Peacemaking Criminology

"Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the presence of justice." 
    - Dr. Martin Luther King

The principles of peacemaking criminology looks to the community to resolve the social issues causing crime, and prefers restoration and restitution in a participatory process, over retribution and punishment by the criminal justice system.  This Peacemaking Criminology perspective seems predicated on the belief that peace is brought about by removing all social ills and social injustice.  Rather than the conflict-based legal system where there is always one winner and one loser (either the criminal is convicted ((loser)) and state wins, or criminal is exonerated ((wins)) and the state loses), peacemaking criminology seeks to create a win-win system of criminology where agencies and criminals work together in order to address the social ills causing the crime and focusing on restoration and reparation.  This seems entirely based on the principle that the absence of conflict is the presence of peace.  

Harold E. Pepinsky and Richard Quinney advanced the theory of peacemaking criminology by advocating that society moves away from thinking that stopping crime is the answer to crime control, and that making peace between everyone, in particular, agencies of the criminal justice system and citizens.  The Peacekeeping Criminology theory advances principles of "commonsense" theories about crime, moving away from conflict based social policies based on classic methods of criminology, crime control as the enforcement and endorsement of human rights, the role of education in creating peace, and how community settings are utilized to address conflict resolution.

By ending human suffering via peacemaking and elimination of conflict, Quinney and Wilderman state that crime can be eliminated.  Instead of punishment, conflict resolution panels and alternative-dispute resolution is utilized to create participatory justice and focus on rehabilitation, repairing and restoration caused by crime, and that victims are centrally involved in the process of resolving crime.  Peacekeeping criminology presumes to advance social theories of criminology to the extent that both society and the criminal are presumed accountable for crime.

However, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. famously and correctly stated, "Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the presence of justice."  A complete dictatorship where there is no conflict is not a system of peace, nor can there be peace without justice.   Critically, this theory seems incredibly naive, and you cannot solve crimes by providing a group hug.  What kind of reparation can you make for human suffering, loss of a limb/eye/mobility or death?  How will the destitute make reparations for thousands or even millions of dollars of damage from a crime?  The naive assumption that all crime can be blamed on society and societal problems, and that there is no personal accountability or psychology involved seems to have created a system that MIGHT operate effectively as arbitration for minor offenses, but seems ill-suited for violent crimes and felonies.

Indian reservations in the United States employ a number of alternative courts and dispute resolution processes, and many include restorative justice principles through alternative-dispute resolution.  As the article by Justin Peters published on Slate, Violent Crime on Indian Reservations Is Up, But Prosecutions Are Down demonstrates, violent crime on Indian reservations is more than 20 times the national average, and many estimate it to in fact be 200x more than the US.  The news article cites the reasons for this being ill-trained criminal justice systems, ineffective alternative-dispute resolution panels and general lack of quality in the agencies of criminal justice.  Violent crime cannot be resolved via dispute resolution, and drunken assaults are not going to be effected by the thought of going before a committee to explain your action.  Morning Star Brown, according to the article, had stabbed or threatened to stab her boyfriend's cousin, Jarret Two Bear, no fewer than 6 times in the 3 years of her relationship with her boyfriend.  She had been convicted of aggravated assault the year prior, but without effect.  Although it seems as though at least some of the courts adjudicating her various cases used classic retribution systems of incarceration, the overall lawlessness and prevalence of violent crime seems to have been caused by a lack of justice, not a lack of love and hugs by the community.  While the case could certainly be made that alcohol abuse was a substantive causative influence at the downfall of Morning Star Brown and the death of Jarret Two Bear. (Peters, Justin. 2013.)  

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Peters, Justin. (2013).  Violent Crime on Indian Reservations Is Up, But Prosecutions Are Down. Slate, 8-Mar-2013. Retrieved 8-Mar-2013 from http://www.slate.com/blogs/crime/2013/03/08/morning_star_brown_violent_crime_on_indian_reservations_is_up_but_prosecutions.html 

Shocking Stats on Shoplifting

While a form of larceny/theft itself, shoplifting differs from other forms of theft in that the victim is an organization, the definition is constrained to retailers, and the crime is far more pervasive than other forms of theft from organizations (e.g. embezzlement, fraud, shipment diversion/transport crime, grand theft, bank robbery).

Whereas there is a strong gender divide in most other crimes, shoplifting has a relatively even split between genders.  Additional facts:

• 25% of shoplifters are teens, a disproportionate demographic
• 55% of shoplifters say they started in their teenaged years
• 89% of teenagers say they know other teens who shoplift, and 69% hang out with those known shoplifters
• Many shoplifters will steal and purchase goods in the same visit
• Typical theft is in the range between $2 and $200 per incident (admittedly a very broad range)
• Shoplifters report being caught 1/48 of the time, and are turned over to police once caught about 50% of the time
• Habitual shoplifters steal, on average, 1.6 times per week.
• Wal*Mart's loss prevention department reports an average of 1 million shoplifting incidents per year, and estimates the impact of these losses as $77million that are passed along to their customers.
• The FBI reports shoplifting as the fastest-growing larceny, at a CAGR of 20%
• The estimated cost to US taxpayers of shoplifting is more than $16Billion

(source: Compulsive No More Stop, compulsivenomorestop.com, http://compulsivenomorestop.com/Shoplifting_Facts.html)

If left unchecked, shoplifting will continue to be a substantial drain on the economy.  Further, I think unabated shoplifting is an example of the kind of social disorder event that the Broken Windows Theory of criminology (James Q. Wilson, George L. Kelling) was speaking to.  Unchecked shoplifting promotes lawlessness and breakdown of the social contract, and is a gateway crime to more serious societal issues that can cause millions per criminal.  Shoplifting deserves serious attention to stop the degradation it causes in our society.  Yet, it seems that shoplifting doesn't get the serious attention of law enforcement (See this example in Dallas: http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/2011/12/new-dallas-poli.html/ ).  To be effective at prevention, law enforcement, store owners and the community will need to work together to curb shoplifting and address this blight.

Big Brother is Watching, Without an ROI

Video evidence seems all the rage, particularly in Europe, but the video evidence rarely solves crimes.  In fact, the million cameras in London mostly solve crimes like setting trashcans out on the wrong day or neglecting to pick up dog scat when walking the dog.  Less than 3% of crimes are solved by CCTV videos, and it's been reported that there are so many police cameras in England (more than 5 million by some estimates) that CCTV no longer provides any kind of deterrent, as thieves consider them to not be working.  Based on the 3% conviction rate, they could be considered right, even if technically the video is being captured. (Johnston, 2011)  

Studies of the effect of CCTV use in the UK are inconclusive.  While some show a marked decline in burglary (down 50%) and car crime (down 87%) in the 5 years after CCTV was installed, they could not attribute it to CCTV use, and violent crime was up 300% in the same period.  Other studies have shown that CCTV use has had no demonstrable effect on crime, save a single camera in a parking garage. (Ibid)

Even when captured on film, conviction is rare.  In one month 269 robbers were suspected, yet only 8 were captured.  How many of those could actually be convicted will naturally be a smaller number.  Nationwide, the UK has spent more than $776Million on cameras, and are now captured 300 times a day, but some estimates, with an enormous invasion of privacy.  When police are challenged on the efficacy of CCTV as a crime-solving measure, they seem quick to close ranks and ask for more investment to make it all work. (BBC, 2009).  Yet, 80% of boroughs with police cameras in the London area show a below-average rate in solving crime, with no provable benefit to the cameras in either the overall solving of crimes nor reduction in criminality. (Davenport,  2007).

Consider that, by one estimate, the amount invested in just 11 communities in the UK responding to a corollary to the US Freedom of Information Act request showed over $500MM invested, which could have paid the salaries of 13,436 police instead.  New Orleans defunded their CCTV program after 7 years of operations and $10Million invested resulted in only 6 prosecutions -- 3 for crimes committed on camera, and 3 from bribes and kickbacks from camera vendors to City Hall (!!!) (Hamilton, 2010)

Researchers in San Francisco tested the impact from SFPD cameras, detailing 59,706 crimes committed within 1000 feet of a camera from 1-Jan-2005 to 28-Jan-2008, studying those crimes that had a police report, not the total number of crimes caught on camera or actually committed.  The researchers studied 7 crimes: murder, larceny, vehicle theft, burglary, assault, robbery and forcible sex offenses.  The only positive deterrent they were able to associate with the cameras was a reduction in larceny committed within 100 feet of the cameras, with no other crime rates having any discernible effect, except that murder was effected in an unforeseen way.  While murders went down within 250 feet of the camera, those murder rates were completely offset by murders occurring within 250-500 feet of the camera, indicating that the murderers knew of the camera and decided to just move down the block a ways before committing murder.  (Schneier, 2008)

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BBC. (2009) 1,000 cameras 'solve one crime'. BBC News, 24-Aug-2009. Retrieved 16-Feb-2013 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/8219022.stm

Davenport, Justin. (2007). Tens of thousands of CCTV cameras, yet 80% of crime unsolved. London Evening Standard, 19-Sept-2007. Retrieved 16-Feb-2013 from http://www.standard.co.uk/news/tens-of-thousands-of-cctv-cameras-yet-80-of-crime-unsolved-6684359.html

Hamilton, Daniel. (2010) The Price is Wrong: The cost of CCTV surveilance in the United Kingdom. BigBrotherWatch.co.uk, pub. date unknown, copyright 2010. Retrieved 16-Feb-2013 from http://www.statewatch.org/news/2010/nov/uk-cctv-big-brother-watch-report.pdf 

Johnston, Phillip. (2011). We're all spied upon, but to what purpose? The Telegraph, 22-Aug-2011.  Retrieved 16-Feb-2013 from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/8716058/Were-all-spied-upon-but-to-what-purpose.html

Schneier, Bruce. (2008) The Ineffectiveness of Security Cameras. Schneier on Security, 7-Apr-2008. Retrieved 16-Feb-2013 from http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2008/04/the_ineffective.html

Victim Precipitation & Columbine

I think that there are substantial influences of victim precipitation on many violent crimes, in particular those involving alcohol.  When people lower their inhibitions and effect their judgement via alcohol, they may be more inclined to pick fights, stagger into others provoking a response to an imagined attack, or aggressively pursue an undesired romantic interest, all of which can precipitate assault and other forms of violent crime.  

Victim precipitation has often been blamed for the Columbine school massacre, playing on the beliefs that the killers had been taunted, and were lashing back at the victims.  However, I do not think that there was any victim precipitation in the attack on Columbine.  This seems one of the myths of Columbine created in the media circus following the event.  

In the CNN Article, Debunking the Myths of Columbine, 10 Years Later (CNN, 2009 - http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/20/columbine.myths/index.html?_s=PM:CRIME ), author Stephanie Chen discusses many of the myths believed by the general public about Columbine.  Among these are that the killers were part of the Trench Coat Mafia (they weren't), that they had been harrassed or teased before (no more than typical high schoolers), were loners (in fact, they were popular with a tight circle of friends), and targeted jocks and blacks (which they did not).  

Another myth of Columbine was that the students created a hit list of intended targets.  However, the list had several joke entries (e.g. Tiger Woods), and nobody on the "hit list" was injured or killed in the event.  Rather than being outcasts, Harris and Klebold were reportedly far more accepted than most of their peers. (Sidebar, Slate Magazine, author & pub. date unknown http://www.slate.com/sidebars/2004/04/sidebar_3.html ).  If anything, the victims of Columbine seems to have been selected because the target was a known, familiar ground to the killers, much as the poor frequently prey on the poor in their neighborhood.  

According to Dave Cullen, in an article published 4/20/2004 in Slate, The Depressive and the Psychopath: At last we know why the Columbine killers did it (http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/assessment/2004/04/the_depressive_and_the_psychopath.html), FBI psychiatrists and psychologists have categorized Klebold as a depressive, suicidal and disturbed young man who blamed himself for his problems.  Harris however, has been classified as a psychopath by the FBI, a cold, calculating and homicidal killer, and not just a depressed loner.  

According to Cullen, who spent years meticulously researching Columbine, the students were not seeking a school shooting at all, and mocked the notion of a school shooting.  Their intent, rather, was a massive detonation of bombs both inside and outside the school, while providing strafing fire to gun down any who escaped the carnage.  They planned on a body count to inflict the "largest number of deaths in U.S. history," intent on topping the murders committed by the Oklahoma City Bombing.  Precipitation does not seem to have been a factor in the aggregate in the Columbine shooting.  Only at the micro level, as individual students chose to run, cower, hide, and other minute decisions did those precipitate their personal victim status -- if they chose wrong, they were injured or killed. This doesn't seem, however, to be victim precipitation, as a crime was already in progress, and it was just their response to it.

Crash: Seen through conflict theories of criminology

I was challenged to watch the movie Crash and provide commentary.  If you have a Netflix account, you can watch it here.

The movie Crash was one I found very disturbing - the raw racism was painful enough I had to watch the movie in phases across several days. The backdrop of ethnically and culturally diverse Los Angeles is the setting for director Paul Harris' film, which follows several groups of people through 3 tense days of interaction, where their lives are unexpectedly intertwined. Along the way, each of the main characters acts out of ugly racism (with the notable exception of the locksmith, Daniel), and then has a revelation that changes their perspective on race.  This movie has many plots and subplots, and I do not think there is a single conflict theory to explain all behavior -- although Marxist class struggle does seem to be an overarching theme.  

Many conflict theories of criminality are presented in the movie, and these include:

Radical criminology (William Chambliss, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engles, etc.) Anthony and Peter are presented as the bourgeoisie who are down-trodden without opportunities or hope, and the shopkeeper Fahrad is likewise presented as a man who is pushed into criminality through hopelessness from feeling wronged by a corrupt system.  Chambliss' theory that the upper and middle-class often escape punishment is further highlighted in an angry exchange between Cameron, a successful movie director, and Tom Hansen.  Cameron, a successful black man in an expensive car is let go, even as Anthony huddles in the front seat - the impression being that, had Anthony been discovered, he would have been arrested and not gotten away with just a warning.

Feminist criminology (Adler & Simon) - Power-Control Theory (Hagan) - Christine reacts to being arrested with violent outbursts and vehement anger as she is controlled and dominated by the police, and is further stripped of dignity through molestation at the hands of the police.  She reacts with mild violence and scorn to her husband, Cameron, who she saw as not protecting her to save his own dignity.  Through Christine, we see strong gender issues, where she is subjugated to her husband's career, and reacts strongly to that when this results in her sexual assault.  Sandra Bullock's character, Jean, is likewise subordinate to the career of her husband, who is more concerned (as District Attorney) that he was robbed by black men, and how that will effect his political career, than with the trauma felt by his wife.

Instrumental Marxism ( Reiman) - Through the eyes of the poor in the movie (Anthony, Fahrad, Peter) we see how the poor are downtrodden and subjugated by the police.  Peter is shot by a policeman, who saw everyone else as racist, and then winds up shooting Peter due to his own prejudiced beliefs -- after first mocking Peter that he could enjoy country music, go ice skating or would like to be a hockey player.  We see the interaction of the police with the citizenry as corrupt, domineering, prejudiced, racist and driving the forces of law to manipulate public image and create prescribed outcomes regarding race perceptions and twisted justice.  The criminal justice system is portrayed as a tool to control the poor, rather than a tool to create justice, law and order.

Critical Criminology (Sykes) Jean, having been robbed at gunpoint, quickly jumps to assumptions regarding the tattoos and baggy clothes that Daniel has, and demands her locks be changed again.  She is the epitome of upper-class snobbery keeping the ruling class dominating the underprivileged, and she is broadly critical of the hired help, and turns every perceived slight into aspects of criminality.  

Left-realist Criminology (Curran, Renzetti, DeKeseredy, Young) - While not as strong a theme as other conflict theories, there is the general overall sense in the movie that most of the poor portrayed in the movie are committing crimes of desperation and deprivation, while the police and ruling elite are the "real criminals" who are corrupt - framing the innocent, committing coverups, killing, bribing using extortion and crimes of sexual deviancy.  

Labeling theory (Howard Saul Becker's & George Herbert Mead) - While not a conflict theory, Labeling theory is seen in how many of the players in the movie label themselves, including a several minute dialogue by Anthony and Peter.  In particular, Anthony sees the antagonism of society against him as entirely based on race, then they both play to type and steal a car and gun point.  Peter, despite having a brother who is a successful police detective, is a 3-strike felon who sees few ways of opportunity except by boosting cars, accepting society's label as a hoodlum.

Explaining the Inexplicable: Why did they do it?

When lawmakers and judicial authorities break the law, it’s big news.  

Diane Hathaway, a former Michigan SupremeCourt justice, plead guilty to charges of bank fraud on 29-January-2013, based on concealing assets in a settlement on a mortgage to escape foreclosure.  What appears to have happened, as reported by the Associated Press article “Ex-Mich. Supreme Court justice pleads guilty to bank fraud” published in the Toledo Blade 29-Jan-2013, is that Hathaway and her husband, Michael Kingsley, transferred a Florida home to a relative to hide assets and qualify for a short sale.  In a short sale, assets are sold for less than the value of the debt, permitting the debtor to escape foreclosure to avoid “financial hardship”, and the lender writes off the remainder of the debt as uncollectable.  

Hathaway was able to present a false indicator of financial hardship by hiding of assets, and seems to have benefitted from a $600,000 write-off in the short sale, though records filed by the prosecutor seem to indicate that the actual loss by the bank may have been closer to $100,000.  The article seems to indicate that Ms. Hathaway stepped down from the judicial bench as a part of this prosecution, so the crime was committed while a Supreme Court Justice.  (AP, 29-Jan-13)

When an officer of the court commits fraud, this is naturally a very serious offense, and it seems likely Ms. Hathaway faces losing her license to practice law as well as her freedom.  Ironically, she has likely created a debt from legal costs and loss of her livelihood that will not just cost her more than the $100,000 written off in the short sale, but likely will cost her the vacation home as well.  

So, why did she do it?  That's the classic question of criminology, and one I'll attempt to answer.  I think Beccaria’s classical theory of law can provide for an understanding of her actions.  All three “legs” of Beccaria’s theory are present.  Ms. Hathaway had free will, a fundamental of Beccaria’s classical theory.  She doesn’t seem to have been under duress or coercion when she concealed the vacation home, or when she lied to the bank.  While her husband may have been a persuasive fellow, Ms. Hathaway had attained a very high level within the judicial system, and would not have been successful in her role as a judge had she been so readily swayed by arguments into committing a serious crime.  

Ms. Hathaway ostensibly and clearly had rationality, as irrationality would have precluded her career choice.  Finally, Ms. Hathaway would presume to be subject to manipulability, the third fundamental in Beccaria’s classical theory.  As a state Supreme Court justice, she would be aware of sentencing guidelines for her offense, and would know that she is held to a higher standard as an officer of the court.   With the free will to commit crime for the self-interest of $100,000, and with the rationality to understand the catastrophic punishment she faced, the decision Ms. Hathaway made would more subscribe to the neoclassical theory, as the rational choice theory (Cornish and Clarke) would explain that she must have thought her crime would go undetected, and therefore a rational choice, with the perceived benefit outweighing the perceived cost(s).  She stands to lose nearly everything from this crime, and has already sacrificed her integrity.  It seems unlikely she will be able to have any kind of job in the criminal justice system after this crime, so there will be a dramatic penalty in her life besides the potential for a prison sentence.  The thought of a Supreme Court justice committing fraud for $100,000 is disturbing, since it calls into question the integrity of the bench and her judgment on prior cases. 

The prosecution of the crime and plea bargaining is a further example of the neoclassical theory.  Ms. Hathaway is presumed innocent until proven guilty, a key tenant of our justice system which is owed to the neoclassical theory. (Barkan, 2012) Ms. Hathaway is afforded plea bargaining and a modified sentence sufficient to achieve specific deterrence, as well as to provide general deterrence that the criminal justice system works, and has found her out. These aspects of deterrence are elements of the neoclassical view. (Schmalleger, 2012)

A sadly more common crime was reported in The Muncie Star Press on 30-Jan-2013, of a woman who had been placed in a position of trust in a church, which she alleged to have abused to embezzle nearly $200,000.  Angela Renee Linder, 42, has been charged with felony wire fraud, in a plea deal reached with federal prosecutors.  She is subject to $250,000 in fines and up to a 20 year prison sentence for the federal offense.  Ms. Lindner had been placed in charge of payroll, tax filings and “other administrative duties” at the Union Chapel Methodist Church in a Muncie, Indiana, suburb.  Her duties included handling credit cards and payments of those cards, apparently with too little oversight and governance.  (Walker, 2012)

Ms. Lindner is accused of church credit cards under her control to purchase airline tickets, rental cars, meals at restaurants, home improvement projects, weight loss plans, and purchases at stores ranging from clothing and tire centers to wine stores.  She also is alleged to have paid herself unearned wages exceeding $54,000, by adding herself to the payroll of a community center of the church where she was not employed.  The audacity of Ms. Lindner’s crime went so far as to allegedly use $2500 of embezzled funds to establish a charitable fund "purportedly for the purpose of assisting children whose families were victims of fire-related disasters."  She appeared in a newspaper article as recently as November, praising her efforts. (Ms. Lindner had served, until recently, as a county firefighter and EMT).  The proposed plea agreement has been signed, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated Ms. Lindner "demonstrated a recognition and affirmative acceptance of personal responsibility for her criminal conduct." (Ibid)

I think that the neoclassical theory of criminology is more closely related to this case than the classical view.  Ms. Lindner presumably had free will and rationality, and was able to decide for herself, repeatedly, clever ways to defraud the church of their funds, and to belie the trust they had placed in her.  By signing the plea deal, she has also demonstrated manipulability, all three qualities important to Beccaria’s classical theory of crime.  However, the strict yet reasonable punishment by the state seems to follow the neoclassical theory, as there were a number of other crimes for which Ms. Lindner could have been charged, yet a plea deal was reached for expediency of the state and with demonstrated contrition by the accused. 

The neoclassical perspective of rational-choice theory (Cornish & Clarke) provides perspective in that Ms. Lindner had made decisions believing the reward outweighed the risk, and seems to have acted in such as manner as she didn’t think she would be caught.  The Routine Activities Theory (Lawrence E. Cohen and Marcus Felson) further provides insight, that the offender was provided the opportunity in the absence of a capable guardian.  Without governance and oversight, the abuse of the church accountant went undetected.  A simple establishment of quarterly review of the church accounts by an audit committee of the church would have provided enough of a deterrent to stop the crime, as Ms. Lindner would have no longer believed her crimes would have gone undetected.  Presented with attractive targets (checkbook, payroll, credit cards) and opportunity (no segregation of duties / “toxic combination”), Ms. Lindner chose to commit crimes without the deterrent of a guardian.  (Barkan, 2012)

It seems that self-delusion played a significant role in both crimes above, as both Ms. Lindner and Ms. Hathaway seemed secure that their crime would go undiscovered, even though they both seem to have left a paper trail that would inarguably show the truth.  Particularly in the case of Ms. Lindner, a simple audit of the credit card statements or payroll would have disclosed the embezzlement. 

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Sources:

Associated Press. (29-Jan-13). Ex-Mich. Supreme Court justice pleads guilty to bank fraud.  The Toledo Blade.  Retrieved on 29-Jan-13 from http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2013/01/29/Ex-Mich-justice-pleads-guilty-to-bank-fraud.html.

Barkan, Steven. (2012) Criminology: A Sociological Understanding. (5^th Ed.) Retrieved 29-Jan-13 from http://www.canyons.edu/faculty/wonserr/Intro%20to%20Criminology/Lesson%204%20-%20Classical%20and%20Neoclassical%20Perspectives.ppt

Schmalleger, Frank. (2012) Criminology Today: An Integrative Introduction. Prentice Hall: Boston.

Walker, Douglas. (30-Jan-2012) Woman accused of embezzling $200,000 from Muncie church. Muncie Star Press. Retrieved 30-Jan-2013 from http://www.indystar.com/article/20130130/NEWS02/301300318/Woman-accused-embezzling-200-000-from-Muncie-church?nclick_check=1

Comparing Cost of Crime to Cost of Incarceration

 Comparing the cost of corrections to the cost of crime had not occurred to me, so I found this to be an interesting challenge that would cause me to do some digging. 

According to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections website, at http://www.drc.ohio.gov/Public/osp.htm the average cost per inmate is $164.06, with a total budget of $29.866 million for 458 prisoners.  The Franklin County budget for the office of sheriff is $99 million as submitted (see http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/12/02/sheriff-budget-falls-short.html ), and that article provides the statistic that the Franklin County jail maintains 1800 inmates in jail each day, a stunning number.  While I couldn't find a line item in the budget that provided a breakout of jail cost alone, the total cost for the Franklin County Sheriff function is $150.69 per prisoner they incarcerate - although that obviously includes patrol and administrative costs for law enforcement and crime prevention, as well as the strict operating costs for the jail.

From the Buckeye Institute report "Smart on Crime" issued November 2010 (see:http://buckeyeinstitute.org/uploads/files/buckeye-smart-on-crime(1).pdf ) the cost of corrections in Ohio has increased 5-fold since 1983, after adjusting for inflation.  Their number is starkly different from those posted by the department of corrections, at $1.79Billion annually for the total Ohio Department of Corrections figure, with $1.29Billion earmarked explicitly for prisons.  Ohio spends 7.3% of the state budget on corrections, more than the national average of 6.7%, with more than 50,000 inmates in the prison system.  The "Smart on Crime" report makes the assertion, one that I agree with, that the prison system in the United States has surpassed the point of diminishing returns.  The cost per resident of Ohio, using the Buckeye Institute report on crime, is $155.06 per Ohio resident.

The 2010 Rand report "Hidden in Plain Site" published at (http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/occasional_papers/2010/RAND_OP279.pdf ) provides scholarly research on the cost of crime attributable to the cost and effectivity of policing.  From the report, the forecasted cost of crime in Toledo Ohio that was associated with a 12% reduction in police force ($20.97 per capita in savings) was estimated to yield an impact of $31.76 million, for a per-capita impact from that 12% reduction of $1160 per Toledo resident, or a net increase in costs to the citizens of Ohio of $1139, which far outstrips the $155.06 per resident cost of incarceration (and remember that the $1139 is just for a 12% reduction on policing, not answering the complete question of "what would the impact of crime be if there were zero law enforcement, as that number would be catastrophic).  While the diminishing returns from the prison system are certainly of concern, the cost of crime is dramatically larger than the cost of incarceration.

I don't think that all incarceration is cost effective, as there are many crimes that are "victimless crimes", as well as the issue of juvenile offenders.  You can't ignore the fact that there is model theory at work that will actually encourage delinquency when incarcerating a juvenile with other juvenile delinquents.  They stand a good chance of becoming bitter and embracing crime, rather than true and actual rehabilitation.  Additionally, since most criminals believe they will not be caught, the threat of punishment doesn't seem a real deterrent.  I think that crimes like small amounts of drug possession, DUI, administrative offenses are best resolved through community service, probation, counseling, rehabilitation, therapy and social programs.

Some thoughts on drug tests - and should cops have them?

Several random thoughts on drug testing...

Sweating Drug Tests & Performance Anxiety  

I think that 90% of the value of a drug test is the threat of the test itself.  I always got paranoid some years back when I had to take drug tests, even though I never (NEVER, even in college) tried illegal drugs, not even a joint.  So, why was I nervous?  Because I let my father (a physician) prescribe things for me.  About twice a year, I'd be at his house and have a symptom, and he'd toss a few pills at me and tell me to take those, and I'd get better.  Then, 3 months later, I'd be going in for a drug test and they'd ask me to list all medications.  Um, geez, they were yellow?  Yeah, that used to freak me right out, because what if the drug test showed something positive?  In particular, since my dad was an allergist, and I have had allergies, might he have given me a steroid or something with ephedrine that might look like a meth derivative?  Well, it never actually caused a problem, and all of my tests have been negative, and I've never abused drugs, so my conscience is clear... but it still didn't stop me from sweating bullets before a test.  Oh, and the worst was at Cincinnati Bell, where the matronly nurse stood there and watched me intently, and not from an angle that protected my privacy by any means.  The focus of her eyes were not on my face.  Talk about performance anxiety!!!  So, yeah, drug tests stink.

Costs of drug tests

In bulk, a mouth swab drug test is pretty cheap, under $1.  I know a Top-25 US bank uses those on employees who don't handle cash or guns, as their pre-employment screening (or, at least, they used to).  If it gives a positive, then they go for the more expensive urinalysis.

Should police be subject to random drug tests?

Definitely, police should be subject to random drug testing, for multiple reasons.  First, they are authorized to use deadly force and are armed.  Because of that responsibility, they should be tested to ensure that they are not impaired.  A random drug test, which could be administered at any time, should keep them clean and free of drugs.  Secondly, police operate motor vehicles, sometimes at high rates of speed.  In my own company, anyone who is paid to drive a commercial motor vehicle is subject to random drug tests, and I think that's a fair test when they are being paid to drive a vehicle, and the policy prohibits drug abuse.  Third, police utilize judgement and uphold the law. If they are addicted to drugs, they are corruptible, and lose partiality.  Fourth, they cannot utilize their judgement impartially and fairly if they are impaired.  Finally, and most importantly, police are in contact with drugs as part of their job, as well as large amounts of cash at times when performing a drug-related arrest.  Because of this, it is important for them to be ensured to be without corruption from this contact, and for the public to know that they are not being corrupted through this contact with drugs and cash.

On False Positives - should industry create a 0% False Positive Test?

I think having a 100% fail-safe drug test would be too expensive.  I'd be happy with a drug test that has a 0.5% false positive and 0.01% false negative... and anyone who tests positive is on administrative leave and immediately required to do a more elaborate test, with a second positive result leading to suspension pending further investigation.  Two mostly accurate tests, in my opinion, are better than the exceptionally high expense of a 100% fail-safe test.  If you know going in that, in a 1000 person police department, you're going to have, on average, 5 false positives, then you've removed the stigma of an initial positive result.  The odds of having a second false positive on the retest of those 5 is exceedingly small.

Anomie, Normlessness, Strain Theory and Relative Depravation Theories of Criminality

Robert K. Merton developed the concept of "anomie", which is normlessness.  Anomie was first introduced by Emile Durkheim as an explanation for the breakdown in perceived societal conditions bring about feelings of "personal loss, dissolution, and lack of a sense of belonging" (p.157, Schmalleger 2012).  Merton took the notion of anomie in a different direction, focusing on the juxtaposition of societal definitions of success and the means to obtain that success, and what would result if those were unattainable.  Merton's focus was on the strain between the seeking of goals and society's blocking of the means to be successful (e.g. poverty).  His theory was referred to as strain theory, from the perceived strain between societal goals and the means to attain them.  Merton outlined 5 different classes of goals and means disjuncture, categorizing those with goals and means as "Conformity", with goals but without means as "Innovation", without goals but with means as "Ritualism", and those without either as "Retreatism".  Finally, he categorized "Rebellion" as people who rejected societal's goals and standard norms of success, regardless of their means.

Robert Agnew was one of the leads in creating the General Strain Theory (GST) as a comprehensive perspective, where law-breaking is a coping mechanism dealing with negative social relations caused by various strains.  He furthered the research 14 years later by proposing six central assertions to General Strain Theory that provide for specific conditions of strains and those indicators of which strains were most likely to lead to crimes.  The LA Riots after the Rodney King trial would be an excellent example of the General Strain Theory, whereby the black community in Los Angeles felt disenfranchised and unjustly treated, resulting in widespread crimes of revenge and theft to "right a wrong" cause by perceived injustice.

Messner and Rosenfield took a different tack on anomie by proposing Relative Deprivation, and suggest that the inconsistencies in the American Dream are at the basis of most criminal activity, where the perception is that the ends justifies the means, and that "anything goes" in the pursuit of success.  Relative Deprivation would point to any culture where the "haves" and "have nots" live in close proximity.  Judith & Peter Blau also provide further insight into relative deprivation by stating that relative deprivation creates frustration, anger, hostility and social injustice when experienced, and that it is a perception when assessing their position in life compared with those things and people they already know.  In our media-driven culture, this circle of perceived affluence is very large indeed.  This is the principle of distributive justice, where anomie may be caused from feeling of social injustice based on skewed distribution of rewards (wealth).

Schmalleger, Frank. (2012). Criminology Today, An Integrative Introduction. Prentice Hall, Boston.

Broken Window Theory

I have been intrigued by the Broken Window Theory ever since hearing Malcolm Baldridge speak at the RSA Security Conference in 2010, and subsequently reading his book, The Tipping Point. I realize that he didn't come up with the theory, but he did explain it very well.  Since his book was the first time I'd been introduced to the Broken Window Theory, Prof. Baldridge is linked in my mind with that theory. :-)  

I feel there is a very strong corollary to my own chosen field of Information Security, itself an offshoot of criminology focusing on cybercrime and policy-based security models to prevent crime and loss. I think that the Broken Window Theory is valuable because it shows that small cues, psychologically, create an environment which can tell people that crime is tolerated, or not tolerated. While I'm not sure that you can expressly attribute the drop in crime in New York under Rudy Giuliani's program cracking down on quality-of-life offenses, it seems to be a very strong contributing factor. (However, crime overall dropped nationwide during the same time period, though not as precipitously as in New York City). I'm a fan of the broken window theory because I've seen it work in my own company, as a private security cybercrime initiative.

Because of this, I feel that there is definitely a strong case for the Broken Window Theory to apply to corporate crime.  I have experienced that showing popup alerts warning of potential policy violations, detection and response to minor offenses, including swift notification (e.g. warned web sites, password policy, warnings from desktop monitoring components detecting inserted USB drives, etc) shows a marked and pronounced reduction in criminal behavior within corporations, such as information disclosure and unauthorized access.  When adding warnings of policy to web pages, this was far more effective than a passive logging and blocking, and we noticed a dramatic drop in illicit and evasive web behavior (e.g. pr0n, DropBox or proxy avoidance sites).  PhishMe is a company that works in organizations to create Phishing programs to trick employees into falling for e-mail phishing scams, then trains them in that moment when the employee realizes they've messed up.  This is a great reinforcer that the little things matter, and we've seen a marked improvement in security awareness, policy compliance and in reporting of security issues - in essence, this is like our COP within our company. :-)

I recall reading in trade literature roughly 5 years ago that there is a definite tie between how the security guard looks, and embezzlement…although I was unable to find that article due to the very generic words that search contained.  The study showed that, if the corporate security guard at the front desk "looks like a police officer", then employees will commit less embezzlement and fraud, but where the security guard was in business attire, fraud increased.  They further showed that progressive steps towards making the security officers "look like cops" showed a significant correlation to criminal behavior by the employees.  

This research goes against the grain of the "kinder, gentler" office environments that have become popular over the last 30 years, where corporations seek to create a friendly face to security in the building - in my own organization, the primary face of the front security desk are frequently women that resemble grandmothers rather than the "look" of cops.  From the research, a white shirt with epaulettes, gold shield badge, gun, shirt patches and stripes, police-style duty belt, black tie, spit-shined shoes and radio handset clipped to the lapel were all psychological clues that the security force was alert and tied to law enforcement.  I think this is a logical extension of the same kind of social cues as The Broken Window theory, although really environmental.

Perhaps these provide us a lesson in changing corporate crime by merely "looking alert". I'm not a fan of security through obscurity, but cognition is a real force in human behavior, and effecting associate cognition through a little disinformation and camouflage seems a smart use of social science. 

On Modeling Theory

In response to this lengthy and good article on Combat Training, Autopilot: "You honestly don't know you're doing it" by the esteemed Lt. Col. Dave Grossman...  

I think that there is much to be said for Modeling Theory, though I disagree with Lt. Col. Dave Grossman about laying the blame at "psychological conditioning" of video games.  Since before the Roman circuses, we have had violent games and displays, and children have played some antagonist/protagonist game of violence (Cops vs. Robbers, Cowboys vs. Indians, Empire vs. Jedi) for thousands of years.  I do not think that creating more realistic games necessarily creates a breakdown in reality that would cause someone to no longer be able to determine reality and to murder.

I don't find it that surprising, as Lt. Col. Grossman did, that a 14-yr old could score 8 hits with a .22 pistol, since there is virtually no recoil on a .22, and they can be very accurate, particularly at man-sized targets at room distance.

What I find more compelling is the explanation offered by Tarde of learned behavior, particularly imitation and suggestion, though I would modify his second law of imitation.  Where Tarde stated that imitation moves from the top down, I would think it more accurately is stated that imitation models the behavior of people we respect and would like to be.  That may not always be the bigger or wealthier, it could be the bad-boy rebel or goth, particularly in youth who discard the model of parents and seek rebellious peers to imitate.  I think Tarde's statement of replacement is spot-on, since every generation believes they invented sex, despite their own existence providing evidence to the contrary.  Behavior theory, as espoused by Skinner, also explains much about criminality, and is closely tied to the attachment theory of Bowlby, as both are related to positive reinforcements. I have a need, I reach a crisis of need, the need is met, and I feel love.  Or, the need is not met, and I feel unloved by that person.

Truthfully, I believe that you have all three theories operating and active in the formative years of a child.  The parent models behavior that demonstrate appropriate behavior (c.f. Bobo Doll experiment of Bandura).  The child learns hostility and aggression, or positive traits like sharing, showing affection, and good manners by modeling their parent.  They also will have the behavior theory of rewards and punishments, regardless if they are raised by parents that use discipline or parents that do not.  All children will be raised in an environment where they will observe the interaction with an authority figure, and the keeping or breaking of rules, and then the consequences of that behavior.  Finally, attachment to an authority figure that meets a need creates a bond of love and affection and feelings of security (where provided).  From that bond of affection will come deeper meaning to modeling theory and behavior theory of rewards and punishments, reinforcing both.  Where attachment is broken, and an attachment disorder is created, that will create a lack of empathy and violence as the child (and later adult) seeks unusual and atypical ways of gaining acceptance or meeting their needs.  They may suppress success, shun attachments, and punish those seeking attachments, creating cycles of violence.

I think you cannot divorce those 3 theories, because they are inextricably linked through child development that will teach someone patterns that I think are significant in the creation (or prevention) of criminal behavior.

Violence and Videogames

In the wake of several school violence incidents, not the least of which is Sandy Hook, people are quick to blame something besides the insane madman -- and violent video games seems one of the targets.  I'm crying bologna.

I'm not sure I agree that violent video games are substantly "worse" or more suggestive of murder or crime than they were before, just the technology is better.  I was playing boxing games in 1977 on a computer, and tank battle and duck hunt in 1979 on our game console.  I slaughterd thousands of orcs, mages, knights wizards, aliens, trolls and dragons playing AD&D and Traveler in the 70s and 80s, and also played Zork, Empire and even the racy text adventure Leather Goddesses of Phobos as a teen... Yet I'd say I turned out well, never a conviction or arrest except 2 driving tickets.  

Little boys have played Cowboys and Indians, cop and robber, or, in my day, the non-PC named game "Japs and Commandos", or some variation of antagonist-protagonist since likely "cavemen" children picked up a pig bone and mimicked stabbing their brother.  I shot my brother 10,000 times in 10 years with cap guns, blew him to bits with smoke grenades and shoeboxes labeled "Claymore", and stabbed him with a ruler.  We even shot each other with pellet guns, but mama never learned that!  I'm sure the same was true, with adjustments for technology, 4000 years ago.  Do you think that there is a fundamental difference in video games, or playing jungle soldier?  Vampire movies have been around since silent picture days, and violence in plays is nothing new.  I am not sure there is enough evidence to place any blame on violent video games.  I continue to be unswayed.

Who knew? Heavy metals linked to Criminality

I was recently challenged when someone made the statement that pollution can be linked with criminality.  I scoffed, then dove into the Interwebs to research.  Surprise, surprise, they were right.  While I had known of the effects of heavy metals on IQ, learning disorders and behavior, I was surprised that there is actual research showing that pollution does effect criminality. 

In an article published in the International Journal of Biosocial & Medical Research, primary research of school-aged children showed a marked correlation between increased copper, iron, sulfate, lead, cadmium, mercury and silicon, and decreased lithium, with a propensity for violent behavior. Biochemical differences, indicative largely of environmental influences, were markedly different between typical, emotionally disturbed, and violence prone children (with the presumption that juvenile violence will necessarily lead to juvenile crime). (Marlowe, Schneider, Bliss 1991).  Even more clear is the study published in Criminality Today: An Integrative Introduction by Frank Schmalleger on page 97, quoting the Greg Toppo article "Childhood Lead Exposure Linked to Adult Crime" from the 8-May-2008 edition of USA Today.  That study showed a marked and statistically significant increase in criminality at age 27 among groups of children with high lead blood levels at age 7, as compared with a comparable control group.

There are known linkages between mental health and pollution, and the "mad as a hatter" indication of mercury poisoning by milliners in the 19th century is among the more well-known, even though violence and crime seemed to be rarely associated with mercury poisoning, if at all.  (Connealy, 2006)  The brain is particularly susceptible to toxicity.  Manganese poisoning, typically amongst manganese miners,  has been traced to a number of symptoms, which include irritability, aggression, memory loss and mood changes.  An outright tie to criminality was not attributed by the article, even though chemically-induced aggression, irritability and mood swings would seem to be precursors to acts of violence.  (Lundberg, 1998).  However, John Rose, in Environmental Toxicology: Current Developments makes the case that there is a definitive link between neurotoxic pollution, abnormalities in brain chemistry (in particular, lead and manganese) and rates of violent crime, attributed to aggression and loss of impulse control. (Rose, 1998).  While his research seems compelling to this amateur, Rose's book was not published in a peer-reviewed journal, and I'm skeptical that he properly accounted for all the variables in criminality and causative influences (e.g. poverty, drugs, alcohol abuse, etc.) and his coding methods seem to be too coarse.  At face value, his research provides findings of ethnicity, urbanism and toxicity as important correlates to violent crimes.

Ozone and weather have also been tied to violent crimes, with a strong correlation indicating that ozone levels are linked to family disturbances, and assaults are also tied with temperatures, wind speed and humidity.  As assaults are linked with precursor complaints about family disturbances, the research seems to indicate that ozone and weather are causative influences in matters of domestic violence. (Rotton, Frey. 1985)

Organophosphate (OP) compounds have been linked to a number of symptoms that include psychotic reactions, anxiety and hallucinations, and episodes of OP poisoning occur with surprising frequency in the United States, due to OP use in pesticides. (Ibid) OP poisoning has been tied to suicides and episodes of rage leading to criminal proceedings, in particular impulsive thoughts of suicide, with sufferers aiming tractors at walls, putting loaded shotguns in their mouths or creating and tying nooses in preparation for suicide.  Fortunately, while the preparations for suicide seem to indicate rationality in intent based on effectivity and lethality, the suicidal duration is very short, so many sufferers survive short of following through with their actions. (Davis, Ahmed & Freer, 2000)  

In a study of South African farm workers, a suicide rate of 2.5x that of non-farm workers was noted, and attributed to organophosphate pesticide exposure. (Maruging, London, Flisher, 2006).  Further, increased violence, homicides and anecdotal evidence of extreme violence have been documented with chronic organophosphate-induced neuropsychiatric disorder (COPIND) from long-term significant exposure to organophosphates.  (Davies, Ghouse, Freer 2000*)  In developing countries, organophosphate suicide is near epidemic, with approximately 1,000,000 cases in India per year, according to the National Crime Records Bureau of India, though the pesticide seems to rather be a common method of suicide, while the pesticides being the cause of the suicide itself is not strongly attributed.  (Ahmed, et al. 2009)

I will have a hard time arguing against pollutants, particularly neurotoxins, providing a link between the environment and crime. It seems as though the link is well-documented and supported by scholarly research, and I was unable to locate a rebuttal or debunking of the demonstrable links between neurotoxin pollution and criminality.  Admittedly, violence and criminal behavior were not present in all cases of neurotoxin poisoning, and the studies included in the text regarding childhood exposure to heavy metals and later lives of crime only showed a marked increase, and not a certainty.  However, the link seems quite clear, and I am now a firm believer that environmental pollution can be the cause of crime.

In a news article published just last month in The Guardian, Yes, lead poisoning could really be a cause of violent crime, a definitive correlation between crime following 20 years after the peak of  lead poisoning was demonstrated from many scholarly works.  The only article cited which protested the link between crime and lead pollution was a study sponsored by the Ethyl corporation, a major manufacturer of the gasoline additive tetraethyl lead.  It seems as though pollution's significance as a contributor to crime is clear.

___

Ahmed, Mushtaq; Rahman, Farial Naima; Ashrafuzzaman, Mohd; Chowdhury, Depak Kumer Paul; Ali, Mohammad. (2009)OVERVIEW OF ORGANOPHOSPHORUS COMPOUND POISONING IN BANGLADESH AND MEDICOLEGALASPECTS RELATED TO FATAL CASES. Journal of Armed Forces Medical College, Bangladesh (2009) v5:n1. Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from http://www.banglajol.info/index.php/JAFMC/article/view/2851/2365 

Marlowe, Mike; Schneider, Henry G.; Bliss, Leonard B. (1991). Hair mineral analysis in emotionally disturbed and violence prone children. International Journal of Biosocial & Medical Research, Vol 13(2), 1991, 169-179.  Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1992-27333-001

Connealy, Leigh Erin. (2006). The Mad Hatter Syndrome: mercury and biological toxicity. Natural News.com. Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from http://www.naturalnews.com/016544_mercury_heavy_metals.html

Davies, Robert; Ahmed, Ghouse; Freer, Tegwedd. (2000). Chronic exposure to organophosphates: background and clinical picture. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment 2000:6,187-192. Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from apt.rcpsych.org/content/6/3/187.full

Davies,Robert; Ahmed, Ghouse; Freer, Tegwedd. (2000*). Psychiatric aspects of chronic exposure to organophosphates: diagnosis and management. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment (2000) 6:356-361 doi:10.1192/apt.6.5.356. Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/6/5/356.full

Lundberg, Ante. (1998) The Environment and Mental Health. Psychology Press, 1998

Maruping, M; London, L; Flisher, A. (2006). Suicide and Organophosphate Pesticide Exposure Among African Farm Workers. Epidemiology: Nov 2006- v17:6-pp S327-S372. Retrieved 5-Feb-2013 from http://journals.lww.com/epidem/Fulltext/2006/11001/Suicide_and_Organophosphate_Pesticide_Exposure.988.aspx

Monblot, George. (2013). Yes, lead poisoning could really be a cause of violent crime. The Guardian, 7-Jan-2013. Retreived 6-Feb-2013 from http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/07/violent-crime-lead-poisoning-british-export

Rotton, James; Frey, James. (1985) Air pollution, weather and violent crimes: Concomitant time-series analysis of archival data. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol 49(5), Nov 1985, 1207-1220. Retrieved on 5-Feb-2013 from http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/psp/49/5/1207/

Rose, John. (1998) Environmental Toxicology: Current Developments. CRC Press. Retrieved on 5-Feb-2013 from http://tinyurl.com/toxicology-crime