Poverty and Crime

Abstract

The exploration of the overrepresentation of the poor and poor minorities in both the juvenile and criminal justice systems has been the center of several experimental and empirical investigations. Researchers, policy makers, criminologists, and advocates are well aware of the implications that differential offending, bureaucratic bias, and the various social disparities depicted among social control policies and ecological settings have on impoverished minority populations. These disparities have various disadvantaging effects on future life outcomes, life trajectories, and involvement in criminal activity. Although much is known about the overrepresentation of impoverished minorities in both the criminal and juvenile justice systems, little has been done to address the many concerns. Rather, numerous efforts in the forms of both legal and extralegal factors have been enacted to concentrate segmented populations. These effects further disadvantage minority and poverty‐stricken populations, making any upward mobilization almost impossible. The key issues surrounding the overrepresentation of poor and poor minorities in crime statistics include the importance of understanding community‐level perspectives, which entrench the disadvantaged. Also, it is necessary to identify theoretical approaches that outline bias within the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Furthermore, the information will collaboratively exemplify differences in increased social control policies among poor minorities.