Ripping off the Government: Rationalizing and Boundary Breaking among 3 White Collar Immigrant Offenders

• In Event: Risk-Taking, Boundary-Breaking and Edgework in the Study of Deviance and Crime

Abstract

This presentation will explore the life stories and criminal motivations of 3 convicted offenders who engaged in fraud against the government. Sykes and Matza's theory of neutralization will provide a starting point for analyzing the behavior and justifications for engaging in food stamp scams, medicaid fraud and filing false tax returns. I will expand on this theorization by focusing on the negative experiences and blocked opportunities among 3 recent immigrants to the United States.

Author

• Jennifer Wynn, CUNY LaGuardia / CUNY John Jay