Stanton Wheeler - Böcker

This is the first book to describe in detail how judges sentence white-collar criminals. Drawing from lengthy, in-depth interviews with fifty-one judges in seven federal districts, the authors explore such topics as the information available to sentencing judges and how they work with it; the principles of harm, blameworthiness, and consequence that affect judges' decisions;  and the conceptual problems that make it difficult to convert a basic agreement on principle into a system of consistent sentences. "Sitting In Judgment will continue to have an impact on the academic and professional community, as well as on sentencing policy and legislation. . . . An eye opener. The presentation is cogent and persuasive. It moves the debate about sentencing to a more informed and less abstract level."—Charles M. Carberry, White-Collar Crime Reporter  "Sitting in Judgement hits the bull's-eye in describing a judge's thinking process as to the sentencing of criminal defendants. Its analysis should be of great value to lawyers and other professions dealing with this important subject."—Judge Morris E. Lasker, United States District Court, Southern District of New York  "This book should go a considerable way toward rehabilitating the standing of federal judges in the eyes of those who regarded them, in the words of Wheeler and his co-authors, as 'a miscellany of individuals each heading off in his or her own ideological or emotional direction.'  And it is valuable in presenting, in their own words, the views of the judges as to how they arrive at the sentences they give to white-collar criminals."—Gilbert Geis, Judicature  "Unique and invaluable as a resource for social theory, the book is also quite provocative for policy development. Nonlawyers will not have the slightest difficulty in reading this book."—Jack Katz, Contemporary Sociology

White-collar criminals are often assumed to be wealthy and powerful individuals who receive lenient treatment from the courts. This book—a major study of convicted white-collar offenders in America—provides a radically different portrait of these criminals and their punishments. Weisburd, Wheeler, Waring, and bode argue that the majority of white-collar criminals come from the middle classes and that judges often punish wrongdoers of higher status more harshly than less socially privileged criminals.  Drawing from a large research project that had special access to confidential federal pre-sentence investigations, the authors are able to give a particularly rich and detailed view of white-collar crime—from securities fraud and anti-trust violations to embezzlement and tax fraud. Following offenders from their crimes through conviction and sentencing, their book provides a fresh look at a number of questions that have become central research and policy concerns. Fro example, they find that the most important factor that makes it possible to commit costly and damaging white-collar crimes is use of organizational resources. They state that, when sentencing white-collar criminals, judges consider the blameworthiness of defendants and the harm they inflict upon the community.  The authors argue that the vast middle of our increasingly bureaucratic society has both more opportunities for financial wrongdoing and more susceptibility to it. They predict that white-collar crimes committed by these Americans will grow in significance as the nation approaches the twenty-first century.

On Record provides descriptive accounts of record-keeping in a variety of important organizations: schools and universities; consumer credit agencies, general business organizations, and life insurance companies; military and security agencies; the Census Bureau and the Social Security Administration; public welfare agencies, juvenile courts, and mental hospitals. It also examines the legal status of records.The authors address questions such as: Who determines what records are kept? Who has access to the records? To what extent do the records follow an individual? What are some of the dangers and pitfalls in record-keeping? Throughout the volume, the authors show a concern for an appropriate balance between the need for information about people and protection against undue invasions of privacy. The introduction of electronic databases since the original publication of this book makes the issues raised in this seminal collection even more timely.

Delinquency is one of those social problem areas that calls upon the contributions of many different disciplines. A wide variety of social, psychological, economic, and political forces interact in the organization and operation of agencies of delinquency prevention and control as well as in the lives of delinquents. As a result, research on delinquency is exceedingly complex. To understand what is required to understand delinquency, it is necessary to grasp all of its facets, and the contributions of each of the forces contributing to delinquency as they relate to one another. Measures to prevent and control delinquency constitute a system of organizations, facilities, and practices with a great deal of inherent conflict. Some agencies even perceive themselves as being able to operate successfully without regard to the work of other agencies. From the standpoint of the delinquent, a total system is in operation, and the delinquent's experience reflects all the conflict and lack of clarity that such a complex system encompasses. To understand the delinquent's experience, it is essential to explore the joint effects of the various agencies that deal with him. The comparative study of the organization and operations of similar agencies in different jurisdictions greatly enhances the accuracy with which the crucial questions and variables that affect delinquency can be identified. This study by Stanton Wheeler and his associates about the handling of juvenile offenders in two different police departments continues to provide a striking contribution to understanding delinquency.

Delinquency is one of those social problem areas that calls upon the contributions of many different disciplines. A wide variety of social, psychological, economic, and political forces interact in the organization and operation of agencies of delinquency prevention and control as well as in the lives of delinquents. As a result, research on delinquency is exceedingly complex. To understand what is required to understand delinquency, it is necessary to grasp all of its facets, and the contributions of each of the forces contributing to delinquency as they relate to one another. Measures to prevent and control delinquency constitute a system of organizations, facilities, and practices with a great deal of inherent conflict. Some agencies even perceive themselves as being able to operate successfully without regard to the work of other agencies. From the standpoint of the delinquent, a total system is in operation, and the delinquent's experience reflects all the conflict and lack of clarity that such a complex system encompasses. To understand the delinquent's experience, it is essential to explore the joint effects of the various agencies that deal with him. The comparative study of the organization and operations of similar agencies in different jurisdictions greatly enhances the accuracy with which the crucial questions and variables that affect delinquency can be identified. This study by Stanton Wheeler and his associates about the handling of juvenile offenders in two different police departments continues to provide a striking contribution to understanding delinquency.

This book presents the formerly-unpublished manuscript by Wheeler and Cline detailing the landmark, comparative prisons study they conducted in the 1960s which examined fifteen Scandinavian prisons and nearly 2000 inmates across four Nordic countries.