Lecture 2: Measuring Youth Crime Flashcards
What are some typical questions criminologists are asked about youth crime and justice?
- How serious and how common?
- Is it getting worse?
- Is legislation too lenient?
- Who is committing these crimes? Why?
The worry of many people is that youth crime is…
On the rise.
Many people consider juvenile delinquents to be treated too ___.
Leniently.
The YCJA is mockingly dubbed as…
You Can’t Jail Anyone.
What are the two types of sources from which we get a measure of crime?
Official and unofficial accounts.
Give examples of official accounts of crime.
Police, courts, corrections.
Give examples of unofficial accounts of crime.
Self-report studies, victimization surveys.
Why are unofficial accounts of crime important?
They cover smaller-scale crimes as well, not just egregious crime.
Why do unofficial accounts of crime cover smaller-scale crimes, while official accounts do not?
People do not feel compelled to report every crime they witness/fall victim to.
What is the dark figure of crime?
Incidences of crime/delinquency that go undetected or unreported by the police.
Who are the youth at risk?
Young people at risk of offending or being victimized.
Youth at risk are young people that are at risk of offending or being victimized?
Both.
The dark figure of crime describes crime that is as good as it…
Never happened.
What we think we know about crime is an ___ sample.
Unrepresentative.
What types of crimes are the most accurately reported?
Murder, kidnapping, and car thefts.
The definition of youth crime has shifted as far as concepts and legal ___.
Terminology.
The JDA referred to underage criminals as…
Juvenile delinquents.
The YOA and YCJA referred to underage criminals as ___ or ___.
Young persons or young offenders.
What is the age range covered by the YCJA?
12-17.
The determining factor of whether or not a person is charged as a young person is the…
Time that the crime was committed.
The ___ determined that crimes committed by young people are delinquent acts, not criminal acts.
JDA.
Have we ever referred to underage criminals as criminals?
No, first it was juvenile delinquents, and now it is young offender.
What does MACR stand for?
Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility.
What is the MACR in Canada?
12.