Shoplifting is as American as income tax fraud and motorists ignoring the 55 m.p.h. speed limit. It knows no age, economic, social, racial, or religious barriers. Shoplifters' motives and methods are examined and ways of combating shoplifting are discussed. (RM)

Identity theft via bogus e-mail links, or "phishing," is escalating, with criminals becoming ever more brazen and sophisticated in their online schemes to trick people into revealing their personal information. People do get scammed. Phishing messages that appear to be sent by trusted companies dupe 3 percent of the people who receive…

In this article, the author explains how antivirus programs work. He also explains how performances of various antivirus programs vary from one to another. He also takes a look at 13 antivirus programs and explains which of these will keep computers protected. These programs include: (1) Sophos Anti-Virus Version 3.86.2; (2) McAfee VirusScan 9.0;…

Coming just four days before the anniversary of the Columbine school shootings, the mass slayings by a student gunman at Virginia Polytechnic Institute last week revived vexing questions and raised familiar fears for educators across the country who grapple daily with ensuring the safety of their students and staffs. The April 16 killings provoked…

A growing body of research lends support to opportunity theory and its variants, but has yet to focus systematically on a number of specific offenses and contexts. Typically, the more crimes and contexts to which a theory applies, the broader its scope and range, respectively, and thus generalizability. In this paper, we focus on agricultural…

It is absolutely critical that high school games be organized in the safest way possible--both for the students, the staff who are directly involved and for all the spectators who watch these games. School officials have become vigilant with safety measures as a string of violent incidents has occurred in several school athletic events across the…

Domestic violence imposes a large cost on society. The authors exploit state variation in timing to examine the impact of three types of law on intimate partner homicides. These laws restrict access to firearms by individuals who are subject to a restraining order or have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor or allow law enforcement…

Laws such as 0.08 blood alcohol content, open container, and license revocation provide a policy framework for reducing drinking and driving. Drinking and driving behavior is difficult to assess; unlike property and violent crimes, where incidence statistics can approximate behavior, most drink-driving trips go undetected. The authors develop a…

This report describes seven categories of violent crime in Phoenix, Arizona, and provides causes, facts, preventative programs, and lessons learned pertaining to each category of violence. The categories are: (1) prenatal and early childhood; (2) families; (3) individual youth; (4) schools; (5) neighborhood and community; (6) workplace; and (7)…

This document contains testimony from a Senate hearing examining causes of and solutions to the problem of juvenile firesetting. In an opening statement, Chairman Specter testified that arson has the highest percentage of juvenile involvement with 38 percent of arson crimes committed by juveniles. Pamela McLaughlin of the National Firehawk…

Three primary kinds of crime occurring in park settings--behavioral conflicts, crimes against property, and crimes against persons--are described. Suggestions for developing solutions and prevention techniques are included. (CJ)

Emphasizes the importance of an annual security review of a school facility's door hardware and provides a description of the different types of locking devices typically used on schools and where they are best applied. (EV)

Discusses how the killing of three professors by a suicidal student horrified the University of Arizona and prompted colleges around the country to consider ways of heading off such rare violence. (EV)

Describes improvements in closed circuit television systems which make the systems easier and more useful for school security. One such innovation is the movement to tapeless systems that digitally record on computer hard drives: digital video multiplexers/recorders (DVMRs). (EV)

Examines techniques for keeping college fitness centers secure while maintaining an inviting atmosphere. Building access control, preventing locker room theft, and suppressing causes for physical violence are discussed. (GR)