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1997-98 Academy Text Supplement

Chapter 16

Homicide: Its Impact and Consequences

Statistical Overview

• In 1996, the estimated number of persons murdered in the United States was 19,645. The 1996 figure was down nine percent from 1995, 17 percent from 1992, and two percent from the 1987 level. (Federal Bureau of Investigation. (released September 28, 1997). Crime in the United States, Uniform Crime Reports, 1996, p. 14. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)

• As compared to 1995 figures, reported murders in 1996 dropped 10 percent in the nation's cities, nine percent in suburban counties, and six percent in rural counties. The greatest decrease -- 13 percent -- was registered in cities with populations of 250,000 to 499,999. (Ibid.)
• All four regions of the United States showed declines in the number of murders reported from 1995-1996. The greatest drops were in the Northeast and West, which each experienced a 13 percent decrease in reported murders. Reported murders in the South and Midwest decreased by seven percent in 1996. (Ibid.)
• Down 10 percent from 1995, the national murder rate in 1996 was 7.4 per 100,000 inhabitants, the lowest rate since 1985. Five- and ten-year trends show the 1996 murder rate was 20 percent lower than in 1992, and 11 percent below the 1987 rate. (Ibid.)
• Based on supplemental data about 15,848 of the estimated 19,645 murders in 1996: 77 percent of the victims were males and 87 percent were persons 18 years of age or older. Forty-three percent were ages 20 through 34. The percentages of whites and blacks murdered were equal at 49 percent, and other races accounted for the remainder. (Ibid.)
• In 1996, according to supplemental data reported for 18,108 offenders, 90 percent of the offenders for whom sex and age were reported were male, and 86 percent were persons 18 of age and older. Sixty-nine percent were ages 17-34. Of offenders for whom race was known, 52 percent were black, 45 percent were white, and the remainder were persons of other races. (Ibid.)
• Murder is most often intraracial among victims and offenders. In 1996, data based on incidents involving one victim and one offender show that 93 percent of the black murder victims were slain by black offenders, and 85 percent of white murder victims were killed by white offenders. (Ibid.)
• Males were most often slain by males (89 percent in single victim/single offender situations). These same data show, however, that nine out of 10 female victims were murdered by males. (Ibid.)
• As in previous years, firearms were used in approximately seven out of every 10 murders committed in the nation. (Ibid., p. 17)
• In 1996, over 50 percent of all murder victims knew their assailants: 13 percent were related and 38 percent were acquainted. Fifteen percent of the victims were murdered by strangers, while the relationships among victims and offenders were unknown for 35 percent of the murders. (Ibid., p. 17)
• Fifty-five law enforcement officers were feloniously slain in the line of duty during 1996, 19 fewer than in 1995. (Ibid., p. 285)
• There were 22,100 murders committed in the United States in 1994. The murder rate was 8.9 per 100,000 inhabitants. (Bureau of Justice Statistics. Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics, 1995. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
• Sexual assault murders were about twice as likely to involve victims and offenders who were strangers (39.2 percent versus 20.9 percent). (Bureau of Justice Statistics. National Crime Victimization Survey, 1995. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
• Between 1980 and 1994, the number of whites killed by acquaintances increased 44 percent, while the number of blacks killed by acquaintances increased 115 percent. (Bureau of Justice Statistics. "Young Black Male Victims." Crime Data Brief, 1994, National Crime Victimization Survey 1995. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
• Female homicide victims are more than twice as likely to be killed by husbands or boyfriends than male victims are to be killed by wives or girlfriends. Husbands and boyfriends are responsible for 26 percent of female homicides, whereas wives and girlfriends are responsible for three percent of male homicides. (Federal Bureau of Investigation. (1995). Crime in the United States. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
• Since the mid-1980s, the increases in both the number and rate of murder among 15 to 17 year olds, and particularly among black youth in this age range, have outpaced changes in murder in all other age groups. (Greenfeld, L. (1996, March). "Child Victimizers: Violent Offenders and Their Victims." Executive Summary. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics & Office for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice.)
• Most child murders in 1994 were at the hands of an acquaintance (38 percent), with family members accounting for 22 percent, strangers seven percent, and unknown offenders 30 percent. (Ibid.)

• If current trends continue, by the year 2010 the number of juvenile arrests for murder is expected to increase 145% over the 1992 rates of arrests. (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (1995, May). "Juvenile Offenders and Victims: A Focus on Violence" Statistics Summary. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)

• Any juvenile between ages 12 and 17 is more likely to be the victim of violent crime than are persons past their mid-twenties. (Ibid.)

Death Notification

Each year, thousands of loved ones of homicide victims receive the tragic notification of the death of their family member. All too often, this terrible news comes to the surviving victims in an insensitive manner. Surviving family members and significant others of homicide victims report horror stories of having received such notification over the telephone, on answering machines, or via broadcasts by the media -- rather than in person. Often, families are given confusing or inaccurate information.

• In 1995, recognizing the importance of ensuring that law enforcement personnel and the clergy are trained about providing a sensitive and appropriate response to survivors of homicide, the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) supported the development of a training curriculum and an accompanying videotape for law enforcement professionals and members of the clergy by Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

• Over the past two years, MADD has conducted trainings about death notification across the nation. For additional information about MADD's Death Notification Training Program, see "Death Notification: Breaking the Bad News with Concern for the Professional and Compassion for the Survivor," NCJ-162360 (sponsored by the Office for Victims of Crime and Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Death Notification Seminar and Training of Trainers, 1996).

Strategies for Reducing Homicide

In December of 1997, the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics released a report entitled Strategies for Reducing Homicide: The Comprehensive Homicide Initiative in Richmond, California. In 1995, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) funded the Comprehensive Homicide Initiative to pilot the application of multifaceted strategies to reduce homicide. The strategies were based on recommendations from experts who attended a summit addressing murder convened in 1995 by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. As a result of the summit, 39 recommendations were set forth, including developing community-wide strategies involving law enforcement, community, government, legislative, education, and training initiatives. In general, the recommendations called for greater cooperative problem-

solving among agencies, organizations, and the community to recognize the need for both short-term solutions and longer terms goals that address the root causes of violence. Two cities were selected by BJS to pilot the suggested homicide reduction strategies. This report provides findings from Richmond, California, the first city to fully reach the implementation stage. (Fyfe, Goldkamp, & White. (1997, December). Strategies for Reducing Homicide: The Comprehensive Homicide Initiative in Richmond, California, NCJ-168100. Washington, DC: Crime and Justice Research Institute, Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice.)

New Homicide Research

In December of 1997, the National Institute of Justice released a research report entitled Homicide in Eight U.S. Cities: Trends, Context, and Policy Implications. The report examined several factors that have been anecdotally or theoretically linked to violence and homicide. Eight cities that experienced dramatically different homicide trends between 1985-1994 were selected to participate in the study. Their total population was about four million, and represented eight percent of the nation's homicides during the study period.

The report cited trends that cut across all cities regardless of their rates of homicide. These included:

• An increasing rate of homicide victimization among young males, particularly young black males.

• Guns played an increasing role in homicide deaths -- representing an increasing proportion of all homicides, regardless of whether the number of homicides in a city was increasing or decreasing.

• Crack cocaine use and homicide victimization rates were strongly correlated both by interviews and by an analysis of drug use data.

However, strong patterns did not emerge in many areas. For example, study respondents linked the availability of and quality of emergency medical services (EMS) to reductions in death rates, but researchers could not confirm these opinions with available data. Most importantly, the study showed that the nature of homicide differs across cities. The authors noted that this suggests a strong need for community responses that are local and based on data that reflect specific local trends. (Lattimore, et al. (1997, December). Homicide In Eight U.S. Cities: Trends, Context, and Policy Implications, An Intramural Research Project, NCJ-167262. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice.)

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