Unit 1 AC1.3 The consequences of unreported crime Flashcards
CULTURAL
Sometimes there are cultural differences that make actions criminal in one country and not another. Cultural differences may mean that crimes are under-reported or not recognised. It can be difficult to understand cultures that are very different from our own. Often people will turn a blind eye to actions or customs that are alien to ours. They may feel that it is not their place to interfere and therefore criminals and potential criminals believe they can proceed without consequences.
CULTURAL CHANGE
Within our own communities it may become the culture for crimes to be committed. Crime becomes a natural consequence of a culture shift, almost a way of life. For instance, illegal video streaming, from sports to movie channels, regularly takes place. Within a community many people may not see this as a crime, so it is not reported as such and hence becomes acceptable.
DECRIMINALISATION
Laws are frequently altered because they cannot be imposed or enforced. For example, the use of cannabis can be quite open in some places in the UK, because the police choose not to act. Eventually the government has little choice but to decriminalise such offences because it has to accept that the criminal act cannot be controlled because people no longer take notice of the law.
UNRECORDED CRIME
Unrecorded crime involves crimes that are reported to the police but are not recorded by them as offences. This means an investigation into the alleged crime is unlikely to happen and the offender will not be punished, or other crimes prevented. Clearly, the more serious these offences are, the more serious the consequences should be.
LEGAL CHANGE
Crimes may go unreported for a long time because they are perceived as human rights. For instance, homosexuality was illegal within the UK for many years. As the stigma towards homosexuality has reduced, legal changes have been made to the laws surrounding it. In October 2015 same-sex marriage was legalised, in this way failing to report crime can have a positive consequence. Similarly, there has been substantial legal change towards the smoking of cigarettes. Once glamourised, the stigma has increased and therefore legal restrictions have increased.
POLICE PRIORITISATION
The police often prioritise certain crimes, ensuring that issues in a local area are addressed. This means that some crimes are not prioritised or are not investigated. For instance, in recent years there has been a rise in the number of sexual abuse cases, historic offences and reported domestic assault. The police have responded to the public’s expectations for these crimes to be investigated. However, given the cost of both time and money on investigations, the police do not have the capacity to deal with all the crime.
PROCEDURAL CHANGE
The actual procedural way of reporting crime has developed over the years to encourage reporting to take place. Traditionally, visiting the police station or, in an emergency, telephoning 999 were the common methods for reporting a crime. Now other procedures have been introduced to report crime to the police. Some groups such as victim support can help people report offences. It is even possible to report a crime anonymously, for example through CrimeStoppers. There are specialised teams of police that deal with certain crimes such as hate crime, terrorism, fraud or anti-social behaviour that encourage crimes of that nature to be reported. There are also several apps that can be downloaded to a mobile phone to allow quick access to the police. In addition, some makes of mobile phones can connect to the police by shaking them or quick pressing on the on/off button. These are positive consequences from procedural change.
RIPPLE EFFECT
A ripple effect describes how the impact of crime can spread beyond the immediate victim throughout their family, friends and community. In other words, it ripples out much wider than the initial victims.
DECRIMINALISATION
Decriminalisation - Stop something from being illegal.
PERPETRATORS
Perpetrators - People who commit criminal acts (offenders).
LEGALISED
Legalised - Make an act legal within the law.
HISTORIC OFFENCES
Historic Offences - Crimes that were committed many years ago but are being prosecuted now, often due to the delay in reporting them to the police.
STIGMA
Stigma - A mark of disgrace associated with something.
PROCEDURE
Procedure - an established or official way of doing something
