AC.1.1-Analyse different types of crime
A state crime is an illegal or deviant activity committed by the state or its
agents. It also includes crimes by different individuals or groups that have
the backing of the state. These crimes often involve abuse of power and
authority. The main aim of these crimes is to keep hold of state power,
meet political aims, and help the state benefit economically.
Examples of state crimes are torture, which is used by the state or its
agents to extract information, usually from prisoners or political
opponents. Also, war crimes are state crimes only if the government plans
for them to happen. As well as political crimes, which include election
rigging and corruption committed by the government, which is when the
government changes voting to stay in power.
Typical Victims of state crimes are usually the citizens of the state that is
committing the crime, as the state has direct power over them. For
example, over 700 people have been arrested in the UK for supporting the
banned group “Palestine Action” since July 2025. The victims can also be
members of religious or ethnic groups who oppose the state or political
parties.
Typical offenders are typically those who are in positions of power within
the state or its agencies. This can also include the military and
government officials. Lower-ranking officials can also be offenders, as they
are given orders from higher-ranking officials. The offences often happen
under what is known as state protection, meaning offenders are rarely
held accountable for their actions.
States make their own laws. This results in their actions not being seen as
criminal. However, the international law defines human rights abuse as a
crime which links to state crime. It can also be seen as deviant, as war
crimes go against social norms or typical behaviour, as it does not meet
human rights standards or ethical values.
There is a high scale of state crimes, so the public are most likely to be
aware of cases. However, states are immensely powerful, so it is easy for
them to conceal their crimes by controlling the media and redefining their
actions, which can lower the level of public awareness around the crimes.
However, Social media platforms such as twitter, TikTok and instagram
have started to increase awareness by allowing citizens to post real life
footage of these incidents, for example Gaza.
An example of a state crime case study is the Nazi regime from 1933 to
1945, including the Holocaust. This included the killing of 6 million Jews;
other targeted groups included Roma and disabled individuals. The Nazis
use concentration camps and death camps to carry out these crimes.
Their actions were ordered by high-ranking officials and carried out by
both high- and low-ranking personnel, showing the state's role against
, violation of human rights. The actions carried out broke international law
and human rights. This makes it a clear case of a state crime.
A moral crime is a crime that goes against social norms or socially
accepted standards; however, this does not always mean breaking the
law. They go against moral codes, which are rules or values set either by a
group, individual or society as a whole. Moral crimes can also be called
crimes against morality.
Examples of moral crimes include prostitution. Prostitution itself is not
illegal; however, the advertising of it is. The selling or possession of illegal
drugs is seen as a moral crime, as many people see drug-taking as
harmful, so it is seen as a moral issue. In England and Wales in 2016-17,
around 8.5% of adults aged 16-59 took an illegal drug. Assisted suicide is
also a moral crime, as many see life as sacred, so ending it goes against
ethical norms.
It is known as a victimless crime, as there is no specific victim. Some
crimes do not involve consenting adults, so they have an identifiable
victim, e.g., underage smoking. Also, the victim and offender may have a
common interest, e.g., drugs, so it may be seen as a victimless crime, as
they are both willing to commit the crime.
The typical offenders often vary due to the particular crime; however, in a
lot of circumstances, the offenders use moral crimes as a source of
income, for example, drug dealing. In some cases, the offender may be
forced to commit the crime due to their circumstances, showing that the
offender is not always acting out of free choice.
A lot of moral crimes are not illegal but are seen as deviant, as they go
against social norms. There is less agreement on whether some of these
acts should be considered criminal behaviour and go against the law. This
means that more crimes are both criminal and deviant; it all depends on
how different societies view them.
There is a low level of a public awareness of more crimes due to many
people only seeing them as deviant, not criminal, so they choose not to
report them to the police as they don’t see the point. Also, in many moral
crimes, the victim and offender have a shared interest in the crime, so
they choose to conceal the offence, making fewer crimes reported. The
media rarely reports on these crimes unless they involve celebrities or
extreme cases which can end up circulating on social media platforms.
A moral crime case study is Mavis Eccleston. She and her husband both
agree to take a large overdose of prescription drugs, due to her husband
being terminally ill and in pain. Dennis (her husband) died; however,
Mavis survived. She was later charged with murder and manslaughter for
helping to assist Dennis’ suicide. At court Mavis pleaded she did the act
A state crime is an illegal or deviant activity committed by the state or its
agents. It also includes crimes by different individuals or groups that have
the backing of the state. These crimes often involve abuse of power and
authority. The main aim of these crimes is to keep hold of state power,
meet political aims, and help the state benefit economically.
Examples of state crimes are torture, which is used by the state or its
agents to extract information, usually from prisoners or political
opponents. Also, war crimes are state crimes only if the government plans
for them to happen. As well as political crimes, which include election
rigging and corruption committed by the government, which is when the
government changes voting to stay in power.
Typical Victims of state crimes are usually the citizens of the state that is
committing the crime, as the state has direct power over them. For
example, over 700 people have been arrested in the UK for supporting the
banned group “Palestine Action” since July 2025. The victims can also be
members of religious or ethnic groups who oppose the state or political
parties.
Typical offenders are typically those who are in positions of power within
the state or its agencies. This can also include the military and
government officials. Lower-ranking officials can also be offenders, as they
are given orders from higher-ranking officials. The offences often happen
under what is known as state protection, meaning offenders are rarely
held accountable for their actions.
States make their own laws. This results in their actions not being seen as
criminal. However, the international law defines human rights abuse as a
crime which links to state crime. It can also be seen as deviant, as war
crimes go against social norms or typical behaviour, as it does not meet
human rights standards or ethical values.
There is a high scale of state crimes, so the public are most likely to be
aware of cases. However, states are immensely powerful, so it is easy for
them to conceal their crimes by controlling the media and redefining their
actions, which can lower the level of public awareness around the crimes.
However, Social media platforms such as twitter, TikTok and instagram
have started to increase awareness by allowing citizens to post real life
footage of these incidents, for example Gaza.
An example of a state crime case study is the Nazi regime from 1933 to
1945, including the Holocaust. This included the killing of 6 million Jews;
other targeted groups included Roma and disabled individuals. The Nazis
use concentration camps and death camps to carry out these crimes.
Their actions were ordered by high-ranking officials and carried out by
both high- and low-ranking personnel, showing the state's role against
, violation of human rights. The actions carried out broke international law
and human rights. This makes it a clear case of a state crime.
A moral crime is a crime that goes against social norms or socially
accepted standards; however, this does not always mean breaking the
law. They go against moral codes, which are rules or values set either by a
group, individual or society as a whole. Moral crimes can also be called
crimes against morality.
Examples of moral crimes include prostitution. Prostitution itself is not
illegal; however, the advertising of it is. The selling or possession of illegal
drugs is seen as a moral crime, as many people see drug-taking as
harmful, so it is seen as a moral issue. In England and Wales in 2016-17,
around 8.5% of adults aged 16-59 took an illegal drug. Assisted suicide is
also a moral crime, as many see life as sacred, so ending it goes against
ethical norms.
It is known as a victimless crime, as there is no specific victim. Some
crimes do not involve consenting adults, so they have an identifiable
victim, e.g., underage smoking. Also, the victim and offender may have a
common interest, e.g., drugs, so it may be seen as a victimless crime, as
they are both willing to commit the crime.
The typical offenders often vary due to the particular crime; however, in a
lot of circumstances, the offenders use moral crimes as a source of
income, for example, drug dealing. In some cases, the offender may be
forced to commit the crime due to their circumstances, showing that the
offender is not always acting out of free choice.
A lot of moral crimes are not illegal but are seen as deviant, as they go
against social norms. There is less agreement on whether some of these
acts should be considered criminal behaviour and go against the law. This
means that more crimes are both criminal and deviant; it all depends on
how different societies view them.
There is a low level of a public awareness of more crimes due to many
people only seeing them as deviant, not criminal, so they choose not to
report them to the police as they don’t see the point. Also, in many moral
crimes, the victim and offender have a shared interest in the crime, so
they choose to conceal the offence, making fewer crimes reported. The
media rarely reports on these crimes unless they involve celebrities or
extreme cases which can end up circulating on social media platforms.
A moral crime case study is Mavis Eccleston. She and her husband both
agree to take a large overdose of prescription drugs, due to her husband
being terminally ill and in pain. Dennis (her husband) died; however,
Mavis survived. She was later charged with murder and manslaughter for
helping to assist Dennis’ suicide. At court Mavis pleaded she did the act
