The U.S. Department of Justice defines crime as all behaviors and acts for which society provides formally approved punishments. Written law, both federal and state, defines which behavior is criminal and which is not. Some behaviors—murder, robbery, and burglary—have always been considered criminal. Other actions, such as domestic violence or driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, were only recently added to the list of criminal offenses. Other changes in our society hav…
In 2002 the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) Uniform Crime Report (UCR) estimated that one Crime Index offense was committed every 2.7 seconds in the United States. Property crimes were committed more frequently (one every 3.0 seconds) than violent crimes (one every 22.1 seconds), down from one every 19 seconds in 1996. The Crime Clock does not imply these crimes were committed with …
Becoming a crime victim can have serious consequences—outcomes the victim neither asks for nor deserves. A victim rarely expects to be victimized and seldom knows where to turn. Victims may end up in the hospital to be treated and released, or they may be confined to bed for days, weeks, or longer. Injuries may be temporary, or they may be permanent and forever change the way the victim lives. Victims may lose money or property, or they may even lose their lives—the ultimate cost f…
Crimes committed by hate groups or offenders and those committed by terrorist groups are often very similar, both in method and in effect. For example, a person acting from a motive of religious bias might use an incendiary device (one that causes fire, such as a Molotov cocktail) to burn down a mosque, church, or synagogue. A terrorist group might use the same type of device to burn down a govern…
According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice, an estimated 2.27 million juveniles (people under the age of 18) were arrested in 2001. This number represents a decrease of 20 percent from 1997 to 2001 and of 4 percent from 2000 to 2001. Most of the juveniles who were arrested were males, and were 15 or older. The only categories of crime in which juveniles under 15 accounted for the majority of arrests were arson (64 pe…
In 2000 state and federal courts convicted some 984,000 adults of felonies, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Of those, 924,700 were adults convicted in state courts and 59,123 were convicted in federal jurisdictions. Some 68 percent of convicted felons were sentenced to a period of incarceration in 2000. Of those, 40 percent went to state prisons and 28 percent to local jails. Those in jails were usually confined for less than one year.…
The Dictionary of Criminal Justice Data Terminology (Bureau of Justice Statistics) defines white-collar crime as "nonviolent crime for financial gain committed by means of deception by persons … having professional status or specialized technical skills."…
The connection between criminal activity and the use of drugs and alcohol has long been an issue in American society. Even before federal laws were passed in 1914 to control narcotics and other drugs, observers claimed that drug use and criminal activity were strongly linked. Drugs and alcohol are thought to encourage criminal behavior in several ways. Their use can reduce inhibitions, stimulate a…
After a crime has been committed, the justice system of the United States goes into action. The system has three major components that work together: A Gallup Poll found that although a majority of Americans still favored the death penalty in 2001, the percentage of those supporting the death penalty was 67 percent, down from a high of 75 percent in 1997. In 2003 a Gallup Poll found that 60 percen…