Victim–Offender Relationship

Abstract

A significant amount of crime consists of acquaintance or family crime and interpersonal crime. The relationship between offenders and their victims has been looked at in many contexts, including proximity to home, duration of stalking, method of homicide, and fear of rape or sexual assault. Research has found that the degree of intimacy that exists between victims and offenders has traditionally been seen as a major variable in the outcome in cases of violent crimes in the criminal justice system.