Sociology of Crime: Structural Perspective - Essay Example

The two questions are interrelated as systematic distortion is a direct consequence of the state apathy to examine wider rape event related perspectives from the complainant's viewpoint. As Hester & Eglin would say," As far as study of crime is concerned, the first premise entails the view that whether a given act is criminal or not depends upon the meanings which are attributed to it"(Hester & Eglin,_Year). Often such administrative legal systems have standard medico-legal process of dealing with the complainant and in more cases than not view the complainant with suspicion with a view to dilute the impact of the complaint or even to eliminate it entirely.

In the process their underlying assumptions about femininity and sexuality also remain fixed and unrevised. The administrative legal system also considers a particular category of complainants as more legitimate than others which work to the disadvantage of several who do not fit the medico-legal billing. While it is surprising that official statistics and their erudite commentators side step the role of the complainant in formation of statistics; it is paradoxically true that the motive of the complainant have been the focus of attention with deep rooted doubts about their credibility with constant medico-legal dialogue on the state of mind and psychological predilections of the complainant .

Given the shared opinion of others on background assumptions regarding the complainant ;the assumptions that a complainant herself can work on and which go to explain her behavior have generally been ignored. Whereas it is the complainant herself and not the offender who is normally in the focus of the entire proceedings in matters such as rape right from her first statement, to testimony and her response to cross examination. Even the official records built on such cases are influenced to a large extent by several stereotypes and typifications by the investigating team or officer.

The police system maintain its views on what is good or bad, good men and women, morality and immorality, various institutions and organizations and circumstantial settings. With such a great deal of typification the official version of the actual event would be prejudiced and in away prejudged. Similar to above typifications regarding the crime, its settings and offenders police also have typifications of a typical rape complainant and they come to regard some complaints as more legitimate than others under the influence of these typifications, as observed above.

The typifications may work to neutralize the impact of crime and may elongate the prosecution. The Medico-Legal Myth The typifications, stated above, are not whims and fancies of dealing persons in rape cases but they have been contributed by medico legal practice built on since 1800.Medico-legal practice has