Criminology Nature and Distribution of Crime Key Terms Crime Deviance Delinquency Crime rate Part I Index crimes Sources of crime data Steps in CJ process Mens rea actus reus Burdens of proof Amendments 4 5 6 8 Due process Part I Index Crimes 2 Forcible Rape 3 Robbery 4 Aggravated Assault 5 Burglary 6 Larceny Theft 7 Motor Vehicle Theft 8 Arson 1 Murder and Non negligent Manslaughter Murder and Non negligent Manslaughter Defined as the willful killing of one human being by another This index crime has the highest clearance rate of all eight offenses The majority of homicides are intra racial Forcible Rape Defined as the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will One of the most underreported serious crimes Frequently involves people who know each other Rape has a clearance rate of almost 50 percent Robbery Defined as the taking or attempting to take away anything of value by force threat of force or violence or threat of violence putting the victim in fear There are some cases in which the difference between classifying a crime as a robbery or the less serious crime of larceny theft is marginal and up to the discretion of the officer or courts Robbery has a relatively low clearance rate 25 percent Aggravated Assault Defined as the unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury death or great bodily injury This type of assault is usually accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce Victims are often uncooperative with law enforcement Burglary Defined as the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony of theft Two out of three burglaries are residential in nature Amateur burglars commit most burglaries but professional burglars steal larger amounts of cash Defined as the unlawful taking carrying leading or riding away of property from the possession and or property Larceny Theft or constructive possession of another Larceny includes such crimes as Shoplifting Pick pocketing Purse snatching Theft from motor vehicles Theft of motor vehicle parts and accessories Bicycle theft Motor Vehicle Theft Defined as the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle This definition excludes the taking of a motor vehicle for temporary use by those persons having lawful access The crime of auto theft may be classified into three categories joyriders constitute the majority of such crimes professional auto thieves intent is profit fraud Arson Defined as any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn a dwelling or house public building motor vehicle or aircraft personal property of another and so forth Structures are the most frequent targets of arsonists Slightly over 50 percent of persons arrested for arson are under 18 years of age Problems and Criticisms of the Uniform Crime Reports Only measures crimes known to police Underreporting of crimes 1 in 10 crimes reported Crime data manipulation interpretation Incomplete crime categories lack of info on other crimes UCR hierarchy rule Future of the UCR Program The redesigned program is called the National Incident Based Reporting System NIBRS Local agencies collect data on each single crime incident and arrest within 22 categories made up of 46 specific crimes called Group A offenses Group A Offenses 1 Arson 2 Assault Offenses 3 Bribery 4 Burglary Breaking and Entering 5 Counterfeiting Forgery 6 Destruction Damage Vandalism of Property 7 Drug Narcotic Offenses 8 Embezzlement 16 Pornography Obscene Material 9 Extortion Blackmail Group A Offenses 10 Fraud Offenses 11 Gambling Offenses 12 Homicide Offenses 13 Kidnapping Abduction 14 Larceny Theft Offenses 15 Motor Vehicle Theft Group A Offenses 17 Prostitution Offenses 18 Robbery 19 Sex Offenses Forcible 20 Sex Offenses Nonforcible 21 Stolen Property Offenses 22 Weapon Law Violations Group B Offenses 1 Bad Checks 3 Disorderly Conduct 4 Driving Under the Influence 5 Drunkenness 6 Family Offenses Nonviolent 7 Liquor Law Violations 8 Peeping Tom 9 Runaway 10 Trespass of Real Property 11 All Other Offenses Victimization Studies 2 Curfew Loitering Vagrancy Violations People are often reluctant to report crimes committed against them to police for various reasons Victim studies help correct some of the inaccuracies of official crime statistics that reflect underreporting by crime victims Most victim studies have shown that someone has a more likely chance of having a violent crime committed against him or her by a person they know than by a stranger National Crime Victimization Survey NCVS Started in 1972 U S Census Bureau Bureau of Justice Statistics Annual survey of more than 50 000 households Unaffected by police bias Covers reported and unreported crime Problems with Victim Surveys Accuracy and reliability of the survey techniques Memory and truthfulness many crimes are not reported well such as gambling drug use etc Only one available adult in each household is interviewed which leads to an overrepresentation Refusals 25 of women and older persons Only includes data on those 12 years and older Crime Trends and Patterns UCR and NCVS In recent years the crime rate is down Approximately 96 of the U S population was not the victim of any kind of personal crime Murder is the least frequent violent crime 5 murder victims for every 100 000 people Urban areas have more index crimes than rural areas The South and the West have more index crimes than the North and the East Crime Trends and Patterns UCR and NCVS Most crime is intra racial Crime Trends and Patterns Only 15 percent of violent crimes involve white victims and black offenders 69 of violent crimes involve white victims and white offenders 75 of white crime victims are victimized by white offenders 85 of black victims are victimized by black offenders Crime Trends and Patterns Age is the strongest determinant of crime highest crime rate between 16 19 years of age Only one in four violent crimes involves the use of a weapon Only 1 percent of violent crime victims require a hospital stay typical violent crime does not even involve an injury Most Dangerous States Safest States 1 North Dakota 2 Maine 3 Vermont 4 New Hampshire 5 Iowa 6 Utah 7 Rhode Island 8 Minnesota 1 Nevada 2 Louisiana 3 New Mexico 4 Arizona 5 Maryland 6 Florida 7 South Carolina 8 Alaska Safest Large Cities 1 San Jose CA 2 Honolulu HI 3 El Paso TX Most Dangerous Large Cities 4 New York NY 5 Austin TX 6 San Diego CA 7 San Antonio TX 8 Louisville KY 9 Fort Worth TX 10 Jacksonville FL 1