Aaron Chalfin, Benjamin Hansen and Rachel Ryley

For nearly every crime there is a victim. However, the vast majority of studies in the economics of crime have focused the causal determinants of criminality. We present novel evidence on the causal determinants of victimization, focusing on legal access to alcohol. The social costs of alcohol use and abuse are sizable and well-documented. We find criminal victimization — for both violent and property crimes — increases noticeably at age 21. Effects are not present at other birthdays and do not appear to be driven by a “birthday celebration effect.” The effects are particularly large for sexual assaults, especially those that occur in non-residential locations. Our results suggest prior research which has focused on criminality has understated the true social costs associated with increased access to alcohol.

Journal of Human Resources. Vol. 58, Issue 6. 1 Nov 2023

by Sheena Webb, Carolyn Lipp, and Hannah Jeffery

Domestic abuse is one of the key drivers of child protection involvement in the UK. But there is a real lack of evidence around effective ways to with domestic abuse perpetrators. Recent research has highlighted the importance of substance misuse and the experience of trauma amongst perpetrators, and suggests that interventions which take these three issues together may be more effective than many of the current strategies. This project aims to contribute to our understanding of how to effectively work with perpetrators of domestic abuse by focussing on Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDACs), a non-adversarial, trauma-informed alternative to standard care proceedings which works with many domestic abuse perpetrators. Parents within FDAC proceedings receive therapeutic support from a multidisciplinary team and have regular review hearings with a dedicated judge. This report compares the lessons learned from a systematic review of the evidence around the links between abuse, trauma and perpetration of abuse with the way that these three issues are understood and responded to by FDAC teams and judges. 

London: Centre for Justice Innovation, 2023. 101p.