THE EFFECT OF LONGITUDINAL ARREST PATTERNS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ROBBERY TRENDS AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD LEVEL *

Although the current resurgence of ecological deterrence research has addressed many of the methodological and theoretical problems of earlier studies, the question concerning the appropriate level of aggregation for such models has not been resolved. In this paper, we argue that there is strong evidence in the criminological literature that the neighborhood is the most meaningful level of aggregation for such studies. However, in an analysis of robbery incidents and arrests over 100 weeks in five Oklahoma City neighborhoods we did not find any significant support for the deterrent effect of arrests on subsequent illegal behavior. We propose that the lack of such a relationship reflects periods of short-term equilibrium in the local community, during which the levels of crime and arrests are relatively stabilized.     

Social democratic parties and EC integration

Abstract. This paper presents evidence of initial steps taken since 1989 towards the enhancement of social democratic transnational party co-operation, manifesting itself on both a programmatic and an organizational level. To explain this development, a thesis based on the neo-functionalist logic of political spillover together with a theory of party change is presented. An emerging European-level presence is explained by increased EC policymaking since the adoption of the Single European Act, interacting with the internal preconditions for organizational innovation present in many social democratic parties. Evidence of such trends is then submitted, focusing on the French Socialist, German Social-Democratic and British Labour Parties; the European Parliament Socialist Group; and the Socialist transnational party federation.     

A COMPARISON OF DELINQUENCY TRENDS

Comparative data are presented assessing trends in the juvenile crime rates for Japan and the United States over the past decade. Both court and arrest records show that the rate of juvenile crime has increased substantially in the United States while remaining essentially stable in Japan. The analyses demonstrate that this conclusion holds even when appropriate controls are introduced for the age groups involved. Suggestions are made for future research that might explain the differences reported for the two nations.     

Effects of Reducing Judicial Sentencing Discretion

This article uses a nationwide sample of state criminal cases to show the effects of reducing judicial sentencing discretion on disparities across rural-urban, southern-northern, black-white, and poor-nonpoor defendants. Judicial sentencing discretion is defined as the ratio between (1) the range in years within which a judge is allowed to sentence, and (2) the minimum number of years the judge must give when there is no probation. The data do indicate specific differences in sentencing between states of high judicial discretion and those of low judicial discretion, and the relationship of these disparities to discrimination is discussed.     

ALIENATION IN PRISON

This article focuses on alienation among prison guards by examining the nature of the work relations between guards and fellow guards, inmates, and prison administrators. Data for the project were derived from both questionnaire and interview sources. The independent effects of the three forms of work relations on five types of alienation were assessed through an examination of standardized regression coefficients estimated from a fully recursive model of the variable relationships. We found that negative evaluations of work relations resulted in increased levels of alienation experienced by guards.     

STRUCTURAL SOURCES OF VARIATION IN RACE-AGE-SPECIFIC RATES OF OFFENDING ACROSS MAJOR U.S. CITIES*

Recently, much attention has been focused on the structural determinants of variations in crime rates across U.S. cities. Virtually all research in this area has utilized aggregate reported offense rates as the dependent variable. While it provides a good indicator of the total volume of crime, the aggregate crime rate suffers two major disadvantages-it obscures individual- and aggregate-level effects, and it does not allow testing of criminological theory which specifies differential effects of economic variables (for example, poverty, inequality) on offending rates for various population subgroups (for example, black adults, white adults). The present study addresses these issues by examining the economic determinants of age, race, and crime-specific offending rates for a sample of the nation's largest cities. The overall results suggest that income inequality has a direct positive effect on black offending rates for serious crime, whereas black poverty has no effect. In contrast, white poverty has positive effects on white violence, while inequality significantly increases white robbery and burglary. The implications of findings for recent theoretical developments of conflict and relative deprivation theory are assessed.     

CRIME AS HAZARD: PERCEPTIONS OF RISK AND SERIOUSNESS*

The study of crime suffers from an inattention to the social consequences of criminal acts. Conceiving crimes within the larger context of “hazard,” data are reported on the relative seriousness of conventional and white-collar crimes, as well as other hazards, using a sample of Washington state respondents. The results indicate that there is an inverse relationship between the perceived likelihood of a hazard and its seriousness. Generally, the more immediate the threat of a hazard, such as white-collar crimes, the more serious it is perceived to be. There are also implications from these consequences for perceptions of institutional effectiveness and interpersonal relationships. This suggests that future studies of the consequences of criminality, especially white-collar and corporate violations, might be directed toward the notions of risk and, eventually, social trust.     

Rolling the Dice: How Many Occurrences Have Occurred?

The insurance litigation that followed from the World Trade Center tragedy has produced two decisions. The two decisions are diametrically opposed. First, the court found that for those insurance policies that contained a definition of the policy term “occurrence,” the collapse of the two buildings constituted a single occurrence. SR International Business Insurance Co., Ltd. v. World Trade Center Properties LLC, et al., 222 F. Supp. 2d 385 (S.D.N.Y. 2002), aff'd, World Trade Center Properties, LLC, et al. v. Hartford Fire Insurance Co., et al., 345 F.3d 154 (2d Cir. 2003). Then, after a trial involving those policies that did not define the term “occurrence,” the jury held that the collapse of the two buildings constituted two occurrences. This incongruous result demonstrates two truths. First, when the insurance industry wants to, it can define the term ‘occurrence’ in a totally unambiguous manner:

Occurrence shall mean all losses or damages that are attributable directly or indirectly to one cause or to one series of similar causes. All such losses will be added together and the total amount of such losses will be treated as one occurrence irrespective of the period of time or area over which such losses occur.

See WilProp form insurance policy for the World Trade Center, cited at 345 F.3d at 160.