Defining Crime and What is It?

• Crime

  An act or omission that is prohibited by criminal law and are made up of two factors:

  1. Actus Reus: An act.
  2. Mens Rea: The mental intent.
• What are the four factors that occur when a crime is committed?

  The four factors that occur when a crime are:

  1. Commits an act or omission to act when under a legal responsibility to do so.
  2. Has the intent to commit the act.
  3. Does not have a legal defence or justification for committing the act.
  4. Violates a provision in criminal law.
• What the difference between deviance and crime?

  The difference between deviance and crime is:

  • Deviance are behaviours that are contrary to the norm and values of society but are not necessarily against the law.
  • Crime is defined as "an act or omission that is prohibited by criminal law."
• Social Construction of Crime

  The notion that legal status of behaviours is not determined by the behaviour itself but is the result of the social response to the behaviour.
• Moral Entrepreneurs

  Individuals, groups, or organisations who seek action against certain groups of people or certain behaviours and bring pressure on legislators to enact criminal statutes.
• What are the four things that criminologists do when conducting a historical analyses?

  The four things that criminologists do when conducting a historical analyses are:

  1. The factors involved in definition of behaviours as criminal.
  2. An increase or decrease in the severity of the criminal law.
  3. The response of the criminal justice system.
  4. The factors that influenced the repeal of criminal law resulting in the decriminalisation of certain behaviours.
• What are the two perspectives on criminal law? Define them.

  The perspectives on criminal law are:

  1. Value Consensus Model: The view that what behaviours are defined as criminal and the punishment imposed on offenders reflect commonly held opinions and limits of tolerance.
  2. Conflict Model: The view that crime and punishment reflect the power some groups have to influence the formulation of criminal law.