The legal definition of a crime is an action or a course of conduct that breaches the law. “An intentional act or omission that violates the law that is done without reason or defense and is sanctioned by the state to receive a felony or misdemeanor punishment,” according to Paul Tappan (1960: 10). According to this definition, there are six important elements to take note of in his definition.1 These include: the action should have been conducted or taken place, the action must have been voluntary, or the offender must have been in control of their actions when performing the crime, and the action ought to have been intentional regardless of whether or not the intent was specific or general, the conducted act should have violated a criminal law, the act was not conducted in self-defense hence no justification for the act should exist, and the act should be classified by the state as a misdemeanor or felony.
Hall Jerome defined crime as “legally restricted and intentional behavior that has a detrimental influence on society interests, that has a criminal intent, and that has a legally prescribed punishment for it” (General Principles of Criminal Law, 1947: 8–18). He claims that unless an action possesses all seven of the following criteria, it cannot be considered criminal: concerning social impact, the act must have adverse effects on the social environment, the act must be done intentionally by the actor, and the damage arising as a result of the crime must be forbidden by the law, behind the act to cause harm there needs to be deliberate motivation, both conduct, and criminal intent must be amalgamated for an action to be considered a crime, a typical relationship must exist between the act and the harm that is legally-forbidden and finally, a punishment for the disastrous act must exist and has to be legally prescribed.2
When discussing property crime, we can look at a couple of theories that have been developed by scholars in the past, who tried to find out what prompts individuals to participate in crimes. The first theory is the Strain/Anomie theory. Robert Merton, an American sociologist, drew upon the idea of Emile Durkhelm, one of the founding sociology individuals, to try to attach meaning to criminality and deviance in the USA. He argues that when a gap exists between the personal goals that individuals possess and the means of achieving these goals brings about feelings of dissatisfaction, resentment, and frustration. This encourages individuals to use dishonest and inappropriate ways to secure success and result in a crime. He stresses that the cultural norms and social systems present in the current world often tend to put pressure on people to commit a crime.
Perhaps the most crucial objective in the United States is money. Everyone is urged to work hard to earn a lot of money, affluent or poor. In addition, money is an asset when buying many items we aspire to possess, including both luxury and essential items. However, many people are not so fortunate to possess the money they need via legitimate methods, for example, having employment. This is particularly true for the needy but applies to many aspirational middle-class individuals. As a result, individuals feel pressured and may try to obtain money using unethical means, including theft. Delinquents and criminals frequently claim that they commit crimes that generate cash because they need money but find it challenging to obtain it in other ways.3 And according to some data, those who are unhappy with their financial condition are more likely to conduct crimes, with lower-class individuals and those who express that they desire more money experiencing this unhappiness at higher rates.
The need for respect as well as prestige is closely tied to the craving for money. Individuals aspire to be respected by their friends and other people and to be treated with consideration, which at the very least entails being treated justly or fairly. Although everyone wants to be respected and given status, theorists like James Messerschmidt contend that the desire for “male status” is particularly pertinent to property theft and crime. Although opinions on what it means to be a “man” vary by race and class, most of these opinions place emphasis on qualities like independence, domination, toughness, competition, and heterosexuality. Many males struggle to fulfill their desire to be perceived and regarded as men, especially those who are young, low-class, and members of minority groups. These individuals might use criminal activity to “achieve manhood.” They could try to use force to get the respect they think they are due as “true men” from other people. Concerning property crime, this can be illustrated by the high number of teenagers and youth who, due to the need to be shown respect by their peers and gain status, end up taking part in armed robbery or grand theft auto.
In conclusion, when the costs of delinquency are low and the rewards are high—that is, when the likelihood of being detected and subsequently penalized is negligible, and the benefits of bad behavior are substantially high—strain is more likely to result in delinquency. In addition, those who are predisposed to criminality are more prone to become delinquent under stress. Numerous factors affect a person’s propensity to engage in delinquency. Individual characteristics that raise the propensity for delinquency include impulsivity and irritability. Another important consideration is whether people attribute their stress to someone else’s willful actions. Individuals are also more likely to engage in criminal behavior if they have been exposed to delinquent role models, believe that criminal behavior is justified, and have received positive reinforcement.
Bibliography
Clarkson CMV and Keating HM and Cunningham SR, Criminal Law: Text and Materials (7th edn, Sweet & Maxwell 2010)
Greenleaf G, ‘The Global Development of Free Access to Legal Information (2010) 1(1) EJLT <http://ejlt.org/article/view/17/39> accessed 27 July 2010
O’Keefe R, International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press 2015)
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