Inorganic trace evidence constitutes: hairs, fibers, tool marks ballistics, glass, paint, and the rest of the evidence which are available within a crime scene while organic trace evidence normally originates from a human or animal. However, organic trace evidence like blood can provide a lot of information concerning the crime that occurred through blood left behind. Law enforcement obtains the victim’s and perpetrator’s blood for which analysis is conducted on bloodstain by photographing or stringing. This process involves connecting strings from various blood spatters to explain the pattern of events during the crime.DNA evidence will also be shown through blood as well as evidence of various diseases of the victim or even the perpetrator who may be male or female.
A wound as organic trace evidence is used as one of the first clues about the crime of which when cleaned and examined through, the morgue vivid information will be obtained by the medical examiner. Further, the responses of the human body towards trauma depend on whether or not the victim is alive or dead. A bite mark found on the victim’s body can also provide information on the crime scene to technicians regarding the perpetrator. The dental system in the record system is compared with the bite mark of the perpetrators through straight teeth, crooked teeth, and crowns, expensive and dental work. (Thompson S, 2006)
The strength of organic evidence through DNA makers has increased for a wide range both in plants and animals of which opportunity had been created for the application of forensic investigations. Currently, few researchers have reported using DNA of non – human species to place suspects next to a place where crime had occurred of which a female homicide and her near-term fetus is used to describe an investigation. Organic evidence also demonstrates the ability of plant microsatellite makers to issue physical evidence which links plant materials to live plants that are near a crime scene. (K. Craft, et al)
Inorganic strength trace evidence lies in the volume of paint and glass evidence with the properties and characterization of both materials when they are presented as transfer evidence. However, through practicing other perspectives, inorganic cannot be considered due to the fact that most important information is getting lost. In addition to that, the material and pattern have to be taken into consideration of which serious dilemma may emerge due to decisions regarding documentation and sampling. Just like in the case of paints, inorganic trace evidence flakes and chips are reached in accordance with the procedure of which they are supposed to be evaluated to achieve potentiality for physical matching towards the source which is not known. In addition to that, layer structure also improves the strength of inorganic evidence when taken into consideration. (Caddy B, 1996)
The weakness of organic evidence is that it can also weaken or destroy a potential source of information contained in a criminal case if blood samples evidence is improperly handled. In conjunction with that, insufficient evidence may also contradict the witness statement or any of the information being given by the suspect. When blood evidence is taken for laboratory tests by various crime scene investigators, the information may change periodically due to change in technology which affects lab policies, lab personnel, or lab administrator change. The preferences of forensic scientists may also vary from lab to lab. (George Schiro, 1995.)
Inorganic evidence does not allow the investigators to come up with completely satisfactory evidence with the notion of related size which leads to a small investigation.However, organic evidence may also contain the connotation of vestige or of something remaining behind after something else has been eliminated from or vanished without trace. (Caddy, B,1996)
Reference
Alexander Beveridge.1998. Forensic Investigation of Explosions. CRC Press.
Associated Content Inc. 2008. Organic Trace Evidence: Collections from Crime Scenes. Web.
Brian Caddy. 1996. Trace Evidence analysis and interpretation. Glass and Paint. CRC Press.
George Schiro. Collection and Preservation of Blood Evidence from Crime Scenes Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory. Web.
Bonnar-Kidd, Kelly K. “Sexual Offender Laws and Prevention of Sexual Violence or Recidivism.” American Journal of Public Health 100.3 (2010): 412–419. Web.
Summary
The researcher presents sexual violence as a concern to public health in the United States. Sexual violence is viewed in relation to legislations and laws passed aimed at reducing recidivism among sex offenders or criminals. The author argues that sex offenders in the United States are subject to laws, policies, registration, community notification, as well as monitoring through technologies. Further, the article identifies other policies that apply to sexual offenders such as internet restrictions, residency, loitering, and civil commitment. These policies are viewed as challenges to the integration of sexual offenders into society. Multiple policies restricting the actions of sexual offenders have led to an environment where sexual offenders cannot be reintegrated successfully thereby leading to increased levels or risk for recidivism.
Key quotations
“In fact, evidence on the effectiveness of these laws suggests that they may not prevent recidivism or sexual violence and result in more harm than good.” (Bonnar-Kidd 412).
“Since 1996, some states have created ‘safety zones’ or places where a registered sex offender cannot be; others are mandating lifetime global positing system (GPS).” (Bonnar-Kidd 415).
Evaluation
The article presents the effectiveness of laws and policies on sexual-related offenses in the reintegration process. The article is necessary so that laws developed by policymakers are changed based on their role in increasing the level of sexual offenses in the United States. Laws mandating lifetime global positing system (GPS) are not suitable for the reintegration of sex offenders in society. The article, therefore, presents an analysis of the effects of laws and policies on the reintegration process of criminals into society.
Entry 2
Citation
Brown, Geneva. “The Intersectionality of Race, Gender, and Reentry: Challenges for African-American Women.” American Constitution Society for Law and Policy – Issue Brief November (2010): 1–18. Web.
Summary
This article is about mass incarceration of African-American men and women to prison. The author argues that mass incarceration of African-American citizens has led to challenges in reintegration into communities. In particular, incarceration in the United States has been radicalized based in philosophies of order regimes. African-American citizens are overrepresented in each criminal category. Further, police departments and strategies used involve the use of force towards African-American communities thereby leading to discriminatory treatment by police officers. Reintegration into the community is affected by discriminatory treatment of African-American criminals into the society. Other challenges of reintegration of criminals into the society in the United States relate to limited funding on services that enhance the reintegration process. The authors argue that legal reforms have led to challenges of non-involvement in education, employment, and housing. Race and gender are major challenges of reintegrating criminals into the society.
Key quotations
“The legal community has overlooked the impact of the intersectionality of race and gender, and the criminal justice system suffers from the same dilemma. Law enforcement, the government, and research institutions measure ‘gender’ as ‘white women’ and ‘race’ as ‘African-American man’.” (Brown 2)
“African-American women face challenges in re-entry and reintegration that other populations do not have to face.”(Brown 3)
Evaluation
The article presents the idea of race as a challenge to reintegration. African-American women face challenges in reintegration process because they are care givers, head of families, and mothers. When such members of the society become criminals, children experience difficulties because income generated by African-American women is lost. Children of such mothers experience challenges in foster care while waiting for parents to be released from prison. The reintegration process is affected because children are permanently severed from families and parents. African-American men and women become ignored by the mainstream community as well as police departments.
Entry 3
Citation
Freudenberg, Nicholas. “Coming Home from Jail: The Social and Health Consequences of Community Reentry for Women, Male Adolescents, and Their Families and Communities.” American Journal of Public Health 95.10 (2005): 1725–1736. Web.
Summary
The article is about social and health consequences during reintegration process in the United States. The author states that over 10 million citizens in the United States enter jails in each year. Most of the jail entry population return home within a few weeks. The article states that jails have infectious and chronic diseases that affect reintegration of criminals once they leave jails. Further, substance abuse as well as mental health challenges are key difficulties that affect reintegration of criminals into the society. The experiences of criminals leaving jails contribute to challenges in health and income when they return to communities. The study focused on adolescent males and adult women from New York City jails. The results show that adolescents and adult women from jails experience lack of employment and low income when they return to the society.
Key quotations
“A year after release, young men were less likely to get money from illegal activities such as drug selling or stealing.” (Freudenberg. 193)
“At follow-up, young men were more likely to be working than prior to arrest and much less likely to be in school.” (Freudenberg. 195)
“A third of women had been homeless in the past year and 63% reported histories of physical or sexual abuse.” (Freudenberg. 195)
Evaluation
This article focuses majorly on experiences from prison as well as economic challenges affecting adolescents and adult women. Reintegration of young men and adult women from jails is affected by difficulties of income and mental health problems. Mental health problems are part of the experiences from prison while low income or lack of employment is part of poor support systems from the community to support persons from jails. Reintegration is also affected because persons resort to income sources from illegal activities since they cannot engage in formal employment. Stereotypes developed about criminals do not assist in finding formal employment after jail terms.
Entry 4
Citation
Torjesen, Stina. “Towards a Theory of Ex-Combatant Reintegration.” Stability: International Journal of Security & Development 2.3 (2013): 63. Web.
Summary
The journal deals with the reintegration of ex-combatants after war. The article adopts a discussion on reintegration based on experiences of ex-combatants rather than support programs developed by national and international agencies. According to author, reintegration of e-combatants is viewed in terms of sociology and political economy. In particular, sociology and political economy have an influence on power and group belonging. One of the difficulties for reintegration relates to rejection by families and society members. Reintegration of ex-combatants and criminals depend son relations developed with civilians and the nature of support obtained from families. Criminals and ex-combatants receive rejection thereby leading to challenges in reintegration process. Criminals and ex-combatants are always marginalized in the social order. In countries that have been ravaged by wars and high number of criminals gangs, it is necessary to implement land reforms, as well as policies that assist ex-combatants and criminals live in harmony with the rest of the society members.
Key quotations
“Indeed the promotion of a home community return could entail an unfortunate return to pre-war status quo for them, which in turn might mean re-marginalization and renewed seeds of unrest (Torjesen 4)
“Political reintegration involves ending efforts to achieve political goals through violent means. Combatants enter into mainstream politics at the local, regional, or national level either as individual voters or as political advocates or representatives of a political group.” (Torjesen 6)
Evaluation
From the above analysis, it is clear that reintegration of ex-combatants into the society is affected by rejection and low support from family members. The society develops a fear that ex-combatants and criminals may engage in criminal activities. It is important to examine the level at which criminals engage in politics so that reforms can be initiated that encourage their successful integration.
Entry 5
Citation
Larrauri, E. “Conviction Records in Spain: Obstacles to Reintegration of Offenders?” European Journal of Probation 3.1 (2011): 50–62. Web.
Summary
This article presents an argument that conviction records affect reintegration of criminals or offenders into the society, especially in the labour market. In societies where conviction records can be accessed by members of the society, criminals experience challenges of successful integration. In particular, employers in such societies demand that employee is vetted based on conviction records. Availability of conviction records to employers and society members is therefore a major difficulty in reintegration of criminals especially when they need employment to survive in the society. Unemployment or lack of employment because of conviction records only leads to a society that does not support reintegration of criminals.
Key quotations
“Besides the legal implications of having a prior conviction, the criminological assumption is that the conviction record poses an obstacle to reintegration (e.g. access to jobs, loss of potential rights, disenfranchisement). The conviction record reinforces a felonious identity and makes it difficult to adopt a new identity, that of a law abiding citizen” (Larrauri 50).
“A conviction record impacts upon an offender’s life after serving their sentence”
“In Spain, the law states that “certifications can be requested by a different person than the recorded subject; but if there are conviction records, these will only be given with his consent.” (Larrauri 52)
Evaluation
Conviction records should not be accessed by employers and other members of the society without the consent of the criminal or offender. However, when laws are established so that criminals conviction records are availed to employers, it presents a difficulty for the criminal or offender to develop another identity in the society that is not associated with criminal activities. Each person should be given a chance to develop a new identity without restriction on employment based on past conviction records.
Entry 6
Citation
Davies, Matthew. “The Reintegration of Elderly Prisoners: An Exploration of Services.” Internet Journal of Criminology 6743 (2011): 1–32. Print.
Summary
The journal is about reintegration of elderly prisoners in England and Wales based on support services available in the society. The author argues that elderly criminals in England and Wales have very little or no support services when they leave prisons. Despite increasing number of elderly criminals coming out of prisons, the criminal justice system has no support systems that enhance reintegration thereby leading to overcrowded prisons in Wales and England. Overcrowding in prisons thereby poses challenges to older generation when compared to the younger generation prisoner. A major challenge or difficulty in reintegration of older prisoners relate to struggles with resettlement because of difficulties in psychological adjustments made in prison. The article also presents an argument that reintegration of older prisoners into the society is affected by lack of support networks in the community, as well as challenges in relation to health and mobility concerns. Stereotypes about a ‘young male criminal’ have led to lack of support facilities for the older generation.
Key quotations
“There is currently no nationwide strategy for responding to the needs of elderly prisoners. Instead, the management of elderly prisoners rests upon piecemeal regulation and localized and individual initiatives.” (Davies 11)
“The core aims of current resettlement policy involve ‘reducing re-offending’ and ‘protecting the public’. Arguably, they their very nature, these goals exclude the needs of elderly prisoners.” (Davies 13)
Evaluation
The experiences of the elderly are different from the rest of prison population. Psychological difficulties as experiences from prison are major difficulties in the reintegration process. The elderly prisoners are not likely to have friends once they leave prison thereby leading to challenges in the socialization process of reintegration. In addition, older prisoners may also lack family support systems. Elderly persons are also more likely to develop serious health problems. Policies should guarantee availability of health systems that improve the living conditions of elderly prisoners during reintegration process.
Entry 7
Citation
Mcmullin, Jaremey R. “Integration or Separation? The Stigmatisation of Ex-Combatants after War.” Review of International Studies December 2004 (2012): 1–30. Web.
Summary
Stereotypes about criminals and ex-combatants affect successful reintegration into the society. The study was conducted in Liberia to determine the level of stigmatization and its effect in the reintegration of ex-combatants into the society. The researcher argues that stereotypes about criminals and ex-combatants affect their integration into economic, social, and political life after the end of conflict. Social, political, and economic life are always designed to separate communities from criminals and ex-combatants. Criminals and ex-convicts are viewed as naturally or inherently threatening to peace after conflicts in the society. Such stereotypes should be eliminated or challenged so that the reintegration process is not affected thereby leading to escalation of conflicts.
Key quotations
“These impacts of the threat and resentment narratives matter not just for Liberia but also for other processes of post-conflict reintegration and reconciliation.” (Mcmullin 29)
“The sustainable social and economic reintegration of former combatants should be the ultimate objective of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration.” (Mcmullin1)
Evaluation
This source looks at reintegration in relation to ex-combatants as criminals in the society. The article states that stereotypes on ex-criminals and ex-combatants affect peace during post-conflict. Ex-combatants should be assisted so that social and economic as well as political systems favour their reintegration process.
Entry 8
Citation
Dwyer, Clare D., and Shadd Maruna. “The Role of Self-Help Efforts in the Reintegration of ‘Politically Motivated’ Former Prisoners: Implications from the Northern Irish Experience.” Crime, Law and Social Change 55.4 (2011): 293–309. Web.
Summary
The article is about reintegration of prisoners from the northern Irish conflict. The researcher states that self-help (mutual aid) play an important role in the reintegration process of prisoners into the society. Self-help programs in northern Irish conflict are based on recovery from addiction. The researcher focuses on politically motivated prisoners as well as ordinary prisoners. Self-help programs are necessary for prisoners with addictive behaviours so that they become normal members of the society. Self-help movements are social systems established by former prisoners so that supportive network can be availed to assist the reintegration of ex-criminals in the society.
Key quotations
“The concept of ‘self-help’ has been paramount to groups formed to facilitate the reintegration of former combatants/former prisoners.” (Dwyer and Maruna 294)
“Ironically, the term ‘self-help’ implies that individuals get involved in efforts in order to benefit themselves; however contrary to this, one of the key features of self-help work is that people come together to help one another.” (Dwyer and Maruna 295)
Evaluation
This article is necessary because it introduces the idea of self-help as a concept in reintegration of criminals back into the society. Current and former prisoners are encouraged to develop self-help programs so that prisoners released into the society can find appropriate support systems that improve social, political, and economic well-being self-help programs ensure that prisoners stay away from crime and violence as well as other crime activities motivated by politics.
Works Cited
Bonnar-Kidd, Kelly K. “Sexual Offender Laws and Prevention of Sexual Violence or Recidivism.” American Journal of Public Health 100.3 (2010): 412–419. Web.
Brown, Geneva. “The Intersectionality of Race, Gender, and Reentry: Challenges for African-American Women.” American Constitution Society for Law and Policy – Issue Brief November (2010): 1–18. Web.
Davies, Matthew. “The Reintegration of Elderly Prisoners: An Exploration of Services.” Internet Journal of Criminology 6743 (2011): 1–32. Print.
Dwyer, Clare D., and Shadd Maruna. “The Role of Self-Help Efforts in the Reintegration of ‘Politically Motivated’ Former Prisoners: Implications from the Northern Irish Experience.” Crime, Law and Social Change 55.4 (2011): 293–309. Web.
Freudenberg, Nicholas. “Coming Home from Jail: The Social and Health Consequences of Community Reentry for Women, Male Adolescents, and their Families and Communities.” American Journal of Public Health 95.10 (2005): 1725–1736. Web.
Larrauri, E. “Conviction Records in Spain: Obstacles to Reintegration of Offenders?” European Journal of Probation 3.1 (2011): 50–62. Web.
Mcmullin, Jaremey R. “Integration or Separation? The Stigmatisation of Ex-Combatants after War.” Review of International Studies December 2004 (2012): 1–30. Web.
Torjesen, Stina. “Towards a Theory of Ex-Combatant Reintegration.” Stability: International Journal of Security & Development 2.3 (2013): 63. Web.
Seven additional sources
Bamidele, Oluwaseun. “Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration of Children in Armed Conflict.” Peace Review 24.3 (2012): 284–291. Web.
Banholzer, Lilli, and Roos Haer. “Attaching and Detaching: The Successful Reintegration of Child Soldiers.” Journal of Development Effectiveness 6.2 (2014): 111–127. Web.
Bowd, Richard, and Alpaslan Özerdem. “How to Assess Social Reintegration of Ex-Combatants.” Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding 7.4 (2013): 453–475. Web.
Maina, Grace. “Human Securitised Reintegration of Formerly Abducted Children in Northern Uganda.” African Security Review 18.4 (2009): 115–122. Web.
McMullin, Jaremey. “Reintegration of Combatants: Were the Right Lessons Learned in Mozambique?” International Peacekeeping 11.4 (2004): 625–643. Web.
Mitton, Kieran. “Engaging Disengagement: The Political Reintegration of Sierra Leone’s Revolutionary United Front.” Conflict, Security & Development 8.2 (2008): 193–222. Web.
So, Jon. “‘Fighting a War Alone’: Reintegration of Ex-Offenders from Ethnic Minority Groups.” China Journal of Social Work 7.1 (2014): 64–77. Web.
Witnesses hold an important role in the investigation and the trial because they hold some of the most critical evidence in a lawsuit, the kind of evidence that provides a jury with the answers that sometimes physical evidence cannot, and as such are able to answer the ‘why’ questions in the trial.
The three categories of missing witnesses are;
Identified witnesses are those witnesses who have been specifically by one of the parties or in a document or piece of physical evidence.
Unknown witnesses are those who have not been specifically identified by the legal team.
General category witnesses are originally identified through proximate probability and are known by the general description such as a utility worker or neighbor.
The four items paralegal can review in order to identify witnesses in a case are;
Reviewing the existing physical evidence
Reviewing the potential resources
Reviewing ethical observations
Reviewing his search strategy
A plan of action is required when searching for witnesses and their locations because most witnesses are not known or available to the legal team therefore they must be identified and located using a proper plan which is done based on the paralegal’s personal preferences, level of skill and the experiences of the past and by doing so he can avoid the repetition of searches conducted.
The objectives when planning a search for witnesses are;
Identification of unknown witnesses;
using a variety of public, private and printed materials and the internet to locate the witnesses;
Observation of the ethical boundaries;
strategizing the search.
Creating a witness list is similar to building a pyramid because a broad base is used to start construction and as information is uncovered, the list is narrowed until the best witnesses are identified.
Making a request to the postmaster ensures that an accurate address is obtained and keeps the search private. The fees for these searches are normally not very expensive and vary from state to state.
Ethical considerations that need to be observed when talking with the general category identifier are honesty about one’s identity, never threaten someone with legal action in case they do not co-operate, never use illegal methods to obtain information, always behave in a courteous professional manner and always treat any information received as private and confidential.
Identification and location of the witness is the most difficult as many witnesses are not known or available to the legal team and the paralegal must identify and locate them using his personal preferences, skill level and past experiences and not all people may be comfortable canvassing neighborhoods or calling strangers.
List of sources you can use to locate a witness are;
Telephone- this is the most inexpensive and accessible resource for a missing witness.
The post master- this is an ideal resource for verification and identification of a witness’s address. It enables secrecy in the case and is relatively very cheap.
The internet – this has become a primary tool for finding witnesses, locating phone numbers and addresses by the use of options in the search engines such as ‘people search’ or ‘people finder’.
Vote registration records as these are highly reliable giving the exact information about the particular witnesses’ residences and the citizenship details.
The indices of the plaintiff and the defendant
Marriage and divorce records
Records of professional organizations, alumni associations and utility companies.
In case a missing witness does not know that he is needed, the paralegal may research the driver’s license records by seeking the assistance of the motor vehicle department.
In case a missing witness is intentionally avoiding a legal team, the paralegal may adopt an aggressive stance and contact neighbors or business associates or may research sales and real estate transfers.
According to the issue of McFadden’s case, it is obvious that it was reasonable for the detective to stop the two men. The two men had portrayed suspicious behavior by walking several times through the store as if they were targeting something (Rios, 2020). The fourth amendment of law gives police a permit to stop suspects at a reasonable point. Frisking of the suspects was necessary, the detective had to do it to know if they carried any potentially dangerous items with them. The fourth amendment policy also approves the conduction of searches under critical circumstances without a warrant. The act mentioned above also allows for frisking suspicious parties upon reasonable suspicion. It would have not made any difference if the men walked by the store every three times. However, in the case of each of them walking by once, a difference could have been made since no one would suspect them. Since the two men walked many times through the store path while staring through the window this could serve as an indicator of a potentially unlawful act. One of the factors that must have led the detective to believe that his suspicion was reasonable is well illustrated at the point where the detective identified himself as a police officer. He asked the two men their names and they responded offensively, which indicated that they could indeed plan an unlawful act. In addition, when the police officer spotted pistols in the men’s pockets it was a sign of unlawful behavior. According to Rios (2020), the first amendment allows police to deal with those whose speech goes beyond control. There is a difference between “stop and frisking” and “search and seizure”. Stop and frisk to a situation where the police undertake a non-welcoming stop on a suspect after realizing that they care about or planning to commit a crime (Rios, 2020). On the other hand, search and seizure is a process whereby police undertake a search after a crime has occurred (Rios et al., 2020). Searches are normally done after authorization is received from judges and is required to be conducted as soon as possible after an arrest.
Reference
Rios, V. M., Prieto, G., & Ibarra, J. M. (2020). Mano Suave-Mano Dura: Legitimacy policing and Latino stop- and- frisk. American Sociological Review, 85(1) 58-75.
White-Collar crimes are committed by individuals who are respectable and of high social status in their occupation/corporations. Such criminal behaviors are adapted due to interpersonal interactions with other white-collar criminals. Hence, white-collar crimes overlap and provide opportunity to corporate crimes. In United States alone white collar crimes cost the government $300 billion annually as its reported by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Major white-collar crimes
White-collar crime is characterized by many types of fraud and the main one are; bribery, computer crime, public corruption, insider trading, medical crime, identity crime, forgery, environmental crime, and financial crime (Zarka).
Crime in most public and private sectors
Most public institutions are characterized by the crime of bribery, insider trading, and public corruption. There is high rate of unfair distribution of jobs, contracts, and other operations which are mainly financial. These vices have made it difficult for one to get services or even employed without bribing those who are in leadership or the decision-makers.
Computer crime
Most institutions have computerized their operations hence almost all operations are done by use of computers. This has made it much easier for the users to commit crime without being detected with ease. Hence, over the years this is one of the major types of crimes being done every day and most of them go undetected.
Holding organizations and individuals accountable
Accountability in the operations of organizations is paramount in ensuring that instances of crime are reduced (Neal & Wright, 69). It would also be important to put sanctions in place and implement checks and balances to monitor what is being done and arrest any instances of crime. There should be well-understood procedures that are well monitored such that each employee at their capacity is held accountable for their operations. Such sanctions would ensure that the employees will be much careful in their operations, therefore, reducing instances of white-collar crime.
Goals of the sanctioning process
Sanctioning those who violate the law and commit white-collar crimes would ensure that those who commit such crimes are held responsible and are penalized in a court of law. The most appropriate sanctions are ensuring that the employees who commit the crime are recovered any loss which the organization experienced and are jailed or fined depending on the crime they had committed. By ensuring that perpetrators of white-collar crime are convicted it would serve as a warning to other errant employees who would be planning to commit such crimes.
Conclusion and recommendation
I would recommend almost all institutions implement procedures that would be used to monitor operations that are being done. Secondly, it is recommendable that they implement both internal and external audit practices which will be done periodically that will serve as a tool of detection and control of any white-collar crime which would have been committed (Baker). Any instances of such crime should be reported to the relevant authority for disciplinary measures and surcharge any funds which would have been embezzled.
References
Baker, J. (2004). The Sociological Origins of White-Collar Crime. Web.
Neal, S., & Wright, J. (2000). Readings in White-Collar Crime. Oxford: Oxford University.
Zarka, H. (2007). The Causes of White Collar Crime. Web.
Presser & and Sandberg (2015) notes that interviews are data collection techniques widely used in criminology to collect both quantities and qualitative data. Usually, interviews are held on a one-on-one setting between the interviewer and the interviewee. In criminology, interviews are used as part of a qualitative research paradigm which is classified into three parts. The three classes’ broad category includes structured, semi-structured, and unstructured interviews constitute the broad category of interviews. Structured interviews are often administered verbally as questionnaires by writing down predetermined questions that are administered on the respondent. However, structured interviews do not possess the follow-up quality and further elaborations for the respondent. Structured interviews are often applied in criminology to clarify an issue from a respondent with low literacy skills.
On the other hand, unstructured interviews are time-consuming data collection techniques that can be used to conduct an in-depth probe of the perceptions, feelings, and experiences of the respondent. Unstructured interviews lack the systematic component of observation on the respondent. Semi-structured interviews provide the interviewer with the flexibility to alter some questions to pursue a matter with the desired in-depth understanding. Numerous benefits such as the existence of positive rapport between the interviewer and the interviewee have been observed. This is because a respondent can express personal feelings, emotions, and attitudes towards an issue being interviewed on. It is easy to clarify issues and complex questions. However, the time-consuming technique is less reliable because it is difficult to trace exact questions besides being difficult to ensure the validity of data collected in this way.
Hypothesis testing in a criminal case
According to Vito and Maahs (2015), the second data collection technique is the questionnaire. Often used for collecting survey data, questionnaires can either be designed with closed-ended or open-ended questions. It is easy to code the questions, hand out, and use questionnaires for data collection and analysis. Typically, the frequency with which answers to questions occur can be analyzed to establish if an emerging trend can be observed. Besides, questionnaires need not be answered immediately, which enables the respondent to take time off to read and answer the questions. It is important to note that the questionnaire gives the respondent a great degree of anonymity besides the lack of interview bias and the ability to provide data that can be used to test a hypothesis in a criminal case. However, questions sometimes arise on the data quality, the low response rates, the assumption that respondents have answers, and lack of control in answering the questions.
Observations are appropriate for collecting contextual data from a dynamically changing situation as well as the enumeration of target behaviors, which allows for the use of video as a reliable data collection technique (Presser & Sandberg, 2015). The different categories of observations are highly structured, unstructured, and semi-structured. Observations provide deep insight into an issue.
Weisburd (2015) states that focus groups are used to generate information about the views held by individuals by addressing specific research questions and research objectives. Besides, focus groups enable the researcher to identify the most appropriate data and assure its quality. The method is characterized by a multi-design method for data collection and factors the research norms for each member of the group. Typically, the purposeful composition of groups for exploring a specific issue can be achieved through discussions and intragroup discussions. Focus groups have a major shortcoming where members might not feel free to express individual opinions that might differ with other group members.
Ethnography is a data collection technique from a single phenomenon or a large cultural group over a long period (Fabijan, Olsson & Bosch, 2015). The data collected using this method is characterized by patterns such as group values, beliefs, and behavior.
The importance of data examination is to maintain the integrity of the research to ensure that it is accurate. Data should be appropriate and able to answer the research questions (Copes & Miller, 2015). Research data that has not been examined might have inherent systematic errors, fraud, errors in individual items, and violation of data collection protocols. The other problems that can be avoided by examining data include harm to the respondents, poor replication and validity of data, compromising public policy, and the use of distorted findings.
Conclusion
According to Bachman and Paternoster (2016), statistics in the criminal justice system can be used to predict human behavior, understand the nature of the crime, and the connection between human variables such as employment, age, income levels, crime rates, and attitude. The average set of data which can be shown by the measure of central tendency shows how the impact of a certain human variable on the crime rate. It is important to note that statistical data can be used to establish the prevalence of a certain crime. Besides, social reality and the ability to test a certain hypothesis can be done. Statistical data can enable the researcher to infer a certain characteristic of the population.
References
Bachman, R. D., & Paternoster, R. (2016). Statistics for criminology and criminal justice. New York: SAGE Publications.
Copes, H., & Miller, J. M. (2015). The Routledge handbook of qualitative criminology. New York: Routledge.
Fabijan, A., Olsson, H. H., & Bosch, J. (2015). Customer feedback and data collection techniques in software R&D: a literature review. New York: Springer International Publishing.
Presser, L., & Sandberg, S. (2015). Narrative criminology: Understanding stories of crime. New York: NYU Press.
Vito, G. F., & Maahs, J. R. (2015). Criminology. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Weisburd, D. (2015). The law of crime concentration and the criminology of place. Criminology, 53(2), 133-157.
Crime reduction is a process that requires researchers to analyze ways in which particular actions can be disrupted or prevented from happening. To understand why crimes occur, scientists apply various theories that propose the factors contributing to deviant behavior. One of these approaches is the routine activities theory (RAT), introduced by Felson and Cohen in the 1970s. According to this theory, three major components contribute to any crime, including an offender, a target, and the absence of a guardian (Cohen and Felson 588). The authors imply that when an offender meets a potential target at a place and time where a person in a role of a capable guardian is not present, crime is likely to occur. This theory became widely used in criminology since it differed from other strategies that relied on offenders’ socioeconomic background and other personal characteristics.
However, the question of the theory’s reliability remains open since people’s environments change continuously. One may look at the research of “traditional” crimes such as burglary and see how place-time ideology of the RAT applies to such situations. At the same time, a multitude of modern studies aims to apply the theory to crimes that have appeared somewhat recently. For instance, many researchers are now interested in how Felson and Cohen’s framework can be used to analyze and possibly prevent cybercrimes. This report examines criminological studies that use the routine activities theory for different types of offenses in order to see how useful this framework can be for contemporary conditions.
Research
In investigating the effectiveness of the routine activities theory (RAT), one may start with a study that considers crimes that require a physical presence of a criminal and victim in one location. The approach was designed to discuss offenses that happened when the people involved in the incident met in certain circumstances (Cohen and Felson 589). Breetzke and Cohn, for instance, apply the theory to burglaries in the gated communities of South Africa which became popular in the region due to the rising rates of violence and crime (56). The authors aim to find whether gating an area is effective in crime prevention. Their idea may be interpreted through the lens of the RAT since the effect of restricting access to a territory reduces the possibility of likely offenders entering a region with likely victims. According to Breetzke and Cohn, this approach to crime prevention is becoming widely used not only in South Africa but other areas such as the United States and the United Kingdom as well (57). Therefore, the findings of this study are not unique to one location.
By analyzing crime data from the communities of South Africa, the authors come to several conclusions. First of all, Breetzke and Cohn discover that one’s residence in a gated community exposes them to increased burglary rates (70). The scholars explain that this result is based on the region’s history since offenders are ready to travel long distances in order to commit a crime (Breetzke and Cohn 68). This behavior is linked to the country’s sociopolitical past, and researchers have put the use of the RAT into question (Breetzke and Cohn 69). The authors note that the RAT is not wholly ineffective in preventing crimes. It is likely that people in gated communities are more vigilant and prepared not only to stop but also report crimes to the police. Nonetheless, this particular empirical research demonstrates that the situational prevention described in the RAT is not effective for the police in all environments.
A significant part of contemporary research tries to apply the RAT to other types of crimes. In particular, many studies are interested in the results which the theory gives when analyzing offenses that do not require direct contact. Reyns, for example, considers identity theft that often happens online (216). Identify fraud is the use of another person’s identity for financial and other operations both online and in real life. The scholar examines the results of a British Crime Survey with a sample of almost six thousand responders. Reyns applies the RAT to find whether it may be effective in detecting or preventing instances of victimization in online spaces (217). While the original theory considers a contact between the offender and the victim in the right place and at the right time, Reyns hypothesizes that this approach can also show online-related activities in the similar framework (216). The results of the British Survey create a solid basis for testing such assumptions.
The analysis of the respondents’ answers demonstrates how the RAT can be used in researching cybercrime. According to the study, identify fraud rates can be explained by potential victims’ activity online. People who use online banking, emailing, or instant messaging are approximately 50% more likely to encounter identity fraud than less active users (Reyns 229). One can interpret this finding as a part of the RAT’s factors – a victim (an internet user) without a guardian (solid protection of information) is exposed to an offender (a user with malicious intent). Thus, online banking and similar activities become influential factors in the sphere of cybercrime. As an outcome, the study’s conclusions are that the theory can be used in incorporating better crime prevention efforts for the police.
A more recent study by Reyns and Henson returns to the problem of identity theft from the RAT perspective. In it, the authors review the Canadian General Social Survey to consider similar questions that were reviewed before, whether particular online activities contribute to crime rates (Reyns and Henson 1119). Here, however, another point is brought up – the concept of online proximity. In this case, online proximity is the exposure of one’s devices to software that makes private information available to other persons (Reyns and Henson 1130). For instance, hacking, phishing, viruses, and adware gather data and help offenders to pick victims and commit crimes. Using the RAT, it is possible to define these programs as online versions of physical convergence in time and space, a factor that creates an environment of an offense to happen.
Similar to the previous research, this study considers a variety of online activities in their effect on cybercrime. Reyns and Henson agree with the earlier findings that online banking, as well as the use of email and social media, influence the rate of identity fraud (1131). Moreover, they find that such interaction in combination with one’s exposure to malware increases people’s online target suitability, replacing the factor of time and space configuration with online proximity (Reyns and Henson 1132). As a result, people’s victimization depends on the lack of protection and their active participation online. The scholars point out that proper guardianship can decrease the risk of identify fraud, including the use of antivirus software, frequent password changes, and avoidance of spam messages (Reyns and Henson 1133). In regards to police investigations, some aspects of the RAT can be adopted to reduce cybercrimes, but situational prevention is more complicated online because of its global outreach.
Nonetheless, the sphere of cybercrimes includes many different types of offenses apart from identity theft. Leukfeldt and Yar investigate the applicability of the RAT to all online crimes, including bullying, piracy, stalking, sexual victimization, and others (275). The authors argue that only some parts of the theory can be translated into the explanation of online offenses. For example, the idea of inertia which lies at the foundation of the approach is difficult to interpret for a virtual environment. Similarly, the scholars note that the convergence of time and space cannot be applied in these settings since the internet does not have physical spaces and time limitations (Leukfeldt and Yar 275). However, these challenges do not render the RAT useless since the theory still has some value in this area of research.
The authors investigate multiple empirical studies of the RAT and cybercrimes. Leukfeldt and Yar find that each examined article presents different results because of their narrow focus (one particular cybercrime) and small sample. (263) However, some correlations can be found in all types of offenses. For example, visibility plays a substantial role in an offender encountering a potential victim. This finding can be linked to the previously discussed studies – people who are active and visible online are at increased risk of various cybercrimes. Interestingly, the value of the target does not contribute to the rate of offenses – people with the lowest income are endangered as much, if not more than, people with higher incomes (Leukfeldt and Yar 277). Personal guardianship is quite effective in crimes which are linked to hacking and stalking – awareness of personal data safety is vital in evaluating related risks (Leukfeldt and Yar 277). As a contrast, in some cases, one’s presence online is enough for some crimes to happen. Malware victimization and bullying are not challenged by personal guardianship as much as other offenses. Overall, the RAT is identified to be suitable for high-tech crime prevention.
The final study on the application of the RAT to cybercrimes looks at online harassment of young adults. Here, Näsi et al. aim to find whether this theory can be used to predict instances of harassment. The authors use four samples from the US, Finland, Germany, and the UK and inspect the victimization of people aged 15-30 years (Näsi et al. 418). They use logistic regression models and consider such data as socio-demographic characteristics, target suitability, exposure to an offender, and absence of guardianship. As a result, the study finds that about 15 to 20 percent of all young adults have been a victim of this cybercrime at some point in life (Näsi et al. 425). This number shows how such an offense as harassment is common among the young population in different countries.
Apart from the high rate of harassment, the researchers find a link between some aspects of the RAT and victimization. Exposure to offenders significantly affects the crime rates in all four countries. However, other factors such as guardianship are not as ubiquitous in reducing offenses, being important in the US and Germany, but not Finland or the UK (Näsi et al. 418). Hence, the authors come to the conclusion that the theory cannot be fully implemented to prevent crimes without considering particular circumstances of each state. Regional differences play a substantial role in predicting who will be a victim of a crime and which environment is the most impactful. Nonetheless, the study aligns with the previous findings since its results show that the RAT can show how guardianship and offense proximity change the rate of criminal activity.
Conclusion
The use of the routine activities theory (RAT) is common in the sphere of criminological research. The theory implies that a number of particular factors have to align in order for an offense to happen. To be more specific, a likely offender has to encounter a potential victim in a time-space convergence without a guardian. Scholars use this approach to analyze various crimes and show how their situational prevention can be improved to reduce crime rates. The implementation of such a theory in crimes that involve offenders’ physical presence at a crime scene is somewhat successful, showing how proper prevention can stop an incident from occurring. However, studies that look at less involved offenses or consider communities with different socioeconomic history provide other results.
At the present time, research is concerned with applying the RAT to the space of cybercrime. The conclusions of authors vary significantly, with some arguing that the theory is effective in helping the police to implement new guidelines. In this case, the subject of identity theft is brought up as an offense where guardianship and exposure to an offender have an impact on a possible victim. Other scholars show how the RAT fails to address the anti-time and space nature of the internet. These unclear results indicate that the RAT may not be effective in assisting the police to stop modern cybercrime. The research needs to consider each type of offense separately and combine the results to perceive how the approach can be used in general.
Works Cited
Breetzke, Gregory D., and Ellen G. Cohn. “Burglary in Gated Communities: An Empirical Analysis Using Routine Activities Theory.” International Criminal Justice Review, vol. 23, no. 1, 2013, pp. 56-74.
Cohen, Lawrence E., and Marcus Felson. “Social Change and Crime Rate Trends: A Routine Activity Approach.” American Sociological Review, vol. 44, 1979, pp. 588-608.
Leukfeldt, Eric Rutger, and Majid Yar. “Applying Routine Activity Theory to Cybercrime: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis.” Deviant Behavior, vol. 37, no. 3, 2016, pp. 263-280.
Näsi, Matti, et al. “Do Routine Activities Help Predict Young Adults’ Online Harassment: A Multi-Nation Study.” Criminology & Criminal Justice, vol. 17, no. 4, 2017, pp. 418-432.
Reyns, Bradford W. “Online routines and identity theft victimization: Further expanding routine activity theory beyond direct-contact offenses.” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, vol. 50, no. 2, 2013, pp. 216-238.
Reyns, Bradford W., and Billy Henson. “The Thief with a Thousand Faces and the Victim with None: Identifying Determinants for Online Identity Theft Victimization with Routine Activity Theory.” International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, vol. 60, no. 10, 2016, pp. 1119-1139.
Criminology is the science that makes it possible to investigate, analyze, make conclusions, and, finally, prevent crime. A crime is the constituent part of human existence. The crimes, more terrible or less abusive are well-known since the creation of the world due to the Bibles interpretation of existence. And since that time on humanity is coming closer to the problem of crime; its roots, its premises, its components, and the criminals.
Criminology’s subject of inquiry is a crime, but being interdisciplinary study criminology affects many other sciences, most commonly sociology but recently more often criminal justice, psychology, political science, the natural sciences, and economics come into the view of criminology. Relatively, criminality and crime scientific study is of last few decades of development.
The book by Larry Siegel turns to the basics of classic criminology and investigates the problem up to the modern society achievements in up-to-date criminology. And coming closer to the main point of the study by Siegel, the book describes a variety of criminology theories.
The book “Criminology: the Core” by Larry Siegel is the authors investigation of the problems connected with committing the crime and, which is most important, the theoretical aspects of committing a crime. The book is dedicated to different approaches made by the criminalist, psychologists, criminalists, theorists on the crime issue. It is the work comprising different specialists experiences investigating the issue. The book draws analogies between the society with its history and its achievements and the problem called crime. Since the modern and up-to-date technologies are concerned with the crime, its preconditions, and conditions, its perpetrations are easily obtainable, and, what is the more of it, are sometimes doubtless.
“Its in Their Blood” is the title of one of the books chapters. The chapter begins with the description of Andrew Luster’s case, his living life of sun and fun, and his dark side of his. He had everything he needed living the privileged life but mentally deranged enough to drug women so that later to rape them. Then comes the question of what makes a wealthy and carefree person behave bizarrely.
As the answer to the question, the author suggests the number of the theories under one title which is trait theories. The author proposes the dependence of criminality and crime to be connected with the brain activity, biological structural aspects, and surroundings of a criminal. And the author continues given trait theories do not single out some psychological or biological attribute to explain the essence of criminality. The theories find it explainable the combinations of biological and psychological factors, that is physical traits, and a persons surroundings, that is environment stipulate certain behavior patterns. And taking into account the Louisville, KY statistics representing the categories of crime the most prominent is the drug abuse crime, and this dependence makes the theory valid.
Some trait theorists believe a diet a person keeps to predispose its biological background resulting in his or her mental ability and mental deviations that are often the root of the crime. Lack or excess of certain biological elements, vitamins, and minerals may cause definite psychological conditions such as ADHD, a range of depressive conditions, dementia, schizophrenia. Deborah Denno’s report during the symposium that took place at the Vermont Law School on 10-12 of April proves Siegels theory. “The researchers found that the best predictor (when the children are 7 years old) for aggressive behavior in school, juvenile delinquency, and eventual criminal violence is the degree of lead poisoning. The second best predictor was anemia, which, being related to deficits in calcium, zinc and other essential minerals, is associated with uptake of toxins from the environment”. To support this theory there is a quote from the book “They Are What You Feed Them” by Dr. Alex Richardson: “Nutrients can actually affect the expression of many genes. This means that you might be genetically ‘at at risk’ for something like ADHD or depression, but you won’t necessarily develop the symptoms if your environment (including diet) is good.” (Richardson, 2006, p.46).
Hormonal influences are noted to be the components to produce aggressive behavior, especially male ones, androgens, along with the diet and environment too. The study by H. Soler and colleagues contributes to trait theories: “Testosterone levels, alcohol consumption, and demographic characteristics were significant in predicting levels of abusive behavior” (Soler, Vinayak & Quadagno, 2000, p. 725).
Religion and its aspects are probably the cooperators in the situation like abusive, offensive, criminal, or mentally deranged deviations. The Christian priests make much effort to prevent the crimes from their parts. The social policy of the Christian church is now one to help the authorities in the struggle against criminality in society.
So as seen from above criminology science made a great step in researching the motives and consequences of crime, made it possible to investigate the crimes through the social, psychological, and other human and personal aspects, especially, as per this essay, biological one.
Works cited
Soler, H., Vinayak, P. & Quadagno, D. (2000). Biosocial aspects of domestic violence. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 25(7), 721-735.
Richardson, A. (2006). They are what you feed them. London: Hyper Thorsons.
Siegel, L., J. (2008). Criminology; the core, 3d ed. Belmont: Wadsworth Publishing Co.
Actus reus is an indispensable phrase in the criminal justice system. According to Saffary and Saberi (2020), actus is a Latin word referring to an action or a physical deed arising from human behavior, while reus connotes anything forbidden by law. Consequently, actus reus denotes voluntary human activities outlawed by the rules and regulations. Specifically, Actus Reus has three primary elements, including conduct, law prohibition, and injury. The prerequisites of actus reus vary based on the crime definition and rely on place, individual, victim’s state of mind, preparation, time, and consent.
Actus reus should be voluntary and the prosecutor must prove that defendant injured the victim or damaged his or her properties. Actus reus also applies in “State of Affairs” cases if the offenders ignored their responsibilities as dictated by a statute, contract, and other mandatory duties (Saffary & Saberi, 2020). Examples of actus reus include murder due to injury, parents’ failure to take care of their children, theft, physical assault, and house-breaking. For instance, in Kahler v. Kansas, the Kansas Supreme Court approved the defendant’s conviction and judgment (“Kahler v. Kansas,” n.d.). The majority argued insanity could not be used as a defense because it failed to connect the loss of control with the committed crimes. Kahler willingly ignored to take antidepressants before killing his two children, grandmother, and wife. However, if a person does not have control over his or her actions, actus reus does not apply. For instance, an individual with epilepsy cannot be criminally liable for punching, hurting, and killing his neighbor during any involuntary acts. Other exemptions include cases originating from unintentional physical force, omission, reflex motion, and automatism.
Actus reus must emanate from voluntary offender’s behavior or action. Importantly, the prosecutor must prove that the defendant’s conduct caused an injury, which hurt the victim. The judge often requires the victim’s lawyers to explain the relationship between conduct, injury, and law prohibition to rule on criminal liability. Therefore, actus reus depends on the crime’s occurrence based on factors such as consent, place, possession, victim’s state of mind, individual, and preparation, which define the offender’s consciousness.
References
Kahler v. Kansas. (n.d.) Oyez. 2021, Web.
Saffary, A., & Saberi, R. (2020). The relativistic theory of coincidence between Mens Rea and Actus Reus in Islamic and English Law. East African Scholars Journal of Education, Humanities, and Literature, 3(10), 492-508. Web.
To effectively fight crime, the law enforcers need to have prompt access to the data of individuals who have violated the law. This is captured in the 1967 Commission report, which urged for rapid adoption of information technology (IT) to make the criminal justice system operate efficiently and fairly (Ridgeway, 2018).
Since then, significant strides have been made especially in using big data technologies. To prevent errors, Lee (2019) suggests that the information collected should be accurate and that the correct software must be used when dealing with different agencies. The objective of this paper is to exemplify the case of Uncle Bob, who has a record of crime in California, his residential state, and was caught speeding during his vacation in Miami.
First, it is necessary to understand the facts about the case to appreciate data sharing and access across legal entities. The field police in Florida had basic information that could identify Uncle Bob even though he had no history of crime in that state. The officer arrested him after a conversation, implying that he gave out information that matched the details in their records. Therefore, in addition to Uncle Bob’s over-speeding, it was established that he was a fugitive or had stolen property since such is the information stored by the National Crime Information Centre (NCIC) (Kilfeather, 2016). The Florida police knew about Uncle Bob’s past offenses by accessing the shared database to verify the information that he had provided during the conversation (apprehension).
Notably, the data was available to the Miami Police department because there was National Information Exchange Model (NIEM). Specifically, the federal government acts as the center for sharing information with different local agencies. For instance, the National Data Exchange (N-DEx) System hosts data in the cloud and contains a search engine to allow police officers in the field to find data easily as long as they have an internet connection.
The two states have provided the analytical capacity to authorized persons to access the data they need to prevent or control crime. Kilfeather (2016) states that information is also accessed through the in-case index, which locates small details and matches a specific numbered report. Thus, the officer can easily connect information that appears unrelated because the technology has proprietary algorithms features. Moreover, the officers have access to guides that can help relate data and make trustworthy conclusions about an individual suspected of an offense.
Accordingly, the information available to the Miami Police Department includes biographic data and criminal history, all of which flow from the local agencies to the federal center and back. Officers can easily access the details such as name, height, weight, and birth date from the NCIC (Chan et al., 2020). Worthy to note, the NCIC contains criminal justice data on stolen properties, fugitives, or missing persons. The flow followed case indexing, which is a strategy used by the law enforcement officers to enter records of individual offenses they encounter while on duty. Upon entry, the data is routinely combined in the department master index through particular equipment such as call detail record (CDR).
There are many ways in which information is shared between federal and local agencies. First, there is the Regional Information Sharing System (RISS) which provides a secure environment for officers to submit, retrieve, and share data on crimes. The RISSIntel can be accessed through RISSNET communication and offers real-time federated search for different states without demanding an officer to log into the system. Second, information is shared through the records management systems (RMSs) which provide specific case histories such as the offenses that Uncle Bob did in the past. Third, the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) infrastructure stores records of calls made on suspected violations; hence it is also effective in retrieving basic details.
In addition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also has a Law Enforcement Online (LEO), which allows the public to share information that can then be accessed by the law enforcers when needed. If the previous crimes committed included firearms, then the data can come from the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).
Several issues about the case make it suspicious, indicating that Uncle Bob was probably escaping past crimes. For instance, he was over-speeding, which is not typical for people on vacation. The Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and other technologies such as global positioning system (GPS) and Digital Aerial Photography (DAP) are useful in racking offenders on the run. Uncle Bob was probably running away after breaking the law and will possibly be charged with crimes such as stolen vehicles, securities, or foreign fugitives. Interestingly, the police apprehended Uncle Bob and then searched their database for related crimes, which verified that it was not his first time breaking the law.
The ability of the Florida police agency to obtain the information depends on the level of technological advancement, level of inter-state cooperation, and training of the officers. Implementing federal and state information-sharing systems needs significant investments in modern IT, which is expensive. The other challenge is the lack of trust and knowledge on how to transfer and store data (Kilfeather, 2016). Personal competencies of the officers in using strategies such as case indexing to link information and establish a narrative. In this case, Miami officers are bound to receive all the information that they need.
Conclusively, there has been significant improvement in information access and sharing between states and the national government. Many technologies are now available for reporting data and indexing for central storage by federal agencies such as the NCIC. Officers in the field can then access the information if they have an internet connection. Uncle Bob was over-speeding, but his details probably matched those of a fugitive, lost person, or stolen item, hence, leading to his arrest. Law enforcers must continually strive to invest in sound technologies, training, and trustful collaboration to prevent crimes and ensure justice.