Crime And Deviance 9 - Crime Prevention Flashcards
What is Murray’s (1996) theory on crime?
Caused by immoral and idle underclass whos dependant on an over generous welfare state and won’t work
Solved by cutting benefits and introducing penalties so people have to work
Cornish and Clarke (1986) on crime?
Caused by benefits of crime outweighing costs caused by decline of community
Solved by situational crime prevention (SCP) -> target hardening (potential victims need to invest in personal security to increase its difficulty to be performed); greater surveillance (CCTV and Neighbourhood Watch); environmental management (public space more defensible e.g. shop having security guards, streets more lighting and cameras)
Wilson and Kelling (1982) environmental crime prevention (ECP)?
Crime caused by anti-social behaviour e.g. vandalism, drug use, harassment and littering starting a ‘anything goes’ sense as it displays the community, if they’re not tackled, doesn’t care
ECP solutions include immediately tackling environmental decline e.g. broken windows, police need to be more visible and have zero tolerance on all types of crime and disorder, curfews imposed on certain age groups, parents punished if children truant or offend, communities chase out those who commit crimes in their neighbourhoods
This has ben used heavily in New York and Chicago
Criticisms of Right Realist solutions?
Marxists and left realists argue it ignores root cause of crime: poverty and inequality
Shover (1999) SCP is expensive so will cause new social inequality
SCP displaces crime not reduces it
Chaiken at el (1974) zero tolerance in New York subways only displaced crime to streets
SCP ignores white collar, corporate and state crime
Lyng (1990) young offenders seeking thrills and not rationally figuring out costs and benefits
Marxists on crime prevention?
Caused by inequality, poverty and crimogenic culture?
Solved by structural adjustments to organisation of capitalist society focused on reducing poverty and unemployment; improving quality of life in inner city areas via greater investment; transforming capitalism into a kinder, more compassionate economic system; and promote building communities and strengthen social bonds
Left realists on crime prevention?
Caused by relative deprivation and marginalisation
Solved by eradication of institutional racism in criminal justice system (CJS) and particularly racial profiling in stop and searches; increase investment to inner city schools so more people leave with qualifications; raise minimum wage to ‘living wage’ to reduce inequality and stop reliance on benefits; businesses should invest in poorer urban areas to create jobs
Labelling theory on crime prevention?
Caused by labelling people as criminals so they can’t integrate back into society and so reoffend
Solved by training CJS people to root out discriminatory labelling and treat everyone equally; monitor sentencing to ensure gender, class and ethnic bias is minimised; reform CJS and introduce restorative justice (e.g. victims and offenders in mediation meetings to help repair harm done. Offenders see how crimes have affected others, and can take responsibility and apologise. Also punishments applied in respectful and forgiving way so offenders aren’t stigmatised)
Support for left solutions?
Right realists also emphasise importance of community building and police cooperation with communities
Shapland et al (2008) restorative justice systems in UK have decreased offenders reoffending
Criticisms of left solutions?
Structural changes would be costly and need decades to take effect
Not clear how a caring, compassionate capitalism could be brought about
Support for SCP?
Blue lights at train stations stopping suicide (mixed data)
Car manufacturers investment in satellite technology and computerised locking systems has reduced car theft in UK
Support for ECP?
‘Clean car Program’ in New York (cars taken out of service immediately if they were graffitied and only returned once they were clean)
Other programs focused on drug dealing and fare dodging have been successful
However other factors such as NYPD officer increase, reduction in crime across the US including ones where there wasn’t any zero tolerance policy, and there was a decline in availability of cocaine
Social and community crime prevention?
Focus on social context around offenders, inspired by left theorists
Remove conditions that could cause people to commit crime in the first place
Evidence for social and community crime prevention?
Perry Pre School Project - longitudinal study, group of disadvantaged 3-4 year olds given a 2 year intellectual enrichment program. Compared to control group, 40 more graduated high school and were in employment with significantly fewer arrests for crime.
Calculated every dollar spent $13 were saved on welfare prison and other costs
Criticisms of social and community crime prevention?
Disregards crimes of powerful
E.g. Whyte, crime target priorities in NW England include car theft, drugs etc. not the chemical production releasing 40% of cancer causing chemicals into UK every year
