For reasons that are probably obvious, criminal justice orthodoxy does not cover the anarchist approach to criminology. There are not many anarchist criminologists, so this is just a short informational post. I am not an anarchist, so I am not adding any commentary, just reciting information.

Anarchist theories of crime causation focuses generally on replacing power structures rather than how these structures cause crime

In short, anarchist criminologists believe that crime is caused by "structures of power and domination" (Lanier 2010). Anarchist criminology views and relates crime as "meaningful activity of resistance to both its construction and social interaction and 'its larger construction through processes of political and economic authority" (Lanier 2010). Tifft and Sullivan in their 2006 work Handbook of Restorative Justice: A Global Perspective [anarchists and restorative justice advocates] are interested in "fostering social arrangements that alleviate pain and suffering by providing for everyone's needs". Under an anarchist system, state justice would be replaced by a system where all members of society participate and share [legal opinions(?)] in a decentralized and face-to-face mode of justice. It would involve "a form of collective negotiation as a means of problem solving" (Ferrell 1994), with the intention of bringing the offending individual to "accept responsibility for his or her behavior by reminding offenders of their contentedness to other members of the society" (Lanier 2010). Some anarchists may view crime and deviance (violation of social norms) as differences between people, or just difference in general. This necessitates a system that respects alternative traditions and interpretations, but also oppose attempts to destroy or impose other traditions and interpretations.

Abolition

Abolitionism originates in Norway, from the work of Mathiesen and Christie. Simply, abolitionism is based on the belief that punishment is not justified, and goes beyond reform of prisons to straight abolition. The alternative proposed by abolitionists is community based controls and treatment. At the core of this belief is that crime can be dealt with as an "outcome of relationship issues". Abolitionists believe that prison fails to prevent crime initially, and does not prevent recidivism (re-offending). The abolitionists Thomas and Boehlefeld argue that "cultural values embedded in the conception of prisons reflect a social ethos of violence and degradation. When prisons are expanded, so too are negative cultural values symbolizing acceptable strategies for resolving interpersonal conflict". Similar to anarchists, abolitionists believe that social control should be about reducing pain rather than inflicting pain, which must involve decentralization and community control.