Chapter 1
Crime and Criminal Justice
Learning Objectives
 Discuss the formation of the criminal justice
system in America
 Be able to define the concept of a criminal
justice system
 Be familiar with the basic component
agencies of criminal justice
 Comprehend the size and scope of the
contemporary justice system
 Trace the formal criminal justice process
Learning Objectives
 Know what is meant by the term “criminal
justice assembly line”
 Characterize the “informal criminal justice
system”
 Describe the “wedding cake” model of justice
 Be familiar with the various perspectives on
justice
 Understand the ethical issues involved in
criminal justice
Introduction: The Criminal Justice System
 System of:

Law enforcement

Courts

Corrections
 Directly involved in the:

Apprehension

Prosecution

Control of those who violate the law
Introduction: The Criminal Justice System
Protecting the public
Maintaining order
Enforcing law
Identifying transgressors
Bringing the guilty to justice
Treating criminal behavior
Introduction: The Criminal Justice System
 Describe, analyze and explain the behavior of
criminal justice agencies:

Police departments

Courts

Correctional agencies
Developing the Criminal Justice System
 A surge of violent crime in 19th century
America

Famous outlaws, criminal gangs

Flourished in largest cities
 Criminal justice agencies developed as
criminal gangs formed
 In 1829 the London Metropolitan Police, the
first police agency
Developing the Criminal Justice System
 First police agencies created in the U.S:

Boston (1838)

New York (1844)

Philadelphia (1854).
 The penitentiary was created
 In 1919 the Chicago Crime Commission was
created
Developing the Criminal Justice System
 In 1931 President Herbert Hover appointed the
National Commission of Law Observance and
Enforcement commonly known as the
Wickersham Commission.

Commission made a detailed analysis of the U.S.
justice system

Helped usher in the era of treatment and
rehabilitation
The Modern Era of Justice
 Began in the 1950’s with a series of research
projects
 Criminal justice procedures and their
interrelationship were examined:

Investigation

Arrest

Prosecution

Pleas negotiation
Federal Involvement in Criminal Justice
 1967 - President’s Commission on Law
Enforcement and Administration of Justice
published The Challenge of Crime in a Free Society
A group of practitioners, educators, and attorneys created
a comprehensive view of the CJ process and recommended
reforms
•
 1968 - Congress passed Safe Streets and
Crime Control Act

Funded the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration
 Federal government continues to fund the
NIJ and the BJA
The Contemporary Criminal Justice System
 Society’s instrument of social control
 Task is to prevent or deter outlawed behavior
by:

Apprehending

Adjudicating

Sanctioning Lawbreakers
The Contemporary CJS
 Three main components:
①
Law enforcement agencies

②
Court agencies

③
Investigate & arrest
Charge, conduct trial and sentence
Correctional agencies

Monitor, treat, rehabilitate offenders
The Contemporary CJS
 State and local criminal and civil justice

Costs $215 billion (up 300 percent since 1982)

Employs more than 2 million people

18,000 local law enforcement agencies employ
1,000,000 people

800,000 are full-time sworn, remainder are:

Part-time officers

Civilian employees
The Contemporary CJS
 There are approximately:

17,000 courts

8,000 prosecution agencies

6,000 correctional institutions

3500 probation and parole departments
 Costs:

$100,000 to build a prison cell

$25,000 yearly to house an inmate

$30,000 yearly to house a juvenile inmate
The Contemporary CJS
 Arrest and Court Populations:

14 million individuals arrested each year

1 million convicted of felony charges in state and
federal courts

1 ½ million juveniles handled by juvenile courts
The Contemporary CJS
 Corrections:

More than 7 million people under some form of
correctional supervision

2 million in jails and prisons

5 million in community supervision:

Probation

Parole
The Formal Criminal Justice Process
Crime Report
Bail/Detention
Investigation
Plea Bargaining
Arrest
Custody
Charging Factors
Preliminary hearing/Grand
Jury
Arraignment
Trial/Adjudication
Sentencing/Disposition
Appeal/Post-Conviction
Remedies
Correctional Treatment
Release
Post-Release
The Formal Justice Process
Criminal Justice Assembly Line
 There are decision
points at each of the
stages of the assembly
line
 Each decision point is
critical
 The justice process is
viewed as a funnel for
cases
The Informal CJ Process
 Most criminal cases are cooperative ventures
in which all parties work together to work out
a deal
 Courtroom Work Group:

Prosecutor

Defense attorney

Judge

Other court personnel
 80-90% of all cases are settled without trials
The Informal CJ Process
 The “Wedding Cake” Model of Justice:
Perspectives on Justice
 There are a variety of perspectives on justice:

Crime Control Perspective

Rehabilitation Perspective

Due Process Perspective

Nonintervention Perspective

Equal Justice Perspective

Restorative Justice Perspective
Perspectives on Justice
 Crime Control Perspective:

Deter crime through the application of punishment

The more efficient the system, the greater its
effectiveness

The justice system is not equipped to treat people but
to investigate crimes, apprehend suspects,
and punish the guilty
Perspectives on Justice
Rehabilitation Perspective Assumptions

Care for people who cannot manage themselves

It is better to treat than punish

Criminals are society’s victims

Helping others is part of the American culture

Convicted criminals can be successfully treated
Perspectives on Justice
Due Process Perspective
•
Provisions for fair and equitable treatment for the
accused
•
Every person deserves their constitutional rights and
privileges
•
Need to preserve Constitutional rights and
democratic ideals takes precedence over the need to
punish the guilty
•
Decisions must be carefully scrutinized to avoid
errors
Perspectives on Justice
Nonintervention Perspective
•
Criminal justice agencies should limit involvement
with criminal defendants
•
Labeling individuals as criminals is harmful and
disruptive
•
Stigma locks people into a criminal way of life
•
Decriminalize, divert, and deinstitutionalize
Perspectives on Justice
Equal Justice Perspective
•
Equal treatment for equal crimes

Decision making standardized and structured by
rules and regulations
•
Individual discretion reduced and controlled
•
Inconsistent treatment produces disrespect for the
system
Restorative Justice Perspective
Restorative Justice Perspective
•
Offenders should be reintegrated back into society
•
Coercive punishments are self-defeating
•
Justice system must become more humane
Perspectives in Perspective
 During the past decade crime control and
equal justice models have dominated
 Rehabilitation, due process, and the least-
intrusive treatment have not been abandoned
 There is no single view that is the right or
correct view
Ethics in Criminal Justice
 Justice personnel function in an environment
where moral ambiguity is the norm
 Enormous power granted to criminal justice
employees
 Ethics and law enforcement:

Police have authority to deprive people of their
liberty

Police are granted wide discretion

Police serve as the interface between the power of the
state and citizens it governs
Ethics in Criminal Justice
 Ethics and the courts:

Seeks justice for all parties in a criminal matter

Prosecutor has dual-role:


Represents people

Represents the court
Defense Attorney has dual-role:

Defense advocate

Officer of the court
 Ethics and corrections - significant coercive
power over offenders