NCJ Number
86846
Date Published
1982
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Wholesale prosecution of powerful white-collar offenders is not practical, but increased selective enforcement of such offenders is preferable to ignoring the abuses of the powerful while focusing on the offenses of the poor.
Abstract
The crimes of the powerful are the most harmful to society but are the least sanctioned by the criminal justice system, while the powerless are sanctioned often and severely; however, because of the volume of white-collar crime, consistent and equitable enforcement is not attainable. The most powerful white-collar criminals can use their power to prevent prosecution, displace blame downward in the class structure, and place blame on the origanization rather than on powerful individuals within it. Because of this power of white-collar criminals, prosecutors have little option but to adopt policies that result in convicted white-collar criminals being treated more leniently than common criminals. Public policy should focus on the increased selective enforcement of powerful white-collar offenders and more punitive sanctions. While such a policy falls short of the justice ideal, it can have a deterrent effect by increasing the likelihood of arrest, conviction, and the imposition of significant sanctions. The injustice of such selectivity is less of a mark on the criminal justice system than the current state of leniency and nonenforcement vis-a-vis white-collar crime. Sixty-six references are listed.