How Wealth And Status Affect The American Justice System

On the surface, it seems that determining how much power courts have would be a simple task. However, history has proven this to be false. The courts have been viewed in many different ways through out the history of our country. There are three common views of court power that are important for modern scholars of the court system. Those who believe courts have little power to cause social change are said to adhere to the Constrained Court view. Those who believe courts have a great deal of power to cause social change are said to adhere to the Dynamic Court view. The final, and youngest, take on court power combines aspects of the Constrained and Dynamic views into what I shall call the Condition Dependent Court view of power.

Within the criminal justice system, officials abuse their power. The officials of the justice system have a duty to protect and perform their duties with unbiased decision making. The abuse of power jeopardizes people’s lives who are not able to sustain oneself and their families. Some people do not understand that poorer people find themselves in jail more and once a person is released, that person is subjected to return to jail for the amount of money owed to the state. There are many obstacles for the poor, especially those of color. People of color are treated unfairly in the justice system, from the arrest, the sentencing, and the release. The criminal justice system is supposed to be just but that is not the case. The criminal justice system allows for the police, public defenders, and judges to bend the laws and not be punished for their actions or that apologizes can fix the wrong that has been done. This paper will discuss the abuse of power from the justice system and the solutions to rectify the damages.

The United States criminal justice system have been known to be one of the most injustice system in the world. Criminal justice is known as the system of law enforcement, involving police, lawyers, courts, and corrections, used for all stages of criminal proceedings and punishment (Dictionary.com). One of the most heartbreaking things that happen in the United States every year is innocent people being condemned for crimes that

Courts are established social, political, and judicial institutions necessary for the manifestation of justice and the maintenance of law and order. The courts are part of the judicial branch of government, as outlined in Article III of the United States Constitution. Courts are the arenas in which the law is tried and applied. Judges are the presiding officers of the court. The United States Supreme Court is the most fundamental court because has "the authority to decide the constitutionality of federal laws and resolve other disputes over them," (United States Courts, 2012). This is true even though even though the court does not expressly enforce that law; enforcement is the province of the executive branch.

nation, the criminal justice system has detrimentally affected the lives of those it was created to

The population at large in the United Stated is very different than the population of the prison system. Racial inequality in the criminal justice system is often ignored because it does not affect most people. If there is to be a change in racial inequality, this issue is one that must be addressed. According to Inequality and Incarceration, “497 out of 100,000 Americans are imprisoned.” This means there is “less than one percent of people” in the United States that are imprisoned. This may seem like an insignificant amount.

It can be said that money is power in the United States, and this is brought out in the essay, “Class in America---2012” written by Gregory Mantsios. He says that even though many Americans do not like to discuss class, “it can determine where people live, who their friends are, how well they are educated, and what they do for a living” (Mantsios). Many Americans do not speak about class type, and most find it unacceptable (Mantsios). Unfortunately, we can see that there are laws that are built to help and better the wealthy, while it cripples the rest of us. According to the Economic Policy Institute, “The richest twenty percent of Americans hold nearly ninety percent of the total household wealth in this county” (Institute) Gregory Mantsios without reserve describes the majority of people are at a disadvantage in their social class, while the upper class is compensated.

DuPont a well-known and once very well respected chemical company, is now known for their irresponsible business tactics and the way they dealt with the chemicals onsite, and the pollution it caused in our air and our drinking water. DuPont purchased a large piece of land about sixty acres in New York, West Virginia, known as a small town and consisted of a lot of farming and irrigation, cattle, and production of crops. The DuPont case started when a local farmer in the community exploited the footage of the stream nearby being polluted with chemicals from the DuPont plant. The local towns people, were fed up with the situation in their town and the injurious ways it was affecting their cattle, so they set up a meeting with a corporate defense

In America, the poor and uneducated a disproportionally represented in the eyes of the law. We are supposed to be a country that builds each other up, and stops at nothing until each person succeeds. Whether that be by race, gender, sexuality, or age. Unfortunately, that is not the case for most Americans, especially those who are poor and uneducated. While the law plays a bigger role in their lives, more than the average middle class American, poor and uneducated people are not properly represented by the law. A great example of the misrepresentation is in the case of the Buffalo Creek Disaster vs the Pittston and Buffalo Coal Company. In this paper, I will discuss, the history of judge’s decision in cases where minorities and lower class were involved, the history of the wage income and education rate in West Virginia, and how law affects lower class communities. It is my opinion that if West Virginia were a community of high class persons, the treatment received from the Piston company and the Buffalo Coal company would have been different.

In the article “Race and Class in the American Criminal Justice System” by David Cole the inequality within the United State 's Criminal Justice System is summarized. David Cole is a graduate from Yale University where he has received his law and bachelor’s degree. He specializes in many different fields of Criminal Justice, and is a fairly well known writer regarding legal affairs and political actions like civil liberties and national security. David Cole writes the article “Race and Class in the American Criminal Justice System” based on his views that the justice system to this current day, continues acts of inequality in every criminal case.

The inequality or equality of black Americans in the criminal justice system have been rigged for a long time.Therefore, I think there is injustice in police killings of blacks, and the sentencing of blacks, and how they are put there, while waiting for trial.

The question of fairness and equality in the criminal justice system has its original roots dating back to the Magna Carta in 1215 AD. The latest document to define the criminal justice is the United States Constitution which specifically in the 14th amendment which states ”no state can make or enforce laws on its citizens, nor shall they deprive a person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor will they deny equal protection of the laws”. Section one of the fourteenth amendment means that the states cannot make any laws or enforce them on any person without due process and makes it illegal to deny equal protection. The founding fathers envisioned a justice system that is blind as evidenced by the

The rule of law implies that all the citizens of a particular state are subject to the laws of that state, included in the category are the lawmakers who are also subject to the law itself (Stavar, 1998). The rule of law is in contrast with autocracy that is a form of government where unlimited power is held by a single individual or oligarchy where the government is run by a few selected individual who is wealthy. In all the named forms of governments, the rulers see themselves as above the law and that is what is being witnessed in the courts today. The judges cannot be touched by anyone even the law. Instead of following the rule of law people in the judicial system have taken the power into their hands, and it is they that decide the fate of the American citizens (Hoester, 1991). Judges in protecting the interest of a few individual make sentences that go against the laws they have the responsibility of practicing. It is quite fascinating of how the people in the court do not see the irony where those that are trying to fight against unlawful acts of the judges are the one being tried and sentenced while those that are carrying out illegal activities are the one pretending to be practicing the law(Sutherland,

One of the most interesting things I learned from doing my research on community corrections in my jurisdiction is how the criminal justice system is committed to being fair and balanced. I have observed in a court arraignment how a judge briefed everyone in the court about proper protocols during the hearings .The judge said he could not start court hearings unless a prosecutor was present, and that he cautions the inmate the right to remain silent, and also discussed to the inmate his rights. Community-based corrections developed as a result of dissatisfaction with institutional confinement and in recognition of the problems encountered by inmates reentering society after prolonged incarceration. Belinda R. McCarthy, Bernard J. McCarthy, Jr,& Matthew C. Leone (4th edu.). (2001) Community-Based Corrections. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Group. In writing this paper I will inform and discuss the various programs and rules applied to handle offenders who have violated state laws according to the criminal justice system in NC. I will write about the following subjects in the following order: 1) Parole and probation, 2) Community and drug courts, 3) Pretrial release, 4) Victim aid, and 5) Community service (as a function of service of sentence).

Special Justice for the wealthy has many people wondering if the rich can really get away with anything. The rich have a lot more power than the ordinary person because of their money. Famous people tend to not be found guilty because of their money. Famous people tend to not be found guilty because they usually have a very expensive lawyer. Although many famous and wealthy people have been convicted there are more cases where the wealthy wasn’t charged. Wealthy people have an extended amount of power, and with that comes the best of lawyers to get them out of a crime they have committed.