Crimes of the powerful

Question 1

What do Reiman and Leighton believe?

Answer 1

The more likely a crime is to be committed by higher-class people, the less likely it is to be an offence

Question 2

Sutherland’s definition of white collar crime

Answer 2

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

Question 3

What are the two types of white collar crime

Answer 3

• occupational crime - committed by employees against an organisation for their own personal gain
• corporate crime - committed by employees for their organisation in pursuit of its goals

Question 4

Pearce and Tombs definition of corporate crime

Answer 4

Any illegal act or omission that is the result of deliberate decisions of culpable negligence by a legitimate business organisation that is intended to benefit a business

Question 5

What does Tombs claim about corporate crime

Answer 5

it has enormous costs: deaths, injuries, illness, pollution and economic harm to consumers, workers, tax players and governments

Question 6

Examples of corporate crimes include:

Answer 6

financial crimes, crimes against employees, state corporate crime, crimes against the environment, crimes against consumers

Question 7

Definition of financial crime

Answer 7

Crimes that involve money. Victims include shareholders, tax payers and governments. Example: Allen Stanford 2009 ponzi scheme

Question 8

Definition of crimes against consumers

Answer 8

Putting customers in danger. Example: Thalidomide babies in the 50s & 60s

Question 9

Definition of crimes against employees

Answer 9

Employees are victims, e.g sexual and racial discrimination in the workplace. Example: sports direct working conditions in 2016

Question 10

Definition of crimes against the environment

Answer 10

Illegal pollution of air, water and land such as toxic waste dumping

Question 11

State corporate crime

Answer 11

When governments and businesses cooperate to pursue joint goals e.g space shuttle challenger disaster (1986)

Question 12

The abuse of trust case study

Answer 12

Harold Shipman (2000)

Question 13

What does Box argue about corporate crime?

Answer 13

Its largely invisble

Question 14

Why is corporate crime largely ‘invisible’

Answer 14

• the media gives little coverage to it thus reinforcing the stereotype that crime is a w/c phenomenon
  -crimes are often complex - law enforcements don’t have the expertise, resources or staff to investigate properly
• under reporting - not an individual victim as victims tend to be the environment or society at large

Question 15

Labelling theory explanation for corporate crime

Answer 15

The working class are more likely to have their actions defined as deviant - Cicourel’s typification that claim w/c are demonised but m/c negotiate the label
Nelken’s de-labelling . Higher classes have the ability to avoid labelling i.e get charges dropped

Question 16

Marxist explanation for corporate crime

Answer 16

Criminogenic capitalism breeds greed and dog-eat-dog characteristics - Gordon
Box argues captialism has created mystification - spread the idea that corporate crime is less harmful and widespread than w/c crime
The bourgeoisie’s control of the state means its able to avoid making or enforcing laws that conflict with its interests (Pearce)

Question 17

Strain theory explanation for corporate crime

Answer 17

Deviance results from the inability of some people to achieve their goals through illegitimate means
Merton - individuals will innovate (use illegal methods to achieve it
Businesses want to be the biggest and most profitable. less successful businesses may break the law in order to become more profitable