Crime Analysis Techniques and Applications

Crime Analysis

• Crime analysts use qualitative and quantitative methods and sociodemographic/spatial/temporal information
• Crime analysis helps law enforcement solve criminal investigations, increase ability to prosecute criminals, ensure compliance with local, state, tribal, and federal laws, and analyze victim, criminal behavior, and quality of life issues
• Quantitative methods focus on numerical data (frequencies, percentages, averages), statistical analyses, calculating crime rates, trends, and spatial distributions to assess patterns and forecast incidents
• Qualitative methods are used to understand the context behind crime, involve field research (observing crime locations and interviewing individuals), and content analysis (examining police reports to find underlying causes of crime)
• Crime analysis focuses on crime incidents (robbery, burglary, rape), disorder problems (disturbances, loitering), and suspicious activities, traffic-related issues, and operational matters like staffing, resource management, and geographic distribution of police services
• Sociodemographic information includes characteristics of individuals and groups (age, gender, race). It helps identify suspects and victims
• Spatial information focuses on the geographic location of crime incidents to identify crime hotspots (locations where offenders and victims intersect).
• Temporal information is used to understand crime trends over time(season, day of week, time of day) to aid in planning police patrols and interventions

Modern Crime Analysis

• Crime analysis relies on technology and electronic data for mapping and spatial analysis to visualize crime patterns.
• Real-time crime centers use computerized record management systems and computer-aided dispatch systems
• Technologies like automated license plate readers (ALPR), closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV), facial recognition systems (FRS), social media monitoring (SMM), AI, and drones are used
• London Metropolitan Police (1820s) was the first modern police force established, and crime statistics (1847) formalized data collection
• August Vollmer (early 1900s) introduced innovations in data use like crime pin mapping and regular police report reviews
• O.W. Wilson (1963) defined crime analysis as the process of identifying crime trends and patterns
• Federal support (acts of 1968) increased awareness of crime analysis, provided grants to police agencies
• Crime analysis gained recognition in the 1970s, led to handbooks, and articles in media, and highlighted interpretations of trends in homicides during extreme weather conditions
• Herman Goldstein (1979) introduced problem-oriented policing to focus on crime problems, shifted focus from administrative tasks to more data-driven, problem-solving approaches
• Development of Crime Analysis Associations (1980s-1990s), and advances in technologies like geographic information systems (GIS), combined with crime mapping and pattern analysis contributed to growth

History of Crime Mapping

• Early crime mapping, using criminal statistics and census data, began in the 1800s by European researchers,
• Adriano Balbi and Andre-Michel Guerry (1829) created the first crime maps that correlated crime to sociological factors
• Correlation between property crime and education levels, and correlation between property crime and personal crime in relation to transportation routes, education, and ethnic/cultural factors were analyzed.
• Chicago School of Sociology used spatial analysis of crime patterns (social disorganization)
• Sociological focus was on geographic methods to study criminal events and physical/social environments
• Rise of GIS (1990s) led to increased government support for crime mapping, and MAPS program (1997) supported research and tech for spatial crime analysis

Theoretical Foundations of Crime Analysis

• Environmental criminology focuses on crime incidents in specific environments, activities/locations, and routine activities
• The Problem Analysis Triangle (PAT) is used to identify and analyze crime patterns
• Rational Choice, Crime Pattern, and Routine Activity Approaches explain how offenders and victims interact in space and time
• Crime happens when activity spaces of offenders overlap with those of victims in space and time

Crime Pattern Theory

• Crime patterns happen when activity spaces of offenders and victims overlap in space and time
• Offenders have patterns: prefer areas they know and avoid areas close to their homes where they may be identified

Hot Spots and Crime Prevention

• Hot spots are areas with disproportionately high crime compared to surrounding areas
• Risky facilities (low budget motels, convenience stores) and target products (smart phones, precious metals) attract crimes
• Near repeat victimization explains repeat crimes happening in close proximity repeatedly
• Situational Crime Prevention Techniques focus on increasing perceived effort, increasing perceived risk, reducing anticipated rewards, and reducing provocations

Evidence-Based Policing and Problem Solving

• Evidence-based policing involves using data, analysis, and research to complement experience and professional judgement, aims to provide best police service to the public
• Uses various aspects of policing (responding to mental health, technology support)
• Crime reduction strategies rely on police officers interpreting analyst's reports and effectively implementing strategies
• Proactive policing: use strategies designed to prevent or reduce crime, and disorder before they occur
• Different approaches to crime analysis (place-focused, person-focused, problem-solving, community-based) involve different police actions to address issues
• Crime analysis is an essential tool for resource allocation and improves response, and efficiency
• Crime analysis is critical in improving police efficiency

Crime Analysis Process

• Crime analysis is a process with steps like data collection, analysis, and disseminating information to aid law enforcement activities
• Objective is accuracy, consistency, and accessibility of data in electronic format
• Timely data access is vital to analyzing immediate or short-term trends and provides insights into the relationships among crime reports, calls for service, and other crime data
• Primary data sources include internal police records, external law enforcement data, criminal justice system data, and private/commercial records
• Key activities involved include trends awareness, data integration, data preparation, and data quality control
• Techniques and processes, such as scanning, analysis, response, assessment (SARA), and reporting/presentations cater to specific audiences (police, community).