R. Bryant

Understanding criminal investigation.

List of Figures and Tables. List of Abbreviations. About the Authors. Series Preface. Preface. Acknowledgements. 1 Introduction: A Brief History of Criminal Investigation ( Stephen Tong ). 2 Theories of Criminal Investigation ( Robin P. Bryant ). 3 Forms of Reasoning and the Analysis of Intelligence in Criminal Investigation ( Robin P. Bryant ). 4 Offender Profiling ( Miranda A. H. Horvath ). 5 Eyewitness Evidence ( Miranda A. H. Horvath ). 6 Investigative Interviewing ( Lynsey Gozna and Miranda A. H. Horvath ). 7 Assessing Performance: Quantity or Quality? ( Stephen Tong ). 8 Criminal Investigation in Context ( Stephen Tong, Robin P. Bryant and Miranda A. H. Horvath ). 9 Professionalising Investigation ( Stephen Tong ). 10 Conclusion: Future Challenges in Criminal Investigation ( Stephen Tong, Robin P. Bryant and Miranda A. H. Horvath) . References. Index.

Child homicide: generating victim and suspect risk profiles

Purpose – In England and Wales, on average one child every week is a victim of homicide. The purpose of this paper is to explore whether different victim-risk profiles and suspect variables can be differentiated for specific victim ages. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a preliminary analysis of more than 1,000 child homicides committed in England and Wales between 1996 and 2013, from data provided through the Homicide Index. Statistical techniques such as cluster analysis were used to identify specific victim-risk profiles and to analyse suspect variables according to the age of victim. Findings – The findings present a clearer picture of the risk-age relationship in child homicide, whereby several specific risk profiles are identified for specific child ages, comprised of crime variables including; likely victim and suspect demographics, the most likely circumstances of the homicide and methods of killing. Using similar techniques, a number of tentative clusters of suspects implicated i...

The importance of context and cognitive agency in developing police knowledge: going beyond the police science discourse

This paper argues the current exposition of police knowledge through the discourses of police science and evidence-based policing (EBP) leads to exaggerated claims about what is, and can be, known in policing. This new orthodoxy underestimates the challenges of applying knowledge within culturally mediated police practice. The paper draws upon virtue epistemology, highlighting the role that cognitive agency plays in establishing knowledge claims. We challenge the assumption that it is possible to derive what works in all instances of certain aspects of policing and suggest that it would be more apt to speak about what worked within a specific police context.

The impact of dispersal powers on congregating youth

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present research which evaluated the impact of Dispersal Orders in an English town. Design/methodology/approach The study used a mixed method design to, qualitatively, explore the impact of the intervention on young people and, quantitatively, the impact on recorded crime/anti-social behaviour. Findings The use of Dispersal Orders in the town being studied highlighted a number of issues detrimental to young people. Powers appeared to be used to control the congregating rather than anti-social behaviour of young people and their use could increase young peoples’ feelings of vulnerability. Practical implications The findings suggest that Dispersal Orders (and the newer Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs)) may be ineffective if they are used without the focus of a specific anti-social behaviour issue. Social implications The findings suggest that the use of Dispersal Orders to deal with non-anti-social behaviour issues are likely to alienate young people and have the potential to inadvertently place them at further risk. They also suggest that the PSPO could very well exacerbate the substantial issues which have been identified in the present research. Originality/value This research is original and suggests that the negative findings of earlier pieces of research into Dispersal Orders can be replicated in very different geographical environments and in areas with low levels of general deprivation where no substantial anti-social behaviour issues were identified. Furthermore, it uses original data to contextualize contemporary developments in anti-social behaviour, namely the introduction of PSPOs.