Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with criminals

"How do I know you're not a cop?"

stinkycheese — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:08:37 -0800

How do criminals convince other criminals they aren't (undercover) police?

Positive quotations or aphorisms about crime and/or criminals?

paradoxflow — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:03:50 -0800

Positive quotations or aphorisms about crime and/or criminals? I'm looking for quotations or aphorisms which show respect, admiration, or approval of crime (particularly non-violent crime), and criminals. I am -not- looking for quotations concerning specific criminals, but rather the practice and the people in general. "The wise thief always prospers," though probably terribly misquoted is a good example of what I mean.

David Simonize me

Bookhouse — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 12:26:35 -0800

What can I do to learn more about crime (without becoming a criminal)? I write crime fiction, and am looking to seriously expand my knowledge base of cops and robbers and all that good stuff. I'm not looking for any book suggestions (I have shelves of them). Instead, I'm looking for either a part-time job or classes to take. The obvious job for me would be a reporter on the police beat, so suggestions relating to that are welcome, but I'm looking for other ideas as well. (I don't have a lot of non-writing job experience). As far as classes, I'm not as interested in theories of criminology as I am in forensics, interrogation techniques or other hands-on training.

The more concrete the suggestions, the better. I live in NYC.

Looking for songs and movies that can teach abusers about relationships

Alison — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 07:01:58 -0800

Looking for popular songs and movies that can be used to educate people in the system for abuse related crimes. These examples will be used to facilitate discussions about relationship boundaries, male entitlement, and inappropriate behavior. A friend runs group counseling sessions to reform/educate male criminals convicted of crimes related to personal relationships. Most are physical/sexual abusers attending these sessions as a condition of their release. She has a book to help run the group. However, the book is not right for many of her attendees as many have a 8th grade level education and are unable to keep up. The examples will be used as a shortcut to help them learn about appropriate behavior using things they are already familar with.

My friend is looking for songs, movies and other media to help facilitate group discussion. The clips won't be used as examples of right and wrong, but as conversation tools. She is looking for things that the attendees will likely already know and remember and is especially interested in appropriate songs from the hip hop and country music genres. Because this is job related the content should be at about a PG-13 level or below. Also, we are not looking for a discussion about how well criminal reform works. Save it for the blue.

Here is one example of a song she plans on using:

The Temptations
"Ain't Too Proud To Beg"

...If I have to sleep on your doorstep
All night and day just to keep you from walkin' away
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand
Because I want to keep you any way I can

Ain't too proud to beg, sweet darlin'
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go...

The more well known the movie/song is to the general population the better. This means that the Mountain Goats probably wouldn't be appropriate.

Here is another example with appropriate content, but rejected because of obscurity:

Weezer
"No One Else"

...I want a girl who will laugh for no one else
When I'm away she puts her makeup on the shelf
When I'm away she never leaves the house
I want a girl who laughs for no one else...

Fleur-de-lis branding

tellurian — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 06:27:20 -0800

Why would criminals have been branded 'Fleurdeliser': Hollyband 1593: Fleurdeliser, to burne one with an hot floure-de luce betweene the shoulders, when the Fleur-de-lis was employed by the French monarchy as a symbol of faith, wisdom and chivalry?

How much does a defense lawyer know?

Mayor Peace Love and Unity — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 14:03:01 -0800

If a person is accused of a crime, and committed said crime but is confident that there is little or no evidence and plans to plead not guilty, do they tell their counsel that they did it? This is one of those things that I wonder about sporadically and I want to ask it while I remember to ask it. I've never committed any crimes personally except caring too much and don't plan on ever being in a situation like this.

Let's say that I am accused by the police of, say, a bank robbery. And somehow I know that there is no physical evidence of my robbing the bank and I have an accomplice that will provide a credible alibi.

When I am alone with my lawyer, do I tell him a story based on my alibi, or do I tell him that I did it but here's why it would be difficult to convict me?

I have just always wondered if the lawyer sitting next to an accused criminal, in the instances where the accused is guilty of the charges but claiming innocence, knows what's up.

I am not interested in it from a moral standpoint (everyone has a job to do and most everyone has to do some degree of lying to get through life anyway), I am merely curious how it works.

Help a felon find employment!

justonegirl — Thu, 27 Jul 2006 08:38:08 -0800

Advice for a convicted felon trying to find work? My brother-in-law is trying desperately to find work. He has several, quite unappealing felonies on his record (I don't know the exact charges but they have to do with weapons, burglary or breaking-and-entering, and DWI -- possibly drugs as well, since I know he's been in court-mandated rehab). About two years ago he completed the second of two sentences in county lockup and has been drug- and crime-free since.

This person is 24 years old and is under medical treatment for bipolar disorder and ADD. He is a high school graduate, but has not pursued any vocational training beyond that (this is not a possibility now, either, due to financial constraints and a need to gain employment ASAP to support himself). Previous jobs have included kitchen work in a restaurant, food prep and counter work in a deli/bagel shop, roofing, and warehouse jobs. He has left these jobs due to either conflict with management/coworkers, or a lack of steady hours.

Now, understandably, he's having tremendous difficulty lining up any kind of work. Most employers seem to automatically exclude anyone with a felony conviction (or at least pass him over in favor of applicants without this type of background). He tried the county's job placement office, but due to his criminal record and bipolar disorder, he was classified as "mentally handicapped" and they put him in a group of severely developmentally disabled people and asked him to participate in "tests" such as toddler-level puzzles. This was embarrassing and insulting to him, and the constant rejection from any type of employment opportunities is making him feel like it's going to be impossible to turn his life around.

Surely some options exist...you hear all the time of convicted sex offenders, even murderers, being employed at the time of their latest crime. Ideal jobs would have steady hours (40+ per week), some sort of merit-based advancement opportunity, and limited contact with the public. If it makes a difference, this is in central Maryland (Howard County). Any ideas?