This research considers some sociological aspects of mur der in the United States. Although other cases and sources are employed, this consideration is conducted primarily through an examination of the so called "Preppie Murder," in which Jenni fer Levin was the victim, and Robert Chambers was the murderer, and which occurred in New York City in August 1986 (Glynn, 1988).
Three factors provide the focus for this research. These factors are (1) societal views in the United States toward victims and accused persons in murder cases, (2) the use of these societal attitudes by defense and prosecuting counsels in the manipulation of juries, and (3) the degree to which justice is served by the American approach to murder.
Ask almost any American citizen, and one would be told that murder is wrong, and that its perpetrator should be pun ished severely polls indicate that 84 percent of Americans approve of capital punishment (Kaminsky, 1985). Ask almost any American about a specific murder, however, or place almost any American on a jury panel in a murder trial, and (1) the act of
murder may not always be perceived as being wrong, and (2) even when the act is perceived as a wrong, the perpetrator may not be punished severely.
In point of fact, while the majority of Americans overtly condemn the act of murder, they tacitly condone some murders. The offense of murder in the United States is, to a great extent, a racially/ethnically segregated offense. For the most part, anglos are murdered by anglos 79.6 percent of anglos murdered are murdered by another anglo, blacks are murdered by blacks 94.7 percent, Hispanics are murdered by Hispanics 82.3 percent, and members of all other racial and ethnic groups in the population are murdered by other members of these groups 64.6 percent (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1989). Anglos, as a group, as an example, may not particularly care when a black murders another black; however...