The Deserving and the Undeserving in Criminology and Social Policy

The deserving and the undeserving in Criminology and Social Policy – key concepts and their relationship How we determine individual deservingness in society Who deserves − − − − − − Attention – to be noted Compassion – to be understood Support – to receive rights, money, services Blame – to be accused Discipline – to be punished Relevant actors? Criteria of deservingness set by civil society − − − − Charities – voluntary organisations e.g. Victim support, citizens advice bureau Professionals e.g. Doctors unions, teachers unions etc e.g. Unison – welfare state , police federations – CJS Pressure groups e.g. National crimes victims riot, poverty riot Individuals – gained more influence in public realm through social media e.g. Twitter but has always had some influence through the public vote Criteria of deservingness set by the media − The guardian, the sun, ITV, BBC, Daily mail etc – media matters greatly but so does other aspects – important part of the concept of deservingness Criteria of deservingness set by the state − − − − Parties – conservative, labour, liberal democrats, UKIP Governments and parliaments – house of commons The judiciary – royal courts of justice The police – MET police Civil society, media, state: means of determining deservingness in society − − − − Civil Society/Non-state actors determine – charities, individuals etc o Social values, norms, preferences o Some conditions in charitable institutions State actors determine o Legislation o Sentencing/decisions about benefits o Benefits/compensation o Administration o Prisons/community services/health, education, social services Concepts of deservingness depend on the outcomes of debates and conflicts by civil society and state actors They determine o Who is a victim – a perpetrator o Who is a deserving – an undeserving victim o Who deserves access to the welfare state – who does not − Continuous change of needs and demands o Values and preferences change in civil society o The state (CJS & WS) guarantees/reforms rights and entitlements Rights in the Criminal Justice System and Welfare State − − − − − What rights? In this course we are examining the rights of victims in the CJS and rights of citizens to access welfare benefits when needed As societies change – how do rights/ideas about deservingness change? Common patterns? Continuity over time? Rights of victims in the Criminal Justice System and of citizens to the welfare state − − − − − − − − Grown awareness in CJS that victims need protection (from 1970s emergence of victimology, Croall 2011: 114) o Deserving victims = blameless, deserving of compassion and support in CJS (e.g. Wilson/O’Brien 2016; Christie’s “ideal victim” 1986) o Undeserving victims = not blameless, not as deserving of compassion and support in CJS – culpable victims, victim precipitation, victim lifestyles Victim proneness: certain groups more likely Victim precipitation: behaviour that makes a crime more likely Lifestyles: ditto (don’t leave the house at night) Croall Chap 6 Types of rights: CJS – legal rights https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/476900/c ode-of-practice-for-victims-of-crime.PDF - code of practice for victims of crime o Right to be informed about case (progress, arrest, charges, sentences) o Right to be informed about release from prison of violent and sexual offenders o Special measures in court for vulnerable victims (e.g. Video links) o Victim impact statement read out in court o Other victim support Https://www.victimsupport.org.uk/help-and-support/your-rights/victims-code Rights in the Criminal Justice System (CJS): The Victims Code − − − This Code of Practice for Victims of Crime forms a key part of the wider Government strategy to transform the criminal justice system by putting victims first. (…) Victims of crime should be treated in a respectful, sensitive, tailored and professional manner without discrimination of any kind. They should receive appropriate support to help them, as far as possible, to cope and recover and be protected from re-victimisation. ‘victims code’ which sets out the service that each CJ agency should provide for victims. Some important examples include: o Right to be informed about case (progress, arrest, charges, sentences) o Right to be informed about release from prison of violent and sexual offenders o Special measures in court for vulnerable victims (e.g. Video links) o Victim impact statement read out in court o Other victim support Rights of victims in the Criminal Justice System and of citizens to the welfare state Rights by reason for entitlement (deservingness): WS − − − − Contribution-based rights: e.g. Pensions Citizenship/residence-based rights: health care, schooling, child benefits Rights based on means-test: living allowance, housing benefit… Deserving/Undeserving? Contribution-based: Basic State Pension − − “To get it you must have paid or been credited with National Insurance contributions.” Https://www.gov.uk/state-pension January 2018 Citizenship/residence-based rights: NHS − Deserving without condition but not for migrants for example Means-test based rights − Employment and Support Allowance − More suspicion in this in comparison to the NHS announcement, much harder to get, more control in getting these − Jobseeker’s allowance − Different from being entitled to, given a set of rules to follow, if not, it is taken away Rights of victims in the Criminal Justice System and of citizens to the welfare state Reasons for entitlement (deservingness) − − − Welfare State o Contribution-based rights: pensions o Citizenship/residence-based rights: NHS o Rights based on means-test: ESA/JSA Criminal Justice system o Right to be informed about case (progress, release) o Special measures in court o Support Deserving/Undeserving? Case studies: how the deserving/undeserving are made − − Wilson & O’Brien (2016): Constructing the ideal victim in the USA’s annual trafficking in person reports o Human trafficking constructed around idea of the ideal victim: “physically weak, blameless, and … they were carrying out a respespectable activity at the time of victimisation“ p.37 = young women & children, weak, exploited in sex industry o The ideal offender: male, middle-aged (p.39), Western consumer of sex work (p.40) – Overproportional focus on prostitution, other forms of human trafficking less examined o Policy implications o Women in sex industry denied personal agency; possibility of autonomous worker status denied (p. 41-2) o Raids on the whole sex industry justified o Other victims of trafficking neglected Goldson (2002): New Labour, Social Justice and Children o Poor children – deserving victims, a societal consensus o What about poor children breaking the law? o The deserving troubled OR the undeserving troublesome child (not both) o − Paradox: „benign welfarism“ = support the poor – „punitive correctionalism“ = “tough on crime“ (p. 685-90) o Child offenders come from most deprived families, almost exclusively. P.690 o Policy implications o Youth justice system reorganised: new laws for children at risk of offending o Anti-Social Behaviour Order; Child-Safety Order; Child Curfew; Parenting Order o „larger and younger constituencies of the poorest and most disadvantaged children, are being drawn into a criminal justice process ... With ever more interventionist and punitive powers.“ p.692 o Why? Electoral interests. Desmond and Valdez (2012): Unpolicing the urban poor o Urban poverty = social problem o Intolerance of urban rioting => police expanded o Policy implications o Cost of CJS ever expanding (too high) → ”third-party policing” (curb costs) Landlords expected to police & control their tenants o Consequences for poor black women/victims of assault o Domestic violence => 999 calls => police attention to “nuisance properties” => landlords under police scrutiny. To avoid this: landlords evict women, especially after domestic violence occurs. o “In poor black neighbourhoods, eviction is to women what incarceration is to men: a typical but severely consequential occurrence contributing to the reproduction of urban poverty.” (Desmond 2012: 88) – endure the violence or be evicted – underserving created because of underlying structural problem (urban poverty) and that is governed through policing which is insufficient and the individual women are then seen as undeserving and blamed for these general problems Summary and conclusion − − − − − Deservingness depends on outcomes of societal interest and conflict Civil society, voters, media, politics play a role Acceptable welfare state recipients pay contributions Ideal victims: young, passive, white, and less expensive Poverty attracts public control, especially troubling poverty (deviant children, battered black women) – in CJS and WSt – poor victims are less deserving Criteria influencing the public’s willingness to see a person as “deserving” of support − − − − − − − (van Oorschot 2000: 36) Control – can a person control their needs? Can they do something about them? If yes – not deserving Need – how great? Identity – one of us? Attitude – are those in need grateful? – want something back Reciprocity: have you earned support? – can be in monetary terms “Whether people in need can be blamed or can be held responsible for their neediness seems to be a general and central criterion for deservingness.” (van Orschoot 2000: 43)