NCJ Number
60607
Journal
CRIMINAL LAW QUARTERLY Volume: 21 Issue: 1 Dated: (DECEMBER 1978) Pages: 69-81
Date Published
1978
Length
13 pages
Annotation
THE DETERRENT EFFECT OF IMPRISONMENT ON ASSAULT, ROBBERY, BREAKING AND ENTERING, AND THEFT IS ANALYZED FOR COUNTIES IN ONTARIO, NEW BRUNSWICK, NOVA SCOTIA, AND PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND.
Abstract
IT IS HYPOTHESIZED THAT COUNTIES WITH HIGH SOCIOECONOMIC INTEGRATION WILL HAVE A LOW CRIME RATE. STATISTICS ON VARIABLES ASSUMED TO INDICATE THE LEVEL OF SOCIOECONOMIC INTEGRATION SUCH AS EMPLOYMENT RATE, PERCENTAGE MARRIED, SUICIDE RATE, AND PERCENTAGE OF MIGRANTS, WERE TAKEN FROM STATISTICS CANADA PUBLICATIONS, PARTICULARLY THE 1971 CENSUS. SENTENCING DATA USED ARE FOR 1971, AND CRIME DATA ARE FOR 1972 AND 1973 AVERAGED TOGETHER. THE STUDY TESTED THE THEORY IN WHICH A RELATIVELY HIGH PERCENTAGE OF THE CASES OF A PARTICULAR CRIME WERE CHARGED BY THE COURT AND COUNTIES WHERE A RELATIVELY HIGH PERCENTAGE OF THOSE CONVICTED WERE SENTENCED TO JAIL OR PRISON WILL HAVE RELATIVELY LOW RATES FOR THAT CRIME IN THE FOLLOWING YEARS. THIS REASONING ASSUMES SOME AWARENESS ON THE PART OF THOSE WHO MIGHT BREAK THE LAW OF THE RELATIVE PROBABILITY OF ARREST AND PUNISHMENT. WITH THE COURT CHARGE RATE AND ETIOLOGICAL VARIABLES HELD CONSTANT, IMPRISONMENT RATES WERE FOUND TO BE INSIGNIFICANTLY AND INCONSISTENTLY RELATED TO CRIME RATES. A COUNTY THAT IMPRISONS HALF OF THOSE CONVICTED OF THEFT, FOR EXAMPLE, CAN EXPECT NO LOWER A THEFT RATE IN THE FOLLOWING YEARS THAN A COUNTY THAT IMPRISONS NO ONE CONVICTED OF THEFT. A BIBLIOGRAPHY IS PROVIDED, AND THE APPENDIX LISTS AND DESCRIBES THE ETIOLOGICAL VARIABLES USED IN THIS STUDY. (RCB)