The crime rates in the cities and suburbs are higher than in the small towns and rural areas. The high rates can be explained through sociological theories that have established that criminal behaviors are normal responses of psychologically and biologically normal people to various kinds of social circumstances. There have been low arrest probabilities and low probabilities of recognition of people involved in crime by the criminal justice system which has led to an increase in the crime rates in the cities and suburbs. The observable characteristics of cities and individuals living in the cities including their tastes, family cultures, and social influences are also closely related to the crime rates in the cities and suburbs. Crime has had an impact on families and societies in the cities both economically and sociologically by financial loses by families and the government to combat crime and care for crime victims. It also causes disorder and poor living condition of people in the cities.
Crime has been a big menace to the society may it be petty theft or robbery with violence affecting an individual and the society at large. The increased crime rates in the cities and the effects it has on society is worrying (Lorenc et al., 2012). The effects of crime touch everyone in society with the ultimate cost is life lost. Other economic loses are loss of income, loss of property, cost when covering medical bills. There are big losses to the business because crimes like fraud and shoplifting cost businesses billions of dollars. Cybercrime which is referred to as white color crime has evolved robbery from its traditional way of using the internet. Cybercrime has enabled thieves to steal large amounts of money from a large organization. Other white color crimes such as card fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, mail fraud, money laundering which are parts of corporate fraud have led to big losses by the government.
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Financing the criminal justice system which involves the police, prisons, and judicial courts cost the government a lot of money which could otherwise be used to improve the quality of life of citizens. The human resource in the criminal justice system such as judges, security guards, prosecutors, social workers, and probation officers cost a lot of money. The government spends billions of money dealing with the consequences of crime. The state then increases taxes or spends more money dealing with the already collected taxes (Zembtoski, 2011). Therefore, money that would be used in essential services such as education, healthcare, or infrastructure is used to deal with crime.
Another effect of crime is that it creates fear in people in cities that high crime rates. The most affected are the more vulnerable members of society like the elderly and children. The quality of life decreases when people live in a panic because fear contributes a lot to how people live their social lives. The symbolic interaction theory suggests that people develop and rely upon some process of social interaction as a result of events that they experience in their lives (Zembtoski, 2011). Some effects are less tangible such as pain and suffering. Crime victims may have physical injuries or even be incapacitated inflicting physical, emotional pain, and suffering. The families and friends of a crime of victim who has died as a result of crime are left mourning and grief. There is time loss by victims, their families, and the juries who listen to the cases (Braga, Papachristos, &Hureau, 2012). The time could be used in a more productive way that would improve their livelihood. In the cities and suburbs where there is a high crime rate, investors avoid investing in the areas and property and housing values decrease.
The suburbs of cities with high rates of crimes have advanced economic and social effects due to spillover of crime. The residents of these areas become withdrawn, defensive, and less committed to their community and therefore the social fiber of the community is weakened.
The less privileged people in society have a high probability of engaging in criminal activities. For example, according to Anna (2018), African-Americans males are more in incarceration statistics. Black females were twice more in prisons than White women. Studies reveal that regardless of the magnitude of crimes committed by ethnic and racial minorities, they are more likely to be arrested and incarcerated. An explanation has been given by sociological scholars like Marvin Wolfgang and Ferracuti who argue that African-Americans have adopted violent values creating a subculture of violence. The family structure of Black Americans especially female-headed families are a source of racial crime disparities (Anna, 2018).
Sociologists and criminologists have assessed patterns of racial bias and discrimination which have shown that law enforcers and the criminal justice system bias and discrimination against African-Americans. For example, it has been shown that racial profiling is encouraged by some law enforcement guidelines by putting it as an efficient and rational strategy to target the people who are more likely to commit crimes (Anna, 2018). The criminals involved in the unlawful activities are separated from their families and society causing a feeling of loss from the family society members. For example, 35 inmates were executed in 2014 in seven states and 3035 inmates were serving death sentences.
In conclusion, there is a rise in criminal activities in the cities and suburbs which affect society economically and socially. The high cost of running the criminal justice system, costs incurred in catering for crime victims, and direct loss from businesses due to criminal activities. The pain and anguish caused by criminal activities cause a major impact on the people leading to poverty, incapacitation, and health problems. The family and friends lose their loved one whether it is a victim killed or a criminal separated from the society and family to serve in sentences or being executed.
References
Braga, A., Papachristos, A., & Hureau, D. (2012). Hot spots policing effects on crime. Campbell Systematic Reviews , 8 (1), 1-96.
Leon-Guerrero, A. (2018). Social problems: Community, policy, and social action . Sage publications.
Lorenc, T., Clayton, S., Neary, D., Whitehead, M., Petticrew, M., Thomson, H., ... & Renton, A. (2012). Crime, fear of crime, environment, and mental health and wellbeing: mapping review of theories and causal pathways. Health & place , 18 (4), 757-765.
Zembroski, D. (2011). Sociological theories of crime and delinquency. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment , 21 (3), 240-254.
