ABSTRACT
As stated in the previous chapter, the majority of criminal acts are relatively trivial in that they involve minor damage to property or thefts that are worth only small sums of money. In most such cases, the victim regains their equilibrium when their initial anger and feelings of loss have subsided. However, there are crimes against property and crimes against the person that are highly likely to produce immediate threats to the well-being of the victim and are likely to have subsequent adverse long-term effects. This chapter and the two that follow are concerned with serious criminal acts which threaten life and which have potentially highly damaging long-term consequences.
