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24 Homicide Stud. 3 (2020)

handle is hein.journals/homcst24 and id is 1 raw text is: Article Homicide Studies 2020, Vol. 24(1) 3-24 The Im pact of Investigation ©2018 SAGE Publications Article reuse guidelines: Strategies and Tactics on sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1 177/1088767918816741 Hom icide Clearance journals.sagepub.com/home/hsx SAGE Jesenia M. Pizarro', William Terrill', and Charles A. LoFaso2 Abstract This study examines whether changes made to the investigation procedures within the Rochester Police Department's homicide unit have an effect on homicide clearance net of theoretically significant variables related to victim and police devaluation, event characteristic, and victim lifestyle. It examines 132 homicides investigated by the homicide unit over 4 years consisting of the pre-intervention period and post- intervention period. It is hypothesized that investigation tactics will affect the odds of clearance, even after controlling for other theoretically relevant variables. The findings support this hypothesis, suggesting that the approaches and tactics police departments implement within their investigative units are important. Keywords homicide, clearance, investigation, detectives Introduction The aftermath of a homicide event poses many negative consequences to the deceased's family, friends, and society as a whole. Homicide often results in psychological dis- tress experienced by the victim's family and friends (Armour, 2002). At the societal level, some scholars estimate that the average cost per homicide is approximately 17.25 million dollars (DeLisi et al., 2010). When offenders are not apprehended, the potential deterrent effect of sanctions is diminished (Braga & Dusseault, 2018) and 'Arizona State University, Phoenix, USA 2The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA Corresponding Author: Jesenia M. Pizarro, Associate Professor, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State University, Mail Code 4420, 411 N. Central Avenue, Suite 600, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA. Email: Jesenia.Pizarro@asu.edu