Author ORCID Identifier

Wright: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4653-3596

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2-13-2019

Publication Title

Crime & Delinquency

Volume

65

Issue

4

First Page

474

Last Page

498

Abstract

This study examines the predictors of sexual assault case clearance, with a focus on arrest and two types of exceptional clearance: victim refusal to cooperate and prosecutorial declination to prosecute. Using National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data on crime incidents that contain a sexual offense (N = 21,977), we estimated a multinomial regression model to examine the predictors of different clearance types for cases of sexual assault. Results indicated that the likelihood of victim refusal decreases in cases perpetrated by strangers, involving victim injury, occurring in public, and involving multiple offenses. A similar pattern of findings was observed for the decision to decline to prosecute a case. In addition, prosecutors are more likely to decline to prosecute cases with male victims and older victims. We discuss the implications of our findings and directions for future research.

Comments

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Sage in [Crime & Delinquency} on [February 13, 2019], available online: https://doi.org/10.1177/0011128719828351

Reuse restricted to noncommercial and no derivative uses.

Copyright held by authors.

Included in

Criminology Commons

Share

COinS