victimology

• changes in the study of victimology

  Victims as consumers of CJS

  • in recent years victims have been seen as consumers of the CJS and the CJS is judged by its ability to meet the needs of the victims through the use of victim surveys, victim support services
  • since 2013 victims of anti-social behaviour and low-level crime could have their say on out-of-court punishment
  • growing recognition that the CJS need victims to come forward and have confidence in the CJS to be able to punish criminals
• changes in the study of victimology

  2002 National Crime Recording Standard

  • adopted by all police forces in England and Wales and gave priority to the victims recollection of the crime rather than the police interpretation of the evidence
• a victim is defined as those who have suffered harm including mental, physical harm including mental, physical or emotional suffering, economic loss and impairment of their basic rights through acts or omissions that violate the law of the state - The United Nations
• Inverse victimisation law means:

  • those that have the least power, most deprived and have the least material possessions are the most likely to be victims of crime, and are also the most likely to be the ones committing the crimes
• Traditional view of crime victims

  A) weak

  B) innocent

  C) blameless

  D) female

  E) eldery

  
• Statistical view of crime victims

  There are variances when looking at different types of crime

  A) male

  B) 19-28

  C) ethnic minority

  
• Patterns of victimisation

  CLASS

  • working class and underclass people are more likely to be victims of crime although middle class are more likely to fear being a victim of crime

  This is partly due to the areas in which lower working class live
• Patterns of victimisation

  AGE

  • infants are most likely to be victims of murder
  • teens are most likely to be victims of theft, violent crime and sexual crime
  • the elderly are the most likely to be victims of abuse
• Patterns of victimisation

  GENDER

  • men are more likely to be victims of violent crime and theft - 70% of homicide victims are male
  • women are more likely to be victims of sexual crimes, domestic violence and trafficking
• Patterns of victimisation

  Ethnicity

  • ethnic minorities are more at risk of being victims of crime - especially those of mixed ethnicity
  • the Home Office estimates 106,000 hate crimes per year = 300 per day
• impact of victimisation

  • HOYLE
  • WALKLATE
  • fear of crime
• impact of victimisation

  HOYLE

  • identifies 12 reactions to being a victim of crime
  • victims may feel some or all of these emotions - negative effects on their lives
  • sleeplessness, shock, anxiety, poor health
• impact of victimisation

  WALKLATE

  • walklate talks about double victimisation which can occur during the trial
  • defence team will be looking at ways of discrediting the victim or ways to blame the victims for their own victimisation
• impact of victimisation

  FEAR OF CRIME

  • many people who are victims of crime become much more fearful of being a victim again in the future
  • impacts their behaviour and their lifestyle
• explanations of victimisation

  • positivist victimology
  • critical victimology
• explanations of victimisation - Positivist victimology

  TIERNEY

  • victim proneness - identifies characteristics which make someone more likely to be a victim of crime
  • victim precipitation - how victims have been actively involved in the crime or brought the crime upon themselves

  HANS VON HENTIG

  • developed a typology of victims based on the degree to which victims contributed to causing the criminal act
  • 13 characteristics of victims: young, female, old, immigrants, depressed, tormentor, blocked, exempted or fighting
• explanations of victimisation - critical victimology

  MAWBY AND WALKLATE

  • Social Structures as a cause of victimisation

  Labelling

  • denial or attachment of labels

  TOMBS AND WHYTE

  • hierarchy of victimisation - safety crimes passed of as clumsy workers