NCJ Number
149945
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 34 Issue: 3 Dated: (Summer 1994) Pages: 307-321
Date Published
1994
Length
15 pages
Annotation
Yearly variations in the number of recovered stolen vehicles between 1963 and 1988 were used to measure changes in joyriding and short-term transportation offenses in Quebec, Canada.
Abstract
Yearly rates of recovered stolen vehicles decreased throughout the 1963-1988 time period, while rates of unrecovered stolen vehicles increased. In 1963, only 16 percent of all stolen vehicles were unrecovered; this figure climbed to 41.3 percent in 1988. Among recovered stolen vehicles, some were used to commit other crimes. The decline in the number of motor vehicles stolen for joyriding or transportation purposes was due to changes in demographics, prevalence of motorized households, arrest risk, and vulnerability of motor vehicles to theft. Application of the joyrider model to analyze changes in the number of stolen vehicles over time showed that variations in joyriding offenses responded mainly to combined variations in the pool of potentially motivated offenders and the pool of vulnerable targets. Application of the jockey model indicated that yearly increases in new vehicle costs had a positive but nonsignificant impact on the number of unrecovered stolen vehicles, increases in the number of motor vehicles involved in accidents appeared to reduce the need for stolen vehicle parts, and the deterrent effect of arrest risk declined. Data on recovered and unrecovered stolen motor vehicles in Quebec for the 1963-1988 period are tabulated in an appendix. 40 references, 2 tables, and 1 figure