Criminology Essays

Criminology Essays:

EXPANDING THE THEORETICAL PARAMETERS OF WHITE COLLAR CRIME

In creating a definitive theory about white collar crime, Sutherland suggested that it is a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation.The type of crime committed by the affluent occur “during the course of normal business activities” and can include conspiracy for further gain; secrecy; opportunity structures, high-tech crimes; and tends to border on one step in the conventional whilst the other is firmly planted in deviant activity.Sutherland based his theory on a sociological approach, which tends to “cluster around the notion that power corrupts, and that the rich and powerful develop strong deviant motivations as well as enjoy more deviant opportunities that come their way.”

Prisoner resettlement efficacy has been identified as a priority crimi...

The desired reduction in the overall crime rate underlined by Simon (1996), is further challenged when Maruna (2004:6) refers to the likelihood that the UK will inherit California’s “waste management service,” a pejorative term to describe the USA practice of recycling offenders, rather than resettling them (Maruna 2004:6). The case study of Les, a 56 year old indecent assault offender is used by Maruna (2004) as an exemplar of the contemporary US system of penology in action, where, in the view of “the MAPP’s (Multi-agency Public Protection Arrangements) assessment, planning, close monitoring, information sharing and early intervention meant they were able to take swift, decisive action to minimise any risk this offender posed to the public” (Maruna 2004: 6 citing MAPP 2002:20-21). In reality, Les was regularly resettled within the prison system, and never reintegrated into modern society. Maruna then cites the Annual Report of the Parole Board for England and Wales, 2002-2003, to indicate that prisoner recall is also on the rise within the UK (Maruna 2004:6).

303052 Compare and contrast illicit/illegal drug policies and treatmen...

Sweden and France are both harsh in their drug policies and attitudes towards drug use, in comparison to other countries in Europe. This may be traced to historical and cultural effects. However, France has become less restrictive and has made moves towards implementing harm reduction measures, whereas Sweden has remained abstentionist with a far larger budget being spent on enforcement of drug offences than on treatment or prevention programs. This change in attitude in France has been directly related to the increase in HIV infection and the need to combat this.

THE PURPOSE OF IMPRISONMENT HAS ALWAYS BEEN A CONTESTED ISSUE AND REMA...

The purpose of Imprisonment is one which historically has been and contested issue and this remains the case today. This essay aims to examine the historically background behind the purpose of Imprisonment starting from as early as the position of prisons in Medieval England, through to the development of the Penitentiary. When first established prison were considered to be simply a method of detaining offenders, it wasn’t until Houses of Correction were introduced towards the end of the sixteenth century, the rehabilitation potential of the prison system was realised. It’s evident that the purpose of prisons can vary depending on socio-political factors and the question of why prison is still present is one which has yet to be answered. It can be argued that because of the total character of the prison, there is a question of legitimacy. This essay will also analyse the works of Foucault who believes the primary function of prisons is to serve the interests of the ruling class, and also Feeley and Simon who believe that there is a new Penology which is concerned with controlling the prison population rather than reforming.

How is Crime Best Defined And Why?

The simplest definition of crime is that it is an act which breaks the law. Official UK crime statistics for 2007/08 show theft, criminal damage and violence against the person as the most common official crimes, Home Office (2008). Society'sfascination with crime goes far wider than the jurisdiction of criminal law. Concerns are raised about a variety of forms of deviant behaviour. Deviance refers to "a wider category of acts which include breaking the rules of any organisation or the norms that prevail in particular subcultures." Roberts, K (2009) p.50. The media, political, social and religious institutions constantly debate moral codes and the role of sin and evil in society. Most recently notions of social harm are being explored in increasingly wide terms. We will examine who decides which of these many issues makes it onto the criminal lawmaking agenda. Are official statistics a true reflection of moral and political accountability within society? That is, is there a consensus of opinion in society about crime and does criminal law reflect the nature of this consensus?

In what ways does the notion of active citizenship underpin contempora...

In a democratic nation state, rights and liberties are enshrined in the form of laws. As such, each citizen of a state is at least in part aware of the legislative and legal provisions that provide protection and security to all. However, legislative endeavour is seldom dedicated to the concept of responsibility. As such, there exists far more ambiguity on the responsibilities of a citizen as opposed to their rights (Winstone and Pakes, 2005). The above distinction highlights the essential component and dialectic of active citizenship. If on the one hand a legislative body grants citizens certain unequivocal rights, then the concept of active citizenship determines that such citizens also have certain responsibilities to uphold in return. Therefore, the ideal citizen in this sense would be one that simultaneously exercises their rights and responsibilities in a reasonable and balanced manner (Winstone and Pakes, 2005).

What works in the fight against crime and disorder? Discuss in the con...

“Every day newspaper headlines scream for our attention with stories about crime designed to shock, frighten, titillate and entertain. Politicians of every political party campaign on law and order issues, reducing complex crime problems to easily digestible ‘sound bites’ for the forthcoming news bulletins on radio and television”
As Yvonne Jewkes (2004:3) notes in her critique of the media’s role in the construction of crime, law and order are today seen as the most important topics facing not only policy makers but also society in general as what was once swept under the carpet as a cultural anomaly or an issue relating to class is now generally accepted as being an everyday part of our lives. As a result, the subject of what works in the fight against crime and disorder is arguably the most important topic society could attempt to tackle and in doing so herein, we intend to concentrate in particular upon the issue of policing styles and principles, charting the myriad of alternative methods to the erstwhile ‘discipline and punish’ techniques which characterised the birth of the concept of the prison (Foucault, 1977). First, though, we need to begin by outlining some of the critical changes that have occurred to the idea of policing in the modern era in order to establish a conceptual framework for the remainder of the discussion.

What works in the fight against crime and disorder? Discuss in the con...

What is criminology and what is it for? Discuss.

In order to define criminology and to assess what it is for, a history of theoretical approaches in criminology will be discussed. Firstly, a simplified definition will be disseminated to highlight that criminology not only aims to study criminal behaviour, but also aims to conceptually define what crime and criminal behaviour actually are. By tracing the history of theoretical thought in criminology, it will be demonstrated that criminology provides an understanding of crime behaviour in terms of the current sociological and political context. This understanding can then be used to inform policy and criminal law, so that issues of justice are approached with contemporary understanding.

Critically assess the recent media coverage of gun and knife crime in ...

“Every day newspaper headlines scream for our attention with stories about crime designed to shock, frighten, titillate and entertain. Politicians of every political party campaign on law and order issues, reducing complex crime problems to easily digestible ‘sound bites’ for the forthcoming news bulletins on radio and television.”
As Yvonne Jewkes duly observes, the intrinsic relationship between the media and crime is one that is deep-rooted, providing the entire population with a variety of news stories that are able to carry the increasingly twenty four hour global news services. Crime is an issue that concerns everyone; hence, the popularity of crime stories that are broadcast by the global mass media. Much the same can be said of the intrinsic relationship between politics and crime whereby key political figures operating in all of the UK’s major political parties use crime and crime prevention strategies as a means of ‘connecting’ with voters and, as a result, gaining long term political office. For all of these reasons, the issue of the media’s reportage of crime in contemporary Britain is a highly important exercise and one that constitutes the backbone of the following discussion.