NCJ Number
150635
Journal
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science Volume: 525 Dated: (January 1993) Pages: complete issue
Editor(s)
G Geis,
P Jesilow
Date Published
1993
Length
210 pages
Annotation
Public awareness of and concern about white collar crime have surged, particularly in response to toxic dumping, insider trading, political influence peddling, and fraudulent practices in the legal and medical professions.
Abstract
White collar crime is generally defined as illegal behavior committed in the course of a person's occupation. Scholars typically subdivide white collar crime into lawbreaking by individuals and by organizations. White collar crime research is relatively indifferent to whether offenses are prosecuted civilly or defined as regulatory rather than criminal offenses, as long as the illegal behavior could have been brought before a criminal court. White collar crime has significant physical, fiscal, and social costs and generally follows expansions in the marketplace. Financial losses associated with the savings and loan scandal are examined, as well as insider trading, white collar crime in the United Kingdom, and embezzlement. Consideration is also given to occupational health crimes, environmental crimes, criminal enforcement of environmental laws, and efforts of the U.S. Sentencing Commission to structure an appropriate judicial response to corporate crimes and corporate probation. Footnotes