Violent crime
The “FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program is comprised of 4 offenses, murder and no negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault”(FBI, 2015). This includes any and all crime that involve force or threat of force. Theories are suggested to help us better understand the reasons behind violent crime. ADD theory. A normative conflict between subcultures has been traditionally considered a major cause of high crime rates in an area, (Blau & Blau 1982:p116) in addition to the labeling theory being used as a way to analyze the influence of social reaction to deviance. Though labeling theory does subject some groups to being treated equal. However, our law enforcement already does not treat all genders and races
…show more content…
the same. Socioeconomic status, (SES) had been a probable cause for why some choose to commit crime. (Blau & Blau 1982) concluded that Americans are most (anxious) about “murder, rape, robbery and assault”, also known as violent crime (Blau & Blau1982: page 118). The National Crime Survey (NCS) and NCVS data for 1973 to 2005 have found that female-to-male offending rate ratios for aggravated assault, robbery, and simple assaulst have increased over time and that the narrowing of the gender gaps is very similar to patterns in UCR arrest data (Lauritsen, Heimer, &Lynch 2009: p306). This is important due to the fact that prior to 2000, women were less likely to commit crime. The reasoning behind this increase is possibly due to the change in new laws, such as the new requirement that mandatory arrest occur when domestic violence calls are made and the categorization of crime by the police. This closed the gap between males and females These alterations would show crime to have increased for this gender while also closing the gap between males and females. (Lauritsen, Heimer, &Lynch 2009) demonstrate that by using the NCVS, males are still the leading gender in aggravated assault. (Lauritsen, Heimer, &Lynch 2009) compares NVCS to UCR in aggravating assault, robbery and simple assaults. They conclude and verify that the crime gap has changed over the years, moving closer together. “ United states has one of the highest crime rates in the world” Followill, P.(2016).
The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA), “ criminalizes instances of domestic violence interstate or foreign travel”. A restriction of domestic violence convictions is the banning of possession of a firearm. This VAWA act “ applies to both men and women, and protects a spouse, intimate partner or dating partner”. This act prevents any individual from committing or attempting to commit a crime of violence while travel. Violating this act can range in federal prison time, 5 year to life, with possible fines.
“ If the violation results in serious bodly injury or involves the use of a dangerous weapon, up to ten years in prison can be served. If the victim is permanently disfigured or sustains a life- threatening injury are to serve up to twenty year in prison. If the victim dies federal prison up to life is given. “
(18 U.S.C. § 2261)
If a child witnesses the act of violence, the offender may be charged with additional offences in addition to possible protective orders. The judges can issue these orders, If a violation occurs the offender may face new criminal charges, in addition to any charges from the first offence. “ Intentional violations of protective orders are punished as criminal acts by many
states. Gender Crime has always been studied separated by gender while being compared to other probable reasoning or characteristics. Theories have been formulated to assist scholars and agencies in discovering why people deviate from crime. The Strain theory was developed from the work of Durkheim and Merton. It explains that people commit crime due to the pressures within a society. Broidy argues that “crime stems from the inability to achieve the goal of monetary success, middle class status or both” (Broidy & Agnew 2008:p 276. The general strain theory can possibly explain the reasons behind why males are more violent than females. Durkheim and Merton’s theory emphases ones social structure within society may pressure an individual to deviant, for example a man being expected to demonstrate masculinity. For the sport of football “violent behavior may be expressly or implicitly encouraged by team coaches, administrators and owners” (Gulotta,1980: p 773). On some professional teams, the coach does everything he can to get players in an emotional pitch, which on occasion leads them to do things they might not normally do, and, might not really want to do. Violence is encouraged because it serves two purposes for professional athletic teams, it sells tickets and spectators look for a fight during a sporting event, “as a highlight”(Gulotta, 1980: p773). While the aggressive play often intimidates opposing players, thus giving the aggressor's team a competitive advantage. ADD my own thoughts
Lilly, Robert J., Francis T. Cullen, and Richard A. Ball. 2011. Criminological Theory: Context And Consequences. 5th ed. California: SAGE.
Labelling theory: The theory that the terms crime, deviance, or punishment are labels, variously applied by act of power and not some natural reflection of events – American criminologist Howard Becker
Blocher, Joseph. "Firearm Localism." Yale Law Journal 123.1 (2013): 82-146. Academic Search Premier. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
The presence of crime in the inner cities of America is the result of many different factors. Although it is impossible to explain the issue with one single theory, it is possible to recognize the characteristics within society that have traditionally been associated with crime. These include poor neighborhoods, weak family structures and high rates of unemployment. However, they cannot be used to explain overarching mechanisms of extremely high rates of American urban crime today. Social structures as well as cultural conditions play strong explanatory roles in describing the causes of crime in American cities. Some prominent social structural theories include social disorganization theory, strain theory, and cultural deviance theory.
Akers, R, & Sellers, C. (2009). Criminological theories: introduction, evaluation, and application. New York: Oxford University Press, USA.
Crime has always been a hot topic in sociology. There are many different reasons for people to commit criminal acts. There is no way to pinpoint the source of crime. I am going to show the relationship between race and crime. More specifically, I will be discussing the higher chances of minorities being involved in the criminal justice system than the majority population, discrimination, racial profiling and the environment criminals live in.
Many people in the world today criticize and objectify specific people, merely by their outward appearance, as more likely to commit crime or other violent acts. A theory well known to criminologists is one devised by criminologists of the Chicago school, scholars whose main area of focus were urban, impoverished areas, and called their findings the Social Disorganization Theory in which it offers an idea as to why crime occurs in urban settings. The theory explains how American society is centered on the economy and individual achievement, otherwise known as “The American Dr...
Lilly, J. Robert, Francis T. Cullen, and Richard A. Ball. 2011. Criminological Theory: Context and Consequences. 5th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
For decades researchers have speculated about the relationship between levels of violence, and societal conditions such as poverty, urbanism, population composition, and family disruption. National and international level research has concluded that each of these factors are related to crime rates and their trends overtime (Avison & Loring, 1986; Lafree, 1999, Lauristen & Carbone-Lopez, 2011). To examine these factors more closely we should recognize that they are the foundation of many criminological theories, both motivational and control, applied to the macro and individual level. Specifically, these include social disorganization theory (Shaw & MCkay, 1942), anomie-strain theory (Merton, 1968), violent subcultural theories (Anderson, 1999), social bond theory (Hirschi, 1969), self-control theory (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990), and biosocial perspectives (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1983).
From the Internet, The National Rifle Association, Handgun Control Inc., Violence Policy Center, The Department of Transportation, The Journal of Firearms and Public Policy, Gun Owners of America, USA Today, The 2nd Amendment Law Library,
Walker, S., Spohn, C., & DeLone, M. (2011). The color of justice: Race, ethnicity, and crime in America. Cengage Learning.
Rosen, Lawrence. “The Creation of the Uniform Crime Report: The Role of Social Science.” JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2011.
Crime and criminalization can be ambiguous; crime is only crime until certain authorities deem the actions illegal. However, social inequalities can lead to increased crime rates, notions such as gender, age, race, and class influence crime and provide criminologist with the date to determine who is most likely to commit a crime and where.
..., Larry J. (2006). Criminology: Theories, Patterns, & Typologies, 9th edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing. ISBN 0-495-00572-X. Print. 25 Feb 2014.
These basic descriptive properties are a key factor to help answer the researcher’s overall question of who commits crime. In relevance, gender will also play an interesting role in determining who commits more motor vehicle thefts between men or women? When it comes to race, the researcher would want to determine which race commits more motor vehicle thefts, ranging from African Americans, Hispanics, Whites, Asians, and others? Lastly, the researcher must also focus on what age group commits motor vehicle theft more often. This may lead to one of the most interesting character descriptions to