1st Edition
Rural Crime Prevention Theory, Tactics and Techniques
Rural crime has long been overlooked in the field of crime prevention. Sustained academic interrogation is necessary, therefore, to reduce the extensive economic and social costs of rural crime as well as to challenge some of the myths regarding the prevention of rural crime.
Rural Crime Prevention: Theory, Tactics and Techniques critically analyses, challenges, considers and assesses a suite of crime prevention initiatives across an array of international contexts. This book recognises the diversity and distinct features of rural places and the ways that these elements impact on rates, experiences and responses. Crucially, Rural Crime Prevention also incorporates non-academic voices which are embedded throughout the book, linking theory and scholarship with practice.
Proactive responses to rural offending based on sound evidence can serve to facilitate feelings of safety and security throughout communities, enhance individual wellbeing and alleviate pressure on the overburdened and typically under-resourced formal elements of the criminal justice system. This book provides an opportunity to focus on the prevention of crime in regional, rural and remote parts of the globe.
An accessible and compelling read, this book will appeal to students and scholars of criminology, policing, sociology and practitioners interested in learning about the best-practice international approaches to rural crime prevention in the twenty-first century.
Contents
Notes on contributors
List of figures
List of tables
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgements
Acronyms and abbreviations
1 Introduction: Rural crime prevention in theory and context
Tarah Hodgkinson and Alistair Harkness
SECTION ONE
Theory and context
2 Social justice and problematising the concept of ‘rural’
Joseph F. Donnermeyer
3 The development of rational models of crime prevention: A critique of the situationist common sense in rural contexts
Matt Bowden and Artur Pytlarz
4 Social crime prevention: Theory, community and the ‘rural idyll’
Bridget A. Harris
5 The role of modern technology in rural situational crime prevention: A review of the literature
Temidayo James Aransiola and Vania Ceccato
6 Social media, rural communities and crime prevention
Naomi Smith
7 Armed legitimacy in Mexico: Self-defence groups against criminal violence
Irene Álvarez-Rodríguez, Denisse Román-Burgos and Sasha Jesperson
SECTION TWO
Rural people
8 Preventing rural alcohol and drug-related crime
Ralph Weisheit
The challenges of policing alcohol and drug-related crime
William Lally
9 Preventing rural hate crime
James J. Nolan, Robert L. Nicewarner and Rayna E. Momen
Communities of Shalom and preventing hate crime in rural West Virginia
Renée Verbanic
10 Preventing violence against women in the heartland
Walter S. DeKeseredy
The challenges of policing violence against women
Troy Ball
11 No dress rehearsal, this is our life: Crime prevention in the hands of local residents
Tarah Hodgkinson, Gregory Saville, Herb Sutton and Ryan Mackrell
Policing and preventing crime in rural Scotland
Alan Dron
12 Preventing fraud victimisation in rural areas
Cassandra Cross
Policing rural fraud victimisation
Mike Kelly
13 Crime prevention in Indigenous communities: Lessons from Saskatchewan, Canada
Nicholas A. Jones
Structural change to reduce crime in First Nations communities in Saskatchewan, Canada
Dan Bellegarde
SECTION THREE
Rural property, environment and nature
14 Livestock theft prevention
Willie Clack
The National Rural Safety Strategy in the Free State, South Africa
Jane Buys
15 Technological approaches to preventing property theft from farms
Alistair Harkness and Jo-ann Larkins
Innovative rural policing approaches in England’s Midlands region
Mick Simpson
16 Preventing crime against cultural and archaeological sites
Suzie Thomas and Louise E. Nicholas
The development of a heritage crime prevention program
Mark Harrison
17 Preventing wildlife crime: Contemporary issues in enforcement and policy perspectives
Angus Nurse
Preventing crimes against rural fauna
Geoff Edmond
18 Preventing crime in resource-based boom communities
Rick Ruddell and Erin Donnelly
Boomtown and bust town policing
Paul Ladouceur
19 Preventing rural arson
Janet Stanley
Arson prevention and education
Christopher J. Donnermeyer
SECTION FOUR
Future directions
20 Conclusion: The future of rural crime prevention
Alistair Harkness and Kyle Mulrooney
Index
Biography
Alistair Harkness is a senior lecturer in criminal justice at Federation University Australia’s Gippsland Campus in Victoria, Australia. His work focusses primarily on farm crime, rural policing and the prevention of crime in rural settings.
This compilation of research on crime prevention in rural communities from around the world highlights the diversity of crimes that impact rural spaces as well as the commonalities in the way rural people experience and respond to crime. This is a valuable contribution to furthering global knowledge and understanding of rural criminology.
Elaine Barclay
Retired rural crime researcher and international farm crime expert
New South Wales, Australia
Rural Prevention: Theory, Tactics and Prevention is another milestone in rural criminology’s development… a book that addresses crime, theory, prevention and justice in many parts of the world. Even more significantly, it does so by placing chapters by academics next to narratives by practitioners. There is no better example of praxis in criminology than a series of tandem readings on the same subject. So, my friends – buy extra Sharpies, for without doubt, you will be highlighting a great deal of this book.
Joseph F. Donnermeyer
Emeritus Professor
Ohio State University, United States
Rural crime is in many respects both unique and ubiquitous. It therefore requires specific crime prevention approaches and techniques that address the complicated needs of the people, animals, plants and ecosystems inhabiting rural spaces. Drawing upon examples from Australia, North America, South Africa, Mexico and the United Kingdom, Rural Crime Prevention provides a vital stepping stone for enhanced global dialogue on preventing crime in non-urban settings.
Rob White
Distinguished Professor of Criminology
University of Tasmania, Australia
For most criminologists who might never have considered rural crime, this book considerably expands the subject matter of the discipline. From its origins in Australia, the book includes contributions from many countries and regions of the world. The interweaving of practitioners’ perspectives brings the academic discussions to life. Altogether, Rural Crime Prevention provides an enlightening and thought-provoking read.
Ron Clarke
University Professor
Rutgers University, New Jersey
