SOC209H5 Lecture 3: Lecture 3 Notes
Document Summary
*remember: assignment 1 is due in two weeks! The number of crime decreases as we move down the funnel. Personal theft and vandalism, sexual assault (examples of crimes that tend to go unreported) Possession of prohibited drugs (may not seem as a crime or goes unnoticed) The police have a considerable amount of discretion as to which crimes they will go about investigating which varies between police departments: some focus on gang crime, or drug trade, which all affects crime statistics. First time offenders are usually let go with a warning and the offense may not be officially recorded. A police officer may also decide to record a crime, but it may not necessarily result in an arrest, or the crown may decide to divert people out of the criminal justice system and into an alternative program. There may be insufficient evidence, or a technicality in the process and hence not convinced.
