Criminal Justice: Concept, Process, System, and Agencies
Helen Jordan-Seals
CRJS 1001-12 – Contemporary Criminal Justice System
July 29, 2012
The Criminal Justice System goes as far back as the days of Jesus. There were Soldiers who acted like policeman, the tribune which was the court system, and Caesar, Herod and even Pontius Pilate stood as judge. The prison system was that of dark caves and dungeons. As we journey to the twenty-first century, nothing has genuinely changed. In my essay I will explicate how the various aspect of criminal justice relate to one another as well as why it so important in society. Criminal Justice refers to the facet of social justice that concern violators of criminal law. The
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It's the prosecutors’ job to ascertain his or her case. The defense is there for the offender and therefore the judge is there to stay order on each side. Within the court process charging, preliminary hearing perceiving of whether or not or not an arraignment or grand jury hearing, bail or detention, plea negotiations, trail/adjudication and sentencing takes place. Lastly is the correctional facility. At Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility we’ve been told that our agencies purpose is to up hold the penalization that was imposed by the court, to rehabilitate, and maintain safety. Whether public or behind the fence, we must maintain safety. During this stage it's determined whether or not you go home or to jail, parole/probation or house apprehend. These agencies process suspects, defendants, and convicted offenders and are interdependent insofar because the selections of one agency have an effect on different agencies. The importance of criminal justice system in our society goes without verbally expressing. If you take a glance around without those systems in place crime rates would be at an all-time high. Applied to society, criminal justice is the system that guarantees fairness and equal treatment to any underneath its guidance. The agencies directly or indirectly associated with the criminal justice system have an effect on everything that transpires in our everyday lives. Law enforcement ascertains that laws are being obeyed; judges
There are three significant issues concerning law enforcement, namely enacting the law, police discretion, and assessment of criminal behavior. Different entities create and enact laws that are specific for the societies those laws represent.
The criminal justice system has been proven to play a very important role in society. The criminal justice system is used to keep the citizens in check and to make sure that the laws that are made are being followed. It also is there to penalize anyone who disobeys the laws. In the criminal justice system, there are 3 main parts, law enforcement, adjudication, and corrections. Law enforcement is self-explainable. It consists of the law enforcers such as police officers and sheriffs. Adjudication is made up of people in the court house such as judges and lawyers. Corrections is made up of jailhouse matters such as prison officials. In these many components of the criminal justice system, there are all put in place to help correct people to do the right thing. There are punitive efforts and rehabilitative efforts. At time, the system may lean towards one category or more, which can be dangerous in terms of disciplinary action. The criminal justice system is more punitive than rehabilitative which makes the system ineffective.
The problems surrounding the criminal justice system range from a variety of issues in different areas of the system. But i believe they are all connected back to a societal problem, that has to do with a outdated philosophical notion “redemptive violence”. I will break down each aspect, which i find most troubling. I will cover problems between policing and peacekeeping, corrections options, and the issue of redemptive violence which is a major issue in the philosophy of the criminal justice system. These issues represent problems that have always been key topics when discussing problems of ethics in criminal justice. Policing and Peacekeeping are roles that have long been debated in usefulness to stopping crime. Corrections comes with the reality of incarceration having little chance of success but more likely a higher rate of recidivism. I well also touch on briefly the issues of attorney discretion. While the issue of redemptive violence ties them all in, As i well show this philosophy is the “root of all evil” in the issues facing the criminal justice system.
The criminal justice system is composed of three parts – Police, Courts and Corrections – and all three work together to protect an individual’s rights and the rights of society to live without fear of being a victim of crime. According to merriam-webster.com, crime is defined as “an act that is forbidden or omission of a duty that is commanded by public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law.” When all the three parts work together, it makes the criminal justice system function like a well tuned machine.
The criminal justice system used today is to follow principles that protect and establish equality for all and while the United States criminal justice system may strive to follow these right of the people, but unfortunately, this is where the system falls short of fundamental American principles. Repeatedly the criminal justice system does the adverse of what it’s supposed to do. It does not protect the many liberties the people should have. Some may argue that the criminal justice system is indeed fair for
In society, things are not as they seem at times. The criminal justice system was created to help deter crime and to punish those who break the law. Laws are put in place to be fair to all citizens. Your economic situation, gender, race should not become a factor for you to be given “due process”. Years have come and gone and the crime rates increases and decreases with the years. There have been many senseless killings and everyone has their point of view as to the causes. The focal point of this report will be the findings from the readings of, “The rich get richer and the poor get prison by Jeffery Reimer and Paul Livingston”. I will discuss the causes of the rise and fall of the many different types of crimes ; why the rise and fall of crime rates; what contribution has the criminal justice and or police system has contributed whether positive or negative; and lastly discuss which economic group ends up in prison and why.
In order to keep a safe society, it is important to establish a nation with
This research paper discusses the issues of people who suffer from mental illness being placed in jails instead of receiving the necessary treatment they need. The number of inmates serving time in jail or prison who suffer from mental illness continues to rise. In 2015 the Bureau of Justice reported that sixty five percent of state prisoners and fourth five percent of federal prisoners suffered from mental conditions such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Individuals who suffer from these problems require special mental health treatment for their needs to be met. Many of our prisons and jails lack the necessary resources to care for these inmates and because of that inmates who do not receive the treatment they need are at a higher risk of becoming a repeat offender. Despite the research and findings that show that the criminal justice system is unable to deal with issues dealing with the mentally ill there has been limited solutions put in place. Given the challenges the criminal justice system faces it is important to address the problem and come up with better solutions. This research paper will discuss the various techniques and solutions that scholars have propped and their effect on the issue of mentally ill criminals and how the criminal justice system should approach the problem.
These departments and agencies are working together to reform and improve the criminal justice system in order to:
In the criminal justice system, the main goal of all three components is to deter crime and make sure those who have been convicted of a crime serve their time. Each component of the criminal justice system is broken down into different divisions. Within law enforcement, there is local, state, and federal law enforcement. In the courts, there is the judge, prosecutors, and defense attorney. Lastly, in corrections, there is probation, incarceration, and community-based corrections. Law enforcement officials function to keep people from committing crime and apprehending those who do. The courts then decide who is guilty or innocent. Finally, corrections is meant for the criminal to correct their behavior.
The criminal justice system involves the police, prosecution, defense attorneys, courts, and corrections. The police are the first because, as a police officer the job is to arrive on scene and make the report from witnesses and the victims. The prosecution is a lawyer who decides the charges and whether or not to drop the case or take it to court. The defense attorney is the lawyer for the defendant. The courts is where the judge comes into play, he or she will oversee the case as it is in court and rule whatever sentencing may be. It is also possible that the prosecutor has offered a plea bargain, which the judge either accepts or declines. Lastly, there is the correction component of the criminal justice system where the convicted criminals face jail or prison time. These correctional officers will make sure that they are
Specific characteristics that interlink these three agencies are discretion, resource dependence, sequential tasks, and filtering (Cole, 2008). All phases of the justice system reflect the freedom to make a decision according to the own judgment of the agent that is working with a case at the moment. The abuse of discretion leads to the most notable issue that affects the accuracy and effectiveness of the system, discrimination. Even thought discretion is one of the most important characteristic of the system because the American criminal justice does not have the tools to treat each individual case the same way, on the other hand the system can’t afford to have every single case leading to an investigation. American criminal justice to be effective needs accuracy due to the resource dependence of each agency has on another. Every decision made between all these agencies is sequential. To have a case seen in court, an arrest has to be made by a police officer, then and prosecutors and judges have the responsibility of adjudication, then correction implement the punishment according to the prior decisions makers. When discussing the process of implementing the law, the filtering process is very important; this is process in which cases are screened by law enforcement officials and the decision to handle it at the current level is made or the case is passed on to the next level. As you can see, all agencies are linked together and in theory should work
The components of the criminal justice system include the police, the court system, and the correctional agencies. All three operate together under the law and are the major means to maintaining the rule of law in society. (1) Ever notice why the police are the first to the scene? That’s because the police are the initial contact for criminal activity. Their duties include taking statements, gathering evidence, performing investigations, arresting offenders and providing testimonies in court if needed. When taking a suspect into custody, they must always remember to read the “Miranda rights” to the suspect. (2) After charges are filed, a legal case against the criminal offender will begin. The court system includes prosecutors (who file
At the core, there are three main part of the United Sates criminal justice system: law enforcement, courts and corrections. Modern-day criminal justice continues to be a complex part of our society. The United States criminal justice system is broken down into three different parts to maintain the philosophy of dealing with criminals in a different stage of their criminal activity. The first component of the criminal justice and perhaps the most important within the system is law enforcement. This aspect of the criminal justice system includes the local police department form each state with their police officers and detective and personal. Law enforcement is a key aspect within the main components because they are the ones responsible for investigating /capturing individuals who break the laws set forth by the state and federal government.
There are many factors that influence the criminal justice system is in the United States. The arrest and booking, the initial appearance in court, a probable cause hearing, bail or bond, preliminary hearing are all steps in the process of our criminal justice system. There are many variables to be considered when someone is arrested and charged with a crime. Both the defense and the prosecution have not only an obligation to their client or the state but they have an obligation to seek justice within the confines of the law.