Exam Revision #3 Crime

Question 1

Crime

Answer 1

Crime is defined as an act that violates the written laws of
society, which are enacted by local, state, or territory and
federal governments and enforced through sanctions.

Question 2

Crime against the person

Answer 2

Acts including threatening, harassing, or injuring another
person or depriving them of their freedom. These crimes
are considered to be either fatal or non-fatal.

Question 3

Crime against the property

Answer 3

Refers to damage or destruction of homes, businesses,
and land, as well as burglary or theft of vehicles. It is one
of the most common crimes in Australia.

Question 4

Victimless crime

Answer 4

Refers to crimes whereby all parties consent to the
criminal activity and no one appears harmed in the
process. For example, the exchange of services between a
sex worker and a paying client is considered victimless.

Question 5

White-collar crime

Answer 5

Introduced by theorist Edwin Hardin Sutherland,
which refers to a crime carried out by a person of
respectability and high social status or privileged social
classes in the course of their occupation/s.

Question 6

Corporate crime

Answer 6

Refers to crimes committed by large corporations. These
crimes impact individuals, groups and other corporations,
as well as society as a whole

Question 7

Punishment

Answer 7

The process whereby someone faces a penalty as
retribution for an offence they have committed. It could
be physical (e.g., prison) or financial (e.g., a fine).

Question 8

Corporal punishment

Answer 8

intentional use of physical
force to cause bodily pain or discomfort as a penalty for
unacceptable behaviour.

Question 9

Capital punishment

Answer 9

Also known as the death penalty

Question 10

Relativity of punishment

Answer 10

The sociological concept of punishment is relative in
nature; just as the perception of what constitutes criminal
behaviour is relative to time, place, and circumstance.

Question 11

Illegal drug trade

Answer 11

is a global black market dedicated to
the cultivation, manufacture, distribution & sale of drugs
that are subject to drug prohibition laws.

Question 12

Retribution

Answer 12

One purpose of punishment, which is inflicted on someone
as vengeance for a wrong or criminal act. It is designed to
meet society’s desire for revenge.

Question 13

Rehabilitation

Answer 13

One purpose of punishment, designed to reform an
offender in order to prevent them from committing crimes
in the future.

Question 14

Deterrence

Answer 14

One purpose of punishment, designed to prevent the
offender and anyone else in society from committing
similar offences.

Question 15

General deterrence

Answer 15

One purpose of punishment, designed to discourage
OTHERS in the community from committing the same
offences as the criminal.

Question 16

Specific deterrence

Answer 16

One purpose of punishment, designed to discourage the
criminal themselves from committing crime in the future.

Question 17

Societal protection

Answer 17

One purpose of punishment, designed to make an
offender incapable of further offences through
imprisonment for a set period of time, or in extreme
cases, permanently through execution.

Question 18

Physical incapacitation

Answer 18

Physical incapacitation involves punishment
e.g., taking away one’s license or seizing stolen goods.

Question 19

Geographic incapacitation

Answer 19

Geographic incapacitation refers to incarceration
e.g., imprisonment or home detention.

Question 20

Reintegrative shaming

Answer 20

One of the types of ‘shaming’ proposed by John
Braithwaite, which involves respectful disapproval of
deviance but also signs of forgiveness and a willingness to
reintegrate the offender into the community.

Question 21

Disintegrative shaming

Answer 21

One of the types of ‘shaming’ criticised by John
Braithwaite, which has a stigmatising effect and excludes a
person from the community entirely.

Question 22

Parsimony

Answer 22

The sentence must be no more severe than is necessary to
meet the purposes of sentencing.

Question 23

Proportionality

Answer 23

The overall punishment must be proportionate to the
gravity of the offending behaviour.

Question 24

Parity

Answer 24

Similar sentences should be imposed for similar offences
committed by offenders in similar circumstances.

Question 25

Totality

Answer 25

Where an offender is to serve more than one sentence must be just and appropriate in light of the overall offending behaviour.

Question 26

Restorative justice

Answer 26

A more recent approach to crime that focuses on repairing the harm caused by criminal behaviour by including all stakeholders in the process.

Question 27

Sentencing circles

Answer 27

A circle of representatives sit together and decide a sentence, which does not include a jail term. It can involve meeting the victim and often results in the offender conducting some sort of community work. It arose due to the high number of Indigenous Australians in prison and/or police custody.

Question 28

Victim-offender mediation

Answer 28

A meeting takes place between the victim and offender, facilitated by a trained mediator. They reach an agreement on the steps the offender will need to take to repair the harm suffered by the victim.

Question 29

Conferencing

Answer 29

Conferencing is similar to victim-offender mediation, but more stakeholders are included, such as families, community support groups, police, lawyers, etc.

Question 30

Recidivism

Answer 30

The tendency of a convicted criminal to reoffend.