Analyzing Race and Space in the Geography of Sex Offenses Against Children

• In Event: Poster Session 1

Abstract

The current literature regarding those convicted of sex offenses towards minors works to highlight the patterns in decision making but fails to consider characteristics of the convicted individual and victim alongside cultural, environmental, and cultural factors in totality. Rational choice theory and routine activities theory are commonly utilized to examine sex offenses but fail to capture cultural and social pressures. To remedy this gap, this study utilizes the ecological framework - comprised of the individual level, the relational level, the organizational level, and the cultural level - to analyze St. Louis Department 2008-2018 crime data. Using detailed data on 431 sex offenses against children, ArcGIS Pro and regression analyses are used to examine the role of race in structuring where individuals choose to commit crimes. Results show that Black individuals convicted of sex crimes against children traveled further from their homes on average compared to their White counterparts. Additional analyses of offender/victim race dyads are conducted to assess the role of racialized power imbalances in the journey to victimization. This is important when considering best preventive measures for child sex crimes and when attempting to determine rationale and motives behind offender behaviors and steps taken to engage in criminal activity.

Author

• Amillia Heredia, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee