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21 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is crime?
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*An action or a conduct that is defined and codified in law as crime.
*It is not a crime unless it is prohibited by criminal law. *Regardless how weird, strange, abnormal or deviant the behavior, it is not a crime or criminal behavior unless it is prohibited by law. *To define or codify an action or a conduct as "crime" is not an easy thing. It has to fulfill the following seven ingredients: act, legality, harm, causation, "guilty mind", concurrence, and punishment requirements. |
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Who is a criminal?
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A person is assigned the status of criminal when he is adjudged and convicted to be punishable by law.
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What is criminal law?
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*A code which lists all prohibited conducts and their punishments if violated.
*2 ways to define and codify conduct or action into criminal law: 1) Mala in Se- acts violate basic moral values such as murder, rape, etc., 2) Mala Prohibita- acts violate or clash w/current norms and public opinion or power control groups (ex. man-made crimes such as not paying taxes, traffic violations, no proof of auto insurance) |
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What is criminal behavior?
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Behavior in violation of the criminal law. Bad behavior is not necessarily criminal behavior and vice versa.
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Define criminology and criminal justice.
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*Criminology- study of:
1) cause of crime, 2) the nature and characteristics of criminals, 3) the cure and prevention of criminality or illegal activity. *Criminal justice- study of crime and of the angencies concerned w/crime's prevention and control. Criminal justice system includes: 1) law enforcement (police), 2) judicial process (courts), 3) corrections (jail, prison, probation, parole), 4) juvenile justice, 5) homeland and organizational security. |
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Seven ingredients of crime
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1) Act requirement- there must be a concious interaction b/t mind and body, a physical movement that results from the determination or effort of the individual
2) Legality requirement- only conduct which has been made criminial by law before an act is committed can be a crime 3) Harm req.- must involve harm to an individual or damage to property 4) Causation req.- a crime in not complete unless the individual's conduct necessarily caused the harm w/out interference by somebody else and that it it the proximate cause of the act *Anything you cannot predict or forsee, there is no criminal liability. 5) "Guilty mind" req.- no one can be guilty of a crime unless he or she acted w/knowledge of doing something wrong *A person is not required to know the penal code, but it is enough that the person knows that he had no right to do what he did and decided to do it anyways. 6) Concurrence req.- criminal act must be accompanied by an equally criminal mind 7) Punishment req.- any illegal act coupled w/an evil mind still does not constitute a crime unless the law subjects it to a punishment. |
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Three reasons why criminal theories are so important
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B/c they greatly influence:
1) legislation of law- making of laws, 2) policy of justice- trial process, 3) treatment of offenders |
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Causes of crime from 8 perspectives
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1) Biology
2) Pscychology 3) Sociology 4) Law 5) Economics 6) Politics 7) Religions 8) History |
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Cesare Beccaria's theory of criminology
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In his "Essay on crime and punishments" he believed:
1) all decisions, including decision to commit crime are the result of rational choice by free will, 2) fear of punishment can have deterrent effect or choice to commit crime 3) the more swift and certain punishment, the more effective it will be in controlling crime |
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Jeremy Bentham's theory of criminology
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He believed:
1) nature has placed man under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure, 2) punishment should use the threat of pain against criminal behavior to assure the pleasure of society as a whole |
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Basic assumptions of the Classical School of Criminology
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1) Human beings are fundamentally rational and most human behavior is the result of free will coupled w/rational choice on reward or cost.
2) Pain and pleasure are two central determinants of human behavior. 3) Root principles of right and wrong are inherent in the nature of things and cannot be denied. 4) Society exists to provide benefits to individuals. Those benefits individuals would not receive in isolation. People bond together for the protection offered by society; they forfeit some of the benefits which accure from living in isolation. 5) If people would like to enjoy or take advantage of those benefits from society they have to give up some of their personal benefits of privileges. |
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Five out of eight principles of Biological Theories
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1) The brain is the organ of the mind and the center of personality- no theory of behavior can ignore neurology and neurochemistry.
2) The basic determinants of human behavior, including criminal tendencies are, to a considerable degree, gentetically based. 3) Observed gender in rates and types of criminality may be at least partially the result of biological differences b/t the sexes. 4) The basic determinants of human behavior, including criminality, may be passed on from generation to generation. In other words, a penchant for crime may be inherited. 5) Much of human conduct is fundamentally rooted in instinctive behavioral responses characteristic of biological organisms everywhere. |
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Eight major categories of Criminal Theories (Why people commit crime)
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1) Classical School Theory- they exercise their free will to make a decision for their own pleasure and benefit ignoring other people
2) Individualistic Theory- b/c biological and psychological defects 3) Socially Based Theory- b/c making of laws or legislation of laws; laws make crime happen. 4) Sociocultural Theory- b/c the structure of society; social class conflict. 5) Social Process Theory- b/c socialization process causes problem; learned behavior from family, friends, colleagues, etc. 6) Social Reaction Theory- b/c political reasons, they are so defined or labeled as criminals by power control group. 7) Victimization Theory- b/c both the criminal and victim bear responsiblities and the blame for the crime. 8) Multifactor/Integrated Theory- aka Developmental Theory, explores reason why an individual elevated their criminal career, why people commit certain crimes. |
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Bio-physical Theory
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Cesare Lombroso proposed: the active criminal is a physical and biological throwback to early stages of human evolution who adjusts poorly to modern society and is thrust into criminal activities.
He catalogued the following attributes as denoting criminality: asymmentric face, excessive jaw, eye defects, large swollen eyes, receeding forehead, prominent cheek bones, long arms, and twisted nose |
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Psycho-biological Theory
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Believed that inherited traits resulted in the deficiences which characterize the "born criminal."
Henry Maldsy- a British psychotherapist believed that criminals were "morally insane," his theoretical statements implied that criminals are "born" not "made." Advocates of this school/theory studied the family tree of criminal offenders: Ada Jukes- "mother of criminals." Scholars located over 1000 of her descendants and among them were: thieves, murders, criminals, prostitues, etc. Jonathan Edwards- born in 1703, president of Princeton University, pastor, and theologian. 1400 descendants: attorneys, army/navy officers, professors, pastors, medical doctors, judges, etc. But in fact, many of the "best" families have produced criminals. |
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Six assumptions of psychological theories
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1. Personality is the major motivational element w/in individuals b/c it is the seat of the drives and the source of motives.
2. Crimes result from abnormal, dysfunctional, or inappropriate mental processes w/in the personality. 3. Criminal behavior, though condemned by society, may be the purpose for the individual trying to show certain felt needs. 4. Behavior can be judged “in appropriate” only when measured against external criteria claiming to establish normality. 5. Normality is defined by majority of group to set the standards of “appropriate”, “typical”, “legal”, etc. 6. Defective, abnormal, mental process may have a variety of causes, including: 1. a diseased mind 2. inappropriate learning 3. improper conditioning 4. the emulation of the inappropriate role models, ex. Son looking up to abusive father 5. adjustment to inner conflict, ex. Debating to skip class or chapel |
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Clinical-psychoanaltyic approach
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*Holds that most criminal acts are actually caused by unconscious personality disturbance or problems.
*Marked by abnormal mental conditions such as *psychoses – hallucinations, delusions, *neuroticism – imbalance of brain chemicals, brain tumor, bad life experience; these problems can be treated by surgery to remove tumor, intake of chemicals, counseling, etc., *depression – bipolar, *schizophrenia and so on. Crime can be eliminated by treating the symptoms of these abnormal psychological conditions. |
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Behavioral-developmental approach
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Suggests that behavior is learned. During growth in different stages (infants, children, young adults, and adults), improper socialization can lead to the adaptation of inappropriate deviant or antisocial behavior. Criminals can be treated by providing behavior therapy and behavior modification techniques to help them learn new ways of adapting to varying life situations.
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Sociobiology Theory
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Sociobiologists view all human behavior as a function of a person’s
A. Biological make up – including body chemistry and genetic makeup B. The environment in which the person lives C. Individual learning potential and experiences A combination of these three factors is believed to control individual behavior. David Abrahamsen developed an equation Criminal Act = T + S/R This means criminal act is the sum of a person’s criminalistic tendencies (T), plus his total situations (S), divided by the amount of his resistance (R). |
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Aldophe Quetelet's Theory
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Supported by statistics and discovered that many social phenomena (such as marriage, suicide, crime, etc.) were not purely individually controlled.
ex.: age limit to marry He believed: the development of social laws could explain the occurrence of crime. He concluded that the volume and kind of criminal behavior in a particular area or county are constant. |
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Emile Durkheim's "Anomie Theory"
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Viewed crime as a social phenomenon. In his Theory of Anomie- he concluded that crime is an intrinsic part of society and a function of its internal conflict.
Anomie- means the absence or weakness of rules and social norms in any person or group; may lead an individual to lose the ability to distinguish b/t right and wrong. ex. Enforcing laws on the speed limit; speed limits says 65, but people are allowed to go pass 65. |
