Mala in se
wrong in themselves; a description applied to crimes that are characterized by universality and timelessness (ex; murder and rape)
Mala prohibita
Offenses that are illegal because laws define them as such; they lack universality and timelessness (ex; trespassing and gambling)
dark figure of crime
The number of crimes not officially recorded by the police. (about 50%)
Crime index
An estimate of crimes committed
Offenses known to police
A crime index, reported in the FBI's uniform crime reports, composed of crimes that are both reported and recorded by police
Crime rate
A measure of the incidence of crime expressed as the number of crimes per unit of population or some other base
Uniform crime reports (UCR)
A collection of crime Statistics and other law enforcement information gathered under a voluntary national program administered by the FBI
8 index crimes
The Part I offenses in the FBI’S uniform crime reports. They are (1) murder and non-negligent manslaughter (2) Forcible rape, (3) robbery 4) aggravated Assault (5) burglary, (6) larceny theft (7) motor vehicle theft and (8) arson which was added in 1979
Status offense
An act that is illegal for a Juvenile but would not be a crime if committed by an adult
Crime index offenses cleared
The number of offenses for which at least one person has been arrested, charged with commission of the offense, and turned over to the court for prosecution.
National crime victimization survey (NCVS)
A source of crime statistics based on interviews in which respondents are asked whether they have been victims of any of the FBI's index offenses (except murder, nonnegligent manslaughter, and arson) or other crimes during the past 6 months. If they have, they are asked to provide information about the experience.
Self-report crime surveys
Surveys in which subjects are asked whether they have committed crimes.
7 elements of crime
(1) Legality (must be a law) (2) Actus reus (Human conduct) (3) Causation (human conduct must cause harm) (4) Harm (to some other/thing) (5)Concurrence (State of Mind and Human Conduct) (6) Mens Rea (State of Mind; "guilty mind") (7) Punishment
6 different excuses for criminal responsibility
insanity, diminished capacity, duress, mistake, infancy and entrapment.
crime rate equation
dividing the number of reported crimes by the total population. The result is then multiplied by 100,000.
cost of crime
450 billion dollars
Social definition of crime
A behavior that violates the norms or social norms of society
Legal definition of crime
Crime is an intentionally violation of the criminal law or penal code, committed without defense or excuse and penalized by the state
Harm
The external consequence required to make an action a crime (physical or mental damage or injury)