Unit 4 - AC3.4 - Evaluate the effectiveness of agencies in achieving social control Flashcards
what are the 6 agencies of social control
police, cps, judiciary, prisons, probation, charities and pressure groups
what are the social control responsibilities of the police
main agency for detection, investigation and prevention of crime / issue notices, cautions and reprimands / specialist departments for serious and complex cases
offences of public concern to the police
police have progressed in prioritising some offences of public concern / 2017 survey showed 2/3 of DA practitioners felt police approach improved / also showed staff shortages which cause less social control
what are the 2 police effectiveness and performance criticisms
current trends and racism / bias
why are current trends a police criticism
more crimes but fewer solved
by how much did crime rise march 2016 - june 2020
4.5 m - 5.8 m
how much have 5% of cases charged fallen 2015-2020
15% - 7%
what is the evidence to show police fail to investigate many reports
2013 - 2018 police dropped 2.9 times as many cases on day of report
what is the evidence to show major funding cuts in police forces
budget cut by 19%
why might police stats not show effectiveness of socialcontrol
crime increases may be due to better recording from police not from more crimes committed - police have made efforts to improve crime recording eg DA
why is racism and bias a police criticism
creates a negative relationship so hinders ability to achieve social responsibility
what did the Macpherson report in 1999 on Stephen lawrence death find
the met police is institutionally racist
what is the relationship between the police and minority groups
recruitment has increased but still underrepresented / stop and searches are unproportionate
what stats prove that the cps has been effective
around 80% of defendants that it prosecutes are convicted
what are the 3 criticisms of the cps efficiency
media reports, budget cuts and failure to build cases
why are media reports a criticism of the cps
theyre often not favourable - criticisms from the guradian in 2018 around handling rape cases
what did the guardian say in 2018 about the cps
rape prosecutors were advised to drop weak cases to improve conviction rate by 61% if dropped 350 - limiting access to justice for young, student and ill victims as juries are less likely to convict so cases get dropped
why are budget cuts a criticism of the cps
the cps lost 25% of its budget and 1/3 of its staff. cps cant sustain further cuts due to advanced tech for criminals - one case took 600 hours to analyse a phone - this put off cps doing thorough checks so fails to discover a lot of info
what case shows that budget cuts are a criticism of the cps
Liam Allen 2018 - case collapsed as evidence was disclosed after trial began - led to 30 other cases being reviewed or halted that were supposed to go to court
why are failures to build cases a criticism of the cps
it leads to case collapses
which case shows that failure to build cases is a criticism of the cps
10 year old damiola taylor’s murder - case was rested on an obviously lying witness and proper checks would have revealed this
what is the criticism about the cps and police relationship
too close and cps is too bureaucratic, insufficient and slow so people have to put their lives on hold for ages
on what is the effectiveness of the judiciary in achieving social control based on
ability to remain impartial
what are the three factors of the judiciary that can effect impartiality
biased judgements / out of touch? / too lenient?
how may judges be biased in their judgements
they usually come from narrow sections of society so may have biased judgements
what % of judges are male
68%
what % of judges are 50+
70%
minority ethnic groups are under-represented, but what % of judges are in these groups
7%
what % of judges were privately educated
74%
what do these percentages about judges suggest about judges
they may be biased towards people of the same background as them and a lack of empathy towards others.
why might age not actually make a difference in sentencing decisions
most offenders are young
why might judges be out of touch
their age, education and class makes them atypical members of society
what portrays judges as out of touch with mainstream modern society
media stereotypes, especially with public views on sentencing
who was the researcher from australia that interviewed jurors about judges
Warner et al
what were the findings of warner et al
most jurors didnt think that judges were out of touch with public opinion or sentencing
what is the unduly lenient sentences scheme
allows for an application to the attorney / solicitor general for a sentence to be reviewed if they feel it was unduly lenient
what sentences does the unduly lenient scheme apply to
serious offences like murder and rape
what happen in the process of increasing a sentence
1 - minister agrees that the judge made a gross error 2 - minister asks court of appeal to review sentence 3 - increase if neccesary
in 2018, how many cases of sentences were increased
99/140
what is the overall opinion on if judges are too lenient
judges aren’t unduly lenient as sentences they pass are effective in achieving social control
How do prisons aim to achieve social control
By punishing offenders and rehabilitating them
What do critics argue about the prison system
It is in crisis and aren’t able to work effectively
What are the 7 criticisms of prisons
Staffing cuts / overcrowding / not addressing rehab needs / a drugs epidemic / security / safety / riots and disorder
Why are staffing cuts a prison criticism
2010-18 police officers fell 15%, and 1/3 of officers had less than 2 years experience
Why is overcrowding a prison criticism
Population doubled from 93-2021, 2018 58% of prisons overcrowded, leads to discontent and rule breaking
why is not addressing rehabilitation needs a prion criticism
leads to not adressing causes so root problems arent solved - recidivism, short sentences dont give enough time to adress complex needs
why is a drugs epidemic a prison criticism
increased use of new psychoactive substances like spice- 100 x more potent than cannabis=agression, psychosis and depression, 2013-2018 117 drug deaths and no strategy to decrease use, reduces participation in rehab and creates debt amongst inmates so more violence
why is security a prison criticism
low escape numbers but many security breaches like drugs, phones and other smuggled items
why is safety a prison criticism
assults, self-harm and suicides have rised- since 2020 - 9800 assaults, 76 suicides 65000 self-harm (5 homicides)
why are riots and disorder a prison criticism
breakdowns of order and control have risen eg, HMP Birmingham 2016 riots and many others
what evidence is there around reoffending rates
36% of all offenders reoffend , 64% of those on short sentences reoffend, 37% of juvenile offenders reoffend
what is the overall evidence for prison effectiveness
ineffective in achieving social control while imprisoned and rehabilitating them for post-prison life
what are the two types of probation services that there have been
public sector (National probation service (nps)) ans private sector (community rehabilitation centres (crc))
why was the nps privatised and when
2014 - 2020 - tories launched a ‘rehabilitation revolution’ to reduce rehabilitation - 21 crc’s were introduced to deal with low risk offenders
what were the results of the 21 companies
19/21 failed to meet targets, had extra £342million pumped in
what did the 2018 report of crc’s reveal about their housing results ans supervision
less housing needs met and only supervised by telephone, only 54% of cases were supervised // 70% were when nps
what did the 2018 report of crc’s reveal about their protection of vulnerable people
inadequate protection for victims and their children when domestic abusers returned to communities
what did the 2018 report of crc’s reveal about their staffing
cutting staff to save money so higher caseloads
how do nps and prison reoffending rates compare
prison has double the amount of reoffending
what are the nps criticisms
staff shortages / high workloads to less effective work / no national strategy to provide specialist services / shortage of specialist programmes
why are charities and pressure groups effective
better at reducing recidivism as have strong passions and commitment to the group ans specialist knowledge - more motivated than crc’s and nps
what is nacro
a pressure group for ending friday releases as they make up 1/3 and means people have less time to access essential services // provides accommodation for ex-offenders
how has WIP pressured agencies to change 2 policies
called gov to drop plans to build 5 new womens prisons but to invest that money in rehab and support centres // called courts to only use prisons as a last resort - 84% of womens prison sentences are for non-violent crimes
what are the 3 criticisms of charities and pressure groups effectiveness
theyre voluntaty - only exist where there is a concern eg if no concern for abusers then missed opportunity for rehab // media reporting - if negative then harder for charities to build support and vice versa // funding - easier to get donations for some groups than others, gov will only donate if they agree
