[US] ‘An obsession with possession’ -- Poverty and crime linked, but people still responsible for actions, police say

From The Times and Democrat

By RICHARD WALKER, T&D Staff Writer

When Orangeburg County Sheriff Larry Williams thinks about the links between crime and poverty, he thinks back to the time when he had to repossess an elderly woman’s wood stove. During the Christmas holidays, deputies were sent to her home to seize the stove from the woman and her grandchildren. The payments for the stove were behind, and, at the time, deputies were charged with enforcing the civil statutes. The stove was collected during the bitter winter, and returned to the owner’s business.

“I took the stove out of the house,” said Sheriff Larry Williams, referring to the 1979 incident, when he was a deputy. “But I sure didn’t want to take it.”

Later, Williams and several other deputies bought food to take to the elderly woman. When they arrived, smoke was wafting from the chimney.

“I said, ’You stole it?’” Williams said, referring to the wood stove, which looked remarkably like the one Williams had removed earlier. “And she said, ’No, I took it. I didn’t steal it.’”

The stove, when repossessed, had been placed outside of the business. The woman had simply retrieved it.

“That’s one of the cases where I saw poverty, and I saw crime,” Williams said. “Here, this older lady had her back against the wall. And I was wondering how she got that stove back.”

Law enforcement officials say there is a definite correlation between poverty and crime, but poverty is no excuse for crime.

“I think there is a definite correlation. Certainly it’s not an excuse, but I think poverty has, frankly, created a level of desperation and hopelessness,” Orangeburg Department of Public Safety Chief Wendell Davis said.

Also, there is a flash and cash image which is deemed to measure an individual’s level of success.

“We tend to be very materialistic,” Davis said. “By society focusing on materialistic gain, we have created the desire to obtain possessions, even if it means doing so by illegal means.”

While there is no evidence to suggest that a person in poverty will commit a crime, officials across the board say there is an unmistakable connection between the two.

“There is definitely a correlation with poverty and crime,” 1st Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe said. “All you have to do to see a correlation is the majority of our defendants on our docket are handled by the public defender’s office.”

The public defender’s office represents indigent patients, based on poverty guidelines.

Pascoe said that on Nov. 7, a defendant stood before the court stating he did not qualify for a public defender’s services. He said his disability check amounted to about $700 a month.

Of the 119 answering roll call in General Sessions court during the October term of court, 16 acquired their own private attorney.

Another 18 of had not retained an attorney of any sort as of the start. That left 85 defendants, or 71 percent of October’s docket, who qualified for a public defender.

Since Oct. 1, the public defender’s office has added 123 new cases to its plate. And that number doesn’t reflect the new juvenile cases dished out to them in the same time period.

“They have enough to be saying grace over,” Orangeburg County Clerk of Court Lisa Mizzell said.

The statistics

When State Law Enforcement Division figures for the state are compared with those of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for South Carolina, it appears to bear out that poverty, while not necessarily a cause of, can be considered at least a factor in crime statistics.

The unemployment rate for South Carolina in 2001 was 5.6 percent, which rose to 6 percent in 2002. And the percentage of violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault) rose 4.2 percent in the same time period.

When the same figures for 2003 and 2004 are compared, unemployment climbed from 6.8 percent to 7 percent, while violent crime during that period dropped.

But when non-violent crimes committed during the same time period are factored in, it would appear the crime rate for the state rises with the unemployment rate.

As the jobless rate rose from 2002 through 2004, the combined violent and nonviolent South Carolina crime rate rose .1 percent, .7 percent and .7 percent for the three years compared.

“If you get to a level of hopelessness, you have a tendency to think there are no viable options aside from cutting corners and being involved in things you know are wrong,” Davis said.

Law enforcement officials aren’t blind to the fact that there is a certain level of crime committed simply out of necessity.

But officials say that poverty doesn’t give any right to entitlement.

“That’s no excuse,” Pascoe said. “Many people grow up and went on to commit no crimes.”

Officials point out that some cars bearing the flashy rims and expensive paint work are often seen parked in front of dilapidated homes in need of repair. It’s the image of wealth and rebellion against authority that a person dealing in narcotics seek, police say.

“What they don’t seem to realize is this isn’t a long-term career,” Davis said. “Certainly, we will catch up with them.”

Root of the problem

Most law enforcement officials say it’s a vicious cycle.

Pascoe said when he gives a lecture, he’ll ask an audience their opinion as to the causes of crime. Invariably, drugs and domestic violence are offered.

But the solicitor said the seed for a criminal inclination was planted long before it grew into drugs or domestic altercations.

“It starts when they’re kids because the vast majority of violent criminals in our adult court started out as juveniles,” he said. “Most of them started out with shoplifting and petty theft.”

But the desire to steal isn’t inherited or a gene people are born with, Davis said. Combined with the perception that possessions equal success, a person is taught at an early age to covet material gain, the police chief said.

“What you have is an obsession with possession,” Davis said.

Pascoe said it’s a vicious cycle. Somewhere along the line, he said, a man stole as a means to support his family. That petty theft grew until it became more serious, an armed robbery. Someone may have been killed in the attempt.

And a child sees his or her parent end up in jail or worse, Pascoe said, creating a feeling of hopelessness that leads to crime being seen as a normal way of life.

“What we need to do is attack the juvenile problem, by attacking it twofold,” the solicitor said. “First, deal with the violent juvenile offenders and, second, we have to have a good rehabilitation program for juveniles.”

The violent juvenile offender program would be aimed at “juveniles who like to carry guns and shoot people,” Pascoe said..

“Indeed, we’re going to look into waving them into General Sessions court,” Pascoe said. “If they’re old enough to be carrying a gun, they’re old enough to be treated as an adult, in most cases.”

The rehabilitation program in the 1st Circuit began has begun in Dorchester County.

“I’ve already started the church mentor program in this circuit,” he said. “And we’re in the process of lining up Orangeburg churches to help steer children away from crime. I haven’t met a pastor or minister yet who wasn’t excited about the program.”

Officials agree that if juveniles are given an inward reason for change, crime in the future can be deterred.

“Poverty may cause crime, but God can end it,” Pascoe said.