Mapping Crime in Local Government Areas: Assault and Break and Enter in Waverley

• NCJ Number: 141423
• Author(s): C Devery
• Date Published: 1992
• Length: 40 pages
• Corporate Author: New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: Australia
• Note: US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, International Crime Statistics Program

Annotation

The New South Wales (Australia) Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research developed a facility for mapping the distribution of different offenses within local government areas (LGAs) and analyzing their characteristics.

Abstract

The local area crime mapping method requires a database of offense records containing information on the nature of the offense, its timing, and characteristics; a mapping facility that can be used at the street address level; demographic data for these areas; and a statistical analysis software package. The method involves editing the offense location data, converting each street address location to a grid coordinate map reference, attaching a collection district code to each offense record, combining the resulting data with population data for the collection district, and mapping the collection districts to show the offense rate patterns for the entire LGA. This method was applied to the Sydney LGA of Waverley; the analysis focused on assaults and breaking and entering offenses involving private homes. After discussing the results of the crime mapping in terms of spatial and temporal patterns, the author explores the crime prevention implications of this type of facility.