VICTIMIZATION REVISITED: A Case Study of Non-residential Repeat Burglary on Merseyside

Abstract

There is a dearth of research concerned with repeat victimization of non-residential properties. The present study examines the extent and time course of repeat burglary against such properties. The results demonstrate that the risk of repeat burglary suffered by non-residential properties is greater than their residential counterparts and that, in common with residential burglary, the time course of repeat non-residential burglary conforms to an exponential model. A comparison of the level of repeat vitimization for different categories of non-residential property reveals that certain types of non-residential properties, in particular educational establishments and sports facilities, suffered from disproportionately high levels of repeat burglary and are likely to sufferfrom a repeat in a very short time period following an initial incident. Other findings highlight the importance of locational factors in determining levels of repeat burglary. The paper concludes with a discussion of how the research findings might be used to inform crime prevention strategies.