The criminal histories of serious traffic offenders: Home Office research study 206

Those Who Do Big Bad Things also Usually Do Little Bad Things: Identifying Active Serious Offenders Using Offender Self-Selection

“…Second, two visitor offenders issued with Vehicle Defect Rectification Notices (VDR) were also found to have offending histories -one being a known 'active' burglar. Lastly, one visitor arrested for driving whilst disqualified had committed this same offence three times in the past, suggesting that perhaps a significant number of those committing this offence are inclined do so persistently, as was found in a previous study of traffic offending (Rose, 2000).…”

“…A study of serious traffic offenders found that those committing offences repeatedly, were also the most likely to commit mainstream crime, with drink drivers twice as likely to possess a criminal record as the average member of the public (Rose, 2000). Indications are that using specific road traffic offences as triggers for increased police attention/investigation often pays off in the identification of more serious offending (see also Wellsmith & Guille, 2005).…”

Vehicle-related crime and the gender gap

“…Other support is exemplified by Rose (2000) who found that convicted drink-drivers were twice as likely, and disqualified or dangerous drivers four times as likely, as the general population to have a criminal record for mainstream offending.…”

“…These are often treated as minor victimless offences by the courts but they may have far-reaching implications, as when people are injured or killed by 'hit-and-run' drivers (a growing problem in England and the United States) who cannot be traced through insurance, registration or driver licence records. Strong links have been found between involvement in unlicensed driving and other kinds of car crime and mainstream offending (Broughton, 2006;Rose, 2000), and it is encouraging that considerable financial government support is being lent to a national roll-out in Britain of ANPR (automated number plate recognition) teams and equipment (DfT, 2005) that can be extremely successful in detecting licence and insurance defaulters.…”

“…) and there are links between vehicle-related and mainstream offending (e.g. Rose, 2000;Broughton, 2006). If these were not sufficient grounds to justify more criminological concern, then the harm and distress caused to victims and the bereaved is no less when resulting from a road collision than from off-road incidents, and may in some senses be worse (RoadPeace, 2002).…”