Defining crime Flashcards
What is the legal definition of crime?
‘actus reus’ meaning guilty act when combined with ‘mens rea’ meaning guilty mind produces criminal liability
What is deviance?
not following social norms/not fitting in
What is social construction of crime?
a crime is dependant on whether it is viewed from a legal or deviant perspective
What does it mean to say the definition of crime is relative? and give and example
when opinions on what constitutes a crime change over time or across cultures (e.g laws about hitting your children, laws about polyamory)
What are some problems with defining crime?
- ‘crime’ indicates that the act is disapproved of, this does not mean everyone disapproves
- ‘victimless crimes’ such as the possession of banned drugs for personal use or consensual sex between 15 yr olds
What did Lemert conclude in 1972?
Compared a range of different societies and concluded that the act of murder was universally condemned, BUT there was a difference in the way different cultures dealt with this crime
What did Feldman say in 1993? and give an example
‘the core of criminal law is the same but the border moves’ (e.g the consensual sex between men was banned in the UK but it now legal)
What is it called when an act is voluntarily carried out?
actus reus
What is the general principle in english law in committing crimes?
“ignorance is no excuse” - the question of those who commit crimes without actually knowing they are illegal and so there is no ‘guilty mind’
What is strict liability? and give an example
where a persons intentions are considered irrelevant to their guilt (e.g a man having sex with a 13 yr old girl is statutory rape even if he believed her to be older)
Why is there sometimes an issue with assessing ‘mens rea’?
establishing a guilty mind where it is legally relevant is difficult if it is claimed that the person who committed the crime could not have prevented themselves doing so (e.g mental illness)
When is murder changed to manslaughter?
If it can be proved that the defendants mental capacity in relation to the crime was in some way impaired
What is the legal view of behaviour?
That people choose how they behave and this is what causes their actions
What may undermine the legal conception of criminal liability?
That chains of causation will always extend outside of the person and so I could be argued that no one is really responsible for their actions
