Consensual Crimes - Notes

Consensual Crimes 1. Describe victimless crimes a. Actions that are prohibited by law that lack a complainant. 2. Define the concept of consensual crime a. Consensual crime is defined as transgressions against the moral fabric of society. b. Consensual crimes conflict with and undermine existing social policy, accepted moral rules and public opinion 3. List the transgression characteristics of consensual crime a. Require a level of skill and organisation to access illegal products or services b. Personal transactions between strangers or casual acquaintances c. Often pave the way for or imply existing links with other types of crime. d. Financial gains motivate service delivery or distribution, self-gratification motivates the consumption side. e. Rudimentary planning and target selection precede the transactions. 4. Define fringe offences a. The term refers to the periphery of law making and enforcement: i. Acts that pose marginal level of harm to society and debatable amount of harm to the transgressor ii. Acts that usually involve non-violent offenders that could typically be considered misdemeanours (minor violations) b. Fringe acts could conceivably become decriminalised or even legalised, as many have already been redefined as non-criminal in several countries 5. Define zemiology a. The study of social harm. It not only focuses on the welfare of an individual but also on the harms caused to different social classes, genders, degrees of being able-bodied, ethnic groups, ages, and persons with alternative sexual preferences. 1 6. Explain what is meant by decriminalization and criminalization a. Decriminalization refers to the removal of the label attached to certain types of offences from the ambit of prosecution and punishment. i. de iure – complete decriminalisation ii. de facto – partial i.e. Still illegal but not prosecuted. b. Criminalization is the attachment of a label to a certain type act, thus including it in the ambit of prosecution and punishment. 7. Discuss whether sex work should be decriminalized (10 marks) a. Decriminalisation will do the following: i. Relieve desperate women of further degradation ii. Eliminate barriers that sex worker experience – health care, social services, legal assistance. iii. Ensure scarce law enforcement resources used effectively iv. Acknowledgement if sex work in order to earn income and create opportunities for themselves and their dependents. v. Reducing financial dependence of women on men vi. Facilitate regulation of the industry, increased safety of the women b. Objectors i. Negative impact on society 1. Decline in public morals 2. Degradations of neighbourhoods 3. Serious health risks for workers and clients 4. Notion of free choice is incorrect, workers would rather leave if they could afford to. 5. Strong link to criminal activities such as human trafÏcking, minors in sex work. 8. Critically discuss the proposed law reform for commercial sex work (6 marks) a. Total criminalisation – current status will remain the same i.e. elimination of sex work by criminalistion. b. Partial criminalisation of some forms of sex work or related acts such as pimps soliciting, brothel-keeping, but workers are free from criminal sanctions. c. Removal of sactions and regulation of adult sex work and related acts by the state, i.e. restricting of outdoor sex work to certain areas, regulation of advertisements and punishing illegal sex work. 2 9. Identify sex work control and prevention mechanisms (5 marks) a. Get-tough approaches b. Restrict sex work to certain areas c. Limit advertising – reduce demand d. Encourage alternative work 10. Discuss whether substance abuse should be decriminalized (10 marks) a. 3 main arguments for: i. strategies aimed at prevention and control of drug use are expensive and counter-productive because the industry remains in the realm of organized crime ii. Belief that drug use is a private matter. Prohibition of drug use is considered government interference in the private lives of citizens. iii. Not all who use drugs do so because of some pathology, relaxations, creativity b. Against decriminalization i. Studies show there is not a clear cause-and-effect relationship between drug use and crime however there is a correlation or link between the two. ii. Decriminalization could possibly stimulate the production, distribution and use of drugs. iii. Detrimental to health, and demand for substances could increase iv. Holds physical, psycho-social and economic dangers for the user, loss of health damaged mental capacity and death. v. Increase level of dependency = burden on demands for treatment and rehabilitation vi. Vulnerabilities associated with risky behaviour 11. Discuss some approaches that can be used to control and prevent substance abuse (6 marks) a. Legal systems and procedures to address crime problem including warrants to search and test for drugs. b. Targeting syndicates producing and distributing drugs and their methods c. Improving border control d. Disrupting the importing and sale of illegal drugs e. Effective street control f. Community awareness and prevention strategies g. Treatment and rehabilitation of drugs addicts h. Routine drug testing of employees, offenders and inmates 3