Examples Of Victimless Crimes

Victimless?

Jacob Zucker

Grantham University

Abstract This paper discusses whether the possession and carrying of firearms or the illegal purchase of a firearm are "victimless" crimes. It also discusses why offenses such as these are not usually listed as victimless crimes.

Victimless? Victimless crimes are crimes that do not directly inflict personal or property harm on another person in the sense that murder, robbery, rape and theft do (Gardner & Anderson, 2015, p. 16). Society, believed by some, is to be the victim when a victimless crime has committed. Some examples of victimless crimes are public drunkenness, prostitution, and obscenity offenses involving consenting adults (Gardner & Anderson, 2015, p. 16).

Heller, 128 S. Ct. 2783 (2008) (Gardner & Anderson, 2015, p. 20). The Second Amendment however, does not protect an individual to illegally purchase or possess firearms. For example, a man in Washington D.C. aided and abetted an individual’s false statements to a firearms dealer by, among other things, accompanying the individual to the firearms dealer to help select the firearms for purchase, providing the purchaser with the money to purchase the firearms, and directing the purchaser how to behave when purchasing the firearms ("D.C. Man Sentenced for Purchase of Illegal Firearms," 2017). This, and the fact that this man was previously convicted of armed robbery, led to law enforcement conducting a traffic stop and apprehending the man who eventually plead guilty to the purchase of illegal firearms. Some may argue the man who being aided and abetted is the victim however, it is not mentioned that he was coerced or under duress at anytime during the exchange. For this reason, the argument that this is a victimless crime is more reasonable. The person who made the sale still gets the money for the firearms and the person who was aided and abetted didn’t know any better and was not criminally charged. It is hard to argue that society is the victim in this case because society, or the

The person purchases on behalf of another when the other person is unable, or unwilling, to purchase the item or service themselves is not considered as an illegal act. But any violation of the Gun Control Act, 1968 make the straw purchase a felony (US Legal, Inc., n.d). This is another example of what can be considered a victimless crime. Even though Special Agent in Charge Gregory K. Gant, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Atlanta Field Division, said, “These cases are not victimless crimes and directly impact our communities” (Crosby, 2011), the argument of the community not experiencing any harm still