SAGE Journal Articles

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Journal Article 8.1

Citation: Beauregard, E., DeLisi, M., & Hewitt, A. (2017). Sexual murderers: Sex offender, murderer, or both? Sexual Abuse. doi:10.1177/1079063217711446

Abstract: Sexual murderers perpetrate homicide and rape/sexual abuse, but it is unclear whether they should primarily be considered homicide offenders, sexual offenders, or both. Most studies have merged together different types of non-homicidal sex offenders (NHSOs), neglecting to consider the potential differences between the nonviolent and violent sex offenders. Here, we suggest it is important to isolate those violent sex offenders who inflict severe physical injuries that could potentially lead to a lethal outcome. Therefore, the aim of the current study is to compare different measures of the criminal career on three groups of sex offenders: NHSOs, violent NHSOs, and sexual homicide offenders (SHOs) using data from 616 incarcerated male sex offenders in a Federal penitentiary in Canada. Interestingly, the group of sex offenders with the worst criminal career profile was not the SHOs, but the violent NHSOs. Violent NHSOs had the greatest number of prior convictions and the most varied and versatile criminal career. Therefore, we suggest that based on their criminal career, SHOs should be considered more as murderers than sex offenders. However, to fully answer this question, future studies should include a group of non-sexual homicide offenders.

Journal Article 8.2

Citation: Wickes, R., Sydes, M., Benier, K., & Higginson, A. (2016), “Seeing” hate crime in the community? Do resident perceptions of hate crime align with self-reported victimization? Crime and Delinquency63, 875–896.

Abstract: Hate crimes undermine tolerance and social inclusion by conveying an “outsider” status of the victim and other group members to the broader community. Yet, limited research considers whether non-victims recognize hate crime incidents when they occur. Using census and survey data for 4,000 residents living in 145 communities, we ask whether local residents “see” hate crime when it happens in their neighborhood and whether the neighborhood context influences the association between residents’ perceptions of hate crime and self-reported hate victimization. We find that residents’ perceptions are positively related to victim self-reports; however, this relationship weakens in ethnically diverse and disadvantaged areas. This suggests that residents’ perceptions of hate crime may be more dependent upon the community context than non-hate crimes.