Criminology For Dummies. Steven Briggs

Chapter 5

      Getting Violent: Crimes of Force

      IN THIS CHAPTER

      Ever since Cain snuck up behind his brother Abel, violence has been a part of the human condition. This fact isn’t exactly a source of pride, but you can’t deny it — any more than you can deny the fact that, as humans, you and I experience anger, jealousy, acne, and bad breath.

      No human character trait has caused more misery and grief than mankind’s propensity for violence. In this chapter, I show you how violence manifests itself in criminal activity, and I walk you through the most common causes of that violence.

Identifying Types of Violent Crimes

      When one person physically harms another, that person’s violent conduct is generally (but not always) punishable as a crime. Through laws enacted by state legislatures and Congress, society uses the following criteria to rank the seriousness of violent crimes:

      In the following sections, I offer an overview of various types of violent crimes, including what each crime entails, who’s most likely to commit each crime, and how severe the punishment for each crime is.

Defining Homicide

      The most serious type of violent crime is homicide, which is the killing of one human being by another. But not all homicides are equal. There’s a big difference, for example, between capital murder and assisted suicide. Here, I explain the labels that the law uses to characterize homicides, and I note the circumstances in which each label is applied.

      Murder

      Murder is a type of homicide that most states once defined as the killing of another human being with “malice aforethought.” Because that’s such a tough phrase to crack, many states have nixed it from their laws. Hence, murder is now more commonly defined as the intentional killing of another human being.

      Some states require proof of premeditation or deliberation to convict someone of murder. Premeditation means that the killer not only intended to kill the victim, but also made a cool-headed, thoughtful decision to do so. A typical sentence for murder may be anywhere from 20 years to life in prison.

      Although the word murder is more specific than homicide, it often isn’t specific enough for today’s criminal justice system. Thus, you hear terms like first-degree murder and capital murder. Keep reading to find out how the law distinguishes between the different types of murder.

      First- and second-degree murder

Instead of just using the word murder, some states refer to an intentional killing as first-degree murder. Those states use the term second-degree murder to describe a murder in which the killer didn’t intend the death but nonetheless exhibited behavior that demonstrated “extreme indifference to human life” or “wanton disregard” for the life of the victim. For example, a gang member who drove by the home of a rival gang member and fired a shot into the home that killed someone may be convicted of second-degree murder because he manifested extreme indifference to human life.

      In the states that have laws ascribing degrees to the different types of murder, first-degree murder is the most serious and receives the most serious sentence. Generally, a person who commits first-degree murder receives 25 years to life in prison. Second-degree murder (also called manslaughter in some states) can net a prison sentence of 10 to 25 years.

      Felony murder

      In many states, if a death occurs during the commission of a serious felony (such as a robbery or a kidnapping), all participants in that felony can be charged with murder, hence the term felony murder.

      For example, a crew decides to rob a bank. During the course of the robbery, one of the robbers shoots and kills a bank guard. Under a felony murder statute, the driver of the getaway car — who never even set foot inside the bank — can also be charged with felony murder.

      The sentence for a felony murder conviction is usually similar to the sentence for the murder if actually committed by the person. So you could have felony murder in the 2nd degree or 1st degree.

      Capital murder

      The most serious type of murder is that which can be punished by a death sentence. Because the death sentence is also known as capital punishment, this type of murder is sometimes called capital murder. Although most industrialized nations have abolished capital punishment, the United States government and the U.S. military have not. In addition, 28 states still allow for some form of capital punishment and 3 more have issued moratoriums on further executions.

      For the federal government and for the 28 states that still allow the death penalty, the U.S. Supreme Court has significantly limited the cases in which someone can be sentenced to death. Most importantly, there must be “aggravating circumstances” above and beyond the murder itself. In other words, there must be additional factors that make the murder worse than just an intentional killing. Some common aggravating circumstances include the following: