This report describes the development and implementation of a program based in Huddersfield, England, to reduce rates of burglary and vehicle crime, and in particular, to prevent repeated victimization of the same targets.
Research conducted before implementation of this project confirmed that repeat victims of domestic burglary suffer psychological distress from their situation, that repeat victims underestimate their true rates of victimization, and that the risk of repeat burglary of the same house is higher than the risk of burglary of an adjacent house. This system takes a dual approach of deflecting crime from repeat victims and of detecting perpetrators. Responses are graded from bronze through silver and gold, based on the number of previous victimizations. Components of the response range from property marking and security upgrading to focused patrolling of targeted areas and the loan of high technology security devices to crime victims. 7 tables, 13 figures, 19 references, and 2 appendixes