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Breaking of Laws, and The Society's Reaction Towards The Breaking of Laws."
Breaking of Laws, and The Society's Reaction Towards The Breaking of Laws."
CRIMINOLOGY
- any person who is a graduate of the Degree of Criminology, who has passed the examination
for criminologists and is registered as such by the Board of Examiners of the Professional
Regulation Commission (PRC).
Etymologically, the term criminology came from the Latin word “crimen” meaning crime and
Greek word “Logos” which means “to study”.
In 1885, Rafael Garofalo, an Italian Law Professor coined the term criminologia.
In 1889, Paul Topinard, French Anthropologist, used the term criminology in French criminologie
for the first time
1. Etiology of Crimes – the scientific analysis of the causes of crimes and the criminal behavior.
2. Sociology of Law – refers to the investigation of the nature of criminal law and its administration 3.
Penology – the study of the control of crimes and the rehabilitation of offender Is criminology a
science?
According to George Wilker, criminology cannot become a science because it has not yet
acquired universal validity. Edwin H. Sutherland, the Dean of Modern Criminology, hoped that it will
become a science in the future since the causes of crimes are almost the same which may be biological,
environmental or combination of the two.
Nature of Criminology
2. It is a social science because it studies crime as a social phenomenon. Crime is a social problem
which has a great impact to society.
3. It is dynamic because the concepts of criminology and their applications adapt to the changing
time.
4. It is nationalistic because the study of criminology takes into consideration the history, the culture
and the social norms and the laws of the country. Each country has its own set of laws and
crimes are defined by the laws of the country.
3. Study of the other sciences that examine criminal behavior using scientific methods such as:
criminal demography – the study of the relationship between criminality and population
criminal epidiomology – the study of the relationship between environment and criminality
community
victimology – the study of the role of the victim in the commission of a crime
School of Thought – refers to a group of beliefs or ideas that support a specific theory.
Theory – set of statements devised to explain behavior, events or phenomenon, especially one that
has been repeatedly tested and widely accepted.
1. DEMONOLOGICAL THEORY - asserts that a person commits wrongful acts due to the fact that
he was possessed by demons.
The classical school of criminology grew out of a reaction against the barbaric system of law,
punishment and justice that existed. There was no real system of criminal justice in Europe at that time.
Some crimes were specified, some were not. Judges had discretionary power to convict a person for an
act not even legally defined as criminal.
This school of thought is based on the assumption that individuals choose to commit crimes after
weighing the consequences of their actions. According to classical criminologists, individuals have free
will. They can choose legal or illegal means to get what they want, fear of punishment can deter them
from committing crime and society can control behavior by making the pain of punishment greater than
the pleasure of the criminal gains.
This theory, however, does not give any distinction between an adult and a minor or a mentally
handicapped in as far as free will is concerned. Founders of classical school of criminology are Cesare
Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham.
- best known for his essay, “On Crimes and Punishment” which presented key ideas on the
abolition of torture as legitimate means of extracting confession.
- His book contains almost all modern penal reforms but its greatest contribution was the
foundation it laid for subsequent changes in criminal legislation
- his book was influential in the reforms of penal code in France, Russia, Prussia and it influenced
the first ten amendments to the US Constitution
c. To deter crime, he believed that one must administer pain in an appropriate amount to
counterbalance the pleasure obtain from crime.
1. In forming a human society, men and women sacrifice a portion of their liberty so as to enjoy
peace and security.
2. Punishments that go beyond the need of preserving the public safety are in their nature unjust. 3.
Criminal laws must be clear and certain. Judges must make uniform judgments in similar crimes. 4.
The law must specify the degree of evidence that will justify the detention of an accused offender
prior to his trial.
5. Accusations must be public. False accusations should be severely punished.
6. To torture accused offenders to obtain a confession is inadmissible.
7. The promptitude of punishment is one of the most effective curbs on crime.
8. The aim of punishment can only be to prevent the criminal from committing new crimes against his
countrymen, and to keep others from doing likewise. Punishments, therefore, and the method of
inflicting them, should be chosen in due proportion to the crime, so as to make the most lasting
impression on the minds of men…
9. Capital punishment is inefficacious and its place should be substituted life imprisonment. 10. It is
better to prevent crimes than to punish them. That is the chief purpose of all good legislation.
- his contribution to classical school of criminology is the concept of utilitarianism and the felicific
calculus.
- proposed “Utilitarian Hedonism” which explains that person always acts in such a way to seek
pleasure and avoid pain.
- founded the concept of UTILITARIANISM – assumes that all our actions are calculated in
accordance with their likelihood of bringing pleasure and pain
- devised the pseudo-mathematical formula called “felicific calculus” which states that
individuals are human calculators who put all the factors into an equation in order to decide
whether a particular crime is worth committing or not
- he reasoned that in order to deter individuals from committing crimes, the punishment, or pain,
must be greater than the satisfaction, or pleasure, he would gain from committing the crime
Utilitarianism
– is a philosophy which argues that what is right is the one that would cause the greatest good for
the greatest number of people.
- others refer to it as the greatest happiness principle or the principle of utility. -
from this principle, Bentham formulated the “felicific calculus”.
Felicific Calculus or the pleasure-and-pain principle – is a theory that proposes that individuals calculate
the consequences of his actions by weighing the pleasure (gain) and the pain (suffering) he would derive
from doing the action.
3. NEOCLASSICAL CRIMINOLOGY
This theory modified the doctrine of free will by stating that free will of men may be
affected by other factors and crime is committed due to some compelling reasons that prevail.
These causes are pathology, incompetence, insanity or any condition that will make it impossible
for the individual to exercise free will entirely. In the study of legal provisions, this is termed as
either mitigating or exempting circumstances.
August Comte
- was a French philosopher and sociologist and is believed to be the one who reinvented the
French term sociologie.
- he claimed that criminals are distinguishable from non-criminals due to the presence of atavistic
stigmata and crimes committed by those who are born with certain recognizable heredity traits.
- according to his theory, criminals are usually in possession of huge jaws and strong canine
teeth, the arm span of criminals is often greater than their height, just like that of apes who use their
forearms to push themselves along the ground.
- other physical stigmata include deviation in head size and shape, asymmetry of the face,
excessive dimensions of the jaw and cheekbones, eye defects and peculiarities, ears of unusual size,
nose twisted, upturned or flattened in thieves, or aquiline or beaklike in murderers, fleshy lips, swollen
and protruding, and pouches in the cheek like those of animal’s toes
- Lombroso’s work supported the idea that the criminal was a biologically and physically inferior person
b. insane criminals – those who became criminals because of some brain defect which
affected their ability to understand and differentiate what is right from what is wrong.
c. criminaloids - those with makeup of an ambiguous group that includes habitual criminals,
criminals by passion and other diverse types
Enricco Ferri
- he focused his study on the influences of psychological factors and sociological factors such as
economics, on crimes.
- He believed that criminals could not be held morally responsible because they did not choose to
commit crimes, but rather were driven to commit crimes by conditions in their lives.
Raffaelle Garofallo
- He treated the roots of the criminals’ behavior not to physical features but to their psychology
equivalent, which he referred to as moral anomalies.
- He rejected the doctrine of freewill.
- Classified criminals as Murderers, Violent Criminals, Deficient Criminals, and Lascivious Criminals.
1. BIOLOGICAL THEORIES
- this refers to the set of theories that point to physical, physiological and other natural factors as
the causes for the commission of crimes of certain individuals.
- This explanation for the existence of criminal traits associates an individual’s evil disposition to
physical disfigurement or impairment.
a. Physiognomy – the study of facial features and their relation to human behavior.
- according to him criminal behavior may be predicted based on facial features of the
person.
c. Physiology or Somatotype – refers to the study of body build of a person in relation to his
temperament and personality and the type of offense he is most prone to commit. 1. Ernst
Kretschmer
- he distinguished three (3) principal types of physiques: asthenic, athletic, pyknik and
dysplastic.
a. asthenic – characterized as thin, small and weak.
b. athletic – muscular and strong.
c. pyknic – stout, round and fat.
d. dysplastic – combination of two body types
a. ectomorph – tall and thin and less social and more intellectual than the other
types.
b. mesomorph – have well-developed muscles and an athletic appearance.
c. endomorph – heavy builds and slow moving.
3. Charles Goring
- he believed that criminal traits can be passed from parents to offspring through the
genes. - he proposed that individuals who possess criminal characteristics should be
prohibited from having children.
The classic studies of the Juke and Kallikak families were among the first to show that
feeblemindedness or low-intelligence can be inherited and transferred from one generation to the next.
Numerous test were also conducted that lead to the development of the use of IQ tests as a testing
procedure for offenders. The very first results seemed to confirm that offenders had low mental abilities
and they were found to be mentally impaired.
- the test measured the capacity of individual children to perform tasks or solve problems in
relation to the average capacity of their peers.
3. PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES
- refers to the theories that attribute criminal behavior of individuals to psychological factors,
such as emotion and mental problems.
a. Sigmund Freud
1. ID – this stands for instinctual drives; it is governed by the “pleasure principle”; the id
impulses are not social and must be repressed or adapted so that they may become
socially acceptable
2. EGO – this is considered to be the sensible and responsible part of an individual’s
personality and is governed by the “reality principle”; it is developed early in life and
compensates for the demands of the id by helping the individual guide his actions to
remain within the boundaries of accepted social behavior; it is the objective, rational part
of the personality
4. SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES
- sociological factors refer to things, places and people with whom we come in contact with and
which play a part in determining our actions and conduct. These causes may bring about the
development of criminal behavior.
a. Emile Durkheim
- he stated that crime is a normal part of the society just like birth and death.
b. Gabriel Tarde
- environmental factors such as the kind of rearing or family upbringing, quality of teaching in
school, influences of peers and friends, conditions of the neighborhood, and economic and
other societal factors are believed to be contributory to crime and criminal behavior.
c. Neutralization Theory
a. Containment Theory
- proposed by Walter Reckless
- he stated that inner and outer containments help prevent juvenile offending. -
containment means the forces within and outside the individual that has the power to
influence his actions.
- inner containments include positive self-concept, tolerance for frustration and an ability
to set realistic goals.
- outer containments include family.
d. attachment – refers to the degree to which an individual care about the opinions
of others.
e. commitment – refers to an individual’s investment of energy and emotion in
conventional pursuits, such as getting good grades.
f. involvement – refers to the amount of time an individual spends on a conventional
pursuit.
g. belief – refers to acceptance of the norms of conventional society.
CRIME – refers to an act committed or omitted in violation of public law (Phil. Law Dictionary). - It also
refers to an act committed or omitted in violation of a public law forbidding or commanding it (Reyes
2006).
CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMES
LEGAL CLASSIFICATIONS:
- the act or omission of the offender is not malicious and the injury caused by the offender
is unintentional, it being the simply the incident of another act performed without malice
• lack of foresight
• lack of skill
• negligence
• imprudence
4. According to plurality:
5. According to gravity:
a. Grave felonies - are those to which the law attaches the capital punishment or penalties
which in any of their period are afflictive.
b. Less grave felonies - are those which the law punishes with penalties which in their
maximum period are correctional.
c. Light felonies - are infraction of laws for the commission of which the penalty of arresto
menor or a fine not exceeding 200 pesos or both is provided.
a. Crimes mala in se – are acts that are inherently evil. Examples are murder, robbery, etc. b.
Crimes mala prohibita – are acts which are prohibited only because there are laws forbidding
such acts. Examples are Illegal Possession of firearms, Traffic Violations, etc.
a. Acquisitive crime – if the offender acquired or gained something by committing the crime.
Examples are robbery, estafa, bribery, etc.
b. Destructive crime – if the crime resulted in destruction, damage or even death. Examples
are arson, murder and homicide, damage to property, etc.
a. Seasonal crimes – are crimes that happen only during a particular season or period of the
year. Examples are violation of election law, tax law violations, etc.
b. Situational crimes – are crimes committed when the situation is conducive to the
commission of the crime and there is an opportunity to commit it. Examples are pickpocketing,
theft, etc.
a. Instant crimes – are those crimes that can be committed in a very short time. Example: theft
b. Episoidal crimes – are crimes committed through series of acts or episodes and in much
longer time. Example: serious illegal detention
a. Static crimes – are committed only in one place. examples are theft and robbery b.
Continuing crimes – are crimes that take place in more than one place or several places.
examples: abduction, kidnapping, etc.
a. Rational crimes – when the offender is capable of knowing what he is doing and
understanding the consequences of his actions.
b. Irrational Crimes – when the offender suffers from any form of mental disorders, insanity or
abnormality. Thus, the offender doesn’t know what he is doing.
6. According to the type of offender:
a. White Collar Crimes – crimes committed by those persons belonging to the upper socio
economic status or in the course of his occupational activities.
b. Blue Collar Crimes – are those crimes committed by ordinary criminals as a means of
livelihood.
CRIMINAL
- in the legal sense, a criminal is any person who has been found to have committed a wrongful act
in the course of the standard judicial process; there must be a final verdict of his guilt - in the
criminological sense, a person is already considered a criminal the moment he committed a crime
CLASSIFICATIONS OF CRIMINALS
4. According to etiology
a. Acute criminal – is a person who committed crime as a result of reacting to a situation or
during a moment of anger or burst of feeling.
b. Chronic criminal – is one who committed a crime with intent or deliberated thinking.
1. Neurotic criminal – is one who has mental disorder.
2. Normal criminal – a person who commits crimes because he looks up to, idolizes
people who are criminals.
a. Ordinary criminal – a criminal who engages in crimes which do not require specialized or
technical skill
b. Organized criminal – is one who possesses some skills and know-how which enable him to
commit crimes and evade detection.
c. Professional criminal – a highly skilled criminals which are engaged in a large scale
criminal activities ad usually operate in groups.
a. Professional criminal – a criminal who earns his living through criminal activities. b.
Situational criminal – a person who got involved in criminal act because the situation
presented itself.
c. Habitual criminal – one who repeatedly commits criminal act for different reasons. d.
Accidental criminal – a person who accidentally violated the law due to some circumstances.
1) CODE OF HAMMURABI
- Hammurabi, the king of Babylon during the eighteenth century BC, is recognized as the first
codifier of laws
- it provides the first comprehensive view of the laws in the early days
- the Code was carved in stone
- the “law of talion”, or the principle of “tit for tat”,(an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth) appears
throughout the Code
- under the principle of the law of talion, the punishment should be the same as the harm inflicted
on the victim
2) THE HITTITES
- the Hittites existed about two centuries after Hammurabi and eventually conquered
4) LAWS OF SOLON
- Roman law began with the Twelve Tables which were written in the middle of the sixth century
BC
- the Twelve Tables were the foundation of all laws in Rome and written in tablets of bronze
- the Twelve Tables were drafted by the Decemvirs, a body of men composed of patricians
CRIMINAL LAW
– is that branch of public law which defines crimes treats of their nature and provides for their
punishment.
– book that contains the Philippine Criminal Law and different special laws and decrees which
are penal in nature. It is called as RPC because the old penal code which took effect in the country on
July 14, 1887 and was in force until Dec. 31, 1931 was revised by the Committee created by
Administrative Order No. 94 of the Department of Justice, dated Oct. 18, 1927, composed of Anacleto
Diaz as Chairman, Alex Reyes and Mariano de Joya as members.The RPC was approved on Dec. 8,
1930 and took effect on January 1, 1932.
It is composed of two books; book one which is composed of Articles 1-113 and book two
covering Articles 114-367.
1. Generality – the law is applicable to all persons within the territory irrespective of sex,
race, nationality or civil status except:
a. Head of state
2. Territoriality - the RPC is applicable to felonies committed within the Philippine territorial
jurisdiction.
a. Philippine archipelago – all the islands that comprise the Philippines
b. Atmosphere water – all bodies of water that connect all the islands such
as bays, rivers and streams
c. Maritime zone – the twelve (12) Nautical Mile limit beyond our shore
measured at low tide
The Revised Penal Code shall be applicable to all cases committed outside the Philippine
territorial jurisdiction under the following circumstances:
a) should commit an offense while on Philippine ship or airship;
b) should forge or counterfeit any coin or currency note of the Philippine Island or obligations and
securities issued by the government of the Philippines;
c) while being a public officer or employee, should commit an offense in the exercise of their
functions’
d) should commit any of the crimes against national security and law of nations
3. Prospectivity - the provisions of the RPC cannot be applied if the act is not yet punishable
on the time the felony was committed. However, it may have a retroactive effect if it is
favorable to the accused who is not a habitual delinquent.
5. It is uniform in application.
An act described as a crime is a crime no matter who committed it, wherever committed
in the Philippines and whenever committed. No exceptions must be made as to the criminal
liability. The definition of crimes together with the corresponding punishment must be uniformly
construed, although there may be a difference in the enforcement of a given specific provision of
the penal law.
CRIME STATISTICS
Index crimes are crimes which are sufficiently significant and which occur with sufficient regularity to be
meaningful, such as murder, homicide, physical injury, robbery, theft and rape.
Non-index crimes are crimes that are not classified as index crimes. Violations of special laws and other
crimes against moral and order. These crimes are generated from the result of positive police initiated
operations.
STATISTICAL FORMULA:
1. Crime Solution Efficiency (CSE) – percentage of solved cases out of the total number of
reported crime incidents handled by the police for a given period of time. It is a general measure
of law enforcement agency’s investigative capability or efficiency.
Formula:
2. Crime Rate – the number of incidents in a given period of time for every 100, 000 inhabitants of an
area/place.
Formula:
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CR = ! __
_______________________ 5 � 100, 000
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3. Average Monthly Crime Rate (AMCR) – the average number of crime incidents occurred per
month for every 100, 000 inhabitants in a certain area.
Formula:
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AMCR = ! ���������� ��. ��
_________________ 5 � 100, 000 ÷ ����ℎ�
4. Variance (or % change) – one way of analyzing crime trends. It measures the percentage change
over a given period of time.
Formula:
5. Crime Analysis
Formula:
Formula: