Crime Flashcards
what is crime defined as
an act that violates criminal law and is punishable through the law
you did what they said you did using evidence and witness is defined as
actus reus
providing criminal intent in court is defined as
mens rea
true or false - mens rea is needed for all crimes
false - only for minor crimes
what are the 5 factors affecting the crime rate
report sensitive, definition sensitive, policing sensitive, media sensitive and real trends
how are crimes being report sensitive affect the crime rate
as soon as you see police reported on the article, the information has been tainted -> domestic and sexual violence data is not reported
how are crimes being definition sensitive affect the crime rate
if you are studying sexual assault and you want to look at the trends, there is a problem because sexual assault laws changed
how do real trends affect crime rates
crime swap -> where we used to have theft, is now identity theft
what are examples of how crime changes over time
- if you murder during war it is fine but not allowed in other circumstances
- committing suicide used to be a crime
- abortion used to be a crime
_______ theory is when there is a major consensus in society on what should be a criminal
consensus
how does consensus theory align with structural functionalism
it is good that we all agree on crime because when we separate people from society based on crime -> social stability is high
-> society is organized in a very natural way
what are 3 factors of the consensus theory
societal stability, social cohesion and the idea that society is organic
the consensus theory came out of what older theory
darwins theory
what are the 3 reasons why durkheim believed that crime was a functional part of society
- criminal courts are a spectacle -> solidifies our social values so our society is working properly
- system processing of crime allows for societal change
- crime is a good society -> employs a lot of people middle class jobs
what contradicts the consensus theory
the judges and courts decide what is a crime so they overpower others -> not a consensus
what does the marxist theory focus on
the relationship between crime and social arrangements
list the 3 factors that influence the relationship between crime and social arrangements
political
economic -> hippies a problem population
legal structures -> if you are rich, you have access to lawyers
conflict is rooted in the structure of a ______ society -> why
capitalism -> not fair, never a get job no matter how hard you try -> a risk to the stability of society because of rioting