Intro to Criminal Justice

Quiz #1

Three most common ways we measure crime

1. UCR/NIBRS
2. The National Crime Victimization Survey
3. Offender self-report surveys

UCR

In 1930 congress authorized the FBI to collect crime data.

Today approximately 16,800 law enforcement agencies provide information to the FBI The original program only included 7 crimes (part 1 offenses), Arson was added in 1979

NIBRS

In 1988 the FBI started to develop the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)

-

NIBRS was a significant redesign of the original UCR Program NIBRS collects more data than the traditional UCR program, including damaged/stolen, personal characteristics of the offender and victim

\

UCR vs NIBRS

The UCR consists of only total crime counts, the NIBRS consists of offense categories and additional details about the victim, offender and property involved.
The UCR records only one offense per incident, determined by the hierarchy rules and NIBRS records every offense.
UCR makes no distinction between attempted and completed crimes and the NIBRS distinguishes between attempted and completed crimes

The national

crime victimization survey

* Started in 1972 in part as an effort to uncover the dark figures of crime
* Crimes not reported to the police and unknown to official statistics 
* Data is gathered by Bureau of Justice Statistics 
* NCVS is based on victim self-reports 
* Early data showed that all types of crimes were more prevalent than UCR statistics based on victim self-reports
* Early data showered that all types of crimes were more prevalent than UCR statistics indicated 
* Involves surveys of nationally representative sample of households, households surveys twice a year for three years 
* Collects data on crimes against individuals and households

Offender self-report surveys 

* Asked subjects about past and current criminal activity 
* Usually administered in group settings and done anonymously 
* Typically focus on juvenile delinquency and youth crime 
* Measures crime that isn’t reported to the police and doesn't show up in victim surveys
* Accuracy? It may be unreasonable expect people to admit illegal acts, some may forget or exaggerate or may be confused about illegal acts

The three components of the criminal justice system

Law Enforcement, Courts, Corrections

Law Enforcement

* Investigation 
* Start of the CJ process 
* Arrest 
* Taking a person into custody 
* Miranda vs Arizona: Miranda Warning 
* Booking 
* Administrative procedure following arrest 

\n \n \n

Courts

* First appearance 
* Opportunity for bail 
* Preliminary hearing 
* Established probable cause 
* Information or Indictment (charging)
* Arraignment 
* Enter a plea 
* 6th Amendment rights 
* Trials governed by procedural law 
* Sentencing 

\n

Corrections

* Starts aftering sentencing 
* Offenders classified to confinement facilities 
* Reentry 
* Community service 
* Probation or parole supervision

Types of Laws

Procedural law

Civil law

Administrative law

Case laws

Statutory Law 

Substantive Law  

* The part of the law that defines crimes and specifies punishments

Procedural law

* Specifics the methods used in enforcing substance law 
* Must balance a suspect’s rights against the state’s interest in speedy and efficient processing of defendants

Civil law

* Governs relationship between people, businesses, government agencies 
* Includes contract rules, divorces, child support, custody, wills, etc. 
* Not considered crimes
* Civil suits typically seek compensation, not punishment 
* It may be a contract violation or tort 
* Plaintiff seeks relief 
* Defendant is whom relief is sought

Administrative law

* Body of regulations government create to control activities of industries, business, individuals 
* Includes tax laws, health codes, vehicle right ups 
* Most breaches of administrative law are not crimes but criminal and administrative regulations may overlap 

Case laws

* Laws of precedence, comes from judicial decisions 
* Precedent 
* Legal principle that ensures that previous decisions remain upheld 
* Stare decisis 
* A legal principle that requires previous decisions be used to guide future deliberations

Categories of crime

* Felonies


* Misdemeanors
* Infractions/Violations
* Inchoate Offenses

Felonies

* A criminal offense punishable by death or incarceration for at least one year - -


* Serious crimes such as murder, rape, assault, burglary

Misdemeanors

* Offense punishable by up to one year of incarceration 
* Relatively minor crimes such as petty theft, simple assault, disorderly conduct

Infractions/Violations

* A minor violation of a state statute of local ordinance, punishable by a fine or other penalty, may receive a very short term in jail 
* Normally ticketed and released 
* Noise ordinance is an example 

Inchoate Offenses

* An incomplete offense that has not been carried out
* Includes conspiracies and attempts to commit a crime

Criminological theories

* There is no single cause of crime, it is rooted in a diversity of causes and takes a variety of forms.


* What is a theory
* A set of interrelated ideas that attempt to describe, explain, predict and ultimate control some class of events
* Theories are models that can be tested utilizing a hypothesis
* A good theory fits the facts and stands up to scrutiny

\

Crime rate over the last 20 years

Decline

Three elements of a crime

* The criminal act (actus reus)
* The “guilty act”

* A person must commit a voluntary act for it to be considered a crime


* To be something is not a crime; to do something may be a crime 
* An offense or failure to act can be a crime 
* Threatening to act can be a crime
* Conspiracy can be a crime even if the planned crime does not occur 
* A guilty mind (Mens Rea)
* The defendant’s mental state at the time of the crime 
* Four main types/levels of mens rea

Why do we have laws?

* Laws maintain order in society 
* Laws regulate human interaction 
* Laws enforce moral beliefs 
* Laws define the economic environment 
* Laws enhance predictability
* Laws promote orderly social change 
* Laws sustain individual rights
* Laws redress wrong 
* Laws identify wrong doers 
* Laws mandate punishment and retribution

Criminal Defenses

* Defense 
* Evidence and arguments offered by the defendant to show why they should not be held liable for a criminal charge 
* Four categories of defenses 
* Alibi - the only one that does not admit to commiting a crime
* Justification 
* Excuse 
* Procedural defenses