Spatial patterns of sex offenders: Theoretical, empirical, and practical issues

Beauregard, Éric; Proulx, Jean; Rossmo, D. Kim

doi:10.1016/j.avb.2004.12.003

Cited by 82 publications

(83 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…The offenders' environmental and site selection decision can then be seen as the reflection of their own knowledge and experience of the environment. This knowledge, as suggested previously, can be gained as the offenders go on in their non-criminal and daily routine activities (e.g., Beauregard et al, 2005;Brantingham & Brantingham, 1993;Clarke & Felson, 1993). The offender's familiarity with a specific site can also follow from the previously successful use of a specific site or type of environment to commit crimes.…”

Section: Environmental Consistency and Serial Offendersmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Underpinning the notion of environmental backcloth is thus the idea that the occurrence of a criminal behavior (i.e., crime opportunity) is dependent on the offender's routine activity patterns and awareness space (e.g., places or areas that the offender visit or spend some time regularly and thus became familiar with -home location or neighborhood, areas where he works or go to for recreational purposes, etc. -and aware of), as well as the distribution of targets (Beauregard, Proulx, & Rossmo, 2005;Clarke & Felson, 1993;Deslauriers-Varin & Beauregard, 2010;Eck & Weisburd, 1995). Indeed, daily activities and lifestyles will nurture a criminal opportunity structure by enhancing the exposure and proximity of crime targets to motivated offenders (i.e., crime concentration) (Felson & Cohen, 1980;Miethe & Meier, 1990;Mustaine & Tewksbury, 2002).…”

Section: Crime Patternmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Consistency in crime site selection: An investigation of crime sites used by serial sex offenders across crime series

Deslauriers‐Varin¹,

Beauregard²

2014

Journal of Criminal Justice

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Purpose: Knowing sites used by serial sex offenders to commit their crimes is highly beneficial for criminal investigations. However, environmental choices of serial sex offenders remain unclear to this date. Considering the challenges these offenders pose to law enforcement, the study aims to identify sites serial sex offenders use to encounter and release their victims and investigate their stability across crime series. Methods: The study uses latent class analysis (LCA) to identify victim encounter and release sites used by 72 serial sex offenders having committed 361 sex offenses. Additional LCA are performed to investigate the stability of these offense environments across offenders' crime series. Results: Distinct profiles of crime sites that are recurrent across crime series are found, suggesting that serial sex offenders present a limited diversity of victim encounter and victim release sites. Encounter sites representative of longer crime series are also identified. Specifically, the use of sites known to "attract" potential victims decreases over series and offenders become more risk-taking in regard of sites used to encounter their victims. Conclusions: The study identifies patterns of site-selection for the victim encounter and release in cases of serial crimes. Implications for crime linkage and police investigations strategies are discussed.

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Section: Environmental Consistency and Serial Offendersmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Crime Patternmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consistency in crime site selection: An investigation of crime sites used by serial sex offenders across crime series

Deslauriers‐Varin¹,

Beauregard²

2014

Journal of Criminal Justice

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“…Research on geographical profi ling and environmental criminology have so far mainly revolved around journey-to-crime distances in cases of robbery, rape, and serial or sexual homicides (e.g. Beauregard, Proulx, & Rossmo, 2005;Rossmo, 2000). To our knowledge, there are no empirical studies made on specifi cally rural area single homicides or missing persons.…”

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confidence: 99%

Distance patterns and disposal sites in rural area homicides committed in Finland

Häkkänen

Hurme

Liukkonen

2007

Journal Invest Psychology

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“…The applicability of models of criminal spatial behaviour and, consequently, the efficacy of geographical profiling methods will, as Beauregard, Proulx and Rossmo (2005) discuss, be influenced by a wide range of environmental factors. These include; target backcloth; arterial roads and highways; boundaries (both psychological and physical); zoning (industrial, commercial, residential); land use (e.g., stores, bars, businesses); and neighbourhood demographics and characteristics (e.g.…”

Section: Geographical Profiling In a Novel Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographical profiling in a novel context: prioritising the search for New Zealand sex offfenders

Hammond

2013

Psychology, Crime & Law

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The present work examines the use and value of geographical offender profiling methodologies within a novel context, considering both theoretical and practical issues relating to their application.Two separate studies are presented. The first examined the effectiveness of a geographical profiling system (Dragnet) for a sample of 101 New Zealand sex offenders, comparing findings with those obtained for a U.K. serial rape sample. Search costs and search cost functions (relating proportions of the samples to the amounts by which the areas needing to be searched in order to locate offenders were reduced by the system) showed Dragnet to make significantly less accurate geographical profiling predictions for NZ offenders. It is argued that this is because the spatial behaviour of NZ offenders violates many of the assumptions that Dragnet and other similar geographical profiling systems rely upon.A second study then explored whether calibration of the geographical profiling system to the local context enhanced the accuracy of predictions made. A logarithmic function was found to provide the best fit to data on the distances travelled by the NZ sex offenders, and was consequently incorporated into the geographical profiling predictions made by Dragnet. However, the effectiveness of the system was not significantly enhanced as a result of this calibration process.The implications of these findings for the general utility of geographical profiling are discussed, and ways in which GP systems might be developed in order to broaden their scope and applicability are suggested.

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Spatial patterns of sex offenders: Theoretical, empirical, and practical issues

Cited by 82 publications

References 19 publications

Consistency in crime site selection: An investigation of crime sites used by serial sex offenders across crime series

Consistency in crime site selection: An investigation of crime sites used by serial sex offenders across crime series

Distance patterns and disposal sites in rural area homicides committed in Finland

Geographical profiling in a novel context: prioritising the search for New Zealand sex offfenders

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