Drug-Related Homicide in New York: 1984 and 1988

• NCJ Number: 154642
• Journal: Crime & Delinquency Volume: 38 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1992) Pages: 459-476
• Author(s): P J Goldstein; H H Brownstein; P J Ryan
• Date Published: 1992
• Length: 18 pages
• Grant Number(s): 87-IJ-CX-0046; 85-IJ-CX-0052
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)

Annotation

This article reports findings from two studies: Drug Related Crime Analysis 1 (DRCA-H1) and Drug Related Crime Analysis 2 (DRCA-H2); both addressed the need for routine and systematic collection of data about the drug-relatedness of homicide.

Abstract

DRCA-H1, conducted in New York State in 1984, focused on assessing the usefulness of existing police records for researching this subject. DRCA-H2 involved data collection during ongoing police investigations in New York City between March 1 and October 31, 1988. Both studies were structured, and their findings analyzed in terms of a tripartite conceptualization of the drugs/homicide nexus. Comparing the findings of the studies reveals that existing police records are generally inadequate for providing insight into the complexities of the drugs/crime/violence nexus; however, findings from DRCA-H2 show that it is possible for researchers to work effectively with police to collect critically needed information, without causing significant disruption. 4 tables and 27 references