THE ONGOING DEBATE: CRIME CONTROL V. DUE
PROCESS PROTECTION
Hour__________
A. To be safe and secure in person and home is a fundamental desire of
nearly everyone. In fact, the concept of common welfare is, to many
people synonymous with effective law and order in American society
today. Contemporary society has become increasingly alarmed about
the crime explosion in America, which has affected every community in
the nation to some degree.
B. An equally important and valued goal in our society is preserving and
protecting the individual liberties that are found in the first eight
amendments to the United States Constitution. Some of these highly
valued rights are: the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial
jury; the protection against unreasonable searches and seizures; the
freedoms from being tried twice for the same crime; and the protection
against self-incrimination. There are additional, equally important
rights, found in the Bill of Rights.
1. Identify and elaborate on several reasons why there is so much crime in
our society. Why do people commit crimes? Think about the crimes you
read about/hear about on the news.
There are essentially 2 different general philosophies of criminal law – the
CRIME CONTROL MODEL and the DUE PROCESS MODEL
The CRIME CONTROL MODEL states:
A. The most important concern is that society must be made safer
and criminals must go to jail.
B. If an innocent person goes to jail, it is the price we pay for an
orderly, safe society.
C. Most of the people charged with crimes are probably guilty and
should go to jail.
D. The courts have been overly concerned with protecting
Constitutional rights, and the result has been that guilty persons
have gone free.
The DUE PROCESS MODEL states:
A. The protection of individual liberties is extremely important
because when one person’s rights are violated all of society’s
rights are at stake.
B. It is better that a guilty person occasionally remains free from
going to jail that for individual rights to be eroded.
C. The guarantees of the Bill of Rights must be strictly followed
from the point of initial contact with law enforcement authorities
through the point of imprisonment if that is the outcome.
D. Society must be willing to sacrifice efficiency in order to protect
rights.
2. Summarize what each model says. What are the main differences?
3. Discuss which model you most agree with. What are the strengths and
weaknesses of each model?
4. Is it possible to effectively control crime in our society while at the same
time protect the individual rights of the people from infringement by the
government? Discuss this.