CHAPTER OVERVIEW - for Criminal Justice A Brief Introduction th Ed...

Instructor’s Manual for Criminal Justice A Brief Introduction 1 3 th Edition Frank Schmalleger Prepared by Ellen G. Cohn 1 / 4

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CHAPTER 1

What Is Criminal Justice?

CHAPTER OVERVIEW

The American experience with crime during the last half century has been especially influential in shaping the criminal justice system of today. Although crime waves have come and gone, some events during the past century stand out as especially significant, including a spurt of widespread organized criminal activity associated with the Prohibition years of the early twentieth century, the substantial increase in “traditional” crimes during the 1960s and 1970s, the threat to the American way of life represented by illicit drugs around the same time, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the ongoing threat from radical Islam.

The theme of this book is that of individual rights versus public order. As this chapter points out, the personal freedoms guaranteed to law-abiding citizens as well as to criminal suspects by the Constitution must be closely guarded. At the same time, the urgent social needs of communities for controlling unacceptable behavior and protecting law-abiding citizens from harm must be recognized. This theme is represented by two opposing groups: individual rights advocates and public-order advocates. The fundamental challenge facing the practice of American criminal justice is in achieving efficient and cost-effective enforcement of the laws while simultaneously recognizing and supporting the legal rights of suspects and the legitimate personal differences and prerogatives of individuals.

Even though justice may be an elusive concept, it is important to recognize that criminal justice is tied closely to notions of social justice, including personal and cultural beliefs about equity and fairness. As a goal to be achieved, criminal justice refers to those aspects of social justice that concern violations of the criminal law. Although community interests in the administration of criminal justice demand the apprehension and punishment of law violators, criminal justice ideals extend to the protection of the innocent, the fair treatment of offenders, and fair play by justice administration agencies.

This chapter describes the process of American criminal justice as a system with three major components—police, courts, and corrections—all of which can be described as working together toward a common goal. However, a systems viewpoint is useful primarily for the simplification that it provides. A more realistic approach to understanding criminal justice may be the nonsystem approach. As a nonsystem, the criminal justice process is depicted as a fragmented activity in which individuals and agencies within the process have interests and goals that at times coincide but often conflict. 2 / 4

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The stages of criminal case processing include investigation, the issuance of a warrant, arrest, booking, first appearance in court, defendant’s preliminary hearing, return of an indictment by the grand jury or filing of an information by the prosecutor, arraignment of the defendant before the court, adjudication or trial, sentencing, and corrections. As a field of study, corrections includes jails, probation, imprisonment, and parole.

The principle of due process, which underlies the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, is central to American criminal justice. Due process means procedural fairness and requires that criminal case processing be conducted with fairness and equity. The ultimate goal of the criminal justice system in America is achieving crime control through due process.

The study of criminal justice as an academic discipline began in this country in the late 1920s and is well established today. Scientific research has become a major element in the increasing professionalization of criminal justice, and there is a strong call today for the application of evidence-based practices in the justice field.

American society today is a multicultural society, composed of a wide variety of racial and ethnic heritages, diverse religions, incongruous values, disparate traditions, and distinct languages. Multiculturalism complicates the practice of American criminal justice because there is rarely universal agreement in our society about what is right or wrong or about what constitutes “justice.” As such, multiculturalism presents both challenges and opportunities for today’s justice practitioners.

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• Summarize the history of crime in America and corresponding changes in the American

criminal justice system.

• Describe the public-order (crime-control) and individual-rights (due-process)

perspectives of criminal justice, concluding with how the criminal justice system balances the two perspectives.

• Explain the relationship of criminal justice to general concepts of equity and fairness.
• Describe the American criminal justice system in terms of its three major components

and their respective functions.

• Describe the process of American criminal justice, including the stages of criminal case

processing.

• Define due process of law, including where the American legal system guarantees due

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• Describe the role of evidence-based practice in contemporary criminal justice.
• Explain how multiculturalism and diversity present challenges to and opportunities for

the American people

LECTURE OUTLINE

• Introduction

• Teaching note: Discuss current events that have affected public attitudes toward the American criminal justice system. Explain the concept of procedural fairness and discuss its importance in the American justice system.• Teaching note: Ask students to discuss how recent events, including both acts of violence by police and assaults on police, have affected their view of the criminal justice system?• Teaching note: Present the definition of crime that will be used during the course and ask students if they can think of additional ways it might be defined.

II. A Brief History of Crime in America

• Teaching note: Provide students with a historical perspective of crime in the last half century. An effective way to highlight the changes is to simply provide a timeline of critical events (those discussed in this section and those listed in Figure 1-1). Discuss the importance of these high-profile cases and how they influence public understanding of criminal justice. Ask students what other high profile crimes they remember.• Teaching note: Ask students to discuss why the increased emphasis on individual rights beginning in the 1960s was associated with an increase in reported crime.• Teaching note: Ask students to discuss whether they consider crimes committed via cyberspace to be more or less serious than similar crimes that are not Internet-based.

III. The Theme of This Book

• Teaching note: Highlight the key differences between the individual-rights and public- order perspectives.• Teaching note: Ask students whether they see a trend in our society in favor of individual-rights or public-order interests, Encourage them to present examples to support their opinions.

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