VIOLENC 0F in par1 VIOLENCE IN ARMED ROBBERY: THE RELATIONSHIP OF CONSANGUINITY AND OTHER VARIABLES By Robert Griggsby May A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE School of Criminal Justice 1970 Approved: \JHICQJTZ/ (O 'g:13¢‘“j“¢~’~\\- (Chairman) member] 5/ F VIOLENW 0F Armed ro States. Violen armed theft fro this crime 15 n all citizens ar The larg this Crime and ABSTRACT VIOLENCE IN ARMED ROBBERY: THE RELATIONSHIP OF CONSANGUINITY AND OTHER VARIABLES By Robert Griggsby May Armed robbery is on the increase in the United States. Violence is the primary concern in the crime of armed theft from a person. The latent violence attending this crime is not limited to the victim and the holdup man; all citizens are endangered. The large city is the scene of most armed robberies; this crime and its violence are primarily a big city problem. "Since 1960 reported instances of] this violent crime [have increased lkh percent. . . ."1 The large cities with over 250,000 inhabitants have ”accounted for nearly 3 out of every h robberies."2 The amounts of money taken are not an important factor in this crime; the frequent, needless violence and deaths present the true challenge to contemporary civiliza- tion. That challenge is to protect all citizens while attempting to modify, and correct, the violent armed robber. In acce the violent me identification tion. a typolo 1 system of vali in armed robbe The mass Great for any c was selected. consanguinity ; blood relation: son, brother a: kinship. Draw Violent; armed team actions on consanguineal apprehend and PObber-y “Spec Lillited cities °l°3e t Robert Griggsby May In accepting such a challenge, society must identify the violent men she will confront. In addition to the identification of such individuals a system of classifica- tion, a typology, of the armed robber must deve10p if a system of valid measurement of the potential for violence in armed robber suspects is the desired goal. The mass of the problem of armed robbery is too great for any one thesis; therefore, a middle range target was selected. That target was the relationship between consanguinity and violence. Consanguinity was defined as blood relationship; the relationship between father and son, brother and brother, and similar blood line forms of kinship. Drawing upon contemporary newspaper accounts of violent armed robberies, examples of consanguineal robbery team actions were noted. Hypotheses relating to consanguineal robbery suspects being more difficult to apprehend and more violent at the holdup scene than other robbery suspects were established. Limited resources dictated the selection of two cities close to East Lansing. Flint was selected as the primary city and Detroit, the secondary city. Data was collected from each city's armed robbery arrest reports for the 1969 calender year. A coding sheet was used in recording all data. The researcher read all reports and encoded information. A consistent effort was made to resolve conflicts by selection of the less violent Option available. In the consanguineal their level of the hypotheses stated that th: violent at the scene than wen central thrust “P00 violence. W be related Variables were firearm use: a TWO var Flint. Host, a m" of age 0 a lots le‘ml. Detroit a 3 ame Sample an1 lab Analysi Robert Griggsby Nay available. In the third day of data collection in Flint, consanguineal suspects were found to be few in number and their level of violence consistently low. Statistically, the hypotheses were refuted and the null hypotheses, which stated that the consanguineal robbery suspect was no more violent at the scene of apprehension nor at the holdup scene than were other robbery suspects, was affirmed. The central thrust of the study was altered. It was focused upon violence. Consanguinity became one of the variables to be related to violence by Chi square tables. Other variables were age, race, team or non-team activity, firearm use, and narcotic involvement. Two variables withstood statistical analysis and displayed strong significance; one was the age factor in Flint. Most armed robberies were committed by those 22 years of age or younger and their violence was confined to a low level. The second significant finding was that Detroit's armed robbery teams were predominantly Negro and their actions accounted for 71 percent of the limited sample available in Detroit. Analysis indicated that the interaction between the robber and the victim is a key area in violence. A "threshold to violence” was offered as an analogy to the "threshold of pain," with various factors raising or lowering the threshold of violence. The most prominent factor was 1'08 Robert Griggsby May factor was fear. 1Committee on Uniform Crime Reports, International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Cr ‘figpgigg (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government PFIntIng ice, 8), p. 13. 21bid. VIC LE] C: the Fa I'Pa Rt VIOLENCE IN ARMED ROBBERY: THE RELATIONSHIP OF CONSANGUINITY AND OTHER VARIABLES A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the School of Criminal Justice Michigan State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science in Police Administration by Robert Griggsby May July 10, 1970 Dedication: To the memory of Mrs. Gladys Turner, a kindly lady with a hearing defect who probably never heard the holdup man's orders; killed selling flowers in St. Louis, Missouri March of 1970 ii I wish ably assistec in the crime Department 0 Enforcement, fellowship L “i apprecia1 For ' BCCCOI‘ John them. For theoretiCa] ’I‘m‘f. and ( Of Michigal For inquire ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to acknowledge my debt to those who have ably assisted in this study of consanguinity and violence in the crime of armed robbery. To the United States Department of Justice and the National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, who granted the graduate fellowship under which the work was completed, I express my appreciation. For the counsel, advice, and patience displayed by Doctor John MbNamara and Doctor Victor C. Strecher;I thank them. For the professional and critical review of the theoretical approach, I thank Major Charles A. Hines, U.S. Army, and Officers William D. Miller and James D. Scott of Michigan State University. For the complete freedom to search records and inquire openly, I thank Chief James Rutherford of the Flint, Michigan Police Department and Commissioner Patrick Murphy of the Detroit, Michigan Police Department. In respect to their professional competence and their courtesy, I acknowledge the efforts of Officer Charles A. Krug, Jr., Mr. Elmer Frazier, Sgt. Leo Johnson, and Detective Michael Kostka of the Flint Police Department, and Deputy Commissioner John F. Nichols, Inspector Fred Schieman, and Sgts. James Cowie and Eugene Randolph of the iii Detroit Polic Lastly. many skills ar. in the typing surpassed only, Detroit Police Department. Lastly, in fond appreciation, I acknowledge the many skills and much patience exercised by my wife Carol in the typing of this thesis. Her typing skill was surpassed only by her ability to encourage. iv CHAPTER INTRODUCTION I.DEFINING Robber The Sa Statem Import Defini Organj Thee II~REVIEW c Armed Violer III. AREAS s"; C0n8t1 ”Eth0¢ TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l I. DEFINING THE PROBLEM . . . . . . . . . . . . o 3 Robbery Motivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 The Sample . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Statement of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . ll Importance of the Survey . . . . . . . . . . 13 Definition of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Organization of the Remainder of the Thesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE . . . . . . . . . . . 2# Armed Robbery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Violence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 III. AREAS STUDIED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Constraints Upon Data Gathering . . . . . . #1 Method of Data Gathering . . . . . . . . . . #2 Flint, Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . .I. #6 Detroit, Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . #7 Robber Groups Studied . . . . . . . . . . . #8 The Single or Lone Robber . . . . . . . . . #8 The Team Robber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 The Non Related Robbery Team Suspect . . . . 57 V CHAPTER 1 IV.METHODOI£ The Con Researc Objecti Limitat V.RESULTS C yL s Con8ang SUSpec1 Injuri« Weapon Weapon Weapon Place Age, u Robber HYPOth Signii Metivé Signii Fact Analy. UMMRRY Summa Cencl CHAPTER PAGE The Consanguineally Related Team Robber . . 57 IV. METHODOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o 59 Research Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . 6O Objectives of the Survey . . . . . . . . . . 71 Limitations of the Study . . . . . . . . . . 72 V. RESULTS OF THE STUDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7# Consanguinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7# Suspect Resistance to Apprehension . . . . . 78 Injuries and Deaths of Suspects . . . . . . 79 Weapon Use and Violence . . . . . . . . . . 79 Weapon Use and Violence in Flint . . . . . . 80 Weapon Use and Violence in Detroit . . . . . 86 Place of Birth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Age, Weapons, and Violence . . . . . . . . . 90 Robberies, Robbery Teams, and Race . . . . . 92 Hypotheses Restated and Evaluated . . . . . 96 Significance of Consanguinity . . . . . . . 97 Motivations Expanded . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Significance of Violence and Other Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 VI. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . 113 summarYeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee 113 CODCIUSion.................'111+ Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 “ vi CHAPTER BIBLIOGRAPHY CHAPTER BIBLIOGRAPHY vii PAGE 119 VI. VII. VIII, xx, xx. Inform Depa Inform Depa Pistol Ages c Time Weapoy the weapoa the weapo; the Weapo and LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I. Information From the Flint Police Department's 1961-1969 Annual Reports . . 50 II. Information From the Detroit Police Department's 1969 Annual Report . . . . . 51 III. Pistol Permits Issued in Flint, Michigan . . 58 IV. Ages of Armed Robbery Suspects at the Time of Arrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 V. weapons Used and Degrees of Violence in the City of Flint . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 VI. Weapon Used and Degree of Violence in the City of Flint . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 VII. Weapons Used and Degree of Violence in the City of Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . 83 VIII. Weapons Used and Degree of Violence in the City of Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . 84 IX. Age and Weapon Use in the Cities of Flint and Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 X. Place of Birth of Flint and Detroit Armed Robbery Suspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 XI. Robbery Suspects by Race and Displayed Violence in the Cities of Flint and Detr01teeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. 93 viii TABLE XII. Activi in t XIII. Activit in t1j XIV. Violenc ofF XV. Violen of De XVI. Violenc Flint XIII. Violenc. Detro mu, Robbery Flint XIX. Robbery Detro XX' Violenc Flint XXI. Violenc TABLE XII. XIII. XIV. XV. XVI. XVII. XVIII. XIX. XXI. XXII. XXIII. XXIV. Activities of Robbery Teams and Non-Teams in the City of Flint . . . . . . . . . . Activities of Robbery Teams and Non-Teams in the City of Detroit . . . . . . . . . Violence and of Flint . Violence and of Detroit Violence and Flint . . Violence and Detroit . Robbery Team Flint . . Robbery Team Detroit . Violence and Flint . . Violence and Detroit . Consanguinity in the City Consanguinity in the City . Robbery Team.Activity in. . Rohbery Team A6tivity in. . 11.4.1.4; that; 2,; ' Frequency in.the City 6f. . RaceOOf Robbery Suspects in Race of Robbery Suspects in Age and Violence in Flint's Robbery Suspects . Age and Violence in Detroit's Robbery Suspects . Firearms and Violence in Flint . . . . . ix PAGE 9# 95 98 98 100 101 101 102 102 103 103 10k 10# RNA UN.Iirear. IUl.Violenc lnvol XXIII. Violenc InvoI TABLE XXV. Firearms and Violence in Detroit . . . . . XXVI. Violence in Armed Robbery and Narcotic Involvement in Flint's Suspects XXVII. Violence in Armed Robbery and Narcotic Involvement in Detroit's Suspects PAGE 105 105 106 FIGURE 1. Number of Detroit 2. Five Areas LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. Number of New Handgun Permits Issued in Detroit By Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #9 2. Five Areas of the United States . . . . . . . 62 xi INTRODUCTION There exists within the United States and much of the world today great concern for the frequency of violence within our human society. Armed robbery is an invitation to violence. At its source is the crudeness of lust for the monetary possessions of another. It should not be difficult to conjure the mental image of two of our common ancestors, hairy and unkempt, struggling outside a cave, one trying to protect himself and his means of barter from the other Neanderthal, who was armed with a stick or a stone ax. Robbery then, as now, is basic. It is the exercise of force and violence to gain objectives. If the act is basic, solutions should be simple and direct. Solutions of armed robberies are not simple and direct. Alternatives available to the robber and the victim are interlocking and multiple. The elements of nervous excitement, fear, violence, combat, and pursuit, add to the complexity and intrigue of the crime. Weapon choice and use eXpand the complexities. Violence fosters violence and a simple crime becomes homicide. Improved weaponry and rapid flight from the scene by automobile in densely papulated areas compound the complexities. Tactics of the robber, the victim, the Criminal Justice System, and the defense attorney do little to solve the factors of vi as related to the cities of As the diseased tisst logically, th and analyze f; the goal of ti and consanguil crime of arm. factors of bl ClESGIWQS aCkn to solve the problem. This thesis addresses the complex factors of violence and consanguinity (blood relationship) as related to the armed robberies cleared by arrest in the cities of Flint and Detroit, Michigan in 1969. As the pathologist strives to obtain samples of diseased tissue for microscopic and chemical analysis, logically, the criminologist should strive to isolate and analyze factors of specific criminal acts. That is the goal of this thesis, to study and analyze the violence and consanguineal relationship factors involved in the crime of armed robbery. If a correlation exists between factors of blood relationship and violence its existence deserves acknowledgment. Armed : States. The. reported to t other Crime I volume with a the Federal B instances 03 perCent. FObbepy is no Rm POIiCe, labors, tPaVe robbery is CHAPTER I DEFINING THE PROBLEM Armed robbery is on the increase in the United States. The hard reality exists that not all crimes are reported to the police. "Since 1966, robbery has led all other Crime Index offenses in the percentage increase in volume with a 30 percent rise over 1967,"1 as reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "Since 1960 Eeported instances 03 this violent crime Eiava. increased l## percent. . . ."2 The violence attending the crime of armed robbery is not limited to the victim, the holdup man, or the police. All innocent citizens involved in their daily labors, travels, and recreations, are endangered. Yet, robbery is similar to other crimes of violence in that it is "primarily a big city problem."3 As a big city law enforcement problem, robbery, or armed theft with force, or the threat of force, escalates one major step toward violence and homicide when the robber states his challenge: 1Committee on Uniform Crime Reports, International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime Re orts (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government PFInting Office, I968), p. 13. 2Ibid. 3Ibid. "This is a ht is an invitat Once i alternatives resist. The ensure the 3.; ANY small) t detectives of the victims . situations m are: (l) a: W a. e (2) T p (3) T (A) T (S) ”I If“blight 1. (1) 1 (2) I "This is a holdup." In essence, the crime of robbery is an invitation to violence. Once issued, the invitation presents three major alternatives to the victim; he may acquiesce, flee, or resist. The consequences of acquiescence by no means ensure the safety of the victim. A growing (but statistic- ally small) trend has been reported by prominent professional detectives of the "needless" "[holdug murder [8] . . . where the victims . . . didn't even resist."“ A few of the situations that may arise under acquiescence by the victim are: (1) An appeal to reason or the shaming of the felon with the result that he may not take anything and may not injure the victim. This is most effective against a lone robber. (2) The felon may rob and leave the scene with no physical injury to the victim. (3) The felon may rob and injure the victim. (h) The felon may not rob the victim but kills him. (5) The felon may rob and kill the victim. If flight is the alternative the victim selects he may: (1) Lose nothing. (2) Be robbed in his absence. “Statement by Major Pete Vasel, St. Louis County, Missouri Police Department in a personal interview, April, 1970. (3) Be (L) Be (5) Be (6) Be rc Resistance 01 following 511 (1) TJ t n t (2) '1 (3) '1 (L)! (S)' (e) (7) (3) (A) (5) (6) Resistance 5 Be injured by the felon as he (the victim) flees. Be robbed and injured. Be killed and the felon may flee with nothing. Be killed and his corpse or his establishment robbed. on the part of the victim may produce the following situations: (1) (2) (3) (h) (5) (6) (7) The victim may thwart the robbery attempt and the felon leaves with nothing. The victim may not even report the incident to the police thinking a "bluff" has been called. The victim may be robbed without physical injury to his person, regardless of his resistance. The victim may be injured but not suffer monetary loss. The victim may be robbed and injured. The victim may be killed but nothing taken from the scene. The victim may be robbed and killed. The victim's resistance may be successful, but he will be involved in time-consuming Criminal Justice procedures, i.e., a police report. If he used a weapon it may be taken from him in some jurisdictions. If he injured the felon depositions and other legal processes will draw him away from his livelihood. In essence, (2) TE (8) n MI The common (is a‘i'ailable to pnysical inju l robbery. 2m 1 . “(Noe)”! blOtiV: The mot personal gain. the use of thr alone. These a continuum, (flat Continuun 1r . various factor conditions of no in the sit A “eEat the system which seeks to protect him may restrict and complicate his life. (8) The victim may apprehend, injure or kill the robber. The common denominator found in each alternative situation available to the victim is the possibility of violent physical injury or death during the course of an armed robbery. Robbery MOtivation The motivation in the crime of armed robbery is personal gain. The means to attain the monetary gain is the use of threats, or threats and violence, or violence alone. These progressive steps to violence range along a continuum. Transition from one point to another on that continuum is not bounded by physical or moral laws. Various factors in the physical and mental-emotional conditions of the robber and of the victim or victims, and in the situation itself, may trigger violence. A negative "self" view of repeated failures held by an.armed robber may prompt him to violence when he is resisted in the slightest manner. Victimization, as viewed by the preprietor of a small business who works 10 to 12 hours a day for his livelihood, may prompt his resistance or counterviolence. A convicted robber once said: When a guy thinks of robbery, he thinks in terms of money are a 10 "This is bent."5 That particu total of the and his ecor flight, to ; threats and or killing 1 In a Participant imDortant b Vary great] 1“‘ESZ'Lstance desire to I SW)? of v: denote DOS: that the "1 r Obbery . r—i H (D O < a: (D (D P4 on m 6* O uw 2 s 0‘ n m of money, not of hurting peOple. I'll bet there are a lot of robbers who have told a merchant "This is a holdup" and have been told to "get bent."5 That particular answer may have flashed across the sum total of the robber's personality, his emotional makeup, and his economic status to form a reaction ranging from flight, to additional verbal threats, to increased threats and the physical action of striking the merchant or killing him. In a study of armed robbery the principal participants are the victim and the robber. Police are important but their role is "after the fact." Victims vary greatly in sex, in age, and means and manner of resistance if resistance is used at all, and in their desire to retain the property sought by the robber. A study of victims, though extremely interesting, would denote possibly one factor held in common, and that is that the "risks of victimization from forcible rape, robbery, and burglary, are clearly concentrated in the lowest income group and decrease steadily at higher income levels."6 5Robert G. May, The Views of §i§ Armed Robbers 22 Disarmin the Police, an unpuBIisHEd paper Based on an interview'WIEh six convicted armed robbers at the Michigan Reformatory at Ionia, Michigan. 6The President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, "The Characteristics of Offenders and Victims of Crime," Task Force Report: Science and in in-depth they are the The differenc the "have-not for this thee The pr reducible to of homicide i injury among - hilt a few Of . isthe total justice to a of so many in a*PPI‘oach Was data collecti deEl‘ee of Vio Robber lore Of the U and the Young a T9 “0 lOnger streets of on Car An in-depth study of robbery victims may display that they are the "have's" and the robbers are the "have-net's." The difference may be that the "have's" are working and the "have-net's" are not. Such a study is not proposed for this thesis. The problems involved in armed robbery are reducible to many separate and unusual types. Frequency of homicide in armed robberies, frequency of assault and injury among victims, weapon use and weapon ownership are but a few of the many problems involved in the maze which is the total problem of robbery. One thesis could not do justice to a target so wide, so complex, and consisting of so many interesting segments. An eclectic theoretical approach was applied to conceptualization, theory, and data collection with regard to the armed robber and the degree of violence he used. Robbery and violence have been a part of the folk- lore of the United States. The Jameses, the Daltons, and the Youngers were but a few robber gangs in the nation's history. In contemporary America the "Bad Lands" are no longer located in the west. Today they are the streets of our large cities, New York, Chicago, and Detroit. Cars have replaced horses, but the guns are still Technologé (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing fice, 67), p. 790 there, and U The s family-based may respond of the armed association p semblance of established t actions of t) them may be The p brothers are bank robber. In the City City of Se: his QOusin Yolnbery of Officer. wa: m. if] S \e% there, and to a degree,so are the gangs. The significance of this relationship may indicate family-based crime patterns and learned behavior that may respond to remedial treatment. Secondarily, a study of the armed robber and his team members should denote association patterns for additional research. Once some semblance of consanguinity or non-consanguinity has been established between members of armed robbery teams, the actions of the teams and the individuals which comprise them may be drawn into focus. The problem is vital, the problem is timely: two brothers are under Federal indictment for the bombing- bank robberies of Union, Missouri and Danbury, Connecticut.7 In the city of University City, Missouri, a suburb of the city of Saint Louis, Missouri, one robber was killed and his cousin arrested in the process of conducting an armed robbery of a service station. A University City Police Officer was also killed in that robbery. The Sample Limited time and resources dictated the selection of one large and one smaller city close to East Lansing, Michigan. The rationale behind the selection of a large city was that "the 57 large core American cities with 7"Brothers Suspected in Robbery," The State Journal Lansing, Michigan, March 9, 1970, p. 0-6. over 250,000 ‘ every I. robbe during 1968.' )2 smaller city,| II between the t gathering Ope corrections n. Mimigan smoo larger metrop "Violence" We; reduce Cleric; Imitia; arrested for .- Perpetrated c 10 over 250,000 pOpulation accounted for nearly 3 out of every h robberies which occurred in the United States during 1968."3 The selection of Flint, Michigan, the smaller city, was made as a testing station for the data gathering Operation, and as a reflection of the differences between the two cities. Difficulties encountered and corrections made in the means of data collection in Flint, Michigan smoothed the collection process in the second, larger metropolitan area, Detroit, Michigan. Types of "violence" were expanded and coding was simplified to reduce clerical error. Initially data collection was limited to males arrested for armed robbery; this was due to the reported findings that armed robbery is by and large a male perpetrated crime.9 The female would not be denied; her presence in arrest statistics was noted in Flint, Michigan and in the Uniform Crime Reports. Nationally, "in 1968, 6 of every 100 persons arrested for robbery were females; however, arrests of women for this offense rose 28 percent in 1968 when related to 1967."10 In the search for violence at the scene of the crime and at the scene of apprehension, with a research design centering upon relating that data with the variant 8Uniform Crime Re rts, oc. cit. 9Ibid., p. 15. 10 Ibid. T types of arm eally relate calender yea information Statement of Armed violence as rate for the The resultar If tl "lives and ) Tabb“? and this thesis mbbel‘ss th. rObbery tea) were checke. SuspeCts. l consanguini crime of ar 11 types of armed robbers who were and were not consanguin- eally related, the data collection was limited to the calendar year of 1969. This thesis deals with arrest information and not conviction records. Statement 2; Egg Problem Armed robbery is increasing in frequency and in violence as a core city problem. Nationally the clearance rate for the general category of robbery was "27 percent."11 The resultant success rate for the robber was 73 percent. If the Criminal Justice System's goal is to protect "lives and prOperty," more must be known of the crime of robbery and the persons who commit robberies. The goal of this thesis was to locate and identify two types of armed robbers; those who operate alone and those who Operate as robbery team members. Once identified, the robbery suspects were checked for consanguineal relationships to other robbery suspects. The underlying rationale for focusing upon consanguinity follows in this manner: If a man engages in the crime of armed robbery and requires the presence of a companion to share his dangerous adventure and the monetary gains he seeks, he would logically exercise discreet selection of that cohort. His criterion of selection might be patterned after this example: (1) The principal team member has known and associated llIbid. (2) (3) (A) (S) 12 with the prospect for a long period of time. (2) The principal believes that he knows the type of performance the prospect will deliver under stress and danger. (3) The principal believes that the prospect owes him a high degree of loyalty, meaning that if the prospect were arrested he would remain silent. (A) The principal believes that if the team encountered violent resistance each of them would fight to protect himself and the other team member. (5) The principal believes that the prospect has similar ideas on crime, the police, the target, merchants in general, and that they both have the mental will to commit a robbery. A young male, tied to the central city by educational deficiencies, social and economic restraints, might find his most convenient crime partner within his immediate family; a father, brother, uncle, or cousin. Violence in consanguineal robbery suspects seems a natural phenomenon. Loyalty to family and self are served in protecting a brother, or in helping him when he is in need. These were the thoughts which generated the hypotheses centering upon the relationship between violence and consanguinity. This study attempts to validate or negate high degrees of violence associated with consanguineal armed robbery suspects in the cities 13 of Flint and Detroit, Michigan. Importance _§,_hg Survey The publications of the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice complete with all the supporting Task Force Reports have constituted a mile- stone in the study of Criminal Justice. As a practitioner, and as a student, one finds much in the study of Criminal Justice that repeatedly dwells upon the dark side. The police are not aware of their role in society, the courts are not keeping pace with crime, and the correctional system is not changing the behavioral patterns of the men and women placed in their charge. One who has studied and analyzed several of the problems facing the Criminal Justice System might indeed be shallow to run to the bright side and say that the police are doing the finest job possible, the courts are fair and effective in the prosecution of the guilty and the protection of the innocent, and conclude with the finding that the correctional system's methods and means are the best available for amending criminal deviant behavior. Few, if any, are ready to accept these positions. The study undertaken in this thesis was problem oriented. Armed robbery was the problem. It is deviant to steal the property of another, let alone add the threat of taking the life of the victim also. Therefore, armed robbery is clearly deviant behavior in one of its most life threatening exists in an examination . in an armed l erred robber and examinati mentioned sue history would and analysis. A secc aspecific c1 and Hans Tony 4 1h threatening forms. If this pattern of individual deviance exists in an armed robber, he is a candidate for study and examination. If a pattern of individual deviance exists in an armed robber, and in his brother, who is also an armed robber, the two brothers would be candidates for study and examination of higher priority than the previously mentioned suspect. Their family life, life style, and history would be fertile ground for investigation, study, and analysis. A secondary goal of the survey was the study of a specific crime. Marvin E. Wolfgang, Franco Ferracuti, and Hans Toch have studied violence; Wolfgang has also studied homicide. Criminology seems to strive for broad unifying general theories. It would be an interesting approach to study crime, criminals, and their actions within the framework of one specific crime category. Such an approach might be an analogy to the work of Charles R. Darwin, the English naturalist. If criminals were validly classified according to their crime species and background characteristics some increase in understanding, and hence control, should result. Patterns might become visible which would predict when a deviant individual would change criminal species. Returning to the substance of this thesis, there exists the strong possibility that the characteristics present in specific crimes tempts Specific criminals. The study of the criminal may shed light on his crime. A by- of the knowl gist of the . identificatit' for the coll. are not dire prosecution Crime and itg' Definition of K ‘ W person on a C applied exclr bOL’] Criminal w. 5 Arm \Bfl 15 A by-product of the survey may be the synthesis of the knowledge gap between clinician and the criminolo- gist of the difficulties involved in criminal investigation, identification, and apprehension as well as the reasons for the collection of data in criminal investigations which are not directly germane to evidence gathering and criminal prosecution but are germane to the sociological study of crime and its causation. Definition of 223mg Apprehension: The seizure, taking, or arrest of a person on a criminal charge. The term "apprehension" is applied exclusively to criminal cases, and "arrest" to both criminal and civil cases. . . .1 ££g§.g£ Concentration: As used in this thesis this phrase refers to the general crime of armed robbery. Armed Robbery; Aggravated Assault: Any person who shall assault another, and shall feloniously rob, steal and take from his person, or in his presence, any money or other property, which may be the subject of larceny, such robber being armed with a dangerous weapon, or any article used or fashioned in a manner to lead the person so assaulted to reasonably believe it to be a dangerous lHenry Campbell Black, M.A., Black's Law Dictionary (fourth edition; St. Paul, Minn.: West Publishing 00., 1951), p. 130. weapon, sha inprisonmen term of yea injury is i armed robbe shall be no prison. . Arre authority, Custody of refers to a is mUCh Old is the "tea (Es for legal r . . , Orle V. accusation 16 weapon, shall be guilty of a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for life or for any term of years. If an aggravated assault or serious injury is inflicted by any person while committing an armed robbery as defined in this section, the sentence shall be not less than 2 years' imprisonment in the state prison. . . .2 Arrest: To deprive a person of his liberty by legal authority. Taking, under real or assumed authority, custody of another for the purpose of holding or detaining him to answer a criminal charge. . . .3 '5 "Winter agg Spring" Robbery Team: This phrase refers to an armed robbery team in which one team member is much older than the other. Usually the older member is the "teacher" and the younger member is the "pupil." Complainant: . . . One who applies to the courts for legal redress: one who exhibits a bill of complaint. . . . One who instigates prosecution or who prefers accusation against suspected person. . . .lt Consanguineou : Lat. A person related by blood; a person descended from the same common stock.5 2Michi an Com iled Laws Annotated, Vol. 39 (St. Paul, Minn.: est Publishing Co., lggg), p. not. 3Black, gp, 3133.. p. 12.0. “Ibid., p. 356. 51bid., p. 375. £93 connectio. common an "affinity of a marr kindred c If? repre sens individu D tolerate obvious] Sltuati‘ and of the Com Sent, wi or flab. 1159!. m an? or \ l7 Consanguinity: Kinship; blood relationship; the connection or relation of persons from the same stock or common ancestor . . . Consanguinity is distinguished from "affinity," which is the connection existing in consequence of a marriage, between each of the married persons and the kindred of the other. . . .6 Criminal Deviant Behavior: Mbst criminal behavior represents a conflict of the norms of particular groups or individuals against those norms which the law represents.7 Deviant Behavior: Deviations from norms which are tolerated or which provoke only mild disapproval are obviously of little concern to a society. Only those situations in which behavior is in a disapproved direction, and of sufficient degree to exceed the tolerance limit of the community, constitute deviant behavior.8 ,/ 2235 Involvement: There are "four stages in involve- ment with drugs: experimentation, occasional use, regular or habitual use and efforts to break the habit." A drug user may progress through all of these stages, or stop at any one. Therefore, there are four possible types of 61bid., pp. 375-376. 7Marshall B. Clinard, Sociolo ‘2; Deviant Behavior (revised edition; New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1963), p. 2h. 81bid., p. 22. 18 users: those who try drugs once and quit, those who use drugs on occasion but do not become addicted, those who do become addicted but somehow are able to break their addiction, and those who become addicted and remain so.9 Eiyg‘gighg: This term means a fight between two or more individuals armed with firearms (handguns and/or rifles) who are trying to shoot and kill each other. £9332 gag Eggg: Called also "y; Metu ue," means that any contract or act extorted under the pressure of force (yig) or under the influence of fear (agggg) is voidable on the ground, provided, of course, that the force of the fear was such as influenced the party. . . .10 £33: A firearm for throwing a projectile with gunpowder . . . a pistol or revolver.11 Juveniles: In Michigan this term applies to persons who have not reached their seventeenth birthday. Criminal actions against juveniles are the province of the Probate Court in the State of Michigan. 9Isidor Chein, Donald L. Gerard, Robert S. Lee, and Eva Rosenfeld, The Road to g: Narcotics, Delin uenc , and Social Polic (Nam York:_Basic Books, Inc., 196?), p. II:' as quote in Harry Gold and Frank R. Scarpitti eds.). "Drug Addiction " Combatting Social Problems (New York: Holt, Rinehart and inston, 1967), p. ZIZ. 10Ibid., p. 77h. llIbid., p. 836. '-' ‘I' Moti induces act' or tempts th the pOpular regarded as clear distir power which Intent is t such result a Person t< FEferS LO invovad 3 fig [F.01‘phine , l9 Motive: Cause or reason that moves the will and induces action . . . An inducement, or that which leads or tempts the mind to indulge a criminal act. . . . In the popular mind intent and "motive" are not infrequently regarded as one and the same thing. In law there is a clear distinction between them. "MOtive" is the moving power which impels to action for a definite result. Intent is the purpose to use a particular means to effect such result. "Motive" is that which incites or stimulates a person to do an act.12 Multiple Robbers: As used in this thesis this term refers to two or more robbers or suspected robbers involved in one specific act or armed robbery. Narcotics: The narcotics consist of opium, heroin, morphine, codeine, and the synthetic Opiates. . . . Heroin is not legally manufactured within the United States. "Its manufacture and sale were prohibited by federal law at the time Of the first World War."13 The use of this term within the context Of this thesis is not a clinically exact use pertaining to the generic drug grouping, but to the generally held law enforcement usage that tends to follow the Federal 121bid., p. 1161.. 13Louis s. Goodman, M.S., M.D., and Alfred Gilman, Ph.D (eds.), The Pharmacolo ical Basis pg Therapeutics (New York: Ma_’cm11T_"C—an 0., "[3657? p. 21.7. narcotics 1;» drugs which; stimulant ar' _Pl;a . . . as mar not tried. negotiations Through his 9“ the sente. latitUde as ”(Chery may I @1122 “‘9 Possessn WfSenCQ, an< Where OrinJUry, a] immed' \ 1:113:11 20 narcotics laws which terms "narcotics" as embracing drugs which are not narcoticlh: cocaine, which is a stimulant and marihuana, which is a "mild hallucinogen."ls Eggg Bargaining: Most defendants who are convicted . . . as many as 90 percent in some jurisdictions -- are not tried. They plead guilty, often as the result of negotiations about the charge or the sentence . . . Through his power . . . the prosecutor has great influence on the sentence. Usually a prosecutor has considerable latitude as to what to charge.16 Therefore an armed robbery may be another charge. Robbery: Felonious taking Of personal property in the possession of another, from his person or immediate presence, and against his will, accomplished by means of force or fear. . . . Where a person, either with violence or with threats of injury, and putting the person robbed in fear, takes and carries away a thing which is on the body, or in the immediate presence of the person from whom it is taken, 1LDrug Abuse, third edition, Smith Kline and French Laboratories (Philadelphia, 1968), p. 12. lSInternational Association of Chiefs Of Police, Training Key #8; Narcotics (Washington, D.C., 1967). p. 3. lthhe President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, The Challenge pg Crime Ip,a Free Societ (Washington, D.C.: . S. overnment Printing Office, 1567), p. 13h. 21 under such circumstances that, in the absence Of violence or threats, the act committed would be a theft. . . . Generally speaking, the elements of "robbery" are the taking of personal property or money from the person or presence of another by actual or constructive force without his consent and with the animus furandi or intent to steal. Robbery may thus be said to be a compound larceny, composed of the crime of larceny from the person with the aggravation of force, actual or constructive, used in the taking.17 Robbery ngp: As used in this thesis this term refers to two or more robbers or suspected robbers involved in one specific act of armed robbery. Typology: A "purposive, planned selection, abstraction, combination, and (sometimes) accentuation Of a set of criteria with empirical referents that serves as a basis for comparison of empirical cases.”18 Unarmed Robbery: Any person who shall, by force and violence, or by assault or putting in fear, feloniously rob, steal and take from the person of another, or in his presence, any money or other prOperty which may be the subject of larceny, such robber not being armed with 17Black, pp. cit., p. 1t92. 18John C. McKinney, Constructive T 010 and Social Theor' (New York: Appleton-Century Crofts, Inc., 1966 , pp. 3. 203. a dangerous was by imprisonment years.lg Violence usually with t} fury. . . . For exercised, the Biployed again: against PUblic storhl or ‘5’: inj ; affeCted by fC abnormal; as a great force or as In the phI‘E violent comm: \ (l [‘14 19b1i\ch 2OBlac 22 a dangerous weapon, shall be guilty of a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison not more than 15 years.19 Violence: Unjust or unwarranted exercise of force, usually with the accompaniment of vehemence, outrage or fury. . . . Force, physical force, force unlawfully exercised, the abuse Of force, that force which is employed against common right, against the laws, and against public liberty. . . .20 Violent: Moving, acting, or characterized by physical force, especially by extreme and sudden or by unJust or imprOper force; furious, vehement; as a violent storm or wind; a violent attack; marked by, or due to, strong mental excitement; vehement, passionate; as, violent speech; violent reproaches; produced -- or affected by force; not spontaneous or natural; unnatural; abnormal; as, a violent death: acting with or exerting great force on the mind, or as evidence; nearly conclusive, as in the phrase, often used in legal contentions, violent presumption: great; extreme; used intensively; as a violent contrast in colors, violent pain, passion, 19Michigan Compiled Laws Annotated, pp. cit., p. Ala. 20Black,pp. cit., p. l7h2. 23 etc. . . .21 Work: In this thesis this term is used in the context of plying a criminal trade in the specific crime of armed robbery. This chapter was followed by a review of the pertinent literature centering on violence and armed robbery. In chapter three the materials used in the investigation and the groups studied were presented by breaking down the category of armed robbers into lone robbers and team robbers, and into non-related robber groups and consanguineal robbers, the latter comprising the main control group. The techniques and methods used in Flint and Detroit were described in chapter four. The results of the investigation in the two cities were presented in the fifth chapter. Associations and computations were also placed within that chapter. In the final chapter, chapter six, the summary, conclusions, and recommendations were presented. ZlIbid. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE The purpose of this chapter is to provide a foundation from which the study of violence and consan- guinity in armed robbery suspects leads to some valid conclusions and in some small part adds to the existing knowledge of the crime of armed robbery and its perpet- rators. Armed robbery, like the crime Of auto theft, is a problem Of major proportions to any police Officer in a large metropolitan area. It is a part of his work day. Yet, a dearth of literature on robbery exists. The available literature, in the form of the Force Reports, state that "there are no general prescrip- tions for dealing with 'robbers'"1 and adds that "The kind of police patrol that will deter boys from street robberies is not likely to deter men with guns from holding up storekeepers."2 Police do not seek one cure-all answer for the problem Of robbery. They do seek basic, factual 1The President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, The Challen e‘pf Crime gpig Free Soci y (Washington, D.C.: nited States Government t Printing f ice, 1967), p. A. 21bid. 25 information concerning trends, averages, and actions of the dangerous men they are required to pursue. Armed Robbery The Journal 2; Criminal Law, Criminology and Police Science in the years 1961 through 1969 contained no professional articles on robbery. The work of Richard L. Holcomb, entitled Apppg Robbe , was published by the Bureau of Public Affairs, State University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa in l9h9. In that work Mr. Holcomb gave advice to banking institutions requesting that they set realistic levels Of protection, balancing the safety of the public and employees above the apprehension of the felon. In four steps he proposed (l) safety for customers and employees, (2) limited funds be given the holdup man, (3) curtail the presence Of armed guards, and (A) improve customer relations in the process. Stressing design features Of banking or other establishments was one of Holcomb's strong points, as was a critical assessment Of the local police force. In brief, that assessment dealt with (1) personnel, (2) equipment, and (3) communications. Holcomb typed armed robbers as (l) amateurs, (2) professionals, and (3) mentals, and advised caution in dealing with all of them while taking mental notes of physical attributes. Post-robbery instructions involved (1) advising the police of the robbery, (2) relaying 26 descriptions, (3) detaining witnesses, and (h) noting means and methods of escape and possible witnesses who witnessed the escape.3 In essence, Mr. Holcomb's work was an early attempt at police-community relations; it was fine fare for the Noon Day Optimists Meeting but supplied no solid information on the "who," "how many," "how tough," and "how armed" asked by Officers on the street in 1970. The book Robbery 13 London by F. H. McClintock and Evelyn Gibson, published in 1961, was delightful. The authors studied robbery and robbers in London in the years 1950, 1957, and the period of January to June of 1960. In the preface a reference was made to impulsiveness and romanticism as being prominent characteristics of robbers. Edwin Chadwick was quoted from his 1829 London Review article in that the escape of one delinquent must do more mischief than the conviction of perhaps half a dozen guilty men . . . Those who have been convicted, are removed from sight, and cannot be long impressively remembered. The depredator who has escaped punish- ment due to his offense is constantly present; an encouraging example of success to all of his class.4 In Robbery 13 London the term robbery was defined 3Richard L. Holcomb, Armed Robber (Iowa City, Iowa: Bureau of Public Affairs, 1949): PP. I-Ei. l*Edwin Chadwick, London prigfl (1829), vol. 1, pp. 301-302, as quoted by F. H. McClintock and Evelyn Gibson. SOTEEFX'EE'London (London: Macmillan & Co. LTD, 1961), . ll. 27 legally and simply as "larceny from the person" with the element of "force, however small" added. Robberies were divided into five groupings: I. Persons who by employment handled money or goods II. In the Open following a sudden attack III. On private premises IV. After preliminary association of a short duration (mainly for heterosexual or homosexual purposes) V. In case of previous association of some duration. In 1959 there were 671 robberies. Robberies in London as in the United States were classified as crimes against prOperty until someone was assaulted. The authors divided violence into the following groupings: 1. Personal violence (a) one armed offender (b) two or more Offenders, at least one of whom is armed (c) one unarmed Offender (d) two or more unarmed Offenders 2. No personal violence (a) one armed Offender (b) two or more offenders, at least one Of whom is armed (c) two or more unarmed Offenders AS to weapons, "the blunt instrument was most commonly used" and "in only one case in 1950 and two cases in 1957 28 was a firearm actually used." As an overview of the authors' findings, the following was presented: In 1950 the cleared cases represented 55 percent, in 1957 that figure diminished to #8 percent. Escape from the crime scene increased the offender's chances Of escaping detection to nearly 70 percent. . . . Less than half of the Offenders were arrested and brought to court. . . . Offenders were usually between 17 and 30. Juveniles were usually in Group II . . . most Euspectg were single. Irish Republic immigrants represented one half of the arrested suspects. . . . Most robbery suspects were laborers. The authors concluded with comments on Patterns of Criminal Behavior in that "one half of the violent characters were affected by drunkenness or sexual deviations, the remainder indulged in violence for the sake of violence."5 This book was a scholarly work which presented findings apart from euphemisms. In the work by Julian B. Roebuck and Mervyn L. Cadwallader, entitled Igp‘flpgpp gpgpg Robber gg‘g Criminal Typ : The Construction and Application pf‘g Typology, the 5F. H. McClintock and Evelyn Gibson, Robber in London (London: Macmillan & Co. LTD, 1961), pp. v- A7. 29 authors work from the arrest histories of a sample of 400 Negroes confined at a District of Columbia Reformatory. From their sample they found significant differences between the characteristics of armed robbers and other Offenders. They quote Walter C. Reckless on middle-range theories: Perhaps the difficulty encountered in the construc- tion of a satisfactory and powerful general theory of criminal behavior could be overcome if the criminologist were to work first on middle-range theories designed to eXplain as fully as possible the origins, develOpment, and dynamics of specific categories of such behavior. Instead of striving for the general theory at this time the investigator might well turn to the development and testing of a number of special theories. They point to the arrest record as being longitudinal covering a period Of time. Their typology was constructed on a tabulation of arrest frequency displaying four general classes. Those classes were (1) Single Pattern which showed a high frequency of one type of criminal charge, (2) Multiple Pattern - two or more different charges, (3) Mixed Pattern - no pattern evident, and (A) No Pattern showing less than three arrests.7 6Walter c. Reckless, The Crime Problem (third edition; New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts Inc., 1961), PP. 32h-325. 7Julian B. Roebuck and Mervyn L. Cadwallader, "The Negro Armed Robber As a Criminal Type: The Construction and Application of a Typology," Marshall B. Clinard and Richard Quinney (eds.), Criminal Behavior S stems (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston,IInc.,I9 , p. 377. 30 The remainder of the . . . paper reports the findings of a study in which the Negro armed robber (N—32), is compared with the rest of the sample (N-368), that is, all other Negro Offender types with rgference to thirty social and personal characteristics. Statistical analysis showed that 22 of the armed robbers differed significantly from the other Offenders at the .01 level. Four others were significant at the .05 level. "Differences were deemed significant when measured by chi-square." The data were Obtained from institutional records and from interviews. . . . The records included social case worker's admission summaries, case histories and clinical psychologists' personality profiles based on clinical interviewg and Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventories. The "selected social and personal attributes" which were significant at the .01 level were: Percentage Reared in more than one home 78 Mother figure southern migrant 91 Mother figure domestic servant 97 Dependent family 9h Remoralized family at Criminality in family 78 Mother figure dominant 81 Inadequate supervision - father 97 Hostility toward father 94 Disciplinary problem at home 56 History of running away 8h 81bid. 91bid. 31 Week parental family structure 87 No parental family ties 78 Reared in slum area 100 History of school truancy 91 Disciplinary problem at school 9h Street trades as juvenile 87 Juvenile delinquent companions 97 Member delinquent gang 97 Adjudicated juvenile delinquent 9h Committed as juvenile 91 Police contact prior to 18 100 Criminal companions as juvenile 9710 Median age was reported by Roebuck and Cadwallader as 30, median 1.0. 90, and the Stanford Achievement Test grade median was 5.0. . . .11 Roebuck and Cadwallader believe that today's criminal pOpulation is "not sufficiently homogeneous to permit the construction and testing of a satisfactory general theory of crime and criminal behavior."12 In conclusion they were strong in saying, The empirical data, both quantitative and qualitative, demonstrate clearly that the armed robbers differ in kind and degree from other criminal types in terms Of theoretically relevant social and psychological background factors.13 Edwin H. Sutherland used the theory Of "differential association" to eXplain all types of crime, in the book 1033351., p. 378. 111219.. pp. 377-378. 12gpgp., p. 381. 13.311.01- Pri: But) "di: 32 Principles 2; Criminology, written with Donald R. Cressey, Sutherland enumerated the parts of criminality as parts of a tradition, a learning process. Those parts of his "differential association" are listed as follows: 1. 7. Criminal behavior is learned . . . fit] is not inherited. . . . The learning of criminal behavior is in interaction with other persons in a process of communication. The principal part of the learning . . . occurs within intimate personal groups. . . . The learning included techniques of committing a crime and the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes. . . . The special direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal codes as favorable or unfavorable . . . He points to our American society and our internal culture conflict concerning legal codes. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of law. This is the principle of differential association. Differential association may vary in freguenpy, duration, prioripy, and intensity. 33 "Priority" relates to early life eXposure. "Intensity” refers to degree of emotional reaction Of criminal or non criminal associations. 8. The process of learning criminal behavior by association with criminal and anti-criminal patterns involves all of the mechanisms that are used in any other type of learning. 9. While criminal behavior is an expression of general needs and values, it is not eXplained by those needs and values.1h In the last point of his "associations," Sutherland attempts to close the door on the oversimplification of motives such as economic drives as a cause of armed robbery. One cannot deny the frequency and duration of life in the ghetto, and the intensity of emotion a man might feel on seeing a "stud" he knows is a ”gun man" wearing fine clothes, driving a big, new car and having lots of fine "young girls" around him when he doesn't work but one or two nights a week. As a last entry in the robbery section of the literature, a copy of an armed robber's note book provided some insights into the mind and philosophy of one robber. 1(+Edwin H. Sutherland and Donald R. Cressey, Princi 1es pg Criminolo (seventh edition; Philadelphia: 3. B. Eippincott ompany, 1960), pp. 81-82. 3A The writer was Caucasian, A6 years of age, and a "loner" who stole cars and moved frequently in his Operations, which were usually confined to the southwestern United States. E.H.W., Jr. was reportedly employed as a Mechanical Engineer and carried a slide rule, gun Oil, square and triangular files, and a 10 X glass (telescope) in his ditty bag. He was Obviously methodical in all his pursuits. His note book contained "Black Jack Rules," data on "Bets Gained or Lost in 10,000 Deals," "Potential Quick Draw 7 Situations," and his Psychology 2; Robbery I. THE ROBBER 1. Feels reluctant to perform a mean act on another innocent person. It is more natural to want to perform a friendly act. 2. Dislikes to be an Ob ect of curiosity in the eyes of onlookers. t is more natural to act in a manner which will be considered normal and respectable. 3. Fears the possibility of some form of reprisal since such danger always exists. A. The sum of the above feelings produces a reluctance to act on his part. It is the natural 131 against robbery. 5. Each successful robbery produces the elation of victory as well as material reward. 6. A well executed attack produces respect and compliance by the victim and also tends to delay any possible reaction from witnesses. 7. He is self reliant since no training or advice is available. Prior experience is totally lacking in effect. II. THE VICTIM 1. Caught by surprise the natural thing to do is comply with the robbers demands. 2. May have preconceived ideas sufficiently strong to cause him to react in a less than COOperative manner, or to just observe and comply or simply comply as demanded to. 3. 35 Feels no unpleasant after effect if he has suffered no personal loss. A robber is smart to treat a victim with reasonable respect since there will be less resentment and likelihood of reaction. Elie execution of an armed robbery also has merit] l. 2. 3. h. 5. 1. 2. h. 5. 6. 7. 9. 10. Casually drive past, note activity. Park, await routine police patrol, if feasible. Drive to parking spot and get out and walk to selected loitering point. Note potential observers. Get into the mood. Enter and walk around before taking single item to register. Execute and depart per plan. the observer action, if any. Hazards and Other Factors Loitering gives an observer time to get sus icious. Loo casual in dress and demeanor. Tape 3 left fingers. Change Jackets in the car while driving or remove same. Put on glasses or cap, sit low. Leave bags and other things somewhere near escape area. Parking spot should hide license number, color and, if possible the make and model of the car. Initial getaway should have 1 or 2 confusing turns. Avoid possible police roadblock. Consider probable directions of approach of police. Armed employees, or manager will keep gun generally in three different places. Beware of person in adjacent room. 8. H. W., Jr. used the term "cover" as used by military personnel. "Cover" was defined as not only hiding a person from view but protecting him from small arms fire. 15E. H. W., Jr.,‘g Notebook (of a convicted armed robber), unpublished, pages unnumbered. 36 Violence In'ghg Subculture g§,Violgnce.Marvin 3. Wolfgang and Franco Ferracuti speak of clinical and sociological criminology and call far cross-discipline integration of theories and teamed research. They flood the book with other writers' theories and critiques. On occasion they speak of the Negro family headed by the female, and of the male identity problems confronting the maturing Negro male in such a family situation. Dr. Wolfgang once more deals with homicide and the aggressive homicidal person- ality and the Rorschach Test and states that "The collected evidence for a consistent personality pattern of the homicidal offender is scarce and unreliable."16 In Firearms 52g Violence in American Ligg, a staff report of the National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence, a major point was made and that was in reference to handgun permits in the city of Detroit after the riot of 1967; they increased graphically.17 See FIGURE I, page 1.7. Concise, accurate information was presented, concerning suicides and the use of firearms in crime. l6Marvin E. Wolfgang, and Franco Ferracuti, Th Subcultur ‘gg Violence (London: Social Science Paperbacks, I§67), p. 2 . 17George D. Newton, Jr., angigrangligil. Zimrfing, Firearms and Violence in American e as ngton, . .: Uege Gsvernment anting Office, 1%, p. 700 37 Handguns were used in each with great frequency. As a major factor in private and public violence, strict handgun registration seems to be part of a multi-sided solution. Other parts of the solution are issuance of warrants for possession of stolen weapons, and for violations of the carrying of concealed weapons laws as recommended in the conclusion of this thesis. CHAPTER III AREAS STUDIED Violence in armed robbery and consanguineal relation- ships between armed robbers who either work together or separately are the major subjects of this thesis. The reference made to "work" is used in the context of plying a criminal trade in the specific crime of armed robbery. Prior to undertaking the investigation of violence and consanguinity in the area of concentration,an attempt was made to delineate specific goals by drawing up the following hypotheses: (1) There is a difference in the resistance of consanguineally related armed robbery team members when police conduct their deliberate apprehension, as compared to the resistance of other armed robbers. Stated as a null hypothesis the foregoing statement might have been stated as follows: (l-A) There is no difference in the degree of violent resistance of consanguineally related armed robbery team members when police conduct their deliberate apprehension, as compared to the resistance of other armed robbers. A second major hypothesis was stated as (2) The robber who is related by consanguinity to another armed robber will display a greater tendency toward violence at the scene of the robbery than will non related armed robbers. Stated as 39 a null hypothesis that proposition might have been written as follows: (Z-A) There will be no significant difference between the display of violence of the consanguineal armed robber and the non-consanguineal armed robber at the robbery scene. Claire Selltiz and the collective authors of Research Methods ig.§ggigl Relations point to four broad groupings in the determination of a research purpose. (1) to gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve new insights into it . . . (2) to portraiaaccurately the characteristics of a particu r individual, situation, or group (3) to determine the frequency with which something occurs or with which it is associated with something else . . . (A) to test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between variables. A study of the crime of armed robbery gains "familiarity" and ”new insights" into that "phenomenon." A review of the suspected and subsequently arrested suspects and perpetrators revealed the "characteristics" of that.particular "group." A measure of the violence charged against such individuals represented not only "frequency" but the degree of that violence. The correlation of violence and consanguinity within the groups presented a means of "test" for the expressed 1Claire Selltiz et a1. Resiarch Methods in Social Relitiong (New IoFE:-Holt, ne art and Winston, 1967,: P0 0 LO hypotheses. Confining the scope of the investigation to "convicted armed robbers" would have broadened the thesis considerably by introducing additional variables, such as (1) length of time between arrest and trial, (2) nature of defense attorney selection, either court appointed or retained by the defendant, (3) clarity of victim's testimony, and (h) the variants in the abilities of the two contesting attorneys. If the frequency of violence was to be considered its presence would have been limited by restricting the search to the confines of successfully prosecuted armed robbery cases. Preliminary investigation revealed that the information desired concerning consanguinity would not be readily available. Police arrest reports do not usually contain information about persons other than the victim, the witnesses,and the suspect or suspects. Pertinent information concerning the family background of a robbery suSpect is remotely displayed in arrest reports by the suspect's last name, his date of birth, and his present and prior addresses. More reliable is the information gleaned from the impressive memories of detectives assigned to robbery investigations. Their accumulated practical knowledge of suspects, their families, friends, habits, associates, and motivations Al was truly impressive.2 angtrgints Upon Data Gathering Major conditions which dictated the manner and form of data collection were two; they were the limita- tion of time, and secondly, the limitation of monetary resources. Key sources for data collection were the Police Departments of the city of Flint, and the city of Detroit, Michigan. These two cities were selected because of their urban, highly mechanized populations and industries. Each of these cities has experienced armed robbery and its attending violence with increasing frequency.3 Violence expressed in terms of the wordless threat of a knife or gun held in the hand of a robber, or the violence completed by the act of homicide, the result of a miscarried robbery.‘ Permission was obtained from Chief James Rutherford of the city of Flint and Commissioner Patrick Murphy of 2Detective Sgt. Leo Johnson and Detective Michael Kostka of the Flint Police Department spoke for two and one half hours on suspects and their backgrounds with no prior preparation whatsoever; 162 suspects were discussed. 3See TABLE I on page 50 and TABLE II on page 51. 4An original statement expressed by Dr. Arthur Meyers, statistician, St. Louis Police Department, St. Logis, Missouri. Made to the author in December, 19 9. 42 Detroit to gather data from the files of their departments. The Director of Technical Services, under whose jurisdiction computer operations of the Detroit Police Department function, had stated that the information desired in this data gathering operation was not coded for input into their system. The resulting alternative was the personal search of Detroit's files, as was conducted in the city of Flint. Neither the Research and DevelOpment Bureau nor the Record Bureau had the capability for this kind of research.5 Method g£,Q§§§ Gathering A data coding key was constructed and placed in a stout notebook. Its vertical questions were aligned with the horizontally numbered spaces on the Michigan State University Computer Laboratory Data Coding Form. Mr. Michael Jordan of the School of Social Science critiqued the data coding system. Initially, the system appeared extremely accurate and practical, but application in Flint and Detroit expanded the scope and direction of the initial thrust of the experimental investigation and therefore the data coding system. The system initially collected information in 5From a letter by John F. Nichols, Deputy Commissioner Department of Police, Detroit, Michigan to Robert G. May, dated June 5, 1970. #3 the following areas: 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 1h. 15. 16. 17. 18. Location of inquiry A case number assigned by the researcher in chronological order for each arrest Surname of the person arrested Date of birth of the arrested suspect Nature of consanguinity of the arrested suspect to other armed robbery suspects. The gradations of consanguinity ranged from father to son, brother to brother, brother to stepbrother (or half brother), cousin to cousin, uncle to nephew, and, lastly, a code was derived for "no relation- ship to other armed robbery suspects" Age of the suspect at the time of the holdup A grouping of ages Place of birth Weapon used in the holdup Weapon used at the apprehension scene Degree of violence at the holdup scene Degree of violence at the apprehension scene Degree of injury at the holdup scene Degree of injury at the apprehension scene Violence in point of time at the holdup scene Violence in point of time at the apprehension scene Number of persons assaulted at the holdup scene Number of persons injured at the holdup scene 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 2A. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. search of all Ah Number of persons hospitalized less than five days Number of persons hospitalized more than five days Number of persons killed immediately Number of persons who died later Did the arrest involve one of a consanguineal pair? Did the suspect operate as a team member at the holdup scene? Did the suspect Operate as a team member of a consanguineally related armed robbery team? Number of police injured Degree of police injuries Locale of police injuries; at the holdup or at the apprehension scene Physical condition of the suspect at the holdup scene, including degree of injury, if injury was present Physical condition of the suspect at the apprehension scene, including degree of injury, if an injury was present Race of the suspect In the Flint Police Department it was necessary to the "arrest" cards for the names and case numbers those persons arrested and glean the names and numbers of those arrested for "armed robbery." Once that number was located the departmental files were searched to find the specific case number. The case was read and #5 the information therein encoded on the data coding fonn. A second reader and encoder would have increased the reliability factor of the research. Had such a person been available and the hospitality of the Flint Police been imposed upon to a further degree, any errors or conflicts that arose between the two encoders would have been resolved by movement toward the lesser degree of violence. That was not the situation in Flint or in Detroit. Responsibility for reading and encoding errors rest directly upon the writer of this thesis. A conscious, consistent effort was made to cling to the written text of the reports for all findings. If the report stated "a small blue steel automatic was displayed" the code marked on the coding form was "had gun or knife in hand," and not "pointed gun or knife at victim." In cases of bank robbery or the robbery of Federal Savings and Loan establishments if a note was used and no weapon was displayed the violence indicated on the sheet was "verbal threats (written) aimed at victim." Modification of the data coding system was made to include interesting side lights on specific cases. In the research in the city of Detroit mention was found more frequently of a narcotics connection by the holdup men. A similar connection had been reported less A6 frequently in the city of Flint. Also added to the form was increased attention to the place of birth of the suspects in the Detroit area. Flint records consisted of an extremely convenient, concise report of the incident and the persons arrested. Thosereports found in Detroit were elaborate and facilitated greater information retrieval. The same type of report was available in Flint, but required the additional step of finding one additional file number and searching another set of files. Flint, Michigan The city of Flint is the second largest manufac- turing city in the state of Michigan. In 1967 its pepulation was estimated at 205,000; of that population 81 percent was white and 19 percent was non-white. Flint's Police Department had 33h regular officers and 1A6 traffic and school officers in that same year.6 Like most midwestern cities Flint was divided by income and racial groupings. Chief James Rutherford has built a fine progressive police department in that city. He has increased educational requirements for his officers, and the department's esprit gg corps is obvious to the general 6R. L. Polk's Flint (Genesee County, Mich.) City Directory 1967 (Detroit: R. L. Polk &.Co., 1967), p. x. A7 public by the manner in which officers wear their uniforms, perform their duties, and carry on pleasant conversations with the public. Detroit, Michigan Detroit is known as "The Motor City" and is the fifth largest city in the nation. Its 1968 population was reported to have been 1,570,000. It is part of a three county metropolitan area with a total pepulation of A,250,000. In area the city covers 39.6 square miles on the Detroit River.7 It has also been the battleground for two major riots, the first in 19h2 and the second in 1967. Since the 1967 Detroit riot, the city has experienced a well documented buildup in handgun permits issued to the public. In 1965 there were A,876 permits issued; in 1966 permits numbered 6,416; 1967 increased the permits to 10,782; and 1968 displayed a record number of 17,760. "Michigan law does not require a permit for shotguns or rifles . . . [aha these figures do not reflect out-of-state purchases or illegal acqusitions of handgun3.u8 7Luman H. Long (ed.), et'gl., The 1 0 Edition The World Almanac and Book gngacts (New or : Newspaper Enterprise Association, Inc., 19697, p. 597. 8George D. Newton, Jr., and Franklin E. Zimring, Firearms and Violence in American Life (Washington, D.C.: U.S. GoveFHEent Printing Office, 19397, pp. 69-70. #8 Robber figpppp Studied As stated earlier in this thesis, the female would not be denied a place in the arrest statistics. Her presence was further supported by the position taken by Marshall B. Clinard and Richard Quinney in the statement, "Sex is not a meaningful criterion for classification for, with the exception of prostitution, women in the Western world now commit as wide a variety of offenses as men . . ."9 If a typology is defined as a "purposive, planned selection, abstraction, and . . . accentuation of a set of criteria . . . that serves as a basis for comparison of empirical cases,"10 than logic would dictate that within the bounds of the crime of armed robbery the typology would divide, in its simplest of terms, into two categories, the single or lone robber and the team robber. The Single pp Lone Robbgr This individual was classified by the fact that he works alone. To clearly identify this species of robber is a difficult task for the victim, the Criminal Justice System, and the scientific observer. After 9Marshall B. Clinard and Richard Quinney, Criminal B havior stems (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 19 7), p. 70 10John C. MCKinney, Constructive Typology and Social Theor (New York: Appleton-Century Crofts, nc., I966 , pp. , 203. A9 FIGURE I NUMBER OF NEW HANDGUN PERMITS ISSUED IN DETROIT BY YEAR 7.1%.? 10782 6A16 .__A§16___.. w_;2§5 4% m1 12L . 11 *Projection based on ten months. 11George D. Newton, Jr., and Franklin E. Zimring, Firearms and Violence pp American Life (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 19697, p. 70. Year 1961 1962 1963 196A 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 TABLE I 50 Information From the Flint Police Department's 1961-1969 Annual Reports Robberies 93 121 126 266 213 229 350 3A7 621 Cleared 33 A9 38 101 97 97 86 139 221 Percent 35 A0 31 38 A1 A2 2A A0 35 Unfounded 1A 26 59 A7 56 56 73 136 Dormant 52 58 98 116 69 106 108 135 17A 51 TABLE II Information From the Detroit Police Department's 1969 Annual Report Year Robberies Closed, Percent Closed Percent gamma, eases Reported 1961 3397 103A 30.A 1298 38.2 1962 A206 1208 28.7 1A9A 35.5 1963 A608 1393 30.2 16A3 35.7 196A A739 1A16 29.9 1616 3A.1 1965 5A98 1A13 25.7 1586 28.8 1966 9102 1852 20.3 1909 21.0 1967 11973 1835 15.3 2003 16.7 1968 1377A 1738 12.6 1955 1A.2 1969 17A1A 2259 12.9 2539 1A.5 52 arrest and conviction of an individual believed to fall within this classification the convicted felon is the only person who knows the truth. The motivations of such a felon may be to protect others from identifica- tion and possible prosecution. Additional motivations, less altruistic, range from a plot to aggrandize one's self image or bolster his level of personal courage by a ploy,simply to protect himself (or herself) from physical injury or death. In this thesis the "single or lone robber" was identified solely by the information supplied by the victim or witnesses. If the individuals identified in the research were of the second category, the "team robber," but the information was not known to the victim, the witnesses, or the police, that individual will be carried in the data as a "single or lone robber." Prior to completion of the data gathering operation the prediction of a level of violence less prone to injury of the victim and witnesses seemed evident in the "single or lone robbery suspect" as compared with the violent conduct of team robbery suspects. A foundation for that prediction may be found in the alternatives available to the "single or lone" robbery suspect. The lone robber may: (1) be in need of funds (the need may be real or imagined) 53 (2) be sober, or intoxicated, or under the influence of alcohol or drugs (3) note the availability Of a robbery target (A) note the Opportunity to act (5) possess the basic mental concept necessary to commit armed robbery (6) have the presence or availability of a weapon or facsimile of a weapon (7) plan the Operation (this factor varies greatly) (8) practice the operation (this factor varies also) (9) execute the planned Operation At this point one vital factor is the number Of peOple who are in the "target" establish- ment (10) Enter the establishment Up to that point nervous excitement has been mounting in the prOSpective robber. One convicted robber said, "The average individual is in a very emotional state; it's a mixture Of excitement and fear."12 A second robber added to his colleague's comment, "It's higher when you enter, but when you say, 'All 12Robert G. May, Egg Views pf Six Armed Robbers pp Disarmipg'ppp Police, an unpublishEd—paper based on an interview with six convicted armed robbers at the Michigan Reformatory at Ionia, Michigan, p. 12. 5A right, this is a holdup,' you calm down a little, but you're in a big hurry. Nobody there - not even you - can move fast enough. Once you're outside it starts all over again."13 (11) Challenge the money holder At this point the interlocking alternatives of the victim come into play; he may acquiesce, flee, or resist. If the victim, in a state of acquiescence, exercises the powers of persuasion and logic upon the single or lone robber his chances are better to prevent his personal injury and loss than they would be if he were dealing with a team Of robbers. The lone robber is not playing a role tO a peer or sibling group and will be more vulner- able in the conglomerate sum of his personality to the reason and persuasion of the victim. Flight or resistance on the part of the victim may trigger the same responses as those possible in a "team robber." (12) Transfer the money (13) Escape the scene Escape from the scene introduces another factor in the nervous state of the "lone 13Ib1d. 55 robber." "You are nervous, afraid, exhausted, and shook up, you might shoot at anybody that even looks at you."14 "I know what it's like tO be chased. I shot at them and they shot at me. They shot me in the leg. But I didn't have the sense to give up. I took my nine shot .22, it was a magnum, and emptied it into a car. I ruined that car, but they stopped chasing me."15 "We talked about excitement and fear in combination. In a chase, this keeps building up and up and you finally add exhaustion to it. You do crazy things."16 To which another "lone robber" replied, "God, yes; Of all things, I ran into three heroes. This one guy kept fighting me for my .22, so finally I let him get it, then I drew my .38 and shot him. There were two little kids behind a glass counter just looking at me, not doing anything, and I 1A1bid., pp. 13-1u. 15Ibid., p. 1a. 161b1d. 56 took a shot at them."17 Another man summed up the thoughts of the "loners" by saying, "At a time like that, you think 'get away first and whatever else second.”18 Egghgppm Robber This individual was classified by the fact that he works with at least one or more persons while conducting an armed robbery. His clinical identification does not contain the possibilities for trickery and deceit that are found in the "lone robber." Witnesses have been the main source Of identifying this type robber, by statements like, "The two men with pistols entered the drug store and forced us tO lay on the floor." Prior to completion Of data gathering a concept of excessive violence was predicted from the members of the "team robber" category. Relationshipp The investigation reported in this thesis is primarily concerned with relationships between robbers. If consanguinity among robbers is a specific target for 17Ibid. 13Ibid. 57 the remedial action of sociologists, social workers, and the Criminal Justice System, and in the process it leads to the arrest and conviction Of armed robbers, the investigation will have been of double service. 222,!22,§g;§pgg Robbery Team Suspect How frequently was this individual involved in the commission of armed robberies? Into what age group did he fall? What weapon did he use? What was the means Of his violence? Did his presence in a group speak of leadership or fealty? Was he the model of a "subculture of violence"? Armed robbers appear to be that example. Their goal was money and their means were violent. As a group they presented an interesting area of investigation for the study of crime as a culture. Egg Consgnguineally Related Tppp Robber This individual was the extract, the goal Of the entire investigation. He and his kin were the target. What was the level of violence such a group expressed in their "work"? Were the "winter and spring teams" (the men in the teams whose age varied twenty years between the two) related to one another or was the Older man just teaching the younger the tricks in the trade? 58 TABLE III Pistol Permits Issued in Flint, Michigan 1261 1262 126} 1295 1265 1266 1967 1968 1262 610 A29 2300 672 396 1800 Applicants for Permits to Carry a Concealed weapon (New-and Renewed Permits) 763 980 99A 871 768 92A 67A Applicants for Permits to Carry a Concealed Weapon (New Permits) A80 6A0 752 628 AAO 679 A05 Guns Registered (New and Renewed Registrations) e . . lA99 1927 2179 2025 2791 1859 not reported in 1963 CHAPTER IV METHODOLOGY The means Of gathering data and ordering their import into a logical presentation was basically one of assigning numeric value to words or phrases. The city of Flint was assigned the number 1 and the city of Detroit was assigned the number 2. In essence, a code was used that varied in each of the 36 categories. The central records section Of the Flint Police Department was the first area of search; 163 cases represented the findings. The difference between Flint's "cleared by arrest" statistic for 1969 and the cases located and researched was 13 incidents. Flint had recorded 176 robberies "cleared by arrest" for that year. The error may have been due to plea bargaining (case reduction for sentencing purposes) by the Prosecuting Attorney Of the County or error on the part of the researcher. In passing, the reader's attention is directed to the increase depicted in the "unfounded" armed robbery reports found in Table I. Proportional increases in the "unfounded" category were presented as 7 in 1961 to a high.of 136 in 1969, while robberies increased from 93 to 621 in the same period. 60 In the city of Detroit the central records section Of the Police Department could not accomodate a search similar to that conducted in Flint. The researcher chose the best alternative, which was a search of the incident files Of the Robbery-Breaking and Entering Bureau of the Detroit Police Department. The end result of that search was 3AA entries on the data coding form, representing 251 Specific cases out Of 2259 cases closed in 1969. Robberies numbered 17,AlA in Detroit in the year 1969. A second alternative was available; it involved checking the records at each Of the 13 district stations Of the Department. Neither record search was ideal. The BAA entries on the data form did represent most accurately the labors Of the Robbery-Breaking and Entering Bureau of the Detroit Police Department. The scope Of the investigation was therefore limited to the labors Of that Bureau. Research Categories I. Location 1. Flint 2. Detroit II. Case Nwmber Cases were recorded in chronological order as they were found in the records III. Name 61 Last name, first name. This was obtained to aid in consanguineal identifications and to indicate more than one arrest for an individual on an armed robbery charge. IV. Date Of Birth This category was abandoned in favor of age at time of arrest V. Nature of Consanguinity 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. father - son brother - brother or brother - sister brother - stepbrother cousin - cousin uncle - nephew no relationship to other armed robbery suspect VI. Age of Suspect at the Time Of Arrest VII. Age Grouping 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. 12 or less 13 through l6 17 through 20 21 through 2A 25 through 28 29 and over VIII. Place Of Birth 1. 2. 3. Flint, Michigan Detroit, Michigan In Michigan 62 A. Midwest 5. Northeast 6. Southeast 7. Southwest 8. Northwest 9. Foreign born The five geographic areas Of the United States were selected as shown in Figure II. FIGURE II Five Areas Of the United States Midwest North- west Northeast Southwest Southeast IX. Weapon Used at Holdup Scene by Suspect 1. none seen 2. club or blunt instrument 3. knife A. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 63 hand gun rifle, short barreled or sawed Off rifle, standard rifle with a sc0pe shot gun, sawed off shot gun, standard X. Weapon Used at Apprehension Scene by the Suspect 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. none club knife hand gun rifle, short barreled or sawed off rifle, standard rifle with a scope shot gun, sawed off shot gun, standard XI. Violence at the Holdup Scene 1. 2. 3. A. 5. no violence - victim did not feel threatened profanity aimed at the victim verbal threats aimed at victim suspect had hand in pocket, said, "I have a gun" suspect Opened coat and displayed gun under coat had gun or knife in hand fired shot not aimed at anyone (an attention 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 1A. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 6A seeking device), or, fired a parting shot (to reduce possibility Of pursuit) pointed gun or knife at victim pointed gun at victim and cocked hammer struck victim with hand struck victim with object kicked victim cut victim with a knife stabbed victim shot at victim and missed shot victim shot and killed victim (time of death not a factor here) abducted one or more persons attempted rape committed rape Items 18 through 20 were added to the category while data collection was in progress. On a continuum which ranged from little violence at one end of the scale to death on the other, the introduc- tion of the variables Of abduction and rape without notice required their inclusion at the end Of the continuum as separate and distinct items. They were not tabulated in the averages of aggregate violence of 65 the arrested suspects. Properly situated in a continuum they would have appeared as follows: 8. 9. 10. ll. 12. 13. 1A. 15. 16. 17. abducted one or more persons pointed gun at victim and cocked hammer struck victim with hand struck victim with Object kicked victim attempted rape committed rape cut victim with a knife stabbed victim shot at victim and missed XII. Violence at the Scene of Apprehension O. l. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. no information no violence, no resistance by the suspect profanity aimed at the police verbal threats aimed at police stated "I have a gun" (no gun found) displayed gun had gun or knife in hand pointed gun or knife at police or citizens pointed gun and cocked hammer struck officer or citizen with his hand 10. ll. 12. 13. 1A. 15. 16. 17. 18. 66 struck Officer or citizen with an Object kicked someone cut someone with a knife stabbed someone with a knife shot at Officer or citizen and missed shot Officer shot a citizen shot and killed an officer shot and killed a citizen XIII. Degree Of Injury at Holdup Scene 0. l. A. no indication of injury no visible injury, but complaint of pain or momentary unconsciousness other visible injury, such as bruises, abrasions, swelling, limping visible signs of injury, such as bleeding wound or distorted member, or had to be carried from the scene dead XIV. Degree Of Injury at the Scene of Apprehension O. 1. no indication of injury no visible injury, but complaint of pain or momentary uncounsciousness other visible injury, such as bruises, abrasions, swelling, limping visible signs Of injury, such as bleeding A. wound or distorted member, or had to be carried from the scene dead XV. Violence in Point Of Time at the Holdup Scene 0. 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. 7. 8. no information upon entry or contact upon announcement of the robbery 67 to speed victim into action after announcement upon resistance of victim at departure to prevent pursuit during pursuit by victim or other citizen during pursuit by police no physical violence XVI. Violence in Point Of Time at the Scene of Apprehen- sion 0. 1. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. 7. 8. no information no violence as approached by police on entry Of post entry, on prisoner on prisoner during area police before securing prisoner search securing search during prisoner transport XVII. Number of Persons Physically Assaulted at Holdup Scene XVIII. XIX. XX. XXII. XXIII. XXIV. 68 0 through 8 persons Number Of Persons Injured at the Holdup Scene 0 through 8 persons Persons Hospitalized Lgpp Ippp_j_gpy§_From Injuries Received at Either the Holdup Scene or the Apprehension Scene 0 through 8 persons Persons Hospitalized M252 ngp_§ 231p From Injuries Received at Either the Holdup Scene or the Apprehension Scene 0 through 8 persons Immediate Death at Either Scene (Excluding Holdup Suspects Covered in Category XXXI) 0 through 8 persons Death Occurred Later From Injuries Received at Either Scene (Excluding Holdup Suspect covered in Category XXXI) 0 through 8 persons Did This Arrest Involve One of a Consanguineal Pair? 1. yes 2. no Did This Suspect Operate as a Team Member at the Holdup Scene? 1. yes 2. no 69 XXV. Did This Suspect Operate as a Team Member Of a Consanguineally Related Armed Robbery Team? 1. yes 2. no XXVI. Degree Of Police Injuries 0. no indication of injury 1. no visible injury, but complaint of pain or momentary unconsciousness 2. other visible injury, such as bruises, abrasions, swelling, limping 3. visible signs Of injury, such as bleeding wound or distorted member, or had to be carried from the scene A. dead XXVII. Number of Police Injured 0 through 8 XXVIII. Location of Officer's Injury 0. no information given 1. no injury 2. holdup scene 3. apprehension scene A. other area, specify XXIX. Physical Condition of Suspect at Holdup Scene 0. no information of this nature in report 1. not injured, escaped 2. injured and escaped 3. A. 5. 70 injured by citizen and then escaped injured by police and then escaped none Of the above XXX. Condition of Suspect at Apprehension Scene 0. l. 2. 3. A. 5. 6. no information of this nature in report not injured, escaped injured and escaped injured by citizen and then escaped injured by police and then escaped injured by himself none of the above XXXI. Degree Of Injury of Suspect at Apprehension Scene 0. l. 2. 3. A. XXXII. Race 1. 2. 3. A. no injury reported no visible injury, but complaint of pain or momentary unconsciousness other visible injury, such as bruises, abrasions, swelling, limping visible signs Of injury, such as bleeding wound or distorted member, or had to be carried from the scene dead Of Suspect Caucasian Negro Spanish-American non U.S. citizen XXXIII. Number Of Persons Arrested With This Suspected 71 Individual 0 through 8 XXXIV. Suspected Narcotic Involvement 0. none reported 1. yes XXXV. Banking or Other Federally Insured Banking Type Operation 1. no 2. yes XXXVI. Sex Of Suspect 1. male 2. female Armed robbery has been found to be predomi- nantly a male crime; therefore, only the presence of the female as a deviation from the norm was noted. Objectives pg pap Survey Those individuals consanguineally related to other armed robber suspects were identified. The violence they exercised at the scene Of one or more armed robberies was exhibite¢.excluding items "18. abducted one or more persons, 19. attempted rape, [ancg 20. committed rape," under Category "XI," titled "Violence at the Holdup Scene." The nature of the consanguinity was expressed as to type, frequency of types, and possible teacher-pupil associations between consanguineally related suspects. 72 Narcotic involvement as displayed, was presented. Those armed robbery suspects not related to one another were identified. The violence they exercised at the scene Of one or more armed robberies was presented, excluding items "18. abducted one or more persons, 19. attempted rape, and 20. committed rape," under category "XI," titled "Violence at the Holdup Scene." Narcotic involvement as displayed in the data was presented for the non-related robbery suspects. The levels Of violence as displayed by (group 1) the consanguineally related robbery suspects and by (group 2) the non-related robbery suspects were presented. Weapon use at the holdup scene was presented. A correlation was made between type of weapon used and the degree of violence exerted at the holdup scene. Weapon use and violence exerted were expressed for (l) consan- guineally related armed robbery suspects, and (2) other armed robbery suspects. NOtations were also made for narcotic involved robbery suspects and their inclination toward violence. In presentation of the data, the following form was used exclusively; Flint, Michigan preceded the city Of Detroit. Limitations p£,the Study In the early stages Of data collection in the city of Flint, data tended to display a negative finding in 73 reference to violence and consanguinity. Consanguineal suspects were found to be few in number and displayed, in the main, a low tendency toward violence at the scene of the robbery or at apprehension scenes. Originally the primary guiding hypothesis was stated as The robber who is related by consanguinity tO another armed robber will display a greater tendency toward violence at the scene Of the robbery than will non- related armed robbers. In the third day Of data collection in Flint, the low frequency of consanguineal armed robbery suspect appearance and their low levels of violence was statistically evident. The presence of nine suspects out of 162 did not support the researcher's original confidence in the hypothesis. The research was continued, but the thrust of the data collection was redirected toward violence as the key element in the study. The variables Of consanguinity, team and lone robber activities, race, age, place Of birth, firearm use, and narcotics involvement of the suspects were to be measured against the key element, violence. In essence, consanguinity was diminished in significance by the early findings in Flint. Centering research upon violence in the crime under study was the practical alternative. CHAPTER V RESULTS OF THE STUDY Consanguinity Nine suspects were related by consanguinity in the city of Flint, Michigan. Four were two different sets Of brothers, another was a sister whose half brother had also been arrested for robbery (not in 1969). One suspect was the son Of a violence prone father who had prior arrests for carrying a concealed weapon, felonious assault, and two charges Of assault with a deadly weapon. One suspect had two brothers who were armed robbers, one of whom had been killed while committing a holdup. The third brother was reportedly a gun supplier and driver who brought visiting armed robbers into the area from Chicago. One suspect was the father Of two teenage armed robbers mentioned earlier in these results. The last Of the nine was the second arrest of one brother in the first set of brothers for a different robbery. In Flint the range in ages Of the armed robbery suspects was 12 to A3 years of age. The mean age for the Flint armed robbery suspect was 23.50 years. The mean age Of Flint's consanguineally related armed robbery suspects was 20.66 years. 75 The two teenage brothers (Juveniles) armed with knives robbed a man on the street using "verbal threats." They did not injure him. The Older Of these two committed another robbery Of the same type and was arrested. The Older set of brothers Operated separately, each reportedly has a prior history Of shooting violence and drug involvement. The female was charged with luring her male victim to her apartment so that he could be robbed by another male; she also used a brick to beat that victim. The son, charged with armed robbery, whose father was the violence prone gun fancier, armed himself with a shot gun and pointed it at his victim. He and his team partner were identified in twelve armed robberies in Flint. They were arrested in California after violent resistance on their part. One California Police Officer (jurisdiction unknown) reportedly lost his thumb in the fire fight prior to their apprehension. In the city Of Detroit, there were ten armed robbery suspects who were related; they were brothers. They were from five separate families. Three sets Of brothers were identified as having committed at least one robbery in Detroit in 1969 in cOOperation with one of their consanguineal brothers. The youngest team of brothers was made up of a 16 year Old and a 22 year old; they had armed themselves with handguns and did no injury tO their victims. Reportedly, they did not even point 76 their weapons at their victim or victims. The brothers in the next team were aged 19 and 20 years respectively. When functioning together as a team they used handguns and did not point them at their victims but displayed them in their hands. The 20 year Old in this team, when Operating by himself, used a sawed off shot gun and pointed it at the victim or victims. The eldest team Of robbery brothers were aged 21 and 23 respectively; they each used a handgun and displayed the weapon in hand. The mean age of the entire sample in the city of Detroit was 23.19 years. The mean age of the consan- guineally related armed robbery suspects in Detroit was 20.08 years. See TABLE IV. In 1969, Detroit Police Officers seriously wounded one of the brothers Of a pair as he fled from the scene of a robbery. An informant reported his whereabouts to detectives. As they approached to complete his apprehension, he committed suicide. His brother was later tried and convicted of armed robbery and received a 15 year (minimum) sentence. During the trial he reportedly tOOk the stand and told the court and the jury that his dead brother had committed that robbery and he had not. The name Of his robbery 77 TABLE IV Ages Of Armed Robbery Suspects at the Time Of Arrest ABS Ellfli Detroit 12 l N w Id roach! +4 Han-4 le—INQOuJ-nowwmxlooovummm N \l WHI—‘l—‘F—‘i—‘I—‘NN NWV‘U‘COG} #- ON mm Mean Ages 23.5 23.19 78 target was, ironically, "My Brother's Bar." Consanguinity was not a factor Of major import in robbery in either Flint or Detroit, Michigan. Of the 163 suspects arrested in Flint, 9 were consanguineally related. They represented 5.5 percent Of the armed robbery suspects and accounted for only 2.91 percent of the armed robbery total. Suspect Resistance pp Apprehension Police in both cities were reserved in their comments concerning the amount Of resistance received in apprehensions of robbery suspects. This resistance was reflected by the text of their reports. It may have been due in part to an unofficial censoring of reports by the Officers themselves against granting new issues beneficial to the defense attorney. In only one Detroit report was resistance mentioned and that was in an incident in which detectives arrested a young Negro male and he exhorted a crowd of people to free him. In the process one detective was slapped and the other suffered an injured knee. The injuries were minor. In two Of Flint's reports the following resistance was encountered: one Officer was struck with an "object" and in the second the suspect had a handgun "in hand" as the Officer approached. 79 Injuries and Dpaths p; Susppcts In 1969 Detroit Police killed one armed robbery team member inside a bank while he was using a hostage as a shield; the hostage was not hurt. They wounded a suspect as he fled the scene Of a robbery; he later committed suicide. For a city the size of Detroit, a city that has experienced 17,A1A armed robberies in one year, .582 percent of the suspects meeting violent death at the hands Of enforcement agents did not appear disproportion- ate . The desire Of the small business man to stay in business and to protect himself was graphically displayed. He fought back against holdup men in 19 incidents. In that 5.52 percent of the cases investigated by the Detroit Police Department's Robbery and Breaking and Entering Bureau, armed citizens killed four (A) suspects and wounded nine (9) others while firing shots at, or exchanging shots with, nine (9) other robbery suspects. Wpappn Use and Violence The city of Flint, with 176 cases "cleared by arrest" out of 621 reported robberies, appeared to be holding its own. See TABLE I on page 50. Detroit's l7,AlA robberies in 1969 outdistanced the department's resources even with 2259 cases closed in that year. 80 See TABLE II on page 51. It may appear Obvious to the most casual reader that a weapon is required, or a simulation of some type Of weapon is required in the criminal act Of armed robbery. The statistics presented of cases closed in Flint and Detroit display a disprOportionate leaning toward handgun use in the city of Detroit. Flint's records reported 7A handguns or A5.15 percent Of all cases cleared involved a suspect using a handgun. In Detroit there were 258 instances of handgun use or 75.06 percent of all cases cleared involved a suspect using a handgun. A large part Of the utility Of the handgun is that it is readily concealed. The sawed Off rifle and sawed off shot gun are weapons that may be readily concealed also. Their representation in the cases studied in Flint was 10 weapons or 6.19 percent. In Detroit their representation was 13 or 3.78 percent of the cases researched. See TABLES V through VIII on pages 81 through 8A. Weapon 9 p ppg Violence $3.2lipp Violence in the main was restricted to the scene Of the holdup. Two vertical columns Of the Data Coding Form were placed at right angles to each other, the columns were "Weapon Used" and "Violence at the Holdup Scene." Data was correlated in that manner. See TABLES V through VIII on pages 81 through 8A. 81 mommo mo popes: mmoamxo monmwfim csmuonm ppeeeepm eawpoem moo epzmm mamfim onmocmpm d 1 H a . eaaam spasm Hoppae peace 'I Dado oosoaow> mo moommoa wcfimmopocH aaww.muw a kw NH 0H ma :H ma «a HH 0H m m a o a ucwam mo mpao on» 2H mocoaofi> no moomwoa use new: wcoomoz > mqm mo moomwoa wcfimmomomH Imml.xmw11,wa ea we we am Oh a m a e m a m N a apnea no asao pep eH cocoaow> mo oomwon new new: :oamo3 H> mqm no moopwoa mmfimmomomH NH Email: «are; 2 Edam as we mm H pfiOMpon mo zpao on» mH mommaofi> no common new mom: mcoomos HH> mqm mo moonwoa mmwmmomomH NH 0H “a sa \wfl, NH Ha OH 0 m n o m a m N H paeppeo mo spas pep aH mocoaow> mo common new new: mcoamoa HHH> MAmosom omHm one: Om mo>o mHmscH>HocH mucosa .Ommmm om< pHompon ecu 80mm om>oeom one: Om mo>o mHmsoH>HocH >th£9 .chHm 50mm who: 50:» nomcmm on» no use moon map 80mm um>oEom egos mOHO amok 4H o>Hm new vHo mmom NH Ono HOHO moano cH pom: pom egos mOHmHm oomoome *zaweomm Om.lO; therefore, the association is not significant. It appears that the kinship Of consanguineal pairs creates no increase in violence over that displayed by non-consanguineal armed robbery suspects. TABLE XV Violence and Consanguinity in the City of Detroit High Low Violence* Violence Total Consanguineal l 11 12 Non-Consanguineal 56 267 323 Total 57 278 335 Chi square represents P:>'.lO and indicates that there is no statistical significance between consanguineal *High Violence indicates injury to victim ranging from minor injury to death. Low Violence indicates no physical injury. 99 and non-consanguineal armed robbery suspects in the city of Detroit and the violence they display at the holdup scene 0 MOtivations Expanded The initial position that motivation for robbery suspects was solely economic was altered slightly. In one Flint robbery a female witness was abducted and raped by a lone robber. In three team robberies in Detroit victims were raped, one of these victims was forced to commit fellatio. In another incident a young woman was held up by a team on a hotel elevator, taken to her room, where the team reportedly removed all of her clothing, but there was no reported rape. In a separate incident, a lone robber approached a female victim in a small shop. He pointed a pistol at her and requested the money, adding that if she did not give him the money he would "kill and rape" her. The victim stated that the robbery suspect's trousers were Open and he was in a state of sexual excitement. The victim was robbed; there was no rape. Drug involvement was present in 20 suspects in Detroit. The nature of that involvement was not specified and ranged from being arrested in a "narcotics pad" to having drug paraphernalia on his person at his apprehension. Two Of the twenty were known to have been addicted to heroin. One had a $50.00 a day habit and the other was 100 a heroin addict out Of the Federal Hospital at Lexington, Kentucky. The former put his pistol to the head Of a 10 year Old witness to escape a private guard. Two other drug involved suspects shot victims and an additional two drug involved suspects reportedly killed two other victims. Negro robbery teams were the most active armed robbers in both cities, as determined from the research. Handguns were the weapon most frequently used in either city. They accounted for all robbery-shooting deaths. Shoulder weapons may have produced more fear in the victims and may thereby have increased the victim's cooperation with the robber. Violence and consanguinity in Flint and Detroit did not hold under Chi square analysis, as displayed in TABLES XIV and XV. Robbery team activity and violence did not present statistical significance. TABLE XVI Violence and Robbery Team Activity in Flint High Low Violence Violence Total Team 12 102 11A Non-Team 5 AA A9 Total 17 1A6 163 101 The computations (a short form) indicated that there was no statistical significance between high degrees of violence and team robbery. TABLE XVII Violence and Robbery Team Activity in Detroit Viglggce Viglznce Total Team 35 199 23A Non-Team 1A 79 93 Total A9 278 327 Chi square computations indicate no statistical significance between high rates of violence and team robbery in the city of Detroit. This was a finding of some import considering the prevalence Of team robber pairs in the city. In support of the statement of high robber pair frequency in the city Of Detroit, the following tables were presented. TABLE XVIII Robbery Team Frequency in the City of Flint Lone Team Total Caucasian 8 19 27 Negro 35 96 131 Total A3 115 158 Chi squares indicated that P was less than .70 in the city 102 of Flint. No statistical significance was presented for team frequency in Flint. TABLE XIX Robbery Team Frequency in the City Of Detroit Lone Team Total Caucasian 25 32 57 Negro 68 202 270 Total 93 23A 327* I"Remainder unknown This finding is statistically significant. Chi square equals 8.06A and P is less than .005. Armed robbery suspects who Operate in pairs are usually Negroes in the city of Detroit. TABLE XX Violence and Race of Robbery Suspects in Flint High Low Violence Violence Total Caucasian l 23 2A Negro 16 120 136 Total 17 1A3 160 There was no significance displayed in the Chi square analysis Of data from Flint associating race with high or low levels Of violence according to race. Detroit's statistics produced the same findings; see TABLE XXI. 103 TABLE XXI Violence and Race of Robbery Suspects in Detroit High Low Violence Violence Total Caucasian 6 55 61 Negro A5 225 270 Total 51 280 331 Chi square computed to 1.781 with P being less than .10. NO significance was found between high violence and race. A finding of value was derived from the Chi square statistic gleaned from Flint's data. Most Of Flint's armed robbers were under the mean age of 23.5, and those who committed armed robberies displayed a trend toward profanity rather than physical assault or injury. Statistically, that finding was displayed in TABLE XXII. TABLE XXII Age and Violence in Flint's Robbery Suspects High Low Violence Violence Total 22 years and 7 92 99 under 23 years and 9 53 62 over Total 16 1A5 161* 3"One suspect's report incomplete lOA This finding was highly significant; the Chi square computation was 23.677 with P being less than .001. Detroit's data on violence and age did not display statistical significance. TABLE XXIII Age and Violence in Detroit's Robbery Suspects High Low Violence Violence Total 22 years and 28 16A 192 under 23 years and 28 109 137 over Total 56 273 329 Chi square was 1.783 with P larger than .10. TABLE XXIV Firearms and Violence in Flint High Low Violence Violence Total Firearms 12 102 11A No Firearms A AA A6 Total 16 1A6 160 This finding is not statistically significant, P was larger than .10. TABLE XXV Firearms and Violence in Detroit High Low Violence Violence Firearms A8 229 No Firearms 7 53 Total 55 282 Chi square was l.A12 with P larger than .10. not statistically significant. TABLE XXVI 105 Total 277 60 337 This was Violence in Armed Robbery and Narcotic Involvement in Flint's Suspects High Low Violence Violence Narcotic l 19 Involvement No Narcotic 16 126 Involvement Total 17 1A5 This finding is not statistically significant. larger than .10. Total 20 1A2 162 P was 106 TABLE XXVII Violence in Armed Robbery and Narcotic Involvement in Detroit's Suspects High Low Violence Violence Total Narcotic A 16 20 Involvement NO Narcotic 5A 263 317 Involvement Total 58 279 337 This finding is not statistically significant. P was larger than .10. Analysis Armed robbers are young men ranging between 15 and 30 years Of age. They are "physical" and are anxious to display their masculinity by use Of their fists or a weapon. Usually the display of such masculinity is for the benefit of a peer or a peer group and is to the detriment of the small merchant. The researcher has no means available to estimate what percentage of the reported armed robberies were planned carefully or what percentage Of robberies were conducted strictly on impulse, on the spur of the moment. The strongest tendency found in the study, and the most logical, was the frequency with which Negro armed robbers form teams to conduct their activities. This was particularly true in Detroit. This tendency was not as 107 strong in the city of Flint. Consanguineal armed robbery suspects are younger and seem more gullible than other robbery suspects, they are also less violent. It should be Obvious to even the most casual observer that such suspects, eager to protect each other on the street and when under investigation, would be ripe for the skilled detective. A detective who, after having advised each related suspect of his Miranda rights, then proceeds to play one against the other. Each suspect would attempt to protect the other, and in being a "hero" would Often seek to take the whole burden Of guilt upon his shoulders. In the statistics Of violence, the consanguineal suspect does not differ from his counterpart. In number, he represents a small percentage, but for the detective who has exhausted his "leads" the consanguineal suspect may Offer one more ”check." For the merchant, the consanguineal suspect or team member may offer a less violent enemy with which to deal. The research does not support a typology of a super violent armed robbery suspect. It does indicate the ability to do violence is present in a great many individuals; the robber, the citizen victim, and the police. In passing, notice should be made of the number of arrests conducted by the police in which no suspects were injured or killed. That is testimony to their 108 professionality. At apprehension scenes, detectives usually present a "show Of force." They try to "go in heavy" with short barreled shotguns or carbines. Where time permits, the combined Operations of detectives and uniformed officers is well advised. Detectives and uniformed personnel present a "they mean business" image to the public, and to the holdup suspect the presence Of the detectives means that the "bust" is not for some minor Offense, he won't be "messed over," and his rights won't be violated. Focusing upon the interaction between the suspect and the victim provides a great area of mystery as to the personality elements which react to create violence. The exchange of words, looks, emotions, and actions between the victim and the holdup man seems to hold the key to violence. Each human being is capable Of violence. The degree, intensity, and duration Of the violence motivation Obviously varies in individuals. It follows then that like the "threshold of pain" which varies in individuals, there exists a "threshold of violence." The "threshold of violence" does not seem tO be a fixed reference point like a "high water mark" or a bench mark; it is a bobber (a cork) of violent reaction that may rise or fall with the level Of emotion triggered by the situation. It may be that the "threshold of violence" has a range of 109 mobility. Under given conditions it may be very low and under other conditions within the same individual, violence may be sparked with a word, or a lOOk. In the following example the victim displayed an alteration from "low" to "high" and a return to "low" in a time period estimated to have been 90 seconds to two minutes. The victim was the lone Operator of a service station. He was lubricating his own vehicle on one Of the station's hydraulic racks when he heard a sound in the Office area. It was 10:00 P.M., and he had heard no car come in the drive. When he entered the Office he saw what he called a "giant" with the station's cash register in his arms, walking toward the door. Surprised, and a bit awed by the size of the man, the attendant admitted that he just stepped aside. As the large man passed with the cash register, he struck the attendant with his fist. Angered by the blow, the attendant fought the thief, punching and kicking him. The two men fought for a distance of approximately 25 yards as the large man, still carrying the register and fighting the six foot tall attendant, tried to reach a near-by car. Suddenly the large man stopped, drOpped the cash register, placed his hand in his pocket and told the attendant, "That's enough, now." The attendant stOpped fighting; he thought he was going to be shot, although he saw no weapon. His llO threshold Of violence had gone from low to high to low again. It had been activated by the blow from the thief. There may have been a residual effect within the attendant, raising his violence level. He later carried a gun concealed on his person when he worked alone. Merchants who have been held up in the past Often turn to firearms to protect themselves. Their levels of violence, their "thresholds" have been raised. They engage in fire fights with the robbers. The weapons in the hands Of the merchants have in turn raised the levels of violence in the robbers, who now search and beat the merchants to find their weapons so that they, the holdup men, will not be shot as they flee. One example of such fear occurred in Detroit. The holdup man entered shooting, without announcing the holdup or requesting money. He wounded the store keeper, who then took the weapon from the robber and shot him with it. The robber exited the store, under fire, through the front window. The Chi squares presented many variables as not being statistically significant. Among these, one Of the most startling was the relationship between firearms and violence; it was not significant. What is significant is that the firearm produces fear in the victim. MOst banks were held up by men who gave the tellers a note saying that they had a gun and that the teller was to comply with their orders, a holdup was in progress. The 111 fear of an unseen weapon was a real thing to the tellers. It was real tO a large number Of small merchants, who were held up by a man who said, "I have a gun," and whose only physical action was the placing of his hand in his pocket. The gun may not have been real; the fear was. Narcotics involvement as explained elsewhere in this thesis, is a general and not a specific term, and weighing this variable with high violence, defined as "any injury to the victim," courts valid criticism. Narcotics involvement is not a scientific term, and the arrest records of the two departments studied are not in-depth studies Of the personal histories Of the suspects. Chi square computations related no statistical significance, but the street sense Of police Officers and detectives focuses on the narcotics user, due to exposure and his constant need for funds to support his drug needs. If the records of institutionalized armed robbers were related with patterns of violence (victim injury), a meaningful statistical significance would result. A study of violence in armed robbery made in the future could center upon the interaction between victim and robber. Some work has been done in the study of victimization on a racial basis. In Detroit, the largest segment of the victim population was the Negro citizen and the Negro businessman; the principal armed robber was a Negro also. 112 In Detroit, the largest of the two cities, the proliferation of handguns was apparent. Registrations and pistol permits displayed increases. Armed robberies attested to the invisible figures Of illegally possessed and carried firearms on the streets Of Detroit. In the American court system today.delay in trial is an accepted practice for the criminal attorney. "A prompt and speedy trial" should be second only to the protection of the complainant and the witnesses in such cases. A city that has experienced the graphic increase in armed robberies that Detroit has should form anti- robbery teams and combat robbery with a multi phased attack headed by Observer-arrest teams. Teams which "stake out" known targets and observe the crime, photograph it in progress, and then act, would be a partial answer. Their action would be tempered with reasonable force and their presence should be with a consensus of the community. This would be Obtained by a unified approach to the problem of violent crime from all segments of the community. CHAPTER VI SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS Summary Following a middle range theory approach to the reportedly increasing problem Of armed robbery in the large core City areas of the nation the writer attempted to identify and measure the variables Of violence and consanguinity in armed robbery suspects. The study was limited to research in the cities of Flint and Detroit, Michigan for the calender year 1969. Arrest reports were the primary source Of data. Flint's experience was 163 incidents in 1969. Detroit's sample was limited due to difficulties in record searching. The best alternative was selected; that was the study of the cases handled by the Robbery-Breaking and Entering Bureau of that department, 3AA cases were researched for the year 1969. Consanguinity, or blood relationship of armed robbery suspects was present in nine suspects in Flint and in ten suspects in Detroit. In Flint they ranged from 12 to A3 years of age, their mean age was 20.66 years, which was well below the mean age of Flint's suspects, established at 23.5 years. In Detroit consanguineally related robbery suspects ranged in age from 1A tO 32 years of age. Their llA mean age was 20.8, which was also below the 23.19 mean of the entire Detroit suspect group. Consanguineally related robbery suspects were less violent than other suspects. They Operated almost exclusively in teams, and were, without exception, Negroes. Statistically consanguineal suspects were no more difficult to apprehend and no more violent than other robbery suspects. In the initial research in Flint, the resolution Of the hypotheses became apparent. The thrust of the study was then focused upon violence with consanguinity becoming one of the variables compared with violence in Chi square tables. The variables which withstood statistical analysis and displayed strong significance were the age factor in Flint, in which most armed robberies were committed by those 22 years Of age or younger and were committed at a low violence level. The second significant finding was that Detroit's armed robbery teams were predominantly Negro and their actions accounted for 71 percent Of the total. Conclusion Armed robbery is an invitation tO violence. Once issued in a shOp or on the street, the invitation is not easily withdrawn. Anyone present can raise the bid for additional violence by a word, a look, or an action. Principal players are the robber and the victim. As used here, the principals were singular, but on "the street" 115 they are plural. Customers, witnesses, and passers-by are invited to join, against their will, in the deadly game. Police are not usually present when the invitation is issued because the robber decides when, and where, and with whom he plays his violent game. Twentieth century technology has moved forward to aid in the protection of banking institutions. Pre- positioned cameras survey a bank's interior before, during, and after a robbery. Federal agents are frequently supplied with photos of their suspect in action. That is not the case for the local police officer or merchant. The small businessman who runs a corner delica- tessen has no camera. His establishment is not Federally insured. If he's Black and his store is in the ghetto, his insurance will not cover his loss. If he's brave and calls the police and does all he can do to help them identify the robber and prosecute him, he (the merchant) may be in physical danger. The robber may be released on a $2500.00 bond and come back and rob the same store a second time and shoot the proprietor in the process. A far fetched story? It wasn't to Reverand Shoulders, the pastor of a church congregation and the owner- Operator Of a neighborhood grocery store in Detroit. He was robbed, the suspect was released on a low bond and then returned and robbed Reverand Shoulders a second time 116 and shot him in the process. Small wonder that the Reverand is leading the fight for higher bonds for armed robbers; he has played that deadly game. Today, a private guard is on duty in the modest sized one room market during business hours. Private guards abound in Detroit, they seem omnipresent; the police do not. Black merchants and citizens are the major victims of Black crime. Before merchants and citizens rise in vigilante action against crime that has seemingly outdistanced the Criminal Justice System, positive steps must be taken in large cities like Detroit. Recommendations Police Community Relations Sections should be teamed with the Planning and DeveIOpment Sections, and, using hard, supportable data, make known to the Black community that they are the victims of Black crime. The National Association for the Advancement Of Colored PeOple, the Urban League, and CORE could be invited to join in the campaign. The program by no means should be an attempt at "image building" for the department, its purpose should be to "tell it like it is." The thrust Of the project should be "Black robbers are robbing and killing Black people. The police are out to stOp it. Do they have your help?" When valid arrests are made and the suspect was found to have been carrying a concealed weapon, warrants 117 should be applied for for that charge in addition to the robbery warrants. If necessary, new legislation should be sought as a means to remove illegally possessed and used firearms from the streets. If reducing the charge of carrying a concealed weapon from a felony to a misdemeanor would enliven the issuance of such warrants by prosecuting attorneys and their assistants, the small positive reward of more prosecutions and the removal of potentially dangerous weapons from "the street" would be well worth the alteration. Existing legislation or new legislation should be put to use to protect witnesses from harrassment by crime suspects and their cohorts. The frequency of gang robbery and their evident successes may foster a rebirth Of gang type violence similar to that found in this nation in the 1930's. Police Field Operations should tap resources available, such as the projected computer print outs Of the various districts' armed robbery picture. They should position their resources accordingly. The police Of the city of St. Louis, Missouri have been leaders in such computer assisted prediction and would provide a suitable model for emulation. Line Officers should be encouraged to use their own ingenuity in staking out and searching operations for robbery suspects. In an effort to promote Officer 118 interest and reward meritorious service, bonus days off could be Offered line Officers for robbery suspect apprehensions. To diminish possible backlash, the department could offer more bonus days Off for an uninjured suSpect than for one injured or killed. The simple solution of taking money-changing tasks from bus drivers has reduced the dangers Of robbery for those men. It may be that in the future service stations will engage themselves in credit card Operations exclusively to reduce the dangers Of robbery. A few small shops are locking their doors during business hours and are only allowing a limited number Of customers in the door at any one time. Targets are hardening tO the dangers but the truly significant changes have yet to be identified and implemented; changes in society in general and changes in the minds and personalities Of those who would be moved to robbery. BIBLIOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY A. BOOKS Barnhart, C. L., and Jess Stein (eds.). The Am rican College Dictionary. New York: Random House, I953. Black, Henry Campbell, M.A. Black's Law Dictionar . {guith edition. St. Paul, MInn.: West PuEIIshIng CO., 5 . Clinard, Marshall B. Sociolo Of Deviant Behavior. gevisegggdition. New Tore: HOlt, RInehart and Winston, nc., 3. , and Richard Quinney. Criminal Behavior S stems. ew York: Holt, Rinehart ana WInston, IEC., 1967. Gold, Harry, and Frank R. Scarpitti (eds.). Combatting Social Problems. New York: Holt, Rinehart an WInston, Ific., 1967. Goodman, Louis S., M.S., M.D., and Alfred Gilman, Ph.D. The Pharmacological Basis pg Thgrapputics. New York: cm an 0e , e Holcomb Richard L. Armed Robbe . Iowa City Iowa: Bureau Of Public ATIEIrs, I9f9. ’ Long, Luman H., et al. The 1220 Edition Of 2p; World Almanac and BOOEIQQ Facts. New York:_Newspaper Enterprise Association, Inc., 1969. McClintock F. H. and Evelyn Gibson. Robbery pp.London. London; Macmillan &.CO. LTD, 1961. McKinney, John C. Constructive Eypglpquand Social Theory. New York: Appleton-Century Cro ts, nc., . Newton, George D., and Franklin E. Zimring. Firearms and Violence pp American Life. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government PrIntIng OffIze, 1969. Polk R. L. Polk's Flint (Gen see Count ) City Directory 1262. Detroit: R. L. POIE E Go., 1967. Reckless Walter C. The Crime Problem. Third edition. New York: Appleton-Century Crofts, Inc., 1961. 120 Roebuck, Julian B., and Merwyn L. Cadwallader. "The Negro Armig Ropber gs aTCriminal T pe: The Construction and App cat on o a ypOlogy " riminal Behavior §ystems Marshall B. Clinard and Richard Ou'inneyr,1 eaItors. ’ New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, c., 1967. Selltiz, Claire,Npp a1. Research Methods in Social Relations. ew IErk: ROIt, H neHart and WInston, Inc., Smith Kline and French Laboratories. Drpg Abu 2. Third edition. Philadelphia, 1968. Sutherland, Edwin H., and Donald R. Cressey. Princi les of Criminolo . Seventh edition. PhiladeIpHIa: '37 B. LippIncott Company, 1960. Wolfgang, Marvin E., and Franco Ferracuti. The Subculture p§.Violence. London: Social Science PaperBacEs, I967. B. PUBLICATIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT, LEARNED SOCIETIES AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS Committee on Uniform Crime Reports, International Associa- tion of Chiefs Of Police and the Federal Bureau Of Investigation. Uniform Cr im R orts. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Pr nt ng DIIIce, 1968. ’ International Association of Chiefs of Police. Training Epy,£8l Narcotics. Washington, D.C., 1967. President's Commission on on Law Enforcement and Administra- tion of Justice. Thp Challen e of Crime £3 a Free Societ . 9Washington, D.C.: U.S.-Devernment PrIntIng Office, 1 7. "The Characteristics of Offenders and Victims “—To Crime .. Task Force Repprt: Science and Technolo . gaggingtOn, D.C.: U.S. overnment PrIntIng OffIce, C. UNPUBLISHED MATERIALS E. H. W., Jr. ‘A Notebook. Unpublished. Ma Robert G. The Views Of Six Armed Robbers pp Disarming y’the Police, an unpuBIiSHea paper Basea on an interview with six convicted armed robbers at the Michigan Reformatory at Ionia, Michigan. 121 D . PERIODICALS "Brothers Suspected in Robbery," The State Journal, Lansing, Michigan, March 9, 1970. E . MISCELLANEOUS Michi an Com iled Laws Annotat d. Vol. 39. St. Paul nn.: West PuBIIEhIng CO., 1968. ’ JUL. 27 1371] MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY LIBR O 1 1 31293 3 45 271 ARIES