Crime and law Flashcards
(23 cards)
Victims of crime
P- One group more likely to be victims of crime are younger people
E- Young people are most likely to be the victims of a crime as they are surrounded by others their age who are the most likely to commit a crime
E- The Scottish Crime and Justice survey showed that in 2019-20 16-24 years experienced a 18.3%risk of crime while those over 60 experienced around 7%
P- one group more likely to be victims of crime are people living in deprived areas
E- Crime rates are higher in deprived areas such as parts of Dundee or parts of glasgow compared to more affluent areas like Orkney island or Shetland
E - those living in the 15% most deprived areas in Scotland were 5% more likely to have experienced a crime in 2019-2020
Biological causes of crime
P-One reason people commit crime is the nature argument, they are born bad
E- If you have a mutation in the MAOA gene, known as the warrior gene you become predisposed to violence as you are less able to control your impulse
E- Criminals are thought to lack empathy or get angry easier due to the warrior gene
P- young people tend to have higher rates of crime and this could be down to biology
E- Evidence suggests that a person’s brain does not develop fully until around 26
E- Teenageres prefrontal cortex is smaller and this makes them less able to control their emotions and more open to risk and peer pressure
Economic causes of crime
P- deprived areas tend to have higher crime rates which suggests that poverty leads to crime
E- Crime is higher in deprived areas such as Castemilk and easterhouse compared to affluent areas like Dunblane
E- One in nine young men from the most deprived communities in scotland will spend time in prison before they are 23
P- police scotland have blamed the introduction of universal credit for an increase in crime
E- It is thought that benefits delays, and less money being spent on benefits has pushed people into poverty leading to crime
E- There has been an 8 percent increase in robberies
Social causes of crime
P- One cause of crime is lack of education.
E- A lack of education may make it harder for people to find jobs leaving them in poverty which could lead to crime. In addition they may look for a sense of belonging and achievement in gangs due to failure in school.
E- 42% of prisoners in England and Wales have a history of being permanently excluded from school
P One cause of crime is consumption of alcohol
E This can cause crime as people don’t think about the consequences of their actions and act more impulsively. Alcohol can also make people more aggressive leading to violent crime.
E 46% of violent crime in Scotland is committed by someone under the influence of alcohol
Impact of crime on victims
P-One way crime impacts individuals is physical
E-this means that crime can have a physical impact on a person such as broken bones, black eyes or bruising particularly if they have been a victim of a violent crime, such as assault
E- In 2017-2018 60% of people who were victims of a violent crime experienced minor bruising or a black eye
P - Another way crime impacts individuals is emotionally
E -This means that victims of a crime can be mentally impacted as a result crime, such as more violent crimes can cause episodes of PTSD, anxiety and depression
E - For example, victims of violent crime were 23%, more likely than victims of property crime to experience anxiety after the crime
Impact of crime on perpetrators
P Crime impacts perpetrators financially
E Offenders will lose their job if they go to prison and often struggle to find one on release due to stigma.
E Only 26.5% of prisoners in England and Wales find employment on release from prison.
P- Crime also impacts perpetrators mental health
E- Prisoners may struggle due to a lack of freedom from their cell and not being able to see loved ones and family members. This can have an impact on their mental health and may result in prisoners committing self harm.
E- In 2017-2018 self harm incidents in scottish prisons increased by 43%
Impact of crime on families
P- having a family member in prison can have an emotional impact
E- children can experience anger at their parents for what they have done and be disappointed that they are missing occasions and special days etc.
E- children with a parent in prison are twice as likely to suffer from a mental health issue
Financial
P- families may experience financial difficulties as a result of imprisonment
E- this is because the family is missing vital income as a result of a family member being in prison
E- in addition it may cost money to travel to the prison for visiting or the family member may request that money is sent in
Impact of crime on society
Cost
P Crime has a financial impact on taxpayers in society
E As the crime rates are so high in a specific area, the costs for prisons and courts will be more expensive. This then causes tax rates to go up in order to be able to pay for the other costs in the area
E In Scotland the average cost of keeping someone in prison for a year is £36,000
House Prices
P Crime has an economic impact on society by reducing house prices
E -People do not want to live in areas where crime rates are high due to fear of becoming a victim. This causes house prices in that area to fall.
E - Of all 23 districts in England that witnessed a fall in house prices, 83 per cent of these districts also had a significant increase in the number of reported crimes.
Adult courts
One adult court in Scotland is the justice of the peace court
This deals with minor offences such as drunk and disorderly, going through a red light or an unpaid parking fine
Punishments include a maximum prison sentence of 60 days and a maximum fine of £2500
One adult court in scotland is high court
These courts deal with crimes such as rape, murder and some drug dealing.
Punishments include a unlimited maximum prison sentence and an unlimited fine
Childrens hearing system
P One way the children’s hearing system helps young people is by providing a relaxed atmosphere for children to discuss issues they are facing including offending behaviour.
E The meeting takes place around a round table which is less intimidating than an adult court.
E The young person can take someone along with them and they get to read reports by teachers and social workers beforehand so they know what people are going to say about them.
P Another way the children’s hearing system helps young people is by dealing with both justice and welfare issues.
E Someone may be referred to the children’s reporter if they are not being cared for properly at home or if they are breaking the law.
E The children’s hearing can take steps to protect the child including putting a supervision requirement in place or asking them to attend alcohol counselling.
Sentences a court can give
One sentence a court can give is a prison sentence.
This is usually given for serious crimes such as murder and can range from a few months to life.
A prison sentence can be effective as they try to rehabilitate prisoners by running anger management courses and teaching prisoners new skills such as DIY.
P - One sentence a court can give is a community payback order.
E - This often involves unpaid work in the community such as building a community garden or fixing gravestones. .
E - It may have other terms and conditions such as a curfew or mandatory counselling
advantage’s of prisons
P- another advantage of prisons is incapacitation
E- while a prisoners in prison they cant commit another crime. This protects the public
E- the levels of violence inside prisons is increasing including attacks on officers showing the importance of keeping these criminals away from the public
P- One advantage of prisons is that they act as a deterrent to crime
E- the fear of the loss of liberty experienced in prison will stop people commiting crime
E_ prison is seen as a harsher punishment than a fine or community sentence
Disadvanatges of prisons
P- one disadvantage of prisons is that they are very expensive
E- Within prisons food needs to be paid for along with cells and clothes and pay prisons guards wages
E- according to ross kemp it costs an average of £36,000 to keep someone in prison for a year
P- one disadvantage of prisons that they have a drug culture
E- drugs are often smuggled into prisons by people conseilling them in body parts
E- ⅓ of scottish prisoners leave prison with illegal drugs in their systems
advantages of alternatives to prisons
P- one advantage of alternatives to prison is that they are cheaper
E- fines bring in money and don’t cost too much to administer on the other hand prisons are very expensive
E- on average it costs £36,000 pounds a year to keep someone in prison in scotland
p- one advantage of alternatives is that they ease overcrowding
E- there are too many people in prison at the moment which increases violence and lowers the effectiveness of rehabilitation
E- barlinnie is at 140% of its capacity
Disadvantages of alternatives to prisons
P- one disadvantage of alternatives to prison is that some are not completed
E- some people fail to pay fines or show up for their community sentence
E- in 2016/2017 6000 offenders failed to complete their community payback order
P- A disadvantage of the alternatives is that they do not prevent further crime
.E- fines don’t include rehabilitation they do not tackle issues such as alcohol or drug problems that lead to someone commit a crime in the first place
E- fines may also be paid by family members meaning they don’t deter from future crime
Effectiveness of courts
P = One adult court that is effective in Scotland is the High Court.
E = This court deals with the most serious crimes, such as murder, rape and some drug dealing trials. Punishments from the High Court include unlimited fines and unlimited prison sentences.
E = This is an effective court because it ensures that, through the sentences that it gives out, perpetrators are incapacitated and society is protected.
P = One adult court that is effective in Scotland is the Sheriff Court.
E = This court deals with a variety of crimes, such as drink-driving, theft and assault. E = This is an effective court because it ensures that, through the sentences that it gives out, perpetrators and wider society are effectively deterred from committing future crimes.
Effective Government Measures to Tackle Crime
P = One measure the government has taken to tackle crime which is effective is no knives better lives
E = In 2009 they set up the no knives better lives program which was designed to tackle the reasons why people carry a knife .
E = This is effective because between 2011- 2016 no one under 20 died in an incident involving a knife in glasgow
P = Another measure the government has taken to tackle crime which is effective is the violence reduction unit
E = Tackles gang crime as if it’s like a disease, to stop it from spreading , targets the cause of gang crime before it happened rather than just waiting to punish people
E = this is effective because murder rates in glagow have dropped by 60% in 10 years
Ineffective Government Measures to Tackle Crime
P = One measure the government has taken to tackle crime which is ineffective is no knives better lives
E = In 2009 they set up the no knives better lives program which was designed to tackle the reasons why people carry a knife .
E =this is ineffective as there continues to be stabbings in scotland such as a 16 year old boy in port glasgow who was stabbed in march 2020.
P- Another measure that the government has taken to tackle crime which is ineffective is put new laws on alcohol
E- the government have Introduced a road traffic act which reduces the amount someone can drink and then drive
E- this is ineffective because in recent years the government has found around ⅔ of serious assaults are still committed under the influence
Powers of the police
P- the police have the power to gather evidence
E- the police usually have to obtain a search warrant to search a property for evidence. They will also collect evidence from a crime scene
E- in addition the police will interview witnesses to gather evidence
P- one power of the police is to stop and search someone
E- they might search you if they think that you are carrying an illegal weapon or drugs etc
E- the police can search your clothes, your vehicle or any bags that you have on you
Roles/Duties of the police
P- one duty of the police is to maintain law and order
E- police presence can often deter violence and crime at public events such as football matches and protests
E- the police have been recently been needed at the old firm game in september 2022 to help reduce violence etc
P- one duty of the police is to prevent crime
E- One way they do this is by running campaigns focused at tackling a specific type of crime
E- for example in 2021 police scotland ran a campaign designed to tackle labour exploitation
P- one duty of the police is to detect criminals
E- Police officers follow up on reported cases by carrying out investigations
E- This may involve collecting evidence such as DNA and CCTV footage
Police Prevent Crime / Police are effective
P- one way in which the police are effective is through prevention strategies
E- “campus cops” are police officers in secondary schools who get young people used to the police presence and the police learn about and deal with problems in the community
E- for example many schools around Glasgow have a community police officer who regularly supports students in the school with their problems
P- Another way in which the police are effective is because they keep the public safe
E- The police are present at large scale events such as concerts and football games by patrolling the events which deters criminals
E- For example, the police were heavily present at COP26, but there was no significant violence at this event
Police are ineffective
P- One way in which the police are ineffective is because some guilty people get away
E- A key role of the police is to investigate crimes but the fact that so many go unsolved suggests they are not effective
E- For example, the BBC reported that almost 50% of crimes don’t make it to court.
P- another way in which the police are ineffective is because not enough is being done to solve murders
E- An important job of the police is to investigate murders and bring justice for the victims but the number of unsolved murders suggests they are somewhat ineffective.
E- For example, there are around 1000 unsolved murders since 1960 in Scotland.
Structure of the police
P- one department of the police is local policing
E- This is the branch of the police your most likely to see out and about within the local community to address problems
E- For example in many schools in scotland there is a campus officer or campus cop who is there to build relationships between the police and students as well as deal with any issues
P- one department of the police is the specialist crime division
E- The specialist crime division (SCD) provides specialist investigative and intelligence functions when a serious crime takes place or public safety is under threat from criminals
E- E- an example of this would include a major crime investigation (like murder or rape) or an Organised crime (includes international gangs)
P- one d[artment of the police is the crime and operational support unit
E- This department might not be needed for every case or in the same area of the country every day so they operate nationally and are called in when needed
E- an example of this would include a helicopter being needed for a missing person case or for survaliance in a football game or the Chemical, biological and nuclear responce unit that can be used for terrorist attcks or threats
