When the issue of white collar crime is mentioned, many people do not understand what it is or how it affects the society. The legal procedures involved in the white collar crimes are also not very clear, given that the culprits often tend to go scot free even after causing serious damage to the economic structures of the country or countries. Technology has also pushed the rates of the crime to higher levels where it can involve different countries. It is for this reason that this project was carried out so as to bring a deeper and clearer understanding to an issue that has escaped the understanding of many for a long time.
This essay will approach the issue of white collar crime with the aim of proving that it is a crime just like any other and the offenders need to be prosecuted just like ordinary criminals. In order to effectively do this, the paper will use literature review as the main method of research. The paper will first look at the definition of white collar crime and the different types of white collar crime in existence. It will then look at the reasons as to why people engage in the crime, then look at the effects that it has on the community. The legal aspects associated with the white collar crime will also be addressed. These will help to come up with a strong conclusion on what white collar crime is and how it can be dealt with.
According to Calabresi and Saporito observes that white collar crime can be defined as cheating, lying and stealing that is done by people in high positions of power or those held in high esteem by the society. This implies that the crimes are highly disguised and can be hardly recognized. They then go on to look at the different types of white collar crimes. These include fraud, inside jobs, cybercrime, embezzlement, money laundering, stealing of copyrights and identities, and bribery among others. These crimes are not easy to identify or prosecute since most of the time the offenders are not known physically. At other times, the offenders are not apprehended until after the effects of the crime are felt. Judging from the manner of these crimes, it can be deduced that they are quite hard to identify and deal with. This could be the reason as to why so many people fall victims even without their knowledge. In other words, it is a form of crime that involves no violence and seems to be gentler, though it has far reaching effects.
Given that these crimes are committed by people in high positions and who are assumed to have enough for themselves and would not be interested in getting what is not rightfully theirs, it raises concern as to what would drive such individuals to engage in such illegal activities. Piquero conducted a study in which he sought to establish why the white collar crimes do occur. His study involved going to the companies and looking for the explanations as to why such activities could occur. The findings of the research revealed that many of the people committed the crime for fear of falling. He observed that most of these people occupy the positions they have due to their hard work. They equally work hard when they are in those positions as they try to maintain what they have and keep getting better. However, it so happens that at times, they are at the verge of collapsing and losing all that they have worked for years building. Faced by the dilemma of breaking the law in a hi-tech manner or losing their years of hard work most of them choose the easy way out, and this explains the high levels of white collar crimes. Klenowski, Copes and Mullins also carried out a study seeking to establish how the white collar offenders make sense of the crimes they commit. The findings indicated that most of these people explained that they were expected to play certain roles in the society. Such roles are described by the social constructions of femininity or masculinity. Given that these people are at positions of power and influence, the societal constructions have it that they should handle some responsibilities. In a bid to rise up to the expectations, they have no option than to engage in some of these crimes as they are the only avenues through which they can hit the expectations. As such, it is seen that fear of collapse and the high societal expectations could be on the forefront as the causes of the high rates of white collar crimes.
The effects of the regular offences such as burglary are known. However, the dynamics of the white collar crimes makes it hard to even understand the effects they have on the society and the people affected most by these crimes. Champion dwells on this issue in a bid to understand who the victims are and how they are affected by these crimes. His findings indicate that these crimes can affect a wide range of victims, ranging from individuals to large organizations, banks and companies. Champion further goes on to explain that the developments in IT have made the list grow even bigger as it is possible for the offenders to combine different tactics and affect an even larger group. Individuals are affected in that they can be victims of fraud or schemes which promise them a lot of returns, only to collapse after the people have put their money into them. The individuals can also be affected when the crimes occur in the banks where the people have their savings. The people can lose either small amounts of money or large sums. Such occurrences have immense negative effects on the mental wellbeing of such people as they are psychologically tortured. Embezzlement crimes can lead to serious effects such as the collapsing of companies and organizations. Perri also airs the same views, noting that the effects of the white collar crimes can be quite devastating. He indicates that they can even result to violence and death as the orchestrators of the crimes can opt for violence in form of homicide so as to prevent their crimes from being brought to the light. This understanding asserts the fact that white collar crimes cannot be ignored, as they have the ability of crippling economic structures within a country and leading to massive losses in terms of money and even lives. The offenders only seem to be gentle and kind since they do not physically assault individuals at the time of the crime. However, it is evident that after the crimes are discovered, the victims end up being hurt even more. They undergo psychological and mental torture as they try to make sense of the crimes. For instance, victims of fraud or embezzlement are often left in the cold after they lose their money to the perpetrators. In essence, they are put in a situation that causes them much stress.
However, there are efforts being made to control these crimes by imposing stricter measures on the offenders. Such efforts are seen in such cases as when the current American President, Barack Obama, sought to make the securities agencies in the US answer for the 2008 financial collapse. Well, this indicates that though the offenders have had a clear coast to carry out their heinous activities, their days could as well be numbered.
In a summative manner, this research was carried out in order to bring a clearer understanding on the issue of white collar crime. It started by defining what white collar crime is and the different types in existence. They include crimes such as fraud, embezzlement, identity theft, cyber crime among others. It then went on to look at the causes of the crime and the effects as well as the legal implications. It was realized that the crime is quite common since it is carried out by high profile people. They are driven by fear of collapse and the societal pressures to commit the crimes. The crimes have similar impact as the regular crime, but these could have far reaching effects. These effects can include the collapse of companies and organizations, psychological and mental problems to the victims and even death in case the offenders resort to murder in order to conceal their crooked ways. For a long time, the offenders have enjoyed a degree of leniency from the government, but the government seems to be imposing stronger measures which could put an end to the white collar crimes by prosecuting the offenders and making them accountable for their actions.
