I.
Michael Auzenne
Instructor
GCM, CJC
WHAT IS CRIME?
A. The Consensus Model
CRIMINAL JUSTICE TODAY
B.
C. i. ii.
The Conflict Model
Consensus Model: A criminal justice model in which the majority of citizens in a society share the same values and beliefs.
Morals: Principles of right and wrong behavior, as practiced by individuals or by society. i. Conflict Model: A criminal justice model in which the content of criminal law is determined by the groups that hold economic, political, and social power in a community.
An Integrated Definition of Crime
D.
1.
Types of Crime i.
2.
Deviance: Behavior that is considered to go against the norms of society.
Violent Crime i. Murder: The unlawful killing of one human being by another. ii. Sexual assault: Forced or coerced sexual intercourse. iii. Assault: A threat or an attempt to do violence to another person that causes that person to fear immediate physical harm. iv. Battery: The act of physically contacting another person with the intent to do harm, even if the resulting injury is substantial. v. Robbery: The act of taking property from another person through force, threat of force, or intimidation.
Property Crime
The most common form of criminal activity in the United States.

3.
4.
5.
6. i. ii.
Larceny: The act of taking property from another person without the use of force with the intent of keeping that property.
Burglary: The act of breaking into or entering a structure without permission.
Public Order Crime i. Public Order Crime: Behavior that has been labeled criminal because it is contrary to shared social values. Often known as victimless crimes, the concept of public order crimes is linked to the consensus model.
White-Collar Crime i.
Organized Crime
White-Collar Crime: Non-violent crimes committed by business entities or individuals to gain a personal or business advantage. i. Organized Crime: Illegal acts, such as illegal gambling, prostitution, racketeering, and extortion carried out by illegal organizations engaged in the market for illegal goods or services, such as illicit drugs or firearms.
High-Tech Crime i. ii.
Cyber fraud - Any misrepresentation knowingly made over the internet with the intention of deceiving another person.
Identity theft - The appropriation of identity information, such as a person’s name, driver’s license, or Social Security number, to illegally access the victim’s financial resources. iii. Cyberstalking – Use of the internet, e-mail, or any other form of electronic communication to attempt to contact and/or intimidate another person. iv. Hacking/Cracking – The act of employing one computer to gain illegal access to the information stored on another computer. v. Malware production – The creation of programs harmful to computer, such as worms, Trojan horses, and viruses. vi. Intellectual property theft – The illegal appropriation of property that results from intellectual creative processes, such as films, video games, and software, without compensating its owners.

II. THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM i. Criminal Justice System: The interlocking network of law enforcement agencies, courts, and corrections institutions designed to enforce criminal laws and protect society from criminal behavior.
The Purpose of the Criminal Justice System A.
1.
2. i. ii.
To control crime
To prevent crime iii. To provide and maintain crime
Controlling and Preventing Crime
Maintaining Justice i. Justice: The quality of fairness that must exist in the processes designed to determine whether individuals are guilty of criminal wrongdoing.
The Structure of the Criminal Justice System B. i. Federalism: A form of government in which a written constitution provides for a division of powers between a central government and several regional governments.
Law Enforcement 1.
a. Local Law Enforcement
Local police are responsible for the “nuts and bolts” of all law enforcement work. i. ii.
Houston Police Department
Baytown Police Department iii. Harris County Sheriff’s Office b. State Law Enforcement i. ii. iii.
Hawaii is the only state without a state police department
Highway Patrol
- Texas Department of Public Safety (State Trooper)
State Police

c.
Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission
Texas Parks & Wildlife (Game Warden)
Fire Marshal
Federal Law Enforcement
2. Courts
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF)
Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE)
Postal Police
The United States has a dual court system, meaning that we have two independent judicial court systems, one at the federal level and one at the state level. In practice, this translates to 52 different court systems: one federal court system and fifty different state court systems, plus that of the District of
Columbia.
The criminal court and its work group – the judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys – are charged with the weighty responsibility of determining the innocence of guilt or guilt of criminal suspects.
Corrections 3.
1.
2. i. ii.
Probation – the most common form of correctional treatment.
Jails - hold those convicted of minor crimes with relatively short sentences, administered by counties and municipalities. iii. Prisons – are administered by states and the federal government. iv. Community-Base Corrections
Parole: An inmate, after serving part of his/her term in a correctional facility, is allowed to serve the rest of term in the community. It is the most frequent release from a jail or prison.
C. The Criminal Justice Process i. System: A set of interacting parts that, when functioning properly, achieve a desired result.
The Assembly Line
Formal versus Informal Criminal Justice

a. i. Discretion: The ability of individuals in the criminal justice system to make operational decisions based on personal judgment instead of formal rules or official information. Discretionary decisions lead to the development of the informal criminal justice process.
Discretionary Basics
Police decide whether to arrest a suspect, prosecutors decide whether to prosecute, magistrates decide whether there is sufficient probable cause for a case to go to a jury, and judges decide on sentencing.
Discretionary Values
The “Wedding Cake” Model of Criminal Justice b. c. i. “Wedding Cake” Model: A wedding cake shaped model that explains how different cases receive different treatment in the criminal justice system.
1.
Top layer: “Celebrity” cases; the top layer of the wedding cake comes closest to meeting our idealized standards of justice.
2 nd layer: “High profile” felonies
3 rd layer: “Ordinary” felonies
4 th layer: Misdemeanors; the largest layer of the wedding cake model
Trial by jury is relatively rare, only about 5% of those arrested for felonies go to trial.
III. VALUES OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
A. Crime Control and Due Process: To Punish or Protect? i. Civil Rights: The personal rights and protections guaranteed by the Constitution, particularly the Bill of Rights.
The Crime Control Model
2. i. Crime Control Model: A criminal justice model that places primary emphasis on the right of society to be protected from crime and violent criminals.
The Due Process Model

i. Due Process Model: A criminal justice model that places primacy on the right of the individual to be protected from the power of the state. It is likened to an obstacle course in that it strives to make it more difficult to prove guilt.
Which Model Prevails Today? B.
Generally, when crime rates are high, the public demands that politicians “get tough on crime” and the crime control model dominates.
IV. CRIMINAL JUSTICE TODAY
A. Crime: The Bottom Line
In 2010, violent crime in the United States dropped for the third straight year, and property crime for the seventh straight year, with both indicators reaching record lows.
1. Gun Sales and Gun Control
2.
Overall, about 30,000 people are killed by gunfire in the United States each year. i. Gun Control: Efforts by a government to regulate or control the sale of guns
The Illegal Drugs Problem
The explosion in violent crime in the late 1980s and early 1990s was attributed to the widespread sale and use of crack cocaine. a. Drugs and Crime b. i. ii.
Drug: Any substance that modifies biological, psychological, or social behavior; in particular, an illegal substance with those properties.
Psychoactive Drugs: Chemicals that effect the brain, causing changes in emotions, perceptions, and behavior, such as cocaine, heroin, or marijuana.
Drugs in the United States
Illegal drug use appears to be increasing in the United States.

B.
C.
D.
Law Enforcement in the United States: Traditions and Technology
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2.
The Scourge of Street Gangs i.
DNA Profiling
Street Gang: A group of people, usually three or more, who share a common identity and engage in illegal activities.
DNA evidence can be retrieved from blood, saliva, or hair strands.
Homeland Security and the Patriot Act i. ii.
Crime and Punishment
Homeland Security: A concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States and reduce the country’s vulnerability to terrorism.
Terrorism: The use or threat of violence to achieve political objectives.
1.
2.
The Growing Prison Population
The Economics of Incarceration