Armed robbers in action : stickups and street culture

170 Pages·1997·10.35 MB·English

by  Richard Wright, Scott H Decker

The Northeastern Series
in Criminal Behavior
Advisor in Criminal Justice
to Northeastern University Press
Gil Geis
Armed
Robb.ers
in Action
Stickups and Street Culture
RlCHaRD T. WRiGHT
& SCoTT H. DeCKeR
foreword by Neal Shover
Northeastern University Press
Boston
PUBLISHED BY
University Press of New England
Hanover and London
NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY PRESS
Published by University Press of New England
One Court Street, Lebanon, NH 03766
www.upne.com
© 1997 by Richard T. Wright and Scott H. Decker
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
electronic or mechanical means, including storage and retrieval systems, without
permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote
brief passages in a review. Members of educational institutions and organiza-
tions wishing to photocopy any of the work for classroom use, or authors and
publishers who would like to obtain permission for any of the material in the
work, should contact Permissions, University Press of New England, One Court
Street, Lebanon, NH 03766.
Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7
ISBN-13: 978-1-55553-323-6
ISBN-10:1-55553-323-x
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wright, Richard, 1951-
Armed robbers in action : stickups and street culture / Richard T. Wright,
Scott H. Decker
p. cm. — (Northeastern series in criminal behavior)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-55553-324-8 (cloth : alk. paper), ISBN 1-55553-323-x
(pbk.: alk. paper)
1. Robbery — United States. 2. Thieves — United States. I. Decker, Scott H.
II. Title. III. Series.'
HV6658.W75 1997
— dc2i 97-14230
g University Press of New England is a member of the Green
p r e ss Pres s Initiative. The paper used in this book meets their
INITIATIVE minimum requirement for recycled paper.
To Nigel Walker and D. ;. West

Contents
Foreword ix
Acknowledgments xiii
1 Studying Active Armed Robbers 3
2 Deciding to Commit an Armed Robbery 32
3 Choosing the Target 61
4 Committing the Offense 95
5 Preventing Armed Robbery 130
Appendix 141
References 145
Index 151