Nonviolent Crimes Research Articles

White-Collar Crime. Does Punishment Deter Fraudulent Criminal Activity?

White collar crime is a non-violent crime, but it can have life-changing, catastrophic consequences that are very serious, nonetheless. A simple internet search on any online engine will reveal an abundance of information on white collar criminal activity that appears to be on the rise. Instead of decreasing data on this topic, there appears to be an increase in white collar crimes across the globe. There is a wide array of research that outline sanctions of past offenders that include community service to jail time. Many offenders will face minimal penalties such as community service and some high-profile offenders will not receive any punishment at all. This study will seek to examine the activity of white-collar criminals and whether the punishment for the behavior is an effective deterrent. It has been suggested by scholars and policymakers that white-collar criminals will be adversely affected by punishment and the analysis of this research will ascertain whether this theory is accurate.

A Time-Series Analysis of Contextual-Level Effects on Hate Crime in The Netherlands

AbstractNowadays, registered hate crimes are on the rise in many Western societies. What explains temporal variation in the incidence of hate crimes? Combining insights from the grievance model and the opportunity model, we study the role of three types of contextual factors: security (terrorism), media (news about terrorism and immigration), and political factors (speech by anti-immigration actors, hate speech prosecution, and high-profile anti-immigration victories). We apply time-series analysis to our original dataset of registered hate crimes in the Netherlands, 2015–2017 (N = 7,219). Findings indicate that terrorist attacks, (both print and online) news on refugees, immigration, and terrorism boost nonviolent hate crime. Similarly, news of the hate speech prosecution of Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders increases nonviolent crime as well. Tentative evidence points to a contagion effect of speech by anti-immigration actors. With regard to violent hate crime, only terrorist attacks had an effect. This effect was modest and only found in one of our models. Hence, the grievance and the opportunities model each partially explain nonviolent hate crime, although the security and media context seem most influential. Our findings help to identify the contextual factors contributing to a climate for hate and suggest that perceived threats play a key role.

Do psychopathic personality traits in childhood predict subsequent criminality and psychiatric outcomes over and above childhood behavioral problems?

PurposeWe investigated whether childhood psychopathic personality traits predicted subsequent self-reported and register-based criminality and psychiatric outcomes when childhood behavioral problems (conduct disorder [CD] and ADHD symptoms) were accounted for. MethodsIn the Child and Adolescent Twin Study in Sweden, parents rated their children's (n = 12,394) psychopathic personality traits, CD, and ADHD symptoms at age 9/12. We studied the risk for self-reported delinquency, problematic substance use, and anxiety/depression at age 18. The sample was also linked to nationwide registers where we studied suspicion of crimes, and diagnoses of substance use disorders and anxiety/depression up to age 21. ResultsChildhood psychopathic personality traits were associated with self-reported delinquency (β = 0.65, 95% CI: 0.41–0.90) and suspicions of violent (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.33, [1.23–1.45]) and non-violent (HR = 1.28, [1.22–1.36]) crimes. The estimates were attenuated, but remained elevated for delinquency and violent crimes after accounting for childhood behavioral problems. Psychopathic personality traits were associated with substance use problems and anxiety/depression, but these associations were mainly explained by childhood behavioral problems. ConclusionsPsychopathic personality traits were a risk marker for criminality and psychiatric outcomes, particularly in children with co-occurring behavioral problems. However, the independent contribution of psychopathic personality traits was modest at best, when behavioral problems were accounted for.

Examining the Association between Stuttering and Psychopathic Personality Traits, Nonviolent Crime, and Violent Crime

ABSTRACT A body of research has examined the consequences associated with stuttering and stammering and the results of these studies have identified a host of maladaptive outcomes that are relatively common for stutters. To date, however, there has not been research examining the potential association between stuttering and antisocial phenotypes. The current study addressed this gap in the literature by examining the connection between stuttering and psychopathic personality traits, involvement in acts of nonviolent crime, and involvement in acts of violent crime. Analyses of data drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) revealed consistent, albeit relatively small, significant associations between stuttering and the measures of antisocial phenotypes. These significant associations were detected for both males and females. The limitations of the study are discussed and future directions for research are offered.

Hot under the collar: A 14-year association between temperature and violent behavior across 436 U.S. counties

ObjectivesViolent behavior is influenced by individual and societal characteristics, but the role of environmental factors is less understood. Our aims were to use national-level data to identify the association between criminal behavior and short-term temperature conditions, including the departure of daily temperatures from normal conditions. MethodsWe conducted a multi-stage hierarchical time-series model across 436 U.S. counties and 14-years representing 100.4 million people to investigate the association between daily mean temperature and daily mean temperatures departing from normal conditions with violent and non-violent crime counts. First-stage comparisons were made within counties to control for population and geographic heterogeneities, while a second stage combined estimates. We evaluated differences in risk based on county sociodemographic characteristics and estimated non-linear exposure-response relationships. ResultsWe observed a total of 9.0 million violent crimes and 20.9 million non-violent property crimes between 2000 through 2013. We estimated that each 10 °C increase in daily temperature or daily departure from long-term normal temperatures were associated with 11.92% (95% PI: 11.57, 12.27) and 10.37% (95% PI: 10.05, 10.69) increase in the risk of violent crime, respectively. Similar, but lower in magnitude trends, were observed for property crime risks. We found that crime risk plateaus and decreases at high daily temperatures, but for temperatures departing from normal, the association with crime increased linearly. Seasonal variations showed that anomalously warm temperatures days during cool months had the greatest risk. ConclusionsOur study revealed an association between higher temperatures and high departure from normal temperatures with both violent and non-violent crime risk, regardless of community-type. However, our findings on seasonal and daily trends suggest that daily mean temperature may impact crime by affecting routine activities and behavior, as opposed to a temperature-aggression relationship. These results may advance public response and planning to prevent violent behavior.

CRIME AND FISCAL POLICY IN EUROPE: THE EFFECT OF SHADOW ECONOMY

We empirically investigate the role of fiscal policies on criminal activity using a sample of 25 EU countries over the period 2000–2013. Our analysis indicates that tight fiscal policies appear to have a positive effect on crime. This effect becomes stronger when property (non-violent) crime rates are considered. Further, the presence of high levels of shadow economy in a country provides a very strong mitigating factor on the adverse effect of public policies on crime. The initially strong link between tight fiscal policy and non-violent crime weakens significantly in the presence of undocumented economic activities which compensate for the lack of formal economic opportunities.

The Death of George Floyd: Bending the Arc of History Toward Justice for Generations of Children.

* Abbreviations: COVID-19 — : coronavirus disease 2019 PART — : Pediatricians Against Racism and Trauma We have seen the horrifying cell phone and surveillance video footage of the murder of George Floyd replay again and again in the last few weeks. The aftermath begs the question why this particular murder of a Black man by a police officer has sparked the international response so few have received.1 Scores of other Black men, women, and children have been killed by police since the 2014 murder of Eric Garner in New York City, in which he suffered an illegal chokehold and uttered the devastating refrain “I can’t breathe,” and countless others have been murdered over generations. These cases represent just the tip of the iceberg because these murders happened to be recorded on bystander cell phone video or police webcam capture. Moreover, it is the tip of another iceberg because these cases represent modern-day lynchings. The lynching of Black people in the United States was routine before the “civil rights era,” when there were major legal advances to change the treatment of Black Americans in this country. However, it was not until February 2020 that federal legislation, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, was passed by the House of Representatives but is still … Address correspondence to Benard P. Dreyer, MD, FAAP, Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, New York University Grossman School of Medicine and Department of Pediatrics, Bellevue Hospital Center, 550 First Ave, New York, NY 10016. E-mail: benard.dreyer{at}nyulangone.org

30.H. Workshop: Women and prison: vulnerability and overlapping health needs of women in prison worldwide

Abstract Women constitute a small proportion of prison populations worldwide (2%-9%) with imprisonment rates ranging from 3.2 per 100,000 women inhabitants in Africa up to 31.4 in the Americas. These figures reflect the that the tendency for women to commit less crimes and receive more lenient sentences than men, as many judges consider the social costs of sentencing women to prison too high. Yet, globally, the number of women in prison has increased by more than 50% between 2000 and 2017, compared to a 20% increase in men. Data on other gender minorities in prison, such as transgender people, are scarce if available at all. Women tend to be sentenced for different crimes than men. These are primarily non-violent crimes, including drug law offences. Worldwide the proportion of women in prison for drug-related offences is 35% compared to 19% that of men. Women in prison have complex social and health profiles often characterised by suboptimal access to healthcare services. Many have lived since childhood in socially disadvantaged contexts and experienced multiple traumas, including sexual abuse and deteriorated families. The cumulative effect of these adverse childhood and adulthood events may be determinant risk factors influencing their criminal pathway and health related issues. Because of these overlapping vulnerabilities women in prison have high rates of mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorders, depression, self-harm and substance use disorders. Furthermore, women in prison are more likely to engage in risky behaviours, including sex work and injecting drug use and suffer from higher burden of infectious diseases, including HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and syphilis as compared to men in prison and the general female population. Targeted interventions are needed to address health needs of women both inside prison and after release. The main objective of this workshop is to present the health status of women in prison across the globe, highlighting the main health-related issues, the existing challenges and the available evidence for interventions. Despite large regional differences in social, cultural, political and legal contexts of different countries, at global level there are many similarities in the health profile and needs of women who are imprisoned and in the impact of their incarceration. At start, a survey will be conducted using an e-voting poll with two main aims: getting to know the audience better and fostering engagement with the audience. In anticipation of different levels of expertise and interest on the topic, a brief overview of the WHO/UNODC guidance on women's health in prison will also be provided to the audience. The workshop will be structured in 4 presentations of 15 minutes each. Together, they present data on a variety of regions and populations, and will provide participants with an overview of prison health in women at global level. Presentations will be followed by a moderated questions and answers session. Key messages Globally, women in prison represent a small but extremely vulnerable population groups with complex and specific health needs, often not adequately addressed. We call for heightened global attention to the health needs of women in prison, and to a multidisciplinary approach including health, psychological and social approach.

Narcissism: Groundwork for Sectarian Misdemeanors

In DSM-5, the sector of ‘Other Conditions That May Be a Focus of Clinical Attention’, has discussed about cults. The said section covers all conditions and problems that are a focus of clinical attention or that may otherwise affect the diagnosis, course, prognosis, or treatment of a patient's mental disorder. While cults are usually led by charismatic leaders, who offer acceptance and guidance to troubled followers, cult followers are strongly controlled and forced to dissolve commitment to family and others to serve the cult leader's directives and personal needs. On the other hand, there were many cult leaders, who have been convicted of violent or non-violent crimes, as a commander or committer, before, during or after their period as a cult leader. While many bio-psycho-social factors involve in the grouping and formation of sects or cults, numerous dynamics, too, may prepare the group’s state of mind for perpetrating crime. Among a number of conceivable historical, cultural, or radical causes, while psychopathy, at all times, have had a firm position in forensic psychiatry, narcissism, whether as a primary trait or as a misleadingly stirred quality, have been generally over looked. Interrelationship between narcissism and psychopathy, from one hand, and the scarce set of circumstances, on the other hand, may create a situation, full of mix-ups, which can be continued melancholically and hazardously. In the present article, the likely role of narcissism, among numerous mechanisms that may involve in establishment of sectarian misbehavior, will be discussed in more detail. Keywords: Cult; Sect; Narcissism; Psychopathy; Crime

Crime Victimization Increases Turnout: Evidence from Individual-Level Administrative Panel Data

AbstractWhat are the consequences of being the victim of crime for political participation? Previous studies report mixed results with respect to voter turnout, in contrast to the positive effects found for other indicators of political engagement. However, previous turnout studies have failed to differentiate between violent and non-violent crime, and have relied on cross-sectional survey data that is prone to measurement biases and selection effects. This article addresses these shortcomings via a panel analysis of official registry data from Denmark recording individual-level turnout in two municipal elections (in 2009 and 2013) and victimization from violent and non-violent crime. It identifies the effect of victimization by comparing changes in turnout between the two elections for victims and two different counterfactual groups: non-victims in the general population, and individuals who were victimized after the 2013 election. The results show that victimization from violent crime increases turnout by 2 to 3 percentage points. The study further demonstrates a large negative between-individual effect of victimization, suggesting that previous studies have been marred by severe selection bias.

COVID-19 as a Frying Pan: The Promise and Perils of Pandemic-driven Reform.

: The imposition of new regulations can send industries scrambling to comply, fostering innovation in doing so. How we police and treat people with opioid use disorder (OUD), with recent widespread social unrest in reaction to police violence and systemic racism bringing the need for lasting structural changes to our justice system and social services into especially acute relief. Arbitrary laws and counterproductive policies previously subject to only incremental reform have given way to sweeping changes: people convicted of nonviolent drug crimes have been released from jails and prisons, the enforcement of drug laws has been cast aside as a priority, and the regulations surrounding addiction treatment medications and treating patients with OUD have been greatly loosened. These are changes many practitioners and advocates have sought for years if not decades, but they come with the reality that the old systems are culturally entrenched and likely to be resilient. It is critical that researchers evaluate these changes and synthesize the results with existing evidence in ways that empower efforts to make the most effective responses permanent. The COVID-19 pandemic makes for a challenging research environment, but its OUD-related interventions have created new regulatory systems that lend themselves to valuable opportunities for evaluation as natural experiments by the burgeoning field of legal epidemiology.

A Review of the Reality of Violent Offending and the Administration of Justice

Policy makers have recently been exploring methods to reduce incarceration. Most current proposals for reducing incarceration exclude people in prison who were convicted of violent crimes. This article considers violence exclusion from criminal justice reform by examining a sample released from New Jersey’s prisons ( n = 375). We assess the hidden nature of the violence in the crime through a review of the characteristics behind the criminal label, with particular focus on the displayed aggravation and mitigation. Postrelease outcomes for this sample are compared with a sample released for nonviolent crimes ( n = 1,185). Findings reveal people released for violent offenses frequently display mitigation, as opposed to aggravation. Those released for violent crimes are less likely to be rearrested than those released on nonviolence. The degree of severity of the violence itself has no bearing on the risk of rearrest. Accordingly, policy reform for those convicted of violence is considered.

Differentiating Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence From Other Violent Offenders Using a Statistical Learning Model: The Role of Cognition and Life History Variables.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a widespread crime that victimizes over 4-million women per year in the United States and results in significant monetary cost and unmeasured physical and psychological consequences for victims. Specialized IPV offender treatment programs demonstrate limited effectiveness, which may be due to an insufficient understanding of the factors that differentiate between IPV perpetrators and non-IPV violent offenders. In this study, we utilized classification and regression tree (CART) analysis to identify combinations of factors that best discriminate IPV perpetrators from non-IPV violent offenders. We also compared cognitive abilities between IPV perpetrators and non-IPV violent offenders using standardized neurocognitive tests. CART analysis presented two pathways for identifying offenders as IPV perpetrators: (a) extensive nonviolent criminal history and (b) moderate-to-severe expression of interpersonal traits of psychopathy without attentional deficits. In addition, a third pathway identified non-IPV violent offenders: (c) low levels of interpersonal psychopathic traits and no history of neurodevelopmental diagnosis. IPV perpetrators demonstrated intact cognition relative to test norms, and study groups did not significantly differ on cognitive performance. These findings suggest that individuals with multiple arrests for nonviolent crime or individuals with interpersonal traits of psychopathy without attentional difficulties may be at enhanced risk for IPV perpetration.

Implications of sex offender classification on reporting demographic characteristics, health, and criminal careers: results from an Australian jurisdiction

BackgroundCross-sectional and retrospective offence data are often used to classify sex offenders in epidemiological and survey research, but little empirical evidence exists regarding the practical implications of this for applied research. This study describes the classification of sex offenders from a cohort of prisoners recruited as part of an Australian inmate health survey and the implications for reporting results.MethodsData-linkage was used to join the New South Wales (NSW) Inmate Health Surveys to the states re-offending database to identify men with histories of sexual offending. Sex offenders were classified into men who sexually offended against children only (ChildSOs), against adults only (AdultSOs), and men who sexually offended against both children and adults (Age-PolySOs).ResultsUsing historical offending data rather than the current offence information only, an additional 35.4% of men with histories of sexual offences were identified. Differences were found between the three sex offender subgroups in terms of demographic characteristics, health, and criminal careers. Age-PolySOs reported higher educational attainment, were less likely to report being self-employed, single marital status, and having children. Half the ChildSOs self-reported a mental health issue and half of the ChildSOs and Age-PolySOs reported four or more chronic health conditions. Age-PolySOs were older than the other sex offender groups when committing their first non-sexual, non-violent crime (M = 43.2 years, SD = 13.8); violent crime (M = 39.5 years, SD = 11.1); and sexual crime (M = 47.8 years, SD = 11.2). Age-PolySOs also committed more sexual offences (M = 5.91, SD = 11.2) compared to those who only offended against one victim age group.ConclusionThese findings suggested that historical offending records should be used to more accurately identify sex offender subgroups and that differences in demographic, health, and criminal careers exist for the different sex offender subgroups.

Impact of methadone treatment initiated in jail on subsequent arrest

BackgroundThere are limited data from randomized trials about the impact of starting methadone treatment in jail on subsequent arrest after release for adults with opioid use disorder (OUD). MethodsOfficial arrest records were obtained for 212 participants with OUD who were enrolled in a three-group randomized controlled trial of initiating methadone treatment in jail either with or without patient navigation vs. enhanced treatment-as-usual in Baltimore, Maryland. Participants treated for opioid withdrawal in jail were assigned to: 1) interim methadone (IM) with patient navigation (PN; IM + PN); 2) IM without PN (IM); or 3) enhanced treatment-as-usual (ETAU). Participants in both IM groups were able to continue treatment at a community-based methadone treatment program with counseling upon release, while ETAU participants received overdose information and a city-wide treatment assessment/referral number. Likelihood of arrest, time to first subsequent arrest, and severity of arrest charges in the 12 months following release were examined for: 1) combined IM + PN and IM groups compared to ETAU; and 2) IM + PN compared to IM. ResultsWithin 12 months of release from the index incarceration, 50.5% of the sample had been arrested. The majority of arrest charges (71%) were for low-level, nonviolent crimes. On an intention-to-treat basis, there were no significant differences between the combined IM + PN and IM groups vs. ETAU or IM + PN vs. IM in the likelihood of arrest, time to first subsequent arrest, or severity of arrest charges. ConclusionInitiating IM with or without PN during pretrial detention did not have a significant effect on subsequent arrest during a 12-month post-release follow-up compared to not starting methadone maintenance during detention, despite the high rate of methadone treatment entry in the community following release. This finding may be attributable to the considerable attrition from treatment in the community or other systematic factors. Additional interventions may be needed to reduce the likelihood of subsequent arrest.

The long goodbye of Marca España: affect, politics and modernity in Marta Sanz’s crime novels

ABSTRACTHalfway between a paean to Spain’s accelerated modernization and prosperity and an overcompensating denial of its economic implosion in 2008, Marca España is the state-sponsored initiative to promote a positive image of Spain as an international brand. Marta Sanz’s noir writing locates the instances of the violence that lay the foundation for that triumphant representation. Her work is both a tribute to Raymond Chandler’s noir model and its dismantling within a peripheral modernity. This essay asks whether the deployment of noir tropes allows for the critical examination of social attitudes toward the socially vulnerable, or if, on the contrary, it betrays a desire to belong to an imaginary global middle class. Where natural and man-made spaces, both traditional and modern, bear the inscription of a nondemocratic global market, how does crime fiction hierarchize, negotiate and/or articulate affect, economy and politics? I claim that within the conventions of noir, Sanz speaks to the economic nonviolent crime upon which Marca España is founded.

Reprint of "Executive dysfunction, violence and aggression"

Abstract Executive Functio1ns (EFs) is an umbrella expression used for several processes and subprocesses encompassing goal-oriented behavior and decision-making strategies. However, the extent to which impaired EFs relate to and characterize different types of criminal behavior and aggressiveness is not clear. Similarly, research on the association between EFs and psychopathy has also produced mixed findings. The failure to disaggregate between different types of crime and antisocial individuals can impede the identification of specific neurocognitive mechanisms associated with crime. We reviewed the extent to which EFs (according to Miyake latent variable analysis) are associated with violent and non-violent crime, impulsive and premeditated aggression as well as psychopathic traits. Findings, although nonconsensual, suggest a more nuanced view on the association between EFs and crime, suggesting that different executive domains might be more compromised in violent and impulsive individuals, and specific psychopathy facets are more associated with executive dysfunction and criminality. Studies in line with this approach will allow offenders to benefit from intervention strategies that will address their specific deficits, optimizing their EFs and contributing to better cognitive management in demanding and complex situations, such as criminal and violent deterrence.

The Effect of Remittances on Crime in India

Abstract There is a well-established literature that finds a strong causal association between remittance flows and economic growth and poverty. Owing to the poverty-alleviating and income-generating effects of remittances, it may theoretically reduce crime by increasing the opportunity cost of committing crime. This paper studies the effects of remittance receipts on crime outcomes in India. The identification strategy, exploits the variation in rainfall as an instrument for remittance receipts. The results suggest that remittance receipts have a negative effect on violent crimes and a positive effect on nonviolent crimes. Since remittance flows mean that more economic resources are available, remittances provide an incentive for certain crimes that thrive in the presence of economic resources. Therefore, an important implication of this result is that as remittance receipts increase income and welfare, there is a diverse effect on the costs and benefits of different types of crimes. It may result in unfavorable outcomes in the form of increases in certain nonviolent crimes.

Executive dysfunction, violence and aggression

Abstract Executive Functions (EFs) is an umbrella expression used for several processes and subprocesses encompassing goal-oriented behavior and decision-making strategies. However, the extent to which impaired EFs relate to and characterize different types of criminal behavior and aggressiveness is not clear. Similarly, research on the association between EFs and psychopathy has also produced mixed findings. The failure to disaggregate between different types of crime and antisocial individuals can impede the identification of specific neurocognitive mechanisms associated with crime. We reviewed the extent to which EFs (according to Miyake latent variable analysis) are associated with violent and non-violent crime, impulsive and premeditated aggression as well as psychopathic traits. Findings, although nonconsensual, suggest a more nuanced view on the association between EFs and crime, suggesting that different executive domains might be more compromised in violent and impulsive individuals, and specific psychopathy facets are more associated with executive dysfunction and criminality. Studies in line with this approach will allow offenders to benefit from intervention strategies that will address their specific deficits, optimizing their EFs and contributing to better cognitive management in demanding and complex situations, such as criminal and violent deterrence.

Comparison of suicide risk and other outcomes among boys and girls who self-harm

Little is known about sex differences in outcomes of self-harm, and there are inconclusive results concerning the association between sex, self-harm, and suicide attempts. The aim of this study was to explore sex differences in outcomes of self-harm in adolescence. In this cohort study, all individuals (0–17 years) enrolled at the child- and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in Stockholm between 2001 and 2015 (N = 110,072) were followed in national registers from their last contact with the CAMHS, until end of 2015. Exposure was self-harm as reason for contact, outcome measures were: alcohol-/substance use disorder, psychiatric hospitalization, non-violent or violent crime, and suicide. Differences in outcomes rates between exposed versus unexposed males, and exposed versus unexposed females, were examined using Cox regressions, expressed as hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Median follow-up time was 5.8 years (Q1: 2.3 years; Q3: 9.7 years). Self-harm was documented in 2.2% (N = 1241) males and 8.7% (4716) females. Exposed individuals had higher HR for all outcomes as compared with unexposed individuals of their own sex. Exposed females had more pronounced risk for drug use disorder (HR 11.2; 95% CI 9.9–12.7) compared with exposed males (HR 6.5, 95% 5.2–8.0). Both males and females who had engaged in self-harm had elevated risks for future suicide. Adjusting for socio-economic status and age at start of follow-up only marginally affected the associations. Females and males with self-harm had similarly elevated risk for suicide, and self-harm was also an important risk marker for other adverse outcomes within both sexes.