Midterm 1 Flashcards
1
Q
Criminology VS criminal justice
A
Criminologists: Explain crime through looking at its etiology, extent and in society
Criminal justice scholars: Describe/analyze work of police, courts and corrections on how to better design effective methods of crime control
2
Q
Classical Criminology
A
-Growing interest in rethinking law and justice
-Push came from utilitarian philosophers
-Cesare Beccaria
-Jeremy Bentham
3
Q
Utilitarian
A
MOST good into the world (good is subjective)
4
Q
Cesare Beccaria
A
-People are self-serving
-Methods and motivations of crime
5
Q
Jeremy Bentham
A
-Expanded on Beccaria’s ideas
-Punishment systems must be graduated so that the punishment closely matches the crime
-Worried that through punishing all crime with death penalty, people will begin to commit worse crimes
-Characterized by free choice
-Punishments must be swift, certain, and severe
6
Q
Positivism
A
-Human behavior results from external forces beyond individual control (social political, personal)
-Relies on scientific method (more science less psychology)
-Earliest method to understand crime was biological
-Physiognomy
-Found links to mental health and crime behavior
-Manie Sans Delire
Maudsley
-Shift in attention to brain function/personality as key to criminal behavior
-Cesare Lombroso
7
Q
Manie Sans Delire
A
-Pinel
-Insanity/criminal behavior are intricately linked
-Mania without delusion
8
Q
Maudsley
A
-Certain people would go mad without committing crimes
-This idea was debunked
9
Q
Cesare Lombrosso
A
-Most well known positivism activist
-Inspired study of criminal anthropology
-Discover biological basis to crime through physical measurements
-Atavistic Anomalies
-Made comparisons between criminal traits/mental illnesses
-Claimed that criminogenic traits could be passed through heredity
10
Q
Atavistic Anomalies
A
-Physical characteristics of “born criminals”
-Indicating that there are throwbacks to primitive people
-Enormous jaws, strong teeth, small wandering eyes, asymmetrical faces, long arms
-Determine offenders based on facial features
11
Q
Sociological criminology
A
-Another group of positivism
-L.A.J Quetelet
-Emile Durkheim
12
Q
L.A.J. Quetelet
A
-Began the cartographic (mapping crime) school of criminology
-Used mathematical techniques to investigate social factors (climate, sex, age, poverty, alcohol consumption, seasons etc) that influenced criminality
13
Q
Emile Durkheim
A
-Crime is normal and healthy
-Crime can result from Anomie
-Crime draws attention to social issues
14
Q
Anomie
A
State of normlessness
15
Q
Chicago school
A
-Extension of sociological positivism
-Research on social ecology of the city
-Critical social institutions (school, family) break down in neighborhoods with consistent rates of poverty
-Social institutions are unable to control behavior
-Ecology study of crime
-Socialization view of crime
16
Q
Ecology study of crime
A
Crime in the context of where a person lives
17
Q
Socialization view of crime
A
Crime occurs when there’s an absence of pro-social influence
18
Q
Conflict criminology-Karl Marx
A
-Conflict/radical perspective
-Considers the most important social relationship to be that between the owners of the means of production and the people who do the labor
-Exploitation of working class causes conflict
-Brought a challenge to the Chicago school by disrupting the model of social consensus that was advanced
-The economic system is responsible for producing conditions that lead to a high crime rate
19
Q
Criminology major perspectives
A
-Classical/choice
-Biological/psychological
-Structural
-Process
-Conflict
-Integrated
20
Q
Classical/choice
A
-Situational forces
-Crime is a function of freewill and personal choice
-Punishment is a deterrent to crime
21
Q
Biological/psychological
A
-Internal forces
-Crime is a function of biological/psychological traits
22
Q
Structural perspective
A
-Ecological forces
-Crime rates are a function of neighborhood conditions, cultural forces, and norm conflicts
-Chicago school
23
Q
Process perspective
A
-Socialization forces
-Crime is a function of upbringing, learning, and control
24
Q
Conflict perspective
A
-Economic/political forces
-Crime is a function of competition for limited resources and power
25
Integrated perspective
-Multiple forces
-All of the above forces may work to produce crime
26
Criminal statistics
-Measure the amount of trends of criminal activity through valid crime data
-Objective measurement
27
Subareas that makeup criminology
-Criminal statistics
-Sociology of law
-Theory construction
-Criminal behavior systems
-Penology
-Victimology
28
Sociology of law
History and origins of law, what factors influence law in society
29
Theory construction
Understanding the cause of crime rates, trends
30
Criminal behavior systems
Nature and cause of specific crime patterns
31
Penology
-Correction and control of criminal behavior
32
Victimology
Nature of cause of victimization
33
How can funding influence direction of research
-Funding for fraud cases in the Canadian government, the government will most likely refuse to fund this branch of research
34
Wigmore test
35
Bruckert and Luca
-Police were searching for Luca, researcher identified him from old interview
-Researcher refused to give up old interview tape to police due to ethics and confidentiality
36
Deviance
Departs from social norms and, on their own, are not the subject of formal/criminal sanction
37
Crime
A violation of an explicit codified law that is enforced by government bodies
38
William Sumner: Deviance
-Deviance is a violation of established contextual, cultural or social norms
-Folkways, mores, or law
-Society defines what is deviant and what is not
-Deviance is not intrinsic, it is a product of social processes
39
Folkways
-Norms based on cultural aspects
eg) Don't wear white to a wedding
40
Mores
-Norms of morality
-Offensive
-Societies most deeply held beliefs
eg) public nudity, incest,
41
Law
-Written
-Can be criminalized
-Codified
42
R.V Sharpe
-Sharpe was arrested in 1995 after customs discovered nude and sexually explicit written material that he created
-Charged with processing and distributing child pornography
-Lawyers argued that this was his freedom of expression
43
Outcome of R.V Sharpe
-Court found that it needed exceptions for certain cases
Exceptions for materials that have artistic, educational, or scientific merit
-For purely personal reasons that do not involve children in their production
44
Consensus view of crime
-Agreement among majority
-View is accepted by many criminologists
-Some dispute over whether the law is applied uniformly
45
Conflict view of crime
-Society is in constant conflict
-Laws are tools that the ones in power utilize to hurt others
-Crime is controlled by wealth, power and position and not by moral consensus
-White collared crimes are sanctioned less
46
Interactionist view of crime
-Based on symbolic interactionism
1) people act according to their own interpretations of reality
2) People learn meanings based on the reactions of others
3) people re-evaluate and interpret their own behavior according to meanings and symbols learned from others
-Crime reflects the preferences and opinions of people who impose a definition of right and wrong on the rest of the population
-Moral entrepreneurs
-Crime has no meaning unless people react to it
47
"Stranger Danger campaigns"
-Created a moral panic around child abduction
-Idea that all strangers are bad and dangerous despite the fact that most child abduction/harm is caused by someone the child already knows
48
5 things that factor crime rates
1) report sensitive
2) Policing sensitive
3) Definition sensitive
4) Media sensitive
5) Real trends
49
1) report sensitive
-Victims may be unwilling to report crimes which will affect crime rates
-Not wanting to report your own family members
-Shame, guilt, embarrassment
50
2) Policing-sensitive
-Level of police enforcement will affect crime rates
-Looking for specific crimes will increase that specific crime rate
-Groups who have had a bad experience with the police will most likely avoid reporting crimes
51
3) Definition sensitive
-Changes in how the law is understood will affect crime rates
52
4) Media sensitive
-Media influences public concern
-Public concern influences policing
-Police will direct more of their attention to areas of concern
53
5) Real trends
-We do see changes and trends in criminal behavior outside of these influences
-Natural crime rates shift with social shifts
54
UCR
-Uniform crime report
-Collected by the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics (CCJS) since 1962
-Revised to UCR2 in 1984 to gather information on accused, victim and incident characteristics
-Only covers crimes that have been found through police investigation
55
Crime severity index
Weigh the seriousness of offenses
56
Self report surveys
-Aimed to address gaps in UCR2
-Valid form of uncovering crime rates
-Expands existing data
57
Victimization surveys
-Part of the General Social Survey (GSS) since 1988
-Addresses crimes that victims may be less likely to support
58
UCR2
-Revised from UCR in 1984
-Collects accused and victim characteristics
-Age, drug/alcohol consumption, relationship, type of injury
-Incident-based data
-False reports are excluded from the court
59
Crime rate
-Calculated by dividing the total number of crimes by the population and multiplying it by 100,000
60
Which crime is the most common offence in Canada?
-Property crime
61
Crime Clearance
1) At least one person must be arrested, charged, and turned over to the court for prosecution
or
2) Police cannot arrest any person involved due to an element beyond their control
-Cases can be cleared without charges or convictions (Accused may die)
-Crime clearance rate varies depending on type of crime
-Attrition/crime funnel
62
Attrition
-As we go through the system the number of crimes responded to drops
-Loss of cases throughout the criminal justice process
63
Crime funnel
-Number of crimes decrease like a funnel while moving through the criminal legal system
64
Limitations of the UCR
1) Reporting practices
2) Law enforcement practices
3) Legal definitions
4) Media practices
5) Methodological problems
65
1) Reporting practices
-Under reporting of crimes
-Sympathetic reasons (family, fear etc)
66
2) Law enforcement practices
-How police respond to crime
- Incentivized to catch more of a specific crime
67
3) Legal definitions
-What behavior the law considers criminal
68
4) Media practices
-Sensationalized coverage that impacts policy or enforcement
-Copycats
69
5) Methodological problems
-UCR is not perfect
-Numbers/people can make mistakes
70
What is a known limitation of the UCR/UCR2?
The numbers do not account for changes in the law/policy
71
Issues with self-reporting surveys
-People lie, exaggerate, omit
-"Missing Cases issue"
People accidentally minimize their actions, they do not see that what they have done is deviant
72
"Missing Persons issue"
-The kids who are skipping are not part of the data
-The kids who are skipping are more likely to be the ones who have something to report
73
Issues with victim surverys
-Accuracy issues
-Misinterpreting events
-Recency issues (telescoping)
-Under-reporting
-Victimless crimes
74
Telescoping
-Psychological phenomenon where you tend to remember something big as if it "just happened the other day"
75
Victimless crimes
-Crimes in which there is no victim
eg) murder victims, sex work, drug use, gambling
-You wont see yourself as a victim towards your own drug use/gambling
76
Age
Crime rates will follow the proportion of young males (20-25) in a population
77
Race
-Relationship is unclear
-Subject to many societal factors
-Gross overrepresentation in CJS
78
Indigeneity
-Much higher rates of victimization
-12.5x more likely to be victim of robbery or assault)
79
Social Malaise
-More social capital (Community wellbeing) is associated with lower crime rates
80
Ecology of crime
-Higher rates of crime during warmer months
-IPV and homicide rates increase during long stretches of hot weather
81
What region is violent crime more likely to occur?
-West vs eastern provinces
- Some exceptions: prairies have seen some increases in crime rates where other provinces have declined
82
Why is crime rate higher in warmer temperatures/areas
-More people are outside
-Youth (18-24) are off school
-Vacations (homes are empty)
-people are uncomfortable and irritated in hot weather
83
Instrumental crimes
Illegal activities by those unable to obtain needs/wants through conventional or legitimate means
"Means to an end"
84
Expressive crimes
-Illegal crimes with no instrumental purpose
-Often violent crimes
85
Aging out/spontaneous remission/ desistance
-The frequency of offending goes down as people/populations age
-Crime rates decline with age
86
Early onset
-People who are deviant or criminal at early ages are more likely to become persistent offenders
-People labelled as deviant stick with that lifestyle
-Actively resist aging out
87
Salem witch trials (1692-1693)
-Trials by ordeal/combat
-If innocent god would intervene and give the person strength to fight
-Oath wagers
-"vagabonds"/wandering people were criminalized
88
Oath wagers
-Wagers of trial by oath
-12-25 people
-Vouch for accused and morally attach themselves to accused
-They will also be punished if the accused is found guilty
89
Stare Decisis
-Stand by decided cases
-Remaining consistent between cases
90
Rex V scofield
-Charged with trying to light a house on fire with a candle
-The candle was unable to cause damage to the house but his intention of setting the house on fire was there
-Attempt
-Conspiracy
91
Inchoate crimes
Incomplete offenses
92
Attempt
Intentional act for committing a crime that is more than mere preparation
93
Conspiracy
Voluntary agreement to commit an act using means forbidden by law
94
Can parliament Enact Statutes?
Yes
95
NWMP
Goals were repressing political dissent, controlling Indigenous populations, maintaining colonialism
96
RCMP
Policing the prairies
97
British North America Act
Centralized federal crime control, federal government could create statute law, provinces and territories administrated
98
Civil law
-Property law, contract law, tort law
-Significantly less proof needed
-Based on a balance of probabilities 50/50
99
Property law
Governing the transfer of ownership of property
100
Contract law
Governing personal agreements
101
Tort law
-Most similar to a criminal proceeding
-Governing personal wrongs and damage
102
Criminal law
-Laws against the state, protecting the public from offenses against social order
-State brings action forward
-Victim has small role in the process
-Burden of proof is on the state and must have proof beyond reasonable doubt
103
Indictable offenses VS Summary offenses
Indictable offenses are serious offenses while Summary offenses are more minor/petty offenses
104
Hybrid offenses
-Offenses can be dealt with as summary or indictable
-Crown decides how offenses will be handled
105
Mala in Se
-Rooted in core values inherent in culture, designed to control such behavior as inflicting harm on others, taking possessions belonging to another person or harming another persons property
-Intrinsically we know these crimes are wrong
106
Mala prohibitum
-Laws that reflect current public opinion and more relative social values, concerned with acts that might conflict with the functioning of society such as substance misuse or owning an unlicensed weapon
-Reflect current public opinion
107
Crimes VS Torts
Crimes are against the state and tortes are against the other person
108
Consensus view of crime
-Most people agree that the justice system benefits us
-Providing social control
-Discourages social control
-Discouraging revenge
-Expressing public/opinion morality
-Deterring criminal behavior
-Maintaining social order
109
How is revenge discouraged?
-Criminal law takes place of the victim
-Burden of retribution is on the state and not on the wronged party
110
Klippert V The Queen
-Consensual relations with another man was deemed gross indecency
-Crown labelled him as a dangerous sexual offender who was likely to reoffend
111
Difficulties in controlling public morality (mala prohibitum)
1) Hard to assess the will of the majority
2) Need to respect the rights of the minority
3) Laws are enforced that may feel trivial, politicized, or self-serving
112
Actus Reus
Physical action of the crime
113
Kenneth parks and automatism
-State of impaired consciousness
-while sleepwalking he drove and violently murdered his mother in law
114
SCC ruling re
Self-induced automatism in sexual assault cases
115
Mens Rea
-Intent and though of the crime
-Transferred intent
-Constructive intent
116
Transferred intent
-Intention to harm someone but they don't end up being harmed
117
Constructive intent
-Harm is caused due to someone being neglectful
eg) impaired driving
118
Strict absolute liability
Does not require presence of mens rea (intent)
119
No actus rea (physically committing a crime)
-Falsely accused
-Often seen in wrongful convictions
120
No Mens rea
-No intention of doing the act
-lacked capacity to be held responsible
-Ignorance, mental disorder
121
Ignorance/mistaken of fact
-Ignorance of the law is not an excuse, expected that public is informed on law
-Can only be used as defense if government has not made public aware of new laws
-Can only be used as an excuse if you are unaware of underlying facts (buying a previously stolen item unknowingly)
122
NCRMD
-Not guilty by reason of insanity
-Does not result in acquittal
123
Acquittal
Judgement that a person is not guilty of the crime with which the person has been charged with
124
M'Naghten rule
-Outlines the principle for criminal responsibility
-An accused cannot be held legally liable if they
1) did not know what they are doing
2) cannot distinguish from right or wrong
125
Self-induced intoxication
-Cannot be used for violent offenses (2 exceptions)
1) If someone becomes intoxicated through force, by mistaken, under duress
2) Specific intent is needed for the mens rea of the offense
126
Duress
-Accused has been threatened by another party with death or serious bodily harm
-Cannot be argued in cases where an accused does serious harm to another person, even to save themselves or another person
-Threat must be immediate
-Accused cannot be a member of the group planning to commit an offence Eg) gang
127
Necessity
-Law must be broken to avoid greater evil
-Will never justify killing of another person
128
Morris case
-Morris charged with assault for grabbing wife's neck during altercation.
-He was truing to prevent her from jumping out of moving vehicle
-He assaulted her in order to prevent a greater harm
129
Self-defence
-Just enough force necessary to protect oneself against unprovoked assault
-Can also apply if a third party is involved
-Can be used to defend property as a last resort if force is reasonable (Human life always takes priority over possessions)
130
What are the conditions for self-defense
1) Must have reasonable belief that they are in danger/significant harm and that using force is necessary to prevent harm
2) Amount of force used must be no greater than necessary
131
Entrapment
-Law enforcement encouraged the commission of the crime
-Officers plan a crime, share the plan and then pressure a person to commit the act
-Police cannot induce another person to break the law
132
"Providing an opportunity" VS random virtue testing
-Police can provide an opportunity
-Police cannot create random virtue tests (leaving something valuable to see who takes the bait)
-Mr big operations are a legal policing tactic
133
Victimology
-Can play an active or indirect role in incident
-Study of the victims role in the crime
-Offenderology
134
Offendorology
Focus on criminal offenders and failure to consider victims
135
Active role
Provoking or insulting the eventual attacker
136
Indirect role
-Choosing a career or lifestyle that brings them to high-crime areas or situations
-Victim is making choices that is more likely to subject them to victimization
137
3 theories of victimization
1) victim precipitation theory
2) Lifestyle theories
3) Routine activities theory
138
1) Victim precipitation theory
-Victims behavior or characteristics (provocation, open displays of wealth etc) can precipitate or bring about the initial offense
-Studies why certain people are more likely to be victims
-Active precipitation and passive precipitation
139
2) Lifestyle theories
-Lifestyle of the victim (how often they go out, who they spend their time with etc)
-Crime is not random
1) equivalent group hypothesis
2) Proximity hypothesis
3) Deviant place hypothesis
140
3) Routine activities theory
-Crime motivation is constant
-routine activities of modern living will help offenders identify a target
-There will always be law-breaking
141
Active precipitation
-When victims use threats or attack first
-In some cases, active precipitation can form a justification of self defence: R V lavalle
-Mitigating factors will give the attacker a lighter sentence (due to being provoked first)
142
Passive precipitation
-Personal characteristics that unknowingly threatens or encourages the attacker
-Aggravating factors will give the accused a harsher sentence
143
R v Lavallee
-Acquitted
-Had a gun and shot her abusive husband
-Her husband handed her a gun and told her "either shoot me or i will kill you"
-He initiated the violence himself and was actively bringing about his own victimization
-Self-defence
144
1) equivalent group hypothesis
-Criminals and victims are not separate groups
-Chronic offenders typically have been a victim
145
2) Proximity hypothesis
-People become crime victims because they work/live close to criminal populations
-Physical location of the victim
-"wrong place at the wrong time"
146
3) deviant place hypothesis
-Crime has natural areas
-Poor, densely populated residential properties
147
What are the 3 variables for routine activities theory
1) lack of capable guardians (police presence, no security or cameras, no lighting)
2) Motivated offenders (Someone looking to engage in a crime)
3) Suitable targets (unlocked car, goods that can easily be obtained)
148
Issues with the routine activities theory
-People can have high risk factors and not be crime victims
-Assumes that everyone acts under the same motivations
-Too much focus on the victim
-Doesn't consider violence in the home
149
Systematic factors
-Women are more likely to get support over men
150
Support for victims
1) victim impact statements: Used to give victims a voice in justice process
2) Victim compensation: Resources vary depending on province
3) Pretrial safety: Peace bonds, restraining orders, restriction of communication between offender and victim
4) Victim-offender reconciliation program: Separate justice system that brings victim and offender together to come to agreement
151
Target-hardening
-Using security devices (locks, alarms etc) to secure a property to prevent crime
-Taking measures to deter crime
-More guardianship
152
Displacement
-Effect of law enforcement/private security in one area moves crime to another area
-Target hardening is what causes this
-Displacement often occurs in areas that cannot afford to target harden
-When law enforcement causes displacement a policing strategy has been ineffective due to crime moving and not being stopped
