Crime & Crime Prevention
Crime and Crime Prevention is a challenge for every government and society. Learn more about how governments deal with crime, criminals and crime prevention.
There's a growing band of lawbreakers in town tarnishing recycling's squeaky green reputation. Who are these criminals, and why are they desperate for copper?
Diamond thieves can be clever criminals who orchestrate multimillion-dollar heists or small-time jewelers who switch the real thing for fakes. What makes stealing a diamond so attractive?
Follow the trail of your prized Swiss Army knife as it leaves your pockets at airport security and goes on to achieve eBay glory.
Maybe you're an escaped criminal or an undercover spy. You're someone who needs to stay under the radar. What you need is a safe house.
Because of the murkiness of maritime law, it's hard to pursue crimes committed on cruise ships. What makes it so easy to get away with a crime on the high seas?
Every once in a while, we read about an amazing heist that required skill, cunning and thought. But for every one of those, there are those that fail horribly.
What makes a person not only murder, but murder multiple people over days, weeks and even years? There's a special name for these types of murderers: serial killers.
From the Zodiac killer to Jack the Ripper, many disturbed criminals have never been caught. These crimes became well-known in history because the crimes remain unsolved and the case technically remains open. Read about 9 of history's coldest cases.
Such famous artworks as 'Mona Lisa' and 'The Scream' have been stolen and returned; some have never been found. Art burglars either keep the artwork for themselves, or try to ransom it back to the original owner. Learn about 7 notorious art thefts.
It seems impossible to lose something so valuable, but it has been done -- more than once. See our list of the world's greatest missing treasures, including The Amber Room and Pharaohs' Missing Treasure.
Today, some police forces are using virtual reality technology to capture and recreate crime scenes digitally. They've discovered that, if used properly, virtual environments help the investigation process from its earliest stages all the way to a verdict.
In their own vision of themselves, Yakuza descend from Robin-Hood-like characters who defended villages from bandits. Today, they operate as a collection of criminal gangs.
The United States is renowned for having one of the most sophisticated judicial systems in the world. Every day thousands of people take part in this system, hoping to settle disputes and work for justice. Learn how the U.S. judicial system works.
As an abstract term, prison is quite simple, but for anyone who has ever done time, it's incredibly complex. Learn what life is like inside prisons in the United States.
Police fired 50 shots at three apparently unarmed men in a car leaving a bachelor party in New York this weekend, and investigators still aren't sure why.
According to a 2005 report by the Department of Justice, there are at least 21,500 gangs and more than 731,000 active gang members in the United States. Learn how and why street gangs form.
In August 2006, John Mark Karr confessed to the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. But some wondered whether the confession was accurate. Learn why people might confess to a crime that they didn't do.
The TV show "Prison Break" is the story of a structural engineer named Michael Scofield who gets himself locked up so that he can help his brother escape death row. Learn about some amazing real-life escapes.
Aye, matey! Hold on to your peg leg as we look at how pirates work, whether they're robbing and plundering in the 17th century or the 21st. We'll look at past and present definitions of piracy and the laws that deal with modern pirates.
The Federal Witness Security Program protects crucial witnesses. How do you erase one identity and create a whole new one? Find out how the Witness Security Program "relocates" witnesses and their families.
Learn all about how the Mafia is structured, how it operates, how it formed, how it has evolved and which law-enforcement methods have been effective against this type of organized crime.
With each new crime that pops up, another method of detection is developed; and with each new crime that pops up, another means of protecting yourself comes to light. Learn about various crimes and the available means of detection, protection, and punishment.
Long before Sept. 11, governments, guerrillas, freedom fighters and insurgents were hijacking planes, plotting to blow up the British parliament and generally sowing fear to achieve an objective. So why is defining terrorism so hard?
Since 1982, more than 1,000 U.S. prisoners have been executed by lethal injection, according to Amnesty International. What happens during those last hours?
'Made in the USA' Behind Bars: Is Prison Labor Really 'Slave Labor'?
We explore the economics and ethics of prison-made goods.
