AN ANALYSIS OF HOMICIDE INCIDENTS REPORTED IN POLICEBULLETINS IN 2017

Abstract

Aim of this study was to generate a database of homicide incidents in Turkey in 2017 from Police Bulletins, to study the characteristics of homicide on a national level, including temporal homicide patterns. A database of 782 homicide incidents that took place in 2017 was generated from Police Bulletins. Data on the number of victims, number of offenders, time and place of homicide, weapon used, and apprehension of the offender were extracted from the Police Bulletins and used in SPSS analysis of the data. Incidents identified involved 863 victims of homicide, including 16 homicide-suicide incidents. Most homicides identified were one-on-one events. 68,3% of homicides had taken place on the outside. No statistically significant seasonal effect was found, but December had the highest frequency of homicide. Religious holidays were not associated with spike or drops in homicide frequency. It was found that frequency of homicides drops towards the middle of the week, and increase over the weekend. Over the course of the day, homicides increased in the afternoons and evening, peaking at 9pm. Most homicides were committed using a weapon, with firearms used in 61,7% of all homicides. Homicide-suicides were more likely to happen during winter months, and commonly involved a firearm. While the data is incomplete, this study confirms on a national level many findings of smaller studies that have been conducted in Turkey on a local level. Expansion of the database is needed to improve the understanding of temporal patterns of homicide.