID:28800604

The scaling of crime concentration in cities.

PubMed

Oliveira, Marcos; Bastos-Filho, Carmelo; Menezes, Ronaldo

2017-01-01

Crime is a major threat to society's well-being but lacks a statistical characterization that could lead to uncovering some of its underlying mechanisms. Evidence of nonlinear scaling of urban indicators in cities, such as wages and serious crime, has motivated the understanding of cities as complex systems-a perspective that offers insights into resources limits and sustainability, but that usually neglects details of the indicators themselves. Notably, since the nineteenth century, criminal activities have been known to occur unevenly within a city; crime concentrates in such way that most of the offenses take place in few regions of the city. Though confirmed by different studies, this concentration lacks broad analyses on its characteristics, which hinders not only the comprehension of crime dynamics but also the proposal of sounding counter-measures. Here, we developed a framework to characterize crime concentration which divides cities into regions with the same population size. We used disaggregated criminal data from 25 locations in the U.S. and the U.K., spanning from 2 to 15 years of longitudinal data. Our results confirmed that crime concentrates regardless of city and revealed that the level of concentration does not scale with city size. We found that the distribution of crime in a city can be approximated by a power-law distribution with exponent α that depends on the type of crime. In particular, our results showed that thefts tend to concentrate more than robberies, and robberies more than burglaries. Though criminal activities present regularities of concentration, we found that criminal ranks have the tendency to change continuously over time-features that support the perspective of crime as a complex system and demand analyses and evolving urban policies covering the city as a whole.

Trouble in paradise: The crime and health outcomes of the Surfers Paradise licensed venue lockout.

PubMed

de Andrade, Dominique; Homel, Ross; Townsley, Michael

2016-09-01

The lockout intervention has become embedded in Australian alcohol policy with little scientific evidence of its effectiveness in reducing violence and disorder. This paper reports an evaluation of the Queensland lockout pilot in Surfers Paradise. Patrons could not enter or re-enter licensed venues after 3 am, while patrons inside at this time could stay until close. Using police and ambulance data, time series analyses examined the impact of tourism seasons and the lockout on rates of crime, violence, injury and intoxication. Additional analyses were also conducted to show spatial and temporal changes in crime over time. Both police and ambulance data showed that the lockout introduction had no statistically significant impact on rates of crime, violence, head and neck injuries, and intoxication over the 2 years following lockout. Hot spot maps indicated limited spatial shift of crime within Surfers Paradise following the lockout introduction, with evidence of a temporary intensification of crime in already established hot spots. We found a moderate statistically significant change in the 24 h distribution of crime after the lockout implementation, suggesting temporal displacement of crime. Results support the small existing body of evidence on lockouts that indicates they are largely ineffective in reducing crime and injuries in entertainment districts. As multi-pronged strategies that include a lockout gain in popularity, further investigation should focus on identifying the key drivers of successful interventions such as the Newcastle strategy, to better refine these interventions for replication and evaluation elsewhere. [De Andrade D, Homel R, Townsley M. Trouble in paradise: The crime and health outcomes of the Surfers Paradise licensed venue lockout. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:564-572]. © 2016 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

Low resting heart rate is associated with violence in late adolescence: a prospective birth cohort study in Brazil

PubMed Central

Murray, Joseph; Hallal, Pedro C; Mielke, Gregore I; Raine, Adrian; Wehrmeister, Fernando C; Anselmi, Luciana; Barros, Fernando C

2016-01-01

Abstract Background : Youth violence is a major global public health problem. Three UK and Swedish studies suggest that low resting heart rate predicts male youth violence, but this has not been tested in other social settings nor for females. Methods : A prospective, population-based birth cohort study was conducted in Pelotas, Brazil. Heart rate was measured using a wrist monitor at ages 11, 15 and 18 years. Violent crime and non-violent crime were measured at age 18 in self-reports and official records ( N  = 3618). Confounding variables were assessed in the perinatal period and at age 11, in interviews with mothers and children. Logistic regression was used to estimate associations between quartiles of heart rate at each age, and violent and non-violent crime at age 18, separately for males and females. Results : Lower resting heart rate was a robust correlate of violent and non-violent crime for males. Comparing males in the lowest and top quartiles of heart rate at age 15 years, adjusted odds ratios were 1.9 for violent crime [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4–2.7] and 1.7 for non-violent crime (95% CI 1.1–2.6). For females, crime outcomes were associated only with low resting heart rate at age 18. Associations were generally linear across the four heart rate quartiles. There was no evidence that associations differed according to socioeconomic status at age 15. Conclusions : Low resting heart rate predicted violent and non-violent crime for males, and was cross-sectionally associated with crime for females. Biological factors may contribute to individual propensity to commit crime, even in a middle-income setting with high rates of violence. PMID:26822937

"Safe Going": the influence of crime rates and perceived crime and safety on walking in deprived neighbourhoods.

PubMed

Mason, Phil; Kearns, Ade; Livingston, Mark

2013-08-01

Few studies have simultaneously examined the relationship of levels of recorded crime, perceptions of crime and disorder, and safety from crime with rates of physical activity. We developed a series of multilevel ordinal regression models to examine these aspects in relation to self-reported neighbourhood walking frequency in a cross-sectional sample of 3824 British adults from 29 deprived neighbourhoods in Glasgow, UK. Perceptions of several serious local antisocial behaviours (drunkenness and burglary) and feelings of personal safety (feeling safe in the home and if walking alone in the local area at night) were consistently associated, respectively, with less and more frequent walking. Conversely, perceiving drug dealing or drug use as a serious problem was associated with walking more frequently. There was a small but significant association between walking frequency in neighbourhoods with higher recorded person crime (but not property crime) rates when considered in conjunction with other aspects of disorder and crime safety, although not when additionally controlling for sociodemographic, neighbourhood and community aspects. The magnitude of these objective and perceived crime-related effects is modest and features of the psychosocial environment and social cohesion (having a sense of progress from living in the neighbourhood, group participation and positively rating social venues), as well as health and personal income deprivation, may more strongly determine levels of neighbourhood walking. Nevertheless, physical activity benefits may accrue at the population level through provision of environments that are safer from crime. Our study also shows the importance to local walking of neighbourhood management, which reduces problems of disorder, and of social regeneration, which helps strengthen sense of community. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The association between spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis for personal use and earnings from acquisitive crime among police detainees in New Zealand.

PubMed

Wilkins, Chris; Sweetsur, Paul

2011-04-01

Few studies have examined the statistical association between methamphetamine/amphetamine use and acquisitive crime. Both methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis use have been implicated by New Zealand Police as factors in acquisitive offending among active criminal populations. The aim of our study was to examine the statistical association between spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis and earnings from acquisitive crime among police detainees in New Zealand. Four police stations in different regions. A sample of 2125 police detainees were interviewed about their drug use and acquisitive crime. Statistical models were developed to predict involvement in acquisitive crime using spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis for personal use, and to examine associations between the level of spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis for personal use and level of dollar earnings from acquisitive crime. Self-reported spending on drug use and self-reported earnings from acquisitive crime in the past 30 days. Spending on cannabis and methamphetamine/amphetamine could predict involvement in acquisitive crime. Level of spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine and cannabis was associated positively with the level of earnings from property crime. Level of spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine was also associated positively with level of earnings from drug dealing. There was a largely negative association between level of spending on cannabis and level of earnings from drug dealing. High spending on methamphetamine/amphetamine is associated statistically with higher earnings from acquisitive crime among police detainees. Further research into this association, and in particular the causal nature of the association, is required to obtain clear policy recommendations. © 2010 The Authors, Addiction © 2010 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Violent crime in San Antonio, Texas: an application of spatial epidemiological methods.

PubMed

Sparks, Corey S

2011-12-01

Violent crimes are rarely considered a public health problem or investigated using epidemiological methods. But patterns of violent crime and other health conditions are often affected by similar characteristics of the built environment. In this paper, methods and perspectives from spatial epidemiology are used in an analysis of violent crimes in San Antonio, TX. Bayesian statistical methods are used to examine the contextual influence of several aspects of the built environment. Additionally, spatial regression models using Bayesian model specifications are used to examine spatial patterns of violent crime risk. Results indicate that the determinants of violent crime depend on the model specification, but are primarily related to the built environment and neighborhood socioeconomic conditions. Results are discussed within the context of a rapidly growing urban area with a diverse population. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Blame attribution as a moderator of perceptions of sexual orientation-based hate crimes.

PubMed

Cramer, Robert J; Chandler, Joseph F; Wakeman, Emily E

2010-05-01

Blame attribution is a valuable mechanism explaining decision making. However, present literature mainly employs blame attribution as a dependent variable. The shortcoming of this fact is that blame attribution offers a potentially valuable explanatory mechanism for decision making. The authors designed two studies to investigate blame attribution as a moderator of sentencing decisions in sexual orientation-based hate crimes. Study 1 showed that mock jurors punished perpetrators of hate crimes more severely than a control condition. Also, degree of victim blame influenced punitive decision making. In Study 2, mock jurors extended findings that perpetrators of hate crimes are more harshly punished than those of other types of crimes. Victim and perpetrator blame failed to moderate decision making in this more complex scenario. Results are discussed in relation to hate crimes definitions and attribution theory.

Economic crime: does personality matter?

PubMed

Alalehto, Tage

2003-06-01

Since the publication of Edwin Sutherland's classical study, White Collar Crime, personality has been treated as completely irrelevant as a cause or as a correlating variable in studies of economic crime. This article questions that thesis. In an ongoing Swedish project studying economic crime in the areas of construction, engineering, and the music industry, 128 informants were interviewed regarding the personal character of the economic criminal compared to that of the law-abiding businessperson. Data were collected from five different regions in Sweden using the Big Five model, the personality model most often used within the field of personality research today. This article compares the results from the interviews with the few international studies that exist regarding economic crimes in these areas and common results are emphasized. It also presents nuanced analyses of the significance of personality in economic crime.

How does childhood economic disadvantage lead to crime?

PubMed

Fergusson, David; Swain-Campbell, Nicola; Horwood, John

2004-07-01

This study sought to examine the associations between indices of socio-economic deprivation in childhood and later involvement in crime. Data were gathered as part of the Christchurch Health and Development Study. In this project a cohort of 1,265 children born in Christchurch in 1977 have been studied from birth to age 21 years. The measures collected included: self-reported property and violent crime (15-16, 17-18, and 20-21 years); officially recorded convictions for property/violent crime; measures of childhood socio-economic status; and a series of intervening factors, including parenting (use of physical punishment, maternal care, family change, parental attachment, parental offending), individual (conduct and attention problems), school (truancy, suspensions, examination performance, scholastic ability), and peer factors (affiliations with deviant and substance using peers). The results suggest that childhood socio-economic disadvantage was associated with clear increases in rates of both self-reported crime and officially recorded convictions. However, using block recursive negative binomial regression models a range of parental, individual, school, and peer factors were found to intervene between socio-economic disadvantage and crime. Following introduction of these measures into the models, the association between socio-economic disadvantage and crime became both statistically and practically non-significant. This study suggests that the higher rates of crime found amongst young people from socio-economically disadvantaged families reflect a life course process in which adverse family, individual, school, and peer factors combine to increase individual susceptibility to crime. Copyright 2004 Association for Child Psychology and Psychiatry

Do neighborhood attributes moderate the relationship between alcohol establishment density and crime?

PubMed Central

Erickson, Darin J.; Carlin, Bradley P.; Lenk, Kathleen M.; Quick, Harrison S.; Harwood, Eileen M.; Toomey, Traci L.

2014-01-01

Although numerous studies have found a positive association between density of alcohol establishments and various types of crime, few have examined how neighborhood attributes (e.g., schools, parks) could moderate this association. We used data from Minneapolis, Minnesota with neighborhood as the unit of analysis (n = 83). We examined eight types of crime (assault, rape, robbery, vandalism, nuisance crime, public alcohol consumption, driving while intoxicated, underage alcohol possession/consumption) and measured density as total number of establishments per roadway mile. Neighborhood attributes assessed as potential moderators included non-alcohol businesses, schools, parks, religious institutions, neighborhood activism, neighborhood quality, and number of condemned houses. Using Bayesian techniques, we created a model for each crime outcome (accounting for spatial auto-correlation and controlling for relevant demographics) with an interaction term (moderator × density) to test each potential moderating effect. Few interaction terms were statistically significant. Presence of at least one college was the only neighborhood attribute that consistently moderated the density-crime association, with presence of a college attenuating the association between density and three types of crime (assaults, nuisance crime, and public consumption). However, caution should be used when interpreting the moderating effect of college presence because of the small number of colleges in our sample. The lack of moderating effects of neighborhood attributes except for presence of a college suggests that the addition of alcohol establishments to any neighborhood regardless of its other attributes could result in an increase in a wide range of crime. PMID:24337980

Is crime associated with over-the-counter pharmacy syringe sales? Findings from Los Angeles, California.

PubMed

Stopka, Thomas J; Geraghty, Estella M; Azari, Rahman; Gold, Ellen B; DeRiemer, Kathryn

2014-03-01

More than 50,000 new HIV infections occur annually in the United States. Injection drug users represent twelve percent of incident HIV infections each year. Pharmacy sales of over-the-counter (OTC) syringes have helped prevent HIV transmission among injection drug users in many states throughout the United States. However, concerns exist among some law enforcement officials, policymakers, pharmacists, and community members about potential links between OTC syringe sales and crime. We used a geographic information system and novel spatial and longitudinal analyses to determine whether implementation of pharmacy-based OTC syringe sales were associated with reported crime between January 2006 and December 2008 in Los Angeles Police Department Reporting Districts. We assessed reported crime pre- and post-OTC syringe sales initiation as well as longitudinal associations between crime and OTC syringe-selling pharmacies. By December 2008, 9.3% (94/1010) of Los Angeles Police Department Reporting Districts had at least one OTC syringe-selling pharmacy. Overall reported crime counts and reported crime rates decreased between 2006 and 2008 in all 1010 Reporting Districts. Using generalized estimating equations and adjusting for potential confounders, reported crime rates were negatively associated with OTC syringe sales (adjusted rate ratio: 0.89; 95% confidence interval: 0.81, 0.99). Our findings demonstrate that OTC pharmacy syringe sales were not associated with increases in reported crime in local communities in Los Angeles during 2006-2008. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Helping Aged Victims of Crime (the HAVoC Study): Common Crime, Older People and Mental Illness.

PubMed

Serfaty, Marc; Ridgewell, Anna; Drennan, Vari; Kessel, Anthony; Brewin, Chris R; Leavey, Gerard; Wright, Anwen; Laycock, Gloria; Blanchard, Martin

2016-03-01

Limited data suggest that crime may have a devastating impact on older people. Although identification and treatment may be beneficial, no well-designed studies have investigated the prevalence of mental disorder and the potential benefits of individual manualized CBT in older victims of crime. To identify mental health problems in older victims of common crime, provide preliminary data on its prevalence, and conduct a feasibility randomized controlled trial (RCT) using mixed methods. Older victims, identified through police teams, were screened for symptoms of anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) one (n = 581) and 3 months (n = 486) after experiencing a crime. Screen positive participants were offered diagnostic interviews. Of these, 26 participants with DSM-IV diagnoses agreed to be randomized to Treatment As Usual (TAU) or TAU plus our manualized CBT informed Victim Improvement Package (VIP). The latter provided feedback on the VIP. Recruitment, assessment and intervention are feasible and acceptable. At 3 months 120/486 screened as cases, 33 had DSM-IV criteria for a psychiatric disorder; 26 agreed to be randomized to a pilot trial. There were trends in favour of the VIP in all measures except PTSD at 6 months post crime. This feasibility RCT is the first step towards improving the lives of older victims of common crime. Without intervention, distress at 3 and 6 months after a crime remains high. However, the well-received VIP appeared promising for depressive and anxiety symptoms, but possibly not posttraumatic stress disorder.

Police-Recorded Crime and Perceived Stress among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: the Diabetes Study of Northern California (DISTANCE).

PubMed

Tamayo, Aracely; Mujahid, Mahasin S; Laraia, Barbara; Warton, E Margaret; Blanchard, Samuel D; Kelly, Maggi; Moffet, Howard H; Adler, Nancy; Schillinger, Dean; Karter, Andrew J

2016-10-01

While stress has been linked to poor health outcomes, little is known about the impact of objective measures of neighborhood crime on stress in patients with chronic disease. Using the Kaiser Permanente Diabetes Study of Northern California (DISTANCE), we examined associations between police-recorded crime (2005-2007) and stress (Perceived Stress Scale-4) in four large Northern California cities (Oakland, Sacramento, San Francisco, and San Jose). We performed stratified analysis by gender and race/ethnicity using generalized linear regression models. In our study sample (n = 3188, mean age 59, range 30-77), 10 % reported high stress. In adjusted analyses, higher neighborhood all crimes rate was associated with modest increase in high stress for African-American (OR = 1.10; 95 % CI 1.02-1.22) and Latina women (OR = 1.36; 95 % CI 1.10-1.67) and property crime showed similar associations with stress for these groups of women. Visible crime was associated with stress only for Latina women (OR = 1.43; 95 % CI 1.14-1.78). We found no association between crime and stress among men or other racial/ethnic groups of women. High crime levels may disproportionately impact health among certain subpopulations. Studies using additional measures of stress are necessary to differentiate the health impact of crime-related stress from other forms of stressors among individuals living with diabetes.

Do neighborhood attributes moderate the relationship between alcohol establishment density and crime?

PubMed

Erickson, Darin J; Carlin, Bradley P; Lenk, Kathleen M; Quick, Harrison S; Harwood, Eileen M; Toomey, Traci L

2015-02-01

Although numerous studies have found a positive association between the density of alcohol establishments and various types of crime, few have examined how neighborhood attributes (e.g., schools, parks) could moderate this association. We used data from Minneapolis, MN with neighborhood as the unit of analysis (n = 83). We examined eight types of crime (assault, rape, robbery, vandalism, nuisance crime, public alcohol consumption, driving while intoxicated, underage alcohol possession/consumption) and measured density as the total number of establishments per roadway mile. Neighborhood attributes assessed as potential moderators included non-alcohol businesses, schools, parks, religious institutions, neighborhood activism, neighborhood quality, and number of condemned houses. Using Bayesian techniques, we created a model for each crime outcome (accounting for spatial auto-correlation and controlling for relevant demographics) with an interaction term (moderator × density) to test each potential moderating effect. Few interaction terms were statistically significant. The presence of at least one college was the only neighborhood attribute that consistently moderated the density-crime association, with the presence of a college attenuating the association between the density and three types of crime (assaults, nuisance crime, and public consumption). However, caution should be used when interpreting the moderating effect of college presence because of the small number of colleges in our sample. The lack of moderating effects of neighborhood attributes, except for presence of a college, suggests that the addition of alcohol establishments to any neighborhood, regardless of its other attributes, could result in an increase in a wide range of crime.

Policy recommendations for the use of victim-offender mediation to redress criminal actions.

PubMed

William-Hayes, Mona; Dulmus, Catherine N; Nugent, William R; Sowers, Karen M

2004-01-01

Understanding how to respond effectively and efficiently to crime victims and their offenders, and identifying what policies assist victims in having their victimization redressed is a major social concern. Social workers have contact with these vulnerable populations in many different ways, yet the social work profession, in general, is unfamiliar with how to redress victims through restorative justice. Restorative justice is an innovative method of viewing crime, and a paradigm shift is required when considering the application and implication of various forms of restorative justice. It is imperative to keep various justice options available, as the effects of crime are detrimental. Though reported rates of juvenile and adult crime have decreases during the last decade, the costs associated with crime to society remain high. Many victims do not report crimes, and if professionals such as medical personnel fail to identify crimes, then these costs may be even higher than currently reported. Regardless, however, of the costs associated with crime, victims deserve having justice evaluated, at least in part, in terms of what they need and want. Likewise, it is imperative to evaluate the effects of victim- offender mediation (VOM), a form of restorative justice, on offenders as they too deserve potential rehabilitation and the chance to redress the harm they caused their victim(s). This paper discusses crime effects, provides an overview of VOM, and concludes with policy recommendations concerning the use of victim-offender mediation.

Police-registered offenses and psychiatric disorders among young males : the Finnish "From a boy to a man" birth cohort study.

PubMed

Elonheimo, Henrik; Niemelä, Solja; Parkkola, Kai; Multimäki, Petteri; Helenius, Hans; Nuutila, Ari-Matti; Sourander, Andre

2007-06-01

To study associations between crime and psychiatric disorders among adolescent males in a representative population-based cohort study. The sample includes 2,712 Finnish boys born in 1981. Information on criminality consists of offenses registered in the Finnish National Police Register 1998-2001. Crime was classified according to frequency and type (drug, violent, property, traffic, and drunk driving offenses). Information on psychiatric diagnoses between 1999 and 2004 was collected from the Finnish National Military Register. Of the 2,712 boys, 22% had a crime registration during the 4-year period, and 10% had at least one psychiatric disorder according to the Military Register. Those with psychiatric disorders accounted for 49% of all crimes. Of those with more than five crimes (n = 98), 59% had psychiatric diagnoses. After adjusting for other crime types and childhood socio-economic status, property crime was independently associated with several diagnoses: antisocial personality (APD), substance use (SUD), psychotic, anxiety, and adjustment disorders. Drug offending was independently associated with APD, SUD, and psychotic disorder, and traffic offenses with APD. Youth crime is predominantly associated with antisocial personality and substance use disorders. Crime prevention efforts should focus on boys showing a risk for antisocial and substance use problems. In particular, property, drug, and repeat offenders need mental health and substance use assessment. There is a need to develop integrated mental health and substance use treatment services for young offenders within or alongside the criminal justice system.

Student Reports of Bullying and Cyber-Bullying: Results from the 2007 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Web Tables. NCES 2011-316

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeVoe, Jill; Murphy, Christina

2011-01-01

These Web Tables use data from the 2007 School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) to show the relationship between bullying and cyber-bullying victimization and other variables of interest such as the reported presence of gangs, guns, drugs, and alcohol at school; select school security measures; student…

Measuring Transnational Organized Crime Threats to US National Security

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-05-26

typology is not designed to score TOC networks, so it is not an obvious choice, but it could be easily modified by the TMWG to rank-order TOC networks...States Strategy to Combat Transnational Organized Crime (SCTOC). The strategy identified Transnational Organized Crime ( TOC ) as a national security...identify the TOC groups that present the national security threat defined in the SCTOC? A literature review of existing organized crime assessments

Organized Crime and Terrorist Activity in Mexico, 1999-2002

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-02-01

ORGANIZED CRIME AND TERRORIST ACTIVITY IN MEXICO, 1999-2002 A Report Prepared by the Federal Research Division, Library of...REPORT DATE FEB 2003 2. REPORT TYPE N/A 3. DATES COVERED - 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Organized Crime and Terrorist Activity in Mexico, 1999-2002...scope of organized crime and terrorist activity in the Republic of Mexico during the period 1999 to 2002, and the extent of cooperation and possible

Analysis of National Crime Victimization Survey Data to Study Serious Delinquent Behavior. Monograph Four: Juvenile Criminal Behavior and Its Relation to Economic Conditions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Danser, Kenneth R.; Laub, John H.

Quarterly offending data from the National Crime Survey 1973-78 (NCS) were used to address the question: what effect do economic conditions have on criminal behavior over time? A total rate of offending in personal crimes as well as crime specific rates for robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault were examined. Analysis focused on three…

Teens, Crime, and the Community: Education and Action for Safer Schools and Neighborhoods. Second Edition. [and] Teens, Crime, and the Community: Education and Action.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Crime Prevention Council, Washington, DC.

The Teens, Crime, and the Community Program presents practical information and problem-solving opportunities to help students develop the knowledge and skills necessary to deal with crime issues. The program and its curriculum advance the idea that teens can contribute energy and talent to the improvement of their communities. This text is part of…

Simulating the Impact of Crime on African-American Women’s Physical Activity and Obesity

PubMed Central

Powell-Wiley, Tiffany M.; Wong, Michelle S.; Adu-Brimpong, Joel; Brown, Shawn T.; Hertenstein, Daniel L.; Zenkov, Eli; Ferguson, Marie C; Thomas, Samantha; Sampson, Dana; Ahuja, Chaarushi; Rivers, Joshua; Lee, Bruce Y.

2017-01-01

Objective The objective of this study was to quantify the impact of crime on physical activity location accessibility, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and obesity among African-American women. Methods We developed an agent-based model, in 2016, representing resource-limited Washington, DC communities and their populations to simulate the impact of crime on LTPA and obesity among African-American women under different circumstances. Results Data analysis conducted between 2016 and 2017 found that in the baseline scenario, African-American women have a 25% probability of exercising. Reducing crime so more physical activity locations are accessible (increasing from 10% to 50%) decreases the annual rise in obesity prevalence by 2.69%. Increasing the probability of African-American women to exercise to 37.5%, further increases the impact of reducing crime on obesity (2.91% annual decrease in obesity prevalence). Conclusions Our simulations show that crime may serve as a barrier to LTPA. Reducing crime and increasing propensity to exercise through multilevel interventions (i.e. economic development initiatives to increase time available for physical activity and subsidized health care) may promote greater than linear declines in obesity prevalence. Crime prevention strategies alone can help prevent obesity, but combining such efforts with other ways to encourage physical activity can yield even greater benefits. PMID:29086471

Towards the new urban agenda of safe cities: urban crimes in four Indonesian cities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Setiawan, B.

2017-12-01

As has stated in the Habitat III agreement, named as The New Urban Agenda/NUA, signed in Quito, Ecuador, October 2016, safe cities is one among important global goals that should be achieved in the next twenty years - safe city is defined generally by city that is equated with reduced violence on the one hand, and on the other, with reduced uncertainty. The fact that under a rapid urbanization and urban transformation in Indonesia, urban crimes tend to increase in many Indonesian cities questions whether Indonesian cities are ready to ensure the idea of safe city. This paper aims to document the incidents of urban crimes, spatial dimensions, the socio-factors and how local community responses to such crimes. It utilised a multiple case studies of four cities in Indonesia which are: Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Makasar, and Manado, Data and information for the paper were primarily collected through secondary data, but some field observations and interviews with stakeholders related to urban crimes in four cities were also conducted. The paper could be considered as a preliminary study to understand the urban crimes phenomena in Indonesia and finds that the incidents of urban crimes are fluctuated in four cities explored. It argues that there is a significant correlation between urban crimes incidents and spatial characteristics of the city.

Simulating the Impact of Crime on African American Women's Physical Activity and Obesity.

PubMed

Powell-Wiley, Tiffany M; Wong, Michelle S; Adu-Brimpong, Joel; Brown, Shawn T; Hertenstein, Daniel L; Zenkov, Eli; Ferguson, Marie C; Thomas, Samantha; Sampson, Dana; Ahuja, Chaarushi; Rivers, Joshua; Lee, Bruce Y

2017-12-01

The objective of this study was to quantify the impact of crime on physical activity location accessibility, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), and obesity among African American women. An agent-based model was developed in 2016 to represent resource-limited Washington, DC, communities and their populations to simulate the impact of crime on LTPA and obesity among African American women under different circumstances. Data analysis conducted between 2016 and 2017 found that in the baseline scenario, African American women had a 25% probability of exercising. Reducing crime so more physical activity locations were accessible (increasing from 10% to 50%) decreased the annual rise in obesity prevalence by 2.69%. Increasing the probability of African American women to exercise to 37.5% further increased the impact of reducing crime on obesity (2.91% annual decrease in obesity prevalence). These simulations showed that crime may serve as a barrier to LTPA. Reducing crime and increasing propensity to exercise through multilevel interventions (i.e., economic development initiatives to increase time available for physical activity and subsidized health care) may promote greater than linear declines in obesity prevalence. Crime prevention strategies alone can help prevent obesity, but combining such efforts with other ways to encourage physical activity can yield even greater benefits. © 2017 The Obesity Society.

Associations of perceived neighborhood safety and crime with cardiometabolic risk factors among a population with type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

Tamayo, Aracely; Karter, Andrew J; Mujahid, Mahasin S; Warton, E Margaret; Moffet, Howard H; Adler, Nancy; Schillinger, Dean; Hendrickson O'Connell, Bethany; Laraia, Barbara

2016-05-01

Little is known about how neighborhood crime may relate to health in diabetes patients. We examined associations between individuals' perceptions of neighborhood safety or violent crime and stress, physical activity, body mass index (BMI) or hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in a sample (n=721) of adults (mean age:63) with diabetes. Self-reported neighborhood safety, violent crime, physical activity, and stress were collected and linked to clinical measures of BMI and HbA1c. Approximately 54% and 15% of patients reported neighborhood safety concerns and violent crimes, respectively. Any neighborhood safety concerns (β=1.14, 95% C.I. 0.04-2.24) and violent crime (β=2.04, 95% C.I. 0.34-3.73) were associated with BMI in adjusted analysis. Any violent crime was associated with class II-III obesity (BMI≥35) (OR=1.34, 95% C.I.: 1.02, 1.75). There were no significant associations between neighborhood safety concerns or violent crime with stress, physical activity, or HbA1c. Neighborhood safety is associated with BMI and obesity. Further studies, including longitudinal designs, are needed to study how people with diabetes may be influenced by a sense of poor personal safety in their neighborhoods. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Do changes in residents' fear of crime impact their walking? Longitudinal results from RESIDE.

PubMed

Foster, Sarah; Knuiman, Matthew; Hooper, Paula; Christian, Hayley; Giles-Corti, Billie

2014-05-01

To examine the influence of fear of crime on walking for participants in a longitudinal study of residents in new suburbs. Participants (n=485) in Perth, Australia, completed a questionnaire about three years after moving to their neighbourhood (2007-2008), and again four years later (2011-2012). Measures included fear of crime, neighbourhood perceptions and walking (min/week). Objective environmental measures were generated for each participant's neighbourhood, defined as the 1600 m road network distance from home, at each time-point. Linear regression models examined the impact of changes in fear of crime on changes in walking, with progressive adjustment for other changes in the built environment, neighbourhood perceptions and demographics. An increase in fear of crime was associated with a decrease in residents' walking inside the local neighbourhood. For each increase in fear of crime (i.e., one level on a five-point Likert scale) total walking decreased by 22 min/week (p=0.002), recreational walking by 13 min/week (p=0.031) and transport walking by 7 min/week (p=0.064). This study provides longitudinal evidence that changes in residents' fear of crime influence their walking behaviours. Interventions that reduce fear of crime are likely to increase walking and produce public health gains. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Expertise in crime scene examination: comparing search strategies of expert and novice crime scene examiners in simulated crime scenes.

PubMed

Baber, Chris; Butler, Mark

2012-06-01

The strategies of novice and expert crime scene examiners were compared in searching crime scenes. Previous studies have demonstrated that experts frame a scene through reconstructing the likely actions of a criminal and use contextual cues to develop hypotheses that guide subsequent search for evidence. Novice (first-year undergraduate students of forensic sciences) and expert (experienced crime scene examiners) examined two "simulated" crime scenes. Performance was captured through a combination of concurrent verbal protocol and own-point recording, using head-mounted cameras. Although both groups paid attention to the likely modus operandi of the perpetrator (in terms of possible actions taken), the novices paid more attention to individual objects, whereas the experts paid more attention to objects with "evidential value." Novices explore the scene in terms of the objects that it contains, whereas experts consider the evidence analysis that can be performed as a consequence of the examination. The suggestion is that the novices are putting effort into detailing the scene in terms of its features, whereas the experts are putting effort into the likely actions that can be performed as a consequence of the examination. The findings have helped in developing the expertise of novice crime scene examiners and approaches to training of expertise within this population.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Hate Crimes and Suicidality Among a Population-Based Sample of Sexual-Minority Adolescents in Boston

PubMed Central

Hatzenbuehler, Mark L.

2014-01-01

Objectives. We examined whether past-year suicidality among sexual-minority adolescents was more common in neighborhoods with a higher prevalence of hate crimes targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. Methods. Participants’ data came from a racially/ethnically diverse population-based sample of 9th- through 12th-grade public school students in Boston, Massachusetts (n = 1292). Of these, 108 (8.36%) reported a minority sexual orientation. We obtained data on LGBT hate crimes involving assaults or assaults with battery between 2005 and 2008 from the Boston Police Department and linked the data to the adolescent’s residential address. Results. Sexual-minority youths residing in neighborhoods with higher rates of LGBT assault hate crimes were significantly more likely to report suicidal ideation (P = .013) and suicide attempts (P = .006), than were those residing in neighborhoods with lower LGBT assault hate crime rates. We observed no relationships between overall neighborhood-level violent and property crimes and suicidality among sexual-minority adolescents (P > .05), providing evidence for specificity of the results to LGBT assault hate crimes. Conclusions. Neighborhood context (i.e., LGBT hate crimes) may contribute to sexual-orientation disparities in adolescent suicidality, highlighting potential targets for community-level suicide-prevention programs. PMID:24328619

Educational Pathways and Change in Crime Between Adolescence and Early Adulthood

PubMed Central

Swisher, Raymond R.; Dennison, Christopher R.

2016-01-01

Objectives This article examines the relationship between intergenerational educational pathways and change in crime. Moreover, it examines the potential mediating roles of family and employment transitions, economic stressors, and social psychological factors. Method Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 14,742) and negative binomial models are used to assess associations between educational pathways (i.e., upward, downward, and stable) and change in crime between adolescence and early adulthood. Selection effects are assessed with lagged dependent variables and controls for self-control, grades, and the Add Health Picture Vocabulary Test. Results Intergenerational educational pathways are significantly associated with changes in crime. Downward educational pathways were predictive of increases in crime, whereas upward pathways were associated with decreases in crime. These associations were partly mediated by family transitions, and more strongly by economic stressors. These results were robust to controls for selection related variables. Conclusions This study is among the first to examine the relationship between intergenerational educational pathways and crime in the United States. Both upward and downward changes in educational attainments were found to be significant for crime. These findings are notable given the continuing expansion of higher education as well as concerns regarding increasing stratification and downward mobility in the United States. PMID:28348441

Two Models for Semi-Supervised Terrorist Group Detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ozgul, Fatih; Erdem, Zeki; Bowerman, Chris

Since discovery of organization structure of offender groups leads the investigation to terrorist cells or organized crime groups, detecting covert networks from crime data are important to crime investigation. Two models, GDM and OGDM, which are based on another representation model - OGRM are developed and tested on nine terrorist groups. GDM, which is basically depending on police arrest data and “caught together” information and OGDM, which uses a feature matching on year-wise offender components from arrest and demographics data, performed well on terrorist groups, but OGDM produced high precision with low recall values. OGDM uses a terror crime modus operandi ontology which enabled matching of similar crimes.

28 CFR 33.31 - Eligible purposes and programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... white-collar crime, organized crime, public corruption crimes, and fraud against the Government; (5... grant funds for providing programs of the same types as described in section 501(a)(4) of the Act which...

28 CFR 33.31 - Eligible purposes and programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... white-collar crime, organized crime, public corruption crimes, and fraud against the Government; (5... grant funds for providing programs of the same types as described in section 501(a)(4) of the Act which...

28 CFR 33.31 - Eligible purposes and programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... white-collar crime, organized crime, public corruption crimes, and fraud against the Government; (5... grant funds for providing programs of the same types as described in section 501(a)(4) of the Act which...

28 CFR 33.31 - Eligible purposes and programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... white-collar crime, organized crime, public corruption crimes, and fraud against the Government; (5... grant funds for providing programs of the same types as described in section 501(a)(4) of the Act which...

The crime drop in comparative perspective: the impact of the economy and imprisonment on American and European burglary rates.

PubMed

Rosenfeld, Richard; Messner, Steven F

2009-09-01

Influential statements on recent American crime reductions maintain that the crime drop was confined to the USA. Yet other research has revealed comparable crime decreases in Europe. We suggest that the USA and European crime declines occurred in tandem because they were both brought about by upturns in the economy. In light of US research showing crime reductions resulting from growth in imprisonment, we also examine the possibility that rising imprisonment rates reduced European crime rates. We test these hypotheses in a pooled cross-sectional time-series analysis of burglary rates in the USA and nine European nations between 1993 and 2006. The results indicate that burglary declines in the US and Europe were associated with rising consumer confidence. By contrast, imprisonment appears to be significantly related to burglary rates only after unusual policy interventions, such as Italy's 2006 clemency measure that dramatically reduced the size of its prison population. We interpret these findings as reflecting the structural similarity and economic integration of the world's developed nations and the uneven convergence in US and European punishment policies.

The Cost of Crime to Society: New Crime-Specific Estimates for Policy and Program Evaluation

PubMed Central

French, Michael T.; Fang, Hai

2010-01-01

Estimating the cost to society of individual crimes is essential to the economic evaluation of many social programs, such as substance abuse treatment and community policing. A review of the crime-costing literature reveals multiple sources, including published articles and government reports, which collectively represent the alternative approaches for estimating the economic losses associated with criminal activity. Many of these sources are based upon data that are more than ten years old, indicating a need for updated figures. This study presents a comprehensive methodology for calculating the cost of society of various criminal acts. Tangible and intangible losses are estimated using the most current data available. The selected approach, which incorporates both the cost-of-illness and the jury compensation methods, yields cost estimates for more than a dozen major crime categories, including several categories not found in previous studies. Updated crime cost estimates can help government agencies and other organizations execute more prudent policy evaluations, particularly benefit-cost analyses of substance abuse treatment or other interventions that reduce crime. PMID:20071107

The cost of crime to society: new crime-specific estimates for policy and program evaluation.

PubMed

McCollister, Kathryn E; French, Michael T; Fang, Hai

2010-04-01

Estimating the cost to society of individual crimes is essential to the economic evaluation of many social programs, such as substance abuse treatment and community policing. A review of the crime-costing literature reveals multiple sources, including published articles and government reports, which collectively represent the alternative approaches for estimating the economic losses associated with criminal activity. Many of these sources are based upon data that are more than 10 years old, indicating a need for updated figures. This study presents a comprehensive methodology for calculating the cost to society of various criminal acts. Tangible and intangible losses are estimated using the most current data available. The selected approach, which incorporates both the cost-of-illness and the jury compensation methods, yields cost estimates for more than a dozen major crime categories, including several categories not found in previous studies. Updated crime cost estimates can help government agencies and other organizations execute more prudent policy evaluations, particularly benefit-cost analyses of substance abuse treatment or other interventions that reduce crime. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Psychopathological and psychosocial aspects of military crimes].

PubMed

Woś, Jarosław; Florkowski, Antoni; Zboralski, Krzysztof

2013-03-01

Crimes in the military, as well as criminal behaviors in the civilian community are determined by multiple factors. However, in case of military crimes committed by soldiers on active duty, an important part of forensic psychiatric opinion, is to assess whether occurring mental disorder resulted in inability to perform military duties. was to investigate the psychopathological and psychosocial determinants of criminal behavior in soldiers who committed military crime. The study included 122 soldiers who committed military crime. Material for this study consisted of forensic psychiatric opinions formed on the order of military prosecutor and the military judicial authorities. The results indicate that military crimes are determined by multiple factors. In most cases, the criminal behavior was associated with personality disorder (70%), alcohol problems (43%) and psychoactive substance use (30%). Psychosocial factors analysis revealed more frequent behavioral problems during childhood and adolescence (51%), history of parental alcohol problem (31%) and previous criminal record (29%). Forensic psychiatric examinations revealed that military crimes are more frequent in soldiers on compulsory military service, and in those with personality disorder or/and alcohol problems.

Psychosocial correlates of police-registered youth crime. A Finnish population-based study.

PubMed

Elonheimo, Henrik; Sourander, Andre; Niemelä, Solja; Nuutila, Ari-Matti; Helenius, Hans; Sillanmäki, Lauri; Ristkari, Terja; Parkkola, Kai

2009-01-01

This study is focused on psychosocial correlates of youth crime in a sample of 2330 Finnish boys born in 1981. Two kinds of data were combined: questionnaires completed by the boys at call-up in 1999 and crime registered in the Finnish National Police Register between 1998 and 2001. One-fifth of the boys were registered to offending during the 4-year period in late adolescence; 14% were registered for one or two offences, 4% for three to five offences, and 3% for more than five offences. Crime accumulated heavily in those with more than five offences, as they accounted for 68% of all crime. Independent correlates of crime were living in a small community, parents' low educational level and divorce, having a regular relationship, self-reported delinquency, daily smoking, and weekly drunkenness, whereas anxious-depressiveness was reversely associated with crime. Most psychosocial problems covaried linearly with offending frequency, being particularly manifested by multiple recidivists. However, recidivists had very rarely used mental health services. The results indicate that offending and various psychosocial problems accumulate in a small minority of boys not reached by mental health services.

TV Crime Reporter Missed Clues | NIH MedlinePlus the Magazine

MedlinePlus

... JavaScript on. Feature: Women and Heart Disease TV Crime Reporter Missed Clues Past Issues / Spring 2016 Table ... heart attack at the age of 36. A crime reporter for WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C., ...

Science against Crime.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooke, Julia

2002-01-01

Describes a project involving students in forensic science and crime prevention to improve their investigative skills using a DNA fingerprinting workshop and designing burglar alarms, investigating blood splatter patterns, investigating vehicle collisions, and researching crime prevention advice on the Internet. (YDS)

Crime Witness

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

Damaging BPA Transmission lines and property is a crime – and it can also be extremely dangerous. BPA’s toll-free, crime informant hotline allows you to report any illegal or suspicious activity you witness against BPA’s transmission system, property or personnel.

Teaching about Crime in Communist Societies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reichel, Philip L.

1980-01-01

Provides information on developing a short college level module on crime and societal reaction in communist society. Presented are techniques for gauging student knowledge of crime in communist states, theories by communist criminologists, and comparative criminology suggestions. (Author/DB)

Examining the Reasons Black Male Youths Give for Committing Crime with Reference to Inner City Areas of London

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Achinewhu-Nworgu, Elizabeth; Nworgu, Chioma; Azaiki, Steve; Nworgu, Helen

2013-01-01

This paper presents a mini research carried out by the Focus Learning Support (FLS) team on reasons why young black males in the community commit crime. Knife and gun crime is seen as a serious problem in the black community involving black males in the inner London city areas--many of whom are both victims and offenders of knife and gun crime.…

Crime in Schools and Colleges: A Study of Offenders and Arrestees Reported via National Incident-Based Reporting System Data. The CARD Report: Crime Analysis, Research and Development Unit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noonan, James H.; Vavra, Malissa C.

2007-01-01

Data from a variety of sources about crime in schools and colleges and characteristics of the people who commit these offenses provide key input in developing theories and operational applications that can help combat crime in this nation's schools, colleges, and universities. Given the myriad of data available, the objective of this study is to…

Toward computational crime prediction. Comment on "Statistical physics of crime: A review" by M.R. D'Orsogna and M. Perc

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrara, Emilio

2015-03-01

Containing the spreading of crime in modern society in an ongoing battle: our understanding of the dynamics underlying criminal events and the motifs behind individuals therein involved is crucial to design cost-effective prevention policies and intervention strategies. During recent years we witnessed various research fields joining forces, sharing models and methods, toward modeling and quantitatively characterizing crime and criminal behavior.

Toward Understanding the Biology of Crime in Trinidad and Tobago

PubMed Central

Emmanuel, D

2014-01-01

ABSTRACT Serious crime is a scourge within Trinidad and Tobago's borders and seems to be escalating yearly with no resolution in sight. It is commonplace for governments to view/implement policies targeting crime based on sociological and psychological paradigms. What is most often overlooked, however, is that crime has unique biological underpinnings, which, if characterized, could lead toward clinical interventions that could mitigate its incidence within the population. PMID:25803384

Free Speech and GWOT: Back to the Future?

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-02-29

associated cases from the WWI era) focused on speech as evidence of a substantive crime (there, leaflets were proof that the accused was fomenting the...substantive crime – insurrection within the Army). In Gitlow and Whitney, there was no substantive crime for which speech was the evidence. The...substantive crime was the substance of the speech itself. That this test evaluated the content of the speech itself would later become a major criticism

Tests of Theories of Crime in Female Prisoners.

PubMed

Lindberg, Marc A; Fugett, April; Adkins, Ashtin; Cook, Kelsey

2017-02-01

Several general theories of crime were tested with path models on 293 female prisoners in a U.S. State prison. The theories tested included Social Bond and Control, Thrill/Risk Seeking, and a new attachment-based Developmental Dynamic Systems model. A large battery of different instruments ranging from measures of risk taking, to a crime addiction scale, to Childhood Adverse Events, to attachments and clinical issues were used. The older general theories of crime did not hold up well under the rigor of path modeling. The new dynamic systems model was supported that incorporated adverse childhood events leading to (a) peer crime, (b) crime addiction, and (c) a measure derived from the Attachment and Clinical Issues Questionnaire (ACIQ) that takes individual differences in attachments and clinical issues into account. The results were discussed in terms of new approaches to Research Defined Criteria of Diagnosis (RDoC) and new approaches to intervention.

A mock juror investigation of blame attribution in the punishment of hate crime perpetrators.

PubMed

Cramer, Robert J; Clark, John W; Kehn, Andre; Burks, Alixandra C; Wechsler, Hayley J

2014-01-01

We examined blame attribution as a moderator of perceptions of hate crimes against gay, African American, and transgender victims. Participants were 510 Texas jury panel members. Results of vignette-based crime scenarios showed that victim blame displayed significant negative, and perpetrator blame significant positive, effects on sentencing recommendations. Also as hypothesized, victim and perpetrator blame moderated the effect of support for hate crime legislation. Interaction patterns suggested that both types of blame attribution influence sentencing recommendations, but only for participants disagreeing with hate crime legislation. Three-way interactions with victim type also emerged, indicating that the effects of both types of blame attribution show particular influences when the victim is gay, as opposed to transgender or African American. Implications for attribution theory, hate crime policy, and jury selection are discussed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparing and contrasting the formal and informal crime control views of Indian and U.S. College students: a preliminary study.

PubMed

Lambert, Eric G; Pasupuleti, Sudershan; Jiang, Shanhe; Jaishankar, Karuppannan; Bhimarasetty, Jagadish V

2012-12-01

This study examined the importance of formal and informal crime control in the United States and India. Formal crime control relies on the law and official government agencies to deter criminal actions and to respond to criminal activity. Informal crime control relies on moral and social institutions (e.g., family, peers, and neighbors) to promote lawful behavior. Using the data collected from 928 college students, the study found that the Indian and U.S. respondents differed on most of the formal and informal control measures. Overall, the Indian respondents were more likely to rank informal control as more important than were their U.S. counterparts. Although there were differences, both groups of respondents shared similar views on the importance of both forms of crime control and held that family was the most important form of crime control.

From Medical to Recreational Marijuana Sales: Marijuana Outlets and Crime in an Era of Changing Marijuana Legislation.

PubMed

Freisthler, Bridget; Gaidus, Andrew; Tam, Christina; Ponicki, William R; Gruenewald, Paul J

2017-06-01

A movement from medical to recreational marijuana use allows for a larger base of potential users who have easier access to marijuana, because they do not have to visit a physician before using marijuana. This study examines whether changes in the density of marijuana outlets were related to violent, property, and marijuana-specific crimes in Denver, CO during a time in which marijuana outlets began selling marijuana for recreational, and not just medical, use. We collected data on locations of crimes, marijuana outlets and covariates for 481 Census block groups over 34 months (N = 16,354 space-time units). A Bayesian Poisson space-time model assessed statistical relationships between independent measures and crime counts within "local" Census block groups. We examined spatial "lag" effects to assess whether crimes in Census block groups adjacent to locations of outlets were also affected. Independent of the effects of covariates, densities of marijuana outlets were unrelated to property and violent crimes in local areas. However, the density of marijuana outlets in spatially adjacent areas was positively related to property crime in spatially adjacent areas over time. Further, the density of marijuana outlets in local and spatially adjacent blocks groups was related to higher rates of marijuana-specific crime. This study suggests that the effects of the availability of marijuana outlets on crime do not necessarily occur within the specific areas within which these outlets are located, but may occur in adjacent areas. Thus studies assessing the effects of these outlets in local areas alone may risk underestimating their true effects.

Areas with High Rates of Police-Reported Violent Crime Have Higher Rates of Childhood Asthma Morbidity.

PubMed

Beck, Andrew F; Huang, Bin; Ryan, Patrick H; Sandel, Megan T; Chen, Chen; Kahn, Robert S

2016-06-01

To assess whether population-level violent (and all) crime rates were associated with population-level child asthma utilization rates and predictive of patient-level risk of asthma reutilization after a hospitalization. A retrospective cohort study of 4638 pediatric asthma-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations between 2011 and 2013 was completed. For population-level analyses, census tract asthma utilization rates were calculated by dividing the number of utilization events within a tract by the child population. For patient-level analyses, hospitalized patients (n = 981) were followed until time of first asthma-related reutilization. The primary predictor was the census tract rate of violent crime as recorded by the police; the all crime (violent plus nonviolent) rate was also assessed. Census tract-level violent and all crime rates were significantly correlated with asthma utilization rates (both P < .0001). The violent crime rate explained 35% of the population-level asthma utilization variance and remained associated with increased utilization after adjustment for census tract poverty, unemployment, substandard housing, and traffic exposure (P = .002). The all crime rate explained 28% of the variance and was similarly associated with increased utilization after adjustment (P = .02). Hospitalized children trended toward being more likely to reutilize if they lived in higher violent (P = .1) and all crime areas (P = .01). After adjustment, neither relationship was significant. Crime data could help facilitate early identification of potentially toxic stressors relevant to the control of asthma for populations and patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Association of neighborhood crime with asthma and asthma morbidity among Mexican American children in Chicago, Illinois.

PubMed

Eldeirawi, Kamal; Kunzweiler, Colin; Rosenberg, Natalya; Riley, Barth; Gao, Yan; Hebert-Beirne, Jennifer; Zenk, Shannon; Tarlov, Elizabeth; Persky, Victoria

2016-11-01

There is increasing evidence that neighborhood-level factors, in addition to individual-level factors, may contribute directly or indirectly to childhood asthma by affecting environmental and lifestyle factors. Exposure to neighborhood crime and violence has been associated with poor health outcomes, especially among underserved and minority populations, and its effect on respiratory health is an area of active research. To examine the association of residential neighborhood crime with asthma and asthma-related outcomes among Mexican American children. This cross-sectional study was conducted with parents of 2,023 Mexican American children. We derived measures of neighborhood (census tract) violent, property, and drug abuse crime and used multilevel generalized estimating equations to test associations of neighborhood crime counts with respiratory conditions. In multiple regression models, a 1-SD increase in neighborhood property crimes significantly increased the odds of lifetime asthma, lifetime wheezing, lifetime emergency department (ED) visits attributable to asthma or wheezing, and lifetime hospitalization attributable to asthma or wheezing by 25%, 18%, 44%, and 62%, respectively. A 1-SD elevation in neighborhood violent crime was positively and significantly associated with 21% and 57% higher odds of lifetime wheezing and ED visits, respectively. We also observed 13% and 44% significantly increased odds of lifetime wheezing and ED visits, respectively, for a 1-SD increase in drug abuse crime. These findings were not explained or modified by individual- and neighborhood-level covariates. Higher neighborhood crime was associated with greater odds of asthma and asthma morbidity in Mexican American children. Copyright © 2016 American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. All rights reserved.

Featured Article: Community Crime Exposure and Risk for Obesity in Preschool Children: Moderation by the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal-Axis Response.

PubMed

Gartstein, Maria A; Seamon, Erich; Thompson, Stephanie F; Lengua, Liliana J

2018-05-01

Identification of early risk factors related to obesity is critical to preventative public health efforts. In this study, we investigated links between the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA)-axis activity (diurnal cortisol pattern), geospatially operationalized exposure to neighborhood crime, and body mass index (BMI) for a sample of 5-year-old children. Greater community crime exposure and lower HPA-axis activity were hypothesized to contribute to higher BMI, with child HPA-axis moderating the association between crime exposure and BMI. Families residing within the boundaries of the City of Seattle (N = 114) provided information concerning demographic/psychosocial risk factors, used to calculate a Cumulative Risk Index, indicating the number of contextual adversities present. Child BMI and diurnal cortisol pattern (derived from assays of saliva samples) were examined, along with neighborhood crime indices computed with publically available information, based on participants' locations. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses, adjusted for covariates (cumulative risk, age, and sex), indicated that crime proximity made a unique contribution to child BMI, in the direction signaling an increase in the risk for obesity. Consistent with our hypothesis, a significant interaction was observed, indicative of moderation by diurnal cortisol pattern. Follow-up simple slope analyses demonstrated that crime exposure was significantly related to higher BMI for children with low-flat (blunted) diurnal cortisol patterns, where community crime and BMI were not significantly associated at higher levels of cortisol. Community crime exposure contributes to higher BMI as early as the preschool period, and blunted diurnal cortisol patterns may place children experiencing neighborhood adversity at greater risk for obesity.

Areas with high rates of police-reported violent crime have higher rates of childhood asthma morbidity

PubMed Central

Beck, Andrew F.; Huang, Bin; Ryan, Patrick H.; Sandel, Megan T.; Chen, Chen; Kahn, Robert S.

2016-01-01

Objectives To assess whether population-level violent (and all) crime rates were associated with population-level child asthma utilization rates and predictive of patient-level risk of asthma reutilization after a hospitalization. Study design A retrospective cohort study of 4,638 pediatric asthma-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations between 2011 and 2013 was completed. For population-level analyses, census tract asthma utilization rates were calculated by dividing the number of utilization events within a tract by the child population. For patient-level analyses, hospitalized patients (n=981) were followed until time of first asthma-related reutilization. The primary predictor was the census tract rate of violent crime as recorded by the police; the all crime (violent plus non-violent) rate was also assessed. Results Census tract-level violent and all crime rates were significantly correlated with asthma utilization rates (both p<.0001). The violent crime rate explained 35% of the population-level asthma utilization variance and remained associated with increased utilization after adjustment for census tract poverty, unemployment, substandard housing, and traffic exposure (p=.002). The all crime rate explained 28% of the variance and was similarly associated with increased utilization after adjustment (p=.02). Hospitalized children trended toward being more likely to reutilize if they lived in higher violent (p=.1) and all crime areas (p=.01). After adjustment, neither relationship was significant. Conclusions Crime data could help facilitate early identification of potentially toxic stressors relevant to the control of asthma for populations and patients. PMID:26960918

Critical Issues in Crime Control Policy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flynn, Edith Elisabeth, Ed.

1983-01-01

Entire issue discusses crime control policy in the United States, including such issues as the relation of social and environmental variables to criminal activity, dealing with the career offender, biological correlates of criminal behavior, juvenile delinquency, and white collar crime. (CS)

75 FR 3525 - Sentencing Guidelines for United States Courts

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-21

... to Sec. 3A1.1 (Hate Crime Motivation or Vulnerable Victim); (6) a proposed amendment to Chapter Eight.... 3A1.1 (Hate Crime Motivation or Vulnerable Victim). The Act expanded the definition of ``hate crime...

The effects of news stories that put crime and violence into context: testing the public health model of reporting.

PubMed

Coleman, Renita; Thorson, Esther

2002-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine whether changing the way newspaper stories report crime and violence can induce shifts in readers' perceptions of the problem. Using an experiment that manipulates the framing and graphic presentation of newspaper stories on crime and violence, we seek to discover whether the public health model that calls for news stories to incorporate information on context, risk factors, and prevention strategies will help readers learn more about the context in which crime and violence occurs, endorse prevention strategies in addition to punishment, and become more attuned to societal risk factors and causes of crime and violence.

Exploring Twitter to analyze the public's reaction patterns to recently reported homicides in London.

PubMed

Kounadi, Ourania; Lampoltshammer, Thomas J; Groff, Elizabeth; Sitko, Izabela; Leitner, Michael

2015-01-01

Crime is an ubiquitous part of society. The way people express their concerns about crimes has been of particular interest to the scientific community. Over time, the numbers and kinds of available communication channels have increased. Today, social media services, such Twitter, present a convenient way to express opinions and concerns about crimes. The main objective of this study is to explore people's perception of homicides, specifically, how the characteristics and proximity of the event affect the public's concern about it. The analysis explores Twitter messages that refer to homicides that occurred in London in 2012. In particular, the dependence of tweeting propensity on the proximity, in space and time, of a crime incident and of people being concerned about that particular incident are examined. Furthermore, the crime characteristics of the homicides are analysed using logistic regression analysis. The results show that the proximity of the Twitter users' estimated home locations to the homicides' locations impacts on whether the associated crime news is spread or not and how quickly. More than half of the homicide related tweets are sent within the first week and the majority of them are sent within a month of the incident's occurrence. Certain crime characteristics, including the presence of a knife, a young victim, a British victim, or a homicide committed by a gang are predictors of the crime-tweets posting frequency.

Digital forensics: an analytical crime scene procedure model (ACSPM).

PubMed

Bulbul, Halil Ibrahim; Yavuzcan, H Guclu; Ozel, Mesut

2013-12-10

In order to ensure that digital evidence is collected, preserved, examined, or transferred in a manner safeguarding the accuracy and reliability of the evidence, law enforcement and digital forensic units must establish and maintain an effective quality assurance system. The very first part of this system is standard operating procedures (SOP's) and/or models, conforming chain of custody requirements, those rely on digital forensics "process-phase-procedure-task-subtask" sequence. An acceptable and thorough Digital Forensics (DF) process depends on the sequential DF phases, and each phase depends on sequential DF procedures, respectively each procedure depends on tasks and subtasks. There are numerous amounts of DF Process Models that define DF phases in the literature, but no DF model that defines the phase-based sequential procedures for crime scene identified. An analytical crime scene procedure model (ACSPM) that we suggest in this paper is supposed to fill in this gap. The proposed analytical procedure model for digital investigations at a crime scene is developed and defined for crime scene practitioners; with main focus on crime scene digital forensic procedures, other than that of whole digital investigation process and phases that ends up in a court. When reviewing the relevant literature and interrogating with the law enforcement agencies, only device based charts specific to a particular device and/or more general perspective approaches to digital evidence management models from crime scene to courts are found. After analyzing the needs of law enforcement organizations and realizing the absence of crime scene digital investigation procedure model for crime scene activities we decided to inspect the relevant literature in an analytical way. The outcome of this inspection is our suggested model explained here, which is supposed to provide guidance for thorough and secure implementation of digital forensic procedures at a crime scene. In digital forensic investigations each case is unique and needs special examination, it is not possible to cover every aspect of crime scene digital forensics, but the proposed procedure model is supposed to be a general guideline for practitioners. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Societal costs of traffic crashes and crime in Michigan : 2011 update.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-06-01

"Cost estimates, including both monetary and nonmonetary quality-of-life costs specific to Michigan, were : estimated for overall traffic crashes and index crimes by experts in the field of economics of traffic crashes : and crimes. These cost estima...

Forensic Science Technician

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tech Directions, 2010

2010-01-01

Forensic science technicians, also called crime laboratory technicians or police science technicians, help solve crimes. They examine and identify physical evidence to reconstruct a crime scene. This article discusses everything students need to know about careers for forensic science technicians--wages, responsibilities, skills needed, career…

A Comparison of Juror Decision Making in Race-Based and Sexual Orientation-Based Hate Crime Cases.

PubMed

Gamblin, Bradlee W; Kehn, Andre; Vanderzanden, Karen; Ruthig, Joelle C; Jones, Kelly M; Long, Brittney L

2018-05-01

Several constructs have been identified as relevant to the juror decision-making process in hate crime cases. However, there is a lack of research on the relationships between these constructs and their variable influence across victim group. The purpose of the current study was to reexamine factors relevant to the juror decision-making process in hate crime cases within a structural model, and across victim group, to gauge the relative strength and explanatory power of various predictors. In the current study, 313 participants sentenced a perpetrator found guilty of a hate crime committed against either a Black man or a gay man; participants also responded to individual difference measures relevant to mock juror hate crime decision making, including prejudice toward the victim's social group. Using path analysis, we explored the role of juror prejudice on sentencing decisions in hate crime cases as well as similarities and differences based on the victimized group. Results indicated that, when the victim was a Black man, modern racism influenced sentencing both directly and indirectly through perpetrator blame attributions, explaining 18% of the variance in sentencing. In contrast, when the victim was a gay man, modern homophobia did not directly predict sentencing, and the overall model explained only 4% of the variance in sentencing, suggesting variables beyond juror prejudice may be better suited to explain juror decision making in sexual orientation-based hate crimes. The current study suggests that the role of juror prejudice in hate crime cases varies as a function of the victimized group and raises questions about the importance of juror prejudice in the sentencing of hate crime cases, particularly antigay prejudice. The importance of blame attributions, social dominance orientation, and juror beliefs regarding penalty enhancements for hate crime cases, as well as policy implications, are also addressed.

Planning safer suburbs: do changes in the built environment influence residents' perceptions of crime risk?

PubMed

Foster, Sarah; Wood, Lisa; Christian, Hayley; Knuiman, Matthew; Giles-Corti, Billie

2013-11-01

A growing body of evidence has reiterated the negative impacts that crime and perceptions of insecurity can have on the health and wellbeing of local residents. Strategies that reduce residents' perceived crime risk may contribute to improved health outcomes; however interventions require a better understanding of the neighbourhood influences on residents perceptions of crime and safety. We examined the impact of changes in the objective built environment following relocation on changes in residents' perceived crime risk for participants in a longitudinal study of people moving to new neighbourhoods in Perth, Western Australia (n = 1159). They completed a questionnaire before moving to their new neighbourhood, and again 36 months after relocation. Individual-level objective environmental measures were generated at both time points using Geographic Information Systems, focussing on the characteristics that comprise a 'walkable neighbourhood'. Linear regression models examined the influence of objective environmental changes between the two environments on perceived crime risk, with progressive adjustment for other change variables (i.e., perceptions of the physical and social environment, reported crime). We found that increases in the proportion of land allocated to shopping/retail land-uses increased residents' perceived crime risk (β = 11.875, p = 0.001), and this relationship remained constant, despite controlling for other influences on perceived crime risk (β = 9.140, p = 0.004). The findings highlight an important paradox: that the neighbourhood characteristics known to enhance one outcome, such as walking, may negatively impact another. In this instance, the 'strangers' that retail destinations attract to a neighbourhood may be interpreted by locals as a threat to safety. Thus, in areas with more retail destinations, it is vital that other environmental strategies be employed to balance any negative effects that retail may have on residents' perceptions of crime risk (e.g., minimising incivilities, improved lighting and aesthetics). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of the Built Environment on Childhood Obesity: the Case of Urban Recreational Trails and Crime

PubMed Central

Sandy, Robert; Tchernis, Rusty; Wilson, Jeff; Liu, Gilbert; Zhou, Xilin

2012-01-01

We study the effects of urban environment on childhood obesity by concentrating on the effects of walking trails and crime close to children’s homes on their BMI and obesity status. We use a unique dataset, which combines information on recreational trails in Indianapolis with data on violent crimes and anthropomorphic and diagnostic data from children’s clinic visits between 1996 and 2005. We find that having a trail near a home reduces children’s weight. However, the effect depends on the amount of nearby violent crimes. Significant reductions occur only in low crime areas and trails could have opposite effects on weight in high crime areas. These effects are primarily among boys, older children, and children who live in higher income neighborhoods. Evaluated at the mean length of trails this effect for older children in no crime areas would be a reduction of two pounds of the body weight. Falsification tests using planned trails instead of existing trails, show that trails are more likely to be located in areas with heavier children, suggesting that our results on effects of trails represent a lower bound. PMID:22459489

Effects of the built environment on childhood obesity: the case of urban recreational trails and crime.

PubMed

Sandy, Robert; Tchernis, Rusty; Wilson, Jeffrey; Liu, Gilbert; Zhou, Xilin

2013-01-01

We study the effects of urban environment on childhood obesity by concentrating on the effects of walking trails and crime close to children's homes on their BMI and obesity status. We use a unique dataset, which combines information on recreational trails in Indianapolis with data on violent crimes and anthropomorphic and diagnostic data from children's clinic visits between 1996 and 2005. We find that having a trail near a home reduces children's weight. However, the effect depends on the amount of nearby violent crimes. Significant reductions occur only in low crime areas and trails could have opposite effects on weight in high crime areas. These effects are primarily among boys, older children, and children who live in higher income neighborhoods. Evaluated at the mean length of trails this effect for older children in no crime areas would be a reduction of 2 lb of the body weight. Falsification tests using planned trails instead of existing trails, show that trails are more likely to be located in areas with heavier children, suggesting that our results on effects of trails represent a lower bound. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Sexual Crime in India: Is it Influenced by Pornography?

PubMed

Math, Suresh Bada; Viswanath, Biju; Maroky, Ami Sebastian; Kumar, Naveen C; Cherian, Anish V; Nirmala, Maria Christine

2014-04-01

Studies on whether pornography poses a greater risk for sexually aggressive behavior have revealed conflicting results. This study aims to examine the relationship between the consumption of pornography and the subsequent increase in sexual violence, thus testing the hypothesis that increase in consumption of pornography is related to increased sexual crime, in the Indian scenario. The current study explored the association between reported incidence of crime over a period of four decades - 1971-2008 (time periods being divided into: Pre-liberalization and post-liberation - India adopted liberalization policy in 1992) and availability of pornography over internet with a particular focus on crime against women (such as rape, sexual harassment, and crime against women). Comparison of pre-liberalization and post-liberalization growth of rape rates was not significant. Though there were statistically significant positive correlations between the number of internet users and sexual crime rates, the association was non-significant after controlling for the effects of population growth using regression analysis. Results presented needs to be interpreted with extreme care and caution. Nevertheless, the results from this study suggest that easy access to pornography did not have a significant impact on rape rates and crime rate against women.

Perceived crime and traffic safety is related to physical activity among adults in Nigeria.

PubMed

Oyeyemi, Adewale L; Adegoke, Babatunde O; Sallis, James F; Oyeyemi, Adetoyeje Y; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse

2012-05-17

Neighborhood safety is inconsistently related to physical activity, but is seldom studied in developing countries. This study examined associations between perceived neighborhood safety and physical activity among Nigerian adults. In a cross-sectional study, accelerometer-based physical activity (MVPA), reported walking, perceived crime and traffic safety were measured in 219 Nigerian adults. Logistic regression analysis was conducted, and the odds ratio for meeting health guidelines for MVPA and walking was calculated in relation to four safety variables, after adjustment for potential confounders. Sufficient MVPA was related to more perception of safety from traffic to walk (OR=2.28, CI=1.13- 6.25) and more safety from crime at night (OR=1.68, CI=1.07-3.64), but with less perception of safety from crime during the day to walk (OR=0.34, CI=0.06- 0.91). More crime safety during the day and night were associated with more walking. Perceived safety from crime and traffic were associated with physical activity among Nigerian adults. These findings provide preliminary evidence on the need to provide safe traffic and crime environments that will make it easier and more likely for African adults to be physically active.

Risk and resilience: the moderating role of social coping for maternal mental health in a setting of political conflict.

PubMed

Taylor, Laura K; Merrilees, Christine E; Cairns, Ed; Shirlow, Peter; Goeke-Morey, Marcie; Cummings, E Mark

2013-01-01

Violence can threaten individual wellbeing and tear at the social fabric of communities. At the same time, suffering can mobilize social coping and mutual support. Thus, the backdrop of political violence increases risk factors and stimulates resilience. The current study examined the moderating role of social coping as reflective of risk and resiliency in Northern Ireland, a setting of protracted conflict. Specifically, structural equation modeling was used to investigate whether social coping protects from or exacerbates the negative impact of sectarian crime and nonsectarian crime on maternal mental health (N = 631). Nonsectarian crime predicted greater psychological distress for mothers in Belfast. Mixed support was found for the buffering and depletion moderation hypotheses; social coping functioned differently for nonsectarian crime and sectarian crime. Greater social coping buffered mothers' psychological distress from the negative effects of nonsectarian crime, but exacerbated maternal mental health problems when facing sectarian crime. Results suggest that social coping is a complex phenomenon, particularly in settings of protracted political violence. Implications for interventions aimed at alleviating psychological distress by enhancing mothers' social coping in contexts of intergroup conflict are discussed.

Feigning Amnesia Moderately Impairs Memory for a Mock Crime Video.

PubMed

Mangiulli, Ivan; van Oorsouw, Kim; Curci, Antonietta; Merckelbach, Harald; Jelicic, Marko

2018-01-01

Previous studies showed that feigning amnesia for a crime impairs actual memory for the target event. Lack of rehearsal has been proposed as an explanation for this memory-undermining effect of feigning. The aim of the present study was to replicate and extend previous research adopting a mock crime video instead of a narrative story. We showed participants a video of a violent crime. Next, they were requested to imagine that they had committed this offense and to either feign amnesia or confess the crime. A third condition was included: Participants in the delayed test-only control condition did not receive any instruction. On subsequent recall tests, participants in all three conditions were instructed to report as much information as possible about the offense. On the free recall test, feigning amnesia impaired memory for the video clip, but participants who were asked to feign crime-related amnesia outperformed controls. However, no differences between simulators and confessors were found on both correct cued recollection or on distortion and commission rates. We also explored whether inner speech might modulate memory for the crime. Inner speech traits were not found to be related to the simulating amnesia effect. Theoretical and practical implications of our results are discussed.

Risk and Resilience: The Moderating Role of Social Coping for Maternal Mental Health in a Setting of Political Conflict

PubMed Central

Taylor, Laura K.; Merrilees, Christine E.; Cairns, Ed; Shirlow, Peter; Goeke-Morey, Marcie; Cummings, E. Mark

2012-01-01

Violence can threaten individual well-being and tear at the social fabric of communities. At the same time, suffering can mobilize social coping and mutual support. Thus, the backdrop of political violence increases risk factors and stimulates resilience. The current study examined the moderating role of social coping as reflective of risk and resiliency in Northern Ireland, a setting of protracted conflict. Specifically, structural equation modeling was used to investigate whether social coping protects from or exacerbates the negative impact of sectarian crime and nonsectarian crime on maternal mental health (N=631). Nonsectarian crime predicted greater psychological distress for mothers in Belfast. Mixed support was found for the buffering and depletion moderation hypotheses; social coping functioned differently for nonsectarian crime and sectarian crime. Greater social coping buffered mothers’ psychological distress from the negative effects of nonsectarian crime, but exacerbated maternal mental health problems when facing sectarian crime. Results suggest that social coping is a complex phenomenon, particularly in settings of protracted political violence. Implications for interventions aimed at alleviating psychological distress by enhancing mothers’ social coping in contexts of intergroup conflict are discussed. PMID:22506629

Sexual Crime in India: Is it Influenced by Pornography?

PubMed Central

Math, Suresh Bada; Viswanath, Biju; Maroky, Ami Sebastian; Kumar, Naveen C.; Cherian, Anish V.; Nirmala, Maria Christine

2014-01-01

Purpose: Studies on whether pornography poses a greater risk for sexually aggressive behavior have revealed conflicting results. This study aims to examine the relationship between the consumption of pornography and the subsequent increase in sexual violence, thus testing the hypothesis that increase in consumption of pornography is related to increased sexual crime, in the Indian scenario. Materials and Methods: The current study explored the association between reported incidence of crime over a period of four decades - 1971-2008 (time periods being divided into: Pre-liberalization and post-liberation - India adopted liberalization policy in 1992) and availability of pornography over internet with a particular focus on crime against women (such as rape, sexual harassment, and crime against women). Results: Comparison of pre-liberalization and post-liberalization growth of rape rates was not significant. Though there were statistically significant positive correlations between the number of internet users and sexual crime rates, the association was non-significant after controlling for the effects of population growth using regression analysis. Conclusion: Results presented needs to be interpreted with extreme care and caution. Nevertheless, the results from this study suggest that easy access to pornography did not have a significant impact on rape rates and crime rate against women. PMID:24860215

Effects of greening and community reuse of vacant lots on crime

PubMed Central

Kondo, Michelle; Hohl, Bernadette; Han, SeungHoon; Branas, Charles

2016-01-01

The Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation initiated a ‘Lots of Green’ programme to reuse vacant land in 2010. We performed a difference-in-differences analysis of the effects of this programme on crime in and around newly treated lots, in comparison to crimes in and around randomly selected and matched, untreated vacant lot controls. The effects of two types of vacant lot treatments on crime were tested: a cleaning and greening ‘stabilisation’ treatment and a ‘community reuse’ treatment mostly involving community gardens. The combined effects of both types of vacant lot treatments were also tested. After adjustment for various sociodemographic factors, linear and Poisson regression models demonstrated statistically significant reductions in all crime classes for at least one lot treatment type. Regression models adjusted for spatial autocorrelation found the most consistent significant reductions in burglaries around stabilisation lots, and in assaults around community reuse lots. Spill-over crime reduction effects were found in contiguous areas around newly treated lots. Significant increases in motor vehicle thefts around both types of lots were also found after they had been greened. Community-initiated vacant lot greening may have a greater impact on reducing more serious, violent crimes. PMID:28529389

SAHRIS: using the South African Heritage Register to report, track and monitor heritage crime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smuts, K.

2015-08-01

South Africa has experienced a recent increase in thefts of heritage objects from museums and galleries around the country. While the exact number of incidences is not known, the increase in thefts is nonetheless apparent, and has revealed the weaknesses of the systems currently in place to respond to these crimes. The South African Heritage Resources Information System (SAHRIS) is an integrated, online heritage resources management tool developed by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) in 2011 in terms of Section 39 of the National Heritage Resources Act (NHRA), No. 25 of 1999. The system's combined heritage resources and site and object management functionality has been expanded to provide an integrated, responsive tool for reporting heritage crimes and tracking the progress of the resultant cases. This paper reviews existing legislative frameworks and crime reporting and monitoring systems relevant to fighting heritage crime, and identifies current gaps in those responses. SAHRIS is presented as an innovative tool to combat heritage crime effectively in the South African context by offering a centralised, consolidated platform that provides the various stakeholders involved in reporting heritage crimes and locating and retrieving stolen objects with a means to coordinate their responses to such instances.

Crime, physical activity and outdoor recreation among Latino adolescents in Chicago.

PubMed

Shinew, Kimberly J; Stodolska, Monika; Roman, Caterina G; Yahner, Jennifer

2013-11-01

The purpose was to examine how fear of crime, crime victimization, and perceived level of community incivilities are related to physical activity participation and outdoor recreation among Latino adolescents. The study utilized a mixed methods approach that included 25 qualitative interviews and 390 school-based surveys collected from youth across three schools in Little Village, Chicago, Illinois. Results showed that Latino adolescents who expressed greater fear of crime also engaged in less physical activity and outdoor recreation. There was no association between crime victimization and physical activity and outdoor recreation. Those who perceived greater levels of community incivilities also engaged in less outdoor recreation, but perception of incivilities had no significant association with physical activity levels. Interview data revealed most of the children believed crime was a serious problem in their neighborhood and it impacted their ability to be physically active and play outside. Fear of crime was related to lower physical activity and outdoor recreation. It is imperative that communities provide safe environments for children to be active. Increasing police and adult presence in parks and school grounds is recommended. Moreover, efforts must be made to reduce the gang problems in Latino communities. © 2013.

Is the density of alcohol establishments related to nonviolent crime?

PubMed

Toomey, Traci L; Erickson, Darin J; Carlin, Bradley P; Quick, Harrison S; Harwood, Eileen M; Lenk, Kathleen M; Ecklund, Alexandra M

2012-01-01

We examined the associations between the density of alcohol establishments and five types of nonviolent crime across urban neighborhoods. Data from the city of Minneapolis, MN, in 2009 were aggregated and analyzed at the neighborhood level. We examined the association between alcohol establishment density and five categories of nonviolent crime: vandalism, nuisance crime, public alcohol consumption, driving while intoxicated, and underage alcohol possession/consumption. A Bayesian approach was used for model estimation accounting for spatial auto-correlation and controlling for relevant neighborhood demographics. Models were estimated for total alcohol establishment density and then separately for off-premise establishments (e.g., liquor and convenience stores) and on-premise establishments (e.g., bars and restaurants). We found positive associations between density and each crime category. The association was strongest for public consumption and weakest for vandalism. We estimated that a 3.3%-10.9% increase across crime categories would result from a 20% increase in neighborhood establishment density. Similar results were seen for on- and off-premise establishments, although the strength of the associations was lower for off-premise density. Our results indicate that communities should consider the potential increase in nonviolent crime associated with an increase in the number of alcohol establishments within neighborhoods.

RACE AND ETHNIC REPRESENTATIONS OF LAWBREAKERS AND VICTIMS IN CRIME NEWS: A NATIONAL STUDY OF TELEVISION COVERAGE

PubMed Central

Bjornstrom, Eileen E.S.; Kaufman, Robert L.; Peterson, Ruth D.; Slater, Michael D.

2010-01-01

Research on racial-ethnic portrayals in television crime news is limited and questions remain about the sources of representations and how these vary for perpetrators versus victims. We draw from power structure, market share, normal crimes, racial threat, and racial privileging perspectives to further this research. The reported race or ethnicity of violent crime perpetrators and victims are modeled as functions of: (1) situational characteristics of crime stories; and (2) contextual characteristics of television market areas. The primary data are from a stratified random sample of television newscasts in 2002–2003 (Long et al. 2005). An important innovation of our work is the use of a national, more generalizeable, sample of local news stories than prior researchers who tended to focus on single market areas. Results indicate that both the context of the story itself and the social structural context within which news stories are reported are relevant to ethnic and racial portrayals in crime news. We find limited support for power structure, market share, normal crimes and racial threat explanations of patterns of reporting. Racial privileging arguments receive more extensive support. PMID:20640244

77 FR 17523 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Extension of a Currently Approved Collection; Comments...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-26

... Collection Activities: Extension of a Currently Approved Collection; Comments Requested; National Crime... currently approved collection. (2) Title of the form/collection: National Crime Victimization Survey. (3.... The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) collects, analyzes, publishes, and disseminates...

VIOLENT CRIME EXPOSURE CLASSIFICATION AND ADVERSE BIRTH OUTCOMES: A GEOGRAPHICALLY-DEFINED COHORT STUDY

EPA Science Inventory

Background

Area-level socioeconomic disparities have long been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Crime is an important element of the neighborhood environment inadequately investigated in the public health literature. Using geocoded linked birth, crime and cens...

Continuum Crimes: Military Jurisdiction Over Foreign Nationals Who Commit International Crimes

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-04-01

abducted Eichmann in Argentina and returned him to Jerusalem for trial for crimes against humanity. Israel did not even exist at the time the crimes...Hebrew University in Jerusalem remarked that this is "a world of small statelets, of warlords with shifting loyalties and wars without major setpiece...these events"). 319Attorney General of Israel v. Eichmann , Israel Supreme Ct. (1962), 36 Int’l L. Rep. 277 (1968), reprinted in II THE LAW OF WAR: A

A Comprehensive Management and Operational Study of the Cheyenne Police Department

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-10-01

Liquor law violations 4. Narcotic peddlers and addicts a. Opiates b. Marijuana c. Dangerous drugs 5. Relationship to organised crime XII. JUVENILE...WIA no comprmfise* for crime andwith relet 1460 proeecutw~n of criMinaA, 3will enf rce IL. la courteOeu4 unt approriately ’without fear or lavor, malice...Wyoming 5 The Police Department 9 Lrime Experience in Cheyenne 9 Crime Trends 13 ý.omparative Crime Rates 15 Traffic Accident Experience 17 Inplications of

The Emergence of the Nuclear Industry and Associated Crime

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-08-01

FUNDING NUMBERS The Emergence of the Nuclear Industry and Associated Crime 6. AUTHOR(S) James W. Vaught, Jr., Captain 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S...1, par& 7-7: a. James U. Vaught, Jr. b. "The Emergence of the Nuclear Industry and Associated Crime " c. Captain, USAF d. 1991 0. 80 pages f. Master...91 1213 199 THE EMERGENCE OF THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY AND ASSOCIATED CRIME James W. Vaught, Jr. B.S., California State University, Long Beach, 1983

The Military Commissions Act of 2009 (MCA 2009): Overview and Legal Issues

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-03-07

crimes : attacking civilians, taking hostages , employing poison or similar weapon, using protected persons as a shield, torture or cruel or inhuman...Hamdan agreed that conspiracy is not a war crime under the traditional law of war.68 The crime of “ murder in violation of the law of war,” which...Defense, Manual for Military Commissions 2012 (M.M.C. 2012). 71 Id. at IV-14 (comment to the crime of murder in violation of the law of war). Oddly, that

Sherlock Holmes counts the atoms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tuniz, C.; Zoppi, U.; Hotchkis, M. A. C.

2004-01-01

Modern forensic science has to deal not only with homicides and other traditional crimes but also with more global threats such as smuggling of nuclear materials, clandestine production of weapons of mass destruction, stockpiling of illicit drugs by state-controlled groups and war crimes. Forensic applications have always benefited from the use of advanced analytical tools that can characterise materials found at crime scenes. In this paper we will discuss the use of accelerator mass spectrometry as an ultra sensitive tool for the crime labs of the third millennium.

Testing the impact of local alcohol licencing policies on reported crime rates in England

PubMed Central

De Vocht, F; Heron, J; Campbell, R; Egan, M; Mooney, J D; Angus, C; Brennan, A; Hickman, M

2017-01-01

Background Excessive alcohol use contributes to public nuisance, antisocial behaviour, and domestic, interpersonal and sexual violence. We test whether licencing policies aimed at restricting its spatial and/or temporal availability, including cumulative impact zones, are associated with reductions in alcohol-related crime. Methods Reported crimes at English lower tier local authority (LTLA) level were used to calculate the rates of reported crimes including alcohol-attributable rates of sexual offences and violence against a person, and public order offences. Financial fraud was included as a control crime not directly associated with alcohol abuse. Each area was classified as to its cumulative licensing policy intensity for 2009–2015 and categorised as ‘passive’, low, medium or high. Crime rates adjusted for area deprivation, outlet density, alcohol-related hospital admissions and population size at baseline were analysed using hierarchical (log-rate) growth modelling. Results 284 of 326 LTLAs could be linked and had complete data. From 2009 to 2013 alcohol-related violent and sexual crimes and public order offences rates declined faster in areas with more ‘intense’ policies (about 1.2, 0.10 and 1.7 per 1000 people compared with 0.6, 0.01 and 1.0 per 1000 people in ‘passive’ areas, respectively). Post-2013, the recorded rates increased again. No trends were observed for financial fraud. Conclusions Local areas in England with more intense alcohol licensing policies had a stronger decline in rates of violent crimes, sexual crimes and public order offences in the period up to 2013 of the order of 4–6% greater compared with areas where these policies were not in place, but not thereafter. PMID:27514936

Effects of Maryland's law banning Saturday night special handguns on crime guns

PubMed Central

Vernick, J.; Webster, D.; Hepburn, L.

1999-01-01

Objectives—To determine the effects of a 1988 Maryland law that banned "Saturday night special" handguns on the types of guns used in crime. To determine if controls on the lawful market for handguns affect the illegal market as well. Setting—Baltimore, Maryland, and 15 other US cities participating in a crime gun tracing project. Methods—Cross sectional comparison of the proportion of crime guns that are banned by the Maryland law, comparing Baltimore, MD with 15 other cities outside of Maryland. Multivariate linear regression analysis to determine if observed differences between Baltimore and 15 other cities are explained by demographic or regional differences among the cities rather than Maryland's law. Results—Among crime guns, a gun banned by Maryland's law is more than twice as likely (relative risk (RR) 2.3, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.0 to 2.5) to be the subject of a crime gun trace request in 15 other cities combined, than in Baltimore. Among homicide guns, a crime especially relevant for public safety, a comparable difference (RR 2.1, 95% CI 1.1 to 4.2) was observed. The proportion of Baltimore's crime guns that are banned is 12 percentage points lower than would be expected based on its demographic and regional characteristics alone. Among crime guns purchased after 1990, a much smaller proportion in Baltimore are banned models than in 15 other cities. Conclusions—Maryland's law has reduced the use of banned Saturday night specials by criminals in Baltimore. Contrary to the claims of some opponents of gun control laws, regulation of the lawful market for firearms can also affect criminals. PMID:10628912

The effect of reduced street lighting on road casualties and crime in England and Wales: controlled interrupted time series analysis

PubMed Central

Steinbach, Rebecca; Perkins, Chloe; Tompson, Lisa; Johnson, Shane; Armstrong, Ben; Green, Judith; Grundy, Chris; Wilkinson, Paul

2015-01-01

Background Many local authorities in England and Wales have reduced street lighting at night to save money and reduce carbon emissions. There is no evidence to date on whether these reductions impact on public health. We quantified the effect of 4 street lighting adaptation strategies (switch off, part-night lighting, dimming and white light) on casualties and crime in England and Wales. Methods Observational study based on analysis of geographically coded police data on road traffic collisions and crime in 62 local authorities. Conditional Poisson models were used to analyse longitudinal changes in the counts of night-time collisions occurring on affected roads during 2000–2013, and crime within census Middle Super Output Areas during 2010–2013. Effect estimates were adjusted for regional temporal trends in casualties and crime. Results There was no evidence that any street lighting adaptation strategy was associated with a change in collisions at night. There was significant statistical heterogeneity in the effects on crime estimated at police force level. Overall, there was no evidence for an association between the aggregate count of crime and switch off (RR 0.11; 95% CI 0.01 to 2.75) or part-night lighting (RR 0.96; 95% CI 0.86 to 1.06). There was weak evidence for a reduction in the aggregate count of crime and dimming (RR 0.84; 95% CI 0.70 to 1.02) and white light (RR 0.89; 95% CI 0.77 to 1.03). Conclusions This study found little evidence of harmful effects of switch off, part-night lighting, dimming, or changes to white light/LEDs on road collisions or crime in England and Wales. PMID:26219885

A study on the use and modeling of geographical information system for combating forest crimes: an assessment of crimes in the eastern Mediterranean forests.

PubMed

Pak, Mehmet; Gülci, Sercan; Okumuş, Arif

2018-01-06

This study focuses on the geo-statistical assessment of spatial estimation models in forest crimes. Used widely in the assessment of crime and crime-dependent variables, geographic information system (GIS) helps the detection of forest crimes in rural regions. In this study, forest crimes (forest encroachment, illegal use, illegal timber logging, etc.) are assessed holistically and modeling was performed with ten different independent variables in GIS environment. The research areas are three Forest Enterprise Chiefs (Baskonus, Cinarpinar, and Hartlap) affiliated to Kahramanmaras Forest Regional Directorate in Kahramanmaras. An estimation model was designed using ordinary least squares (OLS) and geographically weighted regression (GWR) methods, which are often used in spatial association. Three different models were proposed in order to increase the accuracy of the estimation model. The use of variables with a variance inflation factor (VIF) value of lower than 7.5 in Model I and lower than 4 in Model II and dependent variables with significant robust probability values in Model III are associated with forest crimes. Afterwards, the model with the lowest corrected Akaike Information Criterion (AIC c ), and the highest R 2 value was selected as the comparison criterion. Consequently, Model III proved to be more accurate compared to other models. For Model III, while AIC c was 328,491 and R 2 was 0.634 for OLS-3 model, AIC c was 318,489 and R 2 was 0.741 for GWR-3 model. In this respect, the uses of GIS for combating forest crimes provide different scenarios and tangible information that will help take political and strategic measures.

Neighborhood-level LGBT hate crimes and current illicit drug use among sexual minority youth

PubMed Central

Duncan, Dustin T.; Hatzenbuehler, Mark L.; Johnson, Renee M.

2014-01-01

Objective To investigate whether past-30 day illicit drug use among sexual minority youth was more common in neighborhoods with a greater prevalence of hate crimes targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT, or sexual minority) individuals. Methods We used a population-based survey of public school youth in Boston, Massachusetts, consisting of 1292 9th–12th grade students from the 2008 Boston Youth Survey Geospatial Dataset (sexual minority n = 108). Data on LGBT hate crimes involving assaults or assaults and battery between 2005 and 2008 were obtained from the Boston Police Department and linked to youths’ residential address. Youth reported past-30 day use of marijuana and other illicit drugs. Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney tests and corresponding p-values were computed to assess differences in substance use by neighborhood-level LGBT assault hate crime rate among sexual minority youth (n = 103). Results The LGBT assault hate crime rate in the neighborhoods of sexual minority youth who reported current marijuana use was 23.7 per 100,000, compared to 12.9 per 100,000 for sexual minority youth who reported no marijuana use (p = 0.04). No associations between LGBT assault hate crimes and marijuana use among heterosexual youth (p > 0.05) or between sexual minority marijuana use and overall neighborhood-level violent and property crimes (p > 0.05) were detected, providing evidence for result specificity. Conclusions We found a significantly greater prevalence of marijuana use among sexual minority youth in neighborhoods with a higher prevalence of LGBT assault hate crimes. These results suggest that neighborhood context (i.e., LGBT hate crimes) may contribute to sexual orientation disparities in marijuana use. PMID:24326203

Neighborhood-level LGBT hate crimes and current illicit drug use among sexual minority youth.

PubMed

Duncan, Dustin T; Hatzenbuehler, Mark L; Johnson, Renee M

2014-02-01

To investigate whether past-30 day illicit drug use among sexual minority youth was more common in neighborhoods with a greater prevalence of hate crimes targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT, or sexual minority) individuals. We used a population-based survey of public school youth in Boston, Massachusetts, consisting of 1292 9th-12th grade students from the 2008 Boston Youth Survey Geospatial Dataset (sexual minority n=108). Data on LGBT hate crimes involving assaults or assaults and battery between 2005 and 2008 were obtained from the Boston Police Department and linked to youths' residential address. Youth reported past-30 day use of marijuana and other illicit drugs. Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney tests and corresponding p-values were computed to assess differences in substance use by neighborhood-level LGBT assault hate crime rate among sexual minority youth (n=103). The LGBT assault hate crime rate in the neighborhoods of sexual minority youth who reported current marijuana use was 23.7 per 100,000, compared to 12.9 per 100,000 for sexual minority youth who reported no marijuana use (p=0.04). No associations between LGBT assault hate crimes and marijuana use among heterosexual youth (p>0.05) or between sexual minority marijuana use and overall neighborhood-level violent and property crimes (p>0.05) were detected, providing evidence for result specificity. We found a significantly greater prevalence of marijuana use among sexual minority youth in neighborhoods with a higher prevalence of LGBT assault hate crimes. These results suggest that neighborhood context (i.e., LGBT hate crimes) may contribute to sexual orientation disparities in marijuana use. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

An android application for crime analysis in San Diego

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonchikara, Likhita

Over the past few years, smartphone adoption has increased worldwide. In this era of smartphones, one of the easiest ways to make this information available to many users is through smartphone applications. Smartphone applications can provide requested information in a readable and user friendly format. Information related to data such as real estate, property, post offices, crime locations and many others can be very useful. Such information helps city planners, residents, students and commuters to identify and communicate trends and patterns about places. ESRI`s ARCGIS provides various services and tools which help visualize real-world features, discover patterns, obtain information, and communicate that information to others. When these services work in conjunction with GPS based location services in smartphones, they create new avenues for applications. This thesis implements an Android smartphone application with features to analyze location based crime data. The user of this application can view crime data in a region and filter different crime types. The application allows the user to query and analyze crimes that have occurred near his location or at a location of interest. The application includes features to measure distance between crime spots and also measure area on the map. The user can also switch the base-map from street map to NatGeo map. Powered with this information, renters and home buyers can ensure that their new home is in a safe location. Real estate agents can buy or sell property in safer locations. Commuters can find routes which avoid crime spots. Tourists can find accommodation in safer places. Students can be aware of the high crime rate areas around the school campus. This application uses ArcGIS feature service by ESRI to render all data on the map.

A Systems Dynamic Model for Drug Abuse and Drug-Related Crime in the Western Cape Province of South Africa

PubMed Central

Coetzee, Lezanie

2017-01-01

The complex problem of drug abuse and drug-related crimes in communities in the Western Cape province cannot be studied in isolation but through the system they are embedded in. In this paper, a theoretical model to evaluate the syndemic of substance abuse and drug-related crimes within the Western Cape province of South Africa is constructed and explored. The dynamics of drug abuse and drug-related crimes within the Western Cape are simulated using STELLA software. The simulation results are consistent with the data from SACENDU and CrimeStats SA, highlighting the usefulness of such a model in designing and planning interventions to combat substance abuse and its related problems. PMID:28555161

Dynamic Simulation of Community Crime and Crime-Reporting Behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yonas, Michael A.; Borrebach, Jeffrey D.; Burke, Jessica G.; Brown, Shawn T.; Philp, Katherine D.; Burke, Donald S.; Grefenstette, John J.

An agent-based model was developed to explore the effectiveness of possible interventions to reduce neighborhood crime and violence. Both offenders and non-offenders (or citizens) were modeled as agents living in neighborhoods, with a set of rules controlling changes in behavior based on individual experience. Offenders may become more or less inclined to actively commit criminal offenses, depending on the behavior of the neighborhood residents and other nearby offenders, and on their arrest experience. In turn, citizens may become more or less inclined to report crimes, based on the observed prevalence of criminal activity within their neighborhood. This paper describes the basic design and dynamics of the model, and how such models might be used to investigate practical crime intervention programs.

Bus hijacking by a pre-schizophrenic: from a viewpoint of criminal romance.

PubMed

Satoh, S; Obata, S; Tanaka, H; Ito, S; Ishizuka, C; Minoshita, S; Morita, N

1997-08-01

There are cases in which no clear symptoms of schizophrenia are observed in a person at the time of a crime but are diagnosed to have schizophrenia after the crime due to the appearance of typical symptoms. We present psychiatric evidence of a patient who saw a bus hijacking incident on TV during several years of isolation at home after graduation from junior high school, and was then determined to hijack a bus, and carried out the crime 6 months later. The patient exhibited clear symptoms of schizophrenia 3 days after the crime. This case of a crime committed before the appearance of clear symptoms of schizophrenia was evaluated from the viewpoint of verbrecherromantik or 'criminal romance'.

CyberCrime and Punishment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drucker, Susan J.; Gumpert, Gary

2000-01-01

Surveys ways in which criminal laws are finding their way into cyberspace, the implications of such actions for communicative rights and liabilities, and the media differentials of crime and punishment. Examines crime committed using email and the Internet; computer mediated felonies, misdemeanors, and violations committed in cyberspace; forgery;…

Statistical correlations of crime with arrests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuelling, Albert C.

1997-01-01

Regression analysis shows that the overall crime rate correlates with the overall arrest rate. Violent crime only weakly correlates with the violent arrest rate, but strongly correlates with the property arrest rate. Contrary to common impressions, increasing arrest rates do not significantly increase loading on incarceration facilities.

28 CFR 0.72 - National Security Division.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... relating to terrorism; (6) Prosecute matters involving torture, genocide, and war crimes to the extent such... the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; (7) Prosecute Federal crimes involving national security... offenses (49 U.S.C. 46501-07); aircraft sabotage (18 U.S.C. 32); crimes against internationally protected...

28 CFR 0.72 - National Security Division.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... relating to terrorism; (6) Prosecute matters involving torture, genocide, and war crimes to the extent such... the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; (7) Prosecute Federal crimes involving national security... offenses (49 U.S.C. 46501-07); aircraft sabotage (18 U.S.C. 32); crimes against internationally protected...

28 CFR 0.72 - National Security Division.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... relating to terrorism; (6) Prosecute matters involving torture, genocide, and war crimes to the extent such... the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; (7) Prosecute Federal crimes involving national security... offenses (49 U.S.C. 46501-07); aircraft sabotage (18 U.S.C. 32); crimes against internationally protected...

28 CFR 0.72 - National Security Division.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... relating to terrorism; (6) Prosecute matters involving torture, genocide, and war crimes to the extent such... the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; (7) Prosecute Federal crimes involving national security... offenses (49 U.S.C. 46501-07); aircraft sabotage (18 U.S.C. 32); crimes against internationally protected...

28 CFR 0.72 - National Security Division.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... relating to terrorism; (6) Prosecute matters involving torture, genocide, and war crimes to the extent such... the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; (7) Prosecute Federal crimes involving national security... offenses (49 U.S.C. 46501-07); aircraft sabotage (18 U.S.C. 32); crimes against internationally protected...

Tools for Collaboration: Using and Designing Tools in Interorganizational Economic-Crime Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Puonti, Anne

2004-01-01

Economic-crime investigation in Finland is in transition from hierarchically organized, sequential collaboration between authorities toward parallel, interorganizational collaboration. This article describes the tools used and developed for managing the new collaborative economic-crime-investigation process. The challenge is to find…

Liberia’s Post-War Development: Key Issues and U.S. Assistance

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-05-25

former President Taylor was arrested in Nigeria and transferred to the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) to face war crimes charges. He was...50 War Crimes , Human Rights Cases, and Transitional Justice...56 Potential for War Crimes Tribunal in Liberia

Social Capital and Fear of Crime in Adolescence: A Multilevel Study.

PubMed

Vieno, Alessio; Lenzi, Michela; Roccato, Michele; Russo, Silvia; Monaci, Maria Grazia; Scacchi, Luca

2016-09-01

Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relationships between social capital (at the individual, the neighborhood, and the regional levels) and adolescents' fear of crime, while controlling for the main individual (sociodemographics, television viewing, and bullying victimization), neighborhood (neighborhood size and aggregated victimization), and regional (crime rate and level of urbanization) variables. Data were analyzed using a three-level model based on 22,639 15.7-year-old (SD = 0.67) students nested within 1081 neighborhoods and 19 Italian regions. The findings revealed that individual and contextual measures of social capital, modeled at the individual, neighborhood, and regional levels simultaneously, showed negative associations with adolescents' fear of crime. Males and participants with higher family affluence were less likely to feel fear of crime, whereas victimization, both at the individual and neighborhood levels, had a positive association with fear of crime. Strengths, limitations, and potential applications of the study are discussed. © Society for Community Research and Action 2016.

The spatial extent of the effect of foreclosures on crime.

PubMed

Payton, Seth B; Stucky, Thomas D; Ottensmann, John R

2015-01-01

Although neighborhood stability has long been considered a substantial determinant of crime, foreclosures have not been the subject of concerted research among criminologists until recently. A number of recent studies have examined the linkage between home foreclosures and crime. Though generally finding a significant relationship, studies have used different approaches and units of analysis. This variation led us to examine the spatial extent to which foreclosures affect a relatively small surrounding area. In this paper, we consider the spatial extent of the foreclosure effect on crime by estimating fixed effect negative binomial models using geocoded UCR data for 2003-2008 and foreclosure data to predict crime counts using the number of foreclosures within various small area radii. Results show that, independently and jointly, foreclosures are a predictor of crime up to at least a distance of 2250 feet. Importantly, that effect declines with distance. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of those findings. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The impact of prior knowledge from participant instructions in a mock crime P300 Concealed Information Test.

PubMed

Winograd, Michael R; Rosenfeld, J Peter

2014-12-01

In P300-Concealed Information Tests used with mock crime scenarios, the amount of detail revealed to a participant prior to the commission of the mock crime can have a serious impact on a study's validity. We predicted that exposure to crime details through instructions would bias detection rates toward enhanced sensitivity. In a 2 × 2 factorial design, participants were either informed (through mock crime instructions) or naïve as to the identity of a to-be-stolen item, and then either committed (guilty) or did not commit (innocent) the crime. Results showed that prior knowledge of the stolen item was sufficient to cause 69% of innocent-informed participants to be incorrectly classified as guilty. Further, we found a trend toward enhanced detection rate for guilty-informed participants over guilty-naïve participants. Results suggest that revealing details to participants through instructions biases detection rates in the P300-CIT toward enhanced sensitivity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Influence of New Technologies on the Visual Attention of CSIs Performing a Crime Scene Investigation.

PubMed

de Gruijter, Madeleine; de Poot, Christianne J; Elffers, Henk

2016-01-01

Currently, a series of promising new tools are under development that will enable crime scene investigators (CSIs) to analyze traces in situ during the crime scene investigation or enable them to detect blood and provide information on the age of blood. An experiment is conducted with thirty CSIs investigating a violent robbery at a mock crime scene to study the influence of such technologies on the perception and interpretation of traces during the first phase of the investigation. Results show that in their search for traces, CSIs are not directed by the availability of technologies, which is a reassuring finding. Qualitative findings suggest that CSIs are generally more focused on analyzing perpetrator traces than on reconstructing the event. A focus on perpetrator traces might become a risk when other crime-related traces are overlooked, and when analyzed traces are in fact not crime-related and in consequence lead to the identification of innocent suspects. © 2015 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

The effect of medical marijuana laws on crime: evidence from state panel data, 1990-2006.

PubMed

Morris, Robert G; TenEyck, Michael; Barnes, J C; Kovandzic, Tomislav V

2014-01-01

Debate has surrounded the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes for decades. Some have argued medical marijuana legalization (MML) poses a threat to public health and safety, perhaps also affecting crime rates. In recent years, some U.S. states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, reigniting political and public interest in the impact of marijuana legalization on a range of outcomes. Relying on U.S. state panel data, we analyzed the association between state MML and state crime rates for all Part I offenses collected by the FBI. Results did not indicate a crime exacerbating effect of MML on any of the Part I offenses. Alternatively, state MML may be correlated with a reduction in homicide and assault rates, net of other covariates. These findings run counter to arguments suggesting the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes poses a danger to public health in terms of exposure to violent crime and property crimes.

The Effect of Medical Marijuana Laws on Crime: Evidence from State Panel Data, 1990-2006

PubMed Central

Morris, Robert G.; TenEyck, Michael; Barnes, J. C.; Kovandzic, Tomislav V.

2014-01-01

Background Debate has surrounded the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes for decades. Some have argued medical marijuana legalization (MML) poses a threat to public health and safety, perhaps also affecting crime rates. In recent years, some U.S. states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, reigniting political and public interest in the impact of marijuana legalization on a range of outcomes. Methods Relying on U.S. state panel data, we analyzed the association between state MML and state crime rates for all Part I offenses collected by the FBI. Findings Results did not indicate a crime exacerbating effect of MML on any of the Part I offenses. Alternatively, state MML may be correlated with a reduction in homicide and assault rates, net of other covariates. Conclusions These findings run counter to arguments suggesting the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes poses a danger to public health in terms of exposure to violent crime and property crimes. PMID:24671103

The Role of Forensic Botany in Solving a Case: Scientific Evidence on the Falsification of a Crime Scene.

PubMed

Aquila, Isabella; Gratteri, Santo; Sacco, Matteo A; Ricci, Pietrantonio

2018-05-01

Forensic botany can provide useful information for pathologists, particularly on crime scene investigation. We report the case of a man who arrived at the hospital and died shortly afterward. The body showed widespread electrical lesions. The statements of his brother and wife about the incident aroused a large amount of suspicion in the investigators. A crime scene investigation was carried out, along with a botanical morphological survey on small vegetations found on the corpse. An autopsy was also performed. Botanical analysis showed some samples of Xanthium spinosum, thus leading to the discovery of the falsification of the crime scene although the location of the true crime scene remained a mystery. The botanical analysis, along with circumstantial data and autopsy findings, led to the discovery of the real crime scene and became crucial as part of the legal evidence regarding the falsity of the statements made to investigators. © 2017 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Theorizing fear of crime: beyond the rational/irrational opposition.

PubMed

Lupton, D; Tulloch, J

1999-09-01

Much has been written about the 'social problem' of fear of crime in the criminological and sociological literature in recent years. We would argue that thus far in this literature, however, there has been too much emphasis on the question 'How rational is people's fear of crime?', a question that largely reduces the complexity of the phenomenon and positions a 'biased' lay response against an 'expert' objective judgment. In this article, we review different epistemological perspectives that can be offered to understand in greater depth the fear of crime phenomenon. We place particular emphasis on those hermeneutic perspectives that go beyond the models of the rationalist, individualistic subject to exploring issues of symbolic representation, discourse and the micro - and macro-contexts in which fear of crime is experienced and given meaning. We also draw upon two case studies from our own empirical research into fear of crime, conducted with the intention of exploring the situated narratives, cultural representations and different levels of symbolic meaning that contribute to the dynamic constitution of fear.

Long-term effects of the Moving to Opportunity residential mobility experiment on crime and delinquency

PubMed Central

Sciandra, Matthew; Sanbonmatsu, Lisa; Duncan, Greg J.; Gennetian, Lisa A.; Katz, Lawrence F.; Kessler, Ronald C.; Kling, Jeffrey R.; Ludwig, Jens

2013-01-01

Objectives Using data from a randomized experiment, to examine whether moving youth out of areas of concentrated poverty, where a disproportionate amount of crime occurs, prevents involvement in crime. Methods We draw on new administrative data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Moving to Opportunity (MTO) experiment. MTO families were randomized into an experimental group offered a housing voucher that could only be used to move to a low-poverty neighborhood, a Section 8 housing group offered a standard housing voucher, and a control group. This paper focuses on MTO youth ages 15–25 in 2001 (n = 4,643) and analyzes intention to treat effects on neighborhood characteristics and criminal behavior (number of violent- and property-crime arrests) through 10 years after randomization. Results We find the offer of a housing voucher generates large improvements in neighborhood conditions that attenuate over time and initially generates substantial reductions in violent-crime arrests and sizable increases in property-crime arrests for experimental group males. The crime effects attenuate over time along with differences in neighborhood conditions. Conclusions Our findings suggest that criminal behavior is more strongly related to current neighborhood conditions (situational neighborhood effects) than to past neighborhood conditions (developmental neighborhood effects). The MTO design makes it difficult to determine which specific neighborhood characteristics are most important for criminal behavior. Our administrative data analyses could be affected by differences across areas in the likelihood that a crime results in an arrest. PMID:24348277

Not in My Back Yard: A Comparative Analysis of Crime Around Publicly Funded Drug Treatment Centers, Liquor Stores, Convenience Stores, and Corner Stores in One Mid-Atlantic City.

PubMed

Furr-Holden, C Debra M; Milam, Adam J; Nesoff, Elizabeth D; Johnson, Renee M; Fakunle, David O; Jennings, Jacky M; Thorpe, Roland J

2016-01-01

This research examined whether publicly funded drug treatment centers (DTCs) were associated with violent crime in excess of the violence happening around other commercial businesses. Violent crime data and locations of community entities were geocoded and mapped. DTCs and other retail outlets were matched based on a Neighborhood Disadvantage score at the census tract level. Street network buffers ranging from 100 to 1,400 feet were placed around each location. Negative binomial regression models were used to estimate the relationship between the count of violent crimes and the distance from each business type. Compared with the mean count of violent crime around drug treatment centers, the mean count of violent crime (M = 2.87) was significantly higher around liquor stores (M = 3.98; t test; p < .01) and corner stores (M = 3.78; t test; p < .01), and there was no statistically significant difference between the count around convenience stores (M = 2.65; t test; p = .32). In the adjusted negative binomial regression models, there was a negative and significant relationship between the count of violent crime and the distance from drug treatment centers (β = -.069, p < .01), liquor stores (β = -.081, p < .01), corner stores (β = -.116, p < .01), and convenience stores (β = -.154, p < .01). Violent crime associated with drug treatment centers is similar to that associated with liquor stores and is less frequent than that associated with convenience stores and corner stores.

Context matters: The impact of neighborhood crime and paranoid symptoms on psychosis risk assessment.

PubMed

Wilson, Camille; Smith, Melissa Edmondson; Thompson, Elizabeth; Demro, Caroline; Kline, Emily; Bussell, Kristin; Pitts, Steven C; DeVylder, Jordan; Reeves, Gloria; Schiffman, Jason

2016-03-01

Psychosis risk assessment measures probe for paranoid thinking, persecutory ideas of reference, and suspiciousness as part of a psychosis risk construct. However, in some cases, these symptoms may reflect a normative, realistic, and even adaptive response to environmental stressors rather than psychopathology. Neighborhood characteristics, dangerousness for instance, are linked to levels of fear and suspiciousness that can be theoretically unrelated to psychosis. Despite this potential confound, psychosis-risk assessments do not explicitly evaluate neighborhood factors that might (adaptively) increase suspiciousness. In such cases, interviewers run the risk of misinterpreting adaptive suspiciousness as a psychosis-risk symptom. Ultimately, the degree to which neighborhood factors contribute to psychosis-risk assessment remains unclear. The current study examined the relation between neighborhood crime and suspiciousness as measured by the SIPS among predominantly African American help-seeking adolescents (N=57) living in various neighborhoods in Baltimore City. Uniform Crime Reports, including violent and property crime for Baltimore City, were used to calculate a proxy of neighborhood crime. This crime index correlated with SIPS suspiciousness (r(55)=.32, p=.02). Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that increased neighborhood crime significantly predicted suspiciousness over and above the influence of the other SIPS positive symptoms in predicting suspiciousness. Findings suggest that neighborhood crime may in some cases account for suspiciousness ascertained as part of a psychosis risk assessment, and therefore sensitivity to contextual factors is important when evaluating risk for psychosis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Childhood trauma and neighborhood-level crime interact in predicting adult posttraumatic stress and major depression symptoms.

PubMed

Lowe, Sarah R; Quinn, James W; Richards, Catherine A; Pothen, John; Rundle, Andrew; Galea, Sandro; Ressler, Kerry J; Koenen, Karestan C; Bradley, Bekh

2016-01-01

Previous research has identified several individual-level factors that modify the risk of childhood trauma on adult psychiatric symptoms, including symptoms of major depression (MD) and posttraumatic stress (PTS). Neighborhood-level factors also influence the impact of individual-level exposures on adult psychopathology. However, no prior studies to our knowledge have explored cross-level interactions between childhood trauma and neighborhood-level factors on MD and PTS symptoms. The purpose of this study was therefore to explore cross-level interactions between a neighborhood-level factor - neighborhood-level crime - and childhood trauma on MD and PTS symptoms. Participants in this study (N=3192) were recruited from a large public hospital, and completed self-report inventories of childhood trauma and MD and PTS symptoms. Participant addresses were mapped onto 2010 census tracts, and data on crime within each tract were collected. Multilevel models found a significant cross-level interaction between childhood trauma and neighborhood crime on MD symptoms, such that the influence of high levels of childhood trauma on MD symptoms was enhanced for participants living in high-crime neighborhoods. Supplementary analyses found variation in the strength of cross-level interaction terms by types of childhood trauma and crime, with the strongest associations including emotional neglect paired with personal and property crime. The results provide preliminary support for interventions that help childhood trauma survivors find housing in less vulnerable neighborhoods and build skills to cope with neighborhood crime. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reporting Crimes to the Police Depends on Relationship Networks: Effects of Ties Among Victims, Advisors, and Offenders.

PubMed

Knoth, Lauren K; Ruback, R Barry

2016-08-01

A victim's decision to report a crime to the police is typically made after talking with someone else, usually a friend or relative, but sometimes a stranger. The advice this person gives depends primarily on the seriousness of the crime, and to some extent on the gender and age of the victim. The present research, which used experimental vignettes, examined the role of social networks in reporting: How do the relationships among a victim, the advisor, and the offender affect the advice to report or not to report a violent or nonviolent crime? Results from Study 1 indicated that relationships matter: Crimes are least likely to be reported if the offender is part of the same triad as the victim and the advisor, and crimes are most likely to be reported if the victim, the advisor, and the offender are all strangers. Study 1 also found that males are more likely to protect friends who are offenders (by advising against reporting), while females are more likely to protect friends who are victims (by advising them to report). Study 2 found that the effect of these relationships on reporting is conditioned by the nature of the organization to which the offender belongs, such that males are particularly likely to protect their friends in athletic organizations and fraternities when accused of minor property crimes. Both studies found that gender differences in the advice to report are moderated by characteristics of the crime and triad structure.

Long-term effects of the Moving to Opportunity residential mobility experiment on crime and delinquency.

PubMed

Sciandra, Matthew; Sanbonmatsu, Lisa; Duncan, Greg J; Gennetian, Lisa A; Katz, Lawrence F; Kessler, Ronald C; Kling, Jeffrey R; Ludwig, Jens

2013-12-01

Using data from a randomized experiment, to examine whether moving youth out of areas of concentrated poverty, where a disproportionate amount of crime occurs, prevents involvement in crime. We draw on new administrative data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Moving to Opportunity (MTO) experiment. MTO families were randomized into an experimental group offered a housing voucher that could only be used to move to a low-poverty neighborhood, a Section 8 housing group offered a standard housing voucher, and a control group . This paper focuses on MTO youth ages 15-25 in 2001 ( n = 4,643) and analyzes intention to treat effects on neighborhood characteristics and criminal behavior (number of violent- and property-crime arrests) through 10 years after randomization. We find the offer of a housing voucher generates large improvements in neighborhood conditions that attenuate over time and initially generates substantial reductions in violent-crime arrests and sizable increases in property-crime arrests for experimental group males. The crime effects attenuate over time along with differences in neighborhood conditions. Our findings suggest that criminal behavior is more strongly related to current neighborhood conditions (situational neighborhood effects) than to past neighborhood conditions (developmental neighborhood effects). The MTO design makes it difficult to determine which specific neighborhood characteristics are most important for criminal behavior. Our administrative data analyses could be affected by differences across areas in the likelihood that a crime results in an arrest.

The Uses and Impacts of Mobile Computing Technology in Hot Spots Policing.

PubMed

Koper, Christopher S; Lum, Cynthia; Hibdon, Julie

2015-12-01

Recent technological advances have much potential for improving police performance, but there has been little research testing whether they have made police more effective in reducing crime. To study the uses and crime control impacts of mobile computing technology in the context of geographically focused "hot spots" patrols. An experiment was conducted using 18 crime hot spots in a suburban jurisdiction. Nine of these locations were randomly selected to receive additional patrols over 11 weeks. Researchers studied officers' use of mobile information technology (IT) during the patrols using activity logs and interviews. Nonrandomized subgroup and multivariate analyses were employed to determine if and how the effects of the patrols varied based on these patterns. Officers used mobile computing technology primarily for surveillance and enforcement (e.g., checking automobile license plates and running checks on people during traffic stops and field interviews), and they noted both advantages and disadvantages to its use. Officers did not often use technology for strategic problem-solving and crime prevention. Given sufficient (but modest) dosages, the extra patrols reduced crime at the hot spots, but this effect was smaller in places where officers made greater use of technology. Basic applications of mobile computing may have little if any direct, measurable impact on officers' ability to reduce crime in the field. Greater training and emphasis on strategic uses of IT for problem-solving and crime prevention, and greater attention to its behavioral effects on officers, might enhance its application for crime reduction. © The Author(s) 2016.

Geography of Crime and Its Relation to Location: The City of Balıkesir (Turkey)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aksoy, Erman

2017-10-01

A person cannot continue his/her own life without security which is one of the basic needs of the human being, for not only personal security but also the security of the persons’ living environment is of extreme importance. We can talk about the habitability and sustainability of the urban environment so long as the people may, in time and in place, freely select all their activities, such as their residence, work, education, shopping and entertainment options. On the other hand, it is well known that crime in the cities that create insecurity is directly related to urban areas and urban utilization. In the realization of an act of crime, the fact that the victim and the concepts of place are as much impactful as the convict indicates that the place where the crime is committed is, at least, as responsible as the person who commits the crime. Based on this fact, in this article, we shall attempt at identifying the reasons related to place by examining the relation between the factors that bring the crime into being and the urban utilization in the City of Balıkesir. Thus, in the fight against crime, the prevention of crime and/or its avoidance, which is not the duty and under the authority of only the law enforcement agency, the attention and also that of other disciplines (Sociology and Criminology) is invited to be focused on the effectiveness of urban planning.

Childhood Trauma and Neighborhood-Level Crime Interact in Predicting Adult Posttraumatic Stress and Major Depression Symptoms

PubMed Central

Lowe, Sarah R.; Quinn, James W.; Richards, Catherine A.; Pothen, John; Rundle, Andrew; Galea, Sandro; Ressler, Kerry J.; Koenen, Karestan C.; Bradley, Bekh

2015-01-01

Previous research has identified several individual-level factors that modify the risk of childhood trauma on adult psychiatric symptoms, including symptoms of major depression (MD) and posttraumatic stress (PTS). Neighborhood-level factors also influence the impact of individual-level exposures on adult psychopathology. However, no prior studies to our knowledge have explored cross-level interactions between childhood trauma and neighborhood-level factors on MD and PTS symptoms. The purpose of this study was therefore to explore cross-level interactions between a neighborhood-level factor – neighborhood-level crime – and childhood trauma on MD and PTS symptoms. Participants in this study (N = 3,192) were recruited from a large public hospital, and completed self-report inventories of childhood trauma and MD and PTS symptoms. Participant addresses were mapped onto 2010 census tracts, and data on crime within each tract was collected. Multilevel models found a significant cross-level interaction between childhood trauma and neighborhood crime on MD symptoms, such that the influence of high levels of childhood trauma on MD symptoms was enhanced for participants living in high-crime neighborhoods. Supplementary analyses found variation in the strength of cross-level interaction terms by types of childhood trauma and crime, with the strongest associations including emotional neglect paired with personal and property crime. The results provide preliminary support for interventions that help childhood trauma survivors find housing in less vulnerable neighborhoods and build skills to cope with neighborhood crime. PMID:26499372

77 FR 60014 - Privacy Act of 1974, as Amended; System of Records Notice

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-01

... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Privacy Act of 1974, as Amended; System of Records Notice AGENCY: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), Treasury. ACTION: Notice... of 1974, as amended, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (``FinCEN''), Department of the...

A Dream Deferred: The Social and Legal Implications of Hate Crimes in the 1990s.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levin, Brian

1993-01-01

Examines legal and social implications of bias violence today and in the coming years. The most important legal development regarding hate crimes is the Supreme Court's "Wisconsin v. Mitchell" decision upholding the constitutionality of bias crime penalty enhancement laws. (SLD)

Technology-Enabled Crime, Policing and Security

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McQuade, Sam

2006-01-01

Crime, policing and security are enabled by and co-evolve with technologies that make them possible. As criminals compete with security and policing officials for technological advantage perpetually complex crime, policing and security results in relatively confusing and therefore unmanageable threats to society. New, adaptive and ordinary crimes…

Facing Up to Violence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ordovensky, Pat

1993-01-01

Recent U.S. Education Department surveys find a crime perception gap between administrators and teachers. More teachers than principals say they have problems with student violence, weapons, robberies, verbal and physical abuse, vandalism, and racial tension. National Crime Survey statistics report 16,000 daily thefts and violent crimes on school…

32 CFR 635.33 - Crime rate reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Crime rate reporting. 635.33 Section 635.33 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTING Army Quarterly Trends and Analysis Report § 635.33 Crime...

32 CFR 635.33 - Crime rate reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2014-07-01 2013-07-01 true Crime rate reporting. 635.33 Section 635.33 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTING Army Quarterly Trends and Analysis Report § 635.33 Crime...

32 CFR 635.33 - Crime rate reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2012-07-01 2011-07-01 true Crime rate reporting. 635.33 Section 635.33 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTING Army Quarterly Trends and Analysis Report § 635.33 Crime...

32 CFR 635.33 - Crime rate reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Crime rate reporting. 635.33 Section 635.33 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTING Army Quarterly Trends and Analysis Report § 635.33 Crime...

32 CFR 635.33 - Crime rate reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Crime rate reporting. 635.33 Section 635.33 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTING Army Quarterly Trends and Analysis Report § 635.33 Crime...

28 CFR 18.5 - Hearings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) The provisions of the Crime Control Act, the Juvenile Justice Act, or the Victims of Crime Act; (2... Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS HEARING AND APPEAL PROCEDURES § 18.5 Hearings. (a... or application submitted in accordance with the provisions of the Crime Control Act; the Juvenile...

28 CFR 18.5 - Hearings.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

...) The provisions of the Crime Control Act, the Juvenile Justice Act, or the Victims of Crime Act; (2... Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS HEARING AND APPEAL PROCEDURES § 18.5 Hearings. (a... or application submitted in accordance with the provisions of the Crime Control Act; the Juvenile...

34 CFR 668.46 - Institutional security policies and crime statistics.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... a voluntary, confidential basis for inclusion in the annual disclosure of crime statistics, and, if... procedures to report crimes on a voluntary, confidential basis for inclusion in the annual disclosure of... the victim's actual or perceived race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or disability...

Database crime to crime match rate calculation.

PubMed

Buckleton, John; Bright, Jo-Anne; Walsh, Simon J

2009-06-01

Guidance exists on how to count matches between samples in a crime sample database but we are unable to locate a definition of how to estimate a match rate. We propose a method that does not proceed from the match counting definition but which has a strong logic.

Testing Incapacitation Theory: Youth Crime and Incarceration in California

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stahlkopf, Christina; Males, Mike; Macallair, Daniel

2010-01-01

Under incapacitation theory, higher incarceration rates are expected to correlate with accelerated reductions in crime. California's contemporary incarceration patterns offer an opportunity to analyze the validity of this theory, particularly as it applies to young people. This study focuses on California's juvenile incarceration and crime trends…

77 FR 32138 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Extension of a Currently Approved Collection; Comments...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-31

... Activities: Extension of a Currently Approved Collection; Comments Requested National Crime Victimization... collection. (2) Title of the Form/Collection: National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). (3) Agency form... NCVS sampled households located throughout the United States. The National Crime Victimization Survey...

Terrorist Capabilities for Cyberattack: Overview and Policy Issues

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-01-22

originated in the United States and in China (although some of the attacks apparently only traversed through networks in China, casting some doubt on the...detection. CRS-21 86 Louise Shelly , Organized Crime, Cybercrime and Terrorism, Computer Crime Research Center, September 27, 2004, [http://www.crime

78 FR 52877 - VOCA Victim Assistance Program

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-27

... SAAs may use for these purposes. Funding victim service programs located in adjacent States. Program... State and eligible territory for the financial support of services to victims of crime by eligible crime... Program Guidelines (``Guidelines'') to reflect changes in OVC policy, needs of the crime victims services...

77 FR 14490 - Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Alleged Crimes By or Against Contractor...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-12

... Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Alleged Crimes By or Against Contractor Personnel (DFARS Case... (DFARS) to expand coverage on contractor requirements and responsibilities relating to alleged crimes by or against contractor personnel. DATES: Comment Date: Comments on the proposed rule should be...

24 CFR 901.45 - Indicator #8, security.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... of crime to local law enforcement agencies, the adoption and implementation of tough applicant screening and resident eviction policies and procedures, and, as applicable, PHA performance under any HUD... policies and the PHA has implemented procedures and can document that it (1) tracks crime and crime-related...

Analysis of the Maternal Filicide in Terms of Forensic Medicine in Turkey: A Clinical Research

PubMed Central

EKE, Salih Murat; BAŞOĞLU, Saba; TAKTAK, Şafak; ORAL, Gökhan

2015-01-01

Introduction In the literature, 15% of the victims of homicide consists of children under 16 years of age; children under the age has been proved that they have the maximum risk. The vast majority of the victims were killed by their mothers. Thus, if mothers are the perpetrators of crime child murders are discussed in different ways, so it is conceptualized under the name of maternal filicide in the literature. This study has been performed for, in Turkey, women who killed their own children between 0–6 years old, victims of crimes, and to determine features of crime regarding on forensic medicine, eventually in order to provide a basis for taking necessary precautions and measures. Methods This research includes 74 reports of maternal filicide cases came to IV. Board of Specialization at the Council of Forensic Medicine in Istanbul, Ministry of Justice of Republic of Turkey between 1996–2006 years. In the light of data came from these reports, the socio-demographic characteristics of mothers who attempted filicide and children who were killed, and crime occurrence methods and mothers’ criminal legal responsibility were examined. Results Mothers, suspected of the filicide crime, are often at a young age, and did not desire pregnancy, 73 of mother’s do not have criminal history, and 48 of mothers confessed the crime. Found that 71 of child victims are biological kids, 38 of them were killed around age, and 20 of them were girls, 35 of them were boys. The study group, seven of defendants killed or attempted to kill more than one child at the same time. The majority of mothers committed the crime during the daylight. When filicide methods were examined strangling or throwing up the child from higher were seen the most. The majority of mothers committed crime wiıthout weapon or other objects, just by their hands. Based on decisions of IV. Board of Specialization, no significant difference was observed between the the mothers with criminal liability and mothers with non-criminal liability. Conclusion In this study, important data procured from the demographic characteristics of the mothers, findings on conditions during the crime and the method of the crime, and mothers’ psychosocial stressors, but it has been discerned that this data is limited to define the crime of filicide. At the end of the study, besides studied the parameters that directed people to commit this crime, other factors, like mental status and/or motives should be probed. PMID:28360681

Crime Prevention Services for Youth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Harold A.

The purpose of this guide is to identify the various opportunities available in most communities for delivering crime prevention services to youth so that they will be better prepared to reduce their vulnerability to crime, while enhancing their involvement in prevention efforts. It also serves to outline the benefits of programming with youth;…

24 CFR 761.23 - Grantee performance requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... emanating from other anti-crime and anti-drug programs, such as Operation Safe Home, Operation Weed and Seed... and violent crime under § 761.21 and must maintain documentation of such consultation. Furthermore, a grantee must coordinate its grant-funded activities with other anti-crime and anti-drug programs, such as...

24 CFR 761.23 - Grantee performance requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... emanating from other anti-crime and anti-drug programs, such as Operation Safe Home, Operation Weed and Seed... and violent crime under § 761.21 and must maintain documentation of such consultation. Furthermore, a grantee must coordinate its grant-funded activities with other anti-crime and anti-drug programs, such as...

75 FR 22843 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Revision of a Currently Approved Collection; Comments...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-30

... a census of public crime laboratories that perform forensic analyses on criminal evidence. The... Publicly Funded Forensic Crime Laboratories. The Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs...) Title of the Form/Collection: 2009 Census of Publicly Funded Forensic Crime Laboratories. (3) Agency...

Neighborhood crime and travel behavior : an investigation of the influence of neighborhood crime rates on mode choice, phase II.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-01-01

There are considerable environmental and public health benefits if people choose to walk, bicycle, or ride transit, instead of drive. However, little work has been done on the effects of neighborhood crimes on mode choice. Instinctively, we understan...

Neighborhood crime and travel behavior : an investigation of the influence of neighborhood crime rates on mode choice - phase II.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-01-01

There are considerable environmental and public health benefits if people choose to walk, bicycle, or ride transit, instead of drive. : However, little work has been done on the effects of neighborhood crimes on mode choice. Instinctively, we underst...

Teens, Crime, and the Community and Adjudicated Youth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Crime Prevention Council, Washington, DC.

This report describes how a comprehensive youth crime prevention program minimized risk factors and fostered resilience among youth involved with the juvenile justice system. It draws lessons from the implementation of the Teens, Crime, and the Community (TCC) curriculum in several juvenile justice sites that conducted the program in connection…

Crime and Disruption in Schools. A Selected Bibliography.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rubel, Robert, Comp.; And Others

This annotated bibliography about crime and disruption in schools has been assembled from academic, professional, and government sources. The citations are organized into four major parts. "Overview: Nature and Extent of the Problem" contains studies that describe the cost of school crimes, primarily vandalism and arson, both in dollars and in…

76 FR 20827 - National Crime Victims' Rights Week, 2011

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-13

... Victims' Rights Week, 2011 Proclamation 8651--Pan American Day and Pan American Week, 2011 Proclamation... Victims' Rights Week, 2011 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation Though our... continue to fight crime wherever it exists. During National Crime Victims' Rights Week, we renew our...

28 CFR 90.102 - What are the purposes of the grant program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... support services programs, including medical or psychological counseling, for victims of sexual offense..., including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and domestic violence; (c) To implement and operate... respond to violent crimes against women on campus, including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and...

28 CFR 90.102 - What are the purposes of the grant program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... support services programs, including medical or psychological counseling, for victims of sexual offense..., including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and domestic violence; (c) To implement and operate... respond to violent crimes against women on campus, including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and...

28 CFR 90.102 - What are the purposes of the grant program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... support services programs, including medical or psychological counseling, for victims of sexual offense..., including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and domestic violence; (c) To implement and operate... respond to violent crimes against women on campus, including the crimes of sexual assault, stalking, and...

Childhood Victimization and Crime Victimization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McIntyre, Jared Kean; Widom, Cathy Spatz

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine whether abused and neglected children are at increased risk for subsequent crime victimization. We ask four basic questions: (a) Does a history of child abuse/neglect increase one's risk of physical, sexual, and property crime victimization? (b) Do lifestyle characteristics (prostitution, running away,…

Crime on Campus. Annual Report: 1990.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leach, Michael D.

This report portrays the nature, volume, and extent of crime occurring on the campuses and housing of approximately 65 institutions of higher education in Tennessee from January to December of 1990. Following an introduction, a sample reporting form is provided, along with information on classification of offenses and calculation of crime rates.…

Schizophrenia and Crime: How Predictable Are Charges, Convictions and Violence?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heinrichs, R. Walter; Sam, Eleanor P.

2012-01-01

The schizophrenia-crime relationship was studied in 151 research participants meeting DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and with histories positive or negative for criminal charges, convictions and offences involving violence. These crime-related variables were regressed on a block of nine predictors reflecting…

Dynamic Simulation of Crime Perpetration and Reporting to Examine Community Intervention Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yonas, Michael A.; Burke, Jessica G.; Brown, Shawn T.; Borrebach, Jeffrey D.; Garland, Richard; Burke, Donald S.; Grefenstette, John J.

2013-01-01

Objective: To develop a conceptual computational agent-based model (ABM) to explore community-wide versus spatially focused crime reporting interventions to reduce community crime perpetrated by youth. Method: Agents within the model represent individual residents and interact on a two-dimensional grid representing an abstract nonempirically…

Responding to Hate Crimes and Bias-Motivated Incidents on College/University Campuses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Community Relations Service.

The Community Relations Service (CRS), an arm of the U.S. Department of Justice, brought together representatives from college campus law enforcement, college administrators, students, academicians, and civil rights organizations to discuss how different campuses are handling hate crimes in areas including crime investigation, victim assistance,…

75 FR 20889 - National Crime Victims' Rights Week, 2010

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-21

..., caring for the survivors of crime by providing shelter, counseling, and other types of assistance. While any person or community may experience crime, some groups are disproportionately affected. Nearly half... rates of sexual assault of any ethnic group. These disparities are an affront to all Americans, and we...

15 CFR 742.7 - Crime control.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Crime control. 742.7 Section 742.7... INDUSTRY AND SECURITY, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE EXPORT ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS CONTROL POLICY-CCL BASED CONTROLS § 742.7 Crime control. (a) License requirements. In support of U.S. foreign policy to promote the...

Cultivation in the Newer Media Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perse, Elizabeth M.; And Others

1994-01-01

Tests the impact of cable, VCRs, and remote control devices on fear of crime and interpersonal mistrust. Finds that interpersonal mistrust was linked to greater exposure to cable's broadcast-type channels, but fear of crime and mistrust were negatively related to increased exposure to specialized cable channels. Finds fear of crime linked…

Alcohol, Substance Abuse, and Violence among North Carolina Prison Admissions, 1988.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franklin, Ronald D.; And Others

1992-01-01

Examined claimed substance intoxication at time of crime commission with violent crimes for 1988 admissions to North Carolina Department of Correction. Most frequently abused drug was alcohol. Intoxicated criminals committed no more violent offenses than did sober offenders. Inmates inebriated with illegal drugs committed fewer violent crimes than…

Nonresidential Crime Attractors and Generators Elevate Perceived Neighborhood Crime and Incivilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCord, Eric S.; Ratcliffe, Jerry H.; Garcia, R. Marie; Taylor, Ralph B.

2007-01-01

Recent studies have produced conflicting findings about the impacts of local nonresidential land uses on perceived incivilities. This study advances work in this area by developing a land-use perspective theoretically grounded in Brantingham and Brantingham's geometry of crime model in environmental criminology. That focus directs attention to…

Quantitatively Assessing Reported Crime versus Enrollment among Selected Higher Education Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doss, Daniel; Lackey, Hilliard; McElreath, David; Gokaraju, Balakrishna; Tesiero, Raymond; Jones, Don; Lusk, Glenna

2017-01-01

This study uses multiple regressions to examine campus safety and campus security from the perspective of societal crime that occurs external to an institution of higher education versus institutional enrollment. The findings herein showed one statistically significant outcome involving the crime of aggravated assault. Student affairs and other…

76 FR 1641 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-11

... DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Office of Justice Programs Office for Victims of Crime [OMB Number 1121-0114... Crime Act, Victim Compensation Grant Program, State Performance Report. The Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), will be submitting the following...

32 CFR 637.14 - Use of National Crime Information Center (NCIC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Use of National Crime Information Center (NCIC). 637.14 Section 637.14 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY... Use of National Crime Information Center (NCIC). Provost marshals will make maximum use of NCIC...

49 CFR 1572.103 - Disqualifying criminal offenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

..., or conspiracy to commit sedition. (3) Treason, or conspiracy to commit treason. (4) A federal crime... crime. (5) A crime involving a transportation security incident. A transportation security incident is a... disruption, or economic disruption in a particular area, as defined in 46 U.S.C. 70101. The term “economic...

49 CFR 1572.103 - Disqualifying criminal offenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

..., or conspiracy to commit sedition. (3) Treason, or conspiracy to commit treason. (4) A federal crime... crime. (5) A crime involving a transportation security incident. A transportation security incident is a... disruption, or economic disruption in a particular area, as defined in 46 U.S.C. 70101. The term “economic...

Determinants of Crime in Virginia: An Empirical Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ali, Abdiweli M.; Peek, Willam

2009-01-01

This paper is an empirical analysis of the determinants of crime in Virginia. Over a dozen explanatory variables that current literature suggests as important determinants of crime are collected. The data is from 1970 to 2000. These include economic, fiscal, demographic, political, and social variables. The regression results indicate that crime…

49 CFR 1572.103 - Disqualifying criminal offenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

..., or conspiracy to commit sedition. (3) Treason, or conspiracy to commit treason. (4) A federal crime... crime. (5) A crime involving a transportation security incident. A transportation security incident is a... disruption, or economic disruption in a particular area, as defined in 46 U.S.C. 70101. The term “economic...

"Who Killed Baker?" Eine Kriminalgeschichte in der Hauptschule ("Who Killed Baker?" A Crime Story in the Hauptschule).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kerschgens, Edda

1978-01-01

Recommends using crime literature in teaching English, for its motivational value. For classroom purposes, the originals must be revised. Specific problems are discussed, and a teaching procedure outlined. The adapted text of a crime story is added as an example. (IFS/WGA)

26 CFR 403.38 - Contents of the petition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... foregoing crimes. Addiction to narcotic drugs and use of marijuana will be treated as commercial crimes. (2... reputation for committing commercial crimes, the petitioner should state in the petition whether the... this paragraph, the term “commercial crimes” includes, but is not limited to any of the following...

26 CFR 403.38 - Contents of the petition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... foregoing crimes. Addiction to narcotic drugs and use of marijuana will be treated as commercial crimes. (2... reputation for committing commercial crimes, the petitioner should state in the petition whether the... this paragraph, the term “commercial crimes” includes, but is not limited to any of the following...

Sex Crimes, Children, and Pornography: Public Views and Public Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mears, Daniel P.; Mancini, Christina; Gertz, Marc; Bratton, Jake

2008-01-01

"Get tough" approaches for responding to sex crimes have proliferated during the past decade. Child pornography in particular has garnered attention in recent years. Policy makers increasingly have emphasized incarceration as a response to such crime, including accessing child pornography. Juxtaposed against such efforts is a dearth of knowledge…

[Homicides in East Berlin from 1980 to 1989. Part II: results of investigations and legal consequences].

PubMed

Wirth, Ingo; Strauch, Hansjürg

2007-01-01

The second part of the study on homicides in East Berlin from 1980 to 1989 describes the solving of crimes, the usual features of offenders and the legal assessment according to East German law. Of the 139 homicides 126 crimes (= 90.6%) could be solved. Most of the offenders had a low social background and often belonged to the victim's circle of friends or family. Situational homicides and elimination crimes were the most common crimes. In the legal assessment sentences for murder were predominant.

White-collar crime: corporate and securities and commodities fraud.

PubMed

Price, Marilyn; Norris, Donna M

2009-01-01

In this era of increased interest in white-collar crime, forensic psychiatrists are in a key position to study the individual characteristics of offenders. While a comprehensive theory of high-level white-collar crime should consider societal and organizational contributions, there is value in understanding the personal traits that place an individual at high risk for offending. As the impact of the criminal acts of this group has been increasingly felt by larger groups from all socioeconomic strata, there is less willingness by the public to view these crimes as victimless and harmless.

Doorstep: A doorbell security system for the prevention of doorstep crime.

PubMed

Ennis, Andrew; Cleland, Ian; Patterson, Timothy; Nugent, Chris D; Cruciani, Federico; Paggetti, Cristiano; Morrison, Gareth; Taylor, Richard

2016-08-01

Safety and security rank highly in the priorities of older people on both an individual and policy level. Older people are commonly targeted as victims of doorstep crime, as they can be perceived as being vulnerable. As a result, this can have a major effect on the victim's health and wellbeing. There have been numerous prevention strategies implemented in an attempt to combat and reduce the number of doorstep crimes. There is, however, little information available detailing the effectiveness of these strategies and how they impact on the fear of crime, particularly with repeat victims. There is therefore clear merit in the creation and piloting of a technology based solution to combat doorstep crime. This paper presents a developed solution to provide increased security for older people within their home.

Linking Specialization and Seriousness in Criminal Careers

PubMed Central

MacDonald, John M.; Haviland, Amelia; Ramchand, Rajeev; Morral, Andrew R.; Piquero, Alex R.

2014-01-01

Some research suggests that recidivistic criminal offending patterns typically progress in a stepping-stone manner from less to more serious forms of offending from childhood to adolescence to adulthood. Whether the progression into more serious types of offending reflects patterns of crime specialization is a matter of debate. Using data from 449 adolescent offenders who were interviewed at six time points between adolescence and adulthood, we present a new method for measuring crime specialization and apply it to an assessment of the link between specialization and offense seriousness. We measure specialization by constructing an empirical measure of how similar crimes are from each other based on the rate at which crimes co-occur within individual crime pathways over a given offender population. We then use these empirically-based population-specific offense similarities to assign a specialization score to each subject at each time period based on the set of crimes they self-report at that time. Finally, we examine how changes over time in specialization, within individuals, is correlated with changes in the seriousness of the offenses they report committing. Results suggest that the progression of crime into increasingly serious forms of offending does not reflect a general pattern of offense specialization. Implications for life course research are noted. PMID:25422597

Feigning Amnesia Moderately Impairs Memory for a Mock Crime Video

PubMed Central

Mangiulli, Ivan; van Oorsouw, Kim; Curci, Antonietta; Merckelbach, Harald; Jelicic, Marko

2018-01-01

Previous studies showed that feigning amnesia for a crime impairs actual memory for the target event. Lack of rehearsal has been proposed as an explanation for this memory-undermining effect of feigning. The aim of the present study was to replicate and extend previous research adopting a mock crime video instead of a narrative story. We showed participants a video of a violent crime. Next, they were requested to imagine that they had committed this offense and to either feign amnesia or confess the crime. A third condition was included: Participants in the delayed test-only control condition did not receive any instruction. On subsequent recall tests, participants in all three conditions were instructed to report as much information as possible about the offense. On the free recall test, feigning amnesia impaired memory for the video clip, but participants who were asked to feign crime-related amnesia outperformed controls. However, no differences between simulators and confessors were found on both correct cued recollection or on distortion and commission rates. We also explored whether inner speech might modulate memory for the crime. Inner speech traits were not found to be related to the simulating amnesia effect. Theoretical and practical implications of our results are discussed. PMID:29760675

One rule for the goose, one for the gander? Wrongfulness and harmfulness in determining reactions to offenders and victims of crime

PubMed Central

Lens, Kim M. E.; van Doorn, Janne; Pemberton, Antony; Lahlah, Esmah; Bogaerts, Stefan

2016-01-01

People’s reactions to offenders and victims of crime follow different rationales. Whereas the punishment of the offender is primarily determined by the severity of the crime (which includes its foreseeable harmful consequences), the actual harm that is experienced by the victim drives the need for his or her support and assistance. With the introduction of the Victim Impact Statement (VIS), in which victims are allowed to express the (harmful) consequences of the crime on their lives, the question is raised whether allowing such victim input during criminal proceedings would influence the offender’s sentence. The main goal of the current research is to disentangle how a crime’s wrongfulness and harmfulness influence people’s reactions to offenders and victims. We show that, whereas people’s perceptions of the offender (and the outcome of the trial) are influenced by the severity of the crime, people’s judgements related to the victim are more likely to be influenced by an interaction between the severity of the crime and the experienced harm of the crime. That is, in this study no support was found for the argument that the delivery of a VIS would lead to a violation of the proportionality principle. PMID:28579923

Perceived crime and traffic safety is related to physical activity among adults in Nigeria

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Neighborhood safety is inconsistently related to physical activity, but is seldom studied in developing countries. This study examined associations between perceived neighborhood safety and physical activity among Nigerian adults. Methods In a cross-sectional study, accelerometer-based physical activity (MVPA), reported walking, perceived crime and traffic safety were measured in 219 Nigerian adults. Logistic regression analysis was conducted, and the odds ratio for meeting health guidelines for MVPA and walking was calculated in relation to four safety variables, after adjustment for potential confounders. Results Sufficient MVPA was related to more perception of safety from traffic to walk (OR=2.28, CI=1.13- 6.25) and more safety from crime at night (OR=1.68, CI=1.07-3.64), but with less perception of safety from crime during the day to walk (OR=0.34, CI=0.06- 0.91). More crime safety during the day and night were associated with more walking. Conclusions Perceived safety from crime and traffic were associated with physical activity among Nigerian adults. These findings provide preliminary evidence on the need to provide safe traffic and crime environments that will make it easier and more likely for African adults to be physically active. PMID:22520066

Influence of perceived and actual neighbourhood disorder on common mental illness.

PubMed

Polling, C; Khondoker, M; Hatch, S L; Hotopf, M

2014-06-01

Fear of crime and perceived neighbourhood disorder have been linked to common mental illness (CMI). However, few UK studies have also considered the experience of crime at the individual and neighbourhood level. This study aims to identify individual and local area factors associated with increased perceived neighbourhood disorder and test associations between CMI and individuals' perceptions of disorder in their neighbourhoods, personal experiences of crime and neighbourhood crime rates. A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 1,698 adults living in 1,075 households in Lambeth and Southwark, London. CMI was assessed using the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule. Data were analysed using multilevel logistic regression with neighbourhood defined as lower super output area. Individuals who reported neighbourhood disorder were more likely to suffer CMI (OR 2.12) as were those with individual experience of crime. These effects remained significant when individual characteristics were controlled for. While 14 % of the variance in perceived neighbourhood disorder occurred at the neighbourhood level, there was no significant variance at this level for CMI. Perceived neighbourhood disorder is more common in income-deprived areas and individuals who are unemployed. Worry about one's local area and individual experience of crime are strongly and independently associated with CMI, but neighbourhood crime rates do not appear to impact on mental health.

A double-edged sword: Benefits and pitfalls of heterogeneous punishment in evolutionary inspection games

PubMed Central

Perc, Matjaž; Szolnoki, Attila

2015-01-01

As a simple model for criminal behavior, the traditional two-strategy inspection game yields counterintuitive results that fail to describe empirical data. The latter shows that crime is often recurrent, and that crime rates do not respond linearly to mitigation attempts. A more apt model entails ordinary people who neither commit nor sanction crime as the third strategy besides the criminals and punishers. Since ordinary people free-ride on the sanctioning efforts of punishers, they may introduce cyclic dominance that enables the coexistence of all three competing strategies. In this setup ordinary individuals become the biggest impediment to crime abatement. We therefore also consider heterogeneous punisher strategies, which seek to reduce their investment into fighting crime in order to attain a more competitive payoff. We show that this diversity of punishment leads to an explosion of complexity in the system, where the benefits and pitfalls of criminal behavior are revealed in the most unexpected ways. Due to the raise and fall of different alliances no less than six consecutive phase transitions occur in dependence on solely the temptation to succumb to criminal behavior, leading the population from ordinary people-dominated across punisher-dominated to crime-dominated phases, yet always failing to abolish crime completely. PMID:26046673

Associations of adult physical activity with perceived safety and police-recorded crime: the Multi-ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Due to the inconsistent findings of prior studies, we explored the association of perceived safety and police-recorded crime measures with physical activity. Methods The study included 818 Chicago participants of the Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis 45 to 84 years of age. Questionnaire-assessed physical activity included a) transport walking; b) leisure walking; and c) non-walking leisure activities. Perceived safety was assessed through an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Police-recorded crime was assessed through 2-year counts of selected crimes (total and outdoor incivilities, criminal offenses, homicides) per 1000 population. Associations were examined using generalized estimating equation logistic regression models. Results Perceiving a safer neighborhood was positively associated with transport walking and perceiving lower violence was associated with leisure walking. Those in the lowest tertile of total or outdoor incivilities were more likely to report transport walking. Models with both perceived safety and police-recorded measures of crime as independent variables had superior fit for both transport walking and leisure walking outcomes. Neither perceived safety nor police-recorded measures of crime were associated with non-walking leisure activity. Conclusions Perceived and police-recorded measures had independent associations with walking and both should be considered in assessing the impact of neighborhood crime on physical activity. PMID:23245527

A double-edged sword: Benefits and pitfalls of heterogeneous punishment in evolutionary inspection games.

PubMed

Perc, Matjaž; Szolnoki, Attila

2015-06-05

As a simple model for criminal behavior, the traditional two-strategy inspection game yields counterintuitive results that fail to describe empirical data. The latter shows that crime is often recurrent, and that crime rates do not respond linearly to mitigation attempts. A more apt model entails ordinary people who neither commit nor sanction crime as the third strategy besides the criminals and punishers. Since ordinary people free-ride on the sanctioning efforts of punishers, they may introduce cyclic dominance that enables the coexistence of all three competing strategies. In this setup ordinary individuals become the biggest impediment to crime abatement. We therefore also consider heterogeneous punisher strategies, which seek to reduce their investment into fighting crime in order to attain a more competitive payoff. We show that this diversity of punishment leads to an explosion of complexity in the system, where the benefits and pitfalls of criminal behavior are revealed in the most unexpected ways. Due to the raise and fall of different alliances no less than six consecutive phase transitions occur in dependence on solely the temptation to succumb to criminal behavior, leading the population from ordinary people-dominated across punisher-dominated to crime-dominated phases, yet always failing to abolish crime completely.

Employee and Customer Injury During Violent Crimes in Retail and Service Businesses

PubMed Central

Peek-Asa, Corinne; Casteel, Carri; Kraus, Jess F.; Whitten, Paul

2006-01-01

Objectives. We sought to compare the frequency and risk factors for employees and customers injured during crimes in retail (convenience, grocery, and liquor stores) and service businesses (bars, restaurants, motels). Methods. A total of 827 retail and service businesses in Los Angeles were randomly selected. Police crime reports (n=2029) from violent crimes that occurred in these businesses from January 1996 through June 2001 were individually reviewed to determine whether a customer or an employee was injured and to collect study variables. Results. A customer injury was 31% more likely (95% confidence interval [CI]=1.11, 1.51) than an employee injury during a violent crime. Customer injury was more frequent than employee injury during violent crimes in bars, restaurants, convenience stores, and motels but less likely in grocery or liquor stores. Injury risk was increased for both employees and customers when resisting the perpetrator and when the perpetrator was suspected of using alcohol. Customers had an increased risk for injury during crimes that occurred outside (relative risk [RR]=2.01; 95% CI=1.57, 2.58) and at night (RR=1.79; 95% CI=1.40, 2.29). Conclusions. Security programs should be designed to protect customers as well as employees. PMID:17008585

A computational intelligent approach to multi-factor analysis of violent crime information system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Hongbo; Yang, Chao; Zhang, Meng; McLoone, Seán; Sun, Yeqing

2017-02-01

Various scientific studies have explored the causes of violent behaviour from different perspectives, with psychological tests, in particular, applied to the analysis of crime factors. The relationship between bi-factors has also been extensively studied including the link between age and crime. In reality, many factors interact to contribute to criminal behaviour and as such there is a need to have a greater level of insight into its complex nature. In this article we analyse violent crime information systems containing data on psychological, environmental and genetic factors. Our approach combines elements of rough set theory with fuzzy logic and particle swarm optimisation to yield an algorithm and methodology that can effectively extract multi-knowledge from information systems. The experimental results show that our approach outperforms alternative genetic algorithm and dynamic reduct-based techniques for reduct identification and has the added advantage of identifying multiple reducts and hence multi-knowledge (rules). Identified rules are consistent with classical statistical analysis of violent crime data and also reveal new insights into the interaction between several factors. As such, the results are helpful in improving our understanding of the factors contributing to violent crime and in highlighting the existence of hidden and intangible relationships between crime factors.

Are Hispanics the new ’Threat’? Minority Group Threat and Fear of Crime in Miami-Dade County*

PubMed Central

Eitle, David; Taylor, John

2008-01-01

Research examining the determinants of fear of crime has arguably raised more questions than it has answered. This exploratory study addresses one of the compelling questions that remains unanswered: what is the role of ethnicity, both at the community and individual levels, in understanding variation in fear of crime? Guided by racial or minority group threat theory, we examine the relative sizes of both the Black and Latino populations as indicators of minority group threat to determine their role in understanding individual fear of crime in a city where Latinos represent a much larger proportion of the population than Blacks (Miami-Dade County, Florida). Furthermore, the race and ethnic backgrounds of the respondents are also considered to evaluate their role in understanding variation in the fear of crime. Using both Census tract-level data and data collected from a NIDA sponsored grant that was part of a larger study about physically disabled residents, our findings reveal that in Miami-Dade County where Blacks are highly segregated from whites, the relative size of the Latino population is a predictor of fear of crime among white residents. Implications of this finding are considered, including a call for more nuanced research focusing on the predictors of fear of crime within multiethnic communities. PMID:19227693

A double-edged sword: Benefits and pitfalls of heterogeneous punishment in evolutionary inspection games

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perc, Matjaž; Szolnoki, Attila

2015-06-01

As a simple model for criminal behavior, the traditional two-strategy inspection game yields counterintuitive results that fail to describe empirical data. The latter shows that crime is often recurrent, and that crime rates do not respond linearly to mitigation attempts. A more apt model entails ordinary people who neither commit nor sanction crime as the third strategy besides the criminals and punishers. Since ordinary people free-ride on the sanctioning efforts of punishers, they may introduce cyclic dominance that enables the coexistence of all three competing strategies. In this setup ordinary individuals become the biggest impediment to crime abatement. We therefore also consider heterogeneous punisher strategies, which seek to reduce their investment into fighting crime in order to attain a more competitive payoff. We show that this diversity of punishment leads to an explosion of complexity in the system, where the benefits and pitfalls of criminal behavior are revealed in the most unexpected ways. Due to the raise and fall of different alliances no less than six consecutive phase transitions occur in dependence on solely the temptation to succumb to criminal behavior, leading the population from ordinary people-dominated across punisher-dominated to crime-dominated phases, yet always failing to abolish crime completely.

Psychiatric and neurological disorders in late adolescence and risk of convictions for violent crime in men.

PubMed

Moberg, Tomas; Stenbacka, Marlene; Tengström, Anders; Jönsson, Erik G; Nordström, Peter; Jokinen, Jussi

2015-11-23

The relationship between mental illness and violent crime is complex because of the involvement of many other confounding risk factors. In the present study, we analysed psychiatric and neurological disorders in relation to the risk of convictions for violent crime, taking into account early behavioural and socio-economic risk factors. The study population consisted of 49,398 Swedish men, who were thoroughly assessed at conscription for compulsory military service during the years 1969-1970 and followed in national crime registers up to 2006. Five diagnostic groups were analysed: anxiety-depression/neuroses, personality disorders, substance-related disorders, mental retardation and neurological conditions. In addition, eight confounders measured at conscription and based on the literature on violence risk assessment, were added to the analyses. The relative risks of convictions for violent crime during 35 years after conscription were examined in relation to psychiatric diagnoses and other risk factors at conscription, as measured by odds ratios (ORs) and confidence intervals (CIs) from bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. In the bivariate analyses there was a significant association between receiving a psychiatric diagnosis at conscription and a future conviction for violent crime (OR = 3.83, 95 % CI = 3.47-4.22), whereas no significant association between neurological conditions and future violent crime (OR = 1.03, 95 % CI = 0.48-2.21) was found. In the fully adjusted multivariate logistic regression model, mental retardation had the strongest association with future violent crime (OR = 3.60, 95 % CI = 2.73-4.75), followed by substance-related disorders (OR = 2.81, 95 % CI = 2.18-3.62), personality disorders (OR = 2.66, 95 % CI = 2.21-3.19) and anxiety-depression (OR = 1.29, 95 % CI = 1.07-1.55). Among the other risk factors, early behavioural problem had the strongest association with convictions for violent crime. Mental retardation, substance-related disorders, personality disorders and early behavioural problems are important predictors of convictions for violent crime in men.

Criminality in Greece during the years of financial crisis: 2008-2014.

PubMed

Tsouvelas, G; Konstantakopoulos, G; Vakirtzis, A; Giotakos, O; Papaslanis, T; Kontaxakis, V

2018-01-01

The link between poverty, unemployment and economic downturns and increases in crime rates has long been the subject of social science study. However, the relationships between these phenomena has not been studied sufficiently and through time in most European countries that suffered, or, like Greece, are still suffering the recent financial crisis. We examined if the recent financial crisis in Greece has coincided with an increase in crime, analyzing crime rates since the start of the financial crisis and over an extensive time period (7 years). Crime statistics were taken from the Greek Police. Repeated measures analyses of variance were performed to reveal potential differences in criminality for the years 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014. There was a significant increase in global criminality rate per 100,000 residents (Wilks' Lambda=0.32, F (3,11)=7.93, p=0.004). There was a significant increase in illegal gun possession (Wilks' Lambda=0.16, F (3,11)=18.68, p=0.001), fraud (Wilks' Lambda=0.10, F (3,11)=32.35, p=0.001), extortion (Wilks' Lambda=0.38, F (3,11)=4.45, p=0.040), and beggary (Wilks' Lambda=0.33, F (3,11)=6.22, p=0.014). A reversed U shape was found for homicides, thefts and robberies, with rates peaking in 2010 and 2012 before dropping off in 2014. Narcotics and sexual exploitation crime rates remained unchanged. Surprisingly, the incidence of rape decreased (Wilks' Lambda=0.42, F (3,11)=5.14, p=0.018). Our results are in agreement with the results of previous broader studies as well as with criminological theories according to which in times of economic stress an increase in both property crimes and violent crimes is expected. As predicted, an increase in financial crime was observed (e.g. fraud and extortions) as well as petty crime related to financial hardship like beggary. Concerns regarding the escalation of white-collar crimes in times of economic downturns that have been raised in the literature warrant further investigation.

The costs of crime associated with stimulant use in a Canadian setting.

PubMed

Enns, Benjamin; Krebs, Emanuel; DeBeck, Kora; Hayashi, Kanna; Milloy, M-J; Richardson, Lindsey; Wood, Evan; Nosyk, Bohdan

2017-11-01

Costs attributable to criminal activity are a major component of the economic burden of substance use disorders, yet there is a paucity of empirical evidence on this topic. Our aim was to estimate the costs of crime associated with different forms and intensities of stimulant use. Retrospective cohort study, including individuals from three prospective cohorts in Vancouver, Canada, measured biannually (2011-2015), reporting stimulant use at baseline assessment. Monthly crime costs included policing, court, corrections, and criminal victimization (2016 CAD). We estimated monthly crime costs associated with mutually exclusive categories of crack, cocaine, methamphetamine, and polystimulant use, stratified by daily/non-daily use, relative to stimulant abstinence, as well as the independent effects of treatment (opioid agonist (OAT) and other addiction treatment). We used a two-part model, capturing the probability of criminal activity and costs of crime with generalized linear logistic and gamma regression models, respectively, controlling for age, gender, education, homelessness, mental health issues, employment, prior incarceration, alcohol and opioid use. The study sample included 1599 individuals (median age 39, 65.9% male) assessed over 5299 biannual interviews. Estimates of associated monthly crime costs ranged from $5449 [95% C.I.: $2180, $8719] for non-daily polystimulant use, to $8893 [$4196, $13,589] for daily polystimulant use. Cost differences between daily/non-daily use, injection/non-injection, and stimulant type were not statistically significant. Drug treatment was not associated with lower monthly crime costs in our sample. Substantial crime-related costs were associated with stimulant use, emphasizing the urgency for development and implementation of efficacious treatment regimens. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Conduct Problems Among Boston-Area Youth Following the 2013 Marathon Bombing: The Moderating Role of Prior Violent Crime Exposure.

PubMed

Crum, Kathleen I; Cornacchio, Danielle; Coxe, Stefany; Greif Green, Jennifer; Comer, Jonathan S

2017-01-01

A large body of work documents the heavy mental health burden of youth exposure to disasters, but the majority of this research has focused on posttraumatic stress and internalizing symptoms. Less is known about associations between disaster exposure and children's conduct problems (CPs), or variables that may moderate such relationships. Given well-documented links between CPs and children's exposure to community violence, youth with greater prior community violence exposure through residence in high-crime areas may be particularly vulnerable to the impacts of disaster exposure on CPs. We surveyed Boston-area caregivers (N = 460) in the first 6 months following the 2013 Marathon bombing on their children's event-related exposures, as well as CPs. To estimate prior violent crime exposure, children's neighborhoods were assigned corresponding violent crime rates obtained from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's uniform crime reporting statistics. Almost 1 in 6 Boston-area children assessed in this convenience sample showed clinically elevated CPs in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing and subsequent manhunt. Prior violent crime exposure significantly moderated the link between children's manhunt exposure (but not bombing exposure) and child CPs. Manhunt exposure was related to increased CPs among children living in areas with high and medium (but not low) levels of prior violent crime. Children living in neighborhoods characterized by violent crime may be at particularly increased risk for developing CPs after violent manmade disasters. As most postdisaster child intervention efforts focus on posttraumatic stress, efforts are needed to develop programs targeting child CPs, particularly for youth dwelling in violent neighborhoods.

Foreclosures and crime: a city-level analysis in Southern California of a dynamic process.

PubMed

Hipp, John R; Chamberlain, Alyssa W

2015-05-01

Although a growing body of research has examined and found a positive relationship between neighborhood crime and home foreclosures, some research suggests this relationship may not hold in all cities. This study uses city-level data to assess the relationship between foreclosures and crime by estimating longitudinal models with lags for monthly foreclosure and crime data in 128 cities from 1996 to 2011 in Southern California. We test whether these effects are stronger in cities with a combination of high economic inequality and high economic segregation; and whether they are stronger in cities with high racial/ethnic heterogeneity and high racial segregation. One month, and cumulative three month, six month, and 12-month lags of foreclosures are found to increase city level crime for all crimes except motor vehicle theft. The effect of foreclosures on these crime types is stronger in cities with simultaneously high levels of inequality but low levels of economic segregation. The effect of foreclosures on aggravated assault, robbery, and burglary is stronger in cities with simultaneously high levels of racial heterogeneity and low levels of racial segregation. On the other hand, foreclosures had a stronger effect on larceny and motor vehicle theft when they occurred in a city with simultaneously high levels of racial heterogeneity and high levels of racial segregation. There is evidence that the foreclosure crisis had large scale impacts on cities, leading to higher crime rates in cities hit harder by foreclosures. Nonetheless, the economic and racial characteristics of the city altered this effect. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

On the importance of considering heterogeneity in witnesses' competence levels when reconstructing crimes from multiple witness testimonies.

PubMed

Waubert de Puiseau, Berenike; Greving, Sven; Aßfalg, André; Musch, Jochen

2017-09-01

Aggregating information across multiple testimonies may improve crime reconstructions. However, different aggregation methods are available, and research on which method is best suited for aggregating multiple observations is lacking. Furthermore, little is known about how variance in the accuracy of individual testimonies impacts the performance of competing aggregation procedures. We investigated the superiority of aggregation-based crime reconstructions involving multiple individual testimonies and whether this superiority varied as a function of the number of witnesses and the degree of heterogeneity in witnesses' ability to accurately report their observations. Moreover, we examined whether heterogeneity in competence levels differentially affected the relative accuracy of two aggregation procedures: a simple majority rule, which ignores individual differences, and the more complex general Condorcet model (Romney et al., Am Anthropol 88(2):313-338, 1986; Batchelder and Romney, Psychometrika 53(1):71-92, 1988), which takes into account differences in competence between individuals. 121 participants viewed a simulated crime and subsequently answered 128 true/false questions about the crime. We experimentally generated groups of witnesses with homogeneous or heterogeneous competences. Both the majority rule and the general Condorcet model provided more accurate reconstructions of the observed crime than individual testimonies. The superiority of aggregated crime reconstructions involving multiple individual testimonies increased with an increasing number of witnesses. Crime reconstructions were most accurate when competences were heterogeneous and aggregation was based on the general Condorcet model. We argue that a formal aggregation should be considered more often when eyewitness testimonies have to be assessed and that the general Condorcet model provides a good framework for such aggregations.

An Assessment of the Prevalence, Perceived Significance, and Response to Dowry Solicitation and Domestic Violence in Bangladesh.

PubMed

Young, Kim A; Hassan, Shahidul

2016-03-02

The current study focuses on the prevalence of two pervasive gender-related crimes in Bangladesh: dowry solicitation and domestic violence. We assess victim perceptions of how these two crimes rank in significance compared with other types of crimes experienced and the actions victim households took in response. Our research builds on prior qualitative studies by making use of nation-wide household survey data, collected by the World Bank, to examine dowry and domestic violence in the context of all legal conflicts experienced by households in every administrative region of the country. The analyses show that both dowry solicitation and domestic violence rank in the top five most common crimes, including violent and non-violent crimes. Women report more experiences of dowry solicitation and domestic violence, with urban females most frequently disclosing both. Among the households that experienced multiple types of violent and non-violent crimes, 55.9% of dowry and 70.8% of domestic violence victims reported another crime ranked higher in significance. Of the households that considered these two crimes the most serious they experienced, 56.1% of dowry and 32.5% of domestic violence households took no action at all in response. Among the households that took action, most eschewed both police and state judicial institutions. Choosing to act alone or with the help of family members was the most frequent response. The findings illustrate the need for governance reforms in Bangladesh and may inform state and non-state improvement initiatives. © The Author(s) 2016.

Common Crime and Domestic Violence Victimization of Older Chinese in Urban China: The Prevalence and Its Impact on Mental Health and Constrained Behavior.

PubMed

Qin, Nan; Yan, Elsie

2018-03-01

This article examines the prevalence of victimization among older Chinese living in urban China and its psychological and behavioral impacts. A representative sample of 453 older adults aged 60 or above was recruited from Kunming, the People's Republic of China, using multistage sampling method. Participants were individually interviewed on their demographic characteristics, experience of common crime and domestic violence victimization, fear of common crime and domestic violence, mental health, and constrained behavior. Results showed that 254 participants (56.1%) reported one or more types of common crime and 21 (4.6%) reported experiencing domestic violence in the past. Seventeen participants (3.8%) reportedly experienced both common crime and domestic violence victimization. There was no gender difference in the overall incidence of victimization but in some subtypes. Regression analyses indicated that past experience of common crime victimization was significantly associated with greater fear of common crime (β = .136, p = .004), poorer mental health (β = .136, p = .003), and more constrained behavior (β = .108, p = .025). Fear of common crime predicted increased constrained behavior (β = .240, p < .001) independent of gender, age, education, household finances, living arrangement, and physical health. Domestic violence victimization was not significant in predicting poor mental health and constrained behavior but was significant in predicting fear of domestic violence (β = .266, p < .001), which was related to poorer mental health (β = .102, p = .039). The study suggests the importance of taking older people's risk and experience of victimization into consideration in gerontological research, practice, and policymaking.

Not in My Back Yard: A Comparative Analysis of Crime Around Publicly Funded Drug Treatment Centers, Liquor Stores, Convenience Stores, and Corner Stores in One Mid-Atlantic City

PubMed Central

Furr-Holden, C. Debra M.; Milam, Adam J.; Nesoff, Elizabeth D.; Johnson, Renee M.; Fakunle, David O.; Jennings, Jacky M.; Thorpe, Roland J.

2016-01-01

Objective: This research examined whether publicly funded drug treatment centers (DTCs) were associated with violent crime in excess of the violence happening around other commercial businesses. Method: Violent crime data and locations of community entities were geocoded and mapped. DTCs and other retail outlets were matched based on a Neighborhood Disadvantage score at the census tract level. Street network buffers ranging from 100 to 1,400 feet were placed around each location. Negative binomial regression models were used to estimate the relationship between the count of violent crimes and the distance from each business type. Results: Compared with the mean count of violent crime around drug treatment centers, the mean count of violent crime (M = 2.87) was significantly higher around liquor stores (M = 3.98; t test; p < .01) and corner stores (M = 3.78; t test; p < .01), and there was no statistically significant difference between the count around convenience stores (M = 2.65; t test; p = .32). In the adjusted negative binomial regression models, there was a negative and significant relationship between the count of violent crime and the distance from drug treatment centers (β = -.069, p < .01), liquor stores (β = -.081, p < .01), corner stores (β = -.116, p < .01), and convenience stores (β = -.154, p < .01). Conclusions: Violent crime associated with drug treatment centers is similar to that associated with liquor stores and is less frequent than that associated with convenience stores and corner stores. PMID:26751351

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors and Violent Crime: A Cohort Study.

PubMed

Molero, Yasmina; Lichtenstein, Paul; Zetterqvist, Johan; Gumpert, Clara Hellner; Fazel, Seena

2015-09-01

Although selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are widely prescribed, associations with violence are uncertain. From Swedish national registers we extracted information on 856,493 individuals who were prescribed SSRIs, and subsequent violent crimes during 2006 through 2009. We used stratified Cox regression analyses to compare the rate of violent crime while individuals were prescribed these medications with the rate in the same individuals while not receiving medication. Adjustments were made for other psychotropic medications. Information on all medications was extracted from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, with complete national data on all dispensed medications. Information on violent crime convictions was extracted from the Swedish national crime register. Using within-individual models, there was an overall association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.19, 95% CI 1.08-1.32, p < 0.001, absolute risk = 1.0%). With age stratification, there was a significant association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions for individuals aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.43, 95% CI 1.19-1.73, p < 0.001, absolute risk = 3.0%). However, there were no significant associations in those aged 25-34 y (HR = 1.20, 95% CI 0.95-1.52, p = 0.125, absolute risk = 1.6%), in those aged 35-44 y (HR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.83-1.35, p = 0.666, absolute risk = 1.2%), or in those aged 45 y or older (HR = 1.07, 95% CI 0.84-1.35, p = 0.594, absolute risk = 0.3%). Associations in those aged 15 to 24 y were also found for violent crime arrests with preliminary investigations (HR = 1.28, 95% CI 1.16-1.41, p < 0.001), non-violent crime convictions (HR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.10-1.34, p < 0.001), non-violent crime arrests (HR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.07-1.20, p < 0.001), non-fatal injuries from accidents (HR = 1.29, 95% CI 1.22-1.36, p < 0.001), and emergency inpatient or outpatient treatment for alcohol intoxication or misuse (HR = 1.98, 95% CI 1.76-2.21, p < 0.001). With age and sex stratification, there was a significant association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions for males aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.13-1.73, p = 0.002) and females aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.75, 95% CI 1.08-2.84, p = 0.023). However, there were no significant associations in those aged 25 y or older. One important limitation is that we were unable to fully account for time-varying factors. The association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions and violent crime arrests varied by age group. The increased risk we found in young people needs validation in other studies.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors and Violent Crime: A Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Molero, Yasmina; Lichtenstein, Paul; Zetterqvist, Johan; Gumpert, Clara Hellner; Fazel, Seena

2015-01-01

Background Although selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are widely prescribed, associations with violence are uncertain. Methods and Findings From Swedish national registers we extracted information on 856,493 individuals who were prescribed SSRIs, and subsequent violent crimes during 2006 through 2009. We used stratified Cox regression analyses to compare the rate of violent crime while individuals were prescribed these medications with the rate in the same individuals while not receiving medication. Adjustments were made for other psychotropic medications. Information on all medications was extracted from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, with complete national data on all dispensed medications. Information on violent crime convictions was extracted from the Swedish national crime register. Using within-individual models, there was an overall association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.19, 95% CI 1.08–1.32, p < 0.001, absolute risk = 1.0%). With age stratification, there was a significant association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions for individuals aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.43, 95% CI 1.19–1.73, p < 0.001, absolute risk = 3.0%). However, there were no significant associations in those aged 25–34 y (HR = 1.20, 95% CI 0.95–1.52, p = 0.125, absolute risk = 1.6%), in those aged 35–44 y (HR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.83–1.35, p = 0.666, absolute risk = 1.2%), or in those aged 45 y or older (HR = 1.07, 95% CI 0.84–1.35, p = 0.594, absolute risk = 0.3%). Associations in those aged 15 to 24 y were also found for violent crime arrests with preliminary investigations (HR = 1.28, 95% CI 1.16–1.41, p < 0.001), non-violent crime convictions (HR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.10–1.34, p < 0.001), non-violent crime arrests (HR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.07–1.20, p < 0.001), non-fatal injuries from accidents (HR = 1.29, 95% CI 1.22–1.36, p < 0.001), and emergency inpatient or outpatient treatment for alcohol intoxication or misuse (HR = 1.98, 95% CI 1.76–2.21, p < 0.001). With age and sex stratification, there was a significant association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions for males aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.13–1.73, p = 0.002) and females aged 15 to 24 y (HR = 1.75, 95% CI 1.08–2.84, p = 0.023). However, there were no significant associations in those aged 25 y or older. One important limitation is that we were unable to fully account for time-varying factors. Conclusions The association between SSRIs and violent crime convictions and violent crime arrests varied by age group. The increased risk we found in young people needs validation in other studies. PMID:26372359

48 CFR 337.103-70 - Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 1994. (b) The Contracting Officer shall insert the clause in 352.237-71, Crime Control Act—Reporting of... specified in the Crime Control Act of 1990, including, but not limited to, physicians, nurses, dentists... drivers. (c) The Contracting Officer shall insert the clause in 352.237-72, Crime Control Act—Requirement...