The Distribution of Criminal Offenses in an Urban Environment

A Spatial Analysis of Criminal Spillovers and of Juvenile Offenders

Bibliographic Data

ID2804634
AuthorsRichard Fabrikant (University of Denver, corresponding author)
Year1979
Volume38
Issue1
Pages31-47
Publication date1979-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Economics and Sociology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9246 • E-ISSN: 1536-7150
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/j.1536-7150.1979.tb02858.x
OpenAlexW2063227888
LanguageEN
Citations received9
References cited14

In order to derive a basis for an optimal allocation of police manpower among contiguous communities criminal spillovers among these communities must be explicitly taken into account. Under the assumptions established in the economic theory of choice a criminal spillovers model is derived. The hypothesized variables within this model which serve as motivating factors for criminal spillovers are economic gain and competitive criminal pressures. Those factors which deter criminal spillovers are costs of committing offenses and the relative risks in committing crimes in distant communities. The model is then tested using data on juvenile offenders supplied by the City of Los Angeles, for the crimes of robbery, burglary and larceny. The results suggest that on an aggregate basis juvenile criminal behavior is not purely opportunistic and that certain control and motivating factors are significant in the juvenile's judgments for the spatial selection of offense targets

Biology · Criminal behavior · Criminology · Economics · Juvenile · Juvenile delinquency · Order (exchange) · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Crime, Illicit Activities, and Governance · Ecology · Law, Economics, and Judicial Systems · Psychology

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