Criminal Justice Today Chapter 1: Criminal Justice Today
What is Crime? Crime: 1. Violates criminal law. 2. Is punishable by criminal sanctions.
What is Crime? Consensus Model: Society, though diverse, shares the same moral value system. Crimes violate this value system and are deemed harmful to society. Conflict Model: Society is diverse and constantly engaged in a power struggle. Dominant groups in society codify their values into law.
What is Crime? An Integrated Definition: Punishable under criminal law as defined by a society. Considered an offense against society as a whole, not against the victim and his or her friends. Punished by statutorily determined sanctions that bring about a loss of personal freedom.
What is Crime? Violent Crime: Murder Sexual assault/rape Assault/battery robbery Property Crime: Burglary Larceny/theft Motor vehicle theft Arson
What is Crime? Public Order Crimes: Behavior that has been labeled criminal because it is contrary to shared social values, customs and norms (e.g. public drunkenness). White Collar Crimes: Illegal acts committed by an individual or business entity using some non-violent means to obtain a personal or business advantage (e.g. embezzlement).
(Click the image above to play video) Video: Martha Stewart (Click the image above to play video)
What is Crime? High Tech Crime: Crimes directly related to the increased use of computers and technology by society. Organized Crime: Illegal crimes by illegal organizations, geared towards satisfying the public’s need for illegal goods and services.
The Criminal Justice System Three General Goals of the Criminal Justice System: To control crime To prevent crime To provide and maintain justice
The Criminal Justice System Based on Federalism: Law Enforcement Local, State and Federal Agencies Courts Dual court system of State and Federal Courts Corrections Incarceration, Probation and Community Corrections
The Criminal Justice System Criminal Justice as a system: an orderly progression of events through a process comprised of agencies working together. Herbert Packer compared the idealized Criminal Justice to an assembly- line.
The Criminal Justice System When members of the criminal justice system exercise discretion, this produces an informal criminal justice system.
The Criminal Justice System
Values of the Criminal Justice System Crime Control Model: A model of criminal justice that places primary emphasis on the rights of society to be protected from crime and violent offenders. Due Process Model: A model of the criminal justice system that places primary emphasis on the rights of the individual to be protected from the power of government.
Values of the Criminal Justice System Which model prevails today? Responding to terrorism, or the threat of violence to achieve political objectives, has impacted the way control crime.