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Crim Final > Conventional or Street Crime > Flashcards

Conventional or Street Crime Flashcards

1
Q

Conventional/Street Crime

A
  • Homicide
    • Aggravated Assault
    • Rape
    • Robbery
    • Firearms offences
    • Drug possession
  • Property offences
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2
Q

Strangers and Fear of Crime

A

Women and Seniors are more fearful but less likely to be victimized, men 15-24, are less fearful but more likely to be victimized

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3
Q

Do we know the perpetrator?

A

43% of murders involve family members, friends or acquaintances; 13% involve strangers; 44% unknown relationship between offender and victim

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4
Q

Crime Decline

A
  • Canadian police services reported about 2 million Criminal Code offences in 2011, almost 110,000 fewer than in 2010
    • The decline in the crime rate was driven primarily by decreases in the number of property offences, primarily theft under $5,000 (30,100 fewer incidents)
      Other crimes such as mischief (24,100 fewer incidents), break ins (15,800 fewer), and theft of motor vehicle (10,100 fewer) have also contributed to the decline
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5
Q

Provinces with highest crime rate

A

As has been the case since 1998, Saskatchewan reported the highestCSIin 2011, followed by Manitoba, British Columbia and Alberta. Lowest was Ontario. Most jurisdictions have seen a decrease, Manitoba has highest homicide rate, Yukon had none.

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6
Q

Increase in Crime

A

Police reported over 3,800 incidents of sexual violations against children in 2011.
- The rate of sexual violations against children rose 3% between 2010 and 2011, making it one of the few categories of violent offences to increase in 2011.

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7
Q

Lifestyle/Exposure Theory (Hindelang et. al)

A

People’s routine activities and lifestyles put them at higher or lower risk of being victimized
ex: Those in organized crime gangs are at higher risk because of their networks

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8
Q

Deterrence Theories

A
  • Beccaria: punishments should be severe enough to deter people from breaking the law but should also be proportionate to the nature of the crime
  • How effective is the law as a deterrent?
  • Certainty of punishment is more important than severity of punishment
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9
Q

Does Imprisonment Deter Crime?

A
  • Imprisonment may increase an individuals likelihood of future criminal behaviour (Durlauf & Nagin)
  • Punishment may stigmatize people and they will be stuck in a criminal lifestyle (labelling theory), they may adjust to prison life, learn skills and values in prison or begin to resent society that increases criminality if/when released
  • Only slight reduction in offending when a youth turned 18
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10
Q

Do Mandatory Minimum Sentences Deter Crime?

A

NO.

  • California’s 3 Strikes Law: Mandatory sentence of 25 years following a third felony conviction following 2 earlier convictions for serious felonies
  • Some receive unfair sentences, Very costly to the state
  • Many offenders have alcohol, drug or mental health issues that can lead them to make bad decisions, they may not even be aware of the sentence they face if convicted
  • Prosecutors and judges can find ways of evading penalties such as mandatory minimum sentences that they feel are too severe
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11
Q

Hot Spots Policing

A

Most crimes occur at a small number of addresses in any community. Hot spots policing concentrates police resources on these high-crime locations

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12
Q

Individualized Deterrence

A

Offenders who are heavily involved in criminal activity are individually warned that their actions are being monitored and that future violations of the law will be dealt with immediately. Extra police and/or probation resources are added to ensure that the legal system does keep its promises

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13
Q

Project Ceasefire

A

in Boston: gang violence reduction program, telling gang members violence would not be tolerated and they would be targeted if they continued.
Didn’t just include police, also social services, churches and community groups to work with youth and reinforce this. Also offered training, counselling, mentoring and educating –> 63% decrease in youth homicide in 3 years, when the program was dropped levels returned to before

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14
Q

Project HOPE

A

Aim to reduce high rates of non-compliance with probation conditions requiring abstinence from drugs in Hawaii, rates of + drug tests declined 93%

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15
Q

Rational Choice Theory

A

Claims that crime is the result of deliberate choices made by offenders based on their calculation of the risks and rewards of these choices.
Criminal Behaviour is goal oriented but there is little planning involved and little consideration of the benefits and costs of their behaviour

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16
Q

Focus of Rational Choice Theory

A
  • Does not focus on offenders background but on the situational dynamics involved in the decision whether or not to commit a crime
  • Theorists do not believe that all crimes result from the same social processes – different between professional thieves and 14 year old first timers
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17
Q

Environmental Criminology

A
  • Criminals have activity patterns, and the environmental opportunities they encounter in the course of these activities influence their decisions to commit particular criminal acts
  • They are more likely to commit offenses along paths that they travel in their daily activities
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18
Q

Aspects of Enviro. Crim.

A

Nodes: important places to would-be offenders including where they live, work and socialize. They frequently commit crimes in the areas around these
Paths: routes between nodes that are vulnerable to crime – ex: a convenience store on the route from a junior high students school to their home is vulnerable
Edges: boundaries or barriers between different types land us – ex: a street that separates an industrial area from a residential neighbourhood

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19
Q

Routine Activities Theory

A

Developed from lifestyle/exposure theory by Cohen and Felson

  • Acknowledges that not everyone has the same lifestyle and that some lifestyles expose people to more risks than others do
  • Developed from research on patterns of crime: when and where it occurs, immediate circumstances, relationship between victims and offenders, why some are more likely to be victimized
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20
Q

3 Factors for Crime (RAT)

A
  • A motivated offender: a crime will not take place unless someone wants to commit it
  • A suitable target: e.g. conspicuous display of property
  • Ineffective guardianship of that target: more guarded = less victimized & vice versa
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21
Q

Intimate Handlers

A
  • “The Handled Offender”: individual susceptible to informal social control by virtue of their bonds to society
  • The “Intimate Handler”: Someone with sufficient knowledge of the potential offender to [control the offender]
    Ex: ties to communities, parents etc… that reduce involvement in crime
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22
Q

Crime Facilitators

A
  • Physical, social, or chemical crime facilitators

Ex: Guns, scanning devices, peers who teach techniques, drugs and alcohol that reduce inhibition

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23
Q

WHERE do violent incidents take place?

A

• 38% in bars, restaurants, malls, schools;
• 29% in or around a private residence;
• 25% on the streets, in parks, etc.
When? Summer months and in December. Usually in the evenings – 6pm to 12 am.

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24
Q

Diverse Attractions of Crime

A
  • Rational choice and Routine activities may account for financially-motivated crimes but do not account for expressive crimes that involve strong emotions
  • Help us understand why robbers take money but not emotional motivations (anger, upset) in crimes like homicide where there is no financial gain
25
Q

Patterns of Victimization in Violent Crime

A 
○ Younger people, males, single/divorced, those who spend evenings away from home
○ Lower income 
○ Minorities
○ Alcohol consumption 
- Repeat victims
26
Q

Criminal Homicide

A

○ 1st and 2nd degree murder
○ Manslaughter
○ Infanticide
- Murder

27
Q

Murder

A

○ First degree - when killing is planned and deliberate; when victim is a police officer or prison guard; when murder occurs in connection with offences such as sexual assault or kidnapping
○ Second degree – not premeditated or pre-planned

28
Q

Murder Sentences

A

○ Sentence in Canada (1st and 2nd degree murder): Imprisonment for life – 25 years
○ Accused convicted of 2nd degree murder may be paroled after 10 years under certain circumstances

29
Q

Manslaughter

A

When there is no intent to kill
○ Voluntary manslaughter: Sudden passion
○ Involuntary manslaughter: unintentional killing as a result of recklessness or gross negligence

30
Q

Manslaughter Punishment

A

○ Punishment: Statutorily, imprisonment for life but often ranges from 4 – 15 years in reality.
Use of firearm could be an aggravating factor

31
Q

2 Sentence Determinants

A
  1. ) Aggravating Factors

2. ) Mitigating Factors

32
Q

Aggravating Factors

A
  • Those facts about the crime, the defendant or the victim that tend to make the crime more serious, and thus more deserving of a harsher sentence.
  • They include brutality of the crime, the defendant’s criminal history and the vulnerability of the victim, among others.
  • The more there are, the more likely a tough sentence.
33
Q

Mitigating Factors

A

• Tend to reduce sentences.
• Show that the defendant poses less risk to society than they would otherwise, so a lengthy sentence is unnecessary.
Typical mitigating factors include the lack of a criminal history and the defendant’s acceptance of responsibility for the crime.

34
Q

Manslaughter in California

A

• Voluntary manslaughter: 3, 6 or 11 years

Involuntary manslaughter: 2, 3 or 4 years

35
Q

Infanticide

A

“A female person commits infanticide when by a wilful act or omission she causes the death of her newly-born child (1-12 mths), if at the time of the act or omission she is not fully recovered from the effects of giving birth to the child and by reason thereof or of the effect of lactation consequent on the birth of the child her mind is then disturbed.”

36
Q

Facts of Infanticide

A

• In 2004, 27 of 37 children (73%) killed in Canada were by their parents.
• 13 killed by biological mums, 8 by biological fathers, 5 by step-fathers, 1 allegedly by mum and step-father
• 20 cases of infanticide per year
• Maximum of 5 years in jail
Postpartum depression defence is unlikely to succeed if the child is older than 2 or 3 months

37
Q

Women who commit Infanticide

A

• Often give birth alone in unconventional spaces
• Often have no history of mental illness
Some have troubled early life

38
Q

Ex. of Infanticide: Katrina Effert

A

• Katrina Effert Killed her baby in April 2005 with a pair of orange thong underwear
• She was 19 at the time of the crime
• Initially found guilty of second degree murder
Case ruled infanticide in Sept. 2011

39
Q

Killing Unborn Child in Birth

A

• 238. (1) Every one who causes the death, in the act of birth, of any child that has not become a human being, in such a manner that, if the child were a human being, he would be guilty of murder, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.
(2) This section does not apply to a person who, by means that, in good faith, he considers necessary to preserve the life of the mother of a child, causes the death of that child.

40
Q

Ex. of Killing Unborn Child in March 2015, Longmont, Colorado

A
  • 26 year old woman responded to ad on Craigslist
  • Dynel Lane, 34, former nurse aide, cut open the pregnant woman’s belly with a knife and took the fetus
  • She went to the hospital with her husband, who had just returned home after the attack. She claimed to have had a miscarriage
  • Lane had a history of miscarriage and had lost a 19 month old son due to drowning
  • The fetus died but the mother survived… Is this considered murder? In Canada, yes, but under Colorado law no, she is still charged with other offences however.
  • Lane was arrested on charges of attempted first degree murder, first degree assault and child abuse knowingly/recklessly resulting in death
  • In Colorado the legal question is: Did the fetus live as a child outside the body of the mother for some period of time?
  • She was not charged with murder as of March 27, 2015, but probably would be in Canada
    The law is unclear about exact duration of “lived as a child” –> how long does the baby have to be alive outside the mother to be considered human?
41
Q

Infanticide in the US

A

Of all the children under age 5 murdered from 1976-2005
- 31% were killed by fathers
- 29% were killed by mothers
- 23% were killed by male acquaintances
- 7% were killed by other relatives
- 3% were killed by strangers
Of those children killed by someone other than their parent, 81% were killed by males.

42
Q

Murder in US

A
  • In 2011, an estimated 14,612 persons were murdered in the United States.
  • There were 4.7 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, a 1.5% decrease from the 2010 rate.
  • Compared with the 2007 rate, the murder rate declined 17.4%, and compared with the 2002 rate, the murder rate decreased 16.8%.
  • A total of 43.6% of murders were reported in the South, 21.0% were reported in the West, 20.6% were reported in the Midwest, and 14.8% were reported in the Northeast.
43
Q

Murder in Canada

A
  • INCIDENCE
    ○ Homicide rate was 1.7 per hundred thousand in 2012 (U.K. was 1.4)
    ○ Highest rates in Territories and Western provinces - lowest in Atlantic provinces
  • PATTERN
    Most common are shootings (34%), stabbings (30%), and beatings (22%).
44
Q

Highest Ranking Cities for Homicide in Canada

A
  1. Red Deer, 2. Drummond Region (Quebec), 3. Winnipeg, 4. Edmonton
    (We are #4 in Firearms, US is 1)
45
Q

Gun Ownership

A

per 100 persons:
- Canada: 30.8 persons or 9,950,000 civilian firearms (13th in the world).
US: 88.8 persons or 270,000,000 civilian firearms

46
Q

Prevalence of Guns in US

A
  • The US has less than 5% of the world’s population but contains an estimated 35–50% of the global civilian-owned guns
    Violent crime in the US tends to involve firearms more frequently than violent crime in Canada. (69% of all homicides, 33% in Can.)
47
Q

Forcible Rape

A
  • There were an estimated 83,425 forcible rapes reported to law enforcement in 2011.
  • 2.5% lower than the 2010 estimate and 9.5% and 12.4% lower than the 2007 and 2002 estimates, respectively.
  • The rate of forcible rapes in 2011 was estimated at 52.7 per 100,000 female inhabitants.
  • Rapes by force comprised 93.0% of reported rape offenses in 2011, and attempts or assaults to commit rape accounted for 7.0% of reported rapes.
48
Q

Aggravated Assault

A
  • In 2011, there were an estimated 751,131 aggravated assaults in the nation.
  • in 2011 declined 3.9% when compared with data from 2010 and 15.7% when compared with the estimate for 2002.
  • In 2011, the estimated rate of aggravated assaults was 241.1 offenses per 100,000 inhabitants.
  • A 10-year comparison of data from 2002 to 2011 showed that the rate of aggravated assaults in 2011 dropped 22.1%.
  • 26.9% were committed with hands, fists, or feet.
  • 21.2% of aggravated assaults were committed with firearms, and 19.1 % were committed with knives or cutting instruments.
  • The remaining 32.8% of aggravated assaults were committed with other weapons.
49
Q

Robbery

A
  • In 2011, there were an estimated 354,396 robberies nationwide.
  • The 2011 estimated number of robberies decreased 4.0% from the 2010 estimate and 20.8% from the 2007 estimate.
  • When compared with the 2010 rate, the 2011 estimated robbery rate of 113.7 per 100,000 inhabitants showed a decrease of 4.7%.
  • Robberies accounted for an estimated $409 million in losses in 2011.
  • The average dollar value of property stolen per reported robbery was $1,153.
  • Banks experienced the highest average dollar loss at $4,704 per offense.
  • Among the robberies for which the UCR Program received weapon information in 2011, strong-arm tactics were used in 42.3%
  • Firearms were used in 41.3%, and knives and cutting instruments were used in 7.8 % of robberies.
    Other dangerous weapons were used in 8.7% of robberies in 2011.
50
Q

Auto Theft

A
  • There were an estimated 794,616 thefts of motor vehicles nationwide in 2009.
  • The estimated rate of motor vehicle thefts was 258.8 per 100,000 inhabitants.
  • The estimated number of motor vehicle thefts declined 17.1% when compared with data from 2008, 35.7% when compared with 2005 figures, and 31.5% when compared with 2000 figures.
  • Nationwide, nearly $5.2 billion were lost to motor vehicle thefts in 2009.
    The average dollar loss per stolen vehicle was $6,505.
51
Q

1 Cars Stolen:

A

1.) 1994 Honda Accord
Most at Risk -
1.) Cadillac Escalade

52
Q

Situational Crime Prevention

A

Most crime is opportunistic rather than being the outcome of those driven to commit a crime no matter what the circumstances, this form of prevention attempts to reduce the opportunities for crime rather than just relying on the police after the crime has occurred

53
Q

Steps to Reduce Crime

A
  1. ) Reduce Target Suitability
  2. ) Effective Guardianship
  3. ) Reducing Motivated Offenders
54
Q

Crime Prevention through Social Development

A

focuses on reducing the number of motivated offenders by changing the social environment (altering the conditions that create crime)
Incapacitation - ‘three strikes’ laws

55
Q

5 ways to reduce Crime through Social Development

A
  1. ) Increasing the effort required to commit a crime (controlling access to targets or tools)
  2. ) Increasing the risks (increasing levels of formal or informal surveillance or guardianship)
  3. ) Reducing reward
  4. ) Reducing provocation (controlling for peer pressure or reducing frustration/conflict)
  5. ) Removing excuses (setting clear rules and limits)
56
Q

Developmental & Situational Approaches are Complementary!

A
  • Criminal involvement relates to criminal careers and is appropriately addressed by social development approaches
  • Criminal events are short term acts that may be more appropriately addressed by situational prevention
57
Q

Ex. of Complementary Crime Reduction: WATSS

A

Winnipeg Auto Theft Suppression Strategy
- Auto theft rates were so high because it had become an important part of youth culture in Winnipeg
Used Effective Guardianship - Youth were contacted frequently and immediately apprehended if they missed contact
Target Suitability: Vehicle immobilizers for the most at risk vehicles
Motivated Offenders: Support programs for high risk offenders

58
Q

Selective Incapacitation

A

• Selective incapacitation means giving very long sentences to dangerous offenders
• Harshest in Western countries is California’s ‘three strikes’ law which is enormously expensive because the third strike can be a minor property offense
-Was amended in 2012

59
Q

Selective Incapacitation has a risk for…

A

False Positives! – Identifying (and incarcerating proactively) an offender as dangerous when they’re not dangerous. It may also mean imprisoning offenders for crimes they have not committed. Keeping them behind bars not necessarily for what they have to done, but because of what they might do

Crim Final (6 decks)

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