Crime and the criminal justice system
Crime is an act that violates or breaks a given set of rules or laws and which may lead to the person being prosecuted. Crimes vary from region to region and also from the different countries. The constitution governs acts of crime, disputes and also defines the laws of a county or country. When a person commits a crime, the kind of action to be taken against that person and the equivalent punishment are defined within the laws.
Basis through which the society determines the criminality of an individual’s actions
The society uses two main models to determine criminal acts. A violation of any of the issues addressed by this model leads to a criminal act against the individual. These models are:
This model derives its power from the principle that individuals in a society have a right to some key rights such as life, property and liberty. Citizens cannot be deprived this rights without the proper transparent legal procedure being observed. This model also requires that fairness be observed when handling issues to do with these rights. This entails that a person has the right to a notification and provided with a chance to be heard when their life, liberty and liberty rights are concerned. In this perspective, discrimination on the basis of age, gender disability and nationality should not exist. Cruel treatment and punishments are discouraged in case the accused is an innocent person .
The due process model also requires that there should be substantial justification for infringement of individual rights of life, liberty and property. This model prioritizes the rights of an individual to the powers of the government or a judicial system.
Crime Control Model
This model lays emphasis on reducing crime in the society through police and legal procedures. It grants powers to the government more than individual rights in order to reduce crime. This model presupposes that a person is guilty unless proven innocent. It also agrees to the fact that individuals make mistakes which should be acceptable. This model also proposes a quick conviction of a criminal foregoing his/her rights. This is the main disadvantage of this model as it may lead to wrong convictions (George F. Cole, 2012).
Structure of the criminal justice
This structure involves all the institutions involved in tackling the crime issue. This system is basically defined by the three branches of the government i.e. judiciary, executive and legislative. The legislature is responsible for defining crimes, deciding the sentences to be given for the crime and funds criminal justice institutions. The judiciary is responsible for adjudication i.e. passing judgment on the guilt of persons charged with a crime. The judiciary has elements responsible for the interpretation of the constitution and review of decisions made by the judicial courts. The executive is responsible for the appointment of qualified judges and other heads e.g. police chief .
Police and correction department are the other key important components of the criminal justice structure. Police officers are responsible for order maintenance, enforcement of the law and prevention of crime in the community. They also offer services to the general community and work in collaboration with courts to gather evidence and conducting investigations. Corrections facilities include jails, probation, parole and house arrests. They help in the punishment of convicted criminals and also in their rehabilitation.
Choice theory
This theory states that an individual will commit an action because the action is of interest and benefit to that individual. This theory relates to crime in that criminals are rational in their actions. They weigh the benefits of their actions before performing them which leads to them committing crime. This theory proposes that, through severe punishments, criminals can be deterred from committing crimes. Choice theory assumes that human beings make rational decisions. In their actions, humans have a prioritized list of preferences that they must acquire and that they are very focused on the goals they have set.
Criminal Justice Process
This process starts with police conducting an investigation on a given crime to gather evidence on the suspect. It may involve searching through the suspect’s property such as home, vehicle and office premises if sufficient facts point that there may evidence on the location being searched. After gathering enough evidence, police proceed to make an arrest. The suspect is put in custody until the day his/her case will be heard in court. In the courtroom, indictment of the suspect by the jury decides whether there should be a closed hearing i.e. a hearing where only the prosecutor gives evidence and if there exist sufficient evidence for a trial. If a trial is granted, the suspect is arraigned before a judge to enter a plea. In most of the cases, the plea involves admitting ‘guilty or not guilty’. After the first hearing of the case, the accused is retained for a pretrial detention or in case he succeeds in getting a bail, he/she will be allowed to leave the custody after making a full payment of the bail.
During the trial, evidence is presented before a judge or jury and if the accused is found guilty is sentenced. The sentence may be a fine, a probation or term in a government correctional facility. In some circumstances, punishment might be derived from a combination of all these depending on the nature of the crime and the evidence presented before the judge or jury. After this, an appeal can be filed by the convicted criminal to the court of appeal and if success the court reverses the sentence and the case goes back to the initial court for a retrial. In case an appeal is not successful, punishment is administered to the person after which rehabilitation services may be offered depending on the nature of the sentence .
Goals of the Criminal Justice System
The criminal justice system operates on a number of set goals and principles. This allows it to maintain a safe society where justice is available to all fairly. Some of the goals include:
- Control and prevention of crime
- Protection of law abiding citizens from those individuals with ill motives.
- Offering a helping hand to those affected by acts of crime and also protection of witnesses.
- Investigating and arresting people suspected of committing crimes.
- Helping convicts return to normal life in the community by offering rehabilitation services.
In a nutshell, the criminal justice system cannot be termed as befitting the definition of a system. This is due to the fact that some of the departments act independently. Judicial courts have their own authority and should be non-partisan while handling their cases to avoid unfair convictions. Another fact is that funds to departments are gotten from different sources.
Works Cited
The Structure of the Criminal Justice. (2013). Retrieved February 10, 2013, from CliffsNotes: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/The-Structure-of-Criminal-Justice.topicArticleId-10065,articleId-9908.html
Justice BC. (2013). Goals,Basic Principles and Sources of Criminal Law. Retrieved February 10, 2013, from Criminal Justice Information and Support: http://www.justicebc.ca/en/cjis/understanding/basic_principles.html
Samaha, J. (2005). Criminal Justice. London: Cengage Learning.
Turner, J. (1991). The Structure of Sociological Theory.
US Legal. (2013). Definitions. Retrieved Feb 10, 2013, from USLEGAL: http://definitions.uslegal.com/d/due-process-model/
