ABSTRACT
Currently the study of state crime is primarily the preserve of criminologists, not least because of the term ‘crime’, the use of deviant organisational behaviour to explain public institutional misconduct, and the work done in this area by those sociologists and criminologists who style themselves radical sociologists and criminologists. The latter have a particular view of the communities of interest among the rich and powerful, including those in corporate and public life, which may lead to claims of ‘the state within the state’ and other somewhat prescriptive approaches.
