Analysis of the spacial behaviour of serial sex offenders
National Criminal Justice Modelling Workshop: 2003
Presenter: Sarah Spencer, PhD Student, University of Melbourne
Overview of presentation:
Aided by the advancement of linkage techniques such as DNA testing and cross-jurisdictional databases, geographical profiling is proving to be a powerful law enforcement tool with significant potential for investigations of serial violent offenders. Serial sex offenders' target selection exhibits many of the same principles of spatial behaviour as persons engaging in non-criminal activities. These behavioural principles have provided the theoretical foundations of geographical profiling, and sophisticated geographical prioritisation programs.
A major function of these analytical tools is offender residence prediction based on offence location, and despite promising results overseas, they have yet to be validated within Australia. Further, there remains justified debate as to the superiority of these sophisticated programs over the more established and simplistic centrographic methods. Drawing from environmental criminology, investigative psychology and behavioural geography literature, the current research examines the spatial behaviour of apprehended serial sex offenders in Australia, at both a case and aggregate level. It also analyses the investigative utility of various geographical prioritisation methods including the programs, Dragnet and Crimestat II.
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