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24 Homicide Stud. 3 (2020)

handle is hein.journals/homcst24 and id is 1 raw text is: 

Article

                                                                     Homicide Studies
                                                                  2020, Vol. 24(1) 3-24
The     Im   pact of Investigation                             ©2018 SAGE Publications
                                                                Article reuse guidelines:
Strategies and            Tactics on                      sagepub.com/journals-permissions
                                                          DOI: 10.1 177/1088767918816741
Hom      icide    Clearance                                journals.sagepub.com/home/hsx
                                                                       SAGE



Jesenia   M.  Pizarro',   William Terrill',
and   Charles A. LoFaso2




Abstract
This study examines whether changes made to the investigation procedures within the
Rochester  Police Department's homicide unit have an effect on homicide clearance
net of theoretically significant variables related to victim and police devaluation,
event characteristic, and victim lifestyle. It examines 132 homicides investigated by
the homicide  unit over 4 years consisting of the pre-intervention period and post-
intervention period. It is hypothesized that investigation tactics will affect the odds
of clearance, even after controlling for other theoretically relevant variables. The
findings support this hypothesis, suggesting that the approaches and tactics police
departments  implement within their investigative units are important.


Keywords
homicide, clearance, investigation, detectives



Introduction

The aftermath of a homicide event poses many negative consequences to the deceased's
family, friends, and society as a whole. Homicide often results in psychological dis-
tress experienced by the victim's family and friends (Armour, 2002). At the societal
level, some scholars estimate that the average cost per homicide is approximately
17.25 million dollars (DeLisi et al., 2010). When offenders are not apprehended, the
potential deterrent effect of sanctions is diminished (Braga & Dusseault, 2018) and


'Arizona State University, Phoenix, USA
2The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
Corresponding Author:
Jesenia M. Pizarro, Associate Professor, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State
University, Mail Code 4420, 411 N. Central Avenue, Suite 600, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA.
Email: Jesenia.Pizarro@asu.edu

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