victimless crime

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noun

a legal offense, as prostitution or gambling, to which all participating parties have consented.

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Origin of victimless crime

First recorded in 1960–65

Words nearby victimless crime

Vict., Victa, victim, victimization, victimize, victimless crime, victimology, Victoire, victor, Victor Charlie, Victor Emmanuel I

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use victimless crime in a sentence

Did he denounce the involvement of organized crime in the abduction and disappearance of 43 students in the nearby city of Iguala?
Mexico’s Priests Are Marked for Murder|Jason McGahan|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But they say its effect on the regular daily operation of organized crime has been negligible.
Mexico’s Priests Are Marked for Murder|Jason McGahan|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The anti-crime cops began searching the likely path of flight.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Which is impossible unless people talk publicly rather than letting each crime be its own isolated incident.
Cover-Ups and Concern Trolls: Actually, It's About Ethics in Suicide Journalism|Arthur Chu|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Denied parole nine straight times, he insists he is innocent of the crime for which he was convicted.
His First Day Out Of Jail After 40 Years: Adjusting To Life Outside|Justin Rohrlich|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He was thrashed at school before the Jews and the hubshi, for the heinous crime of bringing home false reports of progress.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II|Rudyard Kipling
At that moment the crime and inefficacy of bloodshed, in avenging injuries like his, or any injuries, struck upon his soul.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
He knew that the whole fabric of crime was due to the human reading of His "revelation" to man.
God and my Neighbour|Robert Blatchford
Humanity must bench with justice; or punishment itself becomes crime, and degenerates into revenge.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
It is therefore true that the field of crime is not fixed, is in truth always changing.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles

British Dictionary definitions for victimless crime

victimless crime

/ (ˈvɪktɪmləs) /

noun

a type of crime, such as insurance fraud, regarded by some people as being excusable because the victim is the state or an organization, rather than an individual

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for victimless crime

victimless crime

A term sometimes used for various acts that are considered crimes under the law but apparently have no victim. One such crime is prostitution, which is viewed by some as a commercial exchange between two consenting adults.