crime exam 3

Rehabilitation sereds

"Hard to conceive of a less rehabilitative environment than a U.S. prison" Little, if any efforts to treat root causes/develop skills to prevent future offending. Overcrowding, psychological torture, sexual and physical violence Prison's criminogenic impact Evidence prison associated with a 7-14% increase in recidivism Prison causes violence. Prison and violence share same features: Shame, isolation, exposure to violence, diminished ability to meet one's economic needs

Retribution Sereds

"Punishment for punishment's sake" Incarceration runs counter to public interests Those being punished also those we failed to protect Virtually all perpetrators of violence are survivors. Lines blurred. Accountability? Doesn't require/accept them to be accountable for their actions

Public order crime:

"crime that involves acts that interfere with the operations of society and the ability of people to function efficiently" (Siegel 2004)

Accountability Violent offenders and survivors of violence:Blurred lines

# 1 predictor of violent offending is surviving it -Majority of people who commit violence are survivors of it and will likely be survivors in the future -Violence a response to unhealed pain Those people most likely to be survivors of violence come from groups whose pain society devalues most Sered says that people who commit violence deserve accountability too

Benefits of restorative justice Safety

#1 function of prisons is to remove people who we cannot safely hold in our communities Any strategy aimed at reducing prison use needs to address the issue of public safety Substantial evidence that restorative justice is more effective than incarceration at producing public safety --Reduced recidivism rates --Less community violence --Allows for victims to heal #1 predictor of violence is being victim of violence

Accountability

-Prison is a poor vehicle for accountability -Prison hurts people but in no way requires accountability -Mercy or punishment alone do not produce justice -Instead, in the aftermath of violence: mercy + accountability = justice

Judges feel ___ year(s) for middle to high income in jail is the same as ____ years in jail for a street crime for those in low SES

1, 3-4

Five elements of accountability

1. Acknowledging responsibility for one's actions 2. Acknowledging the impact of one's actions on others 3. Expressing genuine remorse 4."Doing sorry": Taking actions to repair harm to the degree possible and guided when feasible by the people harmed (Actions speak louder than words) 5.No longer committing similar harm

Mass incarceration- 1)A rate of imprisonment and a size of prison population that is markedly above the historical and comparative norm for societies of this type.

1800's-1970's incarceration rates stable 1970's incarceration rate 1/5 of present rate 1972: <200,000 incarcerated 2014: >2.2 million incarcerated U.S. has 5% of population/25%of incarcerated population U.S. incarceration rate 4-8 times higher than other liberal democracies (Canada, England, Germany, etc.) U.S. rates even higher than oppressive regimes (Russia, Cuba, Iran, etc.)

What is "mass incarceration"?

2 defining features: A rate of imprisonment and a size of a prison population that is markedly above the historical and comparative norm for societies of a similar type. Imprisonment ceases to be the incarceration of individual offenders and becomes the systematic imprisonment of whole groups of the population.

Rehabilitation:

A strategy for reducing the probability of future offending via persuasion or "conversion" to prosocial attitudes and values.

Restorative justice:

A system of criminal justice which focuses on the rehabilitation of offenders through reconciliation with victims and the community at large

Displacing mass incarceration

Americans often settle for incarceration as the only response to violence because they believe this is the only response available Mass incarceration as a response to violent crime has failed Substantial evidence that alternative strategies to incarceration can effectively reduce levels of community violence, require offenders to take accountability for their actions, and provide justice for survivors of violence

Street crime

Annual cost of property crime: Approximately $14.3 billion Average number of murders annually: 17,250

White-collar/corporate crime

Annual cost of white-collar/corporate crime: $100 billion - $400 billion Number of people who die on job or from occupational disease: 54,000 Tens of thousands more die annually from pollution, contaminated foods, hazardous consumer products, hospital malpractice, etc. Majority of these deaths are the result of criminal recklessness

Deterrence Sereds

Assumes the existence of a set of commitments that do not exist Not everyone knows consequences for a given crime Punishment arbitrary, inconsistent, and biased Assumes people believe that if they do not commit crimes, they will not suffer the same consequences as those who do Many law-abiding citizens not guaranteed equal participation in society Rooted in assumption that people lack fear, and that fear of state punishment will influence behavior Affected individuals already suffering from multiple forms of fear and trauma

Problems with broken windows theory and aggressive enforcement of public order crimes

Crime already going down prior to implementation Strained police-community relations in affected neighborhoods Morphed into Stop and Frisk (NYC) Enforcement of public order crimes and killings by police

Corporate Crime:

Crime committed by one or more employees of an organization that is attributed to the organization itself

Edwin Sutherland definition of white collar crimes

Crimes committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation

Criminal justice system failing survivors

Current system fails to deliver these things Incarceration ≠ safety or healing Criminal trials harmful for victims --Presently the only forum for survivors to have their voices heard --Trials very rare Plea bargaining insufficient for survivor healing Many victims prefer nothing to everything available to them through law enforcement --Unaddressed violence Myth of prison as preferred tool

Purposes of punishment:

Deterrence Rehabilitation Incapacitation Retribution

Term "white-collar crime" coined by

Edwin Sutherland

Deterrence:

General deterrence: Specific deterrence:

Response to white-collar/corporate crime

Harder to detect and prosecute Public perception of white-collar crimes and criminals vs. street crimes and street criminals Disparity in resources allocated to white-collar/corporate crime vs. street crime Sentencing disparities ----Fines most likely outcome ----When sentenced to prison, average is 1 year ----Study on judges' perceptions

Specific deterrence:

Imprisoned offenders will stop doing crime once they are released

Offering survivors more options

Incarceration is presently the only option survivors have Need to offer survivors more options Survivors are pragmatic—public safety over revenge Restorative justice approach more effective than prison -Recidivism rates after prison = 76%+ -Recidivism rates after restorative justice = ~14% -Only 6% of people in Common Justice program are terminated for a new crime 69% of victims prefer alternatives to prison when asked -Rehabilitation, mental health treatment, substance use treatment, community supervision, community service. --Problem: Most victims aren't asked and have no say Crime survivors are more likely than general public to support alternatives to incarceration --Inconsistent with the narratives employed by law enforcement "in the name of survivors" End mass incarceration in the name of survivors

Mass Incarceration 2)Imprisonment ceases to be the incarceration of individual offenders and becomes the systematic imprisonment of whole groups of the population.

Incarceration rates: Whites: 275 per 100,000 Blacks: 1,408 per 100,000 5.1:1 compared to whites Hispanics: 378 per 100,000 1.4:1 compared to whites

Alternatives to broken windows policing

LEAD

How do we punish?

Mass incarceration

Incapacitation sereds

Not practical. Ineffective. Unintended consequences Trauma, more violence, parental incarceration, positive roles offenders play on outside Can still hurt people in prison Who is deserving of protection from violence? Majority (95%) of incarcerated population comes home Prison experience increases danger and violence KEY: limitations of incapacitation outweigh benefits

What is deterrence?

People deterred from crime when costs outweigh benefits Assumes rational person who has free will Punishment is certain, sufficiently severe, & swift Operates in two ways: general and specific

Incapacitation:

Prevent crime by rendering an individual incapable of committing future crime.

Public order crime examples

Public intoxication Drug and alcohol offenses Prostitution Loitering Jay walking Disorderly conduct

Retribution:

Punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong or criminal act.

Benefits of restorative justice Racial equity

RJ a path toward racial justice Reduces racial bias Criminal justice as social justice **KEY: Restorative justice works. No excuses.

Benefits of RJ: 2. Accountability

RJ requires the responsible party to acknowledge what they did and accept responsibility for their actions -A person serving a life-sentence may never do this Responsible party is required to repair the harm they caused by doing and participating in meaningful activities that are important to the victim --These activities typically include the responsible party taking meaningful steps toward improving their lives so that the victim can be sure they will not commit harm in the future

Benefits of RJ: 1. Survivor-centered

Restorative justice (RJ) capable of acknowledging people's multiple roles as perpetrators and victims of violence RJ results in higher rates of victim satisfaction -RJ process satisfaction: 80%-90% -Traditional court system satisfaction: ~30% Significantly reduces PTSD symptoms in survivors of violence

Benefits of restorative justice

Restorative justice approach passes the four-part test that any approach to violence should pass. 1.Survivor-centered 2.Accountability-based 3.Safety-driven 4.Racially equitable *Incarceration fails at all four of these things

Reimagining how we respond to crime

Sered calling to transform our national response to violence to one that is survivor-centered Presently, two main tropes about what victims want: Greatest possible penalty; revenge Extreme mercy Sered argues that what survivors want is much more complex than this

Accountability Holding society responsible

Societal responsibility to create the conditions that make violence less likely Societal support for survivors of violence -Asking where these were when the offender was hurting Not just about ending incarceration—but displacing it with accountability

General deterrence:

State's punishment of some serves as example to others

What survivors really want—and need to heal (according to Sereds)

Validation Answers Have their voices heard Control Resources *Safety ----Personal safety ----Safety of others

Reimaging how we respond to crime-Restorative justice

Victim and offender MUST agree to this option. Victim may back out at any time and have case handled in traditional way Victim gets full control of the outcome of their cases and securing justice Victim and their support network meet with offender in conference/circle Victim gets to say anything they want to the offender and ask them questions All parties decide on how to hold the offender accountable Participants who complete program and fulfill their commitments to those they harmed are not incarcerated and have the felony removed from their record—no collateral consequences

White-collar crime:

Violation of the law committed by a person or group of persons in the course of an otherwise respected and legitimate occupation or business enterprise

Characteristics of white-collar offenders

White Male Employed Educated Upper-class Socially and/or politically connected

Costs of white-collar and corporate crime

White-collar and corporate crime inflicts far more damage on society than all street crime combined, by death, injury, or dollars lost.

Broken windows theory:

academic theory that used broken windows as a metaphor for disorder within neighborhoods. The theory links disorder and incivility within a community to subsequent occurrences of crime. Aggressive policing of public order crimes and disorder will prevent more serious crimes Theory had large impact on policing and policy

Public order crimes have had a large impact on policy, most notably,

broken windows policing

"Collateral consequences" of criminal justice system contact

the (formal) legal and regulatory sanctions that the convicted bear beyond the sentences imposed by a criminal court, as well as the (informal) impacts of criminal justice contact on families, communities, and democracy.

Punishment's goal:

the prevention of future criminal conduct by the punished offender and others.