CriminologyLesson 2Crime and Its Consequences
Stankiewicz
Essential Questions - 1
What are the elements of crime? What are legal defenses/legal
excuses for criminal responsibility? Explains some types and definitions
of selected crimes? Explain how crime is measured and
why crime statistics are unreliable.
Essential Questions - 2
Identify the costs of crime
Fear of Crime
Characteristics of victims of crime
Definition of Crime
Crime From the Latin meaning “accusation” or “fault”
Legal Definition An intentional violation of the criminal
law or penal code, committed without defense or excuse and penalized by the state
Problems with the Definition of Crime
Over-criminalization Non-enforcement Under-criminalization
Over-criminalization - 1
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
“Victimless” crimes
Over-criminalization - 2
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Kissing may last for no longer than five minutes in Indiana
In Michigan a woman isn’t allowed to cut her own hair without her husband’s permission
Non-Enforcement
The failure to routinely enforce prohibitions against certain behavior Authorities – “__________________________” Common for some “white collar” crimes and
“blue laws” Causes disrespect for law
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Under-Criminalization
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Elements of Crime
Technically a crime has not been committed unless all of the following elements are present:
___________________ Legality ___________________ Mens Rea ___________________ Concurrence Punishment
Elements of Crime - Harm
The external consequence – an action
______________________________________
Physical Harm
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Verbal Harm
A threat to do something violent to someone ____________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Verbal Harm
Writing something false about another person that injures him/her is called “_____________”
Spoken equivalent is called “__________________”
Harm
A mental or emotional state is not sufficient ____________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ to commit a crime is not sufficient
Elements of Crime - Legality
Legality has two elements
_________________________________________________________
Law must not be retroactive or “______________________________________”
Legality - Ex Post Facto
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Increases the punishment for an act after it was committed
Changes the rules of evidence
___________________________________ prohibits ex post facto laws
Elements of Crime – Actus Reus
Criminal conduct – _______________________________________________________________________________________________
Elements of Crime – Mens Rea
Latin for “Criminal Intent”
___________________________________ Intentional or inaction
Not _________________________________
Mens Rea - Negligence
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Elements of Crime - Causation
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________– or Actus reus
Criminal act must directly lead to harm without a long delay
Elements of Crime - Concurrence
For any behavior to considered a crime there must be a __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Elements of Crime - Punishment
For something to be a crime there must be some statutory provision for punishment or at least the threat of punishment
Without this fact the law is ___________________________________ and therefore not a criminal law
Legal defenses/Legal excuses for Criminal Responsibility
In US, offender is not considered responsible (or less responsible) for an offense if he/she has: _____________________________ _____________________________ Was insane Acted in self defense or to save another _________________________________ Acted out of necessity
Acting Under Duress
_____________________________________
Under Age
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 18 and older an adult Special circumstances
In Us under ____________ it is assumed person does not have capacity to form criminal intent
Juvenile Delinquency
Category of offense for young offenders between the ages __________________
Insanity
Mental or psychological __________________ that or _____________ as a defense against a criminal charge
Sanity or insanity determined by ____________________________________________________________________________
Insanity - 2
Insane: if at time of offense the perpetrator: Did not know the nature and quality of the act Did not know that the act was wrong
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Not nearly as common as portrayed in the movies/tv or in myth
Self Defense
____________________________________________________________________________
Use only _________________________ necessary to defend
In case of property Deadly force not authorized; non-
deadly sometimes authorized _____________________________________
Entrapment
A legal defense against criminal responsibility when a person, who was not readily predisposed to it
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Common defense used Usually ___________________________
Necessary Defense
A legal defense against criminal responsibility used when __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Types and Definitions of Selected Crimes
Violent Crimes Crimes that involve
_______________________
Violent Crimes
Murder The crime of
______________________person especially with _______________aforethought
Violent Crimes
Manslaughter _________________________________________
__________________________________________, either express or implied; distinguished from murder, which requires __________________________________________
Violent Crimes
Aggravated Assault The crime of physically attacking
another person which results in ______________________ and/or is made with a deadly or _________________ weapon such as a gun, knife, sword, ax or blunt instrument
Violent Crimes
Robbery The taking of money or goods in the
possession of another, from his or her person or immediate presence, _________________________________
Violent Crimes
Kidnapping ______________________________________
with intent to hold him for ransom or reward; or use him as a ____________________ ; or accomplish or aid the commission of any felony or flight therefrom; or inflict physical injury upon him, or to violate or abuse him sexually; or terrorize him or a third person
Property Crimes
Larceny _________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________ with the intent to deprive him or her of its possession permanently
Property Crimes
Burglary The
__________________ breaking and entering of the dwelling of another at night with an intent to commit a felony therein.
Property Crimes
Embezzlement The act of ____________________________
for the purpose of ______________ of such assets by one or more individuals to whom such assets have been entrusted, to be held and/or used for other purposes
Property Crimes
Arson The crime of maliciously, voluntarily, and
willfully ____________________________ , buildings, or other property of another or of burning one's own property for an improper purpose, as to collect __________
Property Crimes
Extortion (also called shakedown, outwrestling, and exaction) A criminal offence
___________________________________________________________________________________, through coercion
Property Crimes
Blackmail Extortion of money
or something else of value from a person by the ____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Property Crimes
Fraud In criminal law,
__________________________ made for personal gain or to damage another individual
Property Crimes
Counterfeiting The process of fraudulently
____________________________________ , altering, or distributing a product that is of lesser value than the _______________________ .
Offenses Against The Government
Treason A
____________________________________________________________________, make war against, or seriously injure the [parent nation]." In many nations, it is also often considered
treason to attempt or conspire to overthrow the government, even if no foreign country is aiding or involved by such an endeavor.
Offenses Against The Government
Sedition Is overt conduct, such as speech and
organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Organized Crimes
Widespread group of professional criminals who rely on illegal activities as a way of life and whose activities ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hate Crimes
Hate Crimes occur when a perpetrator ____________________________________________________________________________
Examples of such groups include but are not limited to: racial group, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity or gender identity
White Collar Crimes
Financially motivated nonviolent crime committed for illegal monetary gain
“Victimless” Crimes
Actions that have been ruled illegal but do __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Often involves consensual acts in which two or more persons agree to commit a criminal offence in which no other person is involved
Examples include prostitution, gambling, and ____________________ .
Measurement of Crime
It is difficult to accurately measure the amount of crime statistics “Behavior” is viewed as some as
criminal and others as noncriminal If behavior is not labeled as a crime it is
not counted Large percentage of crimes are
_______________ Large percentage of crimes go
_______________ Some crimes are not documented by
police
Measure of Crime
Really only an index of crime known to the police
A crime index Estimate of crimes committed
Reasons For Not Reporting Crimes
Victims consider crime _________________
Victims avoid ___________________ an offender Offender may be a family member
Victim may ___________________________ Gambling; prostitution
Reasons For Not Reporting Crimes
Victim may wish to avoid the inconvenience of calling the police
Victim may be __________________________
Victim may ____________________________
Victim may feel police are inept and can’t catch the ____________________________
Crime Rates
A measure of the _____________________ expressed as the number of crimes per unit of population
Homicide Rate – Selected Countries
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)
Official data on crime in the United States, published by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
UCR is a "a nationwide, cooperative statistical effort of nearly 18,000 city, university and college, county, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies voluntarily reporting data on crimes brought to their attention
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) - 2 Crime statistics are compiled from UCR data
and published annually by the FBI
The FBI does not collect the data itself Law enforcement agencies across the United
States provide the data to the FBI, which then compiles UCR
UCR program began in 1930, and since then has become an important source of crime information for law enforcement, policymakers, scholars, and the media
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)-3
The UCR Program consists of four parts: Traditional Summary Reporting System
(SRS) and the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) – Offense and arrest data
Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) Program
Hate Crime Statistics Program – hate crimes
Cargo Theft Reporting Program – cargo theft
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) -4 Eight Index Crimes
________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
1. Murder and manslaughter
2. Forcible Rape
3. Robbery4. Aggravated
assault5. Burglary6. Larceny/theft7. Motor vehicle
theft8. Arson
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)
An incident-based reporting system used by law enforcement agencies in the United States for collecting and reporting data on crimes
Local, state and federal agencies generate NIBRS data from their records management systems
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) - 2
Data is collected on every incident and arrest in the Group A offense category These Group A offenses are 46 specific
crimes grouped in 22 offense categories Specific facts about these offenses are
gathered and reported in the NIBRS system
In addition to the Group A offenses, eleven Group B offenses are reported with only the arrest information
National Crime Victimization Surveys (NCVS)
Administered by the _____________________________________
A national survey of US households twice a year in the United States
The survey focuses on gathering information on the following crimes: assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, rape, and robbery
The survey results are used for the purposes of building a crime index
Costs of Crime
According to National Crime Victimization Surveys (NCVS) in 2005 cost to victims was _____________________________________
Does not count the cost of the criminal justice system
Other economists/criminologists (private) have estimated the costs at _____________ US dollars (University of Chicago's Journal of Law and Economics)
Fear of Crime
A byproduct of crime is the fear of crime
Fear almost same if one experiences crime or knows someone who experienced crime
Who Fears Crime?
Gender: ____________ fear crime more than males by over 2 to 1
Race: ___________________fear crime more than whites (41%-30%)
Age: _________________fear crime more than any other age group
Region: _________________ fear crime more than any other region
Who Fears Crime - 2
Education: High School graduates slightly more fearful of crime than people with some college
Politics: ____________________________________________________________________________
Income: Fear declines with _______________
Summary
The elements of crime Legal defenses/legal excuses for
criminal conduct Some types and definitions of
selected crimes How crime is measured Crime statistics are unreliable
Summary Continued
The costs of crime
The Effects of the Fear of Crime
Characteristics of Likelihood of victims of crime
Selected References
Bohn, Robert M. and Haley, Keith N. Introduction to Criminal Justice, (Columbus Ohio: The McGraw-Hill Companies) 2011, Chapter 2