An explanation of the strain and cultural criminology theories and the criminal elements Essay Example for Free

An explanation of the continue and cultural criminology theories and the roughshod elements EssayThe fast-changing troupe is de objet dartding improvement of the lasting wakeless frameworks each and every day. Indis installably, this is intimately challenging the decisions made by policymakers and more especially the judiciary sector. The challenge is more intensified by the way we define the def obliterateant, dupe, and penalty imposed for whatever aversion locateted. The underlying problem is that at that place exist various cultural norms and natural law which signifi supporttly differ with constitutional requirements. In other words, legal procedures be not sufficient in providing felon facts that can help us clearly get wind the criminal elements nominateed above. Nevertheless, populacey scholars in the field of criminology such as Robert K. Merton and Keith Hayward now believes we can rely upon the stochastic variable and cultural criminology theories. I narguably, the relationship existing between the two theories goes beyond our expectation, more especially when analyzing any criminology baptismal font. In fact, human racey slew assimilate been convinced it would be appropriate if policymakers integrate some of the facts unrevea guide by these theories when making or amending the criminal laws. The paper offers a detailed explanation of the two methods and more importantly, how they can be applied in the criminal case study of Mr. Heffernan convicted of the crime of cultivating cannabis plant which is an punishable plant and supply of the equal plant products as drugs to the familiarity. The case took place in the district court, naked South Wales and has since sounded the trumpet over how the proceedings were unraveling the case that Mr. Heffernan was convicted with. This will be discussed along with the criminal elements and criminal facts which were evident in the case.Strain possibleness argues that when an individual is pressurized by the community or by the factors in his environment, the bosom overwhelms him which forces him to satisfy his cultural inequalities and material requirements by engaging in crime as give tongue to by (Agnew, 2001, p319) The crime, in this case, is a subject to the argumentation that oversees a high level of compress that the victim cannot bear the burden of. There be numerous forms of stress best explained by GST. The diverse forms of strive do not exclude financial requirements. The fear may force one into committing a crime that he never intended. Merton in his strain theory argues that it is unless a small margin of the people who face stress end up committing crimes.The sort out that is involved in offenses that emanate from the strain from impertinent forces is seen as deviant since they view the world as if there exists no other solution for their problems. Morten argues that the group is then forced into crime despite the fact that it is against th eir will. Cultural criminology theory, however, presents a different view of such an instance. It argues that the individual contoura enjoys the self-fulfilling feeling that comes about with world involved in criminal activity. The theory explains that when the private gains the social requirements that he or she could amaze other than not achieved legally, they are left with a experience of insecurity while others feel self-fulfilled and okay when they have their requirements fulfilled. According to Presdee, (2003) Cultural criminology is distinctively conjectural, procedural and compulsive slant that places criminals, cases and the control mechanism in the context of socializationLinking the theory to the case of Heffernan to both methods, strain theory argues that the convicted was involved in the crime due to the strain that he was go about. It is evident that he as the criminal was hapless from an extraordinarily high degree of anxiety that he could have otherwise avo ided if he had a comfortably-paying job if the parents were not sick if his married woman had no medical complications and if he was not un closely. On the other hand, cultural criminology argues that the occurrence of the crime was purely projected from the nature of the community the wrongdoer comes from as stated by (Ferrell et al., 2004). This, therefore, makes the community to be viewed as the actual cause of the crime due because the factors that led to the offense against which Mr. Heffernan is convicted are subject to the aforesaid(prenominal) community. The offender presents various evidence to the jury that when analyzed helped, in coming up with a valid judgment. The case presented states that the offender is a victim of the drugs misuse and trafficking laws which repress one from growing plants that are otherwise termed as illegal. It likewise prohibits the supply of the same to the community.Mr. Heffernan was caught with 32kgs of cannabis leaves that are more than the monetary amount which is said to be 25 kilograms as stated by (Cerd et al., 2012, p22). He had surpassed a commercial margin which otherwise inevitably presents the idea of the sale of the same to the community. He was instead much more cooperative by fetching the police to the ranch where he grew the plant. The evidence was found on the idea that the man was found in the hold of a few bags of the leaves, showed where he grew the leaves and legitimate to be the only person involved with the same. Evidence presented before the jury was photographs of these bags of leaves and the plant as well as the $1400 that was in his custody. The offender argues that he has been working on a farm for over 33 years and in his work life history, he has been a victim of many injuries which have presented themselves as a limiting factor to the type and the amount of work that he can be engaged in evidenced by the numerous medical records submitted to the coat regarding the same. His wifes le tter also backs up the issue since its content explains how those injuries have impacted negatively on their lives and the lives of their pincers. This is seen as one of the strains that the convicted is battling with that could have otherwise presented to be the cause of the crime as stated by (Agnew, 2007, p319).The offender also claims that his family has been haunted by a trail of illnesses beginning with his mother who is suffering from breast cancer and osteoarthritis. His father is also suffering from a heart disease and osteoarthritis. He has diabetes and has been needing insulin to survive bearing in mind that his wife also has health conditions that make Mr. Heffernan the only breadwinner. This trail of illnesses presents themselves as another form of strain that led to the unaccustomed character of the victim. An aggregate of such issues may result in so much pressure that necessitate a person with an unyielding personality to handle. While this is seen as strain, the cultural criminology finds it as social factors which when link up caused the occurrence of the crime. This presents the social and the crime as distinctively of a parallel nature.He is also set about with some more pressure of taking care of their 14 years high school kid and the younger one in primary education. The family had just married a year ago which rather increases the commitments of the breadwinner. The offenders family has been selling their office which was around $80000 and has now depreciated to around $60000. His house is also being mortgaged at $70000, and this would render the family homeless. He argues that it is due to this pressure that he decided to engage in this criminal act. The jury well understands the pressure that the offender is facing pointing out that an offender is a man of substance whose life has not been presented as a threat to any criminal record. The only criminal record that exists seems baseless to make an overall conclusion that the man i s a criminal. Evidence presented by Mr. P. Harper, the offenders defendant. The evidence is full of commendations for the man. This evidence is based on the people who know Mr. Heffernan stating that the individuals behaviors have been outstanding, something that even the judge recognizes by saying that Mr. Heffernan is a man of excellent character in the argument number 11 0f the case.The case presents itself from a criminal act that has been catalyzed by the excessive pressure faced by the convicted by strain theory which recognizes the existence of such anomalies in individuals life when faced with extreme pressure. The issue that revolves around the life of the convicted is a monetary issue. Money, in this case, could have been the solution to all his problems since if he had enough of it, he could have saved his parents property from being sold. He could also have been able to take care of his sick relatives, his sick wife and cater for the life of the kids who are still in sch ool. He could also have not gone to the extent of growing and distributing cannabis which is the states laws and the drugs misuse and trafficking act of 1985. The judge recognizes all the burdens that the convicted has to bear in his life considering that he is 51 and has to take care of all this pressure. About GST and the reasons that the convicted gives regarding the case he has been charged with, there were a few goals that the convicted was unable to meet. His desire to cater to his family and his parents and the desires to have a well-paying job dragged him to committing this crime. The unfolding fortune are in inventory with the arguments of strain theory.Cultural criminology which seeks to understand crime in the context of culture is inevitably applicable in the case. The crime was subject to subcultures which revolve around what the community around the offender does and the rules that exist governing this particular crime. The rules governing drug and substance abuse h ave given guidelines on the judgment against the convicted depending on the nature and the extent of the move crime. In a nutshell, it is the society that leads to the development of the rules that exist against the offenses revolving around drug and substance abuse. The occupation of the offender and the circumstances revolving around his life which led him to commit the crime are part and puzzle of the culture and community. As strain theory argues that the crime that was connected was subjected to the pressure of the life of the convicted, cultural criminology sees it as just another culture of various subcultures that may have led to the crime.Growing of Cannabis and distributing it to the public is considered to be a crime since there are rules against it as stated by (Reuter, 2010). If the drug had to be distributed to the community, the general impact on the youths would have been dire since this is the nigh likely group to the issue. As such, the convicted is seen to have been an agent of community destruction since he was a man of age and a parent. He is seen to have not minded about the lives of the other kids in the community and committed the crime for monetary gain. The strain theory comes about to argue that withstanding the pressure of the life the convicted was facing needed him to have looked for an alternative way of getting money.The convicted argues that he had complications regarding his health and that he was nearing his retirement age. He was forced to grow cannabis after ordering seeds from the United Kingdom which he later planted. It is the same marijuana that was harvested and packed before it was confiscated by the police. The theory gives out a clear argument that the man had small means of supporting his family using whatever he was gaining. This case is brought out clearly by the fact that the convicted had no previous criminal records and that his life was clean therefore it is due to what seemed to be a sort of excessive pre ssure that led him to commit the crime. On the other hand, cultural criminology makes the mere mention of cannabis a criminal activity where any activity that is associated with the drug has been criminalized. With the building of a article of faith that this activity is already a crime, the theory argues that rules that forbid it are developed ensuring that those who are associated with cannabis are interpreted into justice without considering any argument or reasons behind the act.With all the associated facts and evidence having been presented, Mr. Harper claims that the case on which the offender has been convicted with is not a drug trafficking case since it was planned as a one-time business. The pressure under which the convicted was suffering from forcing him to establish a cannabis plantation which he prepared to sell only once and increase the value of the ranch. This was one of the strain factors that made him respond to the pressure by involving himself in the crime. Th e judge, however, argues that it is irresponsible for a man with a family to release cannabis of a monetary amount to the society which would impact negatively on the lives of the youths as stated by (Lowinson, 2005).The judgment against both crimes was supposed to be ten years for the crime of growing cannabis and 15 years for trafficking. The judge at the end of it all understands the pressure that the convicted was facing and gives him a sentence of two and a half years. The strain theory gives out a sense of reasoning and weighing of matters such that the degree of pressure was duly recognise by the jury. The cultural criminology theory, on the other hand, views the crime generally as breaking the law that originated from the same issue. It argues that the moral standards of the community which harbors the roots of the law have declined. The argument here is that the community from which the convicted comes from and the crime that was committed is viewed as one and the same thi ng.With the weak empirical evidence in support of the strain theory, the presented arguments were not sufficient to ensure that the convicted was set free. Rather it just explains the problems that the law class individuals are facing without taking into thoughtfulness of the larger picture of the community and the white collar crimes as stated by (Aseltine et al., 2000, p256). Crimes in such levels are the ones that decapitate the community. The theory deals with individuals rather than the community on which the crime and the criminals thrive. These issues are well explained by the cultural criminology theory which does not only just present its arguments from a particular line or level of crimes. It digs into every crime be it white collar or any other sort of the offense.ConclusionThe case presented above shows how strain can cause various crimes. The arguments put forward to show that some forms of tension can be so haunting such that the victim ends up being involved illegal activities that end up bringing peace to the life of the victim. The judge, however, takes into consideration the strain that the convicted is facing, and from this, a valid judgment is given. As the strain theory views this crime as a result of pressure, the cultural criminology sees it as the larger picture of the nature of the community from which the convicted comes from. However, the theories try to explain the kind of judgment that is passed as not usual from the rest since consideration depending on the prevailing circumstance is taken note of.ReferenceAgnew, R., 2001. 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