Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Criminal Justice System
Criminal Justice System
Criminal Justice System - is the system of practices and institutions of governments directed at
upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime or sanctioning those who violate laws with
criminal penalties and rehabilitation efforts.
Goals of Punishment
1. General Deterrence - the state tries to convince potential criminals that the
punishment they face is certain, swift, and severe so that they will be afraid to
commit an offense.
2. Specific Deterrence - convincing offenders that the pain of punishment is
greater than the benefits of crime so they will not repeat their criminal offending
3. Incapacitation - if dangerous criminals are kept behind bars, they will not be
able to repeat their illegal activities.
4. Retribution/Just Desert - punishment should be no more or less than the
offenders actions deserve, it must be based on how blameworthy the person is.
5. Equity/Restitution - convicted criminals must pay back their victims for their
loss, the justice system for the costs of processing their case and society for any
disruption they may have caused.
6. Rehabilitation - if the proper treatment is applied, an offender will present no
further threat to society
7. Diversion - criminals are diverted into a community correctional program for
treatment to avoid stigma of incarceration.The convicted offender might be
asked to make payments to the crime victim or participate in a community
based program that features counseling.
8. Restorative Justice - repairs injuries suffered by the victim and the community
while insuring reintegration of the offender. Turn the justice system into a
healing process rather than a distributor of retribution and revenge.
Sensational Crime - certain offenses are selected for their sensational nature
and made into national issues.Much of what we know about crime comes from
the media.
Street Crime - includes a wide variety of acts both in public and private spaces
including interpersonal violence and property crime.
Judge - a public officer who presides over court proceedings and hear and
decide cases in a court of law either alone or as part of a panel of judges.
Prosecutor - the person responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial
against an individual accused of breaking the law.
Plaintiff - the person who brings a case against another in court of law.
Appellant - the party who appeals the decision of the lower court. A person who
applies to a higher court for a reversal of the decision of a lower court.
Writ - a form of written command in the name of the court or other legal
authority to act or abstain from acting in some way.
Discretion - the use of personal decision making and choice in carrying out
operations in the criminal justice system.
What is twelve table? early Roman laws written around 450 BC which
regulated family.religious, and economic life.