week 3 journal

Chapter

17 Other Forms of

Victimization

Case Example

Doctor’s Testimony Lead to Wrongful Conviction

• Coroner’s review of 45

cases of testimony on

“shaken baby syndrome”

leading to conviction

• Review determined that

Smith made questionable

conclusions of foul play in

20 cases, 13 of which

resulted in criminal

convictions © Ben Stansall/ AFP/ Getty Images.

Robbery and Theft

• Robbery

– Taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force, or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear

• Larceny (or theft)

– Taking of a person’s property without the permission of the property owner or possessor of that property, but does not involve threat

Burglary

• The uninvited and illegal entry into a person’s

property, cargo container, or any vehicle or

vessel

• Four types

– Completed burglary

– Forcible entry

– Unlawful entry without force

– Attempted forcible entry

• Frequently a secondary crime or by-product of

the intention to commit another crime (typically

more serious)

Home Invasion

• Forced entry into a home for the purposes

of robbery, rape, or other criminal activity

– Frequently involve highly violent activities

• Florida 1993: Home invasion robbery a

first-degree felony even when no weapon

is used

• Connecticut 2008: Home invasion robbery

to a first-degree offense

Carjacking

• 1992: Federal statute came into effect that

criminalized carjacking in the United States

• 40% increase per year between 1987 and

1992—and in 2003 it was estimated to average

49,000 per year

• Louisiana 1998: “Shoot the Carjacker” law,

extended the defense of habitation law, makes

justifiable a homicide

Workplace Violence

• Violence can occur in any workplace and

among any type of worker

– Risk for fatal violence is greater for workers in

sales, protective services, and transportation

– Risk for nonfatal violence resulting in days

away from work is greatest for healthcare and

social assistance workers

• Total of 4,836 fatal work injuries in 2015

(U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

Risk Management in the Workplace

• Policies regarding violence, threats, misconduct, weapons, intimate partner violence, and bomb threats

• A system for reporting, investigating, assessing, and managing all threats, misconduct, and inappropriate behavior

• Access controls

• A security plan and procedures

• Preemployment screening procedures

• A drug-free workplace program

• An employee assistance program

• Critical incident response procedures

• Training of all employees in their roles in each of the above

Victims of Natural Disasters

• Each disaster is unique even though

research on disasters shows there are

common effects across disaster types

• Several factors may determine a given

disaster’s effects on survivors, such as:

– Continuing aftershocks following an earthquake

– Life threat

– Loss of employment or income

– Cultural beliefs

Victims of Terrorism

• Affects large percentage of population

• People who lived or worked near Ground Zero,

witnessed the attack, knew a victim, or knew a

recovery worker revealed symptoms including:

– Somatic responses (stomach pain, back pain,

headaches, dizziness, cardiac)

– Depressive symptoms

– Anxiety symptoms (concentration difficulties and

arousal)

Corporate Victimization

• White-collar crime defined as “crime committed

by a person of respectability and high social

status in the course of their occupation”

– 2009: Bernie Madoff was sentenced to a jail term of

150 years

• Organizations are also the victims of corporate

crime

– 2017: Martin Shkreli found guilty on multiple criminal

securities fraud charges

Victims of Corporate Crime

Wrongful Convictions

Racial Profiling and

Disproportionate Penalties

• Racial profiling

– Any action undertaken for reasons of safety, security,

or public protection that relies on stereotypes about

race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, or place of

origin (or a combination of these) rather than on

reasonable suspicion to single out an individual for

greater scrutiny or different treatment

• Overrepresentation in criminal justice system

• Fuels distrust and alienation