1. 8.2 Crime

2. Introduction Effects everybody in the United States  Some are victims, some are criminals, some are both  Majority that are effected are bystanders  Bombarded everyday by news media of crime: news, magazines, internet etc  Think crime is a serious problem Crime: any act that is labeled as such by those in authority, is prohibited by law and punishable by government  Criminal or not a criminal?: bank robber and a swimmer who stands by and watches someone drown?

3. Crime Statistics UCR: Uniform Crime Report  Published by the FBI  Uses data from local police Crime Report Limitations:  Not all of the complaints make it to the official reports; officers discretion  Less likely to report if involving a family member  Police more likely to file report on serious offenses when the injured are members of higher social classes  Officer files formal complaint is influenced by attitude of the individual making the complaint  Sexual crimes are more likely to go unreported

4. Types of Crimes Violent Crime:  Murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault  Occur every 22 seconds: rape- every 5 minutes, assault- 33 seconds, robbery-every 1 minute  Most victims are African American  Murder- victims are more likely to be African American  Males 8 times more likely than women, 8 times more likely than white men  Weapons: guns, knives

5. Types of Crimes Crime Against Property:  Burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, and arson  Committed every three seconds in the United States Victimless Crimes:  Prostitution, gambling, illegal drug use, and vagrancy  Supposedly only harm the victim

6. Types of Crimes White-Collar Crime:  Committed by individuals of higher social classes  Politicians, employees of corporations  Misrepresentations, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, price fixing, toxic pollutions, insider trading  Public and press play down white-collar crime  Computer-related crimes and insider trading have received more attention

7. Types of Crimes Organized Crime:  Crime syndicate: large0scale organization of professional criminals that controls some vice or business through violence or the threat of violence  Pursue crime as a big business  Gambling, drugs, unfair labor practices, hijacking of merchandise, and loan-sharking  Use legitimate business as “fronts”

8. Criminal Justice System Police:  Hold the most immediate control over who is arrested  Use police discretion: decide who is arrested and who is not  Seriousness of crime  Wishes of the victims  Attitude of the suspect is considered  Bystanders are present  African American than white Americans (racial profiling)

9. Criminal Justice System Courts:  Once arrested, shifts to the courts  Twofold process:  Determines guilt or innocence and assign punishment  90% are settled through plea bargaining- process of legal negotiation that allows an accused person to plead guilty to a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence; avoid costs and high case loads

10. Criminal Justice System Corrections:  Imprisonment, parole, probation, and community service  Serve four basic functions:  Retribution: serves as an act of revenge for society and victims  Deterrence: intended to discourage offenders from committing future crimes and make society think twice before committing crimes  Rehabilitation: reform criminals so that they can return to society as law- abiding citizens  Social Protection: limiting freedom of offenders, society prevents them from committing additional crimes  Recidivism: repeated criminal behavior: very high in the United States (62%)

11. Criminal Justice System Juvenile-Justice System:  Third largest category of offenders  Until 1960s had few rights and not protected by the same legal safeguards provided for adult offenders  Juvenile laws were very unspecific: remained in custody a lot longer than adult criminals  Can not be expected to be as responsible as adults  Juvenile now have same legal rights as adults and privileges  Still regarded as a special type of offender  Provide more services than adult criminals  Some states have very strict and tough juvenile laws- can be tried as an adult for certain crimes like murder