midterm Flashcards
criminology definition
is the body of knowledge regarding crime as a social phenomenon. which includes the process of making, breaking, and reacting to laws
6 major areas of criminology:
- the definition of crime and criminals
- the origins and role of law
- the social distribution of crime
- the causation of crime
- patterns of criminal behaviour
- societal reactions to crime
emerging fields in criminology
- green criminology
- terrorism studies
- surveillance studies
green criminology
- grounded to the notion of morality and rights should be extended to non human nature
range of work in green criminology
- law breaking with respect to pollution
- destruction of the environment
- justice for nonhuman nature
- environmental risks and their impact on poor populations
- animal rights issues
- prosecution of polluters
terrorism studies range of work
- recruitment and trining of terrorists
- links between terrorism and other types of criminality
- the war on terrorism
- terrorism, counter terrorism, and the rule of law
- state sponsored terrorism
- organizational structure/dynamics of terrorist groups
surviellance studies
- it is a global perspective
- it is multidisciplinary
surveillance studies range of work
- human rights and surveillance architectures
- privacy rights and the need for surveillance
- commercialization of citizens data by corporations
- social consequences of surveillance technologies
legal definition of crime
a crime is an act that violates the criminal law and is punishable with jail terms, fines, and other sanctions
what is crime
- crime is socially defined and is relative based on time and place
crime vs deviance:
- deviance is broader
- all criminal acts are deviant but not all deviant acts are criminal
why should people study crime
- is worthwhile to understand criminality
- we need to understand crime in order to prevent it
- crime affects us all, as victims, offenders, or employees of the justice system
two approaches to rule making
- the consensus appraoch and the conflict appraoch
consensus approach to rule making
laws represent the agreement of most of the people in society that certain acts should be prohibited by criminal law
the conflict approach
laws are passed by members of the ruling class in order to maintain their privileged position by keeping the common people under control
what is a crime
a crime consists of a prohibition against certain conduct adn penal snactions (ie. fine or imprisonment)
indictabble offences:
murder, kidnapping, terrorism, drug trafficking, robbery, etc
summary conviction offences
possession of marijuana under 30 gramns, soliciting a postitutute, patronizing a brothel, etc
mixed or hybrid offences
may be tried as any of the two categories above. they include assault, sexual assault, assault causing bodily harm, assault with a weapon, theft under 5k, fraud under 5k
two elements of a crime
- act reus
- mens rea
actus reus
must be shown that an event was caused by the accused persons conduct. consists of:
- conduct (voluntary)
- circumstances
- consequences
actus reus it is a crime if:
- there was a pre existing duty to act (parents, employers, spouses, etc)
- if an individual creates a hazardous situation
duty to rescue laws in the US by state:
massachusetts, cali, florida, hawaii, ohio, vermont, washington, wisconsin, rislanf
mens rea
refers to the mental elements contained in the defintion of a criminal offence
- normally refers to the internt or guilty mind
two types of mens rea
objective and subjective
subjective mens rea
- based on the notion that the accused should not be convicted unless: -
- they deliberately intended the consequences
- they subjectively realized these consequences might occur
- they were willfully blind to the consequences
objective mens rea
- persons should be convicted if a reasonable person would have appreciated the risk involved and avoided act
- ## the judge or jury decides where they acted reasonably
what is criminal law:
a body of jurisprudence that includes the definition of various crimes, the specification fo penalties, a set of general principles concerning criminal responsibility, and a series of defences to criminal charges
key ingredients of criminal law
- must prohibit a certain conduct
- must impose a certain penalty for the prohibited conduct
- must be directed against a public evil
sources of criminal law
- common/case law
- constitution
- statues
- international law
- administrative law
parties to a criminal offence
one can be convicted of a criminal offence if one commits it; aids or abets it; or counsels the commission of an offence that is committed by someone else
counselling crime with the internet
the internet and computers did not exist when counsel laws are passed therefore the law must change
defences of mental disorder (NCRMD)
- not held criminally responsible if: they did not know the nature and quality of the act or they didnt know the act was wrong
- but can be held as long as they are a treat to the public
defence of mistake of fact
accused acts under the influence of an honest mistake in relation to any of the elements in actus reus
defence of intoxication
may be a defence if it prevents the accused from forming the intent required for a specific intent offence such as murder or robbery
defence of necessity
may be a defence to a criminal charge when the accused person commits the lesser evil of a crime in order to avoid the occurrence of a greater evil
defence of duress
may be a defence when the accused was forced to commit a crime as a consequence of treats of death or serious bodily harm made by another person
defence of provocation
- the accused responded to a wrongful act or insult that was of such nature that anyone would have lost control
- they acted on the urge before there was time to think and cool down
- can reduce murder to manslaughter
defence of self defence
where an individual becomes the victim of an unlawful assault, but the force must not be more than what was necessary
terror, terrorism, and terrorist
- are derived from latin verbs which mean “to tremble” “cause to tremble” adn “frighten from”
terror inducing phenomena
- death
- natural disaster
- religion
- psychic terror
political terrorism
- furtherance of a political cause
- genocide, masacre, assassination, torture, physical beatings
what is terrorism
the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to induce fear, intended to coerce or intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological
four waves of modern terrorism:
- anarchist wave
- the anti colonial wave
- the new left wave
- the religious wave
anarchist wave:
activities of groups and individuals who refuse to recognize the authority of monarch and sought to destroy social order int eh late 19th and early 20th century. lead to the introduction of individual terrorism
anti colonial wave:
bbegan in the 1920s and was aimed at national self determination. the irish rebellion of 1919
the new left wave
emerged in the 1960s and was catalyzed by the vietnam war. it was concerned with the notion that present systems were not democratic. uses hostage taking as key strategy
the religious way
discriminatory interpretations of the bible causing disagreements
