Chapter 1 - An Overview of Crime and Criminology Flashcards
What is corpus delicti?
refers to the 5 elements of an act that must be present to legally define it as a crime and convict someone of it
What are Ellis, Harley, and Walsh’s four criteria for judging the merits of theory?
predictive accuracy, predictive scope, simplicity, falsifiability
What is a constrained vision?
an innate human nature that is self-centered and largely unalterable
What is an unconstraint vision?
denies an innate human nature, viewing it as formed anew in each culture
What are the two perspectives of law making?
Consensus Perspective and Conflict Perspective
What is the consensus perspective?
-Laws made to reflect values and social norms of society as a whole
-Assumes everyone is in agreement
What is the conflict perspective?
-Laws made by a class of people in power
-Assumes that there’s a social conflict regarding norms and values
What is crime?
Behavior that violates the law
What are the two categories of crime?
Mala in se and Mala prohibita
What are mala in se crimes?
-Crimes considered morally wrong
(murder, rape, child/domestic abuse, robbery, assault and battery, theft)
What are mala prohibita crimes?
Crimes that are lawfully wrong
(public intoxication/indecency, jaywalking, speeding, drug crimes, prostitution, pirating copy right material)
What is deviance?
-Behaviors that violate social norms (aren’t illegal)
(facing backwards in an elevator, wearing hats inside, wearing bright colors at a funeral, talking/singly loudly in public)
What are the three aspects of the criminal justice system?
Police, courts, and corrections
What are some questions asked in criminology?
Main question - Why do people commit crime?
-Are criminals likely to be victimized in their childhood?
-How do murder rates in the US compareto other countries over time?
-What policy interventions are most/least effective for committing human trafficking?
