5- The risk continuum
By conducting the foregoing evaluation the investigator is well prepared to diagnose the victim’s risk level to the specific crime. The continuum reflects the victim’s risk level to the specific crime in light of the victim’s lifestyle and associated factors of situation, circumstances and environment related to or proximate to the crime. The risk level indicator is also another tool in assessing the possible relationship between the victim and offender.
Additional influencing factors included in assessing a victim’s risk level are the situational, circumstantial and environmental elements associated with the crime. We have discovered that the accurate assessment of a victim’s risk level may lead the investigator to an educated opinion of a number of valuable insights to include the following:
- Pre-crime association/contact between the victim and the offender.
- The degree and/or extent of the relationship between the victim and offender.
- Was the victim a victim of opportunity?
- Was the victim specifically targeted?
- Did the victim somehow contribute to his/her victimization?
If so, was it through ignorance, innocence and naivete’?
or recklessness, negligence and disregard?
- The degree of pre-planning, premeditation and forethought.
- Was this a crime of passion, impulse and spontaneity?
- Level of criminal experience and sophistication.
- Perspective of offender’s “emotional” age and possible chronological age.
- Motive of the offender.
- Thoughts, feelings and emotions of the offender at the time of the crime.
- Feelings and emotional dynamics of the offender towards the victim.
- Intended victim vs. Substitute (symbolic) victim.
- The offender’s attitude/opinion about the victim or “sub class” the victim may represent.
- Initial conception of some of the latent personality characteristics of the offender.
- Formulation of proactive investigative leads and techniques.
- “Threshold diagnosis” of the most “probable” type of offender.
Additional influencing factors included in assessing a victim’s risk level are the situational, circumstantial and environmental elements associated with the crime. We have discovered that the accurate assessment of a victim’s risk level may lead the investigator to an educated opinion of a number of valuable insights to include the following:
- Pre-crime association/contact between the victim and the offender.
- The degree and/or extent of the relationship between the victim and offender.
- Was the victim a victim of opportunity?
- Was the victim specifically targeted?
- Did the victim somehow contribute to his/her victimization?
If so, was it through ignorance, innocence and naivete’?
or recklessness, negligence and disregard?
- The degree of pre-planning, premeditation and forethought.
- Was this a crime of passion, impulse and spontaneity?
- Level of criminal experience and sophistication.
- Perspective of offender’s “emotional” age and possible chronological age.
- Motive of the offender.
- Thoughts, feelings and emotions of the offender at the time of the crime.
- Feelings and emotional dynamics of the offender towards the victim.
- Intended victim vs. Substitute (symbolic) victim.
- The offender’s attitude/opinion about the victim or “sub class” the victim may represent.
- Initial conception of some of the latent personality characteristics of the offender.
- Formulation of proactive investigative leads and techniques.
- “Threshold diagnosis” of the most “probable” type of offender.