The History, Scope and Structure of the
United States Criminal Justice System
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
Early Foundations:





Kin Policing System
Code of Hammurabi
Justinian Code 700 BC
Watch & Ward 1285 AD
American Colonies
- Decentralization
- Puritanism
- “The Watch” Boston 1636
 Sir Robert Peel - England 1829
Criminal Justice in America
Presented to the
CJ 694 – Comparative Systems
By
Dr. Richard H. Ward
Criminal Justice Center
Sam Houston State University
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Entry into System
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
United States:
 First U.S. PD established
in Philadelphia 1833
 First State Police 1835
Texas Rangers
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
United States:
 First U.S. PD established
in Philadelphia 1833
 First State Police 1835
Texas Rangers
 LAPD established 1877
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
United States:
 First U.S. PD established




in Philadelphia 1833
First State Police 1835
Texas Rangers
LAPD established 1877
ISP established 1922
First Police Academy in
San Francisco 1636
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
Three Eras in American Policing:
 Political Era 1840 to 1920
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
Three Eras in American Policing:
 Political Era 1840 to 1920
 Professional Era 1920 to 1970
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
Three Eras in American Policing:
 Political Era 1840 to 1920
 Professional Era 1920 to 1970
 Community Era 1970 -
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History
American Policing Today:
 18,760 police agencies
 796,518 sworn officers
 200,000 civilians
 budgets total $51 billion
 10 million arrests per year
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Characteristics of Law Enforcement Agencies
1%
23%
76%
 76% of U.S police
agencies employ fewer
than 100 sworn
officers
 23% employ 100 to
1,000 officers
 Only 1% of the
nation’s police
departments employ
over 1,000 officers
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Characteristics of Law Enforcement Agencies
Federal
State
County
Municipal
Appointed by
President
Confirmed by
Senate
Civil Service
Hiring System
Appointed by
State Governor
Elected by
County Residents
Appointed by
Mayor or by
City Manager
Civil Service
Hiring System
Civil Service
Hiring System
Civil Service
Hiring System
Education
College Degree
High School
Some College
High School
Some College
High School
Some College
Training
10 to 16 week
intensive academy
12 to 20 week
intensive academy
12 to 20 week
intensive academy
12 to 28 week
intensive academy
Jurisdiction
Enforce federal
Statutes
Enforce state law
& traffic
enforcement
Enforce state law
& county code
Enforce state law
county & city code
Director
Personnel
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Specialized Law Enforcement Agencies
Federal:
 Federal Bureau of
Investigation
 Drug Enforcement
Administration
 Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco & Firearms
 U.S. Secret Service
 Postal Inspection
State & Local:
 Housing Police
 Transit Police
 School District Police
 Port Authority Police
 Fish & Wildlife
 Water Reclamation
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Prosecution and Adjudication
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Historical Roots
 English Common Law
 Adversarial System
- District Attorney
- Public Defender
 State Sovereignty
 Adoption of the U.S.
Constitution in 1789
imposed federal on
top of local system
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Historical Roots
Rights protected by the U.S Constitution:
 Right to Due Process
 Right to Counsel
 Right Confront Witnesses
 Right to a Speedy Trial
 Right Against Self-Incrimination
 Right Against Unreasonable Search & Seizure
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Structure of the Legal System
Justice
Court
Municipal
Court
District
Court
of Appeal
State
Supreme
Court
U.S.
Supreme
Court
Jurisdiction
City or town with
population under
40,000 residents
City or town with
population over
40,000 residents
County
State
Nation
Function
First Instance:
Minor civil cases.
Misdemeanors,
Preliminary
Hearings
First Instance:
Minor civil cases.
Misdemeanors,
Preliminary
Hearings
Appellate:
Justice &
Municipal
First Instance:
Felonies’
Juveniles,
Child Neglect
Appellate:
Statewide
Plus all automatic
Death penalty
appeals
Nationwide
Appellate
Authority
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Corrections
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
Colonial Period:
 Public Humiliation
 Mutilation & Branding
 Imprisonment
- those awaiting trail
- debtors
- vagrants
 County Houses of
Correction established
- Massachusetts Bay 1673
- Pennsylvania 1682
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
Public Flogging circa 1776
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
County Work House circa 1776
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
Colonial Debtors Prison circa 1
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
18th & 19th Century:
 Theocracy weakened
 Less emphasis on
Walnut Street Jail was the first facility
used as a penitentiary circa 1776
public humiliation
 Prisons became
centerpiece of system
 State Penitentiaries
established in
- Pennsylvania 1776
- Massachusetts 1805
U.S. Criminal Justice System
History of Corrections
Newgate Prison circa 1776
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Scope of Corrections Today
Costs of Incarceration:
 $25,000 per inmate per year
 $69,000 per elderly inmate
 life term = $1.5 million
 new cell = $100,000
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Scope of Corrections Today
Prison population:
 2 million people incarcerated
 4.8 million on parole or probation
 Over 6.5 million, or 3% of the
population under supervision of
criminal justice system
 11 million people are “booked”
each year (admitted to a locked facility)
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Structure of Corrections
Jails
Prisons (State)
Prisons (Federal)
# of Inmates
665,475
1,367,856
146,596
Jurisdiction
Cities, Counties
States
U.S. Government
Characteristics of
Facility
Usually holds persons
awaiting trial &
sentenced under 1 year
Usually holds persons
sentenced over 1 year
Persons convicted of
Federal offenses
regardless of sentence
53% of inmates are
serving sentences
for non-violent
offenses
89% non-violent.
2/3 are convicted of
drug offenses.
Characteristics of 2/3 in custody for
Inmate Population non-violent offenses.
Half are awaiting trial.
10 million admissions.
U.S. Criminal Justice System
State & Federal
Jails
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1980
1600000
1400000
1200000
1000000
800000
600000
400000
200000
0
1981
Prison Population
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Size & Scope
American adults touched by criminal justice
system on any given day…
 1 in 142 incarcerated
 1 in 38 under correctional supervision
 1 in 28 admitted to jail in course of a year
 Police maintain 50 million criminal records
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Alternatives to Incarceration
 Probation
 Intensive Probation
 Day Reporting Centers
 Halfway Houses
 Boot Camps
 Fines & Restitution
 Community Service
 Home Detention
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Offenses
Felony:
Offense punishable by
more than one year in
custody
Misdemeanor:
Offense punishable by
less than one year in
custody
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Two Reporting Structures
Uniform Crime
Reports
Tabulated by FBI based
on annual arrest figures
from each jurisdiction
National Crime
Victims Survey
Tabulated by the
Census Bureau based on
random sample survey
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Number of Offenses in millions
Total Crime is down 12 % from its peak in 1991
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Total Crimes
Violent Crimes
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Number of Offenses in millions
Assault 8%
Burglary
19.4%
Motor Vehicle
Theft 11%
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Number of Homicides per Year
Homicides down 27% from peak of 24,700 murders in 1991
100
80
60
East
40
West
20
North
0
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Rate versus Other Countries
Except for murder, victimization rates in the
U.S. are in line with other developed countries
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Assault
United States
Robbery
Canada
Spain
Car Theft
Australia
England
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Number of Offenses in millions
Juvenile Crime is increasing at an alarming rate...
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Property Crime
Violent Crimes
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends: Number of Offenses in millions
 Juvenile Crime is increasing at an alarming rate...
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Juvenile Arrests as % of Total, by Crime
Murder
Rape
Robbery
Assault
Theft
Auto Theft
0
Under 15
20
40
15 to 17
60
18 to 21
80
21 +
100
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Scope of System Today
Costs of Crime:
 $50 billion per year in lost revenue
 $5 billion in health care costs
 $65 billion spent on private security
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Crime Trends
For the last several years we have seen a dramatic
decrease in crime throughout the Country…
Some Reasons Why:
 community policing strategies
- more cops on the street
- problem solving approach
 increase in prison population (3 strikes)
 demographic shift (less juveniles)
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Community Policing
An Alternative Policing Strategy...
 Addresses underlying conditions that create crime
 Requires officers to draw on wide range of resources
 Pushes decision making down through the ranks
 Emphasizes problem solving approach
 Recognizes expertise of line officers
 Greater public involvement
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Community Policing
Case Study - Joliet, IL:
After Year I...
 Homicide down 25%
 Part I crimes down 10%
 All other crime down 5%
“community involvement
led directly to major drug
and gang related arrests…”
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Privatization
Growing fear of crime and dissatisfaction with municipal
enforcement prompted upsurge in private security…
 Consumers and businesses spend $65 billion per
year on private security
 By the year 2000 there will be 3 private security
officers for every 1 sworn police officer
U.S. Criminal Justice System
Technology
High-Tech Crime Fighting:
 DNA Typing
 AFIS
 Crime Analysis
 Surveillance
 LoJack Systems
 GPS Technology
 Video-equipped Cars
 Electronic Monitoring
U.S. Criminal Justice System
International Cooperation