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Chapter 4 Entering the Target
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ntering the Target ONCE OFFENDERS HAVE SELECTED a specific residential burglary target, they confront the task of actually breaking into the place. At first glance, this may appear to be a fairly simple matter. On closer investigation, however, it proves to be quite challenging, involving a set of actions that have to be performed in the face of a "problematic outcome and potentially serious consequences7 ' (Shover, 1991:103). Not only must offenders deal with physical obstacles designed to frustrate their efforts, they must do so under considerable emotional pressure in an environment alive with potential hazards. How, then, do they accomplish this feat? That is the question to which this chapter will be devoted. This matter has attracted little criminological research, but it has important implications for our understanding of offender decision making. Such decision making does not end with the selection of a target; indeed, the decision to commit a residential bur- ( 103 ) Chapter 4 glary is itself subject to reversal, at least in theory, until the offender has actually completed the process of getting into that target. Having settled on a residence, there is a natural tendency for offenders to feel compelled to get the burglary over and done with. In part, this is probably a product of their initial motivation; after all, they typically are contemplating the offense in response to a pressing need and therefore are predisposed to quick action. But there is another aspect of the situation that contributes to this heightened sense of urgency. The offenders are on the brink of a risky venture and, recognizing this, are inclined to become increasingly tense and agitated (Bennett and Wright, 1984). One way in which they can effectively deal with this anxiety is simply to move ahead, thereby putting the source of their unease behind them. Indeed, the offenders in our sample often adopted just such a strategy. I don't know if you ever stole anything in your life; it's a mixture of fear and anxiety and just excitement; it's adrenaline pumping through your body... Even if we haven't cased out these houses as much as we would've liked to [we just do them]. But it's because we're up and our adrenaline is pumping and we want to just get it and get it done. (No. 100) Ain't no hesitation involved in [burglary]; he who hesitates sometimes is lost. That hesitation could be the police comin' by or a neighbor comin' by and, if you had gone when you first wanted to, it could be over with by now. (Larry Williams—No. 037) Paradoxically, though, some offenders were inhibited from moving ahead by the very anxiety that impelled them to action . Finding themselves in a state of near paralysis, they often used drugs with the express purpose of summoning up the courage to proceed (see Cromwell et al., 1991). The drug of choice, however, varied from offender to offender. ( 104 ) [3.236.214.123] Project MUSE (2024-03-28 15:09 GMT) Entering the Target [A shot of heroin] pumps you up. You talk about pumpin' up, that pumps you up: "Go get it! Ain't nobody gon see you. Fuck 'em." (No. 012) I smoke [crack cocaine], man ... [I]f I went [to do a burglary] straight, I wouldn't have the balls to do it. (No. 031) [Smoking marijuana] might give me a reaction like pushing me into doing what I want to do. (No. 032) As the crime got underway, with events accelerating and taking on a life of their own, outside concerns became increasingly attenuated; the offenders turned far more serious, focussing intently on surreptitiously getting into the target. You just thinking [about] one thing, this thing that you're doing. (Rob Newhouse—No. 070) Goin' in, all you be thinking about is gettin' in. (No. 064) This usually required them to move progressively through three stages, each of which had to be completed without attracting suspicion: (1) approaching the building; (2) making a final check for occupancy,- and (3) effecting an entry. Approaching the Target Offenders are aware that in stepping from public to private property, they become much more vulnerable. Whereas people walking or driving down a public street are unlikely to draw attention to themselves—especially within areas residentially dominated by members of their own race—the burglars' actions suddenly are open to challenge when they enter residence grounds. Many offenders became quite nervous at this point and literally could not...