Crime Analysis

Introduction

The identification and tactical analysis of crime patterns is a primary responsibility of crime analysts at police agencies around the world. Every day, analysts query and mine data in an effort to link cases by key factors and disseminate information about known and newly-discovered patterns to fellow police personnel. This analysis improves the safety of communities by facilitating police response which can, in turn, prevent and reduce crime. While the pattern identification process is reasonably standardized, there is a diversity of perspective on what constitutes a crime pattern. Unfortunately, the profession lacks a common language, and the terms “crime pattern,” “crime series,” “hot spot,” “crime trend,” and “crime problem” are often used interchangeably. Therefore, the goals of this white paper are to 1) standardize the definition of a crime pattern, 2) differentiate pattern types, and 3) define and illustrate each of the different pattern types. This delineation of standardized and practical...

Forward

You who read this manual are more important than perhaps you think. Crime analysts are not well-known to the general public. You don’t star in peak-time TV series or big-screen movies as do behavioural profilers or forensic scientists. Even some of your colleagues in the police aren’t sure what you’re about. But you are the new face of policing. For years the police have contented themselves with chasing individual crimes after they have taken place. Crimes have been regarded as episodes to be detected, and if they result in a conviction the case is thought to be ‘solved’. This is manifestly mad. So mad, in fact, it is astonishing that society hasn’t rumbled it, complained very loudly and demanded a smarter approach. Running after crooks relentlessly is too late, like catching the horse (if you’re lucky) after it has bolted for the hundredth time rather than learning how to lock the stable door. It is as though when aircraft