NCJ Number
240339
Journal
Homicide Studies Volume: 3 Issue: 16 Dated: August 2012 Pages: 280-307
Date Published
August 2012
Length
28 pages
Annotation
This study contributed to the body of research examining why city-level violence rates peaked in 1993.
Abstract
This study contributes to the body of research examining why city-level violence rates peaked in 1993. Taking homicide data from that year, the authors introduced an indicator for active street gangs along with indicators derived from common structural explanations of homicide rates. The authors assessed whether gang presence was empirically associated with homicide variation across 154 U.S. central cities. Consistent with conceptual claims, correlational evidence demonstrates that active gangs were a significant source of homicides across this sample of cities. As a secondary concern, the authors assessed structural conditions that were likely to predict gang formation within cities during the crime peak. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.