Recidivism rate: a look at sentencing statistics
Around 38% of a group of adults of the same cohort who had already been convicted once were convicted a second time in the long term. This is the finding of a study by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office on the criminal careers of a cohort of Swiss born in 1966.
The younger these individuals were when they committed their first offense, the higher the recidivism rate. The rate of first recidivism was 40% for males and 26% for females. By the third conviction, however, this difference is no longer discernible. Individuals whose first conviction involved trafficking in narcotics have a higher risk of recidivism. This is shown by a long-term observation (criminal conviction statistics 1984-2014).
The more previous convictions, the higher the recidivism rate
Of the individuals in the group studied, 8690 were convicted of a misdemeanor or felony against the Criminal Code (SCC), the Road Traffic Act (SVG), or the Narcotics Act (BetmG) in the first ten years of their adulthood and were entered in the criminal register.
This group was followed for a period of nine years after the first sentence by an adult court. During this period, 38% of this group (3306 persons) committed another offense for which they were convicted and entered in the criminal record.
This group of 3306 recidivists was subsequently followed for another nine years from the second adult court conviction. During this period, 51% of them committed another offense, resulting in a third conviction and a third criminal record entry. In other words, the recidivism rate increases with the number of sentences handed down (38% recidivists with one prior conviction and 51% recidivists with two prior convictions).
Higher recidivism rate among young adults
The comparison of the recidivism rate by age of the adults studied shows: The younger the individuals were when they committed their first offense, the greater the likelihood of a second and third conviction. For individuals who committed their first offense at age 18, the rate of first recidivism was 49% and that of second recidivism was 57%. If the individuals committed their first offense at age 22, the recidivism rate drops to 33% and 43%, respectively.
Males are overrepresented among both first-time offenders and first-time recidivists. The rate of first recidivism after nine years was 40% for men and 26% for women. After a second conviction, however, the recidivism rate for women was slightly higher than for men: the rate of second recidivism for men was 51%, while for women it was 53%.
Trade in narcotics favored
The rates of first and second overall recidivism were higher among adults whose criminal careers began with the commission of an offense against the BetmG (52% and 61%, respectively) than among those whose first conviction involved an offense against the StGB (39% and 54%, respectively) or the SVG (38% and 48%, respectively). Thus, a conviction for trafficking in narcotics at the beginning of a criminal career increases the likelihood of recidivism.
SVG delinquency: three out of four recidivism again in road traffic
In the case of a reference conviction for a misdemeanor or felony against the SVG, three out of four recidivism cases again involved this law (specific recidivism). In the case of a reference conviction for a misdemeanor or felony against the Narcotics Act, on the other hand, the subsequent offenses showed a very different pattern of behavior (only about one in three recidivism cases involved the Narcotics Act again).
Source: Federal Statistical Office
