Table of Contents

List of Tables     vii
Acknowledgments     ix
About the Author     xi
Foreword: Introduction to Qualitative Studies in Crime and Justice   Mercer L. Sullivan     xiii
Introduction     1
Situational Perspectives on Violence     3
Brief Review of Past Literature     3
Gaps in Situational Research     6
Past Research on Nonviolent Dispute Outcomes     7
Furthering the Study of Nonviolent Outcomes     12
Drug Selling and Violence     14
Review of Past Research     14
Applying a Situational Perspective to Drug-Business Disputes     18
A Two-Pronged Approach to the Study of Dispute Situations     20
The Offender's Perspective: A Key Data Source     21
The Importance of Offender Accounts for This Study     24
Summary     25
Methods     27
Data Acquisition     27
Data Analysis     31
Defining the Event     31
Defining Violence and Nonviolence     32
Quantitative Analysis     34
Qualitative Analyses     34
Sequence Analysis     35
Validity and Generalizability     35
Validity of Description     36
Validity of Interpretation     37
Validity of Theory     37
Generalizability: Internal and External     37
Drug Dealers - Social and Criminal Contexts     41
Social Characteristics     41
Nondrug-Related Criminal History     43
Drug-Selling History     45
In-Depth Exploration of Drug-Selling Activity     46
Drugs, Salary, and Setting     46
Organizational Role     47
Freelance Drug Selling     47
Drug Selling as Part of an Organization     50
Self-Protection During Drug-Business Activity     51
Summary     53
Drug Dealer Conflicts     55
Situational Features of Drug-Business Disputes     55
Sources of Drug-Business Conflict     56
Territory     57
Debt     57
Theft and Deceit     57
Insult     58
Other     58
Weapons in Drug-Business Disputes     59
Weapon Presence and Type     59
Why Having a Weapon Is Not Enough     63
Weapon Use and Injury     73
The Complex Role of Weapons     74
Third Parties and Drug-Business Disputes     74
Partisan Third Parties - Varied Roles     75
Nonpartisan Third Parties - Mostly Watching     84
Assessing Third-Party Influence - Why Partisanship Matters     88
Substance Use in Drug-Business Disputes     89
Presence and Type of Substance Use - The Importance of Alcohol     89
Perceived Intoxication Is Key     91
Respondent Perceptions of Substance Use-Conflict Links     94
Substance Use by the Main Opponent     99
Substances and Violence - More than Just Use     100
Summary     101
Variations In Dispute Outcomes - The Role of Seriousness     105
Seriousness and the Nature of the Dispute     106
Theft and Deceit - No Good Excuse     106
Debt - Effort, or Lack Thereof, Counts     115
Territory - Leave and No One Gets Hurt     123
Insult - Bad Intent Transformed     130
Other Reasons for Disputes     134
Customer Hassles     135
Employee Disputes     136
Other Violent Disputes     137
Summary     139
Event Process in Drug-Business Disputes - Mutual Respect and Solvability     141
Mutual Respect to Nonviolence      141
Friendship as a Cushion     142
Positive Interactions Breed Deference     154
Disrespect to Violence     157
Solvability     161
Summary     163
Perceptions of Risk in Drug-Business Dispute Outcomes     165
Perceived Risk and Decision-Making in Nonviolent Conflicts     166
Injury to Self and Others     166
Retaliation     168
Going to Jail     169
Business     171
Perceived Risk and Decision-Making in Violent Conflicts     172
General Nonconcern     172
Trying Not to Lose     173
Eliciting Help From Others     175
Weapons     176
Thinking of Others     178
Going Too Far = Jail     181
Retaliation in Drug-Business Disputes     182
Forms of Retaliation - Mild and Severe     183
Why No Cycles of Retaliation?     190
Summary     191
A Sequence Analysis of Drug-Business Dispute Conflicts     195
Sequencing Analysis in Detail     195
Nonviolent and Violent Dispute Sequences - One Main Difference     200
Compliance and Resolution in Drug-Business Disputes - Why Context Matters      203
Making Room for Compliance     203
Resolution Efforts - First Intentions Count     206
Summary     209
Conclusions     213
Brief Review of Findings     213
Contributions to Situational Theories of Violence     214
Why Dispute Content Matters     214
Reaffirmation of Past Research     216
Contributions to Research on Drug Selling and Violence     217
Alternative Explanations     218
Study Limitations     220
Future Research and Policy Implications     220
Final Thoughts     224
Bibliography     225
Index     231