Victimization of Undocumented Immigrants and the Dark Figure of Crime

• In Event: Latin@ Criminology Panel 3: Current Patterns of Crime and Victimization among Latin@s

Abstract

There is a lack of research regarding immigrant victimization due to a scarcity of data on the immigration status of victims. This is confounded by a low concern for immigrants as victims given the perception that they are perpetrators of crime (McDonald & Erez, 2007), although this has been soundly refuted (see e.g., Wang, 2012). Our research seeks to address why undocumented immigrants in the US are targeted for predatory crime, and if they unintentionally encourage offending by criminals looking for “safe” victims to target (see e.g., Jacobs, et al., 2000; Topalli, et. al., 2002). Their legal status, fear of deportation, and lack of trust in the US criminal justice system make them unlikely to report a victimization. This is a classic example of the “dark figure of crime” (Biderman & Reiss, 1967); offenses not included in official crime statistics, but accounting for a significant amount of crime in our society. Our multimethod approach to understanding immigrant victimization analyze available data on undocumented victims as well as survey assessments to supplement interviews with victims and the active street offenders who target them.

Authors

• Krystlelynn Caraballo, Georgia State University

• Volkan Topalli, Georgia State University

• Ramiro Martinez, Northeastern University