NCJ Number
207597
Editor(s)
Kauko Aromaa,
Sami Nevala
Date Published
2004
Length
95 pages
Annotation
These papers presented at plenary sessions of the Third Annual Conference of the European Society of Criminology (August 2003), entitled "Crime and Crime Control in an Integrating Europe," address European integration, crime, and criminal justice policy.
Abstract
The opening address discusses basic rights under the European Union's (EU's) Constitution and cooperation among member states in matters of legislation and domestic policy. This is followed by a paper that discusses the EU's "reintegrative shaming" of member countries, notably those in Eastern Europe, that have been too punitive in their criminal justice policies. Another paper discusses how penal policies might develop in individual member states of a European Union that gives high priority to the structuring and implementation of democratic processes. A third paper critiques methodologies for measuring crime, with attention to criminology's reactions to inevitable inaccuracies regardless of the method used. A fourth paper considers victim policy issues and controversies, including the appropriate roles of victims in the criminal justice process and whether restorative justice improves the victim's role and status in case processing. Remaining papers focus on crime trends in Europe from 1990 to 2000; findings of the International Crime Survey (victimization survey that involves 33 countries) for 1996-2000; the face of European criminal justice in the process of developing a constitution for the European Union; bringing freedom and security into balance in Europe; and the need for diversity and flexibility in attempts to "harmonize" sentencing policies among European Union member states in addressing transnational crime.