The world becomes more
connected everyday and our societies get bigger and closer without us even
noticing. This makes the rules and norms harder to interpret to the eyes of
some individuals. Certain people cannot process the norms that a society has. This
can show by the person dressing a strange way to the community or it can lead
to more serious violations that require punishment. This is why there is a
complex legal system to protect people from offenders.
Most people internalize social norms but there are some people who break
the rules. We can’t really internalize all of the rules society has and because
of this we are bound to break them once in a while. Behavior that violates
specific and significant social norms is called deviance. Since there
are so many norms governing behavior, occasional violations are unavoidable and
not considered deviant. One of the ways to be considered deviant is to commit
an offence repetitively. For example, if one continues to get speeding tickets
over and over again, then that person will be considered reckless and therefore
deviant. A stigma is a mark of social disgrace that sets the deviant
apart from the rest of society. The social foundations of deviance are
clarifying norms, unifying the group, diffusing tension, promoting social
change and providing jobs. There are different theories dedicated to deviance. The
first is the functionalist theory which states that deviance
comes from a natural outgrowth of the norms in the community. Next is the conflict
theory which states that deviance is the result of competition and
social inequality. Finally interactionalists insist that deviance is a
natural human feeling.
A crime is any act that is labeled as such by those in authority, is
prohibited by law, and punishable by the government. The five main categories
of crime are violent crimes which are murder, forcible rape, robbery,
and aggravated assault. Then we have crimes against property which
include burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, and arson. Third there are victimless
crimes which are composed of prostitution, illegal gambling, illegal drug
use, and vagrancy. Fourth there is white-collar crimes which are committed
by individuals of high social status in the course of their professional lives:
misrepresentation, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, price fixing, toxic
pollution, insider trading, and political corruption are the usual crimes. Finally
there is organized crime composed of drug trafficking, illegal gambling,
unfair labor practices, hijacking of merchandise, and loan-sharking.
A crime syndicate is a large-scale organization of professional
criminals that controls some vice or business through violence or the threat of
violence. Crimes as we know, don’t go unpunished, once a crime has been
committed and reported it is taken by the jurisdiction of the criminal-justice
system. Police discretion is the power to decide who is actually arrested. This
power is very important and requires a great amount of responsibility. Sadly many
people take advantage of police discretion. It is widely suspected the high
rates of African American arrests are caused by racial profiling. When a
criminal is arrested, they have the right for a trial and they go to court. They
do a process legal negotiation that allows an accused person to plead guilty to
a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence. This process is called legal bargaining.
Corrections are sanctions used to punish criminals and they have four
functions: retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, and social protection.
The juvenile-justice system is for offenders under 18. This system is like the
criminal-justice system yet is not as harsh due to the fact that the offenders
are minors. When a person constantly repeats criminal behavior it is
called Recidivism.
Deviance in my opinion is very important. In some ways one must learn
not to follow everything a society or regime says. Yet there are some norms
that are there to protect us and when people break those rules there may be
serious consequences. Depending on the type of crime and how the person, pleads
or defends him/herself in court there will be an adequate punishment. And example,
if a criminal pleads guilty he may have some time removed from his sentence.
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