Crime & Delinquency

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Click here for more information

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Payne, B. K.
Right arrow Articles by Berg, B. L.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
Crime & Delinquency, Vol. 49, No. 3, 439-459 (2003)
DOI: 10.1177/0011128703049003005
© 2003 SAGE Publications

Perceptions About the Criminalization of Elder Abuse among Police Chiefs and Ombudsmen

Brian K. Payne

Old Dominion University

Bruce L. Berg

California State University

The 1990s witnessed the criminalization of elder abuse. This criminalization included the creation of mandatory-reporting legislation, increased penalties for elder abusers, and modifications in criminal procedures for older victims. Little attention has been given to those officials actually involved in deciding how elder abuse cases should be handled. This research considers the sanctions recommended by police chiefs and ombudsmen for six different types of offenses against seniors. Attention is also directed toward potential differences between the groups' attitudes about elder abuse. Results indicate that ombudsmen see nursing home offenses as more severe than street offenses or white-collar offenses. Police chiefs see street offenses as the most severe offense type. Implications are provided.

Key Words: elder abuse • ombudsmen • gero-criminology


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?