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The concept of crime is a constant feature of public, media and political discourse in England and Wales. On its most basic level, crime can be defined as behaviour which is prohibited by criminal law and which can be punished by the criminal justice process. Yet crime is in fact a contested and divisive concept. Crime and its meaning can be viewed from a variety of different standpoints. This chapter traces the history of competing discourses on the definition of crime, discussing the different audiences for such discourses and explaining how crime could (and should) be understood in the 21st century.
In exercising their instrumental function of enforcing criminal law, the various institutions that comprise criminal justice in England and Wales must engage with the often outdated discourses of criminal law itself. These discourses include the concepts of actus reus (literally meaning guilty act) and mens rea (literally meaning guilty mind) as tools for evaluating criminal responsibility. However, as this chapter shows, actus reus and mens rea do not have just one meaning in criminal law, but rather have a range of meanings not captured by these phrases themselves. These meanings have changed through history, driven by changing socioeconomic and political contexts. The changing and variable meanings of actus reus and mens rea have a range of implications for the criminal justice agencies responsible for using and enforcing these concepts in practice.
Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, criminal justice in England and Wales finds itself at a crossroads. The pandemic has generated severe backlogs in how quickly criminal justice responds to crime, and the structural inequality often displayed by criminal justice has been met with large-scale social protest. Despite these developments, the current Conservative government has continued with a punitive and harsh criminal law and criminal justice policy. This chapter takes a utopian view of how criminal justice could be reformed in a far more inclusionary and humane way. It then develops seven principles which could be used to effect positive criminal justice change, using concepts such as social and economic harm reduction, a public health approach to criminal justice and principled criminal law reform to construct a reform blueprint. The chapter concludes by evaluating the prospects of achieving criminal justice reform of this kind.
A key resource for students, academics and practitioners, this concise guide brings together various concepts vital to the theoretical, policy and practical debates on forensic psychology and its relationship with crime, policing and policing studies.
Covering issues such as criminal behaviour, police decision-making and crime scene investigation, each entry provides a succinct overview of the topic, together with an evaluation of the emerging issues. The text includes:
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associated concepts and further reading from research and practice;
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sample questions;
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references and glossary.
This chapter provides a conclusion to this edited collection and in so doing reflects on the impact of COVID-19 on the areas explored within it, namely forensic psychology, crime, criminal justice and policing. The impact of the pandemic on the most vulnerable members of society is also highlighted. How the global pandemic has forced continuous and often life-altering changes with little or no time to plan, discuss and agree on them is documented. The chapter highlights how the crises felt within all strands of criminal justice, which preceded the pandemic, have been exacerbated by COVID-19. Finally, the chapter cautions against using the pandemic in order to fix a criminal justice system in crisis, and it advocates a more radical and courageous vision and approach to forensic psychology, crime and policing.
This book responds to the increasing growth and popularity of studies on forensic psychology in the context of criminal justice and policing. This growth in popularity has brought with it increased media focus, which can often be misleading for those wishing to increase their knowledge of forensic psychology, crime and policing, either as academic educators, students or as practitioners. This book therefore offers an original and unique collection of essays on contemporary concepts, topics and debates influencing forensic psychology, crime and policing, written by a range of experts in these fields. It reflects the distinctiveness of the areas of forensic psychology, crime and policing, together with the simultaneous overlap and convergence of these areas in both academia and practice. The book’s contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds; they range from academics, research officers and consultants, to current and former police officers and psychologists. Each of the book’s chapters provides a succinct definition of the topic or concept being discussed in that chapter, together with a description and overview of it, an evaluation of the topic or concept and a summary of the chapter. Relevant chapters in the book and key readings are also provided to guide the reader to further key information sources from inside and outside academia.
This book responds to the increasing growth and popularity of studies on forensic psychology in the context of criminal justice and policing. This growth in popularity has brought with it increased media focus, which can often be misleading for those wishing to increase their knowledge of forensic psychology, crime and policing, either as academic educators, students or as practitioners. This book therefore offers an original and unique collection of essays on contemporary concepts, topics and debates influencing forensic psychology, crime and policing, written by a range of experts in these fields. It reflects the distinctiveness of the areas of forensic psychology, crime and policing, together with the simultaneous overlap and convergence of these areas in both academia and practice. The book’s contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds; they range from academics, research officers and consultants, to current and former police officers and psychologists. Each of the book’s chapters provides a succinct definition of the topic or concept being discussed in that chapter, together with a description and overview of it, an evaluation of the topic or concept and a summary of the chapter. Relevant chapters in the book and key readings are also provided to guide the reader to further key information sources from inside and outside academia.
This book responds to the increasing growth and popularity of studies on forensic psychology in the context of criminal justice and policing. This growth in popularity has brought with it increased media focus, which can often be misleading for those wishing to increase their knowledge of forensic psychology, crime and policing, either as academic educators, students or as practitioners. This book therefore offers an original and unique collection of essays on contemporary concepts, topics and debates influencing forensic psychology, crime and policing, written by a range of experts in these fields. It reflects the distinctiveness of the areas of forensic psychology, crime and policing, together with the simultaneous overlap and convergence of these areas in both academia and practice. The book’s contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds; they range from academics, research officers and consultants, to current and former police officers and psychologists. Each of the book’s chapters provides a succinct definition of the topic or concept being discussed in that chapter, together with a description and overview of it, an evaluation of the topic or concept and a summary of the chapter. Relevant chapters in the book and key readings are also provided to guide the reader to further key information sources from inside and outside academia.
This book responds to the increasing growth and popularity of studies on forensic psychology in the context of criminal justice and policing. This growth in popularity has brought with it increased media focus, which can often be misleading for those wishing to increase their knowledge of forensic psychology, crime and policing, either as academic educators, students or as practitioners. This book therefore offers an original and unique collection of essays on contemporary concepts, topics and debates influencing forensic psychology, crime and policing, written by a range of experts in these fields. It reflects the distinctiveness of the areas of forensic psychology, crime and policing, together with the simultaneous overlap and convergence of these areas in both academia and practice. The book’s contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds; they range from academics, research officers and consultants, to current and former police officers and psychologists. Each of the book’s chapters provides a succinct definition of the topic or concept being discussed in that chapter, together with a description and overview of it, an evaluation of the topic or concept and a summary of the chapter. Relevant chapters in the book and key readings are also provided to guide the reader to further key information sources from inside and outside academia.
This book responds to the increasing growth and popularity of studies on forensic psychology in the context of criminal justice and policing. This growth in popularity has brought with it increased media focus, which can often be misleading for those wishing to increase their knowledge of forensic psychology, crime and policing, either as academic educators, students or as practitioners. This book therefore offers an original and unique collection of essays on contemporary concepts, topics and debates influencing forensic psychology, crime and policing, written by a range of experts in these fields. It reflects the distinctiveness of the areas of forensic psychology, crime and policing, together with the simultaneous overlap and convergence of these areas in both academia and practice. The book’s contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds; they range from academics, research officers and consultants, to current and former police officers and psychologists. Each of the book’s chapters provides a succinct definition of the topic or concept being discussed in that chapter, together with a description and overview of it, an evaluation of the topic or concept and a summary of the chapter. Relevant chapters in the book and key readings are also provided to guide the reader to further key information sources from inside and outside academia.
