Reflection Paper Hendrix (2013) states, “Criminal justice refers to the structure, functions, and processes of those agencies that deal with the management of crime –the police, the courts, and corrections” (p. 22). Therefore, these subsystems are responsible for the protection, prevention, and punishment of crimes. These subsystems can also be approached from a biblical viewpoint as well. Our perceptions of criminal justice can also change based on new ideas and even new knowledge. The first category involves the police force. My perceptions of the police force were greatly influenced by the media. I thought that police officers only did what was portrayed on television. Fisher (2015) states “Laws don’t remove evil; laws can only restrain evil.” Therefore, I now know that police officers do the best the can to protect citizens. While they cannot …show more content…
My perception of the court system was influenced by previous experiences. With previous experiences, I saw the family court system as harsh and one-sided. However, I now see the court system as a complex system that looks out for the best interest of the accused and those who are victims. Fischer (2015) mentions how important it is with using the constitution within cases. By using the constitution, the court system is ensuring that the rights of both the victim and accused are being protected. There are also two different court systems. These systems are at either a state or federal level (Hendrix, 2013, p. 200). The state court system involves things such as limited, general, and appellate jurisdiction (Hendrix, 2013, p. 201). However, the federal court system involves the U.S. Magistrate’s Courts, U.S. District Courts, U.S. Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court (Hendrix, 2013, pp. 206-211). Amos 5:24 (NIV) states, “ But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” Thus, the court system provides this justice and
In America we have a complex system of courts that many do not understand, this is the same in many other countries too. There are many different types of court system you could have. There is Common Law, Civil Law, a mix of both and Islamic Law. America has a type of law called Common Law, which originally comes from England. This type just means that there are decisions by judges and courts. Another country with this law is Canada. When you look at the systems you can see how similar they are to each other. Both of these fine nations have judges and they have courts, where some are higher up than others. There is the Canadian Supreme Court, Tax Court, Court of Appeals, Providential Courts (the equivalent of district courts), and Court Martial Courts (which is our military courts).
The court system is composed of lawyers, judges, and juries. Their job is to ensure that everyone receives a fair trial, determine guilt or innocence, and apply sentences to guilty parties. The court system will contain one judge, and a jury of twelve citizens. The jury of the court will determine the guilt or innocence of the individual. The jury will also recommend a sentence for the crime the individual committed.
The problem of judicial corruption in United States is immense. The Sixth Amendment in the United States Bill of Rights refers to the right to a speedy, fair and public trial. Unfortunately, our judicial system does not always maintain these rights. The United States judicial system is very corrupt and most of our country’s citizens do not know how corrupt it actually is. When thinking about the judicial system, words that come to mind are justice, morality, and fairness. Sadly, these words are not accurate descriptions of this system. Correct depictions of today’s judicial system are corruption, rigged courts, extortion, and phony trials. Our legal system does not bring truth or justice to our courtrooms. Overcoming this corruption is not easy for the average citizen or anyone who is not in on the “game”.
Proverbs 21:15 New Living Translation (NLT) states, “Justice is a joy to the godly, but it terrifies evildoers.” With that being said, there are “94 district courts, 13 circuit courts, and one Supreme Court throughout the country.” The court systems are not in place to be abused by the representative nor those that are looking for assistance. The court systems exist to provide justice for all.
I am applying to the Master of Arts program in Criminal Justice at Lewis University, because I want to further my education in this field of study. The Criminal Justice field is changing day by day. I must admit that it is somewhat by accident that I find myself driven towards the field of Criminal Justice. I have always enjoyed watching and reading news article on what is going on with my city. When I was young, I thought I was going to major in Computer Science in Undergrad, but quickly that was changed. My advisor at College of DuPage told me to take a class in Criminal Justice, which I did, that could have been the best decision for me. I became quickly became fascinated with a growing interest in Criminal justice. When I transfer to Lewis University my Knowledge of the field grew, and so did my curiosity about how much I can do with this degree.
Over the next 10 years the criminal Justice system could entirely change with the passing of a major law, epidemic, or failed service. Consequently, every since 9-11 our justice system has become much more open minded. Therefore, resulting in the strict enforcement of laws to protect its citizens. Nothing ever stays the same for too long. New developments related to science, technology, DNA analysis, and countless other tools and other factors are changing for the better in solving cases, prevention of crimes, and aiding in investigations. Where there is change there will be changes in the way we handle everyday processing. For example, booking a criminal, acquiring evidence, and interrogation. This also results in the field of criminal justice having no choice but to adapt to the slowly changing times or else be left behind.
Criminology as a genre is defined as the scientific study of crime, as well as its causes, law enforcement interaction, criminal behavior, and means of prevention. In its own way criminology is the history of humanity. As long as people have been on earth there has been criminal activity. Much like most other work atmospheres, it was a male dominated field. A woman seeking to work in criminology was unheard of. Men filled the jobs as police officers, lawyers, judges, and politicians. However, in the 1860s Belva Lockwood became determined to pave the way for women in criminology. As a women’s rights activist, she became one of the most influential women in criminology.
The media is a dominating aspect of American culture. The way the media depicts crime and criminal behavior has an effect on the way society views crime and criminals. Television series such as CSI, NCIS, Law and Order, Criminal Minds and countless others, have become very popular in our society today showing that our culture has an immense interest in crime. It is clear that there is a fascination with criminals and why they do the things they do. To analyze the way crime dramas represent crime and criminal behavior, I completed a content analysis of one episode of Criminal Minds. The episode I chose was season one; episode eight, which first aired in 2005, titled ‘Natural Born Killer’.
The status of the criminal justice system in Europe during the 1700s was the product of long tradition of aristocracy. An aristocracy government is one in which land is owned by particular families and is passed down through the generations of a family line. The monarch of the region grants titles and powers to the privileged classes, who in return keep order within their land and swear loyalty to the monarch. Property and power in an aristocracy were the privileges of birth alone and being merit was simply irrelevant. Their lives circled around maintaining, while attempting to expand, their wealth and power. Historically, as a higher class among others, aristocrats were known to be negligent towards the poor. To where they were prone to appoint
The Common Law, Criminal Justice System is one of three types of legal systems. The Common Law is used in the U.S and is presented as a type of legal system that bases most of their convictions by the court 's decisions. From having the most cases determined by the courts can look to be favorable to the rich who are able
The justice system is meant to uphold strong morals and promote fairness and equality for all. However, often times the justice system fails to meet those standards. Examples of this can be seen not only in fiction but in the real world every single day. From the case of Tom Robinson in the fictional 1930s Maycomb county to the courts in Washington D.C. to this day, cases of injustice run rampant. This leaves everyone wondering what the cause of these injustices are, who or what is to blame, and how it can be fixed. The justice system is still flawed in different ways just as it was in the 1930s when Tom Robinson took the stand.
In the modern day, courts have a central role in dealing with crimes and giving out the punishments for offenses. These courts according to a major character in To Kill a Mockingbird known as Atticus claims that “courts are the great levelers” and they make every man equal. However, the contemporary court system is the exact opposite of what Atticus claims it to be as courts are notorious for favoring certains parties and not treating everyone equally. The present day court system fails to bring equality to the men who are tried in it as they are often wrongly convicted and sentenced for crimes they never committed due to an inherent bias in the courts.
The American Court System is an important part of American history and one of the many assets that makes America stand out from other countries. It thrives for justice through its structured and organized court systems. The structures and organizations are widely influenced by both the State and U.S Constitution. The courts have important characters that used their knowledge and roles to aim for equality and justice. These court systems have been influenced since the beginning of the United State of America. Today, these systems and law continue to change and adapt in order to keep and protect the peoples’ rights.
The United States criminal justice system is broken down into three different parts, first is the Law enforcement in the American justice system. It is responsible for upholding the law, investigating crime and apprehending the individuals responsible for committing the crime. Second, the courts in the American Justice system. The court ensures that an individual right is not violated, and a fair trail takes place. Finally, corrections in the American justice system, it ensures that a convicted offender serves his or her sentence as advised by the courts and supervises the convicts as they service their sentence.
By the end of Dostoyesky’s Crime and Punishment, the reader is no longer under the illusion of the possible existence of “extraordinary” men. For an open-minded reader, and even perhaps the closed-minded ones too, the book is a journey through Raskolnikov’s proposed theory on crime. It is a theory based on the ideas that had “been printed and read a thousand times”(313) by both Hegel and Nietzsche. Hegel, a German philosopher, influenced Dostoyesky with his utilitarian emphasis on the ends rather than the means whereby a superman existed as one that stood above the ordinary man, but worked for the benefit of all mankind. Nietsche’s more selfish philosophy focused on the rights to power which allowed one to act in a Hegelian manner. In committing his crime, Raskolnikov experienced the ultimate punishment as he realized that his existence was not that of the “extraordinary” man presented in his theory. In chapter five of part three in Crime and Punishment, this theory is outlined by its creator, Raskolnikov. Such an innovative theory would clearly have placed him in the “extraordinary” category, but when he fails to meet its standards, by submitting to the common law through his confession, the theory crumbles right before the reader’s eyes.