Victimless Crime?: Prostitution, Drugs, Homosexuality, and Abortion (The Roxbury Series in Crime, Justice, and Law)

This brief text begins by addressing the following two questions: (1) What kinds of problems can the law solve? and (2) What kinds of problems does the law create? Using these questions as starting points, esteemed criminologists Meier and Geis explore the role and function of law in four areas: prostitution, drugs, homosexuality, and abortion. Consensus is not a hallmark of the ongoing controversy over "victimless" crime. Some people view prostitution, drugs, homosexuality, and abortion as crimes without victims; others view the participants involved as victims without crimes. Perhaps the only thing these four behaviors have in common is substantial disagreement about the wrongfulness of the behavior and the proper role for the law. As a result, the effectiveness and scope of the law is limited.

Meier and Geis' provocative book offers an in-depth discussion of behaviors in these four areas, then reviews the conflicting opinions about the proper role of criminal law for dealing with them. Victimless Crime? eases instruction by providing an ideal classroom forum for exploring the facts behind these polemical and contentious issues.