NCJ Number
15214
Date Published
1971
Length
24 pages
Annotation
AN EFFORT TO DEFINE 'STRAFBAAR FEIT' (OFFENSE) IN UTILITARIAN TERMS.
Abstract
LAWYERS TRADITIONALLY HAVE DEFINED 'STRAFBAAR FEIT' (OFFENSE) AS ANY BEHAVIOR WHICH HAS BEEN MADE PUNISHABLE BY LEGISLATION. THIS CONCEPT IS SPECIFICALLY CONCERNED WITH UPHOLDING THE LAW. IN THE 1930'S, SOCIOLOGISTS FOUND THEY COULD NO LONGER ACCEPT THIS DEFINITION FOR THEIR OWN PURPOSES. THEY SUBSTITUTED THE WORD 'MISDAAD' (OFFENSE) FOR 'STRAFBAAR FEIT' AND EQUATED IT, IN A GENERAL WAY, WITH 'ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR', REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THAT BEHAVIOR HAD BEEN MADE PUNISHABLE BY LEGISLATION. HOWEVER, 'ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR' IS SUCH A VAGUE CONCEPT THAT IT, TOO, WAS FELT TO BE UNSATISFACTORY. BOTH LAWYERS AND SOCIOLOGISTS ARE INTERESTED IN EXTENDING THEIR RESEARCH TO INCLUDE THE DRAFTING OF JUST CRIMINAL LAWS. THE LAWS COVERING WHITE COLLAR CRIME, AS COMPARED WITH OTHER CRIMINAL LAWS, ARE DISCUSSED AS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT SOCIOLOGISTS HAVE FELT TO BE UNJUST LAWS BECAUSE THEY SEEM TO FAVOR THE UPPER CLASS. THE AUTHOR SUGGESTS THAT LEGISLATORS SHOULD BE GUIDED BY THE FOLLOWING PRINCIPLE, DERIVED FROM UTILITARIANISM - LEGISLATORS, LIKE ALL OTHERS IN AUTHORITY, SHOULD STRIVE IN ALL THEIR ACTIONS TO OBTAIN THE OPTIMUM GOOD FOR THE MEMBERS OF SOCIETY. THIS, IN TURN, LEADS HER TO THE FOLLOWING DEFINITION - A 'STRAFBAAR FEIT' IN CONNECTION WITH THE DRAFTING OF LEGISLATION IS BEHAVIOR WHICH IS HARMFUL TO ONE OR MORE MEMBERS OF SOCIETY AND THE PUNISHMENT OF WHICH IS EFFECTIVE, ADVANTAGEOUS, AND NECESSARY. SHE CONCLUDES BY DEFINING TYPES OF BEHAVIOR WHICH, FOR HER, ARE NOT HARMFUL, AND, IN AN ANNEX, TYPES OF SITUATIONS WHERE PUNISHMENT IS NOT EFFECTIVE, NOT ADVANTAGEOUS OR NOT NECESSARY. --IN DUTCH