Goal of Criminal Justice System

8/13/2019 Goal of Criminal Justice System

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The Criminal Justice System Goals

Federalism

System perspective

Characteristics

Operations

Flow of decision making

Crime and Justice in a Multicultural Society


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Doing

Justice

Controlling

Crime

PreventingCrime

Goals of the Criminal Justice

System


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Doing Justice

Accountability for

offenses

Protect rights

Equality under the law

Discretion


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Controlling Crime Apprehension

Prosecution

Punishment

Within the bounds of

the law


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Preventing Crime Police presence

Punishment asdeterrent

Problems with citizen

invoked crimeprevention


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A system of governmentin which power is divided

between a central (national)

government and regional(state) governments.

Federalism


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State systems handle

alleged violations ofstate law.

The federal system

handles allegedviolations of federal

law.

Dual Justice Systems


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Federal State and Local Comparisons I


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Federal State and Local Comparisons II


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Criminal Justice as a System


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System Perspective

Interdependent

subsystems

Exchange

relationships

Example: pleabargains

Ch i i f h C i i l


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Characteristics of the Criminal

Justice System

Discretion

Resource Dependence

Sequential Tasks

Filtering


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Discretion

Arrest or let go?

Long or short

sentence?

Prosecute or

dismiss?


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Resource Dependence

Politicians Public

Media


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Sequential Tasks


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Criminal Justice

Funnel

Of 1,000crimes that are

committed

Only

5 juveniles and

18 adults are

incarcerated


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Police Courts Corrections

The Criminal Justice System

Operations of Criminal

Justice Agencies


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POLICE Keep the peace

Combat crime

Prevent crime

Provide social services


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COURTS

Dual Court System US and State

Variance among states

Adjudication Sentencing


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CORRECTIONS Only about 1/3 incarcerated

Community supervision

Federal, State, and local

Privatization trend

Fl f D i i M ki i th


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Flow of Decision Making in the

Criminal Justice System

Steps in the Decision Making Process The Criminal Justice Wedding Cake

Crime Control versus Due Process


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Criminal Justice Wedding Cake:

Layer 1

Celebrated

perpetrators

Celebrated victims Type the media loves

Cases that make

Supreme Court

precedents

1


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Serious felonies by

experienced offenders

Violent crimes

Property crimes with

high $ value

Get full attention ofthe CJ system

2


Layer 2


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First time offender less

serious offenses which may

be felonies Less serious personal injury

or low $ value

Dealt with less seriously,

maybe probation

3


Layer 3


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Most misdemeanors

Handled in assembly-line fashion Typical penalty is a small fine

Having to go to court may

be the real punishment

4


Layer 4

C ti M d l


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Competing Models


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Racial Disparities

in CJ SystemPotential

Explanations


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Explanations for Incarceration Rates for

Blacks and Whites

Black Incarceration (DV)

Arrest rates

Poverty

Unemployment

Executive Party (R)

Legislature (%R)

Black Politicians %

State Courts (Liberal)

Citizen opinion Sentencing Guidelines

Prison Capacity Litigation

White Incarceration (DV)

Arrest rates

Poverty

Unemployment

Executive Party (R)

Legislature (%R)

Black Politicians %

State Courts (Liberal)

Citizen opinion Sentencing Guidelines

Prison Capacity Litigation


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Incarceration Rates By Race

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95

Year

StatePrisonersper100,000population

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

BlackRate/White

Rate

Black Rate / White Rate

Black Imprisonment Rate

White ImprisonmentRate


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Effect of Partisanship on Black Incarceration

Conditioned on Black State Population

Quick Quiz to Test Attention


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Quick Quiz to Test Attention

1) ___ is the authority to make decisions by using ones own judgment and

conscience which provides the basis for individualization and informality in the

administration of justice.

Discretion

2) ___ is a document charging an individual with a specific crime prepared by a

prosecuting attorney and presented to a court at a preliminary hearing.

Information

3) ___ is a characteristic of the criminal justice system that leads criminaljustice officials to be responsive to elected officials and legislative bodies.

Resource dependence

4) ___ consists of separate judicial structures for states and for the national

government.

Dual court system

5) ___ is a characteristic of the organization of law enforcement and other

criminal justice agencies in the United States.

Decentralization

Goal of Criminal Justice System

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