81 yrs ago tonight, the extraordinary criminologist Edwin Sutherland gave a speech to the American Sociological Society that marked the start of a shift in what legal systems recognize as crime. In it, he argued it was high time we go after what he called "white-collar crime." 1/

Sutherland argued to the criminologists, economists, sociologists, & others present that their approach to what crime was & could be--acts of lower social classes & "delinquents," located in the streets--failed to account for the criminals who routinely caused the most damage. 2/

Those criminals, he argued, were well-respected & well-known members of society. The only reason their acts weren't called or treated as crime was their stature. This had to change, given the magnitude of financial & social damage white-collar criminals routinely wrought. 3/

"[T]he financial cost of white-collar crime is probably several times as great as the financial cost of the crimes which are customarily regarded as the crime problem," Sutherland argued, who further compared white-collar criminal acts to the "legitimate rackets" of Al Capone. 4/

It was an address born of years of research & growing concern that the justice system was fundamentally flawed, resulting in two separate judicial systems: one for the well-connected, one for everyone else. 5/

His argument was so provocative it received next-day coverage from the leading papers. For the next 10 yrs, Sutherland gathered data, which he published in his 1949 book "White Collar Crime"--so dreaded by so many corporations they threatened suit to avoid being named in it. 6/

It was the first quantification of the extent of this kind of crime. Sutherland & his team spent years documenting it by scrupulously collecting records from papers, courts, & fed agencies. Their diligent, methodical work shut down arguments that this crime wasn't happening. 7/

Change didn't happen overnight. There was the Great Electrical Conspiracy of '61. Watergate. The United Brands investigation. '74, when the FBI listed white-collar crime in its own section. In '75 SCOTUS issued US v. Park (ok'd "piercing the corporate veil" to get at execs). 8/

In '77, Congress passed the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. In the '80s, the SDNY built its reputation for aggressive white-collar prosecutions, of the Mafia and securities traders alike (under Rudy Giuliani, no less). Prosecutors across the country & world followed suit. 9/

The public anger at the gov's failure to prosecute actors of the '08-'09 financial crisis, & their current anger at the deepening gov permissiveness & excuses for corruption & cronyism, are a testament to how relevant & necessary Sutherland's speech & subsequent work remains. 10/

So, raise a glass to Sutherland (a William Jewell grad MOians) & his team for caring enough to take the 1st step for a more equitable justice system.
Finally, H/T to @EugeneSoltes, who describes the above in wonderful detail in his excellent book, "Why They Do It." Highly rec. /E