criminal

GAINING RESTITUTION FROM OFFENDERS Back to Basics A renewed interest in restitution developed during the 1970s. Restitution takes place whenever injured parties are repaid by the individuals who are directly responsible for their losses. Offenders return stolen goods to their rightful owners, hand over equiva- lent amounts of money to cover out-of-pocket expenses, or perform […]

THE COSTS OF VICTIMIZATIONS The social costs of crime-related expenditures are staggering, according to economists’ estimates. The losses people suffer can be identified as either intangible or tangible. Intangible costs are hard to translate into dollars and cents but refer to the pain, suffering, and reductions in the quality of life indi- viduals endure when

Assistance and Recovery After a traumatic disaster such as a politically inspired bombing, victims are likely to be over- whelmed by intense emotions of shock, anxiety, confusion, sorrow, and grief. Some are immediately beset by outrage and revenge fantasies, or even guilt for surviving, while others undergo delayed reac- tions. As the unfocused anger dissipates,

Assessing the Threat of Terrorism To determine the number of people harmed by terrorist attacks, and to discern whether or not the threat is growing or subsiding, criminologists and victimologists need a definition for “terrorism” that clearly spells out which incidents should be counted and which belong in other categories (like hate crimes or ordinary

CASUALTIES OF POLITICALLY INSPIRED VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM Terrorism predates organized warfare. Lone indivi- duals and small bands surreptitiously attacked their enemies long before armies of men were thrown into battle. Terrorism took the form of killing lea- ders or potential challengers to a throne and of spreading panic by carrying out barbaric acts. Although the

Showing Solidarity As long ago as 1894, an association was established in New York City to take care of the widows and orphans of fallen officers. But over the next 100 years, families of law enforcement agents mistakenly were assumed to be stronger emotionally and better prepared than civilians to cope with losses and grief

LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS INJURED AND SLAIN IN THE LINE OF DUTY Officers who work for law enforcement, probation, parole, or corrections agencies at local, state, and federal levels face special challenges. They must seek out and interact with known criminals on a daily basis—just the opposite of what risk reduction strategies would recommend. The police

VIOLENCE BETWEEN PRISONERS Inmates who are attacked by other inmates face several unique problems: They are captives held against their will in the company of others who also desperately would like to be somewhere else. Yet the predicament facing nonviolent inmates is that they can’t escape interacting with dangerous persons under very difficult circumstances and

Criminal Justice System Reforms Bias crime victims and their supporters have been able to improve the response of the criminal justice system in many ways: securing the passage of new laws penalizing hate-motivated acts more severely; spurring police departments to take special steps to investigate and solve these kinds of crimes; and encouraging district attorneys

TARGETS OF HATE CRIMES Rediscovering a Very Old Problem A 15-year-old boy comes out and tells classmates that he is a homosexual. When he begins to wear makeup and jewelry, he has to endure teasing and bullying from some of the boys at the junior high school. During a computer lab, in front of 24