American Justice Network
Legalized
Discretionary
Fragmented
Non-system
Quasi-justice
A system is a set of parts coordinated to
accomplish a set of goals. The
characteristics of a system include:
1. Overall goals and objectives
2. Shared definitions of success
3. Uniform performance measures
4. Overall management yielding a high
level of coordination and cooperation.
The American justice system is a hodgepodge of
uncoordinated institutions run independently by
almost every governmental unit. The system is
characterized by:
1. Competing objectives.
2. Multiplicity of goals (no overall goals).
3. Multiple measures of performance.
4. Multiple definitions of success.
5. No overall management.
6. Limited coordination.
7. Limited cooperation (turf battles).
8. Goal conflict

Due Process vs. Crime Control

Deterrence vs. Rehabilitation

Incapacitation vs. Reintegration
Executive
Federal
State
County
City
Legislative
Judicial
Regulatory
Executive
Federal
FBI,DEA,
Probation,
Prisons
State
State Police,
Parole,
Prisons, Fish
and Game
County
Sheriff, Jails
City
Police, Jails
Legislative
Judicial
Regulatory
Executive
Legislative
Federal
FBI,DEA,
Probation,
Prisons
Congress, GAO
State
State Police,
Parole,
Prisons, Fish
and Game
State
Legislatures
County
Sheriff, Jails
County
Commissions
City
Police, Jails
City Councils
Judicial
Regulatory
Executive
Legislative
Judicial
Federal
FBI,DEA,
Probation,
Prisons
Congress, GAO
Supreme Court
State
State Police,
Parole,
Prisons, Fish
and Game
State
Legislatures
Supreme
Court,
Probation
County
Sheriff, Jails
County
Commissions
County Court
City
Police, Jails
City Councils
City Court
Regulatory
Executive
Legislative
Judicial
Regulatory
Federal
FBI,DEA,
Probation,
Prisons
Congress, GAO
Supreme Court FDA, EPA
State
State Police,
Parole,
Prisons, Fish
and Game
State
Legislatures
Supreme
Court,
Probation
Fire Marshal
County
Sheriff, Jails
County
Commissions
County Court
Building
City
Police, Jails
City Councils
City Court
Restaurant
The 17th square on the grid
 $60 billion in annual expenditures
 4,000 agencies
 2 million employed
(more than public law enforcement)
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Legislature
Police
Prosecutor
Judges
Parole Boards

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Warn/reprimand
Make them become an informant (stable)
Cite
Arrest and street release
Arrest and detain/book, then release
Arrest and detain/book
What charge

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Release or charge
What charges
When to charge
Plea bargain:
1.
2.
3.
Horizontal – reduce the number of charges
Vertical – reduce the severity of the charges
Lateral – case trade offs

Court process
1. Admitting evidence
2. Admitting testimony
3. Procedural control of the case

Sentencing (Indeterminate vs. determinate)

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Roughly1.2 million active lawyers in the U.S.
140,000 in U.S. law schools
34,000 graduate with law degrees annually
U.S. has around 38 lawyers/10,000
(highest rate in the industrialized world)
U.S. has about 10 percent of the world’s
lawyers
New York has roughly 168,000 lawyers


Large number of trivial/frivolous suits filed.
A social orientation toward litigation
(confrontation vs. reconciliation).
The result is:
 Backlog and delay in the judicial process.
 Significant economic costs.
The loser in a law suit must pay the winner’s
legal fees. The result is fewer frivolous suits
being filed, freeing up court time and
resources for more meaningful matters.
Legalized
Discretionary
Fragmented
Non-system
Quasi-justice
The justice “system”:
 Is but a temporary stop-gap that buys time
so that the foundations of society (religion,
schools and family) can stabilize
themselves; so that they can fill in the holes
in the social fabric.
 Does not have the capacity to repair the
holes.
“The real test of life is the ability to hold two
opposing ideas in mind at the same time,
and retain the ability to function. One should
recognize, for example, that things are
hopeless, but be determined to make them
otherwise.”
Scientific criminology
vs.
Political criminology