Agricultural Crimes in Georgia R. Neal McIntyre, Jr., DPA Valdosta State University

Introduction Where does our knowledge and understanding of crime come from? Most of what we know about crime is based on studies conducted in urban and suburban settings (Donnermeyer & DeKeseredy, 2014) Very little research has been conducted on crime perpetrated in rural environments (Donnermeyer, 2007) While this knowledge is beneficial, it’s application to the perpetration of crime in rural areas is often limited Rural environments are distinct from urban environments in ways that affect policing, crime, and public policy (Weisheit, Falcone, & Wells, 1994) As a result, more research is need to understand and respond more effectively to rural crime

Rural America: Perception vs. Reality Rural America is often portrayed as being peaceful and relatively free from crime (Donnermeyer & DeKeseredy, 2014) As a result, rural crime has frequently been a neglected topic in criminological research (Donnermeyer, 2007) In reality: Rural crime, including violent and property crime, has drastically increased over the past 30 years (Dunkelberger et al., 1992) Rural rates of crime in general may be higher than urban rates at particular types of rural places and for specific kinds of crimes (DeKeseredy et al., 2013; Jobes et al., 2004) Many rural residents have done little to protect themselves from being victimized (Dunkelberger et al., 1992)

Defining Agricultural Crime One particular type of rural crime that has frequently been ignored is agricultural crime. While rural crime can encompass many of the same type offenses that are frequently committed in urban and suburban areas, agricultural crimes are more distinct and unique Agricultural crimes (sometimes referred to as farm crimes) are criminal acts occurring to farm property This would involve acts where the farm property or enterprise is the (direct or indirect) target of the offense Agricultural crime is a major type of offense in many rural areas (Durkelberger et al., 1992)

Why Be Concerned About Agricultural Crime? Most figures related to rural and agricultural crimes are believed to be under-estimated No actual category of measurement from reports produced by the FBI or the DOJ Many farmers fail to report their victimization to law enforcement (Dunkelberger et al., 1992) These offenses impact more than just the agricultural enterprise Economics – rising cost of production and consumer costs Environment – some offenses cause detrimental harm to animal and plant-life through pollution and illegal poaching

Purpose of the Current Study The purpose of this project is to add to the scarce knowledge-base pertaining to agricultural crimes. The focus of this study is to examine the extent and scope of agricultural crimes within the State of Georgia. In addition, the project also explores whether the criminal acts were reported to the police and, if not, why.

Methodology The current study was conducted with the assistance of the Georgia Farm Bureau (GFB) insurance company. An anonymous electronic victimization survey was constructed using SurveyMonkey. The victimization survey focused on crimes of agricultural theft, illegal hunting/poaching, trespassing, illegal dumping of refuse, and vandalism committed within the past 12 months

Methodology GFB submitted through blind carbon copy email the survey link to roughly 10,000 members on file who had identified themselves as agricultural operators Only agricultural operators who had email addresses on file with GFB received the anonymous survey The original email was sent to GFB members in February 2015 with follow-up emails being sent in April and July 2015

Results A total of 415 completed surveys were returned (4.15% return rate) The respondents reporting farming an average of 332 acres (range: 1 – 9000 acres) They additionally reported raising livestock on an average of 121 acres (range: 2000 – 1)

Results Demographics: Gender: 74% were male Age: 59 years old (average) Race: White: 96.5% African American: 0.3% Hispanic: 0.3% Native American: 0.3% Other: 2% 29% stated that farming is their sole occupation

Results Crime Victim Reported to Police Theft (from land or buildings) 33.42% 57.69% Vandalism 16.28% 40.35% Illegal Dumping of Refuse 30.10% 21.1% Trespassing 44% 29.22% Illegal hunting/poaching 27.52% 34.07%

Results Reasons for not reporting the crime to the police: Most respondents stated that reporting the crime to the police was not worth the trouble Others mentioned that nothing would have been done if the crime was reported to the police Other reasons were also reported: Lack of concern by local law enforcement Unable to prove or provide evidence of the crime Unsure when the crime actually occurred

Limitations to the Study Low response rate (4.15%) Normal response rate for other GFB electronic member surveys have traditionally ranged from 4 – 5% Inability to determine whether the potential respondent emails were current and/or actively monitored email accounts

Conclusions While agricultural crime is present in Georgia, the data doesn’t appear to suggest that it is rampant The rate of reporting the crime to authorities varies on the specific offense The reasons for why these offenses are not reported to law enforcement is cause for concern Further research is needed to develop a better understanding of agricultural crime