Bail Bonds System An area of the criminal justice system that has seemingly been around forever is the bail bonds system. Bail is an amount of money given to the courts by an accused person to be released from jail (Lartey, 2017). Bail is different for a variety of offenses. For felonies, bail may be set very high or even denied. Misdemeanors usually receive a lesser amount of bail but it is still significant and other crimes have a set rate of bail for a specified crime. I chose to discuss this issue because of it being current topic within the government, the social distress it causes, and the antiquity of the laws set that guide the bail system.
Summary of Issue Bail started as a way to get individuals to show up to their court appearance to receive their punishment. Lack of attendance was high so this seemed to be a promising solution. This system was created during a time when “burning at the stake” was a punishment, which is no wonder why
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This theory says that the more strain someone experiences the more likely they will engage in criminal behavior (Lilly, & et. al., 2015). Three strains are: inability to reach one’s goals, loss of something of value, and being treated in a negative manner by others. Using an example of a male in his mid-thirties with two kids and a wife. They live in a working class zone but make just enough money to get by on their two salaries. This man gets arrested for open intoxication. He arrives at the jail and is unable to pay the set bail fee. The family is now without the main breadwinner and this brings social disorganization into the household. He is experiencing the strain of the bail being unjust, it is high in magnitude, there is the strain of losing his job, and these strains create pressure for him to engage in criminal activity upon release. Strain theory is a great example of how the cash bail system is unjust and contributes to making the poor,
Conclusion: Congress hoped to achieve a greater degree of accuracy in assessing flight and danger of arrestees through establishing the Bail Reform Act of 1984, which set objective guidelines for judicial officers in assessing release conditions including taking into account for the first time the probability an offender will re-offend while on pretrial release. It was also hoped that the Act would bring back the community's trust in bond setting practice. Overall, the benefits of the Bail Reform Act of 1984 do exceed any detriments, but some problems do exist. These problems include the uniformity in the application of the Bail Reform Act of 1984, as well as the interpretation of dangerousness to the community. Through future legislative and executive reform, this Act will go through multiple changes until these issues are addressed.
2014). The presumption that an individual’s urge to engage in criminal activities is based on his/her inadequacy to achieve goals of a society legitimately leading to societal or personal strain is the argument basis of sociological strain theory. General strain theory attempt to give understanding of crime through one’s lack of ability to obtain financial security (ÖZBAY, Ö. 2014)... Meaning that one’s might be more willing to commit unlawful act based on their need to achieve goals such as money, respect, or the need for
According to Robert Agnew, “Strain Theory is based on the idea that delinquency results when individuals are unable to achieve their goals through legitimate channels, achievement or strike out at the source of their frustration in anger”. (Agnew, R. (1985). A Revised Strain Theory of Delinquency. Oxford journals. 64(1).151-166). The norms are violated to alleviate the strain that accompanies failure. When a good look is taken at the theories the strains might not only come from peoples frustrations with acquiring “ The American Dream”, but it becomes a mixture of strains such as economic deprivation, abuse, neglect, or the loss of a loved one. However, most people that experience strains do not commit crimes.
The General Strain Theory scope has an intention of providing a clear explanation for why and why not crime occurs across all levels of society, while maintaining that stress is a major cause of criminal involvement. When people experience negative emotions, such as anger, frustration, or depression, they are in result unhappy and upset, thus experiencing strains or stressors (Ganem, 2010). Crime is then a way of reducing or escaping from these strains, and it is their method of coping with their emotions. According to Agnew, “Strains refer to events or conditions that are disliked by individuals (1992,
Prisons are institutionalized systems that hold people hostage against their will. Many believe that these institutions are fundamental to keeping balance within society. Although prison systems are meant to seclude troubled individuals, they should go beyond just containing criminals. The judicial system is responsible for correcting and eliminating future delinquent behavior before they can be effectively re-suspended back into society. In saying this, the court system does not implement these actions within prison systems, failing to fulfil the goals and the function of the prison overall.
The principle of bail is basic to our system of justice and its practice as old as English law itself. When the administration of criminal justice was in its infancy, arrest for serious crime meant imprisonment without preliminary hearing and long periods of time could occur between apprehension and the arrival of the King's Justices to hold court. It was therefore a matter of utmost importance to a person under arrest to be able to obtain a provisional release from custody until his case was called. This was also the desideratum of the medieval sheriff, the representative of the Crown in criminal matters,
General Strain Theory was discussed by Robert Agnew, and first published in 1992. According to General Strain Theory individuals engage in crime because of strains or stressors which produce anger and anxiety (Agnew, 1992). Crimes become the outlet that the individual uses to cope with or remedy the strains or stressors. Agnew states that there are three different types of deviance producing strains.
United States locks up more people, per capita, than any other nation. Bail system has failed to keep people arrested out jail and the increasing rate of people in jail is alarming. Many District Attorney forment defendant to take a plea deal, instead of waiting for a trial (Buettner). Bail reform has help put fewer people in jail, but has lead to many lost jobs for people who works at the jail. Bail system is a profit motive for the bail industry.
... people commit crimes and are not limited to one aspect like the original theory. For example, Merton strain theory just looked one aspect of blocked opportunities to unable achieve economic success. Differential Opportunity theory helped explain the different illegitimate means that causes people to commit crimes for example poverty and high concentrations of youth living in slums (Murphy & Robinson, 2009). Agnew General Strain theory takes a micro approach into looking at the different types of strain that causes people to commit crimes (Lilly et al.2010). Even though these theories explain certain aspects of what causes crime, it does not explain the sole cause of why criminal behavior occurs or why one commits different crimes. However integrated theories are helpful to understand certain aspects of why people commit crimes and engage in deviant behavior.
In classic strain theory it is said that, Classic strain theory focuses on that type of strain involving the inability to achieve success or gain a middle class status. General Strain theory focuses on a broad range of strains, including the inability to achieve a variety of goals, the loss of valued possessions, and negative treatment by others. General Strain Theory has been applied to a range of topics, including the explanation of gender, race/ethnicity, age, community, and societal differences in crime
Strain theory is the inability to achieve one’s goals because of the loss of positive stimuli, or the presentation of negative stimuli. Strain theory may play a pivotal role in some of my peer 's lives due to their inability to achieve their goals. In class we talk about how strain theory cause great deal of crimes through means of certain strains or stressors, which increasing the likelihood of crime. Examples of Stressors and strains is not having positive role model this may influence crimes to happen. Other issue of strains that may play a role in crime is the inability of gaining monetary success. Monetary success usually cause problems that arise due to the lack of income or lack of quality education that would drives individuals to commit crime. My perspective to general strain theory is that a lot pressure was put on me to succeed in life, and that played a factor in my of my own strain to succeed, we didn’t have a lot income in the house, but my parents did provide everything in order for me to succeed. People such as Robert Merton believed that when societal norms only accepted goals, such as the 'American Dream, ' which then place pressure on the individual to conform, they force the individual to either work within the society has produced, or instead becomes a members of a deviant subculture in an attempt to achieve those
By definition, anomie is defined as the lack of social regulations within a society that upholds deviant behavior (Akers and Sellers, 174). According to Cloward and Ohlin, delinquency occurs because individuals are presented with the opportunity to do so. However, the strain theory is defined as the result of the lack of social regulations. Strain theory refers to the pressure that delinquent groups are faced with when it comes to taking advantage to the opportunities around them (Akers and Sellers, 175). The opportunities that are often discussed and associated with strain theory are the different types of crimes that an individual is presented with so that he or she can achieve some sort of income. The opportunities are either legal or illegal (Akers and Sellers,
Prison is an institution for the confinement of persons convicted of criminal offenses. Throughout history, most societies have built places in which to hold persons accused of criminal acts pending some form of trial. The idea of confining persons after a trial as punishment for their crimes is relatively new.
This could explain the effect of strains on crime by taken this theory into account. Once strain causes bonds to weaken amongst conventional groups and institutions such as family, school, and peer networks will open up doors to delinquent behaviors, because by being in these social roles causes the person to regulate by role expectations.
Strain theories of criminal behaviour have been amongst the most important and influential in the field of criminology. Taking a societal approach, strain theories have sought to explain deficiencies in social structure that lead individuals to commit crime (Williams and McShane 2010). Strain theories operate under the premise that there is a societal consensus of values, beliefs, and goals with legitimate methods for achieving success. When individuals are denied access to legitimate methods for achieving success, the result is anomie or social strain. This often leads an individual to resort to deviant or criminal means to obtain the level of success that they are socialized to pursue. This is the basic premise of strain theory. This paper will explore the evolution of strain theories by first examining their intellectual foundations which laid the foundation for Robert Merton’s theories of anomie and strain. Merton’s strain theory will be discussed in detail including the modes of adaptation that people use when faced with societal strain. Finally, the paper will conclude with the strengths and weaknesses of Merton’s strain theory and an examination of the criminological theories and social policies it has influenced.