Crime & Punishment

Crime & Punishment Sociology Mrs. Furbush

Lesson Outcomes • Examine inequalities of race, gender, and age within American society. • Examine the level of violence in selected sample of large cities and identify potential common contributing factors. • Examine the prison system and prisoners’ rights. • Discuss how crime and violence are both economic and social issues. • Examine the death penalty and develop a personal position statement as to whether it is “right or wrong.”

Warm-upThink/Pair/Share • What crimes today do people consider the most severe? • Make a list of the 5 crimes you consider to be the most deviant? • Next assign a punishment for each crime

What is crime? • Acts committed in violation of the law • Crime has increased greatly in the US from the 1960s to the 1990s • Violent crime rates are considerably higher in the US than in most other industrialized countries

Rate of homicide in US is 23 times greater than in England In 1995, handguns used to murder # of people: 2 in New Zealand 15 in Japan 30 in Great Britain 106 in Canada 213 in Germany 9, 390 in US Interesting Stats on US Crime

Juvenile Crime • Refers to legal violations among those under 18 years of age • 3rd largest group of criminals in US • Teen crimes include: theft, murder, rape, robbery, assault, and the sale of illegal substances • Specific juvenile crimes include: failing to attend school, fighting in school, and underage drinking and smoking

Juvenile Crimes have Gone Down • Reached lowest levels in 1999 • Why? • Decline in demand for crack cocaine • Remaining Crack Gangs stopped providing guns to juveniles because of truces • Stiffer penalties for repeat offenders • Police are cracking down on illegal guns

Crime Control • Four approaches • Deterrence • Retribution • Incarceration • Rehabilitation

Deterrence • Uses the threat of punishment to discourage criminal actions • Research shows that deterrence works well only if people know 2 things---they will get caught and punishment will be severe. • In the US, punishment is not always certain, swift, or severe so it is not as effective as it could be

What about the Death Penalty? • Research does not show a decline of murders as a result of the death penalty • However, ¾ of Americans believe that it is a deterrent to murder • Of the Americans that favored the Death Penalty, ¾ of those people said that they would still favor it even if stolid evidence showed it was not a deterrent—feelings of revenge & retribution fuel this belief

What about the Death Penalty? • Attitudes vary by ethnic groups • 75% of whites favor it while only 40% of African American do and 52% of Latinos • Statistics show that after conviction, both African Americans & Latinos are more likely than whites to receive the death penalty • African Americans comprise 13% of population but make up 43% of death row inmates in US

What is the relationship between Race, Ethnicity, & Crime? • Conflict Perspective supporters cite these statistics that show that minorities receive unequal treatment—African Americans & Latinos dealt with more harshly than whites • More likely to be convicted, serve more time, more likely to be on death row • Nearly ½ of all homicide victims are African American; however, the majority of people on death row are there for killing whites

How could this happen??? • Minorities have less money for legal services • Victim Discounting---process of reducing the seriousness of the crimes that injure people of lower status

Retribution • Punishment intended to make criminals pay compensation for their actions • “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” • The law allows designed officials to exact retribution • However, private individuals may not take personal revenge

Incarceration • Keeping criminals in prisons & not out on the streets to commit more crimes is the purpose of incarceration • US recently took a tougher stance with the Three Strikes Law that has led to an increase in the number of people in prision

The goal of rehabilitation is to resocialize criminals Most prisons have programs aimed at giving prisoners the work & social skills needed to help them adjust to life when they get out of prison 30-60% of released prisoners go back to jail in 2-5 years; this is called Recidivism Why Recidivism? Basic nature of the offenders Influences of more harden criminals The stigma of being an ex-convict Rehabilitation

Alternatives to PrisonRead page 231 and write an explanation for each of these programs: • Combo of Prison & Probation- • Community-based Program- • Diversion Strategy-

Let’s Practice..Indicate which form of punishment applies… ______Imprisonment without parole ______Longer prison sentences ______Extremely harsh conditions ______Psychological counseling in prison ______Swift Justice ______Payment for Damages ______Boot Camp ______Community Service ______Three Strikes Law

Video:“The Killing Fields of America” • CBS Special • Centers on different cities around the country • Illustrates why crime is both an economic and social problem • Take notes as you view on the provided note sheet

Crime & Punishment