Domestic violence sentencing: coefficient to a natural process that already reduces recidivism simply as a function of aging

Abstract

Background: Research on domestic violence (DV) sentencing, post-conviction, has mostly focused on incarceration and re-education programs, ignoring more than a dozen other components of the criminal sentence. Therefore, little is known, overall, about the breadth of DV sentencing, antecedents that may shape the content of the sentence, and a possible relationship between the criminal sentence and a theorized natural process believed to significantly reduce DV recidivism simply as a function of aging. Results: Data from this empirical study (N = 1,810) reveals rates of female DV recidivism decrease by about 2.56% per year, between ages 22-61, and males by about 3.13% per year between ages 28-60. These data closely match Federal Bureau of Investigation rates for recidivism, by age and sex, for violent crime in general. The study also identified 16 sentencing components used by judges in DV cases. Logistic regression on data from a randomly selected subset (n = 366), using the 16 sentencing components as dichotomous outcomes, regressed against 49 antecedent variables, illuminated a number of factors that have a significant relationship with the content of individual DV sentences, including many extra investigative actions that police officers can operationalize when investigating DV crime. Conclusion: Confirmation of a natural process that diminishes rates of DV recidivism as a function of aging demonstrates the need to factor this effect into any equation designed to assess the effectiveness of DV sentencing, or re-education/treatment programs upon rates of recidivism. It also confirms that the natural process is an important part of the milieu in which the criminal sentence is operationalized. The results also demonstrate the need for police to thoroughly investigate all DV crime, and to list multiple charges whenever the facts support doing so, because doing so significantly raises rates of inclusion of several sentencing components.