Latino Homicide Victimization and Offending: An Examination of Individual and Situational Covariates in Three Cities

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

Abstract

The study of Latinos and crime has increased in the past decade. The bulk of research, however, focuses on whether immigration is related to overall and disaggregated crime rates. While very informative, there is still a lack of knowledge on the individual and situational covariates of Latino victimization and offending. Indeed, only few studies have examined the characteristics and motivations of incidents involving Latinos. The present study seeks to contribute to the literature by examining the individual and situational covariates of Latino homicide victimization and offending. We specifically examine homicides involving Latino victims and/or offenders in Detroit, Michigan; Newark, New Jersey, and Rochester, New York. Two research question are examined: (1) what are the individual and situational covariates of homicides involving Latinos, and (2) do the individual and situational covariates vary by ethnicity (i.e., African American, Caucasian).

Authors

• Jesenia M. Pizarro, Arizona State University

• Victor Javier Mora, Arizona State University

• Charles Anthony LoFaso, Rochester (NY) Police Department

• Edmund F. McGarrell, Michigan State University