Investigating the Concentration and Stability of Crime at Micro-Places in Chicago

• In Event: Patterns of Crime in Space and Time

Abstract

Over the past thirty years, research on the spatial distribution of crime across urban landscapes has become increasingly concerned with the salience of micro-places. Increasing evidence suggests that a small number of crime hot spots account for a disproportionately large amount of crime in cities. Less is known about the developmental patterns of crime at these locations. This paper draws upon methodological advances in previous studies in Seattle and Boston to examine the concentration and stability of crime at small places over extended time periods in Chicago. Eleven years of police incident report data from the Chicago Police Department were geocoded to street segments in the city. Growth curve regression models were then estimated to assess the developmental patterns of crime at these street segments. Results from the analyses confirm the basic findings from the Seattle and Boston studies and suggest that, in Chicago – a city well known for neighborhood-level research on crime variation, street-to-street variability in the concentration of crime within neighborhoods persists over long periods of time. The implications of this finding within the broader context of crime and place research will be discussed.

Authors

• Cory Schnell, Rutgers University

• Anthony A. Braga, Rutgers University / Harvard University

• Eric Piza, John Jay College of Criminal Justice