Sex offenders are least likely to have tattoos, analysis of Florida database concludes
Sex offenders, particularly offenders convicted of pedophilia-related crimes, tend to have the fewest number of tattoos, according to an analysis of Florida prison records.
The Economist conducted the analysis, which found that prisoners convicted of property crimes or weapons-related charges were most likely to have tattoos. The most popular tattoos had no criminal association; they included names, animals, Christian symbols, and mythical creatures such as dragons and unicorns.
The analysis also found that inmates with at least one tattoo were 9 percent less likely to be in prison for murder, and those with tattoos on their head or face were about 30 percent less likely to be in prison for murder. Inmates with Christian tattoos were 10 percent less likely to be convicted murderers.
Having a Satan or Pentagram tattoos, however, wasn’t a statistically significant predictor of a homicide record, the story says. Those with white supremacist images, however, were 19 percent more likely to be in prison for murder, and those with tattoos associated with the Latin Kings gang were 89 percent more likely to have a murder record.
Hat tip to the Marshall Project.
