Sociologists believe that the recent dip in crime rates is a result of the criminal element's fear of citizens who carry handguns.

Most social scientists subscribe to the universally agreed-upon definition of crime: any act that is immoral and codified in law.

Because the data gathered does not profile those perpetrators of crimes who successfully evade apprehension and prosecution, the Uniform Crime Reports fail to reveal the entire range of criminal activity in the United States.

Conducted by the Census Bureau, victimization reports are surveys that collect information from nonrepresentative samples of crime victims.

The occupational offender is far removed from the popular stereotype of a criminal.

In terms of sheer numbers, public-order offenders constitute the largest category of criminals.

Juvenile law is designed primarily to punish young offenders rather than to protect and redirect them

Criminologists have found socioeconomic status to be more strongly correlated with criminal behavior than any other factor.

Every study of crime based on official data shows that blacks are overrepresented among those who are arrested, convicted, and imprisoned for street crime.

Studies of recidivism have found no conclusive evidence that various approaches to rehabilitation are more effective in reducing recidivism rates than more punitive alternatives.