White Collar

4 Pages 1021 Words

This essay, will discuss the topic of white collar crime. In this essay, I will describe to the reader what constitutes white collar. In addition, I will attempt to explain why white collar crime is often regarded as less servere, and why violaters may go unpunished. In this discuss of white collar crime, I will provide the reader with the various forms of white collar crime, and some of current legislation governing such crimes. The goal of this paper is get the reader to recognize the serousness of white collar crime, and its affects on society.
White collar crimes are generally crimes occurring in the conduction of business. “White collar crime, is an illegal act or series of acts committed by an individual or business entity using some nonviolent means to obtain a personal or business advantage, usually committed in the course of a legitimate occupation,”( Cross and Miller, 2001, pp 146). This concept of white collar was originally theorized by Edward Sutherland, as a crime committed by a person of high social status and respectability in the scope of their occupation, (Shichor, Gaines, and Ball, 2002).
There is a clear distinction that can be made when comparing white collar crime and street crime. Street crime or visible crime can include crimes such as robbery, murder, and theft. These crimes are regarded by the public as criminal, and the majority of law enforcement resources are used to deal with them, (Cole and Smith, 2004). On the other hand, white collar crime is largely invisible, (Shichor, Gaines, and Ball, 2002). Due to the fact the crime is usually interpreted as “visible” by most citizens, little or no attention is given to white collar crime. “The public viewed professional thieves as criminals. . . viewed white collar criminals as primarily as legitimate actors who strayed or made mistakes,” (Shichor, Gaines, and Ball, 2002, pp 62).
Street crimes present an immediate sense of d...