Likelihood of Arrest for Robberies, Assaults, and Sexual Offenses Committed by Group and Lone Offenders

• Published in: Journal of interpersonal violence Vol. 36; no. 19-20; pp. NP10106 - NP10131
• Main Authors: Terranova, Victoria A., Vandiver, Donna M., Stafford, Mark C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-10-2021; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Arrests; Criminology; Decision making; Offenders; Offenses; Robbery; Sex crimes; Sex offenders; assault; robbery; criminology; violent offenders; and sexual assault
• ISSN: 0886-2605; 1552-6518
• DOI: 10.1177/0886260519872308

Many criminologists have considered the role of groups in the commission of crime to gain insight into offender decision-making. Additional research is needed, however, that examines the likelihood of arrest as a function of whether an offense is committed by a group of offenders (two or more offenders in a criminal incident) or a lone offender, as well as the number of offenders in the group. Using 3 years of data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System for robbery incidents, assault incidents, and sexual offenses, the study finds that the relative likelihood of arrest for group-offender incidents, compared with lone-offender incidents, varies by incident type. For robbery incidents, the likelihood of arrest increases when committed by a group of offenders. Yet, for assault incidents and sexual offenses, the likelihood of arrest decreases when committed by a group of offenders. Further analysis looks more closely at incidents committed by a group of offenders and how the number of offenders in the group affects the likelihood of arrest. A consistent finding is that for each incident type, the likelihood that all offenders in a group will be arrested is lower as the number of offenders increases, which may justify offenders’ perceptions of “safety in larger numbers.”