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Different Roles in Criminal Justice System

#1.Role of state and federal courts

Discuss the roles of the court systems and their objectives regarding public safety and civil

rights.

Understanding the role of courts

Discuss the concepts of justice and security. How do these concepts become a reality in a free

society based on a constitution and manifested through a complex legal system? How are these

principles reflected in the federal court system, including the U.S. District Court, the U.S. Courts

of Appeal, and the U.S. Supreme Court? What is the function of each of these courts and how is

their role connected to public safety and civil rights. How are state court systems designed and

what happens at each level? How does each level within the judicial system balance individual

rights with security issues?

The role of the court system is to determine whether or not a criminal defendant is guiltyof committing a crime in which they have been accused. The court system is designed to

give the criminal defendant an opportunity to defend themselves against any accusation

made by the state. The court is designed to ensure criminal defendants are punished for

the crimes they commit but not convicted for a crime they did not commit (Barnett,

2011). The court system is designed to ensure guilty offenders are removed from society

in order to improve public safety and secure dangerous threats. In a free society the rights

of the people and the remedies designed to protect these rights are necessary to secure the

freedoms guaranteed in the constitution. In order to protect the concept of a free society

the rights of the people are protected above all. This is reflected in the federal court

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system through the necessity of having a grand jury and the ability of the criminal

defendant to appeal and guilty verdicts. The U.S. District Court, the U.S. Courts of

Appeal, and the U.S. Supreme Court act as a checks and balance on the actions of the

district court. The courts review the cases to ensure there are n mistakes or constitutional

violations.

Barnett, R. (2011). Pursuing Justice in a Free Society: Part Two-crime Prevention and the

Legal Order. Retrieved June 29, 2013 fromhttp://www.bu.edu/rbarnett/5crimjust30.html

#2.Law Enforcement Role

Describe the objectives of law enforcement organizations and contrast public safety and

individual rights issues.

Objectives of Law Enforcement and Corrections

Law enforcement organizations have a variety of objectives that in principle must support the

structure and functions of a free society based on constitutional mandates regarding individual

protections and rights. Those objectives must strike a meaningful balance between public safetyand civil rights if the underlying principles of a constitutional democracy are to be upheld.

Discuss the following:

Identify the objectives of federal, state, and local law enforcement.

Identify the objectives of federal and state probation, parole, and correctional

organizations.

Identify the objectives of the juvenile justice system and describe its relationship with

other agencies.

Law enforcement officers are public officials responsible for keeping society safe andidentifying and arresting criminal suspects in society. Law enforcement has a duty to

uphold the law and act ethically but they also have an obligation to protect the civil

liberties of criminal suspects in society. Police cannot search or seize the private property

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of citizen and they cannot use excessive force when dealing with criminal suspects. If

police violate the civil liberties of the citizen the end result could be any evidence

obtained is excluded from the court process or the police officer and there department

could be sued. Police officer must apply discretion when going about their duties but this

discretion cannot exceed their obligation to protect the due process rights of the citizen.

Federal, state, and, local law enforcement all have the same objective which is to guard

the public, identify and investigate criminal offenders, and to make arrests. Local police

have jurisdiction over a specific area such as a city or county while state police have

jurisdiction over the entire state. The juvenile justice system is designed to rehabilitate

juveniles and not punishment them as in the adult criminal justice system. The police

have the discretion to take the juvenile home or to take them to the juvenile justice

system where they will then come under the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system.

#3.The rights of offenders

Balancing the rights of offenders

Consider this statement: It is necessary for the rights of offenders to be considered and protected

to a significant degree if the principles of a free, constitutional democracy are to be upheld.

Indicate whether you agree or disagree; then, justify and defend your position.

In a democratic society the goal is to ensure the people have a voice and the governmentnever comes oppressive. No matter how serious the situation or event civil liberties of the

citizen should never be imposed upon by the government. For every freedom taken away

by the government, the government becomes a little more oppressive. Civil liberties were

so important that the constitution almost did not happen without the delegates first

agreeing to the bill of rights or a list of guaranteed rights for every citizen (Curry, 2009).

While state rights were important for many individual liberties were much more

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important in ensuring the government could not restrict the liberties and freedoms of the

citizen. When the rights of the offender are ignored then justice has also been ignored. It

is unfortunate that guilty offenders have to go free in order for criminal justice

professionals to obey the law but if there are no checks and balances in place what is to

stop the police from beating a suspect in order to get them to confess or a judge showing

bias to minority offenders. The right of the offender must be protected in order to ensure

justice is served and the people are never forced to live in an oppressive society.

Curry, L. (2009).The Government's Duty to Protect the Lives of its Citizens under the Due

Process Clause. Retrieved June 29, 2013 from

http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/stateactionprotect.html

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