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NCJRS Abstract

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NCJ Number:	140950

Title:	Homicides and the Death Penalty in Australia -- 1915-1975

Journal:	Criminology Australia Volume:3 Issue:3 Dated:(January-February 1992) Pages:19-25

Author(s):	J Walker

Date Published:	1992

Page Count:	6

Type:	Survey

Format:	Article

Language:	English

Country:	Australia

Annotation:	The general deterrence theory holds that the use of the death penalty will reduce the levels of capital crimes while abandonment of capital punishment will conversely lead to an increase in capital offenses. Australian homicide data for the period between 1915 and 1975 are studied to test this hypothesis.

Abstract:	There were problems obtaining a sequence of data on rates of capital crimes in Australia covering a period when capital punishment was being used and uncontaminated by possible changes in the way the data were defined or compiled. There are also difficulties arising from the confusion between incidents of crime and offenses, as well as questions of how accurately recorded crime figures reflected the true crime rate at the time of the offense. This analysis used causes of death figures; the trend in homicides was plotted and the mathematical slope of the curve measured. The changes in slope over 1- and 5-year periods were calculated to determine the relationship between numbers of executions and subsequent rates of capital offenses. The analysis showed little support for the deterrence theory, either for an effect lasting 1 year or an effect lasting 5 years. In general, there was no effect on the homicide rate whether executions took place in a given year or not. 3 tables and 5 figures

Main Term(s):	Capital punishment; Deterrence effectiveness

Index Term(s):	Australia; Homicide trends

Note:	US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, International Crime Statistics Program



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