Historic approach:

• Biological:

  Offenders were seen by Lombrosso as lacking evolutionary development, their savage untamed nature meant that they would find it impossible to fit into a civilised society and that it was inevitable that they turned to crime

  Lombrosso saw offending behaviour as a natural tendency rooted in the genes of those who agree with it

  proposed a new perspective that offending behaviour was innate and those that do offend should not be blamed for their actions
• Atavistic form:

  Argued that the offender subtype could be identified as being in possession of particular 'markers' that were linked to particular type of offence.

  • Biologically determined atavistic characteristics which makes offenders physically different to the rest of us
  • In terms of cranial characterises it includes: high cheekbones, slopped brows
  • there physical features included dark skin
  • Besides phsycial chactersics there are other aspects of a born offender such as use of slang, tattoos, insensitive to pain, unemployment
• Offender types:

  catogaried characteristics for particular offending:

  1. Murderers: - blood shot eyes, curly hair
  2. Sexual deviants: - fleshy lips and projected ears
• Research:

  examined facial and cranial features of hundreds of Italian convicts living and alive

  • concluded atavistic form
  • concluded these features were key indicators to criminality
  • 40% if criminal acts were done by people with atavistic form