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NCJ 217152
Katie Willis
Armed Robbery: Who Commits it and Why?
Australian Institute of Criminology
Research on armed robbery indicates that there are two main types of armed robbers: (1) professional robbers who plan their robberies, target high risk commercial establishments, use firearms more frequently, and work in groups; and (2) amateur or opportunistic robbers who do not plan their robberies, target low risk victims, do not typically use firearms, and work independently. Trend analysis suggests that the type of armed robber targeting high risk establishments, such as banks, and the manner they carry out their crime may be changing. Target hardening strategies, such as using security screens and security guards, has reduced the risk of robbery for certain high risk establishments. Such target hardening strategies may be causing professional robbers to turn to more easily obtained sources of illicit income, leaving opportunistic and amateur robbers to try their hand at high risk targets such as banks. There is also evidence that establishments traditionally targeted by professional robbers are now being targeted by a new type of offender characterized as drug involved, desperate, and volatile. Motivations to offend generally revolve around the need to finance illicit drugs. Research also indicates that many armed robbers consume drugs or alcohol prior to their offense. The sociodemographic characteristics of armed robbers are reviewed, which indicate that the majority of armed robbers are male and are younger than 30 years of age. Most armed robbers convicted in Australia and the United Kingdom are of European decent. Australian research indicates that injuries to victims caused by firearms are relatively infrequent compared with other weapon types. The presence of more than one armed robber and the use of alcohol by the offender are linked to increase risk of victim injury. Figures, table, references
NCJ 217175
Michelle Carney ; Fred Buttell ; Don Dutton
Women Who Perpetrate Intimate Partner Violence: A Review of the Literature with Recommendations for Treatment
Aggression and Violent Behavior Volume:12 Issue:1 Dated:January-Febraury 2007 Pages:108 to 115
Female perpetrated abuse in intimate relationships is at least as common as male abuse. Contrary to early socio-political explanations, which proposed that women’s use of aggression reflected primarily, or solely, self-defense strategies in response to male initiated abuse, women are known to commit unilateral abuse. This suggests that many couples in treatment for partner abuse and perhaps slightly fewer who come into contact with the criminal justice system require services that address the perpetration and victimization needs of both partners. Female domestic violence offenders share many of the same characteristics as male offenders, including similar motives and psycho-social characteristics. This improved understanding of the etiology of women’s aggression has begun to shape interventions for domestically violent women. More treatment evaluation research is needed in order to reconceptualize partner abuse treatment for use with female abusers. However, when evaluating male and female abusers, professionals should consider risk factors common to general violence, as well as possible intervention needs of both partners. Although the prevalence and consequences of male violence directed towards women in intimate relationships has been well established, the research on violent women in intimate relationships is far less developed. References
NCJ 217094
Denise C. Gottfredson ; Brook W. Kearley ; Stacy S. Najaka ; Carlos M. Rocha
How Drug Treatment Courts Work: An Analysis of Mediators
Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency Volume:44 Issue:1 Dated:February 2007 Pages:3 to 35
The findings show that participation in DTC increased the number of judicial hearings attended, which directly reduced drug use and indirectly reduced crime. Participation in the DTC increased social controls for participants both directly and indirectly by increasing the duration of drug treatment and monitoring. Data for this study were obtained from the Baltimore City (Maryland) DTC, which was established in 1994. Clients generally entered the drug court program as a condition of probation after regular court processing. Those referred to DTC were required to be at least 18 years old and not have any convictions for violent offenses. An assessment determined a potential participant's motivation and need for treatment. If the assessor recommended a person for the DTC, he/she participated in program elements that involved intensive supervision, drug testing, drug treatment, and judicial monitoring over a period of approximately 2 years. The evaluation of the Baltimore DTC used an experimental research design. Between February 1997 and August 1998, 235 clients were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions: program participation (n=139) and regular probation (n=96). A total of 157 participants were interviewed 3 years after the evaluation began. They were administered instruments that determined criminal offenses committed, drug use, and the frequency of multiple-drug use. Also measured were the number of days of drug treatment, days of drug testing, days of probation, the number of status hearings attended, and the days of suspended sentence. 7 tables, 1 figure, 6 notes, and 55 references
NCJ 217157
Dawn Moore
Translating Justice and Therapy: The Drug Treatment Court Networks
British Journal of Criminology Volume:47 Issue:1 Dated:January 2007 Pages:42 to 60
The drug treatment courts (DTCs) are assembled networks in which therapeutic and legal knowledges are exchanged among the different personnel rendering the courts spaces of both justice and therapy. Participation in the network allows the actors to maintain their old interests but redefine them so as to have them met through the technologies and practices of the DTC. Through the translation in the DTCs, cure and control becomes synonymous. The courts are recruited in the progressive project of curing addiction. DTCs maintain the same old practices of justice and punishment, only now they are known by different names. Detention translates into therapy; a warrant is now an incentive and appearance in a criminal court a chance to process a drug-use relapse. Drug treatment courts are part of a broader phenomenon born out of a theoretical movement called therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ). TJ is applied to all kinds of legal practices in which a crossover between law and therapy is possible. TJ that does center on the courtroom however offers accounts of courtroom dynamics and reforms to legal processes that mandate the interplay of legal and psy knowledges (coming from psychiatry, psychology and social work). The DTC arm of TJ is popular throughout the United States and is expanding globally. This paper maps out the knowledge exchanges between law and psy in the two DTCs operating in Canada: Toronto and Vancouver. Courtroom observations were conducted from 2003 to 2006 in both courts, as well as interviews with key practitioners in both settings. References
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