NCJ Number
85267
Journal
Victimology Volume: 5 Issue: 2-4 Dated: (1980) Pages: 263-273
Date Published
1982
Length
11 pages
Annotation
A study of cases of parental child theft filed with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office during 1977 covers three aspects of parental child stealing: the present and prospective extent of child theft, profiles of the participants -- offender, custodial parent, and victim -and the interactional process of victimization.
Abstract
The offender and custodial parent are generally young, usually Caucasian, and employed. The parent who usually abducts the child is the father. Victims are white; male and female children are equal targets. Single, rather than multiple, abductions occurred in 64 percent of the cases, and the most common victims were children between 3 and 11 years old. Offenders steal children either to maintain a full-time relationship with the child or to influence a reconciliation with the custodial parent. Child snatching is a traumatic experience for the custodial parent, who faces a long and often costly process of regaining the child and the ever present fear of future incidents. In the study, only two cases suggest that anger or a desire to inflict pain inspired the abduction, although animosity between ex-spouses may be greater than this study indicates. Further research into child snatching is needed. Study data, 21 references, and case studies are included.