About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 Anita D. Timrota & Michael R. Rand, Violent Crime by Strangers and Nonstrangers 1 (1987)

handle is hein.death/vcstrgn0001 and id is 1 raw text is: U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report Violent Crime by Strangers and Non strangers By Anita D. Timrots and Michael R. Rand BJS Statisticians Results from the National Crime Sur- vey (NCS) indicate that between 1982 and 1984 less than half of all violent crimes were committed by total stran- gers. Another 11% of the violent crimes were committed by persons known to the victim by sight only. An additional 31% were committed by ac- quaintances and friends, and 8%, by rel- atives. Other findings include: 9 Among violent crimes, robbery was most likely to be committed by a stran- ger; homicide, least likely. 9 Most violent crimes by strangers (70%) were committed against males; most crimes by relatives (77%) were committed against females. * Spouses or ex-spouses committed over half of all crimes by relatives and about two-thirds of all crimes by relatives against women. e Crimes by strangers were more often committed by two or more offenders than were crimes by nonstrangers. e Stranger-to-stranger crimes more often involved a weapon but less often resulted in an attack than nonstranger crimes. Crimes by relatives involved an attack and injury more often than crimes by either strangers or acquain- tances. * Of those injured, victims of stranger crimes and victims of crimes by ac- quaintances were more likely to require January 1987 It is often said that the fear of crime is largely a fear of stran- gers. As this Special Report indicates, while almost half of all violent crimes are committed by total strangers, almost 40% occur among friends, acquaintances, or relatives, including spouses or ex- spouses. This report, based upon data from the National Crime Survey for 1982 through 1984, ex- pands our knowledge of the nature and extent of crime by strangers and by nonstrangers. It can assist policymakers as they seek to con- trol not only street crime but also the violence among friends, neighbors, and family members that disrupts the lives of so many of our citizens. Steven R. Schlesinger Director medical attention than victims of crimes committed by relatives. Introduction Although crime is often discussed as a single entity, crimes committed by strangers differ in many ways from crimes committed by nonstrangers. This report highlights some of the dif- ferences in the characteristics of the victims, the offenders, and the crimes themselves. For this report, three basic victim- offender relationships were examined: stranger-to-stranger crimes, crimes committed by friends or acquaintances, and crimes committed by relatives. Crimes by strangers refer to those committed by total strangers, in which the assailant was completely unknown to the victim, and to those in whicP the assailant was known only by sight. Nonstranger crimes refer to those com- mitted by friends, acquaintances, or relatives. Past studies and evidence from the NCS indicate that violence involving nonstrangers, particularly relatives,2 may be underreported in the survey. Individuals victimized by relatives may be reluctant to discuss the event, espe- cially if the offender is present at the interview, for fear of reprisal or out of shame or embarrassment. Further, some victims of domestic violence may not perceive these acts as criminal. Consequently, the results reported here may underestimate crimes by persons known to the victim and therefore overestimate the proportion of crimes committed by strangers. Victim-offender relationship Of the violent crimes measured by the NCS-rape, robbery, and assault-- 46% were committed by total stran- gers. Another 11% were committed by persons known to the victim by sight only; 31% were committed by acquain- 1Offenders were considered to be known by sight only if the victim never said more than hello to the offender. 2A 1971 reverse records check in San Jose found that known victims of violent crime by a relative reported the incident to a survey interviewer only 22% of the time. Crimes by acquaintances were reported 58% of the time; crimes by strangers, 75% of the time. See also Surveying Crime National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C., 1976. - C 'P '

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most