An Empirical Analysis and Time Distribution of Deviant Homicides in Houston: A Time Series Observational Study

Abstract

During the late 1970’s and throughout the 1980’s the United States economy was struggling. When the oil crisis in 1973 began, the economy in Houston was severely affected. During the period 1973-1985 homicides in the state of Texas rose from 1506 to 2132, an increase of 41 percent (US Department of Justice, 2008), however, there was decline in murder rates nationally from 19,640 in 1973 to 18,980 in 1985, a decrease of five percent (US Department of Justice, 2008). This research will examine what motivates members of the Houston community to inflict violence upon their neighbors. The age and race of the victims will be considered as reasoning for homicidal acts, and compared to the age and race of the suspects. The victim/offender relationship will be looked at in attempt to determine if more homicides are committed upon strangers or acquaintances. This study was able to determine when the crime peaked, resulting in suggestions for future studies. However, while we did not find the correlation, this research was not at all a loss. We were able to determine when the crime peaked, resulting in suggestions for future studies.