NCJ Number
189577
Journal
Homicide Studies Volume: 5 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2001 Pages: 206-226
Date Published
August 2001
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This article examines suicidal intent in victim-precipitated homicide.
Abstract
Four decades ago, Marvin Wolfgang offered one of the most influential concepts in contemporary criminology when he coined the term "victim-precipitated homicide" to describe killings wherein decedents initiated the violent interactions that culminated in their death. One aspect of Wolfgang's work that had not generated much attention among criminologists, however, was his notion that some of the individuals who precipitated their own violent deaths actually desired to die. Whereas criminologists had largely ignored Wolfgang's ideas about suicidal homicide victims, others had noted the presence of suicidal intent among victims of one specific sort of violence: police gunfire. For at least two decades, people in and around law enforcement had noted a phenomenon they commonly called "suicide-by-cop" -- police shootings where suicidal citizens purposely provoke officers to shoot them. This article used suicide-by-cop as a platform to demonstrate how attention to Wolfgang's ideas about suicide victims could enhance understanding of interpersonal violence. Figure, notes, references