Chapter 1-5: Introduction to the Criminal Justice System - Vocabulary Flashcards

Federal and State Court Systems

• The United States has different levels of courts: state court system vs. federal court system.

• The court of last resort on the federal side is the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS).

• Distinguish between criminal court vs. civil court in the U.S.; emphasis often on criminal court due to media attention.

• To win in criminal court, the standard is beyond a reasonable doubt, whereas in civil court, the standard is a preponderance of the evidence, meaning the jury must find that it is more likely than not that the claim is true. Aka 51%.

• In Civil cases, the person who is suing is known as the plaintiff

Three Main Components of the Criminal Justice System

• The system is typically described as having three core components:

  • Law enforcement

  • Courts

  • Corrections

• The term “corrections” refers to punishment and management of offenders, including prisons; distinctions are made between various lengths and types of sentences.

Crime: Focus Areas and Definitions

• The course will cover various crime types and topics, including:

  • Drugs and drug-related crime (drug use, distribution, and related activities)

  • Money laundering and other financial crimes

  • Fraud (e.g., legal deposition, white-collar crime)

  • Failing to render aid (duty to assist in certain situations)

  • Tax-related offenses (tax evasion, etc.)

• Criminology is the scientific study of why individuals engage in criminal activity.

• Three main components (to be elaborated in context; the lecturer will tie these to criminology and forensic psychology): forensic psychology as the merger of law and psychology within criminal justice; attention to the history and controversy surrounding psychopathy tests and personality assessments.

Forensic Psychology and Criminology

• Forensic psychology merges law, psychology, and the criminal justice system; often involves assessment of criminal behavior, risk, and personality types.

• Historical controversies around psychopathy tests and the interpretation of personality inventories in legal contexts.

• The field connects to the broader study of why people commit crimes and how psychological factors influence behavior and legal outcomes.

Differential Association Theory

• A key sociological theory to be discussed: Differential Association Theory.

• Proposed in the 1940s by Edwin Sutherland (often cited as 1945).

• Core idea: delinquent behavior is learned through interaction with others; exposure to definitions favorable to the violation of the law influences behavior.

• Practical relevance: used to analyze how peer groups, corporate environments, and other social settings contribute to criminal behavior (e.g., white-collar crime, corporate fraud).

Trial by Media and Public Perception

• Trial by media: the media may pronounce verdicts or shape public perception before the jury reaches a verdict.

• Media pundits and self-described legal experts can influence emotions and beliefs about cases, separate from the factual legal record.

• The public is taught in law school to remove emotional bias and focus on the facts and applicable law in case analyses.

• Celebrity cases attract the most media attention but represent less than 1% of all criminal justice cases. (ON TOP OF THE WEDDING CAKE)

• Public perception of crime is often distorted by sensational content from TV, movies, social media, and news outlets.

Crime Trends and Media Coverage

• Media narratives (sensationalism) compete for viewership with real crime statistics.

• Over the last ~30 years, overall crime rates in the United States have been trending downward.

• The 16–24-year-old age cohort is a critical predictor for crime trends; look at cohort size to gauge future crime rates.

• Historical peak: there was a significant rise in crime from the early 1950s through the 1970s, coinciding with the baby boomer generation aging into the 16–24 cohort.

The Wedding Cake Model of the Criminal Justice System

• The wedding cake model provides a layered view of cases:

  • Top layer: the most serious, most visible cases; small in number but receive the most attention.

  • Middle and bottom layers: less serious or less publicized cases; constitute the majority of cases.

• Important for distinguishing myths vs. reality; the most sensational representations (TV, movies) often reflect the top layer, not the bulk of cases.

Media Myths vs. Reality: Profiling and Forensics

• Myth: the criminal profile or a famous, dramatic profiler determines guilt in most cases.

• Reality: forensic psychology and real-world practice distinguish between roles; see the FBI’s own terminology:

  • Forensic psychologist vs. crime-scene investigator (forensic science).

  • “CSI effect”: popular media portrayals overestimate the certainty and speed of forensic evidence; jurors may expect dramatic forensic proof.

• In reality, most cases are not solved by glamorous forensic exploits; many rely on routine police work, reporting, and investigation. Most crimes are solved by POLICE OFFICERS WHO ARE FIRST TO RESPOND

• The CSI effect contributes to inflated expectations about forensic science among jurors and the public.

• The majority of index crimes are not solved; about 15–20% of index crimes are solved. This disparity can lead to misunderstanding of the legal process and its limitations, potentially impacting jury decisions and influencing the outcomes of trials.

• The detective’s work that gets on TV is only a fraction of the broader investigative process; everyday police work includes reporting, writing, and testifying.

• The show The First 48 is cited as highlighting that detectives solve only about 20% of index crimes; much of the outcome depends on witness cooperation, evidence, and case specifics.

Law and Procedure in Practice

• Law-and-order realities:

  • Very few cases go to trial: typically 5% or less of criminal cases reach trial. P(\text{go to trial}) \le 0.05.

  • Plea bargaining is common and represents a bargaining process to avoid trial; it often results in reduced punishment for guilty pleas.

  • All courtroom actors (defense, prosecution, judge) may favor plea deals as a practical reality of the system; this is sometimes described as a form of "assembly line justice" due to the sheer volume of cases.

• The defense seeks favorable terms (e.g., acquittal where possible), while the prosecution seeks conviction and efficiency; judges oversee fairness and admissibility.

• The public narrative of courtroom drama often diverges from the procedural realities of mass legal processing.

Practical Implications for Students and Professionals

• Students should separate emotion from the factual analysis of cases when studying law.

• Expectation management: understand that sensational media cases do not reflect the typical criminal justice process.

• Snapshot of practice: most law enforcement officers gain foundational experience first (e.g., 2–3 weeks) in arrest procedures, report writing, and courtroom testimony before specializing (e.g., detective work).

• The role of communication: clear report writing and credible testimony are crucial for successful case outcomes; they are often as important as on-screen action sequences.

Connections to Foundational Principles and Real-World Relevance

• The three components of the criminal justice system connect to broader principles of governance, due process, and public safety.

• The differential association theory links sociological context to individual behavior, illustrating how environment shapes criminal activity.

• The discourse around media influence illustrates the need for media literacy in legal education and public policy.

Ethical, Philosophical, and Practical Implications

• Ethical: ensuring that media narratives do not mislead juries or distort the public understanding of justice.

• Philosophical: balancing the ideal of fair, transparent trials with the practical constraints of case loads and resources.

• Practical: recognizing the limits of forensic science in real-world cases and avoiding overreliance on dramatic television portrayals.

Key Takeaways and Quick References

• Federal court hierarchy: U.S. Supreme Court is the court of last resort; separate from state court systems.

• Criminal justice system core components: law enforcement, courts, corrections.

• Major topics: drugs, money laundering, fraud, failing to render aid, taxes; criminology as the scientific study of why people commit crimes.

• Forensic psychology and CSI: distinguish roles and beware the CSI effect.

• Wedding cake model: top layer receives most attention; majority of cases are in lower layers.

• Trial likelihood: only a small fraction of cases go to trial (roughly 5% or less).

• Plea bargaining: a prevalent mechanism to resolve cases without trial; often benefits both sides in different ways; sometimes described as assembly line justice.

• Differential Association Theory (Sutherland, 1945): crime learned through social interaction.

• Important numerical touchpoints:

  • Celebrity cases share of total cases: P( ext{celebrity case}) < 0.01.

  • Solved index crimes: 0.15 \le P(\text{solved} \mid \text{index crime}) \le 0.20.

  • Trial probability: P(\text{go to trial}) \le 0.05.

• Real-world practice emphasizes grounded, routine work (report writing, testimony, baseline training) over dramatic courtroom fireworks.

• The CSI Effect: Crime dramas (e.g., Law & Order) create expectations that DNA testing and advanced crime-scene techniques are ubiquitous and mandatory for convictions; juries may demand stronger forensic evidence than is typical in real cases. Reality TV also demonstrates real-life aspects of the system but can misalign with typical cases.