Causes of Crime
| Author | Frank Elmes |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X5903200104 |
| Published date | 01 January 1959 |
| Date | 01 January 1959 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
future crime risks on the strength of given evidence of certain facts
and data, there
"is
much wisdom and experience in the minds of
members of the Bench who decide on the fate of a convicted offen-
der. Certain current investigations are trying to use this source of
information and to bring to light, by the helpful co-operation of
Magistrates and Judges, what is in their mind when they give, in
particular cases, probation, or when they refuse to make a probation
order. By such studies
it
will be possible to learn from the very
personal attitude of experienced members of the Bench and to pre-
sent the results in such a way that they serve a useful purpose for
newcomers in the highly thorny and responsible work of sentencing
the culprit.
These are some observations on the purpose, scope and the
methods of Criminology. They have been presented with a deliberate
emphasis on those aspects of criminological studies with which cur-
rent research work in this country is concerned. In assessing the
merits or otherwise of Criminology one should not be blinded by
the shining example of modem science and its breath-taking achieve-
ments. Criminology is a study of human behaviour. It has to deal
not with atoms and electronics but with persons. This makes certain
inherent limitations inevitable, but such shortcomings are more than
compensated for by the fascination invariably exerted by any study
of human life.
FRANK
ELMES
Superintendent, Dorset Constabulary (Retired)
Causes
of
fJrime
CRIME FIGURES continue to rise; no one knows why. Uncertainty
spreads to the figures themselves. Do they represent a real rise, or
improved methods of recording, or a greater alacrity on the part of
aggrieved people to report to the police? No one knows.
Quite naturally the gentlemen at Universities who are now
embarking on research into crime and its causes are attacking first
the uncertainties which surround their difficult subject. Until their
attack is successful one man's conjecture is as good as another's.
12
The
Police Journal
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