NCJ Number
84117
Journal
Federal Probation Volume: 46 Issue: 2 Dated: (June 1982) Pages: 12-17
Date Published
1982
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Crime is more of a sociopolitical phenomenon than an ensemble of behavioral problems, so that the traditional functions of the criminal justice system are unable to cope with it and criminology must expand the scope of its disciplines if it is to speak realistically to the problem of crime.
Abstract
Essentially, crime has become a human rights problem affecting individuals, minorities, political regimes, nationalities, and even whole countries. The fundamental human rights threatened by various types of crime are freedom, dignity, equality, and security. Those who violate the laws of prescribed behavior are not just common offenders with whom the criminal justice system most often deals, but business organizations and professional people, as well as political officials and institutions. The incompetence of the criminal justice system in dealing with crime and offenders is seen in the increasing number of persons awaiting trial, prison overcrowding, the general lack of effective corrective programs, and the growing number and forms of criminal victimization. Criminology's traditional focus on the behavioral aspects of the individual offender must be changed if it is to provide theoretical guidance for policy. To the current criminological curriculum should be added political science, sociology of law and international relations, political sociology, history, economy, development and planning problems, human rights theory and practice, logic, and methodology. Twelve footnotes are listed.