NCJ Number
217685
Date Published
November 2006
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This monitoring report presents information on trends in recorded theft, robbery, and drug offenses, as well as "move on" incidents (police requiring individuals to stop loitering) in New South Wales (Australia) from mid-2002 through mid-2006, in association with the extension of operations of the Sydney Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC).
Abstract
Consistent with the findings of the original evaluation of the impact of the MSIC on crime, this study found that theft and robbery offenses showed a similar decreasing pattern in Kings Cross, as was the case throughout the rest of Sydney. The authors conclude that the continued operation of the MSIC has not had an adverse impact on crime in Kings Cross. Recorded cases of possession/use of narcotics have remained stable in Kings Cross while they have declined throughout the rest of Sydney. Recorded cases of using and trafficking in amphetamines have shown no significant increase in Kings Cross, but have significantly increased throughout the rest of Sydney. Recorded cases of cocaine possession/use have increased in both Kings Cross and the rest of Sydney. Recorded cases of dealing and trafficking in cocaine briefly increased in Kings Cross but not in the rest of Sydney; however, they have since declined in Kings Cross. The number of cocaine trafficking offenses remains lower in Kings Cross than prior to the opening of the MSIC. There was a sharp increase in police "move ons" in Kings Cross about the time the MSIC began operations in mid-2001. This change, however, probably reflects police efforts to prevent drug-related loitering rather than a real increase in drug-related loitering. The monthly data on recorded robbery, theft, and drug incidents for January 1999 to June 2006 were obtained from the computerized Operating Policing System. 3 tables, 5 figures, and 6 references