The Negotiator: Applying a Criminological Theory

Criminology is the scientific approach to studying criminal behavior (Siegel 2006). In the following pages I will apply one of the many theories associated with criminology with a criminal act. There are a number of theories that been developed by sociologist and criminologists throughout the years that explain why people break the law. Many of the early first attempts to explain why people commit crime such as phrenology and biological determinism have been proven to be scientifically implausible. However, there have been many advances in the field of field of criminology and as a result there are many theories that are used to explain away crime.

I have chosen to use the movie "The Negotiator" to do this. Throughout the movie you can see many theories of criminology. However the most prevalent is the rational choice theory. Many criminologists believe that the decision to break the law is made for many personal reasons. Revenge, need, anger, lust and vanity are among these reasons. Regardless of why, criminal actions only take place after the offender has carefully weighed out the potential benefits and repercussions of their actions. Of course rational choice theory can explained further. For instance there are both offense and offender specific crimes. These are very important factors of rational choice because it can explain the reasoning process that criminals use prior to committing a criminal act. An offense specific criminal reacts selectively to a particular offense. The decision to commit the crime is influenced by the probability of getting caught and the available resources to commit the crime. An offender specific criminal must decide if they have the required skill, need and fears to commit a criminal act.

"The Negotiator" is about a police officer that is accused of both murder and robbery and is set in the city of Chicago. The decision to use Chicago as the setting of this movie is one that I feel lends itself well to the plot of this movie. Chicago has been known for corrupt police officers from its founding in the 1800s. The movie focuses on Danny Roman, played by Samuel L. Jackson, a hostage negotiator for the Chicago Police Department. In the opening scenes we see Danny talking a hostage taker down and eventually as well as predictably resolving the situation. Later that same evening the stage is set for his downfall. Danny's partner has been secretly investigating the fact that money has been repeatedly withdrawn from the police officer's pension fund. He tells Danny that he is close to finding out who is taking the money and that they may work with them. Their conversation is cut short and the scene ends. In the next scene Danny's partner is shot by an unknown person and is then found by Danny. As the story unfolds more and more evidence appears that alludes to Danny being the murder as well as the one taking the money from the pension fund.

With the evidence mounting against him and the possibility if going to jail for something that he did not do Danny takes the leap from being a hostage negotiator to being a hostage taker. After a meeting with the District Attorney he sends his wife home and goes to confront the man who he thinks has all the answers. When he does not get the answers that he wants he takes the alleged corrupt investigator hostage along with his personal assistant and a petty informant. Once the police respond to the situation Danny makes his list of demands. First and foremost he wants a negotiator from another precinct to come on the scene to handle all negotiations. His hope is that he will be an impartial party and will help to prove his innocence. That brings in the character of Chris Sabian played by Kevin Spacey. What follows for the next hour and half or so is some of the best dialogue I have seen on film. The important thing to focus on though, is the actual act of taking hostages and how Danny came to make that decision.

Rational choice theory is the most logical theory to apply to this situation. As was mentioned earlier on there is more to rational choice theory, specifically offense and offender specific crimes. The taking of hostages by Danny Roman falls into the offender specific categories. The way the movie depicts his actions leave that as the only logical explanation. One scene in particular shows Danny sending his wife out to the car while he goes back upstairs to confront the man who he thinks has all the answers. Here it is not apparent that he plans to take anyone hostage. You can tell that he is looking only to talk to his accusers and then in a flash he takes the accuser, a personal assistant and an informant hostage. It is at this point that his training as a hostage negotiator kicks in. He directs everyone else out of the room but not before they all give up their guns and handcuffs. He then begins to fortify the room that he is in. He denies the police if any audio or visual surveillance of his location. He then gets on the radio that he has taken and begins to talk to all of his former colleagues. It is at this point that we see the calculating side of Danny. As he is talking to over the radio he tells the police that he knows the rules of engagement and that he will not be talked down. This is a great example of the prerequisites needed to commit a crime. Offender specific crime means that before deciding to commit crime, individuals must decide whether they have the prerequisites to a successful criminal act, including proper skills, motives, needs and fears (Siegel 2006). Through his speech over the radio we see that Danny has the required skill to successfully commit this crime. As far as motives, needs and fears go, we see all of this prior to the act itself. He has the need to clear his name and find the real killer of his partner as well as those that are stealing from the pension fund. Further more both his fear and motivation is that he not only was going to be taken away from the job that he loves but also from the woman that he loves. All of this he decides is enough justification to take the hostages and force the hand of the real criminals.

Ultimately the real criminals are discovered and Danny is seen as saving the day. In applying one of the many criminological theories I was forced to a much closer look at what is considered entrainment. I know will not be able to simply enjoy a movie or television show about police work. I will be constantly looking for the what and why criminals do what is they do, I do not think that this will hinder my enjoyment of a show but make all the more interesting . Of course on e very good thing to remember ids that the movies and television are a Hollywood depiction of real life. What that means is that not everything will be able to fit into one of the nice compartments that criminologists have created for human criminal behavior.

References

Siegel, Larry J. (2006). Criminology (9^th ed). Belmont, CA. Thomson Wadsworth.

Gray, Gary F. (Director). (1998). The Negotiator [Motion Picture]. United States: Warner Brothers.