Comprehensive Bullet-Point Notes on Introduction to Criminology

Definition of Criminology

  • Scientific study of crimes, criminals, victims and criminal behaviour
  • Includes prevention & solution of crimes (RA 11131 & its IRR)
  • Edwin Sutherland: body of knowledge regarding crime as a social phenomenon covering making laws, breaking laws & reactions to law-breaking

Six Areas of Criminology

  • Criminal Law, Jurisprudence & Procedure
  • Law Enforcement Administration
  • Crime Detection & Investigation
  • Forensic Science
  • Criminology (theory, research, policy)
  • Correctional Administration

Principal Divisions (Sutherland)

  1. Criminal Etiology – scientific study of causes of crime
  2. Sociology of Law – nature & administration of criminal law
  3. Penology – control of crime & rehabilitation of offenders

Nature of Criminology

  • Applied Science – borrows from anthropology, psychology, sociology plus natural sciences (chemistry, ballistics, polygraphy, etc.)
  • Social Science – crime viewed as social phenomenon
  • Dynamic – evolves with norms, tech & culture
  • Nationalistic – must relate study to domestic criminal law

Other Sciences Examining Criminal Behaviour (Scientific Method)

  • Criminal Demography – crime–population relations
  • Criminal Epidemiology – environment–crime relations
  • Criminal Ecology – spatial distribution within community
  • Criminal Physical Anthropology – physique–crime links
  • Criminal Psychology – human behaviour toward crime
  • Criminal Psychiatry – human mind & criminality
  • Victimology – victim’s role in crime commission

Major Schools of Thought

Classical School

  • Founders: Cesare Beccaria & Jeremy Bentham
  • Free will; hedonistic calculus; punishment = retribution; should fit the crime
  • Beccaria: "better to prevent crimes than to punish them"; punishment must be swift, severe & certain; opposed death penalty & torture
  • Bentham: Utilitarianism (greatest good for greatest number); Felicific/Pleasure-Pain Calculus; designed theoretical Panopticon prison

Neo-Classical School

  • Modifies free-will doctrine: considers age, mental ability, illness
  • Introduced mitigating & exempting circumstances

Positivist / Italian School

  • Founders ("unholy three"): Cesare Lombroso, Enrico Ferri, Raffaele Garofalo
  • Uses scientific measurement; punishment should fit the criminal; offender viewed as sick & treatable
Lombroso
  • Father of modern & empirical criminology; book “The Criminal Man”
  • Atavistic stigmata (primitive features) linked to crime
  • Criminal Types:
    1. Born Criminal – \ge 5 stigmata
    2. Criminals by Passion – emotion-triggered
    3. Insane Criminal – neurological defects
    4. Occasional Criminal – crimes by opportunity; sub-types:
      • Criminaloid
      • Epileptoid
      • Habitual
      • Pseudocriminal (self-defense, necessity, etc.)
Ferri
  • Emphasised psychological & sociological (economic) factors
Garofalo
  • Coined “criminologia”; scientific approach
  • Typology: Murderers, Violent, Deficient (property), Lascivious (chastity)
Physical Typologies
  • William Sheldon – Somatotypes
    1. Ectomorph – tall/thin; Cerebrotonic (introvert, anxious)
    2. Endomorph – round; Viscerotonic (sociable, relaxed)
    3. Mesomorph – muscular; Somotonic (active, aggressive → highest crime risk)
  • Ernst Kretschmer –
    1. Pyknic – round/fat (fraud)
    2. Athletic – muscular (violent)
    3. Asthenic – thin/tall (petty theft)
    4. Dysplastic – mixed (morality/decency offenses)

Cartographic School

  • Maps crime distribution geographically & socio-economically
  • Uses statistics (population, age, gender, SES, religion)
  • Quetelet’s Thermic Law: crimes against persons ↑ in summer, property ↑ in winter

Chicago School & Concentric Zone Theory

  • Early 1900s, Park & Burgess; studied urban crime; identified five expanding zones

Other Key Theorists / Theories

  • Sigmund Freud – Psychoanalytic (Id, Ego, Superego)
  • Edwin Sutherland – Differential Association
  • Gabriel Tarde – Laws of Imitation (Close Contact, Superior → Inferior, Insertion)
  • Alphonse Bertillon – Anthropometry ID system
  • Charles Goring – Hereditary criminality; advocated sterilisation
  • Howard Becker – Social Reaction / Labeling Theory

Causes of Criminal Behaviour

1. Single / Unitary Cause Theory

  • Crime stems from one factor (social, biological, or mental)

2. Multiple Factor Theory

  • Interaction of numerous factors

3. Eclectic Theory

  • Sometimes single, sometimes multiple factors

Biological Factors

  • Physiognomy – facial features (della Porta; Lavater)
  • Phrenology – skull topography (Gall; Spurzheim)
  • Somatotyping (Sheldon)
  • Family Studies:
    • Juke Family (Dugdale): 1\,200 descendants over 75 yrs: 280 paupers, 60 thieves, 7 murderers…
    • Kallikak Family (Goddard): 489 descendants: 143 feeble-minded, 36 illegitimate, etc.

Psychological Factors

  • Mental Deficiency: Idiot \text{IQ }0!! -!!25; Imbecile 26! -!50; Feeble-minded 51! -!70; Morally Defective
  • Psychosis – hallucinations, delusions, paranoia
  • Neurosis – anxiety, OCD, phobias, depression
    • OCD sub-variants: Kleptomania, Dipsomania, Pyromania
    • Phobias: Acrophobia, Claustrophobia, etc.
  • Sexual Deviations (Paraphilias): Exhibitionism, Fetishism, Pedophilia, Auto-sexual, Sadism, Masochism, Sadomasochism, Transvestism, Gerontophilia, Voyeurism, Zoophilia/Bestiality, Incest, Coprolalia, Coprophilia

Social Factors

Social Structure Theories
  1. Social Disorganization (Shaw & McKay)
  2. Strain Theory – goal–means gap → \text{stress} = anger + frustration + resentment
  3. Cultural Deviance – lower-class subculture
Social Process Theories
  1. Differential Association
  2. Differential Reinforcement
  3. Neutralization
Social Reaction (Labeling) Theory
  • Becker: crime via societal labels
Social Control Theories
  • Reckless: Containment (inner/outer)
  • Hirschi: Social Bond (attachment, commitment, involvement, belief)

Crime: Definition & Elements

  • Crime = act/omission violating public law
    Elements (triangle):
  1. Desire
  2. Capability
  3. Opportunity

Reasons society must care: pervasive, expensive, destructive, reflective, progressive

Basic motives: hatred, passion, gain, insanity, vengeance, ignorance, neglect

Classification of Crime

A. Legal

  1. By Title of RPC (national security, persons, property, etc.)
  2. By Law Violated – Felony (RPC), Offense (SPL), Infraction (ordinance)
  3. By Manner – Dolo (Intent) vs Culpa (Negligence)
    • Elements of Dolo: Freedom, Intelligence, Intent
    • Elements of Culpa: Freedom, Intelligence, Negligence/Imprudence
  4. By Stage – Attempted, Frustrated, Consummated
  5. By Gravity – Grave, Less Grave, Light (fine \le 40\,000 PHP, arresto menor)
  6. By Plurality – Simple; Complex (Compound & Complex Proper); Special Complex
  7. By Nature – Mala in se vs Mala prohibita
  8. By Habituality – Recidivist, Quasi-recidivist, Habitual Delinquent, Reiteration

B. Criminological

  • By Result: Acquisitive vs Destructive
  • By Time: Seasonal vs Situational
  • By Duration: Instant vs Episodal
  • By Place: Static vs Continuing
  • By Mental State: Rational vs Irrational
  • By Offender Type: White Collar vs Blue Collar

Other Categories

  • Index (Violent) Crimes in PH: Murder, Homicide, Physical Injuries, Robbery, Theft, Carnapping, Rape
    • Murder variants: Serial, Mass, Spree
    • Rape types: Acquaintance, Aggravated, Date, Gang, Marital, Serial, Statutory, Special Complex
    • Rapist typology: Anger, Power, Sadistic
  • Non-Index: VAWC, drugs, illegal logging, firearms, etc. (quasi-offenses excluded)

Criminal Law (Act 3815 – RPC)

  • Branch of public law defining crimes & penalties

Sources

  1. Act 3815 (RPC)
  2. Special Penal Laws
  3. Penal Presidential Decrees

Characteristics

  1. Generality – applies to all within PH territory except: treaties, preferential laws (e.g., legislative immunity), principles of int’l law (heads of state)
  2. Territoriality – applies within PH; Article 2 extends to:
    • PH ships/aircraft
    • Forgery of PH currency/ securities abroad
    • Introduction of such forgeries
    • Public officers abroad in exercise of duties
    • Crimes against national security & law of nations
  3. Prospectivity – no ex post facto; retroactive only if favourable & offender not habitual delinquent

Criminal (Person)

  • Criminological view: criminal from moment of commission
  • Legal view: criminal only after final conviction

Classification

  • Etiology: Acute, Chronic, Normal Imitator, Neurotic
  • Offender Type: Ordinary, Organized, Professional
  • Conklin Robber Typology: Professional, Opportunist, Addict, Alcoholic

Victimology

  • Studies victims, roles, effects, CJS interaction
  • Von Hentig’s Classes: Young, Female, Old, Mentally Defective, Immigrant, Minorities
  • Victim Types: Primary (direct), Secondary (relatives/friends), Tertiary (public fear via media)

Deviance vs Crime

  • Deviance = norm violation; Crime = legal violation (subset)

Deviance Theories

  • Consensus – norms beneficial; deviation = delinquency
  • Conflict – inequality → crime; rich & poor offending motives differ
  • Interactionist – no act inherently deviant; depends on social reaction

Republic Act 11131 (Philippine Criminology Profession Act 2018)

  • Defines “Registered Criminologist” – holder of valid Certificate & PIC

Licensure Examination

  • Passing average: 75\% overall, no grade < 60\%
  • If overall \ge 75\% but <60\% in any subject → deferred; must retake subject once within 2 yrs & score \ge 80\%
  • Failure to comply → retake all subjects

Scope of Practice (illustrative)

  1. Law-enforcement functions (PNP, NBI, PDEA, BFP, BJMP, Bucor, PPA, BIR, BOC, BSP, NICA, ISAFP, etc.)
  2. Teaching criminology core subjects (Criminal Jurisprudence & Procedure, Criminalistics, LEA, CDI, Corrections, Sociology/Ethics, etc.)
  3. Technical forensic services (dactyloscopy, QDE, DNA, polygraphy, ballistics, forensic photography/chemistry)
  4. Correctional administration (institutional & community-based)
  5. Research, consultancy, counselling on criminological issues
  6. Private investigation & security management

Professional Regulatory Board

  • Chair + 4 members; appointed by President; organised within 6 months of Act effectivity

Privileges of Registered Criminologists

  • Civil-service eligibility; exempt from other entrance exams for positions such as Dactylographer, Ballistician, Probation Officer, Police Superintendent (up to), Fire Marshall, Jail Superintendent, etc.