Category: Criminal Justice

Introduction

Advances in technology and globalization have widened the scope of crime and increased the demands on criminal justice systems across the world. In the modern day society, it is common for criminals to make use of complex technological systems for personal gain and to carry out criminal activities. To a certain extent, technological systems that are used by offenders may be quite sophisticated for enforcement agencies to untangle, even after they have been detected.

Globalization is particularly a problem for agents of the criminal justice system around the world. This is due to the fact that it expands the reach of criminal gangs besides creating new opportunities for their operations. Globalization, which refers to the process of creating transnational markets as well as political and legal systems, has now shifted the focus of crime from a local to an international outlook.

This paper looks at a number of issues about globalization and the criminal justice system. Apart from talking about the impact of globalization on the American criminal justice system, various international criminal justice systems are discussed. The effect of technological developments on the global justice system is also examined. In addition, major crimes and criminal issues as well as worldwide policing systems are looked at.

Impact of Globalization on the US Criminal Justice System

Drawing from a study by Ward (2000), globalization has created serious challenges for the American criminal justice system. Besides creating a diversified culture in the United States, globalization has also given an international dimension to crime. Other aspects of change caused by globalization are increased legal and illegal immigration, cross border organized criminal activities, and the use of technology to carry out criminal activities (Ward, 2000). Apparently, changes as a result of globalization have greatly influenced the US criminal justice system which comprises the police, courts, and correctional facilities. In order to be effective, it has become necessary for the American criminal justice system to adapt to new approaches of dealing with crime. More than ever before, the United States now cares so much about activities around it borders. In addition, there is increased recognition of the need for the US to cooperate with members of the international community in order to control the activities of organized criminal groups.

As a result of increased globalization, the United States has been forced to make radical changes to its laws and policies in order to guarantee the safety of its citizens. The 9/11 event was a serious incident that drastically changed the way Americans perceive security. Because of the intensity of the damage caused by the attack on US citizens, a number of legislations had to be passed so as to make the US national security stronger. Allegedly, a huge number of American citizens have greatly benefited from the changes made by the US government following the 9/11 attacks. However, there are those who are of the opinion that the United States is making unnecessary expenses to improve security while hurting the economy.

Global Justice Systems

Common law is one of four criminal justice systems used internationally. Others are civil law, Islamic law, and socialist law traditions. While common law is characterized by feudal practices, customs, and equity, civil law is based on the Roman law and canonization. The socialist law tradition is based on the Russian law and law is generally considered to be artificial. Unlike the other traditions of law, the Islamic law is characterized by witnesses and oaths and the requirements of Shari’a take precedent. Under the socialist law, courts are generally inferior to the national assembly. On the other hand, the Shari’a is considered to be more powerful than courts and other branches of government. When it comes to the primary source of law, common law is mainly based on the customs in a society while civil law originates from written code that is provided by rulers and legislators. Socialist law on the other hand has its origins in the principles of socialist revolution while Islamic law is based on divine revolution.

To a large extent, common law is founded on precedent. This means that cases are decided by making reference to past rulings in similar cases. For this reason, strict legal rules are not necessary. On the contrary, civil law is characterized by legal codes that are continually modernized. Under the civil law, a presiding judge is expected to determine the facts of a given case and based on his or her findings, he or she applies the provisions of an existing code. Ostensibly, judges are controlled by an existing legal framework and have very little influence on the outcome of a case. Unlike other systems of law, power sharing is encouraged under the common law tradition. On the other hand, courts have equal though separate power under the civil law tradition.

The laws under common law are made by judges while civil law is as a result of variation in reasoning and definition and identification of issues as either questions of law or fact. Under the socialist tradition, the formulation of laws is directed by superior courts. Another aspect of Islamic law is that it is linked to mazalim courts which function like tribunals.

Impact of Technological Advances on Global Justice Systems

According to Wall (2011), the relationship between crime and technology has been around for ages and the potential for creating harm is never far away from any beneficial technology that is developed. Despite the fact that the hardware used to implement technological ideas may change across a given time, many of the basic crime ideas remain familiar, especially those that exploit chains of trust supported by technology.

As a result of technological advancements, criminals now have an easy time planning and executing criminal activities around the world. Ostensibly, criminals exploit new technologies while investigators make every effort to catch up and use the same technologies to conduct investigations, take offenders into custody, and prevent possible occurrence of further criminal activities (Wall, 2011). Because of well established global communication networks that are now available almost everywhere, the speed of communication in the present day society has drastically changed. Consequently, the time it takes for harmful behavior to occur is now much shorter.

Policing Systems

Policing systems across the world are designed to enforce law and create an environment that is secure enough for people to live and work (Byrne & Marx, 2011). Considering that the needs of different countries vary significantly, policing systems are never the same. While some systems are designed in such a way that ordinary citizens can be involved in matters of security, there are some that are quite discreet and do not allow the participation of the public.

Community policing is a recent development that creates room for members of the public to work closely with members of the police force in order to create a healthy and secure environment. This is especially important since those who commit crime live together with others in the society and the best way to get them out is to use ordinary citizens. Regardless of the method use, however, the ultimate goal is to ensure that people live in a secure environment.

Major Crimes and Criminal Issues

Because of globalization and technological advancements, the level of crime has been taken to another level. Through technology, organized criminal gangs are today able to plan ad execute serious crimes while operating from locations that are miles apart. According to Victoroff (2005), one of the greatest challenges faced by nations throughout the world is terrorism. Many countries are today victims of terror activities that have led to loss of life and livelihood among different communities in the world. Another crime that is rampant and now a burden for some nations is illegal immigration. To a large extent, illegal immigration leads to an increase in criminal activities, economic burden for target countries, and unnecessary pressure for providers of social services.

The effects of globalized criminal activities have been felt in countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur, and Congo. The approach used by the governments of these countries to deal with crime has drastically changed.

Conclusion

Definitely, the advent of globalization and growth in technological have created a very complex problem for security enforcement agencies throughout the world. As a result, law enforcers are forced to come up with innovative countermeasures for criminal activities. Despite the fact that different approaches may be adopted in different countries to address security concerns, the ultimate goal is to ensure improved security for every citizen.

References

Byrne, J. & Marx, G. (2011). Technological Innovations in Crime Prevention and Policing. A Review of the Research on Implementation and Impact. CPS, 3(20), 17 – 40.

Victoroff, J. (2005). The Mind of the Terrorist: A Review and Critique of Psychological Approaches. The Journal of Conflict Resolution, 49(1), 3 – 42.

Wall, D. S. (2011). Policing Cybercrimes: Situating the Public Police in Networks of Security within Cyberspace. Police Practice & Research: An International Journal, 8(2), 183 – 205.

Ward, R. H. (2000). The Internationalization of Criminal Justice. Criminal Justice, 2: 267 – 321.

Introduction

Research is one of the means for identifying if something is true or not if it applies to a certain field or category of people if it works under specific conditions. Research enables the person interested in some issues to investigate those issues explore the world and share information with others. In other words, examination of the topic can be carried out through the profound research conducted on the issue that concerns the researcher. For instance, if a researcher wants to identify the relevance of the statistical data to the analysis of population in terms of the propensity for criminal behavior, he/she should conduct research and apply the research question that bothers him/her to the actual situation. The importance of research for the identification of some issues is great due to the possibility of sharing information for optimization of further research and investigations. The educational value of research is great as well because it provides a background for further work and investigation from the scientific and educational points of view contrasted to a merely scientific approach. As claimed by Junger-Tas (2005), “there was a time in the Netherlands when all-important research was done by universities (p. 143). This means that well-planned research applied to practice can help to prove or refute a theory, claim, or assumption. At the same time, it was more appropriate to use a research to persuade someone in the correctness of ideas and the necessity of further investigations. When implemented for criminal justice, research may comprise a merely theoretical aspect as well as the practical application of ideas and concepts using surveys and statistical data and different types of research methods.

Stages of a Research

Every research process should be divided into several stages that pertain to a well-thought plan. Criminal justice as well as all other sciences and areas of their application require a research that contains relevant methods, credible sources, appropriate techniques, and literature reviewed. In other words, a scheme of the research process should be followed. As a rule, a research is divided into the following stages depending on the research question and methods: determine the issue to be investigated (a hypothesis, theory, or a question to be answered); conduct a review of relevant literature; identify the variables (define them and indicate the way the dependent variables are influenced and the independent variables). In addition, it is necessary to edit the research question/hypothesis after reviewing the literature and determining variables; select the research method; sampling methods and control of variables should be thoroughly explained as well; description of the investigation itself; analysis of results; discussion of results indicating the limitations and possible ways of improvement and optimization; determine the significance of research findings; comparison of the results with other researches in the same field; share the information received from the research. As suggested by Heffner (2004), replication of a search can be carried out by another researcher; besides, the replication of research is often considered one of the factors that add validity to the research.

The first stage of the research comprises a hypothesis to be formulated. As such, the first stage of any research process includes a problem statement or a hypothesis that would be investigated in the research itself. As suggested by Heffner (2004), the theory guess should be determined at the first stage of the research process as it shapes the entire procedure. When a question is selected, it is necessary to review relevant literary sources. A literature review is usually a second stage of the research as it enables the researcher to see what has already been done in the field and what innovative practices may be applied during the investigation. The next stage is based on the identification and analysis of variables that can affect the results. After receiving the information about the current situation concerning the issue to be investigated, the hypothesis can be edited with regard to the next stage of the research where a relevant research method should be applied.

Sampling, protocols, investigation, analysis, and discussion of results are the same for all types of research; these stages should be carried out regardless of the research method and experience of the researcher. Ethical considerations can be discussed in the introductory part of the research when the relevance and scope of research are examined or in the discussion section of the research. As Goodman & Miller (2000) state, “Ethics offers conceptual tools to evaluate and guide moral decision making. Ethical considerations apply in attempts to determine what is good or meritorious and which behaviors are desirable or correct in accordance with higher principles” (pp. 370-402). In addition, it is necessary to remember that stages can be carried out in the order relevant for a research unless the order influences validity of the outcomes. At the same time, sharing information with other stakeholders may help optimization of further attempts as well as comparison of findings with results of other related investigations.

Statistical Data

Though market research and consumer behavior are considered to be the most popular areas of application of statistical research, they can be effectively used for investigations in criminal justice. The importance of statistical thinking becomes apparent when it comes to the analysis of relevance of some terms to issues or frequency of some events. As claimed by H. G. Wells, “Statistical thinking will one day be as necessary for efficient citizenship as the ability to read and write” (as cited in Bennett, Briggs, & Triola, 2009). In this respect, statistical research when applied to criminal justice is aimed at demonstrating the data that can be received using statistics. Different types of surveys and sampling methods can be found to address any issue about the data available or unavailable.

The statistical data applied to criminal justice should be credible so that a researcher could use it for research that can further influence the way criminals are punished. For instance, if a researcher finds out that drug addicts become aggressive and predisposed to crime-committing after being imprisoned, he/she may suggest that these people should be rehabilitated instead of incarcerated. Further research should be conducted investigating the behavior of drug addicts after rehabilitation and comparison with the results of the previous approach when these individuals were imprisoned. As such, the results of a research may impact the methods applied by a correctional system to this or that person shaping the perception of this individual and his/her further life.

Research Methods

Research methods often shape the entire research and influence its validity. The importance of selecting the right research method has been actively explored by comparing the results of different investigations. As stated by Hagan (2010), people may use research methods in everyday lives though they “simply lack conceptual frameworks, scientifically acceptable tags, or sufficient knowledge of the language of research methods to defend their views in an appropriate manner” (p. 5). At the same time, it is necessary to define the research method and use tools applied in the framework of a particular method whereas different methods may be used due to the complexity of the hypothesis that involves statistics and observation. In this case, quantitative and qualitative research tools (Sanchez, 2008) may be applied to investigate the frequency of some events and the reasons for their occurrence.

A research method applied to criminal justice can be a borrowing, in terms of the tools and techniques, from other social sciences. In this respect, the process of sharing information about the research is essential for gaining knowledge and experience and applying the methods effectively used in social sciences to criminology and criminal justice. The method applied to research can alter the results and lead to the ineffective interpretation of data received before. As such, a criminologist should select a research method after determining a hypothesis, reviewing relevant literature, identifying variables, and editing the research question so that the method applied was effectively adding to the validity of the research.

Terminology

Terminology is one of the essential aspects of effective research conducted. As such, it is necessary to consider this as one of the stages of a research process because such a procedure should allow no ambiguity whereas inappropriate wording can result in inappropriate or even opposite meaning. At the same time, irrelevant terminology can make the most efficient and profound research look like a school report. In this respect, the terminology should be considered with regard to the target audience of the research. When research is designed and conducted and the results are shared between scholars with the help of scholarly articles published in respectable journals, the terminology should be appropriate whereas oversimplification may lead to the inadequate perception of the information. A career in criminal justice depends directly on the terminology used in professional cases as well as in research documentation. So, when you conduct criminal justice research, it is necessary to use proper terminology that does not allow ambiguity and leads to no misunderstandings occurring. Knowing the terms relevant to the criminal justice field can be an asset when evaluating and analyzing research studies or data because understanding the wordings properly would save time for finding out what this or that expression means.

Conclusion

To conclude, the research process is as interesting and effective as difficult and requires attention and specific knowledge. Knowing the obligatory stages of a research process would save time and make the procedure better planned and more profound. Validity of the reach can be improved by replication whereas sharing information about the research is essential due to gaining experience possible through analysis of other studies in the same area and related ones. Statistical data used during the research can influence the results of the research about its relevance and credibility. Appropriate terminology is one of the assets used in the process of conducting research related to criminal justice.

References

Bennett, J. O., Briggs, W. L., & Triola, M. F. (2009). Statistical reasoning for everyday life (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson/Addison Wesley.

Goodman, K. W., & Miller, R. A. (2000). Ethics and Health Informatics: Users, Standards, and Outcomes. In E.H. Shortliffe & L. E. Perrault (Eds.), Medical Informatics: Computer Applications in Health Care and Biomedicine (pp. 379–402). New York, NY: Springer.

Hagan, F. E. (2010). Research methods in criminal justice and criminology (8^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Heffner, C. (2004). Research methods: Chapter one: Introduction to research. AllPsychOnline. Web.

Junger-Tas, J. (2005). The scientific integrity of applied research. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 11(2), 143.

Sanchez, A. (2008). The difference between qualitative and quantitative research. Web.

Elements of Planned Change Administrators Must Be Familiar With

Consequential effects of change in the criminal justice system can be widespread. According to Merino (2012), the effects of the implementation of change or change initiating in the criminal justice system extend far beyond the desired change. Therefore, criminal justice administrators need to have a comprehensive understanding of various elements in planned change to guarantee its realistic and effective execution. The elements of planned change include the stimuli for change, target for change, and implementation stages.

The change stimuli give rise to the principle of inputs that inspires the initiation of a change process. Such stimuli are products of an extensive evaluation of the organization’s strengths and weaknesses. The changes in societal factors determine the appropriate change process in the criminal justice system. Social norms also influence the amendments in society.

Change targets emerge from the understanding that the center of interest in planned change is perceptible change. Reformers evaluate the change stimuli and find an appropriate means of achieving the perceptible change. Research shows that irrespective of where the stimulus arises from, the change must have a course for reaching an observable target. The criminal justice administrator should understand that change targets often begin at individual levels and rise all the way to the final level of the organization. These targets help criminal justice administrators manage information flows and dynamics in the industry that are significant components of the justice system’s operations (Hart, 1996).

On the other hand, the target for change enhances the understanding of the most appropriate location for implementing the change within the criminal justice system. It also allows to clarifying the reason why systems need to be changed and the consequential impact. Further, the change target enables the criminal justice administrator to concentrate on taking into account the change in seclusion from other strategic elements of the system. It also allows the administrator to see the target of change as the actual sub-system.

It should be mentioned that the targets of change come in three forms. These include culture, structure, and systems. Although occurring in the three distinct forms, the target for change interacts to generate the narrow system of interest, which is the actual condition that the system should change (Hart, 1996).

Another element of planned change that the criminal justice administrator must be aware of is the implementation process. The administration has to implement systems that can enhance the systems. After initiating the change process and transferring the output from new processes to the change stimuli, an organisation can establish whether there is a progressing need for change. The process of implementation is abstractly more undemanding than trying to make the new system work according to the design or plan for change. Notably, experts say that if a change system is not operating according to the plan, then it is incompatible with the entire system, lacks certain vital features, or the administration has failed to implement the change entirely (Hart, 1996).

Criminal justice administrators should note the differences that exist among planning, designing, and organising for change, and enhancing the new systems to deliver the desired changes. The earlier stages are intellectual processes. The later stages need not only intellectual input, but also leadership and motivational skills (McCarthy, 2012).

Should the Authorities Ban Exclusionary Rule?

The exclusionary rule is a legal concept in the US. It provides that the evidence gathered and evaluated by persecutors in violation of the defendant’s rights, may be inadmissible for criminal persecution. Since the drafters of the exceptional rule intended to protect citizens from illegal search and seizes, the government should not ban, but improve it (May, 2008).

The exclusionary rule is an essential component of the US legal system. It demonstrates the loyalty of the citizens to the law stating that no person even a governmental official is above the law. Many defendants are often innocent. Therefore, the rule helps to ensure that law enforcement officers do not charge accused people unheard. In addition, it preserves the integrity of the court systems. If courts admit pieces of evidence that law enforcement officers collect illegally, they become guilty of the violations (May, 2008). The country, which courts do not observe the rule of law, is at danger of slipping into anarchy. With due respect to critics of the rule on the basis that it increases the chances of setting the guilty free, there is a need to preserve the respect of the court systems for the long-term benefits of the country.

Additionally, the exclusionary rule protects the constitutional right to privacy. The Fourth Amendment states that people will have the right to be secure in their private premises and be safe from unreasonable seizures and searches. The distinct rule is, therefore, a device that allows the criminal justice system to implement the constitutional provision precisely. It is inappropriate to call for modifications of the Fourth Amendment because it protects the fundamental rights of the citizens. In addition, the rule has increased professionalism in the law enforcement department and enhanced attention on the need for better training of police officers. It is inappropriate to rely on a few instances of the law violation as evidence that the rule is ineffective. The criminal justice system should secure the rights of people (Hucklesby & Wahidin, 2013).

On the other hand, the opponents have reported several objections to the rule. Many of them are concerned that exclusion is costly as it increases the probabilities of freeing guilty offenders. Both critics and proponents of the rule concur that it provides no substantial support for guiltless victims of police delinquency. When the victims have no evidence of the police misconduct, they get absolutely no relief, which translates to putting the lives of most victims in danger (Peak, 2001).

Further, some critics also doubt the rule’s deterrent benefits since the rule is a pragmatic subject. Plausible reforms might make tort remedy significantly effective. There are also concerns that the rule promotes police perjury and narrow interpretation of the constitution.

While it is imperative that the rule is imperfect, the US should not abandon it. It offers critical solutions for the citizens and the police. As indicated above, the rule promotes transparency in the criminal justice system, discourages law enforcement officers from violating the right to privacy, and demonstrates the commitment to uphold the rule of law in the country. The logical thing to do is keep the rule and improve its scope.

References

Hart, J.M. (1996). The management of change in police organizations. In M. Pagon (Eds.), Policing in Central and Eastern Europe: Comparing Firsthand Knowledge with Experience from the West (n.pag.). [National Institute of Justice/National Criminal Justice Reference Service]. Web.

Hucklesby, ‎A. & Wahidin, A. (2013). Criminal Justice. (2nd ed). Oxford: Oxford University Pres.

May, D. A. (2008). Reasonable use of force by police: Seizures, firearms, and high-speed chases. New York: P. Lang.

McCarthy, Q. (2012). Police leadership : A primer for the individual and the organization. Houndmills, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Merino, N. (2012). Criminal Justice. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press.

Peak, K. J. (2001). Justice administration: Police, courts, and corrections management (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

The two models -crime control and due process- put forward by Hebert Parker have a major bearing on the criminal justice system greatly. The models have been useful in helping to deal with the complexities in the criminal process. The models make it easier to understand the workings of the justice system by simplifying the values underlying the process.

The two modes have both similar and different values but the major difference between the two is that the due process model concerns itself with the protection of individual rights while the rime control model advocates for societal security as well as order. The focus of the paper will be on the overview and analysis of the two models. In addition, it shall look at which model serves American citizens better.

Parker’s crime control model

The crime control model has the following main assertions. The fundamental goal of the criminal process should be to repress crime. The police should have the authority to conduct arrests and do fact- finding. Suspects are guilty until proven otherwise. The mode suggests that the main aim of the justice system is protecting the rights of victims and not making the defendants and their rights a priority.

The criminal process should operate smoothly and swiftly and the main goal of the criminal justice process should be uncovering the truth and establishing factual guilt of the arrestees (Packer, 1968).

The main assumption of the crime control model is to repress crime in the criminal process. The model draws it authority from the legislature and not the courts. Crime control guarantees social freedom and helps to maintain law and order in the society. Applying the model helps to protect the people together with their property from harm.

The model asserts that lack of proper law enforcement is tantamount to breakdown in the public order and consequently the loss of human freedom. If the laws are not reinforced and leads to a perception that there is a failure in apprehending and convicting criminals in the criminal process.

Consequently, a disregard for legal control sets in and innocent citizens become victims of unwarranted invasions to their interests. The increased rate of crimes hinders the members of the society from enjoying their freedom thus limiting their liberty. The model fundamental value is guaranteeing social freedom to the members of the society through the criminal process (Packer, 1968).

To guarantee social freedom the crime control model advocates for efficiency within the criminal process to identify criminal suspects, determine their guilt and take appropriate actions in terms of convictions. Packer was of the opinion that a strong police force could contain crime for the known crimes (1968). However, it is important to note that many numbers of crimes go unreported and thus the efficiency of the model in crime suppression is questionable.

For the model to be considered successful, the rate of catching criminals and bringing them to convictions must be high. For this reason, the model relies heavily on legislature instead of the courts to speed up the process as cases in courts may take a very long time before their conclusion. To achieve speed and finality in the criminal process, the process must be efficient and allow the cases to proceed without undue delays.

The speedy progress in the crime control model happens because the methods used are informal hence reducing chances of delaying cases by following the formal methods that might be challenged and waste time trying to prove the challenges. The typical formal processes of cases should be removed because they slow down the speed of cases.

The process can be made simple and fast by interrogating suspects at the police stations instead of taking them to court where they go through the formal process that involves time-consuming examinations and cross-examinations (Packer, 1968).

The model advocates for an extrajudicial process to a judicial process. Informal operations should be employed in the criminal process, as they are faster unlike the formal operations that follow many rituals. The assumption of the model is operating, as managerial models where different activities go on from one-step to another seamlessly just like a conveyer belt.

In other words, the crime control mode is perceived as a screening process where each stage leads to a successful finality. To achieve the successful convictions the model screens cases at the initial stage and using expertise it can be determined which suspects are likely to be guilty or not.

Those who have a high likelihood of being guilty are taken through the successive process expeditiously and a conclusion arrived at sooner. On the other hand, those cases that have minimal or no likelihood of being found guilty are thrown out of the process.

The police perform the task of fact finding in stations or in the streets and do not rely on judges and lawyers in courts. The crime control model relies on factual guilt, which is brought by the police through their fact find and used as evidence to prove that a suspect is guilty without a doubt (Roach, 1999).

The basis for screening the cases is the guilty assumption. The arrestees are guilty according to this model until their innocence can be proved. Thus, according to the model, arrestees are considered guilty and hence the government has the responsibility of punishing them. Moreover, law enforcement agencies prefer this model because they treat the suspects as if guilty and thus should be arrested, prosecuted and convicted for breaking the law.

In this case, the police have powers to make arrests and establish whether arrestees are factually guilty (Roach 1999). However, some limitations are set on the interrogation methods to ensure their reliability by the police because coerced confessions would lead to incarceration of innocent people.

The arrestees are barred from contacting their lawyers as this would only lead to delays and those who are guilty might get off the hook by following their lawyers advice. They say that a lawyer should not come to the station as his or her place is reserved in the courtroom.

Moreover, the police should have the authority to conduct arbitrarily searches on suspects because only the guilty would have anything to hide. The evidence obtained illegally should be acceptable during trial because evidence such as drugs or stolen property is a proof of crime regardless of the methods used to obtain them (Roach 1999).

Packer’s due process model

The due process works on the following assumptions. Reduce the power of the police to prevent them from abusing innocent people. Suspects are innocent until proven otherwise. Protect the rights of the defendants in the criminal justice process. The constitutional rights of every individual should be upheld by the criminal justice authorities for instance, the fourth amendment, which prohibits arbitrary searches.

The criminal process should have obstacles that safeguard the defendant from until proven factually guilty. The government should refrain from considering people guilty based on facts until they go through legal procedures to prove their guilt.

Unlike the crime control model that resembles a conveyer belt in its smooth operations, the due process model is an obstacle belt. It has stages designed in such a way that they impede the case from going up further through the process. The model relies on the Supreme Court to validate its operations as well as on courts restrictions in the criminal process (Roach, 1999).

The aim of the due processes is to ensure that defendants are treated fairly by the criminal justice system by relying less on efficiency unlike the crime control model.

The due process lays emphasis on equal treatment of defendants or suspects in spite of their social or economic class. For instance, all have a right for counsel representation. Thus, those people who are arrested are allowed to call their lawyers. The suspects who cannot afford a lawyer, the government appoints one on their behalf because the due process objective is to accord equal protection even to the disadvantaged members of the society.

The due process does not allow police to find facts in stations and in the streets to convict the arrestees. The suspects are treated fairly and Miranda rights made known to them during their arrest.

This will prevent them from giving information to the police that is self-incriminatory and can be used against them in trial. The police should not take advantage of a suspect to get a confession to build a case against them. This step is taken to reduce the instances when police arrest people and sentence them before taking them through the legal criminal process.

The police do not have the right to detain people as they do their fact-finding, they can find the facts then make the arrest unless when there is reason to believe that they will not attend trial (Roach, 1999). The due process does not rely solely on the ability of the police of conducting investigations because the process can be faulty as it is not error-proof.

Packer says that people are poor in observing disturbing events and their recollection of the events maybe incorrect and the confessions that arrestees make in stations maybe because of coercion and the police may end up listening to what they may want to hear instead of seeing the truth (1968).

The witnesses of the criminal events maybe biased and against the accused and the police would not work towards finding the truth to its logical conclusion because protecting them is not their primary responsibility. Hence, the due process rejects the informal processes of fact-finding.

The model insists on formal fact-finding processes where an impartial tribunal listens to a case. Moreover, the model provides an opportunity for defendants to bring civil actions against police abuse or violation of their rights. The model also gives the defendant an opportunity to discredit the case set before them before making its ruling.

The model also recognizes that there is a possibility of making an error during the criminal process and allows further scrutiny of facts in case the truth was overlooked in the proceedings. As long as the defendant can prove that an error was made during, the criminal process scrutiny can be allowed. The due process model does not demand finality like the crime control does because the aim is not to conclude cases but ensure that the process is fair as possible to the defendant (Packer, 1968).

The arrestees are innocent until their guilt is proven according to this model. It therefore follows that a criminal process should be conducted in such a way that the defendant is proved either innocent or guilty beyond any reasonable doubt.

The prosecutor and the judges should not encourage the defendants to enter guilty pleas during pre-trials by offering them deals. The criminal process should not be looked at as a burden that has to be done away with by entering pleas rather as a proper way process in the criminal justice system.

The due process recommends that the criminal trial establish that a defendant is legally guilty beyond any shadow of doubt instead of proving factual guilt (Packer, 1968). The model urges that the police cannot do this but only judges and defense lawyers in a court of law can (Roach, 1999; Packer, 1968).

Best model for Americans interest

The American citizens ought to have an effective justice system. The strategy for ensuring that the justice system is effective has been debated for many years. The two criminal processes modes proposed by Herbert Packer have been debated for long because they represent two philosophies- conservative and liberal.

The crime control model advocates for a safe society where there is law and order and its philosophy is conservative. On the other hand, there is the due process model that advocates for the protection of the rights of people from any form of injustice and this perspective is liberal in nature.

The political climate determines which model is favored by the society at a particular time. The two positions are in conflict and the justice system has had to choose one over the other over time. However, choosing one model to follow is not easy because various people have different opinions.

The due process appears to be the best model for the American citizens. Some propose the due process model that seeks to protect individual freedoms. In this process, the arrestees do not lose their right to be treated well as they are taken to be innocent. The law enforcers uphold the constitutional guarantees of the individuals and thus protect innocent people from being convicted wrongfully.

The mode is good because many people have been convicted wrongful and served behind bars for crimes they did not commit. For example, Cornelius Dupree was exonerated after serving thirty years behind bars in Texas following a DNA exam.

The due process for allowing the contest of the rulings against defendants gives them an opportunity to make appeals that may actually result in their exoneration. Moreover, this provision makes the American people feel that the justice system is fair in its treatment of all citizens because the constitution protects all American citizens regardless of their race and ethnicity.

Therefore, the American citizens are protected against racial profiling even though this may not be the case on the ground. Through the due process, the justice system puts checks and balances upon itself to prevent the government from treating the citizens arbitrarily.

Those who oppose the due process say that it puts the rights of the defendants and completely ignores the victims of crimes. Moreover, the law enforcers say that the Fourth Amendment in the constitution makes it hard for them to carry out their activities of crime prevention as it limits them from conducting raids and searches.

The limitations arise from the various interpretations of the Fourth Amendment by the courts. The interpretations change over time making the work of the law enforcers hard because of the confusion that ensues thereof.

Not only do the police have to consider the fourth amendment, but also the individual rights outlined in the bill of rights such as right to an attorney, assume an individual innocent until proven otherwise amongst others. In addition, the due process limits how far the government can go in treating and individual because the constitution allows individual a right to privacy.

On the contrary, the due process follows the criminal process formally thus giving any American arrestee an opportunity to go through the process and through their legal counsel present evidence to the court that may prevent them from going to jail.

Moreover, the obstacles in the process ensure that they are not sentenced prematurely before the cases are exhausted completely before they are either found to be innocent or guilty.

The due process model unlike the crime control model which advocates for speedy prosecutions and convictions and relies heavily of the evidence of the police through their fact-finding acknowledges that the police can be wrong and thus does not rely on factual guilt but legal guilt proved in a court of law.

The due process is far more realistic than the crime control model, which seems to infringe upon the ideals contained in the declaration of independence and ideals held dear by the American citizens.

Reference List

Packer, H. (1968). The limits of criminal sanctions. New York: University of Stanford Press.

Roach, K. (1999). Four Models of the criminal process. Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, 89 (2), p 671.

Introduction

In deterrence, punishment is recognised as a warning, to prevent people from committing crimes. There are two assumptions used in deterrence. First, if specific punishments are imposed for particular crimes, the offenders are prevented or deterred from repeating the crimes. Second, other people will be afraid of committing crimes because of the impending punishment. The concept of deterrence is the foundation of criminal justice systems in a majority of democratic nations. Deterrence bears a wide array of implications in traditional criminal justice practices.

Law Enforcement

There are various law bodies involved in law enforcement. For instance, police agencies have a principal role in criminal law enforcement, hindering criminal activities, investigating whether criminal offenses have been committed, taking part in court proceedings, and apprehending offenders. In this regard, communities perceive that the police have substantial authority, which prevents criminal activities within the community. Sometimes, the police engage in patrols, which give the community the idea that it should uphold the law (Zimring and Gordon 30).

Judicial Practices

The judicial system is composed of various levels. The court system plays an extremely vital role during arrest, trial, and sentencing. Some probation services include pre-sentence investigations and supervision of convicted criminals.

Correctional Practices

In many countries, correctional institutions include parole, jails, prisons, and programs initiated by the community. The local and state government units are involved in correctional practices. In jails, prisoners are involved in pre-trial detentions, which make them fearful and straightforward during the trial. Moreover, prisoners are subjected to short sentences, which involve hard labour. Prisoners accused of ordinance violations are usually held in jails. Individuals charged with criminal offences are retained in lock-ups for forty-eight hours, before appearing in court. Prisoners who have served a particular portion of their jail term may be moved to paroles.

The Strongest and Weakest Area

Having discussed the implications of deterrence in law enforcement, judicial practices, and correctional practices, my take is that deterrence has exceptionally strong impacts on correctional practices. The rational-choice theory argues that a criminal perceives several things before engaging in crime. He first perceives that there is a likelihood of him being caught, the impending punishment, as well as the potential reward. Through an escalated severity of latent punishment, people are afraid of committing crimes (Thomas and Howard 49). In my opinion, law enforcement is the second area where the implications of deterrence have more impacts. Critics assert that before committing crimes, criminals never debate about probable punishment. Therefore, law enforcement is extremely vital.

As discussed earlier, some of the law enforcement strategies include police patrols. Through police patrols, potential criminals may get the idea that there is tight security and, therefore, deterred from committing crimes. Law enforcement comes first. Through law enforcement, prisoners have fear instilled in them, concerning the impending punishment. Parole prevents murderers from killing again. It is worth pointing out that 99.9 percent of sentenced capital killers request for life in the absence of parole, rather than the death penalty (Duffee 56).

On the other hand, the implications of deterrence are weakest in judicial practices. Basically, judicial systems are involved in establishing whether a criminal is innocent or not. The criminal is permitted to use a lawyer to defend him. Therefore, even though a person might have committed a crime, he may be released in case the lawyer wins.

Works Cited

Duffee, David. Explaining criminal justice: Community theory and criminal justice reform. Cambridge, MA: Oelgeschlager, Gunn & Hain, 2008. Print.

Thomas, Winfree, and Howard Abadinsky. Understanding Crime: Essentials of Criminological Theory. New York: Elsevier, 2006. Print.

Zimring, Franklin, and Gordon Hawkins. Deterrence: The legal threat in crime control. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010. Print.

Introduction

Many agencies form part of the criminal justice. Criminal justice is incomplete without correctional facilities famously called prisons. People and government agencies perceive prisons as centers of punishment while others perceive prisons as correctional and rehabilitation facilities. Prisons are used as a venue to correct a member of the society who has done wrong and eventually reunites with other members of the society.

Leadership

I work in an agency where leadership is central to all activities and yields a lot of influence. Leadership is the ability to command influence. Success or failure in any organization is attributed to management. Leadership rests in the top management of the prisons who are the decision-makers and lead the prison to attain its objectives. The structure of leadership is two-fold. There are guards and wardens. These are the people who administer rules and regulations over the inmates. They restrict the free movement of inmates, administer punishment or reward them and train the inmates. The prisoners follow the directions of the wardens and guards out of respect and at times out of fear. Wardens and guards are appointed by the government to take up leadership roles in prisons.

The management in the upper level is the topmost leadership center in the prison with a wide range of responsibilities within them, that is, it offers transformational leadership. “Upper management, therefore, is more concerned with the transformation of the agency towards a more competitive and active force in pursuing its own goals and objectives in the society. Leadership in the Middle and lower management rests upon the supervisors and line leaders who execute supervisory level management to carry out the mandate of the upper-level management (Kania, 2008)”.

Another leadership center exists among inmates themselves. Inmates from informal groups with rules and regulations, with a leader who develops a leadership structure composed of his loyal lieutenants. They develop their own rules with an internal system of punishment. However, the rules they come up with cannot supersede the rules set out by the wardens. There are circumstances where the warden tolerates the rules among the inmates as long as they help to maintain law and order in the facility.

Culture

Culture is another factor to watch in the agency. Culture is the belief system of people, their way of living, religious beliefs, and values as they share them in the agency. Culture affects the functioning of group members, especially where they follow the different cultures. The facility has many different cultures. Therefore, there is a need to take care of the approach to inmates to avoid offending them without knowing their culture.

Organizational culture features prominently in the effective functioning of the teams. Culture is a center for the positive establishment of the mission and vision of the agency. Inmates in this agency have a culture of forming informal groups among them as seen above. The prison has also developed a culture of training their inmates to equip them with life skills that would help them after they leave the facility. The warden has also developed a culture of rotating guards who watch over inmates for twelve hours to ensure they attain their tasks as a team.

Systems

The main players in the system are the law enforcement officers who are mandated to maintain law and order and they are the one who makes arrests, followed the courts of law which administer trial to the accused, and finally the collection facility for punishment and rehabilitation.

The first system is in law enforcement as enshrined in the constitution. The accused person has a right to remain silent since what he can say can be used against him in a court of law, the accused has a right to an attorney, and where he cannot afford one, the state should provide him with one. Officers are required to conduct searches only when they have search warrants (Peak, 2010).

The court system is the second. It ensures a fair trial for the accused by ensuring that the accused person does not incriminate himself and there is a jury trial and fair representation by a counsel.

The third system is the correctional facility. When an accused is found guilty he is sent to a correctional facility for punishment and rehabilitation. These take two forms, either probation or incarceration or in some instances, both.

Law

There are many laws and statutes passed to help in the criminal justice system. The law set out the maximum penalty and maximum sentences a person can be given once found guilty of an offence. The law has to be argued out by the lawyers in a court of law. This will enable judges to pass their judgment based on the facts of the law.

Stakeholders

The influential stakeholders comprise various bodies as discussed below. Political bodies usually have a negative effect on the justice system because they want cases decided politically rather than legally. The president as a political figure also offers presidential pardons to offenders of minor offences. Community groups like the media and human rights activists are very influential. They ensure that the rule of law is upheld while passing judgment and they advocate for a fair trial of the accused persons. These influential groups make sure that what needs to be done happens. Employees also are influential since they see what happens daily. Employees then relay what they see to wardens for collective action (Robbins & Judge, 2009).

References

Kania, R. E. (2008). Managing Criminal Justice Organizations: An Introduction to Theory & Practice. New York: Elsevier.

Peak, K. (2010). Justice administration: police, courts, and corrections management. New York: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Peter, J. (2012). How Does the Criminal Justice System Work? Web.

Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2009). Organizational behavior. New York: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

One of the recent major policies is the policy on illicit drugs. The key premise of the development and establishment of this policy was the increase in illegal drug shipments and criminal activity under the influence of narcotic substances. The effects of the policy varied significantly (Mallicoat & Gardiner, 2014). The most vivid representation was the impact of the policy on the intergovernmental partnership. The establishment of the policy allowed the government to fight drug trafficking more efficiently on both local and national levels. Another important aspect of the policy was the employment of innovative strategies that presupposed strict drug control on the federal level (Marion & Oliver, 2012). Therefore, this policy made local consultations available for the citizens and emphasized the importance of fighting drug dealing. Eventually, the development of the policy normalized the regulations concerning several illicit substances (for instance, marijuana and hemp). The key outcome consisted of the fact that federal laws reached a level of flexibility that allowed the local and state courts to reach verdicts on this type of illegal activity.

The policy on illicit drugs had a serious impact on criminal justice operations and numerous interest groups. First, the federal laws concerning drug trafficking were put on the list of the state legislatures that had to be amended. This was done to let the states develop their own restrictive/ non-restrictive legislation that would take into consideration the policies on hemp and marijuana. The key aspect of this initiative was the preemption of federal interference and the encouragement of the local and state legislations on illicit drugs. This decision was based on the assumption that different states and localities have different points of view on the issue of illegal narcotic substances. Therefore, the legislature was developed in a way that allowed local and state administrations to employ certain amendments that were intended to improve the economic development of the area, health of the citizens, and, most importantly, public safety. This policy is a representation of a federal approach to the legal issue that perfectly balances between the law enforcement and strict prohibition of illicit narcotic substances (Coomber & Moyle, 2014). In perspective, the policy can be viewed as a powerful instrument of deterrence, education, and treatment. Another important question is the change that this public policy has brought.

Federal laws allowed the United States to secure its borders and minimize the number of individuals that were drug dealing. Consequently, the policy has been modified over the years in several ways. The government changed how interstate drug trafficking is detected and pre-empted. Another modification emphasizes the significance and efficiency of collaborating with local and state law enforcement agencies. The current policy also points out the importance of utilizing modern information systems (Perrone, Helgesen, & Fischer, 2012). The latter can be an effective instrument designed to train the experts in the area and help them detect and prevent any possible cases of drug abuse. These additional measures help law enforcement agencies to identify the sites of illegal drug manufacturing. In addition to that, the policy has been amended significantly if compared to its original statement. Nowadays, the policy on illicit drugs is the main source of federal leadership and resources. It supports law enforcement agencies and is in charge of ensuring public safety.

References

Coomber, R., & Moyle, L. (2014). Beyond drug dealing: Developing and extending the concept of ‘social supply’ of illicit drugs to ‘minimally commercial supply’. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, 21(2), 157-164.

Mallicoat, S. L., & Gardiner, C. L. (2014). Criminal justice policy. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Marion, N. E., & Oliver, W. M. (2012). The public policy of crime and criminal justice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Perrone, D., Helgesen, R. D., & Fischer, R. G. (2012). United States drug prohibition and legal highs: How drug testing may lead cannabis users to Spice. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, 20(3), 216-224.

Introduction

Learning can be defined as a process of acquiring and developing new knowledge and habits from the environment from time to time. People develop new habits as a way of approaching a particular problem by learning new concepts or applying what others use. Learning theories have had a lot of impacts on criminology as people tend to act under stimuli that are often under reinforcement. Bandura argued that a person attends, retains, rehearses, and performs a particular activity that he or she has learned from others (69). This modeling stage has a lot of impacts in shaping the behavior of a person in the long run either positively or negatively. Therefore, it determines the kind of person to be in the future.

Law enforcement practices

It is worth mentioning that learning theories are very useful in contemporary criminal justice practices by trying to explain how human actions are related to the evils done. Law enforcement practices require a lot of concerted efforts by the legal authorities to understand mechanisms to be adopted. This will be helpful to them because the civilians have different styles of learning and implementing the rule of law (Bandura 71). Cases of civilians ignoring the rule of law be directly related to the human learning process. Those individuals who often break the laws have a criminal history and have not yet been exposed to the rule of law practices.

Judicial practices

From the legal perspective, learning theories are also applicable in judicial practices. Judicial practices are concerned with delivering verdicts to those convicted of a crime. Understanding the crime learning theories is very important and their impacts determine the destiny of a case. This is because the legal officers have deep a understanding of the facts surrounding a case which enables them to make a sound judicial ruling (Winfree & Howard 41).

Correctional practices

Learning theories in correctional practices have average implications on contemporary criminal justice when compared with the rest. This is since convicted criminal needs to be rehabilitated to pave way for a new way of life. Rehabilitation personnel needs to understand the reasons behind the emergence of criminal tendencies and practices of the convicts. This will be useful because the convicts can be corrected to adopt new life by following their best way of learning (Bandura 78). On the other hand, poor understanding of their learning habits may not achieve the desired objectives because the convicts are not conversant with them. Therefore, when handling the convicts, it is very important to correct them according to their best understanding.

Strong implications

From the above discussions, it can be seen that law enforcement has the strongest implications on contemporary criminal justice. The main reason behind this is the fact that enforcing laws requires persistent and gradual implementation of laws and sometimes imposing penalties in case of misconduct. This aspect has been very successful in most countries where laws are implemented from the grassroots level in society (Winfree & Howard 98).

Weak implications

Learning theories in judicial practices have very weak implications on criminal justice. This is because judicial practice especially in undertaking criminal investigations and making court rulings does not take much time and is only made in a short period.

Works Cited

Bandura, Albert. Principles of behavior modification. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1969.

Winfree, Latham, & Howard Abadinsky. Understanding crime: essentials of criminological theory. 3rd ed. Belmont CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010.

Introduction

The Delphi survey method applies the principle of decision making from a groups’ point of view (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011). This method is based on a planned communication approach. It is developed to be an interactive forecasting process that is systematic and relies on a team of experts.

The specialists are expected to provide answers to questionnaires in more than two rounds (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011). A facilitator is used to provide anonymous review of the experts answer to the previous questionnaires before repeating the process. This allows the specialists to enrich their answers (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011).

The process is repeated as the range of the answers reduces until the correct answer is arrived at. The process reaches a conclusion once the predefined conditions for stopping are attained. These conditions include steadiness of the results, the number of rounds, and the realization of compromise (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011). Since this method has a capability of forecasting and offering an insight into event prediction, it can be used as a prospect research approach in the criminal justice system (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011).

The Delphi survey in criminal justice system

Delphi method can be applied in proliferation of future settings in a criminal justice system based on the analysis of a consensus of the experts in the field of criminal justice (GAO, 2013). This is possible due to the complexity of the method that makes it very reliable.

The method applies two constituents. The first constituent is anonymity amid the faction affiliates. This encourages diversity in the opinions raised by the group members. The cluster members present their arguments strictly based on their expertise, the colleagues in the group do not influence them.

The other constituent of this method is restricted response, where the group members’ answers are reviewed and supplied back to the cluster. Each of the members is then asked to reconsider his/her response based on the other members’ answers. Generally, this method is a controlled debate on a certain topic of interest (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011).

The technique

Delphi method is therefore a procedure that can review the probability of certain events resulting to risk in any security situation (GAO, 2013). The use of a Delphi team in ranking the riskiness of events has proven to be a very effective tool in predicting and hence controlling the risk factors. The application of this technique to crime preventive measure can help reduce instances of crimes being committed as the crimes become more predictable (GAO, 2013).

The use of the expert consensus system enables the detection and prioritization of any events that could result to crimes being committed or a criminal evading the justice system (GAO, 2013). This technique offers a means of classifying criminal activities and hence enabling a more informed approach in handling the cases.

Research studies conducted on the application of the Delphi survey method revealed that subjective judgment derived from a groups’ agreement is essential in the provision of a wide range of knowledge (Zaloom, & Subhedar, 2011). This knowledge can be used to enhance the evaluation of the security risks of any event.

Conclusion

The use of this method of survey is therefore very important in the criminal justice system of any country. The method can be used for real time crime investigation as well as crime forecasting methods (GAO, 2013).

In real time scenarios, the use of the Delphi method on the witnessed can provide a very substantial evidence analysis method that allows the witnesses to agree or disagree until the correct information is attained. The method’s use of anonymity on the participants of the questionnaire makes it an effective tool for crime investigation (GAO, 2013).

References

GAO. (2013). Sustained and Coordinated Efforts Could Facilitate Data Sharing While Protecting Privacy. Retrieved from https://www.gao.gov/assets/660/652058.pdf

Zaloom, V. & Subhedar, V. (2011). Use of the Delphi Method to Prioritize Events Impacting Operations in the Maritime Domain. Web.

Summary

Abigail Fisher filed a complaint because of the rejection she received when trying to apply to the University of Texas. It is important to note that the policy of admission is comprised of two integral parts. First, the top ten percent of the undergraduates are given automatic admission (Collins & Ringhand, 2013). This part of the policy is not dependent on the race factor, and almost 80% of the available spaces are filled throughout this stage. Second, the remaining spaces are filled based on six essential factors (race being one of those factors). Mostly by mistake, the “Top 10 Percent” rule was created in favor of the minority students, and the majority of them were admitted within the top-10% policy. All the other minority undergraduates were admitted during the assessment process. Fisher was not a member of the top-10% group or a representative of the minority group.

After the assessment, she ended up being rejected and was not admitted to the University of Texas. In her opinion, the problem consisted in the fact that the admission was contingent on the use of ethnicity as a factor. Fisher claimed that the use of race violated the equal protection clause indicated in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States of America (Curfman, Morrissey, & Drazen, 2013). The Supreme Court had to apply the standard of strict scrutiny. Following the admission plan, the University had to organize its admission practice based on the interests of the government and adjust it in terms of admission of those who did not belong to the top-10% of the undergraduates or did not represent a minority subgroup. Ultimately, Fisher stated that both these aspects of the admission program failed and that is why she was rejected by the University.

Key Findings and Issues

Despite being an article located in the healthcare journal, it dwells on several critical judicial issues. The key finding of the article is the fact that diversity is aggressively promoted by the government and various institutions (Curfman et al., 2013). The diversity should be sponsored, but the authors of the article also note that the current judicial and legal systems are in danger. This happens because the cases similar to Fisher’s are unique and do not represent a case where a one-sided verdict can be reached (Curfman et al., 2013). The authors also state that the issue of affirmative action and its direct connection to higher education are the two major problems that should be resolved by the Supreme Court.

Recommendations

The constitutionality of the decisions made throughout the admission process generates doubts (Curfman et al., 2013). The authors of the article recommend eliminating the notion of critical mass from the institutions (including the majority of law schools). As the authors claim, the step is necessary if the schools are keen on removing race from the number of automatic admission factors that, at long last, make up the quota (Marion & Oliver, 2012). Therefore, Curfman et al. (2013) also recommend revising the concept of critical mass to allow the institutions to find the perfect balance between the minority representatives and other students.

Criminal Justice Policy Issue Discussion Summary

The policy issue that is reviewed is inextricably connected to the integral notions of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. Nevertheless, the government applies a fixed approach to the majority of such issues (Gaines, 2014). Consequently, the outcomes are naturally affected by duality and bias. These outcomes should be eliminated or mitigated in the nearest future to provide the people with true freedoms and rights instead of confronting them with an excessively aggressive promotion of racial and ethnic diversity.

The Link Between the Article and the Criminal Justice Policy Issue

The authors of the studied article dwelled on one of the key issues of the current legislation. The justice policy involving the Fourteenth Amendment has always been a stumbling block for courts all across the country. The link between the article and the issues of the existing criminal justice policy can be perceived as ineffective use of affirmative action in the education sector (Curfman et al., 2013). This leads to critical outcomes, and the opportunities for the students who do not belong to a certain socioeconomic group are rather limited.

Proper use of affirmative action would allow the university commissions to comply with the principle of the heterogeneity of the population and provide all the students with equal opportunities. Nonetheless, the constitutionality of the current decisions made by the legislative apparatuses is rather questionable (Gaines, 2014). The connection between the article and the criminal justice policy is also reflected in the society and the inability of the latter to switch to flexible admission policies. The revised guidelines may emphasize the importance of race but should also take into account the features and skills that are characteristic of outstanding and knowledgeable students.

References

Collins, P. M., & Ringhand, L. A. (2013). Supreme Court confirmation hearings and constitutional change. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Curfman, G. D., Morrissey, S., & Drazen, J. M. (2013). Affirmative action in the balance. New England Journal of Medicine, 368(1), 73-74.

Gaines, L. K. (2014). Homeland security: A new criminal justice mandate. In S. L. Mallicoat & C. L. Gardiner (Eds.), Criminal justice policy (pp. 67-87). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Marion, N. E., & Oliver, W. M. (2012). The public policy of crime and criminal justice (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.