Criminal Justice System and Incarceration

These flashcards focus on key vocabulary and concepts related to the criminal justice system, race, and incarceration as discussed in the lecture notes.

Crime

Any behavior, action, or omission that the State can prosecute and punish.

Criminalization

The process of making an action or behavior illegal.

Criminal Justice System (CJS)

The system of law enforcement involved in apprehending, prosecuting, defending, sentencing, and punishing those suspected or convicted of crimes.

Mass Incarceration

A term referring to a situation where a significant proportion of a certain population is imprisoned, particularly prevalent in the U.S.

Determinate Sentencing

A sentencing structure where jail or prison sentences cannot be reviewed or changed.

Truth in Sentencing

A policy that requires an individual to serve a substantial portion of their sentence before eligibility for release.

Mandatory Minimum

A statute establishing a minimum sentence that must be imposed for specific crimes.

3 Strikes Law

A law that increases the prison sentences of individuals convicted of a felony with two or more prior felony convictions.

Race as a Social Construct

The idea that racial categories are not biologically inherent but socially constructed classifications.

13th Amendment

An amendment that officially abolished slavery, except as punishment for crime.

Surveillance

A technique of governance to promote self-disciplined bodies through data collection and monitoring.

Panopticon

A design for a institutional building that allows an observer to watch all inmates without them knowing whether they are being watched.

Militarization of Police

The social process in which society organizes itself for the production of violence, often seen in the police force's use of military equipment.

Community Policing

A strategy that focuses on building relationships between police and community members to prevent crime.

Broken Windows Theory

A criminological theory suggesting that visible signs of disorder and neglect cause an increase in crime.

Get-Tough Policies

Stricter policing and sentencing practices aimed at deterring crime through harsher penalties.

Civic Exclusion

The stripping of rights from individuals, particularly those from marginalized communities, which affects their full participation in society.

Social Control

Mechanisms, strategies, and institutions employed by society to regulate individual behavior.

Racialization of Criminality

The process by which specific racial groups are associated with criminality, influencing policing and sentencing.

Neoliberalism

An economic and political model that emphasizes deregulation, privatization, and reductions in government spending.