Victim Precipitation Theory discusses how a victim can actively or passively play a role in the crime itself. Conduct an internet search for a current (less than two years old) case or article about a crime victim. In a well-constructed, one page essay, discuss how the victim either actively or passively participated in the crime.
Victim Precipitation Theory is a criminology theory which examines how a sufferer himself reacts in particular ways that unintentionally aggravate the victimizer’s assault on them. In other words, a criminal act is a mutually undertaken process. Earlier people were of the misconception that the offender was the main culprit for a crime and the entire case was viewed from the victimizer’s point. But the said theory changed apparently wherein it is understood that the victim is also to some extent responsible for the occurrence of the crime (Meier, & Miethe, 1997). The victim’s conduct is such that it forces the offender to attack on the victim i.e the victim sets into motion their own victimisation.
As in the recent case in the year 2014, Walter Delon Tate aged 39 years have been given 18 years of imprisonment for killing Kames L. Brown Jr. During a barbeque at Tate’s Hine Avenue Home. This is a clear case of victim precipitation theory wherein the offender would not have committed the crime of killing Brown had he not threatened to rape him and his 11 year old son. The incident began with a little teaser by Tate wherein he asked Brown as to why he has got his white girlfriend along with him. This lead to an argument between the two with a little pushing here and there but took a nasty turn when Tate became scared of the threatening given by Brown.
The unfortunate past about Tate was that there was a rape attempt on him when he was small and was saved by his father in the last moment. Due to this when Brown said something like, he remembered his past and became scared hence violent. Whereas Mr. Brown was a violent person and a very famous drug dealer. Tate’s bringing the gun and killing Brown was an impulsive action in reaction to what Brown said simply to protect his son from being raped. Further the offender did not any body to help him fight with the duel diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar. People have also vouched to the fact that they have never seen him violent and that he would have never reacted the way he did (Read, 2015).
Thus the particular case clearly shows that Tate would have never reacted in this manner had he not been threatened by Mr. Brown for conducting such an act against him and his son. It was simply the love and care he has for his son which led to occurrence of such an incident and provoked him to kill him out of fear which was there within him since childhood. Although it is equally right that if Tate was suffering from any disease then he should not be in possession of any arms and ammunition since he could have misused it due to his unstable mental condition but the evidences have confirmed that he is a non-violent person and that had such a fear of him not been aggravated then he would have never misused the possession of a gun. Thus this proves that the criminal act was provoked by the victim by giving such a scary threat against a small joke.
References
Meier,R.F. & Miethe, T.D. (1997). Understanding Theories of Criminal Victimization. Crime and Justice. 17. 459-499
Read,T. (2015). Painesville man gets max sentence in July 4 shooting death. Retrieved from http://www.news-herald.com/article/hr/20150309/NEWS/150309602
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