The 3 Main Criminal Justice Institutions
The criminal justice system in America is comprised of numerous different agencies working together for a common goal: to maintain order, peace, and justice through controlling crime and imposing sanctions on people who break the laws. There are three main institutions which make up the criminal justice system, which include law enforcement, the courts, and correction agencies. Each institution has agencies at the local, state, and federal level, which each have their own jurisdictions.
Law Enforcement |
This is the branch of the criminal justice system which is the most visible to citizens, and as a result, typically receive the majority of public scrutiny. Law enforcement officers are responsible for the investigation of crimes, arresting suspects, and maintaining peace in their communities. Law enforcement agencies exist at the local, state, and federal level.
Examples of law enforcement officials include police officers, detectives, border patrol agents, forensic science technicians, and DEA agents. |
The Courts |
The courts are responsible for ensuring justice to all citizens. The court system includes judges, prosecution and defense lawyers, and juries.Some cases are tried in front of a judge, and some are in front of a jury. A judge hears the case from both the prosecution and the defense attorneys, and then decides whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. Some cases are tried in front of a jury of 12 citizens who determine the guilt or innocence of a defendant based on facts brought forth during the trial. The judge, or the jury, is also responsible for determining the punishment for the defendant if they are found guilty. Possible punishments include things such as fines or imprisonment.
|
Corrections |
Correction officers supervise convicted offenders when they are in jail or prison, or in the community while they are on probation or parole. Correction officers sometimes prepare pre-sentencing investigation reports, which provide judges with extensive background information which help the judges decide the appropriate sanction. Typically, the main difference between jails and prisons is the length of the inmates' incarceration period: jails house inmates that are going to be incarcerated for less than one year, and prisons hold inmates who have received a sentence longer than one year.
|
|
|
|
|
Multi-Modal Reflection Part 2 | |
File Size: | 113 kb |
File Type: | docx |