Robbery may be defined as taking another person s property by intimidation. Forcible rape is the act of forcing sexual intercourse on another person against his or her will. Statutory rape , for which penalties are less severe, is the act of having sexual relations with a man or woman who is below a particular age established by state law. Date or acquaintance rape is forcible sex in which the victim is known to the offender. Child abuse may be defined as a deliberate attack on a child by a parent or other caregiver that results in physical injury.
Women are the usual victims of spouse abuse.
Only recently has spouse abuse become an issue of social concern, and it is still difficult to assess its frequency and its impact on American family life. Social scientists have only recently begun to study this type of violence so little is known about its causes. Homicide rates in the United States are as much as 20 times the rate in other industrialized nations. Available evidence indicates that the high rate of homicide in the United States is not the presence of gangs per se but the ready availability of guns. Policymakers have not had much success in reducing or eliminating violent crime.