Cesare Lombroso wrote a book in 1876 called L'uomo delinquente
He suggested that criminals were 'genetic throwbacks' - a primitive subspecies who were biologically different from non-criminals
Today, his atavistic form would be considered speculative and naive
Atavism
A tendency to revert to something ancient or ancestral
Criminals are criminals because of their biology - atavistic forms are a bioproduct of geneology
A biological approach
Offenders lack evolutionary development
Impossible to adjust to society so they turn to crime
Lombroso saw offending behaviour as rooted in genes
Offenders aren't to blame for their actions
Atavistic form
Lombroso argued the offender subtype could be identified as being in possession of particular physiological'markers' that were linked to the type of offence
Biologically determined characteristics that make offenders physically different to the rest of us
Atavistic characteristics
Cranial - narrow, sloping brow, a strongprominent jaw, high cheekbones and facial asymmetry
Other physical markers included dark skin and extra digits (fingers, toes or nipples)
Other aspects include insensitivity to pain, use of slang, tattoos and unemployment
Offender types
Murderers were described as having bloodshot eyes, curly hair and long ears
Sexual deviants had glinting eyes, swollen fleshy lips and projecting ears
The lips of fraudsters were thin and 'reedy'
Lombroso's research
Lombroso examined the skulls of 383 dead convicts and 3839 living convicts
Concluded that 40% of criminal acts are committed by people with atavistic characteristics
