The relationship between crime facilitators and risk factors: evidence from homicides and suicides in Milan area from 2001 to 2014

Situational crime prevention assumes that crime can be partly prevented by reducing opportunities for crime. “Controlling facilitators” is among the situational crime prevention techniques aiming at reducing crime by modifying the availability or access to specific facilitators (e.g. firearms availability). The impact of crime facilitators on the frequency of delinquency is, however, strictly related to specific risk factors, such as gender and age of the victims. Identifying the way how crime facilitators and risk factors interact between each other is of fundamental importance for implementing appropriate measures of prevention focused on concrete risk factors and population groups. This presentation aims at analysing the relationship between specific crime facilitators and risk factors concerning homicides and suicides registered in the province of Milan (Italy). In particular, the relationship between the type of weapon used to commit homicides and suicides and the gender and age of the victim will be investigated through the analysis of more than 1000 cases of suicides and 420 cases of homicides collected by the Forensic Institute of Milan from 2001 and 2014. Where possible, the results of this analysis will be compared to similar data at national and international level.