Crime

• Crime


  Violation of criminal laws
• Types of crime


  • Crimes against the person (murder, aggravated assault, rape, robbery)
  • Crimes against property (burglary, larceny-theft, auto-theft, arson)
  • Victimless crimes (illegal drug use, prostitution, gambling)
• Those of lower social class are more likely to be arrested
• Despite making up 13.3% of the population, African Americans made up 26.6% of arrests
• Overcriminalization


  African Americans and people of color are more easily assumed to be criminal and treated as such by both the police and the public
• African Americans and Hispanics are disproportionately likely to be stopped by police, even when controlling for race-specific arrest rates
• Despite similar drug use rates, black people are 3.7 times more likely to be arrested for drugs than white people
• Larger African American populations are associated with increased perception of crime, even when controlling for the actual crime rate
• Criminal justice system


  Composed of the police, the courts, and the system of punishment and corrections
• Non-white suspects are viewed as more threatening and uncooperative by police, even given the same behavior
• Courts


  • Accuracy of adjudicating guilt and innocence depends on the defendant's economic resources
• Bail


  • Keeps defendants without money behind bars until their court date
• Public defenders

  • Often underpaid and overworked, leading to harsher sentences for the poor
• Plea bargaining


  • Poor defendants are strongly incentivized to take a plea bargain regardless of guilt or innocence
• Mass incarceration


  The growth of the incarcerated population over the past several decades, and the social, political, and economic conditions that caused it
• The US has the highest incarceration rate in the world, with 693 people out of every 100,000 behind bars
• The incarcerated population has increased by 500% over the past 40 years, with only a limited relationship to actual crime rates
• Despite making up only 37% of the US population, non-whites make up 67% of the prison population
• In 2015, the incarceration rate for white men was 457 per 100,000, for Hispanic men it was 1,043 per 100,000, and for black men it was 2,613 per 100,000
• Approaches to punishment


  • Retribution, deterrence, societal protection, rehabilitation
• Nature


  Biological predisposition to commit crimes
• Nurture


  Social circumstances that influence criminal behavior
• Men are more likely to commit violent crimes
• Masculinity is strongly associated with being more aggressive or brutal
• Genes and environment are interdependent factors in criminal behavior
• People who lack impulse control and empathy are more prone to commit crime
• Criminal anthropology

  Theory that claimed you could explain someone's personality and if they are a criminal by looking at their appearance and facial features
• Cesare Lombroso's theory of criminal anthropology has been debunked but is still influential in debates about nature vs. nurture
• Strain Theory


  Suggests that individuals are more likely to engage in criminal behavior when they experience strain or stressors in their environment
• Strain Theory

  • Strain can surface from a disconnect between societal goals (such as financial success or social status) and the means available to achieve those goals
  • When individuals are unable to achieve success through genuine means, they may turn to criminal activities as a way to cope with or escape from their circumstances
• The strain theory highlights the role of social structures shaping individuals' behavior and the importance of addressing societal inequalities and providing alternative opportunities to prevent crime
• Gender norms


  • Boys are often pushed to be tough and competitive, to become "real men"
  • Girls are encouraged to be caring and gentle, to become good mothers
• Gender norms


  Affect how individuals perceive and respond to authority, conflict, and opportunities for criminal behavior
• Societal expectations regarding gender


  Influence how crimes are perceived, investigated, and punished
• In the United States, men are twice as likely to be sentenced to jail after conviction than women and receive on average 63% longer jail sentences
• Consequences of crime


  The various effects on victims, depending on the severity of the crime and individual circumstances
• Physical consequences


  • Injuries directly from the assault- short term or long term
• Emotional and mental consequences

  • Stress
  • Sleeplessness
  • Paranoia
  • Restlessness
  • Withdrawal from social environment
  • Depression
  • PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
• Financial consequences


  • Loss of money
  • Need to pay for replacement (e.g. stolen vehicle)
  • Unable to continue with job
  • Dependent on family, savings or the state
• Just punishment


  Punishment should be fair considering:

  facts of each individual case, severity of the crime, the defendants past and circumstances (family, upbringing, education, social and financial condition)