Ethnicity crime and justice

Question 1

what are the trends with ethnicity and crim + justice

Answer 1

• black people make up 3% of the population but 13% of the prison population (over represented )
• white people under presented at all stages of CJS

Question 2

what are victim surveys

Answer 2

• aski individuals to say what crimes they have been victim of
• in the case of muggings, black people are significantly over- represented
• also shows many crimes are instra- ethnic - takes place within ethnic groups

Question 3

what are the limitations of victim surveys

Answer 3

1. rely on victim memories
2. only cover personal crimes
   As a result they tell us about the ethnicity of a small proportion of offenders which may not be representative

Question 4

what are self report studies

Answer 4

• Ask individuals to disclose own dishonest/ violent behaviour
• whites are more likely to admit to offending
• findings of self report studies challenge the sterotypes of black being more likely to offend

Question 5

what did Graham and Bowling say about self report studies

Answer 5

blacks and whites had similar rates of offending, while Indians and Pakistanis had lower rate

Question 6

what are the stages of the criminal justice system

Answer 6

policing 
stop and search 
arrests and cautions 
prosecution and trials 
convictions and sentencing 
presentence report 
prison

Question 7

what is policing

Answer 7

step 1 of the criminal justice system
many allegations of oppressive policing of minority ethnic groups
Phillips and Bowling: since the 1970s there has been allegations of oppressive policing of ethnic communities including armed raids + excessive surveillance

Question 8

what is stop and search

Answer 8

step 2 of the criminal justice system
black people are 7x likley to be stopped and searched, Asians 2x
Asians are more likley to be stopped under terrorism act
ethnic minorities are more likley to think they are ‘over policed’

Question 9

what are the three reasons that stop and search are disappropiate

Answer 9

1. police racism link to Steven Lawrence and McPherson report
2. ethnic differences in offending - reflects level of offending
3. demographic factors - more likely to be stopped eg the young

Question 10

what are arrests and cautions

Answer 10

step 3 of the criminal justice system
arrests rates 3x for black people, black people + Asians are less likely to receive cautions
one reason may be that ethnic minorities are more likley to deny offence and not be let of with caution

Question 11

what is precaution and trial

Answer 11

step 4 of the criminal justice system
criminal prosecution service more likley to drop cases against ethnic minorities
evidence weaker and based on stereotypes
more likley to elect for trial in a crown court which imposes harsher sentences

Question 12

what are convictions and sentencing

Answer 12

step 5 of the criminal justice system
black and Asians less likely to be found guilty suggest discrimination that police are bringing weaker evidence
blacks given sentences on average 3 months longer than whites

Question 13

what is the presentence report

Answer 13

written by probation officers, risk assessment for sentencing
reports on Asians offenders less comprehensive and ‘demonised’ Muslims after 9/11

Question 14

what are the rends about prison

Answer 14

blacks 4x likely to be in prison
ethnic minorities less likley to be granted bail
similar patterns in other countries eg america

Question 15

why did ‘black criminality’ come to be seen as a problem

Answer 15

from the mid 1970s, increased conflict between the police and African Caribbean community and higher arrest rates for street crime

Question 16

when were Asians viewed to be a problem

Answer 16

1990s - with media concerns about the growth of ‘Asian gangs’. In the events of 2001 widespread clashes between police and Asian youths in northern England and 9/11 helped to crystallise the idea that Muslims and Asians were the enemy

Question 17

what are the two main reasons for ethnic differences in the statistics

Answer 17

• left realists

- neo Marxism

Question 18

what do lea and young argue about ethnic differences in crime

Answer 18

argue that ethnic differences in the stats reflect real differences in the levels of offending by different ethnic groups. They argue that racism has led to marginalisation and economic exclusion of ethnic minorities, who face higher levels of poverty, poor housing

Question 19

what do Lea and young argue about police and racism

Answer 19

they acknowledge that police often act in racist ways and this leads to unjustified criminalisation of some members of ethnic minorities. However they believe discriminatory policing doesn’t fully explain the difference in stats - 90% of crimes are reported by public not police

Question 20

what are the criticisms of lea and Young

Answer 20

stereotypes may have changed since 9/11 because police now regard Asians as dangerous which explains the rising criminalisation rates for this group

Question 21

what does Gilroy black criminality

Answer 21

it is a myth created by racist sterotypes but as a result the police act on these sterotypes and ethnic minorities come to be criminalised and so appear to be greater in stats.

Question 22

How does Gilroy (neomarxist) see minority crime

Answer 22

can be seen as a form of political resistance againsts a racist society and this resistance has its roots in earlier struggles in British imperialism. Also holds a similar view of critical criminology which argues that working class crime is a political act of resistance to capitalism

Question 23

How is Gilroy (neomarxist) criticised by lea and young

Answer 23

• Asian crimes are similar or lower than whites, which would mean the police were only racist towards blacks which is unlikely
• like critical criminologists, lea and young criticise Gilroy for romanticising the criminals as somehow revolutionary

Question 24

what do Hall et al (neomarxist) argue about the 1970s

Answer 24

saw a moral panic over black muggers that served the interest of capitalist. Ruling class normally rule the subordinate class with consent but in terms of crisis this is difficult.

Question 25

what occured in the 70s (Hall et al)

Answer 25

in the 70s there was a crisis of high inflation, unemployment and strikes. And a media driven moral panic about ‘new ‘ crime (mugging) which was alledgly committed by black youth. According at Hall et al there was no significant increase in this type of crime

Question 26

what did the myth of the black mugger serve

Answer 26

hall et al - served as a scape goat to distract people from the capitalist crisis that was apparent. this moral panic was meant to divide the working class on racial grounds and such weaken their opposition for racism as well let them consent more authoritative rule to suppress them

Question 27

what are the critisms of Hall et al policing crisis

Answer 27

• Downes and Rocks argue that Hall et al are inconsistent in claiming that black street crime was not rising but also that it was rising due to unemployment
• left realists argue that inner city residents fears about mugging are not panicky, but realistic

Question 28

How is neighbourhoods an explanation for ethnic differences in crime rates

Answer 28

Fitzgerald- found that street robbery rates were highest in very poor areas and where very deprived young people came into contact with more affluent groups. Young blacks were more likley to live in these areas but whites also affected by these rates and were more likely commit crimes. but black people are more likley to live in these areas due to racial discrimination in housing and job market

Question 29

How is getting caught an explanation for ethnic differences in crime rates

Answer 29

some groups had a bigger risk of being caught. Sharpe and Budd found that black offenders are more likely to be arrested than whites. this is due to blacks committing crimes such as robbery where victims can identify them

Question 30

when does racist victimisation

Answer 30

occurs when an individual is selected as a target because of their race, ethnicity or religion. Racists was brought into greater focus due to the death of Steven Lawrence and an inquiry into the handling of the police (McPherson 1999)

Question 31

where does information on racists information come from

Answer 31

two main sources: victim surveys + police recorded stats. they generally cover

• racists incidents
• racially or religiously or aggravated offences

Question 32

stats for racist incidents

Answer 32

• 54000 racist incidents in england and wales in 2014/15

- the police recorded 38,000 racially or religiously aggravated offences in 2014/15

Question 33

what did Sampson and Philips say about racist victimisation

Answer 33

note that it tends to be over going over time, with repeated ‘minor’ instances of abuse and harassment interwoven with periodic incidents of physical violence

Question 34

what did the mcpherson report conclude

Answer 34

it concluded that the police investigation into the death of Steven Lawrence was ‘married by a combination of professional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership by police officers.