Robbery: Crime and Research Different Methods

Armed robbery is considered to be a serious offense in the United States and I would imagine that being robbed at gunpoint or with a big sharp knife would be a terrible experience for anyone to have to endure. In an effort to reduce the amount of armed robberies each year it is important to research different methods that would aid in the reduction of violent crimes that take place each year. According to the Supreme Court of the United States, robbery is defined as taking the property of another with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear (Carter v United States, 2000).
As a criminologist advisor to a member of the state legislation, it is important that any recommendation be extremely solid. In my opinion, an extremely solid recommendation is not based solely on popularity; it is based primarily on statistics. Armed robbery is violent offense that can have a devastating effect on a person’s life. These crimes are detrimental to the growth of society, which means that society needs to do as much as possible to decrease these acts of violence. It would be nearly impossible to eliminate armed robberies completely but that does not mean that it should not be attempted. After careful consideration and tedious research it is my recommendation that anyone convicted without reasonable doubt by their peers in a court of law of armed robbery should have to serve double the maximum prison term.
This type of deterrence, I believe, will prove to have successful results. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Unified Crime Report, guns were used to commit armed robberies a majority of the time. The Unified Crime Report recorded that guns were used in 42.6 percent of all reported armed robberies, knives were used 7.7 percent of the time, dangerous weapons were reportedly used 8.7 percent of the time, and the remaining 41.1 percent of robberies were by brute force or strong arm tactics. The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines armed robbery as taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear (FBI, 2010).