CHAPTER 14

 What is White-Collar Crime?  Not an official category of criminal behavior  Covers a broad range of illegal acts including lying, cheating, and stealing  Technically defined as financial activities characterized by deceit and concealment that do not involve physical force or violence  White-collar criminals usually  Have legal access to the place where the crime occurs  Are spatially separated from the victim (often unknown)  Behave in a manner that is legitimate White-Collar Crime

 Different techniques  Deception  Abuse of trust  Concealment and conspiracy  Victims of White-Collar Crimes  Often white-collar crime does not target individuals but rather large groups or more abstract concepts such as “society” or “the environment” White-Collar Crime

 Regulating and Policing White-Collar Crime  A corporation can be treated as a person capable of forming the intent necessary to commit a crime  Corporate violence is a result of policies or actions undertaken by a corporation  Parallel regulatory and criminal systems have evolved to prevent corporate violence and other forms of white-collar crimes White-Collar Crime

 The Regulatory Justice System and White-Collar Crime  The goal of regulation is not prevention or punishment as much as compliance  Law Enforcement and White-Collar Crime  Generally, when regulatory agencies find that criminal prosecution is needed to punish a particular violation, they will refer the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice  The FBI is usually the lead agency when it comes to white-collar crime White-Collar Crime

 White Collar Crime in the Early 2000s  There were two periods of financial scandal in the 2000s  2001 and 2002  Fraudulent accounting practices led to the demise of giant corporations (Enron and Worldcom)  End of the decade  Collapse of the subprime mortgage market  Caused millions of Americans to lose their homes to foreclosure  These scandals and economic downturns led to greater regulation and criminalization of white-collar crimes White-Collar Crime

 White collar crime (corporate crime) is different than violent or property crime.  Which crime category is depicted more in mainstream media?  News  Television  Movies  Music  Why do you think this is the case? Discussion Question #1:

 The same anonymity that makes online activity appealing also makes it vulnerable to deception  Computer Crime and the Internet  Every business relies on computers to conduct its daily affairs  500 million American household devices are now connected to the Internet  The Internet has become a place where large numbers of people socially and commercially interact  Wrongdoing has an opportunity to flourish  Cyber crime is described as criminal activity occurring via a computer in the virtual community of the Internet Cyber Crime

 Computer Crime and the Internet  Cyber Advantages  The advent of the Internet has made it easier to disseminate child pornography and commit other cyber crimes  Reasons include:  Speed  Security  Anonymity  The Incidence of Cyber Crime  Difficult to determine how much cyber crime actually takes place Cyber Crime

 Cyber Crimes Against Persons and Property  Most cyber crimes are not “new”  Existing crimes in which the Internet is now the instrument of wrongdoing  Types of cyber crimes  Cyber consumer fraud  Fraud committed over the Internet  Cyber Theft  Thieves steal data stored in a networked computer with network access from anywhere on the globe  Identity Theft  Phishing  Cyber Aggression and the New Media  Cyberstalking Cyber Crime

 Cyber Crimes in the Business World  Hackers are people who use one computer to illegally access another  Hackers use botnets (robot network)  Malware  Worms are computer programs that can automatically replicate itself and interfere with the normal use of a computer and does not need to be attached to an existing file to move  A virus is a computer program that can replicate itself and interfere with the normal use of a computer and cannot exist as a separate entity  The Spread of Spam  Businesses and individuals are targets of spam  About 970 million messages contain some form of malware  Spam is the preferred method of phishing Cyber Crime

 Pirating Intellectual Property Online  Intellectual property consists of the products that result from intellectual, creative processes  Intellectual property is vulnerable to “piracy”  Books  Films  Music  Software  Millions of copies can be produced with a click of a mouse, and the copies are just as good as the originals in most cases Cyber Crime

 Fighting Cyber Crime  Encryption is the process of encoding information stored in computers in such a way that only authorized parties have access to it  Regulating the Internet  Private industry needs government help to fight off cyber criminals  Many cyber criminals operate in foreign countries, beyond the reach of American authorities Cyber Crime

 Fighting Cyber Crime  Challenges for Law Enforcement  Difficulty in gathering evidence  Cyber Forensics  The application of computer technology to find and utilize evidence of cyber crimes  Digital evidence is information or data of value to a criminal investigation that are either stored or transmitted by electronic means  Cyber Sleuthing Cyber Crime

 Firearms in the United States  Gun ownership is widespread in the United States  1/3 of American households possess at least one firearm  310 million guns in the United States (not counting guns on military bases)  Most gun owners are law-abiding  Illegally obtained firearms are a constant concern for law enforcement  Half of Americans favor stricter measures by the government to control gun ownership Gun Control Policy

 Regulating Gun Ownership  The language in the Second Amendment is considered archaic and vague  The Supreme Court has attempted to clarify the amendment’s modern meaning  Recent rulings  Second Amendment provides individuals with a constitutional right to bear arms  This right must be recognized at all levels of government  Federal  State  Local Gun Control Policy

 Regulating Gun Ownership  Background Check  Criminals and mentally ill individuals are prohibited from legally purchasing firearms  Background checks are conducted by federally licensed gun dealers  Investigate the person’s history to determine whether that person should be allowed the ability to possess a firearm  The mechanics of background checks are regulated by the Brady Bill (1993) Gun Control Policy

 Regulating Gun Ownership  Mental Health Issues  Anyone involuntarily committed to a mental institution or adjudicated as mentally defective is also barred from purchasing or possessing a firearm  Relies on states to provide the federal government with mental health information  Recent Legislative Gun Control Efforts  Because of a lack of federal action, individual states are being tasked with passing stricter gun control measures Gun Control Policy

 Despite recent high profile shooting sprees, the federal government has failed to enact greater gun control measures.  What are the arguments made by advocates of stronger gun control measures?  What are the arguments made by advocates of limited gun control measures?  Do you ultimately think that there should be stronger laws increasing restrictions on gun ownership? Discussion Question #2

 Defining Terrorism:  Terrorism is the use or threat of violence in furtherance of political objectives  Modern terrorism is characterized by extreme levels of violence  The Global Context of Terrorism  Terror is the realm of nonstate actors  An entity that plays a role in international affairs but does not represent any established state or nation  Terrorism is a “supercrime” that incorporates many of the characteristics of international warfare The Terror Threat

 The Global Context of Terrorism  Al Qaeda and Jihad  Grew out of volunteers who migrated to Afghanistan in the 1980s to rid that country of foreign occupiers  Was led by Osama bin Laden to be a form of a jihad  The struggle against the evil in oneself  The struggle against the evil outside oneself  The struggle against nonbelievers  A Continuing Threat  Bin Laden was killed in 2011  Many of the group’s leaders have been killed but it remains a formidable organization  Now relies on a loose affiliation of franchises that operate in Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria, and other nations  Self-radicalization  Have the ability to operate under law enforcement’s radar up until the moment they strike The Terror Threat

 Terrorism Trends For the Future:  Terrorists have developed more efficient methods of financing their operations  Terrorists have developed more efficient organizations  Terrorists have exploited new communication technology to mount global campaigns The Terror Threat

 One noted terrorism trend includes smaller operations involving American-born terrorists influenced by international sources.  What strategies would you develop to curtail and limit this identified trend?  In addition to the criminal justice system, what other entities should be involved in the efforts to ensure Americans are not influenced by terrorist sources? Discussion Question #3:

 Counterterrorism Strategies  The Criminal Justice Model  Under the criminal justice model of homeland security terrorism is treated like any other crime  Law enforcement, court, corrections systems work together to deter terrorist activity through the threat of arrest and punishment  Material Support  The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) is one of the most important counterterrorism criminal laws passed  Hampers terrorist organizations by cutting off their material support which covers financial support but also logistical support such as expert advice or assistance  Terrorism Convictions  From 2001 to 2014, federal prosecutors have successfully tried more than 400 defendants on terrorism –related charges in criminal court The Terror Threat

 Counterterrorism Strategies  Military Model  Parallel response to the terrorist threat  Department of Defense designates certain terrorist suspects detained during the course of military operations as enemy combatants  Foreign national who has supported foreign terrorist organizations such as al Qaeda that are engaged in hostilities against the military operations of the United States  Since the 9-11 attacks about 800 enemy combatants were transferred to Guantanamo Bay  As a result of the treatment here, the U.S. has come under international criticism  Political Issues  Security Issues The Terror Threat

 Counterterrorism Strategies  Military Tribunals  Held at the naval base and known as military commissions  Offer more limited protections than those afforded to defendants in civilian courts  Does not have a right to trial by jury  Panel of five military commissioners who act as the judge and jury  2/3 must vote for a conviction  Tribunal Troubles  Convictions occur less often than in civilian court  Many delays The Terror Threat

 As discussed earlier, there are problems associated with military tribunals.  Relatively few convictions have been obtained  Delay of the proceedings  How do these problems make the U.S. appear to the international community?  Should the U.S. abandon the military model as a counterterrorism strategy and rely solely on the criminal justice model? Explain. Discussion Question #4: