is 'knowing that a crime is in progress, but knowingly not doing anything to prevent it' a crime in itself?

Question

various possible scenarios

1) i see that thieves entering my neighbor's home [who has gone to a party with his family] and i ignore it and quietly start watching tv and let the theft happen

2) if while entering a subway, i see that a young girl is being molested there by 2 big men, and i quietly flee from there, thinking that if i try to do something maybe i myself will get beating [or maybe injury] at hands of those 2 men

3) i see my brother picking pocket of someone while we both were in a crowded market, and i remain quiet with the thought that let him steal, its good for him that he gets free money [thinking that his good is of course my good]

i want to analyse my inaction from 2 perspectives- my 'presumed inability' to affect the outcome of an event in progress, and secondly, my 'deliberate indifference' about something happening. do these 2 perspectives make a difference to my inaction being a crime or not

scenario 4- i see a small child working in a restaurant. i know that child labor is a crime, but instead of doing anything i actually enjoy my meal served to me by that small child

there could actually be 2 questions. 2nd question would be formed if i replace the "is" at start of my question with "should"

small comment- i chose personal examples only to exemplify some situations, and this is no way reflects my actions my opinions or situations in my life

i saw some answerers saying that i did not do my duty. i want to clarify again that these are hypothetical situations which did not happen with me, and i'm asking this for both curiosity sake as well as understanding sake

note- i mistakenly asked this question twice. i intended to ask this question here
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AuFl.eMDVZcZ4rpc2QLLWersy6IX?qid=20070217053627AA2zq1A

but due to a poor and often-disconnected internet connection ended up asking it twice- wrongly here. sorry about that. i will backlink the question from there to here in case anyone is interested in reading the replies there

Answer 1

im not too sure about that, interesting question!! but if you didnt do anything, you would be a bit of a dick wouldnt you!! x

Answer 2

1 and 2 are a fairly clear NO (from a legal not a moral perspective). However, 3 could be seen as aiding and abetting a crime, even conspiracy to commit a crime, if you had gone out with the intent to steal.

Answer 3

Think about it for a moment, "you see and young person being dragged into the woods by what appears to be a stranger", the kid is screaming for help and you do nothing to help, not even dial 911. Yes, it is a crime to set and do nothing knowing a crime is in progress.

Answer 4

yes, knowing the crime is in progress and not doing anything about it is a crime in itself. Some states have a good samaritan law-which states if you see a crime happening and do nothing you can be prsecuted as an acomplice to the crime.

Answer 5

it incredibly is hectic. You gave the occasion of a infant being molested and you assert you dont know what to do? Who cares in case you get overwhelmed atleast you would be attempting to help the lady. in case you maintain to your self assistance a pair of crime then particular that's against the regulation. it must be obstucion of justice or a pair of alternative titles. for my section i think of in case you only watched and didnt help exceedingly in the little women case you will wish overwhelmed besides.

Answer 6

Yes, this is a crime. In some cases, it might not be provable but, it's still a crime.

Answer 7

To answer your question in one word, yes. You should at least report it or talk to your friend if you see him doing something criminal.