Chapter 2 - The Crime Picture

Question 1

Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program

Answer 1

a statistical reporting program run by the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) division.
The UCR Program publishes “Crime in the United States”, which provides an annual summation of the incidence and rate of reported crimes throughout the United States.

Question 2

National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)

Answer 2

An annual survey of selected American households conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics to determine the extent of criminal victimization - especially unreported victimization in the United States.

Question 3

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Answer 3

A U.S. Department of Justice agency responsible for the collection of criminal justice data, including the annual National Crime Victimization Survey.

Question 4

self-reports

Answer 4

crime measures based on surveys that ask respondents to reveal any illegal activity in which they have been involved. Self-reports may provide knowledge about previously unreported crimes.

Question 5

unreported crime

Answer 5

crime that is not reported to justice agencies, and which is generally not known to the police (unless it is otherwise discovered).

Question 6

National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)

Answer 6

an incident-based reporting system that collects detailed data on every single crime occurrence.

Question 7

summary reporting system

Answer 7

The name given to the FBI’s traditional UCR system in order to distinguish it from the more advanced and contemporary NIBRS.

Question 8

violent crime

Answer 8

a UCR/NIBRS summary offense category that traditionally includes murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault.

Question 9

property crime

Answer 9

A UCR/NIBRS summary offense category that traditionally includes burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson.

Question 10

disproportionality

Answer 10

an unbalanced ratio between the percentage of persons in one or more racial or ethnic groups at a particular point in time.

Question 11

discrimination

Answer 11

the unequal treatment of members of various groups.

Question 12

disparity

Answer 12

a state of being unequal.
used to describe unequal outcomes experienced by one racial or ethnic group when compared to another.

Question 13

systematic discrimination

Answer 13

a term that implies that racism is not just an isolated practice, but that it is an integral part of the justice system -
(or of the financial, economic, educational, or other social system).

Question 14

systemic bias

Answer 14

predilections for unjust outcomes based on race (or some other unmodifiable personal characteristic) that are an inherent part of the justice system (whether by conscious intent, or not).

Question 15

clearance rate

Answer 15

a measure of investigating effectiveness that compares the number of crimes reported or discovered to the number of crimes solved through arrest or other means (such as the death of the suspect).

Question 16

murder

Answer 16

the unlawful killing of a human being.

Question 17

Part 1 offenses

Answer 17

A traditional UCR/NIBRS offense group used to report:
murder
rape
robbery
aggravated assault
burglary
larceny-theft
motor vehicle theft
arson

Question 18

rape

Answer 18

unlawful sexual intercourse achieved through force and without consent.

Question 19

sexual battery

Answer 19

intentional and wrongful physical contact with a person, without his or her consent, that entails a sexual component or purpose.

Question 20

date rape

Answer 20

unlawful forced sexual intercourse with a person, without his or her consent, that occurs within the context of a dating relationship.

Question 21

robbery

Answer 21

the unlawful taking or attempted taking of property that is in the immediate possession of another by force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.

Question 22

assault

Answer 22

an unlawful attack by one person upon another.

Question 23

aggravated assault

Answer 23

the unlawful, intentional inflicting, or attempted or threatened inflicting, of serious injury upon the person of another.

Question 24

burglary

Answer 24

the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft
(excludes tents, trailers, and other mobile units used for recreational purposes).

Question 25

larceny-theft

Answer 25

the unlawful taking or attempted taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property, from the possession or constructive possession of another.

Question 26

identity fraud

Answer 26

a crime in which an imposter obtains key pieces of information,
to obtain credit, merchandise, and services in the name of the victim.

Question 27

motor vehicle theft

Answer 27

the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle.

Question 28

arson

Answer 28

any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, and so on.

Question 29

Part II offenses

Answer 29

A traditional UCR/NIBRS offense group used to report arrest for less serious offenses.

Question 30

dark figure of crime

Answer 30

crime that is not reported to the police and that remains unknown to officials.

Question 31

crime typology

Answer 31

a classification of crimes along a particular dimension, such as legal categories, offender motivation, victim behavior, or the characteristics of individual offenders.

Question 32

stalking

Answer 32

repeated harassing and threatening behavior by one individual against another, aspects of which may be planned or carried out in secret.

Question 33

cyberstalking

Answer 33

the use of the internet, e-mail, and other electronic communication technologies to stalk another person.

Question 34

hate crime

Answer 34

a criminal offense motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against a race, gender, gender identity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, and committed against persons, property, or society.

Question 35

corporate crime

Answer 35

a violation of a criminal statute by a corporate entity or by its executives, employees, or agents acting on behalf of and for the benefit of the corporation, partnership, or other form of business entity.

Question 36

white-collar crime

Answer 36

financially motivated nonviolent crime committed by business and government professionals.