Do Fringe Banks Create Fringe Neighborhoods? Examining the Spatial Relationship Between Fringe Banking and Neighborhood Crime Rates

• NCJ Number: 249989
• Journal: Justice Quarterly Dated: 2014
• Author(s): C. E. Kubrin; J. R. Hipp
• Date Published: November 2014
• Length: 31 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2012-R2-CX-0010
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Award: Crime in Metropolitan America: Patterns and Trends across the SouthernCalifornia Landscape

Annotation

Given the spatial concentration of "fringe lenders" - such as check cashers, payday lenders, and pawnshops - in low-income neighborhoods with greater concentrations of racial and ethnic minorities and typically more crime, this study examined whether fringe lenders are themselves engaged in crimes.

Abstract

The study examined several types of fringe lenders on neighborhood crime rates in Los Angeles. The findings show that the presence of fringe banks on a block is related to higher crime levels, even after controlling for a range of known factors. (Publisher abstracts modified)