Urban sprawl and violence: socio-spatial analysis of homicides in the city of São José dos Campos, SP, Brazil

Abstract The risk of violent deaths tends do increase in areas of precarious infrastructure. This paper aims to analyze the socio-spatial distribution of homicides in São José dos Campos (SJC), located in the Metropolitan Region in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, from 2015 to 2017, considering the urbanization and urban space structuring processes. The exploratory study, based on secondary data, is grounded on descriptive statistical and spatial analysis of the homicides that occurred in SJC between 2015 and 2017. The overall rate tended to decline in the period and the deaths occurred mainly in two zones of poorer social indicators and recent urban sprawl boosted by housing policies. The research is a warning against the role of public policies in creating violent territories.