Author Archives: ts116282

This week our class spoke about the Broken Windows therelationship between order and crime. The argument that was introduced in the article revolved around the fact that the more order there was in a particular area, the less crime was an issue. In the article, the writers claimed that because there was more policing of a certain area there was also less disruption. We argued in  class that having more police in one area didn’t necessarily mean that that area was safer depending on where you were at that present time. Unfortuately, the physical policing of an area was also a distinct form of regulation as many were wrongly accused of being a potential criminal and subjected to being stopped and frisked. This form of regulation amongst innocent people reminded me of the issue of thePanoptican in which buildings were constructed to regulate potential revolts from rioters. I ran across a blog post from an individual who described how the Panoptican is being reinvented today through technology. Our government has constantly been trying to overthrow Internet privacy to “prevent potential national security threats” and in several ways they have been mildly successful. Password protection won’t be able to prevent the government from viewing your internet connection and the activities that you participate in while on the web. In other countries the technology panoptican has already prevailed, but the US is the one country that will see the most backlash from this proposal. If this form of regulation is allowed everything that we use on a daily basis will technically become surveilled as our country moves into its most technologically advanced stage yet.

For More Information:

http://www.newsflash.org/2004/02/ht/ht009661.htm

Travis Shillingford

Earlier this week we spoke about the development of the pyschopathic theory and the affect it has on deviant acts and the justice system as a whole. Naturally, our nation has taken the plea of insanity in the courtroom as a possibility in certain situations associated with mass murders. In the earlier reading that we reviewed in class, one topic that was brought up was how to treat individual that were deemed insane. The conclusion that was made from the article was that we would treat the “rare” symptoms that the person consisted of, instead of simply punishing him for his or her actions. In some instances we would kill the person if he/she tested to be completely uncontrollable. A recent tragedy that occurred at the hands of a “confused” James Holmes is currently being debated in court. His defense is willing to plead insanity and if the case is won in their favor, he’ll be put in psych ward euipped with a straight jacket most likely and under constant supervision. But the question is if a psych ward is the proper punishment for a man who committed such a brutal crime. There is no question that he is guilty of these crimes regardless if he’s deemed psychotic or not, but will the families of the affected truly avenge the deaths and pain of the injured. My sentiment is absolutely not! James Holmes should be prosecuted as a “normal” criminal, the man was studying for his doctorate degree as a neuroscience major, he obviously knew of his actions and the difference between righ and wrong. I can understand that the defense has to do their job, but then again I can’t understand how someone can even attempt to represent someone in court who has committed such a tragedy. I don’t believe in capital punishment, but I believe that the final vote in this case should be up to the families that were affected. Of course I know that that isn’t how our justice system works, but for this case special consideration should be given.

For further information regarding this story:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-07-30/colorado-shootings-james-holmes/56584772/1

Today in class we spoke about the idea of a moral panic and the drastic effect that situations that cause it have on our society. The excerpt that we were assigned to read gave us an in-depth analysis of where the idea of a moral panic could’ve began. This reading involved the increasing spread of crimes that involve theft and violence, but that article focusing on this idea of “mugging.” Government officials labeled these crimes and set fire to a virtually new phenomenon in Great Britain that had pre-existed in the US. The reason why “mugging” became a moral panic was because at the time it was introduced it seemed like it couldn’t be contained.  In 1999. Thirteen years ago, two gunmen entered Columbine High School and opened fire on everyone including students and teachers. There was no obvious reason why such an act occurred except for the fact that these criminals were vigilantes and believed that opening fire at a high school was a mission that they had to accomplish. The effect that this crime had on the US was beyond measurable. Schools around the nation had increased the amount of security, people weren’t sending their children to school and above all this was an act that seemed spontaneous and couldn’t be contained. Government officials had no motive as to what causes such an act to occur and people wanted answers. Overall this shooting caused a moral panic as to how can such an act be regulated and was there anyway for people to prevent such acts from occurring? A moral panic occurs when people don’t feel safe in their own neighborhoods or even in the confinement of their own home. This situation is different if a person assumes the risk of visiting a violence priven place and expects not to see any damaging imagery, but if a person is the in the confinement of their own neighborhood, their safe haven and they don’t consider themselves safe then this results in a moral panic. The victims of the columbine shooting were in the confinement of their own public high school, a relatively safe place where the only guns that are visible are in the holsters of well-trained police officials. For them to be stricken by such a tragedy has proven to be a keen and very real example of a moral panic.

http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.aspx?id=9966

http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/08/justice/virginia-tech-incident/index.html

http://history1900s.about.com/od/famouscrimesscandals/a/columbine.htm

Today in class we reviewed an excerpt written by Robert Agnew entitled A Revised Strain Theory of Delinquency. This piece displayed the fact that many potential delinquents are influenced to commit certain crimes because of the many obstacles that they experience throughout their life which result in these children being “unable to achieve their goals through legitimate channels. Unfortunately, this theory is true for many of the criminal cases involving underpriveldged and poverty stricken children across the globe. Years ago, about seventy years ago there was an article published in the New York Times attempting to answer this same question: What causes child delinquency? This article was written by Sigmund Mendelsohn, a man who believed then that the poverty theory regarding delinquents only held a certain amount of truth to it. He believed that many children become delinquents because many during that time had immigrated to New York and came equipped with cultures, values and experiences. Because these children weren’t fond of the American lifestyle, many of the activities that they participated in were frowned upon causing them to be labeled delinquents. He states that “one nationality cannot be cultivated in another without disturbing existing conditions.” Foreigners who immigrated to New York didn’t neccessarily see eye to eye with the native residents and a result they were displayed as rebels and individuals who went against the grain. Many who immigrated to New York at the time hailed from European countries and felt oppressed, helpless, hopeless and trapped. Once they arrived here they felt an undescribable amount of freedom resulting in behavior that wasn’t considered the social norm in America. From this article which was published in 1915 to now, it’s relatively easy to observe the evolution in social theory and fascinating to see that many of the theories behind child delinquency today were being thought of then. Past theories which transcend into modern thinking are reminiscent of old-school samples in modern production, before there was now there was then.

For Further Information:

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=F10814F63D5512738FDDAE0A94DE405B858DF1D3

Travis S.

In a recent excerpt that our class read entitled “Imposters and Incorrigible Rogues,” European authorities found themselves clueless as to how to discover and convict recidivists (people who were serial crime committers). They used several methods including photography for facial recognition and even evolutionary studies that related to the structure of a person’s head (Lombroso). None of the methods that were used proved to be consistently successful because criminals were smart as they would change their name, move to a different area and return with even more vengence, leaving authorities with no leads as to who could’ve possibly been a repeat offender. If during the 19th Centruy technology had been as developed as it is today, I believe that there would indeed be less crimes committed as more criminals would essentially be caught and more people who follow a criminal lifestyle would be more accepting to a change of heart. One of the new technological gadgets that is being developed and considered for production is “a laser-guided, GPS tracking system, launched from the front grille of the  squad car and guided by a laser-sight targeting system.” This gadget will be used to reduce and prevent dangerous high speed chases that affect local traffic and nearby streets in all states. Police can simply attach this sticky transmitter to the criminal or suspected criminals’ car and watch his/her every move while also constructing potential plans to take down the “bad guy.” If a gadget like this was used to offset all of the hard labor that authorities put into finding the repeat offenders of the 19th century, not only would time be saved, but also the lives of the general population that was affected by the acts of these unethical individuals. Another form of technology that is being used now to find wanted criminals is Facecrook. The Bergen County Police Department(NJ) launched this website to encourage People who discover criminals to post whatever information they now anonymously. This use of social media can be beneficial to authorities because of the anonymity factor that people constantly worry about and easy use. The increasing use of social media has become such a phenomenon that police departments around the U.S. are also providing direct hotlines that any one can text to further their efforts of finding criminals at large. Any of these methods could’ve proved to be innovative and effective during the 19th Century.

For Futher Information….http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,312953,00.html

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/weird-wide-web/facecrook-created-new-jersey-sheriffs-office-catch-crimin

http://fox8.com/2012/04/03/new-service-accepts-anonymous-texts-to-help-catch-criminals/

Travis Shillingford