Juanita Johnson Professor Camille Castorina ECO 405 February 1, 2015

 I chose the article “The Most Dangerous States in America” By Alexander Kent and Thomas C. Frohlich. This article was an interessting read of the statistics concerning violent crime in america. It takes into account income and educations as being major factors that contribute to the rate of crime that we experience here in the United States. While this relation is not 100%, it still is very useful in understanding how and why crime is more prevalent in certain areas of the country than in others. To better understand this article it’s important to understand what crime really is. Crime is defined as an action or an instance of negligence that is deemed injurious to the public welfare or morals or to the interests of the state and that illegally prohibited. There is a long list of different categories of crimes. Crimes can generally be divided up into 4 categories: Personal crimes, Property crimes, Inchoate crimes and statutory crimes. Personal crimes are “Offenses against the Person”: These are crimes result in physical or mental harm to another person. Personal crimes include: Assault , Battery, False Imprisonment, Kidnapping, Homicide – crimes such as first and second degree, murder, and involuntary manslaughter, and vehicular homicide, Rape, statutory rape, sexual assault and other offenses of a sexual nature. Property Crimes – “Offenses against Property”: These are crimes that do not necessarily involve harm to another person. Instead, they involve an interference with another person’s right to use or enjoy their property. Property crimes include: Larceny (theft), Robbery (theft by force) – Note: this is also considered a personal crime since it results in physical and mental harm. Burglary (penalties for burglary),

Arson, Embezzlement, Forgery, False pretenses, Receipt of stolen goods. Inchoate Crimes – “Inchoate” translates into “incomplete”, meaning crimes that were begun, but not completed. This requires that a person take a substantial step to complete a crime, as opposed to just “intend” to commit a crime. Inchoate crimes include: Attempt – any crime that is attempted like “attempted robbery”, Solicitation, Conspiracy. Statutory Crimes – A violation of a specific state or federal statute and can involve either property offenses or personal offense. Statutory crimes include: Alcohol­related crimes such as drunk driving (DUI), Selling alcohol to a minor. Crimes are also grouped by seriousness. Felonies are considered more serious: murder, larceny, kidnapping. Punishments for these are usually a year or more. Less serious crimes are called misdemeanors, such as DUI’s or shoplifting. Misdemeanors usually involve a fine and may or may not include jail time up to an year. Overpopulation. Believe it or not overpopulation is a stem of alot of other causes that contribute to crime. In itself it leads to more and more people with increasing frustrations or resentment towards society. Another major cause of crime that was greatly talked about in this article is poverty. When you have people living at or below the poverty line it creates a need that they may go through illegal or immoral means to fill. Politics is another one. Political figures have power that they often misuse and sometimes have people they use for illegal acts and to manipulate and subjugate people. Racism is another major cause of crime. There have been many racial fueled crimes in the U.S. as well as all around the world. T.V. violence has often been a cause of crime with younger individuals. They see fictional things on tv and video games and try to emulate them in real life. Regionalism is a major cause especially with gangs. People from certain neighborhoods or communities will commit crimes against other neighborhoods and

communities. Family conditions also influences crime in many ways. People brought up with violence or who were abused and neglected often grow up into a life of crime. Depression and other social and mental disorders. These people commit crimes against themselves and others. Often these people that commit crimes have lapsed in medication or don't get the help they need prior to committing a crime. Drugs cause crime on both ends. An addict may commit crimes to get more drugs and people who sell drugs may not be users but are committing a crime by selling drugs. Crime is also caused by people in jail, whether guilty or not, that come into the world and can't make a living. This actually forces them into a life of crime. Poverty has long been linked to lack of education and high crime rates. I do believe poverty being a major cause of crime but even in this article there are states that have high per capita income that were still in the list of most dangerous states. This article list Alaska, whose average family income was over $70,00 but had the higest crime rate in 2013 with over 600 violent crimes per 100,000 residenets as stated in Alexander Kent and Thomas C. Frohlich article “The Most Dangerous States in America” (2015) ( http://247wallst.com/special­report/2015/01/02/the­most­dangerous­states­in­america­2/4/ ). And on the contrary Kentucky has one of the highest poverty rates at 18.8% but is amongst the 10 safest states in america. I think if we study these states maybe we can diminish the relationship that exist between crime and poverty. Starting from the 1970s, studies in the US pointed more and more at the link between unemployment, poverty and crime. After that income level, time spent at school, quality of neighborhood and education were revealed as well. Poverty and Crime: Breaking the Cycle (April 2011)( http://www.poverties.org/poverty­and­crime.html ). The violent crime rate in highly disadvantaged Black areas was 22 per 1,000 residents, not much

different from the 20 per 1,000 rate in similar white communities. So this suggest that poverty more than race is a determining factor for crime. We have touched on felonies and misdemeanors describing the seriousness of crimes. Both have different classes of seriousness in itself which go hand and hand with the punishment that is given for it. The Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 1997 ­ 2015 ( http://www.abc.virginia.gov/facts/punish.html ) States that there are four classes, or levels of misdemeanor crimes and six classes of felonies, with class one being the most serious. For my state of virginia punishments and fines are as follows: For Class 1 misdemeanors, confinement in jail for up to twelve months and a fine of up to $2,500, either or both. For Class 2 misdemeanors, confinement in jail for up to six months and a fine of up to $1,000, either or both. For Class 3 misdemeanors, maximum fine of $500. For Class 4 misdemeanors, maximum fine of $250. Felonies for VA are: For Class 1 felonies, death, or imprisonment for life and a fine of up to $100,000. For Class 2 felonies, imprisonment for life or a minimum of 20 years and a fine of up to $100,000. For Class 3 felonies, imprisonment for five to 20 years and a fine of up to $100,000. For Class 4 felonies, imprisonment for two to 10 years and a fine of up to $100,000. For Class 5 felonies, the jury or court may choose imprisonment for one to 10 years or jail for up to 12 months and a fine of up to $2,500, either or both. For Class 6 felonies, the jury or court may choose imprisonment for one to five years or jail for up to 12 months and a fine of up to $2,500, either or both. There are many that believe that increasing punishments for crimes would lower crime in our nation. This theory known as the economic model crime. It states that criminals are

rational and increased punishment makes committing a crime less attractive to them, thus reducing crime. This article does have overwhelming evidence that intertwines poverty and crime but also a light at the end of the tunnel with states like Alaska and Kentucky that don't fit in this role. It does cost to prevent or reduce crime. Since crime has an negative impact on the wealth of our society it seems prevention is a worthwhile investment. Communities need to come together in order to effectively reduce crime, especially in poverty stricken states. Things like community clean up, neighborhood watches, after school programs and activities for teens, even neighborhood parties and fundraisers. The policemen and women that patrol our communities are also valuable in assisting in efforts. A great way to prevent crime would be making sure that homes, windows, garages, and cars are locked. Using wheel locks on vehicles, alarm systems and even a fencing system are great extra steps of protection as well. Hiding or keeping valuables out of sight is necessary. Even if a criminal has not planned on a crime but walks past a car and sees something valuable like a laptop or wallet he/she may actually commit a crime and steal it. As well as valuables that are close to a window in a home or business. So to prevent a crime from taking place one should take valuables with them or hide in a car or trunk. And any valuables in plain sight to a potential criminal should be tucked away and not be visible to them. Well lit areas and neighborhoods will deter criminals. Believe it or not even fake signs and equipment can deter potential criminals. Things like a fake surveillance camera and fake closed caption tv signs. Even

a beware of dog sign is a great tool in preventing crime. Its great when communities and agencies get involved to influence standards, thinking and attitudes with the youth and offenders of a community. This will prevent potential offenders from turning to crime and providing training and work experience. In conclusion this article was a great read. The economic theory of poverty being directly related to crime is supported with many examples. It predicts that if per capita income for a state goes up or down so will the rate of crimes in that state. It also gives an example of a state that goes against this theory. This was a very interesting observation. Besides poverty, there are many ways that the crime rate of a state can be reduced and crimes prevented. The absolute best way to accomplish reducing crime is community involvement and help from government agencies

 REFERENCES Alexander Kent and Thomas C. Frohlich article(2015) “The Most Dangerous States in America” ( http://247wallst.com/special­report/2015/01/02/the­most­dangerous­states­in­america­2/4/ ) The Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 1997 ­ 2015 “Punishment for Criminal Offenses” ( http://www.abc.virginia.gov/facts/punish.html ) Poverty and Crime: Breaking the Cycle (April 2011)( http://www.poverties.org/poverty­and­crime.html ).