1. Ch. 8 Section 2: Crime Obj: Identify the principal types of crime in the US; Explain the characteristics of the American criminal-justice system.

2. Crime affects everyone in the US. Some people are victims. Some people are criminals. Some people are both. However, the majority of Americans are affected by crime as bystanders. Newspapers, radio, television, and movies bombard us every day with information about and images of crime. As a result of our own experiences and exposure through the mass media, most of us consider crime a serious social problem.

3. A crime is any act that is labeled as such by those in authority, is prohibited by law, and is punishable by the government. For example, a person who robs a bank – an act that is labeled criminal, is prohibited by law, and is punishable by the government – has committed a crime. On the other hand, a champion swimmer who stands by and watches a friend drown instead of attempting a rescue has not necessarily committed a crime. The swimmer may have violated a moral code but not necessarily a law.

4. Who commits crimes? Men are more likely than women to be arrested. In terms of race, more than two thirds of all people arrested are white. However, African Americans, who make up approximately 12 percent of the population, account for nearly 30 percent of the arrests. Even so, many factors lead an individual to commit a crime, and there is no causal link between race and crime. The percentages for age are particularly dramatic. Almost half of all arrests involve people under the age of 25. Moreover, people younger than 35 account for nearly three quarters of all arrests.

5. Crime Statistics These statistics are taken from the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR). Published annually by the FBI, the UCR is one of the major sources of information concerning crime in the US. The FBI uses data provided by local police departments to compile nationwide statistics. However, these statistics have certain limitations. Sociologist Donald Black identified the following characteristics that limit the filing of formal crime reports.

6. Not all of the complaints that citizens make to the police find their way into the official statistics. The responding officer decides whether or not to file a formal report. Officers are more likely to file reports in the case of serious offenses. Individuals are less likely to report a crime if family or friends are involved. The police are more likely to file formal reports on serious crimes when the injured parties are members of the higher social classes.

7. Whether an officer files a formal complaint is influenced by the attitude of the individual making the complaint. An officer is more likely to file a formal complaint when the person making the complaint shows courtesy and respect toward the officer. In addition, certain types of crime – such as sexual assault – are more likely to go unreported by the victims. Crime figures can also be affected by changes in the way that statistics are reported or by incorrect reporting.

8. Types of Crime The FBI organizes the crimes reported in the UCR into 29 offense classifications. In this discussion, crimes are grouped into five broad categories: violent crimes, crimes against property, victimless crimes, white- collar crime, and organized crime.

9. Violent crime – murder, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault; make up a very small percentage of all crimes committed. Nonetheless, violent crime statistics are quite alarming. According to UCR statistics, a violent crime occurs every 22 seconds in the US. An aggravated assault occurs every 35 seconds, a robbery every 1 minute and 18 seconds, a forcible rape every 5 minutes and 48 seconds, and a murder every 33 minutes and 54 seconds.

10. The majority of murders are committed with guns and other weapons. Guns are used in about 65 % of all murders, with handguns being the weapon used in about 51% of the cases. Another 13% of murders are committed with knives. The rate of handgun use in homicides is higher in the US than it is in any other industrialized country in the world.

11. Crime against property – crimes against property - burglary, larceny (theft other than auto), motor vehicle theft, and arson – are much more common than crimes of violence. All property crimes involve either stealing someone else’s property or intentionally damaging it. FBI estimates suggest that a property crime is committed every three seconds in the US.

12. Sociologists generally tie variations in the crime rate to changes in the population. People under the age of 25 commit a large percentage of crimes. As the size of this segment of the population changes, the crime rate varies in the same direction. Therefore, as the younger population decreases, the crime rate should decrease as well. However, in the 1980s and 1990s increases in the crime rate appeared to be partially the result of illegal drug use. Expensive drug habits are often financed through crime. In addition, many serious crimes are committed while people are under the influence of drugs.

13. Victimless crime – crimes such as prostitution, illegal gambling, illegal drug use, and vagrancy are classified as victimless crimes. Such offenses are termed victimless because they supposedly harm no one but the person committing the act. This classification may be somewhat misleading in some of these crimes, however. While people other than the offenders may not suffer directly, the consequences for society of crimes such as drug abuse can be significant.

14. White-Collar Crime – Edwin Sutherland coined the term white-collar crime to describe offenses committed by individuals of high social status in the course of their professional lives. Politicians, employees of corporations, and corporations themselves sometimes commit crimes of these types. Misrepresentation, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, price fixing, toxic pollution, insider trading, and political corruption are examples of white-collar crime.

15. Traditionally, the public and the press have played down white-collar crime even though it is a serious social problem. Yet in recent years crimes such as insider trading on Wall Street, political corruption, corporate crimes, and computer-related crimes have received much attention.

16. It may seem odd that a corporation can be charged with a white- collar crime when people within the corporations can be charged with offenses because, under the laws of incorporation, they are considered “legal persons.” once incorporated, a business becomes subject to the same laws as any individual in the US. Conservative estimates suggest that white-collar crimes cost the US more than $300 billion each year. Some people feel that the nonfinancial costs of such crimes are far greater. When political and corporate leaders engage in activities that fall outside the law, they abuse the trust and confidence of the American people. This abuse threatens the very structure of American society.

17. Organized Crime – for many criminals, crime is an individual enterprise. However, some criminals are part of organized crime syndicates. A crime syndicate is a large-scale organization of professional criminals that controls some vice or business through violence or the threat of violence. These organizations pursue crime as a big business. Such syndicates operate in many areas of business, many of them legal. They often use legitimate businesses as “fronts” for their criminal activities. This enables the syndicates to reinvest their money through legal channels. By suing such methods as drug trafficking, etc; organized crime syndicates make huge profits.

18. The Criminal-Justice System Once a crime has been committed and reported, it falls under the jurisdiction of the criminal- justice system. The most important components of the criminal-justice system are police, courts, and corrections. In most states, a special section of the criminal-justice system - the juvenile-justice system - deals with young offenders.

19. Police – the police hold the most immediate control over who is arrested for a criminal act. It might seem reasonable to assume that the police arrest everyone who is accused of committing a crime. In reality the police have considerable power to decide who is actually arrested. This power is referred to as police discretion. The size of the US population, the number of criminal offenses, and the number of full-time police officers make it necessary for the police to employ discretion in their decisions involving arrest.

20. Research has indicated that several factors are considered by a police officer when deciding whether to make an arrest. First, the seriousness of the offense is considered. Less-serious offenses are more likely to be ignored. Second, the wishes of the victim are taken into consideration. If the offense is serious or if the suspect is a male, victims generally press for an arrest. Third, the attitude of the suspect is considered. An uncooperative suspect is more likely to be arrested than one who is polite or apologetic.

21. Fourth, if bystanders are present, the police are more likely to make an arrest. In doing so, the police reinforce the point that they are in control of the situation. Finally, police are more likely to arrest –and use force against – African Americans than white Americans. Many people charge that the high rate of arrests among African Americans is a result of police use of racial profiling. This is the practice of assuming that nonwhite Americans are more likely to commit crime than white Americans.

22. Courts – once a person is arrested, the responsibility shifts to the courts. The courts’ role is a twofold process. First, a court determines the guilt or innocence of an accused person by means of a trial. Second, if there is a guilty finding, the court assigns some form of punishment. In reality, however, more than 90% of all criminal cases are settled through plea bargaining before going to trial. Plea bargaining is the process of legal negotiation that allows an accused person to plead guilty to a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence. This process allows courts to reduce their huge volume of caseloads while avoiding many expensive and time-consuming jury trials.

23. Corrections – people who are found guilty of crimes are punished. The sanctions – such as imprisonment, parole, and probation – used to punish criminals are called corrections. These sanctions serve four basic functions. Retribution. The punishing of a criminal serves as an act of revenge for the victim and society. Deterrence. Corrections are intended to discourage offenders from committing future crimes and to make the rest of society think twice before breaking laws.

24. Rehabilitation – during the 1800s, prisons emerged as places in which to reform criminals so that they could return to society as law-abiding citizens. Social protection. By liming the freedom of offenders, society prevents them from committing additional crimes. In the case of the death penalty, the threat of an offender committing future criminal acts is eliminated.

25. The effectiveness of corrections is a topic of heated debate. One indication that corrections are not always effective is the rate of recidivism among convicted criminals. Recidivism is the term for repeated criminal behavior. According to a US Department of Justice study, 62% of released prisoners will be charged with new crimes and 41% will return to prison within three years of release. Courts can assign punishment ranging from fines to probation to imprisonment. The majority of convicted criminals are punished through fines and probation. However, in the case of serious crimes – particularly murder, rape, and robbery – prison sentences are common.

26. Juvenile-Justice System – the third largest category of criminals in the US consists of juvenile offenders – offenders younger than 18. Until the 1960s, juveniles charged with crimes had few rights and were not protected by the same legal safeguards provided for adult offenders. Laws that pertain to adult offenders refer to well-defined offenses, carry specific punishments, and apply more of less equally to all offenders. However, the laws for juvenile offenses were much less specific.

27. For example, they contained vague provisions about “incorrigible, ungovernable” children who associate with “immoral or vicious person.” A juvenile offender could, and sometimes did, remain in custody for a longer period of time than an adult convicted of the same offense. The reasoning behind separate regulations was that juvenile offenders, because of their age, could not be expected to be as responsible as adults. Thus, it was thought that they needed a special, more considerate kind of treatment.

28. Sometimes the result was that juveniles were denied equal protection under the law, however. Consequently, they were not usually granted any special care or attention. To guard against such abuses, the courts now must guarantee juvenile defendants the same legal rights and privileges as adult defendants. At the same time, juvenile delinquents are still regarded as a special kind of offender. Juvenile courts try, in principle at least, to provide many more services for offenders than do adult criminal courts. Yet in some areas of the country, particularly in large cities, tougher juvenile laws are being established. For example, in some places juveniles – even very young suspects – can be tried as adults for certain serious offenses.