Criminal careers behind foreign bars: A latent class analysis of Dutch prisoners

Abstract

While at least 1900 Dutch prisoners are imprisoned abroad annually, existing knowledge on this group of prisoners is often limited to descriptions about detention conditions. The current study explores latent classes of criminal careers before entrance in foreign prisons and whether reoffending behavior differed between the distinct typologies of Dutch prisoners. Using registration and reconviction data, the results show four typologies: (a) high persistent offenders, (b) low-rate offenders, (c) sporadic offenders, and (d) long-term incarcerated offenders. Furthermore, the results indicate that high persistent offenders are more likely to get reconvicted after release from foreign prisons than other typologies.