CRIMINOLOGY

Week 2

Please answer any two of the following questions:

1. Is it fair to excuse the criminal responsibility of someone who acted under an irresistible impulse?
2. Couldn't we argue that all criminals are impulsive people who lack the capacity to control their behavior?  If not, why would they commit crimes in the first place?
3. Should the sale and possession of handguns be banned?
4. Read the article "To Stop Crime, Hand Over Cash" in The New York Times (July 5, 2015).  Does this seem like a good approach to reducing gun violence?
5. A school board of education in Ohio in 2013 approved handgun training for four custodians to be able to carry weapons at a K-12 Williams County School.  Is this a good idea?  What about arming teachers and administrators?
6. Racial and class patterns appear in crime rates.  What could account for this?