NCJ Number
213864
Journal
European Journal of Criminology Volume: 3 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2006 Pages: 149-179
Date Published
April 2006
Length
31 pages
Annotation
This study analyzed new data on the service demands of gender and age subpopulations of occasional and frequent offenders served by a combination of health, social care, and criminal justice agencies in the United Kingdom.
Abstract
The study found that offenders and frequent offenders received services in larger proportions than nonoffenders and occasional offenders, particularly drug and alcohol abuse services. The overrepresentation of males and juveniles among offenders was more marked among frequent offenders. Frequent offenders differed in demographic, criminogenic, and service profiles. Three subtypes of frequent offenders are identified by their differences in these three areas. Discrepancies between their problems and the services received are noted. The findings suggest the importance of designing interagency strategies for the treatment and care of different offender groups. Using a case-linkage methodology derived from health studies, researchers tracked the population of offenders across multiple agencies within a Health Authority jurisdiction in an English county over 3 years. The largest dataset analyzed consisted of all 16-55-year-olds under the jurisdiction of the main health authority in the county during this period (n=417,296). The second dataset was a subset of the large one. It included all 16-55-year-old offenders in the Health Authority area during the study period (n=15,146). "Offenders" were defined as having been charged with at least one offense during the period. "Frequent" offenders had been charged with an offense on three or more different occasions during the period; and "occasional" offenders had been charged only once or twice. Exploratory, multivariate techniques of analysis were used in analyzing the data. 2 tables, 2 figures, and 65 references