Ideal Victim Essay - 2185 Words

For the purpose of this essay I will be considering Nils Christie’s (1986) concept of the ‘ideal victim’. In considering this concept, I will discuss what is meant by an ‘ideal victim’ and will also be focusing on the high profile Australian criminal case of Anita Cobby in Blacktown on 2nd of February 1986. Anita Cobby was only 26 years old when she was abducted, brutally raped and murdered by four ‘ideal offenders’. This essay will also consider, the ways in which the media and criminal justice system have constructed Anita Cobby as an ‘ideal victim’. Nils Christie explains that there are certain characteristics that make a victim an ‘ideal victim’. These characteristics are, young, old, weak, doing something respectable and legal,†¦show more content†¦This can help the wider community understand their own moral obligations and behaviour within society. As noted by ‘†¦.Smolej (2010), portrayals of crime and deviance in the media are often seen as essential parts of social control since the media has a central role in defining what is deviant and condemnable.’ Like the media, the criminal justice system and organisations in and around the criminal justice system play a major contribution in the construction of an ‘ideal victim’. As stated by ‘†¦.Rock (2006), Institutional practices shape the public representations and private understandings of victims of crime’. For instance, in Australia there are many organisations that help victims and their families of serious crimes. Although on the other hand, there are limited or no services available to victims of minor crimes. This was further explained to Rock (2006) by a member of the New South Wales Witness Assistance Service (WAS), ‘†¦due to resource reasons WAS has to prioritise the services it provides. Priorities are determined on the basis of type of crime and on the basis of victims and witnesses with particular needs such asShow MoreRelatedEssay on Ideal Victim1711 Words   |  7 PagesAn ‘ideal victim’ is someone who has played no part in their victimisation by an offender who was wholly responsible for the incident. The public can relate to the ‘ideal victims’ ordeal and although they have been through an awful sometimes incomprehensible experience society views the ‘ideal victim’ â€Å"as pure, blameless (hence passive) people against whom an evil act was omitted by a depraved individual† (Spalek, B. 2006 p25). Although most people can relate to an ‘ideal victim’ there is a ‘positivistRead MoreEssay about How the Me dia Uses an Ideal Victim in Portrayals of Crime1987 Words   |  8 Pagesof political, academic, and public debate. In particular, the media today is more focused on victims than it has ever been before. 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And no one rose to ask the question Good?-by what standard?† Society’s view of sexual assault is shifting in a negative way in that members of society openly persecute victims of sexual assault, and certain types of popular visual media promoteRead MoreThe Case And The Johnson Case903 Words   |  4 Pageshis victims suffering, which is the most important factor for this type of offender. In the Parkinson and Johnson murders there were no signs of torture on the victims bodies and therefore I do not believe t hat this offender would be a thrill serial killer. However, I believe that this offender is a lust killer rather than a power-control killer because the power-control killers main motivation for his crimes is power and control over the victim, the power of deciding when and how the victim is