Natural and Legal Crime - Essay Example

Running Head: Natural and Legal Crimes Natural and Legal Crimes of Natural and Legal Crimes Introduction Generally, there are several kinds of crimes which are to be tackled by the criminal justice systems. Crimes have been categorized and classified into different categories on the basis of the nature and attributes of the crime. For instance, illegal or criminal actions can be categorized as aggressive, violent, non-violent, hate crimes, etc. Similarly, criminologists have classified deviant and criminal actions as natural and legal crimes. This paper seeks to analyze and compare natural and legal crime in the lights of broad and diverse academic resources. Definition A crime which is considered to be wrong on basis of ethics and morality but is not forbidden or illegal in the eyes of law is defined as a natural crime. Generally, it is considered to be deviant and immoral behavior which infringes and violates natural law (George, 2002). Mala in se is a term which is used for natural crimes, which means that criminal activities and offenses are wrong on grounds of morality and ethics even though it is not legally defined in the law. For instance, murders and carnages are considered to be natural crimes because they break and violate the established moral standards. A legal crime is defined as a crime which is considered to be forbidden and illegal in the eyes of the law. Legal crimes are known to break and defy the laws, which have been established by the society. These laws are considered to be regulations, rules, decrees and statutes which have been applied in the courts. The term ‘Mala prohibita’ is sued for legal crimes, which means criminal activities which are forbidden and outlawed by the law. In simple terms, legal crimes are considered to be actions which can be controlled by the rules and regulations defined by the society. Comparison between Natural and Legal Laws Although there are vast differences between natural and legal laws, there is one common aspect between the two. Both types of crimes are considered to be wrong irrespective of moral and legal limitations and boundaries. Natural crimes violate natural laws and legal crimes violate positive laws. In order to compare and explore natural and legal crime, the FBI crime index will be used (Black, 2003). According to FBI, the eight crimes include murder, homicide, sexual assault, burglary, provoked assault, aggravated burglary, stealing vehicles and arson. Rules and regulations have been passed which forbid these offenses. However, it is necessary to determine the nature of crime. Murder and Carnage Murder and carnage are considered to be atrocious acts, which involves the killing of another human being intentionally. In accordance to FBI, murder and carnage is considered to be deliberate and planned crime and it does not include “deaths caused by negligence, suicide, or accident; justifiable homicides; and attempts to murder or assaults to murder, which are scored as aggravated assaults” (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). On the grounds of this definition, murders and carnage are considered to be mala in se. they have been placed in this classification because killing someone intentionally is collectively believed to be an immoral action. Rape, Robbery and Provoked Assault Forcible rape is considered to be sexual assault in which the female is engaged in forced sex (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). Robbery is defined as the stealing or making attempts to take something valuable from another person by using force or violence (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). Provoked assault is considered to be an illegal assault on an individual by another for severely harming the victim (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). These three crimes defined are considered to be mala in se. they have classified as mala in se because these crimes are atrocious acts against humanity. All of these three crimes are considered to be morally wrong. Arson Arson is considered to be the malicious act which involves burning or the effort to burn with or without intention to harm an individual, public building, properties, etc (U.S. Department of Justice, 2009). This crime will also be considered to be mala in se because it involves harming another person with that act. Burglary, Aggravated burglary and Stealing Vehicles The crimes of burglary, aggravated burglary and stealing vehicles have been reported by FBI. Burglary is considered to be the illegal admission or entrance into a residence with the aim of stealing. Aggravated burglary is considered to be the burglary which involves stealing, theft, mugging, purse-snatching, stealing vehicle parts, etc without using violence or aggression (U.S. Department of Justice, 2008). Stealing vehicles is the stealing of vehicle or attempting to steal it. All of these three crimes come under the category of mala prohibita. These crimes do not harm or kill another person. At the same time, they do not have the intention to hurt or kill an innocent. Consequently, these crimes come under the category of mala prohibita and they are illegal in the eyes of the law. Individuals commit acts of robbery for several reasons. However, the main reason for which individuals are involved in these acts is because of surviving in the society. The robbery or burglary does not harm an innocent person. Conclusion There is a vast difference between natural crimes and legal crimes. However, there is one common aspect between the two. Both of the crimes are considered to be unacceptable and offensive, although there maybe various reasons for committing such acts. FBI has defined and reported eight main crimes such as murder, homicide, sexual assault, burglary, provoked assault, aggravated burglary, stealing vehicles and arson. The two types of crimes are useful in the classification and categorization of criminal behaviors and offenses. However, it should be noted that natural and legal crimes are concepts or theories. The ideas and opinions present in this paper are based on facts and definitions. There is a possibility that the deviant or criminal behavior may have been propelled by another agent or condition. There is a possibility that the criminal behavior cannot be classified at all. There is an ongoing debate among legal experts, criminologists and academics that crimes which are considered to be ethically or morally wrong are left to be contended because morals and standards are part of theory. References Davis, Mark (2006). Crimes Mala in Se: An Equity-Based Definition .Criminal Justice Policy Review, Vol. 17, No. 3, U.S. Department of Justice, (2009). Federal Bureau of Investigations. Retrieved December 6, 2009, from Major Thefts & Violent Crimes Web site Black, H.C. (2003). Black’s Law Dictionary. Positive law. Retrieved December 6, 2009 from http://www.wctc.edu/busocc/law/pos1b.htmGeorge. George, P.C (2002). The Autonomy of Law: Essays on Legal Positivism. Natural law and positive law. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=52753015Mala http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_02/html/web/offreported/offreported.html Read More