Tingyi’s Geob479 blog

Police forces have been using GIS more and more often over the past 20 years–most larger Departments such as the Edmonton Police Service and the Ottawa Police Service would have at least performed an analyst using GIS. Using GIS to visualize crime occurrences is one of the most helpful usages of GIS in crime analysis. In general, maps are useful for understanding hierarchical perspectives and obtaining an overview of how things change.

Three ways in environmental criminology are introduced to understand the spatial distribution of crimes: Routine Activity Theory, Rational Choice Theory, and Criminal Pattern Theory.

Routine Activity Theory is described by the following formula: likely offender + suitable target – capable guardian = crime opportunity

Rational Choice Theory assumes that offenders make a rational decision about whether to commit a crime. The theory supposes that criminals will balance rewards against the chances of getting caught.

Criminal Pattern Theory states that offenders will be affected by the routines of their daily lives. For example, they will commit crimes in areas they are familiar with.

GIS is a valuable tool that virtualizes the pattern of crimes by identifying problem areas, producing maps for officers to use in the field, keep track of particular offenders, and assist in solving crimes, and then we would we could model and even predict crime.