Introduction to Criminology

1. Introduction to Criminology Defining Criminology The Criminal Law Development of Academic Criminology Theories of Crime Politics/Ideology

2. Defining Criminology • Edwin Sutherland’s definition • The scientific study of lawmaking, lawbreaking, and the response to lawbreaking • Lawmaking = how laws are created/changed • Lawbreaking = nature/extent of crime • Reaction = police, courts, corrections • Science vs. other ways of knowing stuff

3. Criminology vs. Criminal Justice • Criminal Justice • The study of agencies related to the control of crime • Criminology • The study of crime trends, nature of crime, theories of crime • Reality? Two sides of the same coin

4. Criminology vs. Deviance • Criminology focuses on crimes • Crime = violation of criminal law • Deviance focuses on violations of societal norms • These may or may not also be law violations • Can you think of a norm violation that is not a law? • How about a law violation that does not violate a norm?

5. A Very Brief History of Law • 2000 BC Earliest Surviving Legal Codes • 1750 BC Code of Hammurabi: lex talionis • Roman “Twelve Tables”: 451 BC • “Dark Ages” (500-1000 AD) • Written codes were lost and superstitions and fear of magic dominated thinking.

6. Development of Common Law • Norman Conquest (1066 AD) • William the Conqueror establishes “royal court” • “Stare decisis” became the dominant standard • English common law born during the reign of Henry II (1154-1189) • “Circuit Judges” • Development of Jury System

7. Current Types of Law • Criminal Law • Procedural vs. Substantive • Statutory vs. Common • Civil Law • Tort law

8. Substantive vs. Procedural Law • Substantive Law • Written code that defines crimes and punishments • Procedural Law • Rules of the court, trials...

9. Common Law v. Statutory Law Common Law is judge-made law. The law is found in previously decided cases. Statutory Laws are derived from legislative acts that decide the definition of the behavior that is codified into law.

10. A public offense Enforcement is statebusiness Punishment is oftenloss of liberties or sometimes death Fines go to the state State doesn’t ordinarily appeal Proof beyond a reasonable doubt A civil or private wrong Individuals bring action Sanction is normally monetary damages Both parties can appeal Individuals receives thecompensation for harmdone “Preponderance of the evidence” is required for a decision. Criminal and Tort Law

11. Seriousness of Crimes I Mala in se Mala prohibita • Wrong or evil in themselves • Core of legal code • Homicide • Robbery • Wrong because they are prohibited • Change over time and across society • Prostitution • Gambling

12. FELONY MISDEMEANOR More serious offenses Punishable by death or imprisonment for more than a year in a state prison. Less serious offenses Punishable by incar- ceration for less than a year in a local jail or house of correction. Seriousness of Crimes II

13. A criminal law must indicate a type of intent and a specific behavior • Actus Reas • Physical act must be voluntary • If crime is“Failure to act,” there must be legal obligation. • Statutory Obligation, Relationship between parties, Contract • Mens Rea • General or specific intent • Transferred Intent • Negligence • Strict Liability Offenses

14. Specific Criminal Defenses • Deny the Actus Reas (I didn’t do it) • Deny the Mens Rea • Ignorance / Mistake • Intoxication? • Insanity Defense

15. Who does the law serve? Consensus view • Law results from societal agreement on what behaviors are most harmful • Laws apply to all citizens equally Conflict view • Law results from conflict over what behavior should be criminalized • Those with the most power define what is criminal and often use the law to protect their interests Which is correct?

16. Criminology as a Discipline • Until the 1970s, there was no “criminology” or “criminal justice” degree • Sociology became the dominant disciple • Still contributions from biology, psychology, political science • 1980-Present • Criminology emerging as separate entity • PhD in Criminology/Criminal Justice now the norm • Still debate about whether Criminology is a distinct discipline • Organized around a class of behaviors rather than a distinct way of looking at the world • Sociologists still see criminology as a “sub-discipline” of sociology

17. Sociological Criminology—Good & Bad • Good: Focus on social structure and inequality; healthy skepticism (debunking) • Bad: Ignore/ridicule “outside” disciplines and their focus on individual differences • The Irony? Psychologists and biologists believe that social forces are as (or more) important than individual differences • This class will explore crime from a multidisciplinary lens

18. A Crude History of Criminology • Demonic Perspective pre-1750s • Crime as god’s will, result of demonic possession • Classical School (1750s-1900; 1970s to now) • Utilitarian philosophy (Becarria, Bentham) • A response to an unjust/arbitrary legal system • Free will, humans use a “hedonistic calculus” • Rational legal code  less crime • Basis of deterrence theory

19. Crude History—Part II • Positive School (1900-present) • Crime is “caused” by outside forces (determinism) • Solution is to fix these causes (medical model, rehab) • Scientific research on offenders, crime (not law) • Different types of positivism • Bio/psych determinism (1900-1920s) • Sociological theory (1920s-Present) • Critical theories (1960s-early 1970s) • Developmental Theory (1990s-present)

20. Crime Theory • Backbone of criminology • Scientific Theory • Must be able to test theory • A GOOD theory survives empirical testing • Empirical = real world observations • Some theories are sexier than others • Parsimony • Scope • Usefulness of policy implications

21. Flow Chart for Evaluation NO = Useless, stop here • Evaluate the • Following: • Scope • Parsimony • Policy Implications Falsifiable? Logical? Yes Empirical Evidence? YES NO: Modify/Discard

22. Empirical Evidence is the KEY • Theories attempt to demonstrate cause-effect • Criteria for causation in social science using a poverty  crime example • Time ordering: poverty happens before crime • Correlation: X is related to Y • Relationship is not spurious (e.g., low self-control causes both poverty and crime)

23. Methods for generating evidence • Experiment • Key is randomly assigned groups • Only factor that effects outcome is group difference at start of experiment • Limit = artificial nature

24. Experimental Design (2 of 2)

25. Methods for generating evidence II • Non-experimental • Survey research • Cross sectional • Longitudinal • Limit = how to rule out spuriousness • Upside = ask whatever you want

26. Ideology in Criminology • Walter Miller • Ideology is the “permanent hidden agenda of Criminal Justice” • What is “Ideology?” • American Political Ideology • Liberal/Progressive Ideology • Conservative Ideology • Radical Ideology

27. Dominant Ideologies in U.S. CONSERVATIES LIBERALS • Value order/stability, respect for authority • People get what they deserve • Crime caused by poor choice (Free will) • Value equal opportunities and individual rights • Success/failure depends on outside forces and where you start • Crime is caused by outside influences

28. Implications of Ideology for Crime and Justice • Conservatives tend to fit with “Classical School” • “Neo-Classical” = deterrence, incapacitation • James Q. Wilson’s “policy analysis” • Liberal/Progressive fit with positive school • Favor decriminalizing some acts • “Root causes” of crime only fixed by social change • Rehabilitation may be possible • Elliott Currie = ample evidence that government can address social ills and prevent crime • Radical = Marxist/conflict theory

29. Ideology as “hidden agenda” • Many policies and programs are driven more by ideology than empirical evidence • Intensive supervision probation (conservatives) • Restorative justice (liberals)

30. The “Martinson Report” (MR) • The “Martinson Report” was review of studies on rehabilitation published in the early 1970s • Concluded that not much is working • Used by politicians as the reason for abandoning rehab • Social Context of the 1960s • Hippies, Watergate, Attica, Viet Nam, Kent State… • Conservatives? SKY IS FALLING • Liberals? Cannot trust the government • Reality = liberals and conservatives were both “ready” to pull the plug on rehabilitation

31. The Limits of Empirical Evidence • Criminologists tend to be cautions with conclusions • All studies are flawed in some way • Politicians and public tend to “over generalize” from a single study • This can lead to bad policy • RAND Felony Probation study • Domestic Violence Experiments

32. Good theory makes good policy… • In a perfect world, programs and policies would flow from empirically supported theories of crime • Unfortunately, people often “shoot from hip” • Policy without Theory • The “panacea” problem: scared straight, intensive probation, boot camps, warm and fuzzy circle… • Some hope in “evidence-based” movement • Multisystemic Therapy (MST) • Targets for change = parental supervision, delinquent friends, reducing rewards for deviance…