At the end of the course you should
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Know and be familiar with the basic factual and systematic information
on the problems of crime and the major institutions (1)police, (2)courts,
(3) corrections) and policies which seek to control crime;
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Be able to use correctly and with ease basic concepts and terminology
which describe people, organizations and policies;
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Be able to assess existing explanations why people and criminal justice
organizations do what they do;
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Be able to assess and evaluate whether what is done in the name of
criminal justice (and ultimately the American public - you) is fair and just
as well as effective.
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An introduction and overview of interesting
topics you can sample - to arouse your
interest
Later courses you can take will go into
much greater depth and detail on topics:
crime, law, police, courts, prisons, etc.
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Criminal Justice: Studies the system of law
enforcement, adjudication, and correction
that is directly involved in the apprehension,
prosecution, and control of those charged
with a criminal offense.
Criminology: Studies the etiology (origin),
extent, and nature of crime in society.
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A loosely organized collection of agencies
charged with protecting the public,
maintaining order, enforcing the law,
identifying transgressors, bringing the guilty
to justice, and treating criminal behavior.
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The decision-making points from the initial
report of a crime/victimization
to the police to decisions by the police,
courts, and correctional personnel to the
eventual release of the offender and her or
his reentry into society.
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Crime and violence have been common since
the nation was first formed.
Post-Civil War expansion to the west gave
rise to famous criminals such as John Wesley
Hardin, Billy the Kidd, and Johnny Ringo as
well as famous law men such as Wyatt Earp
and Bat Masterson.
Crime rate may actually have been much
higher in the 19th and 20th centuries than it is
today.
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1900 – 1935 we saw a sustained increase in
criminal activity
Criminal gangs formed before the Civil War in
urban slums became the forerunners of
modern day organized crime families
Depression era outlaws
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1829 – London Metropolitan Police created
1919 – Establishment of the Chicago Crime
Commission
1931 – National Commission on Law
Observance and Enforcement (Wickersham
Commission) created by President Hoover
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The Modern Era of Justice can be traced to a
series of research projects beginning in
1950s by the American Bar Foundation
◦ For the first time the term criminal justice system
began to be used
◦ Focused on the criminal justice process
◦ The “discovery” and analysis of the use of discretion
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1967 President’s Commission on Law
Enforcement and Administration of Justice
1968 Safe Streets Acts provided funding for
the Law Enforcement Assistance
Administration (LEAA)
1979 National Institute of Law Enforcement
and Criminal Justice renamed the National
Institute of Justice (NIJ)
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Social control – makes people behave in
approved ways and sanction those who do
not
Formal social control – what the government
does; enforces laws
and regulations
Informal social control – what people do;
tends to enforce social norms of behavior
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Over 5,000 public agencies employing over 2
million people serve as society’s instrument
of social control
Three major components- (SIGNIFICANT
POINTS)
◦ 1. Law Enforcement (22,000 agencies or more)
◦ 2. Courts (20,000 courts; 10,000 prosecutorial
agencies or more)
◦ 3. Corrections (6,000 institutions; 3,500 probation
and parole departments or more)
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How cases/offenders flow through the system
and where they exit from the system
1.Report of a crime
Or 1a.Initial contact of a suspected offender
2. Investigation
3. Arrest
4. Custody
5. Charging
6. Preliminary hearing/grand jury
7. Arraignment
8. Bail/detention
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9. Plea bargaining
10. Trial/adjudication
11. Sentencing/disposition
12. Appeal/post-conviction remedies
13. Correctional treatment
14. Release
15. Post-release
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Remember
◦ 15 steps in the criminal justice system.
 Starts with Law Enforcement
 Courts
 Corrections
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Flowchart models: how are cases
processed?
Issues:
◦ Who are the people who make these
decisions?
◦ What is their job?
◦ Only a few cases go all the way through
– the “funnel”
◦ There is no integrated system, but a set of
institutions and people having different powers and
authority:
 Structural fragmentation – different institutions
 Sequential specialization – different jobs
 Ideological disagreements – different perceptions of
what matters (people working in the system have
perspectives)
 Functional interconnections – people manage to work
together
 An example: the courtroom workgroup
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Courtroom Work Group
◦ Prosecutor, defense attorney, judge, and others
◦ Function to streamline the process of justice
through the extensive use of plea bargaining and
other alternatives.
 We will have a court simulation with each of you will be
assuming the roles described above.
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Cake model: variations in processing of
cases
◦ The ideal (equal treatment) versus the
reality (unequal processing)
◦ Variations in how cases are dealt with by
seriousness of offense, nature of the
accused, specifics of offense (stranger,
weapons, injury)
◦ A system of laws and of people
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You all already have a perspective, whether
you know it or not
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Crime control,
due process,
rehabilitation,
non-interventionist,
justice, and restorative justice
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6 perspectives from your book – which one is
you?
◦ Identify your perspective
◦ What are those common perspectives that others
have in your group?
◦ Select a spokes person
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Perspectives incorporate personal views,
values and ideological preferences on
What acts are crimes? Crime is a label.
What kind of people commit crimes?
What causes crimes?
Strategies for dealing with crime and criminals:
prevent, deter, punish, incapacitate, rehabilitate,
reintegrate, community involvement
◦ Theories and what works and what does not
◦ Balancing notions of social control with notions
of justice
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Emphasizes the control of dangerous
offenders and the protection of society. Its
advocates call for harsh punishments as a
deterrent to crime, such as the death penalty
◦ Purpose of the justice system is to 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
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Primary purpose is to care for people who
cannot manage themselves. Crime is an
expression of frustration and anger created
by social inequality that can be controlled by
giving people the means to improve their
lifestyle through conventional endeavors
◦ In the long run, it is better to treat than punish
◦ Criminals are society’s victims
◦ Helping others is part of the American culture
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Primary focus in on the defendant’s rights to
prevent the wrongful conviction of an
innocent person
◦ 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
◦ Everyone must be treated equally and fairly
◦ Illegally seized evidence must be suppressed even if
the guilty go free
◦ Legal counsel should be provided at every stage of the
process, regardless of cost, to prevent abuse
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The justice system should limit its
involvement with criminal defendants so as to
avoid the inevitable harmful and long-term
negative effects
◦ The justice system stigmatizes offenders
◦ Stigma locks people into a criminal way of life
◦ Less is better. Decriminalize, divert, and
deinstitutionalize whenever possible
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The greatest challenge for the system is to
dispense fair and equal justice to those who
come before the law
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Equal treatment for equal crimes
Structured justice, “just deserts”
Reduced use of discretion
Inconsistent treatment produces disrespect for the
system
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True purpose of the criminal justice system
should be to promote a peaceful and just
society by engaging in peacemaking rather
than punishment
◦ Offenders should be reintegrated back into society
◦ Coercive punishments are self-defeating
◦ The justice system must become more humane
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Principles and goals:
◦ Make good – restore, heal – what has been
broken and damaged: reestablish social
harmony
◦ Offender has to accept responsibility for
actions
◦ Involve all – offender, victims, officials
agencies, community – in the decisionmaking and mediation process
◦ Arrive at a consensual agreement for
making good (restitution)
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More than just another perspective:
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Sources for restorative justice ideas and
practices:
◦ Changing the metaphor: make peace not war
◦ All the other perspectives think that crime control
requires fighting a war against crime and criminals
◦ Religious beliefs (e.g., Amish, pacifists}
◦ Indigenous societies (e.g., Native Americans, First
nations (Canada))
◦ Foreign examples (e.g., New Zealand)
◦ The importance of informal social control
◦ Reformers: disillusionment with current US criminal
justice practices and results
◦ Vermont: Community Boards
◦ Family Group Conferences
◦ Navajo Peacemaker Court
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Crime Control and Justice Models have
dominated during the past decade
Rehabilitative efforts have not been
abandoned
No single view is the right or correct one.
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How do different perspectives explain why
there is a drug problem?
What kind of people are drug producers,
traffickers and consumers?
What should be done about producers,
traffickers and consumers?
What does success look like?
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AJ 750 Ethics
◦ Offered this is a brief introduction to the subject of
ethics.
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Requires members of the system to apply
equal and fair justice
Difficult because criminal justice often
functions in an environment where moral
ambiguity or tensions among legitimate
goals are the norm
Important because of the enormous power
granted to criminal justice employees
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Ethics
Ethics
Ethics
Ethics
in
in
in
in
law enforcement
the court process
the corrections process
studying criminal justice