1. Is the death penalty a fair sentence?
Starter Question
Is the death penalty a fair sentence?
Who should receive the death penalty?
What purpose does the death penalty serve?

2. CRIME

4. UCR (Uniform Crime Reports) Statistics
Nine types of crimes
Murder
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated assault
Burglary
Larceny-theft
Motor vehicle theft
Arson
Hate crimes

5. One CRIME INDEX OFFENSE Every 3 seconds
One VIOLENT CRIME
Every 22 seconds
One PROPERTY CRIME
One MURDER
Every 34 min.
One FORCIBLE RAPE
Every 6 min.
One ROBBERY
Every 60 sec.
One AGGRAVATED
ASSAULT
Every 34 sec.
One BURGLARY
Every 15 sec.
One LARCENY-THEFT
Every 5 sec.
One MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT
Every 27 sec.

6. Crimes in the U.S. 1990-1999 Type of Crime Number of Crimes
Crime Rate per 100,000 residents
Percent Change in Crime Rate
Percent Change in the Number of Crimes
Violent Crime
1,430,690
524.7
-28.3
-21.4
Murder
15,530
5.7
-39.4
-33.7
Forcible Rape
89,110
32.7
-20.6
-13.1
Robbery
409,670
150.2
-41.6
-35.9
Aggravated Assault
916,380
336.1
-20.7
Property Crime
10,284,500
3,742.1
-26.5
-19.4
Burglary
2,099,700
770.0
-37.7
-31.7
Larceny-Theft
6,957,400
2,551.4
-20.1
-12.4
Motor Vehicle Theft
1,147,300
420.7
-36.0
-29.9

7. A deeper look….
Because murder rate receives the most publicity, it can be used to highlight the general, across the board reduction in crime
One major reason for the downward crime trend is a recent reduction in juvenile crime

8. Reliability of UCR Statistics
Provide considerable information
Major strength:
experienced police officers can decide if the incident should be reported as a crime
Limitations
Tends to over represent the lower classes and undercount the middle and upper classes
Some crimes (amateur thefts, minor assaults) are not as likely to be reported as murder and auto theft
About 2/3 of crimes are not reported at all
White collar offenders are seldom included

9. Juvenile Crime Legal violations among those under 18 years of age
Includes deviance only the young can commit
Failing to attend school, underage drinking and smoking

10. Trends in Juvenile Crime
Juvenile Crime on a downward decline…..
Arrest rate dropped by 68%
Arrests for weapons violations dropped 33%
Rape arrest rate dropped 31%
Reasons:
Decline in the demand for drugs
Remaining crack gangs that provided guns have reached truces
Repeat juvenile offenders have been given stiffer sentences
Police are cracking down on illegal guns in the street

11. Approaches to Crime Control
Criminal Justice System- system comprising institutions and processes responsible for enforcing criminal statuses
Includes police, courts, and the correctional system
4 Different approaches
Deterrence
Retribution
Incarceration
Rehabilitation

12. 1) Deterrence Discouraging criminal acts by threatening punishment
Punishing convicted criminals will serve as an example to keep other people from committing crimes
Considerable debate over its effectiveness
Can work if potential lawbreakers know:
1) they are likely to get caught
2) punishment will be severe
In the U.S., punishment is not usually certain or severe, so deterrence does not have the effect that it could have
Special Case: Death penalty
Murder is extremely emotional and irrational, so capital punishment is not a deterrent

13. Do Americans believe that capital punishment deters criminals?
75% believe the death penalty can act as a deterrent to murder
Of those who favor the death penalty, over 75% indicate they would continue to favor it even if confronted with evidence that it did not act as a deterrent and therefore did not lower the murder rate
Revenge and a desire for retribution seem to contribute more to the support of capital punishment
2001: 66% of Americans support the death penalty (Gallup Poll)

14. Why does the attitude toward the death penalty vary?
Race and ethnicity
Over ¾ of whites
40% of African Americans
52% of Latinos
Due in part to the fact that they are more likely to receive the death penalty
African Americans comprise 13% of the population but make up 43% of death row inmates
Racial minorities make up half of all inmates in U.S. prisons.

15. 2) Retribution
Punishment intended to make criminals pay compensation for their acts
“eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth”
Designated officials exact retribution
Does not take personal vengeance into account, where people “take the law into their own
hands”.
The mother who shoots her son’s killer must also
answer to society for her action

16. 3) Incarceration
A method of protecting society from criminals by keeping them in prisons
U.S. has taken a tougher stance with the three strikes law- prison population greatly increased since 1990
Prison camps in other countries

17. 4) Rehabilitation
Process of changing or reforming a criminal through socialization
Most prisons have programs aimed at giving prisoners both social and work skills
30-60% of those released from penal institutions are sent back to prison in 2- 5 years
Recidivism- a repetition of or return of criminal behavior
Reasons:
Basic nature of the offenders
Influences of more hardened criminals
The stigma of being an ex-convict

18. Current Research in Sociology
Death Penalty: The Ultimate Sanction
This sanction has been used since ancient times to punish murderers and other criminals. Its morality is debated today. Many nations have banned the death penalty, though the United States still allows it.
Opposition to the death penalty arose during the Enlightenment, which resulted in limiting its use.
Venezuela became the first country to ban the practice.
By 2007, two-thirds of nations had banned the practice.
Critics claim the practice is immoral and ineffective, and cannot be administered fairly.
Support for the death penalty remains strong. –