NCJ Number
165964
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 24 Issue: 6 Dated: (1996) Pages: 481-490
Date Published
1996
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Using police records from a large jurisdiction in South Florida, this research investigated differences between offenders who were present when police arrived in response to domestic calls and those who were absent in terms of offender, victim, and situational characteristics.
Abstract
It was hypothesized that significant differences would be found in police disposition for offenders who were present when the police arrived in response to domestic calls and those who were absent. Specifically, the researcher expected to find that police officers were more likely to arrest when the offender was present than when he or she was absent. Findings revealed that 48 percent of domestic violence offenders were absent when the police arrived and that domestic violence incidents where the offender was present versus those where the offender was absent showed no significant differences except in terms of one variable, marital status. Absent offenders were much more likely to be unmarried than those who were present when the police arrived. In terms of violence level, victim injuries, victim preference for arrest, and victim and offender characteristics, no significant differences were observed between present and absent offenders. Yet, offenders who left the scene before the police arrived greatly lowered their risk of being arrested. Offender presence was therefore a powerful predictor of arrest outcome. Implications of the findings for future research directions are discussed. 28 references, 5 notes, and 5 tables