Introduction to the U.S. Criminal Justice System
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Transcript of Introduction to the U.S. Criminal Justice System
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Crime and Justice in the US
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Crime in the United States
• Crime is a top concern of the American public.
• Crimes presented by the media are usually more sensational than the crimes routinely committed.
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Crime in the United States
Most police calls involve responding to complaints of disturbances:• Domestic quarrels• Neighbor squabbles• Gang altercations• Loud music
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Criminal Justice:An Institution of Social ControlThere are a variety of responses to crime in the United States, from punishment to prevention.
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Criminal Justice:An Institution of Social ControlCriminal justice is an institution of social control, as are:
– The family– Schools– Organized religion– The media– The law
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institution of social control
An organization that persuades people, through subtle and not-so-subtle means, to abide by the
dominant values of society.
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Criminal justice differs because:– It is concerned only with behavior that
is actually criminal.
– It is society’s “last line of defense.”
Criminal Justice:An Institution of Social Control
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Criminal Justice:The System
Criminal justice in the United States is administered by a loose confederation of more than 50,000 agencies of federal, state, and local governments.
• The police
• The courts
• Corrections
= The criminal justice system
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Criminal Justice:The System
The criminal justice system operates differently in some jurisdictions, but there are also similarities.
jurisdictionsA politically defined geographical area.
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Police
The criminal justice response to crime begins when a crime is reported to the police, or when the police discover a crime has been committed.
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Arrest WarrantOn rare occasions, police may obtain an arrest warrant from a lower-court judge before making an arrest.
arrest warrantA written order directing law enforcement officers to arrest a person.
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Courts
• After a suspect has been arrested and booked, a prosecutor reviews the facts of the case and decides whether to charge the suspect with a crime.
• If no charges are filed, the suspect must be released.
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Pretrial StagesAbout 90 percent of criminal defendants plead guilty to the charges against them, in an arrangement called plea bargaining.
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plea bargainingThe practice whereby a specific sentence is imposed if the accused pleads guilty to an agreed-upon charge or charges instead of going to trial.
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Trial 10 percent of criminal cases go to trial.
5 percent of criminal cases are decided in a bench trial.
bench trial
A trial before a judge, without a jury.
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Trial• If the defendant is
found guilty as charged
• The judge (and sometimes the jury) begins to consider a sentence.
If the defendant is found not guilty
The defendant is released.
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CorrectionsCurrently, five types of punishment are used in the United States:
–Fines–Probation–Intermediate punishments–Imprisonment–Death
Judges must impose sentences according to statutory guidelines.
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CorrectionsDefendants can appeal their convictions either on
legal or constitutional grounds.
Legal Grounds• Defects in jury selection
• Improper admission of evidence at trial
• Mistaken interpretations of law
Constitutional Grounds• Illegal search and seizure
• Improper questioning by police
• Incompetent assistance from counsel
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Criminal Justice:The Nonsystem
The “criminal justice system” in the United States is really a “nonsystem.” Each agency works independently, and often in conflict with others.
systemA smoothly operating set of arrangements and institutions directed toward the achievement of common goals.
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Criminal Justice:The Nonsystem
•Judges impose prison sentences when there isn’t room in prisons to hold the offenders.
•In every state, there is a separate process for juvenile offenders.
•Police often say sentencing does not match the crime.
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Criminal Justice:The Nonsystem
•Prosecutors complain about shoddy police work.
•Police complain that offenders are not prosecuted.
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Costs of Criminal Justice
• Each year in the United States an enormous amount of money is spent on criminal justice.
• In 1999, local, state, and federal governments spent a total of $146 billion on civil and criminal justice.
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Costs of Criminal Justice
State and local governments pay most of the cost of criminal justice. Generally speaking:
Local governments pay for police.
The federal government works strategically to influence criminal justice policies at other levels of government.
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Costs of Criminal Justice• About 4 cents out of
every tax dollar is spent on crime control.
• Roughly two-thirds of the American public thinks the government should spend more.
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Myths About Crime and Criminal Justice
Much of the American public’s understanding of crime and criminal justice is wrong; it is based on myths.
mythsBeliefs based on emotion rather than analysis.