The Allure of Crime

The Allure of Crime

1. Julie was a young assistant bartender who stole the money from the drink tickets she sold; she made about $10,000 to $15,000 for her whole career. She did not believe she was doing anything wrong, because she was just at first stealing for what she thought the hotel owed her, like parking or lunch. But, soon it was just stealing for things she needed like extra money to pay for car insurance or to make up the rest of the rent. Finally she evolved into just stealing to steal like she did on New Years. The most interesting part of her story is when she talked about her close relationship with God and the Roman Catholic Church. Julie believed that God was her pimp or wing and she was doing him a service by stealing the money and donating it. I thought most criminals had “abandoned” God and just put themselves as the most important part. The other factor that contributed to her stealing was the high it gave her, like when she parked her car farther away just to run to it. The greatest example to get insight to Julie’s mind was the New Year’s theft where she went through so much trouble just to make it back and steal when she did not need the money. The biggest thing I got from the story is how many criminals turn to god even in their sprees because he provides a rationale for their ways.

2. Joe was a banker robber from Oakland, California who threatened tellers to give him money; he stole from over thirty banks. Joe had a very religious family including a father who was a priest, but when is mother passed when he was nine, Joe’s father became violent and beat his kids. Then Joe learned to pick locks and started stealing from the church, where he started crime. Than when Joe was in high school, his dad was angry that Joe told his girlfriend his Dad hit him, so he beat nearly to death, but Joe had a knife and stabbed him in the neck. After going to foster care and dropping out of Bible College, Joe turned to robbing banks. He said he loved the putrid smell of money and it made him happy. The reason he liked robbing white middle class women was because they were easy and he felt like he was sharing the violence and shock with them like when his mom died and his dad started beating him. He thinks that God and the hypocrisy he saw with God caused him to rob people. He has a much more tragic and twisted tale, where the roots of his crime come from a demented childhood, which I believe contributed to the violent nature of his crimes.