Deviance and social control:

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DEFINING AND MEASURING CRIME

© cultura/Corbis

Media Library

CHAPTER 3 Media Library

V I D E OV I D E O

Chicago’s 2016 Killings

Terrorism Threats

C A R E E R V I D E OC A R E E R V I D E O

Crime Intelligence Analyst

C U R R E N T C O N T ROV E R S YC U R R E N T C O N T ROV E R S Y V I D E OV I D E O

Where Do You Stand? Cast Your Vo te! 3.1

Where Do You Stand? Cast Your Vo te! 3.2

3 CHAPTER

I

AU D I OAU D I O

Steubenville Teen Rape Case

Who Are America’s “Homegrown Te rrorists”?

W E BW E B

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI ) Uniform Crime Reports

National Crime Victimization Sur- vey (NCVS)

Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Sy stem (YRBSS)

S AG E J O U R N A L A RT I C L ES AG E J O U R N A L A RT I C L E

The Trajectory of White-Collar Cri me

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LEARNING OBJECTIVESLEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Identify the six different categories of crime

• Compare the differences between the Uniform Crime Reports, the National Incident-Based Reporting System, and the National Crime Victimization Survey

• Explain how crime rates are used to understand the prevalence of crime in society

• Assess how self-report studies of crime provide a different perspective on offending

n 2012, the city of Chicago registered 500 homicides, leading some to characterize the city as

the murder capital of the country.1

 

 

©iStockphoto.com/james Anderson

What effect do you think an increased police

presence may have had on the crime rate in

Chicago?

Certainly, there was a kernel of truth to

this characterization.2 Chicago had the highest murder count nationwide that year. This means that there were more murders in Chicago compared with other cities, such as New York City or Los Angeles. However, crime data can be deceiving. Chicago actually had fewer homicides in 2013—88 fewer deaths. In 2015, the murder rate for

the city was the lowest since 1965.3

Cities such as Detroit, Michigan; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Jackson, Mississippi, all had higher rates of homicide than Chicago when you take into account the populations of these cities. With more than 2.7 million residents, it is reasonable to assume that there will be a greater number of crimes compared with many other

cities in the United States.4

What has led to the changes in Chicago’s crime rate? Police have cited an increased police presence on the streets, targeted enforcement of gang activity, and an increase in community youth programs. Meanwhile, others have suggested that recent years are not reflective of the overall trend in the city and nationwide—that violent crime

has decreased since the early 1990s.5

Still others cite concerns about the way in which crimes are classified, which may provide inaccurate perceptions about whether crime is really

decreasing.6 Given the different voices on this issue, what should Chicago residents believe about crime and violence in their city?

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In Chapter 2, you learned that a crime is an act that goes against the law. In this sense, crimes can be harmful to either an individual or the community at large. In many cases, there are punishments associated with these violations. This chapter begins with a review of the different types of crime and how we classify these offenses. The chapter then turns to a discussion of how crime is measured in society. You’ll learn about the different official sources of crime data, such as the Uniform Crime Reports, the National Incident-Based Reporting System, and the National Crime Victimization Survey, as well as self- reported studies of crime. You’ll also learn about international databases of crime that can be used to understand the presence of crime around the world. The chapter concludes with two Current Controversy debates. The first, by Henry N. Pontell, Gilbert Geis, Adam Ghazi- Tehrani, and Bryan Burton, looks at whether white-collar crime is considered harmful to society. The second, by Phillip Kopp, asks whether burglary should be considered a violent crime.

VIDEO Chicago’s 2016 Killings CLICK TO SHOW

 

 

DEFINING CRIME

Even though we look at crime as a general category, there are several different categories of crime. Each of these categories contains several different types of crimes. In this book, crimes are organized into six categories: violent offenses, property offenses, status offenses, victimless crimes, white-collar offenses, and crimes against the government.

Violent Offenses

Violent offenses generally involve a criminal action against another person. When people tend to talk about crime, it is violent offenses that are typically the first that come to mind. Certainly, violent crime plays a major role in both fictionalized and true-crime portrayals and is responsible for much of the public’s fear of crime and victimization. Despite the high degree of attention that is given to violent crime, these acts are much less common than other forms of crime. Murder is a great example of this phenomenon.

”Even though the crime of murder invokes high levels of

fear among the public, it is the

least common type of crime.

Murder

Murder involves the killing of one human being by another. Even though the crime of murder invokes high levels of fear among the public, it is the least common type of

© Getty Images/CBS Photo Archive

Contrary to what is seen on popular

crime dramas, murder occurs less often

than other types of crimes. Why do you

think this difference exists, and how

might it affect the public’s perception of

crime. Murder also carries with it the most serious penalty; depending on the laws of the region where the crime was committed and the circumstances of the crime, an offender may be put to death as punishment. Within the crime of murder, there are several different degrees or classifications, in terms of severity and responsibility, to help distinguish different acts from each other. While the laws vary from state to state, murder can generally be classified into four subcategories:

• First-degree murder—generally includes acts that are premeditated, committed with malice, or committed during the commission of a felony.

• Second-degree murder—includes acts that are not premeditated or planned and do not involve torture.

• Voluntary manslaughter—involves acts in which the offender intended to take someone’s life, but there are mitigating circumstances that might excuse or minimize the actions of the offender. For example, crimes of passion are generally considered voluntary manslaughter.

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crime?

• Involuntary manslaughter—involves acts in which there was no intent to take someone’s life, but the loss of life occurred due to negligence. For

example, someone who drives while under the influence of alcohol and causes an accident that results in the death of another has committed involuntary manslaughter.

Sexual Assault

Another set of crimes that falls within the category of violent crime is rape and sex- ual assault. These acts involve sexual activity without consent. In many jurisdictions, the definition of rape involves unwanted penile–vaginal sexual contact or penetration, whereas sexual assault is considered a general term for all other forms of unwanted sexual contact, including genital fondling, forced oral copulation, sodomy, and penetration by a foreign object, among others. Many states also have laws prohibiting sexual contact with someone who is unable to consent due to intoxication or disability. Offenders who are in a position of trust (such as a teacher or clergy member) or who engage in multiple acts of sexual assault may be prosecuted under specific laws that allow for enhanced penalties. Finally, laws may also be distinguished by the age of the victim, as in the cases of child rape or molestation. However, not all sexually based offenses are considered violent crimes. Unlike other forms of violent sexual assault, statutory rape generally involves someone who is legally unable to consent to sexual activity due to her or his age. Statutory rape is considered a strict liability crime. As you learned in Chapter 2, a strict liability crime does not require someone to have mens rea in order for an act to be against the law. Some would

consider the crime of statutory rape a victimless crime, as individuals in these cases often do not define themselves as victims. Rather, they see themselves as willing participants in sexual activity. It is purely the legal distinction of who can and cannot consent that makes these acts crimes. For example, the age of sexual consent in California is 18, and anyone under 18 who engages in intercourse is in violation of the state’s statutory rape law. So two 17-year-olds who engage in intercourse would be breaking the law.

AUDIO Steubenville Teen Rape Case CLICK TO SHOW

Assault

Perhaps the most common form of violent crime is assault. Assault involves the physical harm (or the threat of physical harm) of a victim. Cases of assault are generally divided into two categories. Cases of simple assault generally do not involve the use of a weapon and minor, if any, injuries, whereas cases of aggravated assault may involve serious injury to the victim or the use of a weapon. For example, a bar fight between two individuals is often considered a simple assault. However, if one of the individuals pulls out a knife and stabs the other person during the fight, this would be considered an aggravated assault.

Robbery

The last type of violent crime is robbery. R obbery involves taking personal property from someone through the use of force or fear. In some cases, a weapon might be used to facilitate a robbery. Robbery is often confused with the crime of burglary. While both involve the taking of personal property, the crime of robbery involves a

 

 

face-to-face confrontation, whereas someone can be burglarized without being present. Crimes such as carjacking or purse snatching are examples of robbery.

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SPOTLIGHTSPOTLIGHT The SteubenvilleThe Steubenville High School RapeHigh School Rape CaseCase

Steubenville, Ohio, is a small town located along the Ohio River. According to the 2012 census, the town had only 18,429 residents, 79%

of whom are White.a Sporting events at the local high school are popular

community events, and Steubenville High School stands as one of the best football programs among high schools in the country and has won three state championships.

In August 2012, Steubenville was thrust into the national spotlight after a 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by several of her peers. What made this case particularly noteworthy is that her assault was videotaped, and her assailants posted the video on social-media sites, such as YouTube and Twitter. In the photos and videos, two Steubenville High football team members, Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond (both 16 at the time of the offense), are shown carrying the victim by her hands and feet, as she was so intoxicated that she was unable to walk. Video also documents the accused penetrating the victim’s vagina with their fingers and flashing her breasts to the

© REUTERS/Keith Srakocic/Pool

Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond

appear in juvenile court in

Steubenville, Ohio. Mays and

Richmond were adjudicated

delinquent of rape in a case that

highlighted the use of social media

and victimization. Should others

camera.b While under many state laws this would be considered sexual assault, Ohio’s state law includes digital penetration under its

definition of rape.c

Many blamed the victim (who was so intoxicated that she did not know she had been violated until she saw the photos and videos online) and called her a “train whore.” Even one of the football coaches joined in on the blaming, stating, “What else are you going to tell your parents when you come home drunk like that and after a night like that? She had to make up something. Now people are trying to blow up our football program

because of it.”d During the trial, the defense counsel introduced testimony that tried to paint the victim as culpable in her own attack by calling two former friends who testified that the victim not only had a history of drinking in excess but also told contradictory stories about

the events of the evening.e

 

 

who were involved have been held

accountable for these crimes?

CRITICALCRITICAL THINKINGTHINKING QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

1. How should these criminal acts be defined under the UCR, NIBRS, and NCVS? Do you believe that our data sources accurately capture these crimes?

2. How has social media altered the way in which we identify and apprehend

The judge found that the victim was so intoxicated that she lacked the cognitive ability to consent to sexual

activity.f Both Mays and Richmond were found guilty in juvenile court and sentenced to one year in the state juvenile correctional facility. Mays received an additional one-year sentence for the crime of distributing

nude images of a minor.g In her report of the verdict, CNN reporter Poppy Harlow critiqued the court’s decision, stating that it had been “incredibly difficult [to watch] as these two young men—who had such promising futures, star football players, very good students—literally watched as they believed their life

fell apart.”h On January 7, 2014, Richmond was released from custody after serving nine months of his sentence. Even though he was sentenced in the juvenile court, he is required to register as a sex offender

for the next 20 years.i Mays remains incarcerated.

offenders of crimes? How has it changed the way we think about victims of crime?

In addition to charging the assailants, officials have questioned whether bystanders and others involved in the

event should be charged with a crime. What about those who were not in attendance but shared photos and videos of the assault? What is their responsibility? These are people whose social-media commentary included statements such as “The song of the night is Rape Me by Nirvana” and “Some people just

deserve to be peed on.”j While none of these individuals have been charged with any crimes, the case does not end with Mays and Richmond, as several school personnel have been indicted by a grand jury on charges related to the rape case. William Rhinaman, who served as the school’s information technology director, and Superintendent Michael McVey have been indicted on charges that include tampering with evidence, obstruction of justice, obstructing official business, and perjury. Matthew Belardine, a volunteer football coach, was charged with allowing underage drinking and contributing to the delinquency of a child. In addition, two teenage girls received 6 months probation for threating the victim with bodily harm on Facebook and

Twitter.k

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Property Offenses

Property crimes are the most common criminal offense and involve the taking or damage of physical goods. Within this classification, there are several types of crimes. In the previous section, you learned a bit about burglary, which is considered a property crime. Burglary occurs when someone enters a building or other physical space (residence, business, or car) with the intent of taking property without permission. Note that the crime of burglary does not require that anything be taken, and it is the act of entering without permission that constitutes the crime. You’ll learn more about the crime of burglary in Current Controversy 3.2 at the end of this chapter. The most common property crime is larceny-theft. Larceny-t heft involves the taking of property without the use of force. Larceny-theft includes shoplifting and motor vehicle theft and can also be combined with acts of burglary in cases where property is taken during the course of unlawfully entering a building. Finally, acts such as vandalism and arson are also considered property crimes. Vandalism involves the destruction or damage of a physical structure or building. For example, smashing storefront windows during a riot is considered an act of vandalism. In comparison, the crime of arson involves the destruction of a physical structure or item (such as a home, business, or automobile) by fire.

© iStockphoto.com/4×6

© iStockphoto.com/stevecoleimages

Of the two crimes depicted above, which

would be considered robbery, and why?

p.52

Status Offenses

Status offenses are acts that are considered illegal for only certain groups of offenders. Status offenses are most commonly committed by juveniles, and certain acts are defined as illegal only because of the offender’s age. Examples of status offenses include truancy (skipping school), underage consumption of alcohol, and running away from home. Historically, juveniles could be institutionalized for engaging in these illegal acts. Today, these acts can lead to intervention by the juvenile court. You’ll learn more about these offenses and the response by the juvenile justice system in Chapter 12.

Victimless Crimes

Victimless crimes are acts that are considered illegal under the law but do not involve victims in the traditional sense. In many cases, the offenders engage in acts that are harmful only to themselves or that

 

 

are consensual. For example, the use of illicit substances is considered illegal under the law. However, some question whether drug use is a victimless crime. As a stand- alone offense, drug use is harmful to an individual. However, addiction can have collateral consequences and lead to other criminal offenses to support a drug habit. Drugs can also have large-scale implications for communities. So it remains to be seen whether drug use is a victimless crime. Another crime that is often considered victimless is prostitution. Pros titution involves the exchange of sexual favors for money or other resources. While there are certainly acts of prostitution that are considered consensual, others involve the exploitation of individuals or compelling people to engage in sexual behaviors against their will (such as human trafficking). As with drugs, some scholars question whether prostitution is a victimless crime, as some may find themselves turning to these acts out of economic necessity or addiction. Gam- bling is also considered a victimless crime, as it involves a wager of money or other valuable goods in hopes of increasing one’s financial status. Unlike most criminal acts, gambling is a regulated business and is legal under specific circumstances. For example, gambling is legal in states such as Nevada and New Jersey and is also allowed on tribal lands. However, gambling also occurs illegally and is considered a federal crime if the organization of gambling activities is part of a business. For example, it is legal to host a poker party in a private residence for your friends. However, if you charge a fee to play and end up making a profit on that fee or offer other gambling options in which the odds are in your favor (such as blackjack), then it is considered illegal.

White-Collar Offenses

© Ramin Talaie/Corbis

Martha Stewart was convicted of

obstruction of justice related to the sale

of her shares of ImClone stock. She was

sentenced to 5 months in prison and 5

months house arrest. Though her case

received extensive media attention, most

white-collar cases do not. Why do you

think that is?

The term white-collar crime describes a category of offenses that traditionally occur within corporate and related fields and includes a diverse range of criminal and civil offenses—fraud, embezzlement, corruption, insider trading, malpractice, misconduct, tech-based offenses,

extortion, bribery, and deception.7 White- collar crimes are unique in a number of different ways from many of the other offenses that dominate our criminal justice system. First, white-collar crimes generally do not garner the same type of attention as street crimes. Second, white-collar crime usually involves significant amounts of money. Offenders tend to be adults from middle-class and upper-class backgrounds and often involved in large-scale corporate organizations. For example, the Enron energy scandal involved significant acts of corporate and accounting fraud, which led to inflated assets and stock profits for its

natural gas and water utilities.8 Similarly, the recent mortgage industry meltdown involved several banks, including

 

 

JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and

Citigroup.9 Finally, white-collar crimes involve both criminal and civil law violations, although the criminal punishments typically involve significantly shorter sentences compared with traditional violent and property crime offenders. Several of the key players in Enron were sent to prison. Jeffrey Skilling, the ex-CEO of Enron, was originally sentenced to 24 years but later saw his

sentence reduced to 14 years10 while several others entered guilty pleas. Meanwhile, the settlements with the major banks in the subprime-loan crisis have been primarily limited to the financial

arena.11

SAGE JOURNAL ARTICLE The Trajectory of White-Collar Cri me CLICK TO SHOW

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White-collar crimes often escape public attention because they are not violent events. However, these acts have significant financial costs, to both individuals and the larger economy. Consider the example above involving the Enron scandal. Many people who invested their savings and retirement plans in Enron stock, based on its inflated performance figures, saw their investments crash, which subsequently jeopardized their financial safety. Generally speaking, the financial effects of white-collar crime outnumber all other crimes. Research indicates that street crimes, such as violent and property crimes, cost $17.6 billion annually. Certainly, this is a significant amount of money. However, compare these costs with the estimated $250 billion each year that is lost as a result of white-collar crimes (Figure 3.1). In addition, white-

collar crimes don’t stop just because someone goes to prison, as the effects of this victimization are both widespread and

long lasting.12 You’ll learn more about white-collar crime and its effects in the Current Controversy debate at the end of this chapter.

F i g u re 3 . 1F i g u re 3 . 1 Estimated Cost of Crime

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SPOTLIGHTSPOTLIGHT

The BostonThe Boston Marathon BombingMarathon Bombing

On April 15, 2013, three people were killed and more than 260 were injured after two bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. In the days after the attacks, Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev were identified as suspects. In their attempt to avoid the police, the Tsarnaev brothers robbed a gas

 

 

© AP Photo/Elise Amendola

Boston Marathon bombing survivor

Jeff Bauman throws out the first

pitch at a Boston Red Sox game,

one year after the bombing. Several

individuals lost limbs in the

bombing, and three died as a result

of their injuries. Should victims and

their families have a greater role in

sentencing decisions?

station, killed Sean Collier (an MIT campus police officer), and carjacked an SUV. During a shootout with local police, Tamerlan Tsarnaev was shot several times and was run over by the stolen SUV by his brother Dzhokhar. Tamerlan died as a result of these wounds. In their attempt to locate Dzhokhar, the city was essentially shut down as residents were ordered to shelter-in-place and businesses closed their doors while law enforcement embarked on a search to find him. He was located the next evening by authorities and was taken

into custody.a

In June 2013, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was indicted on 30 counts related to using weapons of mass destruction to commit murder in an act of terrorism. b In January 2014, the Department of

Justice announced that it would seek the death penalty against Tsarnaev. What makes this decision

particularly interesting is that the state of Massachusetts is a strong advocate against the death penalty. There has not been an execution in the state since 1947, and the state’s supreme court declared capital punishment unconstitutional in

1984.c A poll by the Boston Globe found that 57% of those surveyed support a sentence of life without the

possibility of parole for Tsarnaev while only 33% favor the death

penalty.d Federal prosecutors have

only sought the death penalty in Massachusetts on three occasions, and only once has a case ultimately been tried as death eligible and resulted in a conviction. A federal jury sentenced serial killer Gary Lee Sampson to death in 2003. Tsarnaev was found guilty and sentenced to death by a federal jury in April 2015. Recently, his lawyers filed an appeal of his sentence, arguing that it was prejudicial to hold the trial in Boston. e

Crimes Against the Government

Criminal acts against the government are typically punished under federal law. Examples of these acts include treason, espionage, and terrorism. The crime of tre ason refers to acts that attempt to overthrow the government. Treason is noted as the cause of the first execution in the United States, when Captain George Kendall was hung at the Jamestown Colony in Virginia in 1608 for plotting to

betray the British.13 Espionage occurs when an individual or a government obtains secret or confidential information. Unlike intelligence gathering, which is a legal practice of gathering data, acts of espionage typically involve the illegal

 

 

search and seizure of information. Perhaps the most famous American icons of this crime were Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were executed in June 1953 for being spies for the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Despite their protests of innocence, they were convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage for passing top-secret information to the USSR about the atomic

bomb.14 While these two crimes can sound very similar, espionage involves acting as a spy for or against the government, whereas treason refers to betraying one’s country by working against the government. Depending on the nature of their actions, offenders can be charged with both treason and espionage.

AUDIO Who Are America’s “Homegrown T errorists”? CLICK TO SHOW

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While crimes such as espionage and treason appear to be relics of history, the crime of terrorism occupies a significantly greater space in the mind-set of Americans. Acts of terrorism involve acts of violence with the goal of instilling fear within residents. Such acts are perpetrated in the name of a political objective. While most people primarily associate terrorism with the acts of September 11, 2001, the reality is that acts of terror are far more common than we perceive. Prior to the events of 9/11, the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on April 19, 1995, by Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols was the largest act of terrorism on American soil. One hundred and sixty-eight people were killed in the attack, and another 650

people were injured.15 Other significant acts of terrorism in the United States

include the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993; the acts of Theodore Kaczynski, otherwise known as the Unabomber; and the Boston Marathon bombing. Acts of terror against Americans have also occurred abroad, such as the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000 and the midair bombing of Pam Am Flight 103 in 1988, which was en route from London to New York when it exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland. You’ll learn more about these events and the global response to terrorism in Chapter 14.

VIDEO Terrorism Threats CLICK TO SHOW

UNIFORM CRIME REPORTS

”While there is no one dataset that tells us everything that we

want to know about crime, we

can learn something from each

source, as each represents a

different point of view.

In order to develop an understanding of the extent of criminal activity, it is important to look at how information about crime is gathered. While there is no one dataset that tells us everything that we want to know about crime, we can learn something from each source, as each represents a different point of view. Datasets vary based on the type of information collected (quantitative and/or

 

 

qualitative), who manages the dataset (such as government agencies, professional scholars, or community organizations), and the purpose for the data collection. Finally, each dataset represents a picture of crime for a specific population, region, and time frame or stage of the criminal justice system.

The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) represent one of the largest datasets on crime in the United States. Since 1930, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been responsible for collecting and publishing the arrest data from police agencies in the United States. These statistics are published annually and present the rates and volume of crime by offense type, based on arrests made by police. The dataset includes a number of demographic variables to evaluate these crime statistics, including age, gender, race/ethnicity, location (state), and region (metropolitan, suburban, or rural). UCR data give us a general understanding of the extent of crime in the United States and are often viewed as the most accurate assessment of crime. In addition, the UCR data allow us to compare how crime changes over time by comparing arrest data over a specific time frame or from one year to the next. Generally speaking, it is data from the UCR findings that are typically reported to the greater society through news media outlets, and they form the basis for headline stories that proclaim the rising and falling rates of crime.

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Data Collected

The Uniform Crime Reporting Program organizes its collection of crime data into two categories. Much of the focus of the UCR is on Type 1 offenses, also known as index crimes. Type 1 crimes include eight

© Stockbyte/Thinkstock Images

Most official crime statistics are based on

arrest data. Here, a female is

fingerprinted as part of the arrest

process. Considering that not all

individuals who are arrested are guilty of

a crime, what are some of the challenges

of using arrest rates to measure crime?

separate offenses that are divided into two categories: violent crime and property crime. Within the category of violent crime, data is collected on four crimes: murder, aggravated assault, rape and sexual assault, and robbery, whereas the category of property crime includes data on burglary, motor vehicle theft, larceny/theft, and arson. For each of these offenses, agencies report on the number of

crimes known to the police, the number of arrests made, and the age, race, and sex of the offender. Arrest data is also collected on several lesser criminal events (known as Type 2 crimes). Definitions of each type of crime for which data are collected under the UCR Program can be viewed at https:// www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2009/about/of- fense_definitions.html.

 

 

Rates of Crime

In addition to reporting the numbers of arrests, UCR data present the rates of crime. At the beginning of this chapter, you learned about how the number of murders in Chicago had increased, yet it had one of the lowest rates of crime in recent decades. A crime rate compares the number of occurrences of a particular crime with the size of the total population. Crime rates make it easy to understand trends in criminal activity and victimization over time, regardless of changes to the population. A crime rate is calculated by taking the number of crimes and dividing it by the population, or the number of residents of a specific region. Then, take this answer, and multiply it by 100,000. This will give you the standard rate of crime per 100,000 individuals. Crime rates can be used to compare the number of crimes across regions of different sizes or even across different time periods.

WEB LINK Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Uniform Crime Reports CLICK TO SHOW

A review of arrest data from the UCR indicates that the rate of violent crime in 2014 was 365.5 per 100,000 inhabitants. While there was little change in this rate between 2014 and 2013 (369.1), a review of data over a 10-year period demonstrates that the violent crime rate fell 21.1% since 2004. We have also seen a reduction in the rate of property offenses. In 2014, the property crime rate was 2,596.1 per 100,000 individuals. Between 2013 and 2014, the rate of property crime decreased by 5.0% and has fallen 26.1% since 2004. In order to assess the reasons why these crimes have fallen, we need to take a deeper look at the individual

offenses within the violent and property crime categories. Figure 3.2 illustrates the UCR data for each of the index crimes. Here, we note that while all crimes demonstrated a reduction in the crime rate since 2004 (except for rape where the definition changed between those years), some crimes represent a greater decrease than others. For example, a one-point decrease in the murder rate (from 5.5 in 2004 to 4.5 in 2014) is equal to an 18.8% reduction. Meanwhile, a 56-point reduction in the rate of aggravated assault is equal to a 19.4% reduction in the crime rate. Here, the 55-point difference is worth one half of a percent change in the crime rate.

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F i g u re 3 . 2F i g u re 3 . 2 Crime Rates for UCR Index Offenses, 2004 and 2014

Source: Crime in the United States, 2014.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI. Table 1.

1. References acts defined under the

following: the carnal knowledge of a female

forcibly and against her will. Attempts or

assaults to commit rape by force or threat of

 

 

force are also included; however, statutory

rape (without force) and other sex offenses

are excluded. As of January 1, 2013, the

revised definition of rape is “Penetration, no

matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with

any body part or object, or oral penetration by

a sex organ of another person, without the

consent of the victim.”

Data on Offenders

UCR data can also give us information about the perpetrators of these crimes. From this data, we learn that most offenders are White, male, and over the age of 18. Within each of these demographic categories, we learn about the differences between race, sex, and gender when it comes to offending. For example, Figure 3.3 demonstrates that larceny-theft is the most common crime for both men and women.

While the number of men involved in this crime is higher than women, this crime makes up a higher proportion of criminal activity for women compared with men. Meanwhile, the crimes of burglary and aggravated assault have a much greater proportion of men arrested for these crimes compared with women. What about age? Figure 3.4 illustrates the differences between adult and juvenile offenders in arrests for index crimes. Here, UCR data show us that the most common crime, regardless of age, is larceny-theft. However, it is interesting to note that the proportion of certain offenses is greater for juveniles than it is for adults. For example, just over 15% of the arrests for the crime of burglary involve juvenile offenders under the age of 18. In comparison, burglary makes up approximately 12% of adult arrests. In contrast, arrests for the crime of aggravated assault involve a greater

proportion of adults compared with juveniles (20% vs. 11%).

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F i g u re 3 . 3F i g u re 3 . 3 Sex Differences in UCR Index Offenses, 2014

Source: Crime in the United States, 2014.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI. Table 33.

Finally, the UCR measures race by five categories: White, Black, Asian, Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native. The UCR does not collect data on ethnicity; therefore, we do not have arrest data that will allow us to compare Hispanics with non-Hispanics. The proportion of Asian, Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native arrests is less than 2% for each crime. A review of these findings in Figure 3.5 indicates that Whites make up the majority of arrests for six of the eight index crimes. Blacks represent a greater proportion of arrests for the two crimes of robbery, and murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, whereas Whites represent a much greater proportion of arrests for arson and larceny-theft.

Limitations of the UCR

While the UCR data can illustrate

 

 

important trends in crime, the reporting of UCR data as the true extent of crime is flawed for the majority of the crime categories (with the exception of homicide), even though these data represent arrest statistics from approximately 95% of the population. Here, it is important to take several issues into consideration. First, the UCR data represent statistics on only those crimes that are reported to the police. As a result, the data are dependent on both what police know about criminal activity and how they use their discretion in these cases. If the police are not witnesses to a crime or are not called to deal with an offender, they cannot make an arrest. Arrests are the key variable for UCR data. This means that unreported crimes are not recognized in these statistics. Sadly, many criminal acts are significantly underreported and therefore do not appear within the UCR data. These unreported crimes are known as the dark f igure of crime. Sources such as the National Crime Victimization Survey or self-reported studies attempt to capture some of this data to provide a greater understanding of the total extent of crime in the United States.

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F i g u re 3 . 4F i g u re 3 . 4 Percentage of Arrests of Offenders by Age: Juveniles vs. Adults, 2014

Source: Crime in the United States, 2014.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI. Table 32.

F i g u re 3 . 5F i g u re 3 . 5 Arrests of Offenders by Race, 2014

Source: Crime in the United States, 2014.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI. Table 43.

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Second, the definitions of the crimes that are included within the UCR can be limited. Consider the category of forcible rape. Historically, the UCR defined forcible rape as “the carnal knowledge of a female forcible and against her will.” This definition failed to capture the magnitude of sexual assaults, which may not involve

 

 

female victims or may involve other sexual acts beyond vaginal penetration. In January 2012, the FBI announced a revised category to include crimes of rape and sexual assault with a definition to include “the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the

consent of the victim.”16 This new definition went into effect in January 2013. Not only does the new law allow for both males and females to be identified as victims or offenders, but it also allows the UCR Program to include cases where the victim was either unable or unwilling to consent to sexual activity (for example, in cases involving intoxication). In addition, the new definition removes the requirement of force. As a result of these changes, the category of rape will now capture a greater diversity of sexual assaults. This new definition is more in line with the variety of state laws related to rape and sexual assault. With this change in how these sexually based offenses are counted, it is expected that we will see an increase in the UCR for this category in the following years. This does not mean that the crime of rape has increased dramatically in practice, only that we have changed the way we collect the data for these cases. Over time, these changes will help present a more accurate picture of the prevalence of rape and sexual assault

in society.17 Already, the change in the UCR Program’s definition of rape has caused a change in the number of cases that are now counted as rape (Figure 3.6).

Third, the reporting of the crimes to the UCR Program is incomplete, as only the most serious crime is reported in cases where multiple crimes are committed during a single criminal event. This is referred to as the hierarchy rule. These findings skew the understanding of the

prevalence of crime, as several different offenses may occur within the context of a single crime incident. For example, a crime involving physical battery, rape, and murder is reported to the UCR by the most serious crime, murder. As a result, the understanding of the prevalence of physical battery and rape is incomplete because these crimes are not counted.

CAREER VIDEO Crime Intelligence Analyst CLICK TO SHOW

F i g u re 3 . 6F i g u re 3 . 6 Comparison of Revised and Legacy Definition of Rape in the UCR

Source: Crime in the United States, 2014.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI. Table 1.

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CAREERS INCAREERS IN CRIMINALCRIMINAL JUSTICEJUSTICE So You Want to Be aSo You Want to Be a Research Analyst?Research Analyst?

Researchers play an important role in evaluating whether a criminal justice

 

 

policy or program is effective. Depending on the environment that you work in, the job titles for this type of work include research analyst, research scholar, crime analyst, and criminal intelligence analyst. There are several different types of settings where you could perform this work. First, you could work for a college or university as a professor. Many institutions require full-time faculty to conduct research in addition to their teaching responsibilities. In order to pay for these research activities, faculty secure financial grants through foundations and government agencies.

You might also work directly for a research center, foundation, or government organization. In these settings, your primary role centers on reviewing data, analyzing the results, and publishing the data. For example, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, which is an agency within the Department of Justice, is involved in administering surveys about crime in a number of different settings, including jails and prisons. They also work with population data to determine how many individuals are housed in jails and prisons in a specific year or across several years. Research analysts might also work for a specific agency, such as a local police department. For example, the NYPD’s Office of Management Analysis and Planning employs several research analysts and data analysts. These positions work with data to analyze both existing and proposed law and policies.

The education and training that is required to work as a research

analyst varies depending on the type of agency or organization that you work for. Most positions require that candidates have a significant understanding of statistics and other analytical tools. In some cases, these positions will require that you have an advanced degree, such as a master’s or doctoral degree. You may also need specialized training in things such as geographic information systems (GIS), crime mapping, and social-network analysis. Since you will likely be writing reports on a number of issues, you’ll need to have strong writing skills as well.

As the need for research on crime continues to grow, so will the need for people to work in these positions. If you are someone who likes to solve problems and assess which types of policies and practices offer the greatest success in responding to crime, this may be an ideal career for you.

Fourth, the reporting of these data is organized annually, which can alter our understanding of crime as police agencies respond to cases. For example, a homicide that is committed in one calendar year may not be solved with an arrest and conviction until the following calendar year. This might initially be read as an “unsolved crime” in the first year but as an arrest in the subsequent year.

Finally, the participation by agencies in reporting to the UCR Program has fluctuated over time. While there are no federal laws requiring agencies to report their crime data, many states today have laws that direct law enforcement agencies to comply with UCR data collection.

 

 

However, this means that the analysts of crime trends over time need to take into consideration the number of agencies involved in the reporting of crime data. Failure to do so could result in a flawed

analysis of crime patterns over time.18

These flaws of UCR data can have significant implications for members of society about the understanding of crime data. Most of us get our information about crime from news headlines or other media reports about crime. These 30-second clips about crime rates do little to explain the intricate nature of UCR data definitions and collection practices. Indeed, when the UCR Program was first assigned to the FBI, early scholars commented, “In light of the somewhat questionable source of the data, the Department of Justice might do more

harm than good by issuing the Reports.”19

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NATIONAL INCIDENT-BASED

REPORTING SYSTEM

In an effort to develop a better understanding of the extent of offending, the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) was implemented in 1988. Rather than compile monthly summary reports on crime data in their jurisdictions, agencies now forward data to the FBI for every crime incident. The NIBRS catalog involves data on 22 offense categories and includes 46 specific crimes known as Group A offenses. Data on 11 lesser offenses (Group B offenses) are also collected. Unlike the UCR Program, which organizes its data into violent crimes and property crimes, the NIBRS divides its data into three themes: crimes against persons, crimes against property, and crimes against society. In addition to an increased

diversity in the types of crimes that data are collected on, the NIBRS changed the hierarchy rule that was part of the UCR. This means that cases that involve more than one specific offense will now count toward all of the different offenses that are reported and not just the most serious event. In addition, NIBRS data are collected on both completed and attempted crimes. Overall, the NIBRS allows for a more comprehensive understanding of crime in the United

States compared with the UCR.20

Data Collected

Data from the 2014 NIBRS report demonstrate how incident-based reporting provides a significantly greater detail of the types of crimes that are reported to police, compared with the UCR data. In addition to the greater number of offenses that are included in the NIBRS,

the report includes information on the age, sex, and race of the offender and the victim, as well as data on the location and time of day of the offense and the type of force and weapons used in the crime. However, the reporting of data to the NIBRS remains incomplete. In 2014, only 6,520 law enforcement agencies reported their crime data to the NIBRS. This represents only one third of those agencies that report to the UCR Program. Table 3.1 illustrates data on the incidents, offenses, victims, and known offenders by offense

category in 2014.21

A review of these data demonstrates how the NIBRS data paint a more detailed picture about crime. While there were 4.7 million incidents reported to police, there were almost 5.5 million offenses. This highlights that many criminal acts involve multiple offenses. At the same time, there are almost 5.8 million victims, indicating

 

 

that some criminal acts involve multiple victims. We also learn that 4.4 million offenders commit these acts. This means that some offenders engage in multiple incidents of crime. These are data that are not included as part of the Uniform Crime Reports.

The NIBRS data also provide a unique insight as to the conditions under which crime occurs. For example, we learn about relationships that victims have with their perpetrators. In 2014, 21.8% of offenses involved a family member as the offender, compared with 57.2% who are known offenders and 10.2% that involve strangers. We also learn about when crimes are likely to occur. Figure 3.7 illustrates the different times of day that offenses against people, property, and

society occur.22 Across all three categories, NIBRS data indicate that crime is generally 40% to 50% higher between noon and 11:59 p.m. compared to between midnight and 11:59 a.m. For example, crimes against persons and crimes against society tend to fall during the middle of the night and steadily climb as the day progresses, with the highest levels of these offenses occurring between midnight and 1 a.m. In comparison, property offenses are much more varied throughout the day, with spikes occurring during the afternoon and again at midnight.

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Ta b le 3 . 1Ta b le 3 . 1 NIBRS 2014: Incidents, Offenses, Victims, and Known Offenders by Offense Category

Source: NIBRS (2014). https://www.fbi.gov/about-

us/cjis/ucr/nibrs/2014/tables/incidents_offenses_victims_and_known_offenders_by_offense_categor

1. The actual number of incidents is 4,759,438.

However, the column figures will not add to the total

because incidents may include more than one offense

type, and each appropriate offense type is counted in

this table.

2. Victims represents the number of victims

associated with each offense type.

3. The term Known Offender does not imply the

identity of the suspect is known, but only that an

attribute of the suspect has been identified, which

distinguishes him/her from an unknown offender.

4. The figures in the column Known Offenders do not

include the 1,612,515 incidents with an unknown

offender.

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F i g u re 3 . 7F i g u re 3 . 7 NIBRS Crimes Against Property, Persons, and Society by Time of Day, 2014

When are crimes against property most

 

 

likely to occur? What about crimes against persons and crimes against society? How might this information be used by police departments?

Limitations of NIBRS

While the variability of NIBRS data is a great asset in understanding the extent and nature of crime in the United States, it remains an incomplete source due to the small number of agencies that are currently certified to submit their data. Hopefully, additional jurisdictions will be able to contribute to this rich data source, as it provides a more comprehensive way of looking at offending data compared with the Uniform Crime Reports. The transition of agencies to the NIBRS has been slow, as only 33 states were certified by the FBI as of June 2014. Eight additional states are currently testing the NIBRS in their jurisdictions, and seven more states or territories are in the process of developing

plans for the NIBRS.23 While the NIBRS is an improvement over the UCR Program, this system still carries over a fatal flaw from the UCR in that both are limited to reported crimes. In spite of this, it is hoped that the improvements in official crime data collection will allow for an increased understanding of the extent of offending patterns.

NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMIZATION

SURVEY

In contrast to the limitations of the UCR and NIBRS datasets, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) represents the largest victimization study conducted in the United States. National-level victimization data were first collected in 1971 and 1972 as part of the Quarterly Household Survey conducted by the Census Bureau. In 1972, these efforts evolved into the National Crime Survey (NCS), which was designed to supplement the data from the UCR and provide data on crime from the victims’ perspective. The NCS was transferred to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in 1979, and the BJS began to evaluate the survey instrument and the data collection process. Following an extensive redesign process, the NCS was renamed the National Crime Victimization Survey in 1991.

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AROUND THEAROUND THE WORLDWORLD International CrimeInternational Crime DataData

While the UCR, NIBRS, and NCVS are examples of official data sources in the United States, there are several examples of international crime surveys that can shed light on the nature of crime in other countries. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) collects data on arrested individuals throughout Australia. Unlike the UCR Program, which collects data on a calendar year basis, the ABS data cycle runs

 

 

from July 1 to June 30. In 2014– 2015, there were 411,686 individuals ages 10 and older processed by the police for eight different offenses (homicide, assault, sexual assault, robbery, kidnapping, unlawful entry with intent, motor

vehicle theft, and other theft).a

Another example of an official source of crime statistics is the annual report produced by the Bundeskriminalamt (Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany). The Bundeskriminalamt (BKA) statistics includes data for all crimes handled by the police (Figure 3.8). In 2014, there were 6,082,064 crimes reported to the police, 3,336,398 of which were considered “cleared” or solved. Violent crime represents only 3% of crime in Germany. The largest crime category is theft, and it represents 40.1% of all criminal offenses. Men are much more likely to be considered a suspect by the police in these criminal activities— out of 2,149,504 suspects, only 14.4% are women. Men are also more likely to be victims of crime, as 59%

of victims are male.b

F i g u re 3 . 8F i g u re 3 . 8 Characteristics of Crimes Reported in Germany

CRITICALCRITICAL THINKINGTHINKING QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

1. How are statistics about crime in other countries similar to and different from data on crime in the United States?

2. What are the challenges in comparing international statistics on crime with the types of data that are available about crime in the United States?

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Australia’s and Germany’s crime statistics agencies are just two examples of official international data sources on criminal offending at the country level. Due to the differences in laws and reporting practices, it is difficult to compare such statistics at a global level. However, there have been attempts to collect basic information on recorded crime across several

 

 

jurisdictions. The United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (UN-CTS) compiles crime data from a variety of different sources, including the World Health Organization, Eurostat, and national police organizations from individual countries (to name a few). Their data indicate that there were 378,776

global victims of homicide reported to the police in 2012, or a crime rate

of 10 per 100,000.c

Ta b le 3 . 2Ta b le 3 . 2 Types of Data Collected Through the National Crime Victimization Survey

Data Collected

The greatest achievement of the NCVS lies in its attempt to fill the gap between reported and unreported crime, described as the dark figure of crime. The NCVS gathers additional data about crimes committed and gives criminologists a greater understanding of the types of crimes committed and characteristics of the victims. Table 3.2 presents the different types of data that are included within the NCVS. In 2011, the NCVS interviewed 143,120 individuals age 12 and older in 79,800 households. Based on these survey findings, the Bureau of Justice Statistics makes generalizations to the population regarding the prevalence of

victimization in the United States.24 You’ll learn more about the extent of victimization and the benefits and limitations of the NCVS in Chapter 5.

WEB LINK National Crime Victimization Surv ey (NCVS) CLICK TO SHOW

SELF-REPORTED OFFENDING

DATASETS

While much of what we know about offending comes from the UCR and the NIBRS, there are other sources of data available that can shed light on offending behaviors. These types of projects typically involve self-reported data and researchers asking people about the types of behaviors that they engage in. Generally speaking, these studies involve one of three populations: (1) studies of at-risk or general populations, (2) studies of offenders involved in the criminal justice process, and (3) convicted offenders who are either incarcerated or are participating in a community-based sanction.

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Ta b le 3 . 3Ta b le 3 . 3 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Study on Youth Alcohol/Drug Use, 2013

1. Current use is defined as at least one experience in

the past 30 days.

2. Binge drinking is defined as five or more drinks in a

row (within a couple of hours) at least once in the past

 

 

30 days.

Data Collected

Like the UCR, NIBRS, and NCVS, some self-reported studies are conducted on an annual or semiannual basis. The Youth Ris k Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) began in 1991 and includes data on several categories of at-risk behaviors in youth. Organized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this study includes data from ongoing school-based studies as well as one-time national and

special-population studies.25 In 2013, 13,633 questionnaires were completed in 148 public and private high schools (Grades 9–12) across the nation. Along with health risk behavior data, this study also includes measures of at-risk and offending behaviors. In 2013, 17.9% of students surveyed had carried a weapon at least once during the previous month, and 5.5% brought a weapon to school. Boys (28.1%) were more likely to engage in these behaviors compared with girls (7.9%), and White males (33.4%) were more likely to carry a weapon compared with Black (18.2%) and Hispanic (23.8%) males. Almost a quarter of all students nationwide had been in a physical fight at some point during the previous year, and 8.1% of students were involved in an altercation on school property. Data is also collected on alcohol and drug use. Table 3.3 highlights some of the findings from this survey on the prevalence of teen use of controlled substances. Here, we learn that experimentation and use of illicit substances is quite common among the teen population. The most common substances used by youth are (1) alcohol, (2) marijuana, and (3) prescription drugs. Girls are more likely to use alcohol while boys are more likely to use marijuana and prescription drugs. Use of these

substances varies by race/ethnicity. While Whites are more likely to have a current history of alcohol use, as well as to engage in binge drinking, Hispanic youth have higher rates of ever having used alcohol. Black youth are more likely to use marijuana compared with White and Hispanic youth. Finally, Hispanic youth have higher rates of experimentation with all other substances compared with White

and Black youth.26

WEB LINK Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Sy stem (YRBSS) CLICK TO SHOW

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Self-report studies may also reflect offending behaviors over a period of time. These studies are referred to as longi- tudinal studies. Typically, these projects select their subjects (based on the factors they are looking to study) and then follow this group of individuals over a specific time period. One of the most influential longitudinal studies on at-risk behaviors and youth is the N a t i o n a l Yo u t h S u r veyN a t i o n a l Yo u t h S u r vey F a m i l y S t u d yF a m i l y S t u d y (NYSFS). The NYSFS began in 1976 and included 1,725 youth between the ages of 11 and 17 (and a parent) who were selected randomly from across the United States. In 2004, the National Youth Survey Family Study collected its 11th wave of interviews. In addition to interviewing 70% of the original participants, they also included interviews with 71% of their parents, 71% of their current spouses, and 77% of their adolescent children. What once began as a snapshot of youth at-risk and offending behaviors has transformed into an understanding of behaviors throughout the lives of the study participants and their families. To date, the NYSFS has produced

 

 

hundreds of publications on topics such as violence, substance use, and causes and correlates of delinquent and criminal

behavior.27

Limitations of Self-Reported Offending Datasets

Self reported studies such as these provide value as they measure things (both substantively and with particular detail) that are generally not provided by the official sources of data. While these studies often assure subjects that their identities and responses will be kept confidential, there is no way to ensure that the people who participate in these studies

will be truthful in their responses. In addition, not all self-reported studies use a random sample. Many draw upon convenience-based samples, such as students in a college classroom. This means that the results from these studies cannot be compared with the population at large.

CONCLUSION

There are several ways to think about the prevalence of crime in society. Statistics about crime inform policymakers and the public alike. So the next time you are faced with the question of how much crime exists, remember to consider the following:

• What type of crimes are you looking for data on?

• Is there a particular stage of the criminal justice system that you are interested in?

• Are you interested in understanding rates of reported crime, unreported crime, or both?

• Are you looking for the presence of

crime in a particular region? For a specific group of people? Or do you want to know about the estimated rates of crime for the population?

Your answers to these questions and more will determine which type of data source

you should look for. Each source of data has its own strengths and weaknesses that you will need to keep under consideration. In many cases, you may pull together information from a variety of different sources to help answer your questions. Together, these types of crime data help us gain a better understanding of crime in society.

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C U R R E N T CO N T R OV E R SY 3 . 1C U R R E N T CO N T R OV E R SY 3 . 1

Is White-Collar CrimeIs White-Collar Crime Harmful to Society?Harmful to Society?

—Henry N. Pontell, Gilbert Geis, Adam Ghazi-Tehrani, and Bryan Burton—

CURRENT CONTROVERSY VI DEO 3.1 Where Do You Stand? Cast Yo ur Vote! 3.1 CLICK TO SHOW

INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

White-collar crime constitutes one of the more challenging problems confronting law enforcement in the United States and, indeed, throughout the world. The core difficulty is that these offenses, by definition, are

 

 

committed by persons who have power in the worlds of business, politics, or the professions. The status of white-collar criminals is reflected in biases in criminal codes that favor them. In addition, efforts to discover and penalize white-collar and corporate crimes are largely in the hands of persons with the same background and beliefs as those who are perpetrating the offenses. To a certain extent, answering the question of whether white-collar crime is harmful to society requires us to ask, What do we consider harmful?

White-Collar Crime Is NotWhite-Collar Crime Is Not

Harmful to SocietyHarmful to Society

Crime is often defined as acts such as the traditional street offenses perpetrated by low-status offenders or, in other cases, crimes of violence against society. In defending this definition, criminologist James Q. Wilson indicated that excluding white- collar offenses from the discussions about crime “reflects my conviction, which I believe is the conviction of most citizens, that predatory street crime is a far more serious matter than consumer fraud [or] antitrust violations . . . because predatory street crime makes difficult or impossible maintenance of meaningful human

communities.”28

White-collar offenses usually include acts such as forgery, embezzlement, and fraud. While one might consider these acts to be property crimes, information about these crimes is not included in the Uniform Crime Reports because these acts are not considered index crimes. Therefore, is

it reasonable to assume that such acts are not considered as serious compared with other crimes. While we can locate data on these acts through the National Incident-Based Reporting System, not all agencies report their crime statistics to the NIBRS, making it difficult to understand the prevalence of these

acts in society.29

In addition, upper-class violators are not persons on the outer rim of society, who commit burglaries and robberies in order to purchase another dose of an illegal drug or to secure funds to “keep the party going.” 30 They are individuals and executives of entities who characteristically live in a style that is the envy of most of those of us who are less favored. They are likely to be well educated, which would presume that they are capable of making reasonably accurate linkages between causes and effects— that is, that they are or become aware that if they break the law and are caught doing so, this could possibly result in serious consequences for their lifestyle and reputation and the well-being of their family. The question is this: Does the criminal justice system inherently create these differences by treating these offenders differently? Or is the system simply responding to the perception of harm caused by these acts?

Given the current status of punishment in regard to these acts, one might assume that such acts are not as harmful as, say, other types of crimes. Perhaps the most appropriate word to describe the current state of policy in the United States with regard to individual and corporate white-

 

 

collar crime is “erratic.” As far as can be determined, it was decided in high government circles during the last part of the Bush administration and during the Obama presidency that bringing criminal charges against prominent businesspeople who had done woefully aberrant things (including actions that resulted in the meltdown of the mortgage industry during the first decade of the 21st century), acts that might reasonably be charged as criminal, was a matter best overlooked, since to prosecute them would undermine already skeptical views about those in power and the marketplace. In a major piece of investigative journalism, reports indicated that because of the seeming fragility of America’s financial system, Timothy Geithner, the secretary of the treasury and a former star player in the world of high finance, had persuaded prosecutors to ignore Wall Street crimes. The aim, the reporters wrote, was “a desire to calm markets, a goal that could be compromised by a

hard-charging attorney general.”31

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The most visible aspect of this approach was the use of civil suits launched by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against some of the more prominent malefactors and the companies they piloted. Bank of America, for instance, agreed to a fine of $155 million for its failure to notify stockholders that its acquisition of Merrill Lynch also involved the assumption of millions of dollars awarded to more than 100 employees of the near-defunct company. Yet none of the employees, including upper-level management, were held either civilly or criminally

© iStockphoto.com/Pamela Moore

Many families were affected by the

recent mortgage industry meltdown

and lost their homes. Should banks

be held criminally liable for the

mortgage crisis?

responsible. In their agreement to pay the fine, Bank of America insisted that the court acknowledge that the payment did not indicate guilt, a traditional dodge aimed at helping a company prevail against later lawsuits.

Given the perceptions of these acts in society and the response by the criminal justice system, these findings seem to suggest that acts of white- collar crime are not harmful to society.

White-Collar Crime IsWhite-Collar Crime Is

Harmful to SocietyHarmful to Society

Certainly, predatory street crimes net their perpetrators far less loot than the bonuses that are obtained by corporate executives whose businesses have virtually or actually gone bust. But corporate crimes can have long-term financial consequences. One could observe that the great economic meltdown made it exceedingly difficult or

 

 

impossible to maintain meaningful human communities in areas where a barrage of foreclosures had been fueled by sales tactics that resulted in the subprime crisis; home owners lost their homes as a result of poor business practices. The lenders, who themselves profited handsomely, had readily unloaded the high-risk obligations on investment firms, which bundled them together and sold

them to unwary investors.32

Consider one of the examples that was presented in the previous section. Bank of America agreed to a fine of $155 million. But what were the costs that resulted from their harmful practices? This is difficult, if not impossible, to measure, but we can look at some of the ripple effects. Unemployment rose, further making it impossible for home owners who had been gulled into absurd mortgage arrangements to meet payments. House values went “under water”— that is, a house often was not worth what the purchaser owed on it. This fueled a barrage of foreclosures. Banks became wary of making loans so that businesses that depended on such financing to meet payrolls gave up the ghost.

Many of these legal actions were settled with financial payments but without any admission of wrongdoing. In a related case involving Citigroup, the judge asked rhetorically why a company would pay a fine and, at the same time, insist that it was not guilty of having done anything that was against the law? Given the costs and consequences of these actions, should we devote greater attention to these crimes, as they may cause greater harm that we realize?

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONSDISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Given the perceptions of these acts in society and the response by the criminal justice system, are acts of white-collar crime harmful to society?

2. Should we devote greater attention to these crimes?

3. At the end of the day, how do these acts compare with the violent and property crimes that dominate our criminal justice system?

C U R R E N T CO N T R OV E R SY 3 . 2C U R R E N T CO N T R OV E R SY 3 . 2

Is Burglary a Violent Crime?Is Burglary a Violent Crime?

—Phillip Kopp—

CURRENT CONTROVERSY VI DEO 3.2 Where Do You Stand? Cast Yo ur Vote! 3.2 CLICK TO SHOW

INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

Burglary has historically been considered a nonviolent crime committed against the property of another. Under common law, the crime of burglary consisted of “a breaking and entering of a dwelling house of another in the nighttime with the intent to commit a felony therein.” 33 While modern burglary statutes are generally broader than the common-

 

 

law definition—usually dropping the requirement that entry into the house must have been forced, expanding the definition of target beyond residential property, and not limiting the time in which the crime is said to occur to the nighttime hours—constant, however, is that interpersonal violence is not an element of the offense. When violence does occur during a burglary, offenders are charged with a wholly separate criminal offense, in addition to burglary. Additionally, a review of state burglary statutes found that all of the 32 states that divide their criminal statutes by victim type (person or property) classify burglary

as an offense against property.34

Finally, burglary is counted as a property crime by the Uniform Crime Reporting Program and the National Crime Victimization Survey.

Burglary Is a ViolentBurglary Is a Violent

CrimeCrime

In contrast to the historical view of burglary, the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) classifies burglary as a violent crime for the purposes of sentence enhancement. Created by the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984, the ACCA is a federal career offender statute that provides a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years to life in prison, in addition to a fine not to exceed $25,000, for individuals convicted of any felony while in possession of a firearm and who have three previous convictions for a violent felony or serious drug offense. Under the ACCA, a violent felony is defined as any offense that has as an element “the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical

force against the person of another” or is “burglary, arson, or extortion, involves use of explosives or otherwise involves conduct that presents a serious potential risk of

physical injury to another.”35

Subsequent interpretation of the ACCA by the Supreme Court has applied the violent-felony classification to all classes of

burglaries36 and both attempted and

completed burglaries.37

Review of the Congressional Record regarding the ACCA identified the following three beliefs underpinning the act’s classification of burglary as a

violent crime.38 First, a small number of offenders are responsible for a disproportionate number of crimes of theft and violence, burglary being one of the most common. Second, legislators viewed burglary as one of the crimes most detrimental to society because it involves entry into the personal space of its victims, both at home and work, for the purpose of taking their—in some cases irreplaceable—property, shattering any feelings of privacy and security its victims might have previously enjoyed. Third, beyond the emotional trauma and financial loss incurred, burglary can also result in physical violence. Because of the potential interaction between victim and offender, burglary can rapidly transition from a nonviolent to a violent offense. Legislators argued that it was by mere chance that a burglary did not result in a violent confrontation between potential victim and burglar. When the U.S. Supreme Court expanded the ACCA’s violent-crime classification to all attempted burglaries, they built upon

 

 

© iStockphoto.com/Robert A Sanchez

The crime of burglary involves the

illegal entry into a building with the

intent of committing a crime. Is this

a crime against property or against a

person?

this argument, reasoning that many attempted burglaries are never completed because of the intervention of another. The Court then went further, arguing that an attempted burglary may pose greater risk of violence than a completed

burglary.39

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Burglary Is Not a ViolentBurglary Is Not a Violent

CrimeCrime

As a result of the contradiction between the traditional view of burglary and the ACCA’s classification

of burglary, scholars have worked to develop an understanding of the nature of the offense using data from the UCR, NCVS, and NIBRS. While all three data collections report the incidence of crime in the United States, differences in their respective designs and limitations can complicate how these datasets can be used. For example, between 1998 and 2007, the NCVS estimated that some 13 million more burglaries occurred than were reported to the UCR Program, indicating that roughly 72% of the burglaries that occurred in the United

States were reported to the police.40

Second, the datasets contain varying levels of detail regarding the incidence of crime in the United States. While the UCR Program only reports summary totals of offenses, the NCVS and NIBRS provide extensive offense information. Without the detailed information contained in the NCVS and NIBRS, the study of the incidence of violence in burglary would be nearly impossible. As stated previously, when violence occurs during the course of a burglary, the offender has committed a completely separate offense that is charged in addition to the burglary. In these incidents, burglary has co-occurred with another, more severe crime. When crimes co-occur in this manner, the lesser offenses are effectively hidden by the hierarchy rule that is used by all three datasets. For example, a burglary/robbery incident is recorded as a robbery, and the incidence of burglary is not counted. Using data from the NCVS and NIBRS, researchers found that during the period 1998–2007, an estimated 2,880,735 violent burglaries occurred, representing 7.6% of all burglaries

 

 

estimated to have occurred by the NCVS. In comparison, 31,094 violent burglaries were reported to the NIBRS by the police, or 0.9% of all

burglaries for the same period.41

Third, the substantial difference between NCVS and NIBRS estimates illustrates an additional limitation of NIBRS data, the small-agency bias. As of 2013, only 38% of law enforcement agencies, covering 30% of the nation’s population, reported to the NIBRS; only one agency serving a population of a million or more reported to the NIBRS. Because of this, when compared with the UCR, the incidents contained in NIBRS data represented only 29% of reported crime in 2013. More crime—and specifically, more violent crime—occurs in urban areas not covered by the NIBRS. As a result, the NIBRS is only representative of suburban and rural parts of the United States (populations of 250,000 or less), and results must be reported

with this limitation in mind.42

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Finally, information contained in the NCVS but not the NIBRS allowed researchers to identify the percentage (26%) of all burglaries that occurred while a victim was present. As well as the overall incidence of victim presence, researchers determined the incidence of actual physical violence (2.7%) and the incidence of victims being threatened or placed in fear but not physically harmed (4.9%). Finally, researchers found that completed burglaries (8.4%) were significantly more likely to result in violence than

were attempted burglaries (3.4%).43

What does all this data mean? It means that when we look at the situations in which burglary occurs, we learn that acts of burglary do not involve acts of violence. Rather, there is very little incidence of physical violence with the crime of burglary, and few victims feel fearful as a result of these acts. Yet much of the way in which we collect and report data about this crime makes it appear more violent than it actually is.

SUMMARYSUMMARY

Certainly, there are valid arguments on both sides of this issue. Some would suggest that burglary can be a violent crime, given the nature of the offense as well as the potential for violence that exists within the act. At the same time, are there reasons why we should alter the way that we think about this crime? How might this alter not only our perceptions of the criminal justice system but also the manner in which it functions in relation to these types of crimes?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONSDISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Is the Armed Career Criminal Act’s classification of burglary as a violent offense correct?

2. While the research highlighted addressed physical violence, none of the data sources discussed contain measures of the psychological aftermath of criminal victimization. Could the emotional harm done by an offense be worse and last longer than the physical harm done by the same offense?

3. What should researchers consider

 

 

when comparing the crime of burglary across different data sources?

KEY TERMS

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Arson 51

Assault 49

Burglary 51

Crime rate 56

Dark figure of crime 60

Drug use 52

Espionage 54

Forcible rape 60

Gambling 52

Hierarchy rule 60

Larceny-theft 51

Longitudinal studies 68

Murder 48

National Crime Victimization Survey 64

National Incident-Based Reporting Sy stem 62

National Youth Survey Family Study 6 8

Property crimes 51

Prostitution 52

Rape and sexual assault 49

Robbery 49

Self-reported data 66

Status offenses 52

Statutory rape 49

Terrorism 55

Treason 54

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Type 1 offenses 56

Uniform Crime Reports 55

Vandalism 51

Victimless crimes 52

Violent offenses 48

White-collar crime 52

Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Syst em 67

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

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1. List the six general categories of crime and an example of each.

2. Discuss how the Uniform Crime Reports and the National Incident- Based Reporting System provide an understanding about the extent of crime in society.

3. How do self-reported datasets provide valuable information about crime and offending behaviors that are not captured by official data sources?

 

 

4. What are the strengths and limitations of the various datasets on crime?

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

1. Go to your state’s criminal law legal code. Select a crime, and provide a definition of this act. Compare this definition with that from another state. What are the similarities and differences in how these crimes are defined?

2. Go to the Uniform Crime Reports website. Select an offense, and discuss how the occurrence of this crime has changed over the past decade.

SUGGESTED WEBSITES

• U n i f o r m C r i m e R e p o r t s :U n i f o r m C r i m e R e p o r t s : http://w ww.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/ucr

• N a t i o n a l I n c i d e n t – B a s e dN a t i o n a l I n c i d e n t – B a s e d R e p o r t i n g S y s t e m :R e p o r t i n g S y s t e m : http://www.f- bi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/nibrs/2012

• N a t i o n a l C r i m e V i c t i m i z a t i o nN a t i o n a l C r i m e V i c t i m i z a t i o n S u r vey :S u r vey : http://www.icpsr.umich.e- du/icpsrweb/NACJD/NCVS

• U n i t e d N a t i o n s O f f i c e o n D r u g sU n i t e d N a t i o n s O f f i c e o n D r u g s a n d C r i m e :a n d C r i m e : https://www.unod- c.org/unodc/en/data-and-analy- sis/statistics/data.html

STUDENT STUDY SITE

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