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Section I The Evolution of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice

Section I The Evolution of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. Chapter 3 Crime in the United States: Offenses, Offenders, Victims. Sources of Crime Information. Official government statistics The FBI’s UCR and NIBRS Bureau of Justice Statistics’ NCVS Self-report surveys The media.

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Section I The Evolution of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice

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  1. Section IThe Evolution of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Chapter 3 Crime in the United States: Offenses, Offenders, Victims

  2. Sources of Crime Information • Official government statistics • The FBI’s UCR and NIBRS • Bureau of Justice Statistics’ NCVS • Self-report surveys • The media

  3. Classifications of Major Crimes • Violent crimes • Murder: first-degree, second-degree, manslaughter, negligent homicide, justifiable homicide • Assault and battery: aggravated or simple • Rape: aggravated, simple or statutory • Robbery • Crimes against property • Burglary • Larceny-theft (including identity theft) • Motor vehicle theft • Arson

  4. Other Serious Crimes White-collar crime Computer-related crime Organized crime Bias or hate crime Ritualistic crime

  5. Theories of Crime Classical theory Routine activity theory Positivist theory

  6. Classical Theory Developed by Italian criminologist Cesare Beccaria (1738–1794) People are rational and responsible for their acts. People are free agents with free will. People commit crimes because they want to.

  7. Routine Activity Theory • Developed by Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson • Volume and distribution of predatory crime correlates highly with three variables: • The availability of suitable targets • The absence of watchful guardians • The presence of motivated offenders

  8. Positivist Theory Developed by Cesare Lombroso (1835–1909) Biological causation for deviant behavior Criminals are “victims of society” and of their own biological, sociological, cultural and physical environments. Determinism regards crime as a consequence of many factors, including population density, economic status and the legal definition of crime.

  9. Major Theories of the Causes of Crime Choice theory Biosocial theories Psychological theories Social structure theories Social progress theories Conflict theories Integrated theories Victimization theories

  10. Factors Affecting Crime Population density and degree of urbanization Variations in youth concentration Stability of the population Modes of transportation Economic conditions Cultural, educational, recreational and religious characteristics Family conditions Climate Effective strength of law enforcement agencies Citizens’ attitudes toward crime

  11. Characteristics of Known Offenders Career criminals or recidivists Juvenile offenders Status offenders Serious and violent offenders

  12. Victims of Crime and Violence • Direct or primary victims • People initially harmed by injury, death or loss of property as a result of criminal actions • Indirect or secondary victims • All other community members threatened or fearful as a result of the commission of crime

  13. Victimization Risk Factors • Household factors • Larger household size • Decreased income level • Single or abusive parents • Low parental education • Individual factors • Gender • Age • Race

  14. Additional Factors in Victimization Victim-offender relationship How victims protect themselves Effects of victimization Fear of victimization Further victimization by the criminal justice system

  15. Assisting Victims:A Brief Historical Overview Crime Victims’ Reparations Act (1974) Victim and Witness Protection Act (1982) Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights (1983) Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) (1984) Victim and Witness Protection Act of 1994 Proposition of a constitutional amendment

  16. Crime Victims’ Rights Right to appear at sentencing Right to appear at plea bargaining Use of victim impact statements before sentencing Right to be informed of the status of their case Right to be informed of an offender’s release from prison Right to receive restitution

  17. Victim Statements • Victim impact statement (VIS) • Objective • Details medical, financial, emotional injuries • Victim statement of opinion (VSO) • Subjective • Victim’s opinion about defendant’s sentencing

  18. Victim Restitution May be part of a sentence May be a condition of probation Takes different forms

  19. Police Officers as Victims • Police are not immune from being victimized. • Officers can be • Assaulted • Robbed • Burglarized • Killed • The most common way police officers become victims is as secondary victims. • Dealing with the pain of victims • Distress of seeing “bad guys” get off easy

  20. Quiz Review (Break into Squads) What is a robbery Definition of homicide or Murder What are property crimes What is a delinquent What is Embezzelment What is a White Collar Crime

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