Americans have always had a fascination with crime and criminals. Whether it was the fifteenth reimagining of Robin Hood taking from the rich to give to the poor, celebrating gun fighters such as Jesse James or Billy the Kid, or glorifying gangs from Al Capone to the Hells Angels to the Crips and the Bloods, criminals and criminal behavior sit firmly entrenched in our insatiable need to vicariously experience their stories.
We cheer on our cinematic heroes through film and television as they commit felony after felony in pursuit of justice. And cheer loudly we do, no matter how much property destruction, mayhem or manslaughter those hero’s may commit, without a single worry that the hero will face prosecution for their crimes because they are justified in their actions.
But what is it about crime and criminals that captures society’s collective imagination and earns our hard-earned dollars to play as criminals in video games, watch enraptured by their stories on media, read voraciously about their exploits in books and online or listen captivated to their stories told in podcasts or through music?
Is it a form of escapism to fantasize about the freedom to act without consequence? To blissfully ignore the rules and constraints of the social contract and just act on impulse without concern for the impact of our actions?
Because for my clients who commit crimes it is not escapist fantasy. Impulsive action without concern for consequence is very much their hardcore reality. When it comes to criminal thought and behavior, there are very few differences between Bugsy Segal and my justice involved homeless clients.
Some of those common factors criminals enjoy are, for instance:
- A biological predisposition to criminal behavior. Genetic studies focusing on the genes that control dopamine and serotonin are only the latest in a long line of research that demonstrate there is a biological factor in criminality (Charlotte Nickerson, September 2023, ‘Biological Theories of Crime’, org)
- Anti-social behaviors or personalities that were either inherited or occur due to trauma, (Madelieine Ding, Sacey N. Doan, 2023, ‘Culture and Risky Behaviors’ Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Health)
- Single parent household, (R. L. Maginnis, January 2022, ‘Single Parent Families and Adolescent Crime’, Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology)
- Issues with impulse control, (Steven Penney, 2012, ‘Impulse Control and Criminal Responsibility’, International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, Volume 35, Issue 2) and, of course,
- Substance abuse, (Anders Hakansson and Virginia Jesionowska, January 2018, ‘Associations between substance use and type of crime…’ Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation)
These factors, in general, make up the common ties that bind criminals together as a group and theoretically allow law enforcement, prosecutors and the courts to properly evaluate and appropriately sentence criminals to reduce recidivism and encourage more socially acceptable behaviors.
But in my experience, what courts, prosecutors and advocates don’t take into account are two additional factors:
- Crime has become very profitable with little, if any, risk
- Committing crimes is fun
Point 1: The Small Business Model of Crime
Crime at one point for my clients was simply about opportunity. When you live in poverty and have limited means, you may shoplift to supplement your diet. But when the consequences are severe enough, for instance several months in jail which could mean the devastating loss of a job or apartment, the risk of getting caught and arrested is not worth the reward of a six-pack of soda or some cans of tuna. Only when the opportunity presents itself with minimal or no risk is the reward appealing.
But recently in many areas we’ve seen enforcement of simple misdemeanors began to deteriorate. As a result my clients, and other similarly situated individuals, no longer regard something like shoplifting occasionally to be a risky endeavor. Without risk and all reward, clients began to regularly shoplift, stopping only when stores recognized and took action to bar them. Even then, that singular location may be off limites, but it’s a fertile hunting ground if you have a bus pass and a decent public transportation system.
My clients began to resemble what I’ve come to call the “Small Business Model of Crime (SBMC).” Small businesses follow the same basic model, whether you own a local grocery store or you steal cars. You begin with an investment of your time and a small amount of money. A grocery store owner may first purchase low cost items with minimal investment to see what will sell without risking too much of their starting capital. A criminal will start with shoplifting or petty theft to minimize the exposure should they be arrested and appear before a judge.
The next stage for the grocery store owner is expanding inventory of higher cost and quality items that increase revenue streams. The store owner is taking on greater risk but with the potential for greater reward.
The SBMC owner realizes that there is an enormous amount of time and effort in shoplifting with a very small reward. Either the stolen item is consumed immediately, or it is sold for a small amount of money for drugs or to pay for clothes or rent. The SBMC owner, like any business, needs a bigger revenue stream, which means bigger crimes with higher payout. The deterrent used to be higher risk and larger penalties. But this is no longer the case.
In recent years, the risk of even serious felony crimes has been reduced. As more and more petty criminals moved to more serious crimes, the courts, already overwhelmed, continued the pattern of arranging deals, dismissing charges, and alternatives for incarceration to combat the sheer case flow.
But what happens when we give free reign to individuals predisposed to commit crime without concern for punishment? Continued escalation of the crimes they commit in pursuit of greater reward.
As a result of the ability to commit more and more sophisticated crimes the skills and contacts for a large number of criminals also increased, much like career vocations. This entrenches the criminals in protections and sophisticated networks that makes catching them more difficult. And as the escalation continues, the type of crime committed by the criminal becomes more specialized. Car theft, narcotics smuggling, armed robbery, identify theft, and burglary are committed by individuals who have developed that skill set and are able to dispose of stolen goods for profit through other criminals or, if they are particularly sophisticated, through their own store front operations.
But despite the sophistication, or lack there-of, criminals all have some things in common: They are predisposed to crime, have a history of smaller petty crime before moving to more complex criminal activities, and criminals find sheer enjoyment in committing crimes.
Point 2: Crime is fun
The general public laughs and cheers while watching films and shows as dozens, or even thousands of individuals are killed or maimed. And it’s not even the “John Wick” films of the world that have people smiling and buzzing. The infamous conversation in “Clerks” about the contractors who were working on the Death Star in Star Wars, who were just doing a construction job, waiting to go home to their wives and families, when suddenly some rebel group comes out of nowhere and murders 250,000 civilians along with 1.7 million soldiers. We don’t give it a moments thought as the explosion fills the screen and our heroes rocket to their celebration and medals..
We cheer. We laugh. We escape our realities into these depictions of serious crime. And that joy and entertainment is no different for criminals when the perpetrate them.
Nothing says “disconnected” like a group of politicians who vote to fund a recreation center in an attempt to dissuade teens from crime. The teens who use the rec center are not the ones predisposed to crime. And for someone predisposed to commit crimes, a rec enter is not going to provide the joy and entertainment committing crimes brings.
Where does this leave us?
There was a time when law enforcement, prosecutors, judges and elected officials all recognized this description as simple reality. Catching those individuals that were predisposed to committing crimes early and young, punishing them as a deterrent to create a higher risk perception, and then offering rehabilitation services was the normal cycle of the Justice System.
Then, well, they were overwhelmed. The system was never designed to handle the sheer volume of mentally ill substance abusers that have flooded it. They cannot handle the increased influx of first offenders that need services, such as substance rehabilitation and detox centers, but can’t access them because there just aren’t enough. As a result, young first time offenders face almost no long term repercussions for their actions, no matter how egregious, so individuals predisposed to commit crimes face almost no risk and enormous reward while having fun committing crimes.
Add to this a maligned police force, advocacy organizations who do not understand their clients long term needs and politicians more interested in political points than creating solutions and we now find ourselves in the middle of a full blown crisis.
Unless you’re a criminal. It seems this is the beginning of a golden age for that career choice.
