Social Prevention Methods in regards to Indigenous Youth
On The 21st of April 2012, police shot a fourteen-year-old Indigenous boy in Sydney’s notorious red-light district, Kings Cross. This ordeal occurred after police, whom were patrolling Kings Cross, noticed a young male driving a stolen car, whom they had previously encountered before when he was eight years old (Duff 2012). This discussion will identify how social prevention methods could of assisted in preventing this incident from occurring. In an attempt to examine this issue this discussion will develop an understanding of crime prevention, social crime prevention, developmental crime prevention and community crime prevention.
Crime Prevention
Hicks (1994, p. 424) refers crime
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2014, p. 10) explain that social prevention ‘focuses on reducing opportunities for crime’. Therefore, this method focuses on eliminating social components of an individual’s life that may influence the likelihood of an individual engaging in criminal activity. Richards, Rosevear and Gilbert (2011 p. 1) and Cunneen (2001, p. 6) identify ‘poverty and unemployment’, ‘child abuse and neglect’, inadequate education due to socio-economic disadvantage and drug and alcohol abuse are social factors that may influence criminogenic …show more content…
The strengths that have already been touched on throughout this discussion include: early social crime prevention strategies can prevent at risk groups from future offending, engaging in the community creates trust, it’s a deterrent, also it is cost effective as less people go to prison, and less people are in courts (Morgan and Homel 2013). The Perry Pre-School Project was a social crime prevention program that was divided into two groups: both groups at risk. One group were given extra assistance, while the other group was not given. Forty years later, the study showed that the assisted individuals were more likely to graduate and attain an independent income, and less likely to be arrested and rely on welfare. The return on investment with this particular crime prevention programs meant that governments were spending less (eliminating incarceration and welfare support) and gaining more through the individuals paying more tax (Sutton, Cherney and White ed.
Ron Clark describes situational crime prevention as ‘a pre-emptive approach that relies, not on improving society or its institutions, but simple on reducing opportunities for crime’. He identifies three features of measures aimed at situational crime prevention, firstly that they
Mulrunji lived in a community highly populated of Indigenous and Torres Strait Islanders, this community also had a high amount of policing officers to control the area. Having such a large amount of visible policing officers in such a community is a means of social control, and another example of a factor that leads to such a large amount of Indigenous Australians in our criminal justice system. This overrepresentation may be interpreted to Indigenous Australians as a threatening move or an act of intimidation, which may result in an escalation of violence or unnecessary police action, as seen with Mulrunji’s case. This is very apparent in Mulrunji’s case, as he was making his way home seemingly not bothering anyone until the officers intercepted.
When considering why criminal law is important in achieving justice for Indigenous Australians it is pertinent to recognise that Indigenous people are grossly over-represented in the criminal justice system. Recent data suggests that Indigenous Australians aged 10 and over are 7.5 times
For decades, there has always been a very precarious relationship with aboriginal communities and the criminal justice system, especially with issues of indigenous victimisation and over-representation within the custody of police and prisons and the history of colonisation. Over-representation is the disproportionate numbers in which indigenous people come into custody compared to the non-indigenous. Although the justice system has been working together in order to overcome these deep-rooted issues and eliminate any negative associations with indigenous communities. This essay will outline the relationship between aboriginal communities and the police, the concerns associated with this relationship, why they are over-represented in the criminal justice system and the efforts that have been made to prevent this accumulating in the future.
Criminology data show a strong correlation between undereducated children and juvenile crime. Children who struggle academically in school, have poor attendance, are expelled, or drop out, likelihood to commit crime increases. The social skills such as learning how to have ownership through deadlines, following instructions, and overall dealing with people constructively, are thrown out the door when a student doesn’t finish school. A child who doesn’t end up having a proper education soon realizes he or she can’t get certain jobs due to their insufficient education and feels hopelessness. According to social strain theory, his or her feeling towards social differences are magnified and pushes him or her to attain the “American Dream” or financial security through
Cunneens (2007) articles showed relative statistics, showing the negative effects of the relationship between the two groups, whether it is one groups wrong doing or not, the evidence shows that there is an issue that needs urgent attention and resolving. “Indigenous people were 17 times more likely to be held in custody than non-Indigenous people in Australia” this raw fact can be looked at from two different perspectives; number one the indigenous community are victimised by the police, or two a major percentage of the indigenous community are being involved in crime. Considering the indigenous population compared to the non indigenous community is so small, it does
In Los Banos Community, I am pleasingly surprised that so many people are willing to help others. The Empty Bowls Organization celebrates 25 Years anniversary (Empty Bowls, n.d.). In the Empty Bowl fundraiser, participants receive the bowl that was created by community volunteers (children, school students, and adults) after they share a simple meal of soup together (Spevak, 2014). People appreciate the bowls and grace of the volunteers. “ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). The Empty of Bowl is a wonderful gathering event because they share the moment of good deeds, have cheerful time together, and are helping the others. Essentially, children
Morgan et al. (2014, p77) has found the collaboration of Indigenous leaders in the development of crime prevention projects is an effective measure. However, this report is aware that this may not be effective for all IY. Due to the loss of cultural knowledge in many
The over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system is a large problem in society and reasons as to why this may be occurring need to be examined (Walker & McDonald, 1995; AIC, 2013). Indigenous Australians make up less than three per cent of the overall Australian population, however Indigenous people are over-represented in Australian prison populations, with imprisonment rates that are around 12 times those of the rest of the Australian population (AIC, 2013). Rates of over-representation are even higher in juvenile detention, with a 10-17 year old Indigenous person being around 24 times more likely to be in detention than a non-Indigenous person of the same age (AIC, 2013; Cunneen & White, 2011). Indigenous Australians overrepresentation in the criminal justice system is usually due to offences pertaining to violence and public disorder (ABS, 2010; Hogg & Carrignton, 2006). This is endorsed by the fact that Indigenous Australians currently make up 40 per cent of those imprisoned for assault offences (AIC, 2013). The over representation of Indigenous Australians in the criminal justice system may be attributed to a variety of reasons, known as risk factors (AIC, 2013).
Akers, R. (2006). Parental and peer influences on adolescent drug use in Korea. Asian Journal of Criminology.
This book attempts to conduct research in order to extend the field of criminology, not any other matter. Sutherland was attempting to bring attention to an area of criminal behaviour that criminologists had not previously studied. At this time, theories of criminal behaviour placed a large emphasis on poverty being the cause of crime or on other social conditions and personal traits which
As noted in the Sarre reading, community policing is largely ineffective within Indigenous communities. Despite this reading being almost 10 years old, it is extremely disheartening to know that nothing has changed since then. Despite, many police organisations hailing community policing as a paradigm shift from the ‘professional’ model of policing to a more inclusive model of community partnership of crime fighting, community policing still has major downfalls particularly in remote Indigenous communities. Police stations are increasingly found in remote Indigenous communities with an extremely large visual presence in contrast to other government services, with many remote communities having more police officers per 1000,000 than most metropolitan communities. The type of policing carried out in such remote communities is distinctly different to what occurs in metropolitan areas with a greater focus placed on petty crime such as driving, drug and alcohol offences. Indigenous communities are grossly over policed due to a lack of trust of indigenous people and faith in such
Previously, there was not enough knowledge or resources amongst communities to raise awareness or organise crime prevention programs for juveniles. Today, schools together with police and community-based workers are aiming to provide the expertise to help create crime prevention programs for juveniles. It is believed that that one of the most active crime prevention strategies is effective intervention programs. A substantial number of crimes amongst adolescence are detected from anti-social behaviours. Youth need to be more involved in their community activities such as church associated groups, sports clubs, recreation centres (Dodington et al 2012, p. 1026). Other school organisations such as ‘Links to Learning’ helps adolescences engage in activities that will teach worthy skills for future work and careers. All these extracurricular activities will give youth less time to consider committing crimes
Situational crime prevention constitutes primary crime prevention measure. This is to say that it is aimed at deterring crime before it occurs. Situational prevention, like other similar primary prevention measures, focuses on subduing crime opportunities instead of the attributes of criminals or even potential criminals. It seeks to curtail opportunities for certain groups of crime by increasing the risks and difficulties associated with them and significantly reducing the rewards. Situational prevention is made up of three key elements: a sound theoretical framework, an authoritative methodology for dealing with specific crimes, and a collection of opportunity-reducing approaches (Felson & Clarke, 1997).
According to the Australian Government of Criminology (2017), Crime prevention is ‘an effective approach to reducing crime. It is internationally recognised as an important component of a national approach to building viable communities.’ This essay will examine the case of the kings Cross shooting that occurred in 2012, involving the Indigenous community, Sydney police and Society. it will cover the importance of Crime prevention and the strategies in which are ideal to maintain the safety and security of the community and the offender partaking in the crime. This essay will focus broadly on the perspective of Social Crime Prevention, and the importance it obtains to prevent crime from occurring.