The beneficial side of crime

Abstract

The article examines, from a criminological perspective, the thesis, advanced by Durkheim and taken up by Coser, Merton, Garcia-Pablos, Figueiredo Dias, and Hassemer, that crime is a normal and functional phenomenon in every society, producing positive effects such as strengthening social cohesion, clarifying and updating existing norms, and overcoming institutional rigidity. Building on this theoretical premise, the author analyzes the investigation of the offenses that led to the impeachment of the then President of the Republic, treating it as a concrete example of how crime can act as a factor of social evolution and as grounds for legislative revision and improvement, citing Laws 8,072/90 and 8,137/90 as precedents of criminal law reform prompted by crime. He concludes that new non-penal administrative controls are needed, along with a thorough overhaul of the Special Part of the Criminal Code and of precautionary asset-freezing measures, so as to narrow the gap between positive law and emerging criminal conduct, particularly offenses committed by public officials against public administration.