Introduction
Lesson Overview
The purpose of this lesson is to present an overview of the U.S. Criminal Justice system, the major components of which are the police, the courts, and corrections. In subsequent chapters, these parts of the system will be covered in much more detail. It is important, however, to first examine the history of the American system of justice, the meaning of justice and social control, and the manner through which criminal offenders are processed through the system. Further, it is also important to understand the major perspectives on justice. Probably one of the most important issues to consider before moving into more in-depth coverage of the different components of the system is ethics. In a system that allows a great deal of discretion among criminal justice personnel (e.g. police and the decision to retain and arrest suspects), it is no wonder that sometimes ethics violations occur. This lesson will also consider the many ways that crime is measured in the U.S. and how crime rates have changed over time.
Lesson Objectives
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
- Describe the major components of the U.S. criminal justice system along with the various perspectives on justice.
- Explain the extent and nature of crime in the U.S and its impact on victims.
- Define the terms: criminal justice system, social control, criminal justice assembly line, wedding cake model of criminal justice, courtroom working group, crime control vs. rehabilitation perspective of justice, due process, restorative justice, Uniform Crime Reports, National Crime Victimization Survey.
- Demonstrate a working knowledge of the unique issues associated ethics in criminal justice.