The history of gun culture in the United States is complicated. Guns are an integral part of American history and attempts to control them through policy are often contentious. However, research suggests that gun crime occurs in areas where there are more guns (Braga, 2017; Braga & Pierce, 2005; Cook, Harris, Ludwig, & Pollack, 2015; Kennedy, 2011; Koper, 2013; Pierce, Braga, Hyatt, & Koper, 2004). Consequently, as gun accessibility increases within cities, the likelihood of gun crime also increases. When researching gun accessibility, it is important to note how guns are accessed. Often, guns are accessible in three ways: (1) legal transactions, (2) straw purchases, or (3) theft (Braga, 2017; Cook et al, 2015; Koper, 2013). Most contemporary gun accessibility research measures the impact of legal gun ownership and straw market transactions on gun crime rates within cities (Braga, 2017, Cook et al., 2015; Koper, 2013). Breaking from conventional research, this study will explore the relationship between city-level gun theft and gun crime to determine if cities experiencing higher rates of gun theft also experience higher rates of gun crime. Environmental criminology suggests that opportunities to acquire guns vary depending on physical and social features of places (Bratingham & Bratingham, 1984; Cohen & Felson, 1979; Meier & Miethe, 1993). Therefore, using environmental criminology as a framework, it is likely that if a stolen gun is used in a crime, it will be used close to where it was stolen. As follows, if gun theft increases in a city – increasing illicit gun availability – so too will gun crime.
","abstract_html":"<p>The history of gun culture in the United States is complicated. Guns are an integral part of American history and attempts to control them through policy are often contentious. However, research suggests that gun crime occurs in areas where there are more guns (Braga, 2017; Braga & Pierce, 2005; Cook, Harris, Ludwig, & Pollack, 2015; Kennedy, 2011; Koper, 2013; Pierce, Braga, Hyatt, & Koper, 2004). Consequently, as gun accessibility increases within cities, the likelihood of gun crime also increases. When researching gun accessibility, it is important to note how guns are accessed. Often, guns are accessible in three ways: (1) legal transactions, (2) straw purchases, or (3) theft (Braga, 2017; Cook et al, 2015; Koper, 2013). Most contemporary gun accessibility research measures the impact of legal gun ownership and straw market transactions on gun crime rates within cities (Braga, 2017, Cook et al., 2015; Koper, 2013). Breaking from conventional research, this study will explore the relationship between city-level gun theft and gun crime to determine if cities experiencing higher rates of gun theft also experience higher rates of gun crime. Environmental criminology suggests that opportunities to acquire guns vary depending on physical and social features of places (Bratingham & Bratingham, 1984; Cohen & Felson, 1979; Meier & Miethe, 1993). Therefore, using environmental criminology as a framework, it is likely that if a stolen gun is used in a crime, it will be used close to where it was stolen. As follows, if gun theft increases in a city – increasing illicit gun availability – so too will gun crime.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Senst, Thomas"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Criminal Justice","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Khadija Monk, Thesis Advisor
Dr. Robert Grantham, Thesis Member
Dr. Feodor Gostjev, Thesis Member
"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:22:00Z","subjects":["Criminology and Criminal Justice","Legal Studies","Other Legal Studies","Gun Crime","Gun Availability","Illicit Gun Markets","Gun Theft","Gang Crime","Environmental Criminology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://vc.bridgew.edu/theses/74","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Khadija Monk, Thesis Advisor
Dr. Robert Grantham, Thesis Member
Dr. Feodor Gostjev, Thesis Member
"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Senst, Thomas"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2019-10-28T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Criminal Justice"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Criminology and Criminal Justice","Legal Studies","Other Legal Studies","Gun Crime","Gun Availability","Illicit Gun Markets","Gun Theft","Gang Crime","Environmental Criminology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://vc.bridgew.edu/theses/74"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The history of gun culture in the United States is complicated. Guns are an integral part of American history and attempts to control them through policy are often contentious. However, research suggests that gun crime occurs in areas where there are more guns (Braga, 2017; Braga & Pierce, 2005; Cook, Harris, Ludwig, & Pollack, 2015; Kennedy, 2011; Koper, 2013; Pierce, Braga, Hyatt, & Koper, 2004). Consequently, as gun accessibility increases within cities, the likelihood of gun crime also increases. When researching gun accessibility, it is important to note how guns are accessed. Often, guns are accessible in three ways: (1) legal transactions, (2) straw purchases, or (3) theft (Braga, 2017; Cook et al, 2015; Koper, 2013). Most contemporary gun accessibility research measures the impact of legal gun ownership and straw market transactions on gun crime rates within cities (Braga, 2017, Cook et al., 2015; Koper, 2013). Breaking from conventional research, this study will explore the relationship between city-level gun theft and gun crime to determine if cities experiencing higher rates of gun theft also experience higher rates of gun crime. Environmental criminology suggests that opportunities to acquire guns vary depending on physical and social features of places (Bratingham & Bratingham, 1984; Cohen & Felson, 1979; Meier & Miethe, 1993). Therefore, using environmental criminology as a framework, it is likely that if a stolen gun is used in a crime, it will be used close to where it was stolen. As follows, if gun theft increases in a city – increasing illicit gun availability – so too will gun crime.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Measuring the Impact of Gun Theft on City-Level Gun Crime Rates"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Khadija Monk, Thesis Advisor
Dr. Robert Grantham, Thesis Member
Dr. Feodor Gostjev, Thesis Member
"],"dc:creator":["Senst, Thomas"],"dc:date.available":["2019-10-28T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The history of gun culture in the United States is complicated. Guns are an integral part of American history and attempts to control them through policy are often contentious. However, research suggests that gun crime occurs in areas where there are more guns (Braga, 2017; Braga & Pierce, 2005; Cook, Harris, Ludwig, & Pollack, 2015; Kennedy, 2011; Koper, 2013; Pierce, Braga, Hyatt, & Koper, 2004). Consequently, as gun accessibility increases within cities, the likelihood of gun crime also increases. When researching gun accessibility, it is important to note how guns are accessed. Often, guns are accessible in three ways: (1) legal transactions, (2) straw purchases, or (3) theft (Braga, 2017; Cook et al, 2015; Koper, 2013). Most contemporary gun accessibility research measures the impact of legal gun ownership and straw market transactions on gun crime rates within cities (Braga, 2017, Cook et al., 2015; Koper, 2013). Breaking from conventional research, this study will explore the relationship between city-level gun theft and gun crime to determine if cities experiencing higher rates of gun theft also experience higher rates of gun crime. Environmental criminology suggests that opportunities to acquire guns vary depending on physical and social features of places (Bratingham & Bratingham, 1984; Cohen & Felson, 1979; Meier & Miethe, 1993). Therefore, using environmental criminology as a framework, it is likely that if a stolen gun is used in a crime, it will be used close to where it was stolen. As follows, if gun theft increases in a city – increasing illicit gun availability – so too will gun crime.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://vc.bridgew.edu/theses/74"],"dc:subject":["Criminology and Criminal Justice","Legal Studies","Other Legal Studies","Gun Crime","Gun Availability","Illicit Gun Markets","Gun Theft","Gang Crime","Environmental Criminology"],"dc:title":["Measuring the Impact of Gun Theft on City-Level Gun Crime Rates"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Criminal Justice"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:22:00Z"}