Criminal Justice System

Police Have immediate control over who is arrested “Police discretion” Size of U.S. population and number of police officers Seriousness of offense / bystanders Wishes of the victim ( Seriousness / Male ) Uncooperative / Attitude Racial Profiling ( Assuming that nonwhite Americans more likely to commit crimes )

Courts Once arrested, the responsibility shifts to the courts. Determines guilt or innocence / trial bench or jury Decide punishment 90% Plea Bargain “ Admit guilt for lesser sentence Helps to reduce caseloads and court costs

Corrections Guilty of a crime means you are to be punished. Sanctions include imprisonment, parole and probation.

Sanctions serve four basic functions Retribution - punishing the victim serves as an act of revenge for the victim of society. Depending on the type of crime and the consequences for the victim the State will determine what the level of the punishment to give the convicted person

Deterrence Corrections are intended to discourage offenders from committing future crimes. The rest of society will think twice before breaking laws For some future deviants deterrence is not a factor.

Rehabilitation During the 1800’s, prisons emerged as places in which to reform criminals Eventually these criminals are going to return to society. What do we expect of them? We expect them to be law-abiding citizens

Social Protection Limits the freedom of offenders They cannot commit additional acts In the case of the death penalty, the threat of an offender committing future criminal acts is eliminated

Does corrections work? Recidivism – term used for repeated criminal behavior Rates of recidivism varies Some court records show that about 62% of released prisoners will be charged with a new crime About 40% will return to jail within 3 years Courts can assign punishments ranging from probation to imprisonment. Majority are punished through fines or probation

Juvenile-Justice System Third largest category of criminals in the U.S. Consists of offenders under the age of 18 Reasoning says that they should not be expected to be as responsible as adults Need special more considerate kind of treatment Try to provide more services for offenders In some states tougher juvenile laws are being established, some states try them as adults.