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THE DARK FIGURE OF CRIME AND ITS IMPACT ON THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
SYSTEM

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 Doorewaard Acta Criminologica:
Southern African Journal of Criminology 27(2) 2014

THE DARK FIGURE OF CRIME AND ITS IMPACT ON THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
SYSTEM
Cecili Doorewaard1
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ABSTRACT
Much has been researched and written about the reasons, nature and the extent of
unreported crime. The unwillingness of the public to report crime stems from various reason
and motives. However, the dark figure of crime still remains a pivotal point amongst citizens
and criminal experts alike. This article explores what impact unreported crime might hold for
the criminal justice system. Both members of the public and criminal justice system experts
participated in the study on which the article is based. Their reasons, perceptions and
insights into unreported crime was examined and a conclusion drawn as to whether and to
what extent unreported crime affects the criminal justice system.
Keywords: dark figure of crime; unreported crime; victims of crime; criminal justice system
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

INTRODUCTION
Official crime statistics have an infamous reputation when it comes to reflecting the true
nature and extent of crime (Bartol & Bartol, 2011: 15; Newham, Burger, Gould & Lancaster,
2012: 9). Amongst such reasons is the issue of unreported crime. For a crime to form part of
the official statistics, the crime needs to be reported to the policing authorities. If not, these
unreported crimes go undetected, unchallenged and offenders remain unidentified. These
unreported crimes are known as the dark figure of crime (Singh, 2011: 103, 105).
Numerous studies have been conducted over the years to explain why certain crimes
go unreported namely, through the use of victim surveys and self-reported studies (Bartol &
Bartol, 2011: 20, 22). Within such studies, the reasons, perceptions of the police, the courts,
and the extent of crime are normally addressed. The question to ask, which is still
overshadowed by such factors is, what impact does the dark figure of crime hold for the
criminal justice system?
A research study on the dark figure of crime and its impact on the criminal justice
system was undertaken in 2013 by the author who set out to explore what effect unreported
crime has on the criminal justice system. The article will set out the rationale, methodology
and findings on this research of unreported crime and whether it has any significant
implications for the criminal justice system.

DEFINING THE DARK FIGURE OF CRIME

The dark figure of crime is a term used to describe the gap between the true extent of crime
and crimes known to the police (Mosher, Miethe & Phillips, 2002: 84). Tierney (2006: 27)
refers to it as ‘hidden’ crimes that are not recorded by the police and are therefore absent
from official statistics, while Walsh and Hemmens (2011: 41) refer to it as that portion of
total crimes committed each year that never comes to light.
Thus, the dark figure of crime (or hidden crime) can be explained as those crimes that
are not reported to the police or law enforcement agencies that may or may not have occurred
in a specific period of time, whether only known to one person (victim) or more (witnesses)
persons who may decide not to report such crimes.
______________________
1.
Postgraduate Research Assistant, Department of Criminology and Security Science, University of South
Africa, Email: Edoorec@unisa.ac.za

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Doorewaard Acta Criminologica:
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LITERATURE REVIEW
Crime victim surveys or self-report studies usually reveal the reasons why people fail to
report crimes. Some may view the crime as too trivial to report, fearing retaliation and/or re-
victimisation, having a lack of trust in the police service or feel that nothing will be done
about their situation (Singh, 2011: 105; Mosher et al, 2002: 84; Van der Merwe, 2012: 6).
In 2012, Statistics South Africa (2012: 1) conducted the latest victim of crime survey.
Here it was revealed that some of the most important reasons why people do not report crime
was that the crime was not serious enough or that they could solve it themselves. Other
reasons cited was the belief that the police would fail to solve the crime, or that some police
officers were corrupt or inaccessible and that some police behaviour was inappropriate
(Statistics South Africa, 2012: 53).
With the report in the rise in police brutality and its substantial media coverage in
2012/2013 it is no surprise that people lose faith in the police service which also impacts the
public’s decision on whether or not to report crime (Staff Reporter, 2013: 1; Fourie 2013: 4;
Institute for Security Studies, 2013: Pretoria Seminar). A study conducted by the Human
Sciences Research Council (Roberts, Struwig, Gordon & Bohler-Muller, 2013: 1) concluded
that over the past fifteen years (1998-2012) the public’s trust in the courts fluctuated with the
highest rate of confidence reaching fifty-eight percent (58%) in 2004 and decreasing to fifty
percent (50%) in 2012.
The consequence of it all is that people may report less and less crime. Police and
victims alike will be unaware of such unreported crime and may lead to someone else being
victimised. What is more concerning is that studies show that individuals who start off with
small crimes do not only continue to commit further crime but persist to commit more serious
crime (Bartol & Bartol, 2011: 21). For example, a study conducted on chronic offenders
showed that about one-third of the offenders had, had some police contact while the
remaining two-thirds had no police contact (Siegel, 2010: 59). To what extent does the dark
figure of crime affect the criminal justice system, and is people’s reluctance to report minor
or serious crime truly justified?

RATIONALE OF STUDY
French astronomist, Adolphe Quetelet (one of the first to comment on the dark figure of
crime) was of the opinion that the dark figure of crime was not only related to the seriousness
of crime but also to “the activity of justice in reaching the guilty...” (Mosher et al, 2002: 28).
At the Hatfield Community Court in Pretoria the researcher attempted to get a deeper insight
into the impact that unreported crime might hold for the criminal justice system. A probation
officer at the Hatfield Community Court (Probation Officer Personal Interview, 2012) of the
court stated that in her dealings with accused that claim to have committed their first offence;
she often finds that the so-called “first-time” offence was in fact not the actual first attempt
by the accused to commit a crime. She often finds that previous crimes have been committed
for example, petty theft or shoplifting before the accused had been charged with the current
(known) crime. As a result, such a person may be tried as a first offender rather than as an
accused with a previous recorded committed crime, which may lead to a lighter sentence
(Probation Officer, personal interview, 2012).
The researcher also noted during a weeklong criminology discussion class at the
University of South Africa one of the speakers Mr Vincent Jones of the Johannesburg Parole
Board emphasised the importance of knowing an offender’s previous convictions in order to
see his or her pattern of criminal behaviour. The importance thereof is so that the necessary
interventions can be put into place (Jones, 2013: Unisa). Magistrate Bekker from the Pretoria
Regional Court (2013: Unisa) also noted that previous convictions play an important part in
sentencing. He mentioned that knowing if there are previous convictions for example, when a

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juvenile needs to be sentenced, helps the magistrate to know what interventions need to be
imposed. If there are previous convictions and it is not brought to the attention of the court it
can impact the juvenile in terms of not receiving the necessary interventions that would have
been imposed had the court known the history.
Some may argue that even if every crime were to be reported the whole (criminal
justice) system might collapse. Clear (2007: 9) mentions the various negative effects of
imprisonment on community and family life. Such affects can be devastating for all involved,
especially when taking into account if the main breadwinner of the family is incarcerated.
Lancaster (2013: 1) also states that although the number of arrests between 2009 and 2012
have increased by eighteen and a half percent (18, 5%) the overall crime rate only showed a
small decrease (1, 7%) in the same period. Even though she raises an important question on
whether or not making arrests is the answer to reduce crime in South Africa, other studies
also reveal the importance of people to report crime such as, when trying to determine the
impact of crime on society.
Furthermore, when crime is reported it can contribute to a more accurate reflection of
official crime statistics, even if it is to lessen the criminal justice system difficulty in dealing
with minor crimes (Masiloane & Marais, 2009: 391; Tarling & Morris, 2010: 474). Singh
(2011: 105-106) concurs by saying that the willingness on the part of the general public to
report crime to the authorities and to co-operate in the investigation process would have a
major impact on the levels of crime. Magistrate Bekker (2013: Unisa) conceded that it does
not automatically mean a prison sentence would be imposed if previous convictions are
revealed as interventions such as restorative justice and other programmes are also available.
Notwithstanding that these are valid factors to take into account, this objective of the study on
the dark figure of crime and its impact on the criminal justice system is not to determine the
effects of imprisonment or whether arrest rates will decrease crime per se, but rather to
explore people’s and criminal justice experts’ views and perceptions on the impact of under-
reported crime on the criminal justice system.

THEORETICAL CRIMINOLOGICAL DISCUSSION

From the above arguments on whether an increase in reporting crime is sufficiently warranted
or not it can also be argued from a criminological theoretical perspective that the failure to
report a crime may result in the offender or potential offender knowing that there would be no
consequences for his or her actions. The classical theory of criminology maintains that the
main purpose of the criminal justice system is to deter the offender. It holds that in order for
an offender or potential offender to be deterred from committing a crime the offender should
know that punishment is to follow (certainty), that the punishment should follow as quickly
as possible after the crime was committed and that the punishment should fit the crime
(Akers & Sellers, 2009: 18-19). When a crime is not reported these actions cannot follow, the
offender learns that he or she can get away with it and continues to commit more crimes. It
has been established that criminals make no secret of the fact that if they feel the chances of
being apprehended are slim, their decision to commit a crime is strengthened (Clear, 2007:
29; Zinn, 2011: 171).
Critics of this view may argue that by reporting all crimes can have the opposite
effect. Take for example the labelling perspective, which claims that if a person is labelled as
being deviant or criminal the person may internalise that behaviour and come to view him or
herself as deviant or criminal and the person may continue his or her criminal behaviour as a
result of being labelled (Maddan & Marshall, 2009: 262). Kaariainen and Siren (2011: 69)
claim that victims are aware that if they report crime to the police there may be consequences
for the perpetrator such as public humiliation, especially in cases of minor or incidental
crimes for which they do not feel the need for protection. On the other hand, Akers and

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Sellers (2009: 158) emphasise that research shows very weak to no evidence of labelling
effects.
It can also be argued that not reporting crime can lead to victims experiencing further
disappointment and frustration for example, by denying themselves access to services or
providing the offender a further opportunity to victimise someone else (Tarling & Morris,
2010: 475). According to the theory of strain and anomie, strain is related to criminal
motivation. It is postulated that those who feel economically and socially humiliated may
perceive the right to humiliate others in return (Siegel 2011: 204). This may lead to further
strain, which may then lead to victims taking the law into their own hands. Dissel (2005: 309)
supports this view by stating that victims or victims’ families may take punitive or retributive
action against those known or suspected of committing the crime. She warns that when such
actions are disproportionate or extreme those victims might find themselves in the role of the
offender.
It is for these reasons that the rationale of this research study seeks to explore what
potential consequences unreported crime might hold for the criminal justice system. Factors
such as trust in policing, victims feeling the need to take the law into their own hands, and
offender escalation into crime will be taken into account through gaining insight into both the
public and criminal justice system experts’ view and perception on matters surrounding the
dark figure of crime.

METHODOLOGY
The study followed a qualitative approach and consisted of open-ended questionnaires and in-
depth interviews.

Unit of analysis and sample

One of the first aims this research study sought to explore is the reasons and perceptions on
why people do not report, or will not report crime and whether they think there might be any
consequences for the criminal justice system by not reporting crime. These views were
obtained by asking the general public to participate and recommend other potential
respondents to participate in the research study.
The respondents were classified according to their age and gender, while the
geographical area included respondents throughout the country as the questionnaires were
distributed via electronic mail. The second aim of the research study was to gain insight into
what impact the unreported crime might hold for the criminal justice system by interviewing
prosecutors and related experts in the field at the Hatfield Community Court in Pretoria.
Snowball sampling was used to collect information from a few known participants and by
asking them to suggest other suitable participants who may also be interested and willing to
participate in the research study.
The purpose of this research study (having a limited sample) is not to generalise but to
explore in-depth within a limited sample why people do not report certain crimes and the
impact thereof on the criminal justice system.
This sample (the public’s responses) consisted of 60 participants who have been or may not
have been direct or secondary victims of crime regardless of whether they reported the crime
or not. They were also grouped according to their age (21-30; 31-40; 41-50 and 51-older) and
gender (male and female). For the second part of this research study the key informant
sampling method was used. This type of sampling enabled the researcher to interview already
identified experts in the field of interest namely, the criminal justice field (De Vos, Strydom,
Fouche & Delport, 2011: 294).

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Data collection
The research study conducted in 2013 consisted of using interviews and open-ended
questionnaires to collect the necessary information. Open-ended questionnaires were
distributed via electronic email to the general public or public respondents. This enabled the
public respondents to formulate their answers and respond in their own words without having
to select an answer that closely represented their views (Ballou, 2008: 548).
To obtain the responses of the criminal justice experts the interviewing method was
used. The interviewing method enabled the researcher to ask questions relating to certain
facts, the respondents perceptions, feelings and motives about the subject (Leedy & Ormrod,
2010: 148).

ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRES
The following themes from 60 respondents were obtained and where necessary direct quotes
were inserted:

Biographical details
Forty-three percent (43%) of the respondents were between ages of fifty and upwards while
the remaining age groups were between twenty-one and thirty years of age (27%); between
thirty-one and forty years of age (15%) and forty-one and fifty years of age (15%). Female
respondents made up sixty percent (60%) of the study while male respondents complete the
remaining forty percent (40%).

Direct or secondary victim of crime

The majority of respondents have been victims of crime (78%). Some of these crimes
included hijacking/attempted hijacking, fraud, vehicle theft or theft from vehicle and even
murder and attempted kidnapping. The majority of crimes that were reported included house
robberies/armed robberies, housebreakings and common theft/petty theft.

Whether the crimes were reported or not

Sixty-eight percent (68%) of those who have been victims of crime reported it to the police
while fifteen percent (15%) did not report it. The remaining seventeen percent (17%) reported
some crimes and others not. Those that claim to have not yet been direct victims of crime
claim to be willing to report the crime (92%) should they become victims in future.

Felt like taking the law into their own hands

The majority (65%) of the respondents claimed to feel at some point taking the law into their
own hands although they did not act upon it. Some of the reasons why these respondents felt
this way is that many felt that the police cannot be trusted anymore because they are either
unwilling to help or are disinterested. Some also felt that reporting is a tedious process and
that resolving matters takes forever. One respondent stated “sometimes I get frustrated when
the officers of the law take too long to respond or they do not understand your situation on a
specific demand or case”. Other reasons highlighted were police being incompetent,
unprofessional, and unresponsive and cases never being followed up. Another respondent
sensed that the inspector investigating the murder of her sister was not very interested in
finding the perpetrator. “We gave him a lot of possible information, people who saw a
vehicle (at the scene of the crime), asked him to come and see them and he never did”. This
case has remained unsolved for two years.
The minority (35%) stated that they have not felt like taking the law into their own
hands because they felt it was wrong or was scared to do so. Some stated that it was the
police’s responsibility to maintain law and order and not the individual and as tax-paying

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citizens it is the duty of trained personnel to handle such situations. Many also postulated that
taking the law into their own hands will also make them guilty of a crime. “It would be more
detrimental to me than a benefit. I will become a perpetrator myself”.

Loss of trust in the police service

The respondents were also asked whether they lost trust in the South African Police Service
(SAPS). The majority (73%) have lost faith in the police service as a whole while some
(22%) still believed that there are still good police officers out there. The remaining five-
percent (5%) lost trust in the police service in general but felt that there are still good officers
who are higher in rank (such as detectives) who are still passionate about what they do. Most
of the respondents mention corruption or bribery as the main reason not to trust the police
service anymore. Mention was also made of the negative reports shown in the media on
police brutality and corruption.

Important to report a crime

Whether or not respondents lost trust in the police service, ninety-five percent (95%) felt it
important to report crime whether small or serious. Some stated that if crime is not reported
“then there is no chance of criminals being caught”, or “justice won’t be done”, while most
mentioned it important for statistical purposes. Two percent (2%) of the respondents felt like
it was a waste of time trying to report a crime. Reasons included: victims are sometimes
terrorised for reporting a crime or few crimes are solved. One respondent also felt that the
media makes a mockery of everything and cannot wait to inform the public that suspects have
been released on bail.

Implications for the criminal justice system

Respondents were asked whether they think there will be any significant implications for the
criminal justice system by not reporting crime. Again, the majority (73%) felt it was
important. The importance of keeping crime statistics was mentioned again, while others felt
that crimes will go unpunished and criminals will walk free. One respondent stated that it
depends on the seriousness of the crime and reporting lesser crimes seems to have no impact
as serious efforts are not made to bring those responsible to justice anyway.

ANALYSIS OF INTERVIEWS
The following section represents the criminal justice experts’ views and perceptions related to
the topic. Some of the questions were set up in response to some of the respondents’ (above)
comments to get a glimpse into the workings of the criminal justice system from the experts
themselves. An in-depth interview was conducted with five criminal justice experts for the
purpose of this study at the Hatfield Community Court in Pretoria. Those interviewed
included a probation officer, an apprentice attorney, a police officer of the South African
Police Service (SAPS), a prosecutor and an assessment official of the Department of
Correctional Services (DCS). They were interviewed based on their knowledge and expertise
within the criminal justice field. These experts will be collectively known as the experts or by
their individual occupation when references are made to their responses where necessary.

The importance of reporting a crime

The first question posed to all five criminal justice experts was why they thought it important
for citizens to report a crime. The experts felt it necessary to report a crime for statistical
purposes; if the public does not report a crime they (the criminal justice system) will never be
able to catch criminals. For example, in the interview with the police official, she stated that
“it helps us (the police) to know the where, when, who, what and how in order to estimate

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where our crime prevention priorities lie”. Secondly, they felt it important for citizens to
report a crime to prevent it from happening again as one interviewee responded “every person
has the right to safety and if you are not going to report crime then crime is going to increase
even more”. More importantly, one of the lawyers mentioned that one of the main goals of
the justice system is to make sure that offenders are punished for their crimes in order to
protect society against potential offenders. If not, people are sometimes inclined to take the
law into their own hands.

Criminals tend to escalate in crime

In response to the fact that many people do not report crime because they view it as too trivial
to report, the question was posed whether or not the criminal justice experts feel that most
offenders they have come across tend to escalate in their crimes. All five experts conceded
that most offenders begin small in their offences and then tend to progress to more serious
crimes. The probation officer stated that she has seen it many a time in cases where youths
use drugs. “They will maybe start off by smoking dagga or minor drugs that cost less but later
progress to more serious drugs which is more expensive. So in the beginning they will, for
instance steal cheese and then have a week’s supply for dagga. But a fifty-rand (R50) cheese
for example won’t buy them heroin so they commit more serious crimes to be able to buy
more serious drugs. She also mentions that if one looks at other crimes such as shoplifting,
those that tend to fall into the web of crime commit shoplifting and thereafter commit crimes
that are more serious when they see that they can get away with it. This statement was also
confirmed by the other experts. The police officer postulated that it is very important to report
such crimes. The reason being for example, when they do street patrols during the night and
come across someone who is drunk they arrest such a person for public drunkenness to
prevent such a person to go on and commit for example, housebreaking or car theft as being
in a drunken state gives them the courage to commit more serious crimes.

Postponements and delays within the trial process

Some of the public respondents who participated in the study mentioned that they feel even if
they were to report a crime the criminal usually walks free, easily gets bail or the trial process
takes too long to reach a conclusion. In response to this, the researcher asked the experts to
comment on the postponements and delays within the trial process that the public often
experience and that citizens in South Africa feel that the offenders have more rights than the
victims. Some of the experts commented that the offender having rights is part of our
Constitution, which our criminal justice system is based on. As a result to protect a person’s
rights a person may change legal representatives which can lead to postponements. Other
experts have also mentioned that the state can also ask the court for postponements in order
for the state to strengthen its case against the accused. As mentioned by one expert, “it does
not help if a case quickly comes before the court but the investigation is not yet finalised or
properly done. Then the offender will in effect walk free in any case, so it is better to
postpone a case if necessary and make sure that an investigation is done properly in order to
make sure that the accused does not walk free”.
It was also mentioned that the public does not always know what goes on ‘behind the
curtains’. Witnesses lose interest in attending the cases or are unwilling to attend court
proceedings which make the court’s task more difficult as those witnesses are sometimes
necessary for the state to make a case against the accused. If the witnesses do not attend, the
case often needs to be withdrawn. Consequently, it was postulated that at the Hatfield court
they have a witness care unit. Here witnesses are phoned to make sure that they attend court
and explain to them how the court process works. The probation officer revealed that in some
culpable homicides that she dealt with some of the cases were not processed because they did

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not have any witnesses. Part of her work is to phone the victim’s family and inform them
about the case. She stated that when she speaks to the family members they often have no
idea of what is going on and sometimes they think the case has already been finalised or the
perpetrator was found guilty. Sometimes the investigator is transferred or retired and then the
victims or their families are not informed about this.

Impact of crime on the criminal justice system

Whether or not the experts believed that the under-reporting of crime will weaken the
criminal justice system two of the experts stated that they think it does have an impact on the
criminal justice system. In terms of keeping statistics and taking into account, for example
drug related crimes helps serve as a deterrent according to one expert. However, most of the
experts mentioned that they do not think that the under-reporting of crime has such an impact
on the criminal justice system per se. They feel it rather has a negative impact on the
complainant and society as a whole. Without suitably knowing about crimes the criminal
justice system cannot protect society. One expert responded by saying that he had one client
that was arrested for shoplifting who was raped three years ago and did not report the crime.
He could see she had a very troubled life since then and believed that if she had reported the
rape she could have gotten help and the assistance she needed. Thus, she may not have
decided to commit the crime if she had received the necessary assistance by reporting the
rape.

Police brutality
The researcher thought it interesting to know how police brutality and the media’s reporting
on the matter might impede the reporting of crime and affect other role players in the criminal
justice system. The experts were asked whether they felt or experienced any negative effects
in carrying out their work relating to media reports of police brutality. All experts concurred
that it definitely had an impact in some way in carrying out their duties. The probation officer
for example mentioned that when interviewing the accused some of them state that they have
been mistreated by police and in effect she knows this is not the case through reading the case
dockets and following up on reports. The accused do not want to talk about their crimes or
why they are there and ultimately use the police ‘mistreatment’ as an excuse to prolong the
process further.
Another expert commented that the negative image of the police is one of the main
reasons why people decide to take the law into their own hands because they feel that the
police are not doing their work. She expressed that they come across it very often. People
tend to assault each other because they find it bothersome to go and report the crime. They
use excuses by saying that the police will just tell them that they (the police) have no time for
such trivial crimes. Thus, some people feel it is their right to take the law into their own
hands. It is also mentioned that the police are the first point of entry to the criminal justice
system. People cannot go directly to court to lay a complaint and first have to go through the
police to do so.

Effective functioning of the court process

Lastly, a question was posed on what the experts would recommend or like to see happen for
the court process to function better and effectively. The majority responded by saying that
they believe the public to be uninformed about how the criminal justice system operates and
generally have a distorted view to begin with. They believe that the public needs to be
educated and become more involved in the criminal justice system. As such, school level
education or brochures could be a starting point.

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Secondly, they conveyed that key role players in the criminal justice system should
work together. The probation officer stated that at the Hatfield Community Court they have a
multi-disciplinary group of professionals from prosecutors, probation officers to police
officials. She mentioned that if she needed details of previous convictions of an accused she
could request the police official (also working at the court) to look it up for her. She
expressed that this would not have been possible for her if she were to work in a bigger
environment. Working in a smaller environment makes the process easier. The assessment
officer from the DCS postulated that ten years ago when the concept of the community court
started the idea was for it to be spread out to the community and other courts in order to assist
the community. He said that this enables him to recommend someone else to a person who is
in need of assistance if he is unable to help. Unfortunately it did not really materialise the
way they wanted it to but he believes that if such a concept can spread to other courts the
process will be easier for all involved.

DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS
Although the majority of the respondents expressed that it is important to report all types of
crime some did mention that it depends on the severity of the crime. This is consistent with
previous research that found that the willingness of people to report crime depends on the
severity and type of crimes (Kaariainen & Siren, 2011: 65). The fact that people are reluctant
to report minor crimes because of the police’s unwillingness to investigate such crimes is also
concurred by a study that found the laxity in which these cases are investigated when
reported to authorities, further impedes on the willingness of the public to report such crimes.
This leads to the public regarding the police as ineffective, unhelpful and probably unable to
track down the offenders (Masiloane & Marais, 2009: 395). Masiloane and Marais (2009:
395) found that minor crimes tend to override police’s success and undermine the
creditability of the criminal justice system in the view of the public.
The trust in the SAPS is further dampened by the negative image portrayed in the
media but there are studies that have shown the effect of media’s representation on crime and
criminal justice (see for example, Boda & Szabó, 2011: 330). Bezuidenhout and Little (2011:
3) concur that media reportage has been known to give a distorted view on crime which affect
people’s perception of crime in reality. For instance, Smolej and Kivivuori’s (2006: 220)
research on the relation between crime news and the fear of crime found that there is a link
between reading front newspaper pages on crime and avoidance behaviour and high levels of
fear of becoming a victim.
By no means should this deviate from the fact that crime levels are exceptionally high
in South Africa. Police brutality and corruption is nonetheless a reality with a total of 11 880
cases reported to the Independent Police Investigation Directorate (IPID) with 720 deaths
reported in 2011/2012 against police action (Institute for Security Studies Press release 2013:
1).
Some respondents are also more willing to report crime for insurance purposes. This
substantiates the fact that victims are more likely to report property crime by having the
prospect of receiving a financial pay-out from their insurance companies (Kaariainen & Siren
2011: 65). According to Tarling and Morris (2010: 475), such benefits have to be weighed
against the costs incurred in reporting the crime. In other words; it involves a decision-
making process on the part of the victim. The writers’ further mention that the victims may
feel a duty to report crime but the same social conscience will restrain them in terms of not
wanting to waste the police’s time in dealing with trivial matters. It can also be argued that
such a social conscience can also lead to victims wanting to take the law into their own
hands, especially if their confidence in the criminal justice system is low (Dissel 2005: 309;
Sekhonyane & Louw 2002: 1).

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The present study also found that criminals tend to escalate in their crimes, especially
those involved in drug related and shoplifting crimes. This is also substantiated by other
research studies and shows that such crimes tend to fuel other crimes. For instance, to
become a member of a gang youths need to go through an initiation rite to prove that they
belong or can be part of the gang and many of such initiation rites take the form of
shoplifting, burglary and robbery amongst many others (Walsh & Hemmens, 2011: 115;
Edmond Police Service, 2012: 1). As a result, punishment or apprehension that is not sure to
follow and may lead to offenders knowing that they can get away with their crimes may
continue to do so (Akers & Sellers, 2009: 18; Siegel, 2011: 96).
The main focus of the present study found that opinions were divided on whether the
dark figure of crime has a significant impact on the criminal justice system. Some experts and
respondents were of the opinion that unreported-crime does not really have an impact on the
criminal justice system but rather the victims themselves or society as a whole. While others
expressed the view that it does have an impact on the criminal justice system if one takes into
account that no statistics can accurately be formulated or that the deterrent value of the
criminal justice system might be weakened. Thus, a conclusion can be drawn that unreported
crime does have an impact on the victims themselves, the criminal justice system, society and
even the offenders themselves. Victims will deny themselves the opportunity to the necessary
assistance and create more frustration for themselves by not being able to solve any
problems. Society as a whole will be further affected by crime and will lose even more
confidence in the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system will be unable to
protect society and offer the necessary assistance as a result of not knowing that certain
crimes are taking place. Lastly, the offenders or potential offenders themselves will also be
negatively impacted as they will not learn that their actions are wrong and may also be
deprived of the necessary assistance to help them to lead a better life.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Bruce (2005: 111) is of the opinion that if victims have a positive view of the criminal justice
system they may be more likely to co-operate with the criminal justice system. It was even
noted by Sekhonyane and Louw (2002: 2) more than ten years ago that despite the policy on
community policing and high-level political support, a functional partnership between the
public and agencies of the criminal justice system remained limited. Thus, the public’s trust
in the criminal justice system needs to be restored. The public respondents commented that if
they were to receive better service, less corruption, more co-operation, and stricter discipline
within the police (amongst other reasons) they would be more likely to trust the police
service again. Secondly, it emerged from the interviews with the criminal justice experts that
the public remain ill-informed about the workings of the criminal justice system. Ultimately,
the public needs to be more informed and educated on the workings of the criminal justice
system in order to overcome the said limitation.
That said, it is interesting to note that a British survey study on improving public
attitudes towards the criminal justice system found that those who held the most negative
views about the criminal justice system were the ones who were the least informed. The
opposite group, that is those who were better informed, was found to have higher confidence
in the system (Chapman, Mirrlees-Black & Brawn, 2002: i). It furthermore found that
informing the public through different modes of communication had in some way or another
improved satisfaction among the public views on the criminal justice system, with a designed
booklet being the most effective method (Chapman et al, 2002: i).
In essence, the one cannot function without the other. The public’s involvement in the
criminal justice system cannot be ignored. The success of the criminal justice system –
becoming aware of crime, prosecution, conviction and the reintegration of offenders –

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depends on the support of society (Masiloane & Marais 2009: 391). In turn, the criminal
justice system needs to support society by providing the much needed assistance and
informing society. Hence, a better partnership between all parties involved is needed.

CONCLUSION
This research study on the dark figure of crime and its impact on the criminal justice system
explored the reasons and perceptions of why people do not report crime. Experts in the
criminal justice field were also interviewed to gain a deeper insight into the effect of
unreported crime on the criminal justice system. This study revealed a divided opinion on
both sides. Some were of the opinion that unreported crime does affect the criminal justice
system in some way while others felt that it had more of an impact on the victims and the
community themselves rather than the criminal justice system. From this a conclusion could
be drawn that the dark figure of crime does to a certain extent impact the criminal justice
system but also negatively impacts society in some form or another.
_____________________
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INTERVIEWS
Probation officer/social worker, Hatfield Community Court. (2012). Personal interview. 15
March.
The researcher conducted interviews with five criminal justice experts at the Hatfield
Community Court. The experts included a probation officer, an apprentice attorney, a
police officer of the South African Police Service, a prosecutor and an assessment
official of the Department of Correctional Services and were all informed that they
would remain anonymous.

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