Columbus State University
Department of Criminal Justice & Sociology
Fall Semester 2011
CRJU 3136 CRN 83569 Online
Criminal Justice Ethics
Email: bailey_michael@columbusstate.edu
Dr. Michael P. Bailey, Associate Professor
Faculty Office Bldg #311
Office Phone: (706) 507-8703
Office Hours: 1:30PM – 3:30PM
MTWR and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION
CRJU 3136 (Criminal Justice Ethics) is an upper level undergraduate course which examines
current issues related to ethics in law enforcement, the courts, and corrections. Students will
become familiar with practical issues that generate interaction between ethics and criminal
justice. Students will then be exposed to various philosophical theories that may provide
practical application of theory. Students will learn the significance of these various
philosophical applications of theory in the study of contemporary criminal justice issues.
COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, the student will better:
Understand the importance of ethics in Criminal Justice,
Understand the connection between ethics and the police,
Understand the significance of racial discrimination in the criminal justice system,
Understand the ethical considerations of ethics and the law,
Understand the relationship of ethics and criminal punishment and corrections,
Understand the ethics of policy making,
Comprehend how ethical theories are applied to the criminal justice system,
Understand the concept of duty and principle,
Understand the concept of consequence,
Understand the importance of character,
Comprehend the concepts of egoism, pleasure, and indifference,
Understand what it is meant by a sense of justice, and
Understand what is meant by caring for others and theories of moral development.
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TEXTBOOK
Ethical Dilemmas & Decisions in Criminal Justice, 7th Edition, by Joycelyn M. Pollock
The textbook for this course is required. Students will be responsible for assigned readings. All
assigned readings are testable material. The lecture portion of this course is designed to
supplement, not substitute for the required reading of the text.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Due dates and subject matter for tests and papers/projects will be announced when the class is
posted online. Tests may be fill in, multiple choice, true/false, short answer, or essay. The final
exam will be given as listed in the Schedule of Courses for finals.
Examinations will not be given at any other time than other than scheduled and announced
by the professor.
One research topic may be required. If assigned, the topic will be selected by the student and
approved by this professor. It should deal with a contemporary ethical issue in policing. The
paper will be a minimum of five (5) pages (double-spaced), and no more than seven (7) pages.
The number of references will be at least five, and can include no more than two internet
resources. It will be worth a maximum of 100 points and will be graded on the following criteria:
1.
Provides a good discussion and exhibits critical analysis of a pertinent issue in
modern police management.
2.
Contains a clear organizational pattern, to include an introduction, a body, and a
conclusion. The conclusion will include a comprehensive summary of the paper.
The term paper will be graded on the same standard as that used on essay
questions.
GRADING SYSTEM
Your final grade will be the average of all cumulative points (total points divided by number of
assignments or projects).
A
B
C
D
F
I
90 - 100%
80 - 89%
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
0 - 59%
Incomplete
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STANDARD FOR ANY ESSAY QUESTIONS AND/OR RESEARCH PAPERS
1.
2.
3.
4.
Includes key concepts ........................…......................
Demonstrates continuity in relating concepts ..............
States your answer or view clearly, and provides
sufficient detail to support your answer ..................….
Correct use of grammar, punctuation, and spelling .….
20 percent
40 percent
30 percent
10 percent
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Cheating, Plagiarism: Cheating is not acceptable! If you enroll in Ethics, this professor will
view you as a student of criminal justice (regardless of your major), and cheating is seen as
particularly ill conceived (by this professor) if done by a student of criminal justice. Plagiarism
is cheating on an assignment by trying to pass off someone else's work as your own. Do not
paraphrase or quote without use of proper citations. Any student caught cheating or plagiarizing,
will receive a zero ("0") resulting in an “F” for the course. There will be no opportunity for extra
credit to any student caught cheating. Any student wishing to discuss a possible change of score
or grade on an exam or paper must make an appointment with the professor to discuss the issue
in private. No open class discussions of alternative answers will be accepted. Individual
arguments will be measured according to their logic and credibility.
A SPECIAL NOTE CONCERNING ETHICAL STANDARD OF CONDUCT
If you are working toward receiving a degree in the study of criminal justice, you should keep in
mind that standards of ethical behavior are high in this particular field. If you see yourself not
being able to maintain the ethical standard that is expected, you might want to consider changing
your course of study. Cheating and plagiarism are just two examples of academic misconduct
(simply being charged with a criminal offense could be an example of behavior that might
lead you to fail assignments, fail the course, be removed from study in the Criminal Justice &
Sociology Department, and/or be expelled from school altogether). Remember, also,… most
occupations require a certain number of letters of recommendation and referral before you can be
hired. Most professors (I am included in this group) will not provide such letters if the ethical
standard of the discipline has not been met. Very little leniency is given in these particular
incidents. The choice is yours.
(See Columbus State University Student Handbook concerning academic and/or behavioral misconduct)
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NOTE:
ADA ACCOMMODATION STATEMENT (Americans with Disabilities Act):
"If you have a documented disability, as described by the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504, you may be eligible to
receive accommodations to assist in programmatic and physical accessibility. We recommend
that you contact the Office of Disability Services in Schuster Student Success Center, room 221,
706-507-8755 as soon as possible. The Office of Disability Services can assist you in
formulating a reasonable accommodation plan and in providing support. Course requirements
will not be waived but accommodations may be able to assist you to meet the requirements.
Technical support may also be available to meet your specific need."
http://disability.colstate.edu/faculty_policies_procedures_a.asp#ada_syllabus
More complete information can be found at
http://disability.colstate.edu
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TENATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE
(Subject to change by professor)
Important Dates
Class Begins
Aug 15th, 2011 (Monday)
Refunds: Total Withdrawal 100%
Aug 11th – 19th, 2011
Schedule Change (Full Term)
Drop/Add Courses (100% Refund)
Aug 16th – 19th, 2011
Deadline to Withdraw (Full Term)
Sep 9th, 2011
Midterm
Oct 6th, 2011
Fall Break
Oct 10th – 11th, 2011
Thanksgiving Holiday Break
Nov 23rd – 27th, 2011
Classes End
Dec 5th, 2011
Final Exam
TBA
Week One:
Week of Aug 15th, 2011
Read: Chap 1
Morality, ethics, and human
behavior. Defining terms, Morality
and the law, Morality and behavior,
analyzing ethical dilemmas
Week Two:
Week of Aug 22nd, 2011
Read Chap
5
2
Determining moral behavior.
Ethical systems, deontological and
teleological ethical systems, religion,
natural law, the ethics of virtue, the
ethics of care, egoism relativism,
absolutism, situational ethics
Week Three:
Week of Aug 29th, 2011
Read Chap 3
Justice and the Law. Origins
of the concept of justice, Distributive
justice, Corrective justice, Immoral
laws and the moral person,
restorative justice.
Week Four:
Week of Sep 5th, 2011
Read Chap 4
Becoming an ethical
professional. Theories of moral
development, Biological factors,
Learning Theory, Kohlberg’s Moral
Stage Theory, Ethics teaching and
training, Leadership and the Ethical
Organization, the Criminal Justice
Professional.
Week Five:
Week of Sep 12th, 2011
Read Chap 5
The police role in society.
Crime fighter or public servant,
community policing, authority and
power, formal ethics for the police
officer, police subculture, discretion,
duty, and discrimination
Week Six:
Week of Sep 19th, 2011
Read Chap 6
Police Discretion and
Dilemmas. Discretion and
Discrimination, Racial Profiling,
Discretion and Criminal
Investigation, Discretion and the Use
of Force.
Week Seven:
Week of Sep 26th, 2011
Read Chap
6
7
Police Corruption and
Misconduct. A world-wide problem,
Types of Corruption (Gratuities,
professional courtesy, On-Duty use
of drugs and alcohol, Graft, Sexual
misconduct, Criminal Cops),
explanations of deviance (individual,
organizational, and societal)
Week Eight:
Week of Oct 3rd, 2011
Exam # 1
Covers Chaps 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
Fall Break
Read Chap 8
Law and Legal
Professionals. The role of law,
Justification of law (preventing harm
to others, preventing offensive
behavior, preventing harm to self,
preventing harm to societal morals),
paradigms of law (Consensus,
Conflict, and Pluralist)
Week Nine:
Week of Oct 10th, 2011
Week Ten:
Week of Oct 17th, 2011
Week Eleven:
Week of Oct 24th, 2011
Read Chap 9
Discretion and Dilemmas in
the Legal Profession. Ethical issues
for defense attorneys
(responsibilities to the client, conflict
of interest, zealous defense,
confidentiality), Ethical issues for
prosecutors (use of discretion,
conflicts of interest, plea bargaining,
media relations, expert witnesses,
zealous prosecution)
Read Chap 10
Ethical misconduct in the
Courts and Responses. “First, Let’s
kill all the lawyers…”, ethical
misconduct (defense attorney
misconduct, prosecutor misconduct,
judge misconduct), justice on trial,
explanations for misconduct,
responses to misconduct
Week Twelve:
Week of Oct 31st, 2011
Read Chap 11
The Ethics of Punishment
and Corrections. Rationales
(retribution, prevention), Ethical
frameworks (Utilitarianism, Ethical
Formalism, Ethics of Care, Rawlism
Ethics), Punishments (supermax &
7
private prisons, capital punishment,
community corrections)
Week Thirteen:
Week of Nov 7th, 2011
Read Chap 12
Discretion and Dilemmas in
Corrections. Correctional officers
(relationships with inmates, use of
force, maintaining morality in prison,
jail officers), treatment staff,
probation and parole officers,
Avoiding burnout and
disillusionment
Week Fourteen:
Week of Nov 14th, 2011
Read Chap 13
Correctional Professionals:
Misconduct and Responses.
Misconduct and Corruption
(treatment professionals, corruption
in the community), explanations for
misconduct, responses to corruption,
restorative justice
Week Fifteen:
Week of Nov 21st, 2011
Nov 23rd thru 27th, 2011
Read Chap 14
Making Ethical Choices. Just
wars and just means, the responses to
9/11, crime control versus rightsbased law enforcement, Ethical
dilemmas and decisions
Thanksgiving Break
Week Sixteen:
Week of Nov 28th, 2011
Exam # 2
th
nd
(Nov 28 thru Dec 2 , 2011)
Covers Chaps 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14
Will be administered according the schedule of
Finals dates appearing on the calendar for Fall 2011
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Read, sign, and return this portion to the professor.
Course ________________
I have received a syllabus for the above course and have been instructed to read and become
familiar with the course requirements.
_______________________________
Signature
_________________________
Printed Name
_______________________________
Student Identification Number
_________________________
Date
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