All processes taking place in human society must be evaluated in the strictly specified framework of law and morality. For many centuries, humanity has created leverage to prevent, eliminate and punish crime. What are the results of such work?
The concept of crime, types and general characteristics
Destructive human behavior is due to various reasons. But everything almost always ends in the same scenario: crime is punishment. To understand the nature of crime, various areas of science have their own formulations. Among them, the concept of crime in jurisprudence is important, as it occupies a leading place.
The classic interpretation reads: crime is the commission of an act prohibited by the Criminal Code of any country. The commission of a crime is punishable by various degrees: from the imposition of a fine to the death penalty, including imprisonment. Punishment measures are selected depending on the severity of illegal acts. The identification of illegal actions and their legal assessment is carried out through the concept of investigation of a crime.
For example, if it is indicated in the parking lot that it is possible to park cars only until 18:00, and the citizen forgot to remove his car until 18:20, this is already classified as a violation of the law. But this situation is relevant for those countries where laws are strictly observed.
Verge of crime
Which action is a crime and which is not? To answer this question, each person has to turn to the laws of his country. In any case, in a general manner, every citizen obeys laws of three levels: federal, government decrees and laws issued by local authorities. It is important that there are no contradictions between them.
For example, if one law allows a single action, then another should not prohibit it.
The concept and types of crimes indicate that any crime brings harm to other people, causes moral, material and physical suffering. The only effective lever for maintaining public order are laws and moral standards. Jurisprudence covers every aspect of human life in terms of compliance with these standards. Based on legal norms and local laws, the court is called upon to make a fair decision aimed at compensating for infringed rights and punishing criminal elements.
Signs
The general characteristic of the concept of crime in jurisprudence operates with such terms as “object” and “subject”. Subjects have rights. These are individuals and legal entities. Object - tangible and intangible property, in relation to which these rights arise. In addition, depending on the case under consideration, the subject may be individual states or territories, and the subject can be any category to which the rights of the subjects apply.
According to the type of crime (the concept of which is considered in this material), depending on the form of guilt, they are divided into:
- intentional - a citizen deliberately committed illegal actions;
- careless - perfect in an uncontrolled emotional outburst: a state of affect, shock;
- other species that may include elements of the first and second type.
The stages of any crime are divided into two: perfect and unfinished, defined as attempt or preparation for criminal actions.
With respect to ancestral objects, a crime, the concept of which defines it as unlawful actions, may be carried out against:
- national interests;
- physical health of another person;
- honor, dignity and freedom.
The motives of the crime are also taken into account - circumstances or motives that prompted the subject to an illegal step. From this point of view, crimes committed for personal gain, as a result of hooligan behavior, based on revenge, are distinguished.
Principles of Criminal Law
Although the subject of discussion is considered a socially reprehensible phenomenon, the concept of a criminal offense is based on the principles of absolute honesty, when the rights of not only the victim, but also the person who committed the criminal act are taken into account.
These principles are as follows:
- Presumption of innocence. According to this provision, a person is not considered guilty of an offense until his guilt is proved through investigative measures. The investigation is ongoing before a charge is brought against the suspect. The judge must verify the evidence for authenticity. If the materials raise doubts, then the citizen should be acquitted.
- The need for proof. A person cannot be considered guilty until concrete evidence of a crime has been found. The evidence base includes a very wide range of materials depending on the type of crime. If we are talking about a crime against physical health, then the evidence of bodily harm and a medical report on their origin.
- The right of the suspect to remain silent. In practice, all persons involved in a crime must answer the questions of the investigation. In a standard manner, questions are asked regarding identification: name, surname, occupation, date of birth, address of residence, and more. If a person gives incorrect information, then he deserves punishment before the law as having made an attempt to mislead the investigation. But in certain cases, a citizen has the right to refrain from questions of the investigator. In this case, he must do this with the help of his lawyer.
- Exclusion of double punishment. A person cannot be punished several times for one criminal act. The same provision applies in cases where the court acquits the suspect from criminal liability. Although in judicial practice, there are often cases when a acquitted citizen again becomes a suspect. This may be due to new circumstances of the crime.
Composition of criminal acts
The concept of corpus delicti is considered by different theoretical bases, but the Criminal Code does not contain a direct definition. In practice, the corpus delicti describes a set of objective and subjective factors that occurred in the process of its investigation. The corpus delicti defines the event as a criminal offense and serves as the basis for responsibility.
The concept and importance of corpus delicti have such aspects as the objective and subjective side. The objective side describes the external characteristics of the crime. It includes:
- An act that poses a danger to society.
- Concepts and types of crimes against society and social principles.
- Causal relationships between 1 and 2 factors.
- Method of committing a crime.
- Time, circumstances, place and means of committing a criminal act.
In addition, any crime is assessed in terms of public danger. Danger is generated in two ways: through the actions of individuals or inaction.
Determining the severity of crimes
In the concept of types of crimes, their severity is separately considered. Four types are defined:
- The category of minor gravity involves the types of acts that entailed causing minor damage to other persons. The punishment includes imprisonment for a short period of time, community service or the payment of a fine. According to Russian law, this category includes crimes in which the sentence does not exceed 2 years. Example: disclosure of professional secrets, inappropriate attitude to adopted children.
- Acts in which the punishment is imprisonment for several years is moderate. This indicator differs depending on the current laws of the country. According to Russian standards of the law - the sentence does not exceed 5 years. An example is illegal business or the substitution of a child in a maternity hospital.
- Serious crimes involving a sentence of up to ten years in prison. Examples are torture, kidnapping, physical harm or imprisonment without legal justification.
- Particularly serious crimes. This category differs from others in terms of crime. The first three categories include crimes committed on intentional intent and through negligence. But especially serious crimes cannot be the result of negligence. This category includes the types of crimes punishable from 10 years in prison to life imprisonment. This category certainly includes criminal acts that pose a threat to national security, the killing of one or more people.
Crime as a destructive phenomenon is studied not only in the framework of jurisprudence, but also from other sciences. The meaning of the concept of crime has different theoretical bases, depending on the context of the consideration.
Psychology of misconduct
The concept of crime is widely considered by the social sciences. For example, from the point of view of psychology, four types of crimes should be distinguished:
- An act violating the laws of the country and punished by the state.
- Violation of the norms of public morality, religious values, subject to punishment by higher forces.
- Actions that cause other people psychological stress and emotional stress are psychological crimes.
- Violation of the norms accepted in a society, traditions of any country. Such acts create a negative background in society.
From this point of view, the concept and types of crimes coincide with the legal approach. Crime control involves not only accountability and responsibility, but also preventive measures. From these motives, it will be interesting to study crime risk factors.
What conditions give rise to crime?
Risk factors are certain situations or properties of people, in the presence of which the risk of committing crimes increases. To date, these factors are usually attributed to:
- Human behavior disorder.
- Environmental impact.
- Lack of knowledge about what is possible and what is not.
- Low level of education.
- The influence of the media.
- Personal traits of a person.
- Bad Education.
- Lack of social skills.
- Antisocial beliefs.
Criminal behavior is established by the facts of arrest and convictions on the account of a person. Social scientists use this information to study the nature of crime. So, what does the concept and signs of a crime or criminal behavior have to do with a person’s personality?
Criminal behavior
The causes of criminal behavior can vary greatly in each case, but still they can be grouped into two main categories - genetics and the environment.
When in the middle of the XIX century the question arose about the causes of criminal behavior, many psychologists were unanimous in their opinion that genetics is the only reason. They even believed that a person’s propensity for crime can be measured depending on the mental state of the parents. If they even had minor mental problems, their children are more likely to become criminals. Scientists had their own solutions to the problem, but it would hardly be fair if people with a higher risk of committing a crime were not allowed by the state to live a normal life.
Modern approach
A number of studies were later conducted. A modern approach to this issue is that genetics is indeed an important factor in criminal behavior, but the environment is no less important. This includes the family in which the child was born and raised, for example, parents, their social status, education and other factors.
Currently, psychologists and forensic scientists agree that crime-inducing behavior is indeed a complex mechanism associated with many factors. A child can grow up in a “criminal” family (mother - schizophrenic, father - rapist and murderer). But after he received his education and work, there is nothing antisocial in his behavior. This proves that the concepts and signs of crime or crime cannot be determined by genetics.
Conclusion
The fight against crime is an important task of every state. Given the fact that crime has a tendency to develop in integration with other social phenomena, its complete elimination is almost impossible. However, there are countries with low crime rates. In this they are helped by the severity of punishment, the absence of corruption in the state system and a high degree of consciousness of citizens.
In the fight against crime, attention should be paid to the experience of countries such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Austria, Norway and Switzerland. These territories are considered the safest for living due to low crime rates. Russia ranks 73rd in the international ranking, with a crime index of 2.4.
The countries with the highest crime rates are Central and South America, as well as East Africa. Sociologists attribute this to low living standards and big economic problems.