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Spring Semester 2021...

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Chapter 1 What is Criminal Justice?

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Crime : conduct in violation of the criminal laws of a state, the federal government, or a local jurisdiction, for which there is no legally acceptable justification or excuse

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Procedural Fairness: the process by which decisions that feel fair are made, a vital component of the American justice system. When applied to the criminal justice system, this is referred to as procedural justice. - American Justice system is a consensual system that relies upon public -

acceptance and public cooperation for it to function properly Recent reflections on the injustice of black people within the justice system.

A Brief History of Crime in America -

1850-1880 Civil War, widespread immigration, crime epidemic 1920-1933 Prohibition, organized crime

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1940-1960 Crime rates remained stable after WWII

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1960-1970 Civil Rights Movement, increase in reported crime, emphasized equality of opportunity and respect for individuals (Bill of Rights). - Focus on guaranteeing the rights of defendants, attempting to

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understand root causes of crime and violence. 1980s: Sale & Use of illicit drugs, President Raegan declared a “War On Drugs” 1990s: “Get tough on crime” era (less emphasis on individual rights, but

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enhanced responsibility). 2001 9/11 Attacks, USA Patriot Act increases investigatory authority of

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federal, state, and local police agencies (reactive approach to proactive on terrorism) Early 2000s: Focus on corporate and white-collar crime, Sarbanes-Oxley Act

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(hold business executives accountable), Madoff (schemed investors) 2010 Declining rates of “traditional crimes” (rape, robbery, burglary), epidemic of mass shootings, inner-city murders, random violence sweeps public venues across the U.S Today: Technology based crime

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Shift away from offenders as victims, now see offenders as dangerous social predators.

The Theme of this Book -

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Individual rights versus public order Individual-Rights Advocates: seek to protect personal freedoms within the process of criminal justice - Is it necessary to sacrifice some degree of public safety to guarantee basic freedoms? Public-Order Advocates: believe that under certain circumstances involving a criminal threat to public safety, the interests of society should take precedence over individual rights - Increase now into safety/police force after 9/11 and mass shootings - No more victimization of the criminal NEED TO BALANCE

Criminal Justice and Basic Fairness - Justice: : “truth in action” the principle of fairness, the ideal of moral equality - Social Justice: linked to the fundamental notions of fairness and to cultural beliefs about right and wrong (embraces all aspects of civilized life) -

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Civil Justice: a component of social justice concerned with fairness in relationships between citizens, government agencies, and businesses in private matters. Criminal Justice: the aspects of social justice that concern violations of the criminal law. -

Rarely pleases everybody Faces hard critics.

American Criminal Justice: System and Functions -

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Consensus Model: justice system components work together to achieve the common goal of “justice” - Criticized for implying more organization and cooperation than actually exists. Conflict Model (Criminal Justice Nonsystem): justice system components function to serve their own interests. - Justice results from conflict rather than cooperation

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Everyone should be concerned when the goal of justice is affected, and sometimes even sacrificed, because of conflicts within the system.

American Criminal Justice Process 1. Investigation: evidence collected, reconstruction of the criminal event, attempts to identify suspects. 2. Warrant: issued by judge, provides legal basis for apprehension of suspects by the police 3. Arrest: act of taking a person into custody 4. Booking: Taking picture, fingerprints. Personal information from suspect 5. First Appearance: suspects notified of the charges, advised of their rights, may have opportunity to bail 6. Preliminary Hearing: establishes whether there is sufficient evidence to continue the justice process/ gives prosecutor the opportunity to test the strength of the evidence 7. Information and Indictment: Information is filed by the prosecutor seeking to continue the case. Indictment is returned by the grand jury. 8. Arraignment: Defendant hears information or indictment, is advised of rights, and is asked to enter a plea 9. Adjudication: Trial is an adversarial process before a judge and/or jury to decide guilty or innocence. 10. Sentencing: Punishment determined by judge, sentencing hearing may be held first where both sides can present information to influence the judge’s decision. 11. Corrections: begins following sentencing, carries out sentence imposed on the defendant 12. Reentry: following corrections, an offender may be returned to the community Due Process and Individual Rights - Due Process: requirement that criminal justice case processing be conducted with fairness and equality (procedural fairness) -

Underlies the Bill of Rights Specifically guaranteed by the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 14th Amendments Standard was set in the 1960s by the Warren Court -

Protecting innocent from power of the state

The Role of the Courts in Defining Rights - Rights are open to interpretation - Modern rights would not exist in practice if the Supreme Court had not recognized them in cases (example: state MUST provide counsel) -

Supreme Court decisions have far-reaching consequences - Become, in effect, the law of the land - May carry as much weight as legislative action

The Ultimate Goal: Crime Control Through Due Process - Crime Control Model: emphasizes the efficient arrest and convictions of offenders - Due Process Model: emphasizes individual rights at all stages of the justice -

system processing These are often assumed to be opposing goals American system of justice should be a representative of crime control through due process -

A system of social control that is fair to those processes Law enforcement infused with the recognition of individual rights

Evidence-Based Practice in Criminal Justice - Evidence-Based Practice: crime-fighting strategies that have been scientifically tested and are based on social science research - A major element in the increasing professionalization of criminal justice -

Strong demand for the application of evidence-based practices throughout criminal justice

The Start of Academic Criminal Justice -

Began in the late 1920s - Early criminal justice education was practice oriented (extension of on-the-job training) - Focused on applying general management principles to police administration -

Came to be seen as a field concerned largely with issues of organizational effectiveness.

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By 1960s, criminal justice began to apply social science research techniques, so now evidence-based approach

Multiculturalism and Diversity in Criminal Justice - Multiculturalism: a society that is home to diverse groups that maintain unique cultural identities while accepting and participating in the larger society’s legal and political systems. -

One form of diversity American society is truly multicultural. This is not a new thing in America (always been social diversity).

Diversity characterizes both immigrant and US born individuals Cultural competence: the ability to interact effectively with people of different cultures (anyone who works in the system should have this ability)....