Comparative
Criminal Justice
Systems
CRIME, TRANSNATIONAL CRIME, AND JUSTICE
CHAPTER TWO
Reichel
Questions
Why measure crime
and compare crime data ?
What do comparative criminoligists study?
What do comparative criminal justice
scholars study?
Limits of Comparative
Criminal Justice
Variation in crime rates (crime as a social
phenomenon) must first be established
before behavioral explanations (crime as
social behavior) are offered.
Limitations of International
Crime Data

Underreporting: social and political reasons

Nonstandard Definitions

Differences in collection and recording
practices: inconsistencies and politics
Underreporting
Social Reasons
Citizens fail to report many crimes because of:
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No insurance
Accessibility to police
Limited telephone access
Fear of reprisals; fear or dislike of police (mistrust)
Wish to protect the perpetrator
Not serious/no loss
Different social norms in different countries, i.e., rape in U.S.
and Mexico
Underreporting
(cont’d)
Political Reasons
Countries fail to report crime because:

Some countries lack the technical resources and knowledge
necessary to report crime data.

Some countries are concerned that crime data will negatively affect
their nation’s world standing or tourist trade.

Some countries are concerned that crime data will indicate a
weakness in their political philosophy.

Some countries are too involved in civil war to keep track of crime
problems.
Nonstandard Definitions
Major issue:
Determining what is a crime versus what is legal

Interpol and the United Nation’s request countries report to
report crime according to their categories, however, this
creates confusion and controversy.

Laws and legal codes in some cases are so different that it is
difficult to make comparisons, i.e., rape – Italy and Croatia.

In other words, comparing a specific crime in two countries
may not actually compare similar acts.
Differences in Collection
and Recording Practices

Styles of different interviewers and recorders may vary considerably.

Inconsistency in crime data collection and recording by police
departments (both within and across countries).

Countries in developing countries lack manpower and technology to
efficiently collect, record, and report crime data.

Many countries do not have a unified criminal justice system, thus
they may not be able to collect crime statistics on a national level.

Some countries count crimes when they are reported to police, other
countries count crimes when police forward them for prosecution.
Data Sets for Crime Comparison

Interpol data

Council of Europe surveys

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime surveys

United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and Operations of
Criminal Justice Systems

International Crime Victim Survey
Crime Trends
Crime survey results cannot be used to rank
countries, they are appropriate for assessing
the direction of change in crime.
In other words, they are useful
for identifying trends over time.
Questions
Does the availability of guns influence a
country’s violent crime rate?
Why would homicide rates be a reliable
indicator of that crime across countries
whereas many crimes are not comparable
indicators ?
Transnational Crime
It is difficult to define transnational crime,
however, it normally includes the reliance of
several individuals and groups in many
countries working together to complete the
crime. It often has an organized component,
i.e., transnational organized crime.
Transnational Crime Types

Aircraft Hijacking

Money Laundering

Computer crime/cyber crime

Sea Piracy

Corruption and Bribery of
public and political officials

Theft of art and artifacts

Trafficking in persons

Trafficking in human body
parts
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Terrorism
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Environmental crime
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Drug Trafficking
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Arms Trafficking
Characteristics of Terrorism

Distinction between domestic and international terrorism,
i.e., Oklahoma City – September 11, 2001.

Political in aims and motives.
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Exploitation of fear (terror) through violence or the threat
of violence.
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Psychological effects (fear through intimidation).
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Perpetrated by a subnational group or non-state entity.
Characteristics of Terrorism
(cont’d)

Designed to create power when there is no power.

To terrorists, there are no rules of warfare or codes of
conduct.

The goal is that through the publicity generated from
their violence, terrorists will have the leverage to effect
political change.

Perpetrated by some organizational entity with an
identifiable chain of command capable of conspiratorial
conduct.
Terrorism Typologies

Nationalist: seek to form a separate state for their
own national group, i.e., freedom fighters.
Examples include: IRA, Basque Fatherland and
Liberty, and Kurdistan Worker’s Party.

Religious: use violence to further what they
believe are divinely commanded purposes – a
spiritual rather than a military objective. Examples
include: Al-Qaeda, HAMAS, Hezbollah, Aum
Shinrikyo.
Terrorism Typologies
(cont’d)

State-Sponsored: Used by radical states as foreign
policy – provide a cost effective way to wage war
covertly through terrorists, i.e., U.S. embassy – Tehran
(1979). States considered to sponsor terrorism include:
Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan, Syria.
Terrorism Typologies
(cont’d)

Left-Wing, Right-Wing, and Anarchist: Leftwing groups seek to destroy capitalism and replace it
with a communist social regime. Right-wing groups
seek to create fascists states. Anarchists are
revolutionaries who seek to overthrow all forms of
government. Examples include: Left-Wing (Red
Brigade, Baader-Meinhof Gang, Japanese Red Army);
Right-Wing (Neo-Nazis, skinheads, white supremacists);
and, Anarchist (contemporary anti-globalization groups).
Question
Why should we care about
transnational crime?
What is the general response toward
transnational crime - both in the U.S.
and in other countries?