The Misogyny of Thieves

Unless all you want is a joy ride, stealing a car is a two-step process. First you have to steal it. Then you have to sell it.

Often car thieves have mentors who guide them during their first thefts. In a new paper, based on interviews with 35 active car thieves in St. Louis, researchers quote a thief known as Killa, who says he serves as a “technical adviser” to up-and-coming criminals:

I’m like switching roles from learning to now teaching. Some look out, some know how to break it down, some know how to just do it all themselves. It’s all in how they learn. You gotta learn from someone. Yeah, it’s a cycle.

This mentorship process was pretty much the same for both men and women who were learning to steal cars. The women were taught how to quickly bypass keyed ignitions, how to flick wires together to start the engines. They also learned how to take advantage of careless motorists who left their cars running in their driveways or while they ran into a store.

But when it comes to dumping the cars, men have an advantage. They are more connected to a social network of criminals that provides access to chop shops, where the cars can be dismantled and sold for parts. Women often didn’t know how to profitably dispose of their stolen goods. If they did know of a chop shop, their access was only through a male thief.

From the paper:

Without these contacts the ability to profit from auto theft was significantly curtailed. The next profitable source for those who lack access to these higher outlets was to sell vehicle parts and accessories on the streets. … Yet, even those who sold parts on the street relied upon social networks to either move parts or become aware of customers.

While it was harder for women to gain access to criminal networks, once they earned the trust of “male gatekeepers” they were able to profit from the vehicles they had stolen. Which provides some hope that this glass ceiling (windshield?) might eventually be smashed.

(The article, published in Justice Quarterly, is titled “Establishing Connections: Gender, Motor Vehicle Theft, and Disposal Networks.” The authors are Christopher W. Mullins and Michael G. Cherbonneau.)