NCJ Number
247320
Date Published
July 2012
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This report provides information on crimes against the elderly reported to Tennessee law enforcement during the period 2009 through 2011.
Abstract
Major findings from this report on crimes against the elderly in Tennessee during the period 2009 through 2011 include the following: while the overall number of offenses decreased during the period, the number of elderly victims increased 7 percent; the most common reported offense against the elderly was for burglary, followed by destruction/damage/vandalism and theft-all other larceny; elderly males were more likely to be victims compared to elderly females, while Whites were more likely to be victims compared to victims of all other races; the majority, 90.5 percent, of all burglary offenses committed against the elderly occurred in the residence/home of the victim; 12.9 percent of victims of fraud were elderly persons aged 65 or older, with fraud-credit card/ATM being the most frequently reported fraud offense; and for the 3-year period 2009 through 2011, simple assaults accounted for 51.1 percent of all assaults offenses against the elderly while aggravated assaults accounted for 17.1 percent of offenses. This annual report was compiled by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation using data obtained from the State's incident based reporting system. The data was examined over a 3-year period to determine various trends and changes in elderly crime in the State. Four categories of crime were analyzed - robbery, burglary, assaults, and fraud, with each category examined with regards to weapons type used, injury type reported, and victim-offender relationship. Study limitations are discussed. Tables, figures, and references