...“You are majoring in Criminal Justice? You must want to be a police officer” are the words I hear from almost every new person that I meet in college. I quietly reply to each one saying that no, I don’t want to be a police officer, but a lawyer. I understand that the police force is a very common occupation in the Criminal Justice system, and I know that these newcomers do not know anything about my personality and dreams for my future. I cannot judge them for assuming my anticipated occupation. It does, however, bother me on the inside that the major I am studying has a label, or should I say badge, on it because that is not what I want to be at all. I want to be a criminal defense lawyer and represent wrongly convicted death row prisoners. This occupation is completely different than a police officer. I struggle to accept the fact that majors and careers are not identical, and I can become a lawyer and still major in Criminal Justice....
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...I am interested in enrolling in the Law and Justice Academy because as I grew older I found myself loving the idea of becoming a lawyer. More specifically a criminal defense lawyer. I remember being in the fourth and fifth grade staying up and watching tv shows like Criminal Minds and Law and Order. That is how my interest in the Criminal Justice field grew. Between the end of the fifth grade and the beginning of the sixth, I knew that I wanted to be a Criminal Defense Lawyer, and I am determined to become one. I believe that being a part of the Law and Justice Academy would help me reach that goal. By being in the Law and Justice Academy I would gain experience from some of the activities and classes provided to the academy. Such as the mock trial and internships that are done during the summer seminars. By doing the mock trial I will get an idea of how a trial is conducted in an actual courtroom. For the internship, I would like to get one in a Criminal Defense Lawyer's office because I would gain insight into a lawyer's job. Not only do I want to be a part of the Law and Justice Academy and its activities that would benefit in becoming a Lawyer but I also look forward to the other things I would learn from the academy. For instance,...
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...FFLIC’s mission is to transform the oppressive juvenile justice system in Louisiana into one that provides a nurturing and rehabilitative environment. While interning with FFLIC, I met with the community organizer on a regular basis who has a child currently imprisoned. I listened to his personal experiences with Louisiana’s juvenile justice system and learned about the need for therapeutic environments, interactions, and opportunities for underrepresented prison populations. In order to help FFLIC advocate for policy change at a state level, my colleagues and I authored a white paper that outlined recommendations to reduce recidivism rates for juvenile offenders in Louisiana, such as offering more educational and vocational programs in prisons and implementing community-based alternatives to incarceration. Through my research, I discovered that community-based alternatives that embody therapeutic philosophies, through emphasizing skills training, counseling, and behavioral programs, can be more successful at reducing recidivism than incarceration. This experience prompted my desire to continue research on recidivism reduction in graduate school and learn more about the impact clinical psychology practices can have on reforming the criminal justice...
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...A motivated alumnus who has completed coursework in the Justice Administration and Criminal Behavior graduate studies department at Tiffin University, along with the completion of the Women’s Studies undergraduate program at Cleveland State University. I possess strong interpersonal skills and desire to employ the benefit of my training to that of the Criminal Justice sector. My areas of study have collectively prepared me to enter confidently into the Criminal Justice field, primed to undertake the various facets of this system, including training in criminal behavior and the fundamental correlations between the psychology, and sociological predictors that impact the criminal justice system, specifically gender relations and their pathways...
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...Victims and Crime Evaluation Paper Criminal Law/CJA/354 An alarming amount of innocent people become victims of crime every year, and the victim’s rights are every bit as important as the offender’s rights. There are certain tendencies that appear within patterns of crime and victimization, such as adolescents are most likely to be victimized, men become crime victims more often than women, and African Americans experience more crime than other racial groups (Newmark, 2008). Victims of crime suffer from physical, emotional, psychological, and financial issues. Some of the issues victims of crime face are physical injury, fear for personal safety, medical expenses, counseling expenses, feelings of fear, grief, shame, and anger, and lost income. Victims of crime needing assistance may believe they are overlooked or even revictimized by the criminal justice system, a system that may appear to be more concerned with the criminal’s rights than with the needs and rights of the victim. This paper will address the role the prosecutor, defense attorney, criminal, and victim play within the criminal justice system and how victimization affects each. The Prosecutor The prosecutor plays a critical role in the criminal justice system and serves many functions throughout the criminal justice process. Some of these functions are as follows: * Investigating * Helping the police build a case against the person(s) * Bringing charges against a person(s) * Arranging...
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...Crime Evaluation In the United State the criminal justice system is comprised of agencies. The justice system is established to protect people and to impose penalties on those who violate laws. There are several different agencies within the criminal system in the United States. Agencies are similar but different, because each county, state and federal or military installation has their own jurisdiction. Each jurisdiction has different levels of managing criminal justice processes. Military has their own jurisdiction but depending on the crime they are still part of the two main systems: State criminal justice systems handle crimes committed within their state boundaries and Federal criminal justice system handles crimes committed on federal property or in more than one state. In the criminal justice system there are five components law enforcement officers, prosecution, defense attorneys, courts, and corrections. Each of the five components plays a key role in the criminal justice process. Far more importance is how victimization affects the roles of the prosecutor, defense attorney, criminal and victim. Prosecutor is to prosecute criminal within their jurisdiction. They are the administrator of justice, an advocate, and an officer of the court who representing the people in a trial. Prosecutor works with their local law enforcement agencies to prosecute criminals and to provide legal advice on functions and duties in a criminal matter. If there is any conflict of interest...
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...Turning Rights into Symbols: The U.S. Supreme Court and Criminal Justice The Supreme Court is characterized as one of the most important symbols of justice and law (pg. 99). Over the years the Supreme Court has been held responsible for upholding the law as well as the constitutional rights of the people. The article “Turning Rights into Symbols: The U.S. Supreme Court and Criminal Justice” examines how the Supreme Court decision affects the criminal justice systems. It has been founded that the Supreme Court is more concerned with the courts institutional functions and consequences (pg. 100). More so, the Supreme Court justices’ makes decisions that enhance their personal agendas, views and attitudes. It has been difficult to conclude the precise reasons for one’s decisions. Research has indicated that attitudes and values underlying a justice’s decision has been present. The author of the text defines symbolization as the use of interpretive techniques and devices that create, facilitate or tolerate gaps between the formal statement of a basic constitutional protection and the actual implementation (or lack thereof) of that protection (pg. 103). The author chose to highlight Burger and Rehnquist courts for this study and how symbolization has affected these courts. The use of symbolization has documented how constitutional doctrines’ have been altered. Although symbolization sometimes was seen as one’s personal preference in making decisions, there were also benefits...
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...courtrooms across the United States. The dancers consist of trained professionals dedicated to the criminal justice system. Each person has a unique responsibility in regards to the role they play in how cases are processed through the court system. The roles are divided into categories of professionals and non–professionals. The judge, prosecuting attorney, defense attorney, bailiff, court reporter, and court administrator are among the professionals. Non-professional participants are those who attend court proceedings and may include the defendant, victims, witnesses, jurors, spectators and media personnel. There are specific guidelines the individual participants must follow for communicating and processing cases through the court system regardless if the case originates in criminal or civil court. The professional members in the courtroom are responsible for moving cases through the courts and ensuring all Constitutional Rights are protected in the best interest of society. Public outcry and advocacy have led to the emergence of victims’ rights in recent decades. Prosecuting Attorney The prosecuting attorney’s role is to present evidence against the defendant on behalf of society. When a case is presented to them, they must review the evidence and the charges against an individual to warrant moving forward with the case. The prosecutor attends every court proceeding in a criminal case armed with evidence to prove the defendant’s guilt which they must share with the defense...
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...Often we allow our personal convictions to guide our delivery of human services. When presenting an argument for or against a specific policy, or listening to someone else present an argument, we need to be aware of persuasive techniques. • Complete the Recognizing Deceptive Arguments exercise on pp. 292–294 in Ch. 7 of the text. Please note there are 15 arguments. • Number the questions and provide your answers. 1. The Supreme Court has a greater obligation to protect the rights of victims than those of criminals. 2. It is clear to every intelligent person that the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, protection against cruel and unusual punishment, does not bar the use of victim impact statements. 3. Victim reforms will destroy the constitutional rights of the accused. 4. The conservative, prejudiced Supreme Court judges are too stupid to recognize the rights of the accused. 5. Every decent lawyer believes the harm a victim suffered because of a defendant should be considered when determining punishment. 6. Victims have absolutely no rights at all. 7. Everyone agrees that victim reforms are false promises made by legislators seeking to please voters worried about crime. 8. The victims’ rights movement developed because victims of crime felt they had no rights in the criminal justice system. 9. Thurgood Marshall, a pro-criminal, bleeding-heart liberal, considers the harm a victim suffered irrelevant in a criminal trial. 10. As Justice John Paul Stevens...
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...theories of justice argue that punishment should be imposed for the crimes committed and the severity of the punishment should be proportionate to the seriousness of the crime. More than often, retributive punishment is confused with ideas of vengeance. It is generally argued that in case of retributive punishment, no limit can be set for revenge which thereby makes such revenge personal whereas the person administering such punishment may well have no personal connection with the victim. An affordable alternative to the retributive justice system is the restorative justice practices which can be considered unique in its emphasis on not just one component of the criminal justice system such as punishment, but as incorporating victims,...
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...Abstract The Federal Trade Commission considers identity theft to be the fastest growing crime in the country. The Internet has become a hot zone for attracting identity theft thieves to steal personal information. Identity theft is divided into four basic areas – financial identity theft, criminal identity theft, identity cloning and business and commercial identity theft. Criminals obtain our personal information through methods such as using an insider, dumpster diving, computer hacking, war driving, phishing and pre-texting. The Department of Justice prosecutes identity theft under federal statutes. Congress passed the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act, Title 18 United States Code 1028 in 1998. One of the most noted identity theft cases was USA v. Cummings. The largest hacking and identity theft case ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice involved eleven people who stole more than forty million credit and debit card numbers. To severely curtail on identity theft, President Bush mandated Executive Order 13402 called the Identity Theft Task Force. Identity theft causes immeasurable damage to peoples’ names and reputations. Greater awareness and education will help us to combat identity theft. Identity Theft It’s a nightmare that can leave an unsuspecting person feeling violated and vulnerable. It doesn’t care who you are or where you live. Gender, race and age are totally irrelevant. In this modern technological age, it is a crime that can realistically...
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...Crime victims rights Advocates for victims' rights have long complained that they have been sidelined by a criminal justice system that is focused on the interplay between the state and the defendant. With the enactment of the Victims' Bill of Rights Act of 2008, that is changing. The authors examine the current state of victims' rights, the evolution of the enforcement mechanisms, and the emerging role of the criminal practitioner in regards to these rights. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT] Advocates for victims' rights have long complained that they have been sidelined by a criminal justice system that is focused on the interplay between the state and the defendant. With the enactment of the Victims' Bill of Rights Act of 2008, that is changing. The authors examine the current state of victims' rights, the evolution of the enforcement mechanisms, and the emerging role of the criminal practitioner in regards to these rights. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT] You have requested "on-the-fly" machine translation of selected content from our databases. This functionality is provided solely for your convenience and is in no way intended to replace human translation. Show full disclaimer Neither ProQuest nor its licensors make any representations or warranties with respect to the translations. The translations are automatically generated "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE" and are not retained in our systems. PROQUEST AND ITS LICENSORS SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING...
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...Criminal Justice The act of an individual or individuals when committing a crime and how a society deals with those individuals has changed over time. Crime is a conduct or violation of the criminal to break the laws for which there is no acceptable justification or excuse. Society is often viewed by its criminal element and how the people deal with punishment and rehabilitation of the criminal. There are five goals of the criminal justice system deterrence, incapacitation, retribution, rehabilitation, restoration. In a CJi Interactive Multi-Media slide on University of Phoenix website it described, “These five criminal justice goals are not mutually exclusive. They are really rather like philosophical perspectives from which a community or agency responds to criminal behavior. (Interactive) The criminal justice system has three branches, those branches are police, courts and correction departments, each are an integral part of the American Justice System. The police work in an ever changing environment however in a report on the challenges of crime in a free society the police officers job was described as “the manner in which a policeman works is influenced by practical matters: the legal strength of the available evidence, the willingness of victims to press charges and of witnesses to testify, the temper of the community, the time and information at the policeman's disposal. Much is at stake in how the policeman exercises this discretion and if he judges conduct not suspicious...
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...Abstract The aim of this dissertation, which is based on secondary research involving analysing a range of books, journal articles, Government publications, newspaper articles and videos, is to critically examine the position of the victim in the criminal justice system. The paper looks at the role of political interests in establishing victimfocus policies and the direction towards their placement at the heart of the justice system. This includes the managerialistic values, modernization of the Government and covering-up of punitive measures taken against the offender that all point to the political rhetoric around the centeredness of the victim. Furthermore, the view of traditional justice is accounted for in order to get a grasp of the many underlying factors that can be attributed to the so called rebirth and the consequent concentration on the victim. The paper firstly discusses characteristics of victims, the impact of crime on victims and also their needs for a better understanding of who they are and what can be done to help them. Particular attention is drawn to stereotypes associated with victims and constructions of the ideal victim. Secondly, the adversarial nature of English justice and implications for victims are discussed, as well as some tensions between the interests of the offender and the victim, and the opposed nature of the two. Procedural and service rights especially play an important role in defining whether victims are given appropriate...
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...Punishment In Criminal Justice CRJ 301 Juvenile Justice Iesia Mitchell Instructor: Diane Williams April 30 2012 Punishment In Criminal Justice CRJ 301 Juvenile Justice Iesia Mitchell Instructor: Diane Williams April 30 2012 | | There are five general aims or functions or justifications of punishment. The first being Deterrence There is a belief that punishment for crime can deter people from offending. There are two forms where deterrence is concerned with punishing an individual offender in the expectation that he will not offend again, and General deterrence is related to the possibility that people in general will be deterred from committing crime by the threat of punishment if they are caught. There is also the theory that criminal laws are passed with well-defined punishments to discourage individual criminal defendants from becoming repeat offenders and to discourage others in society from engaging in similar criminal activity. Deterrence is one of the primary objects of the Criminal Law. Its primary goal is to discourage members of society from committing criminal acts out of fear of punishment. The most powerful deterrent would be a criminal justice system that guaranteed with certainty that all persons who broke the law would be apprehended, convicted, and punished, and would receive no personal benefit from their wrongdoing this aim is effective by long prison sentence and heavy fines (Criminal Deterrence and Sentence Severity, 1999). ...
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