PAD3893 - Chap 1: Criminal Justice Today

Crime is an action or activity that is

1. Punishable under criminal law, as determined by the majority or, in some instances, by a powerful minority. 2. Considered an offense against society as a whole and prosecuted by public officials, not by victims and their relatives or friends. 3. Punishable by sanctions based on laws that bring about the loss of personal freedom or life.

Homeland Security

A concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States and reduce the country's vulnerability to terrorism.

Justice Reinvestment

A corrections policy that promotes (a) a reduction in spending on prisons and jails and (b) reinvestment of the resulting savings in programs that decrease crime and reduce reoffending.

Capital Crime

A criminal act that makes the offender eligible to receive the death penalty.

Domestic Terrorism

Acts of terrorism that take place on U.S. soil without direct foreign involvement.

Crime

An act that violates criminal law and is punishable by criminal sanctions.

Evidence-based Practices

Approaches or strategies that have been extensively researched and shown consistently to produce the desired outcomes.

_____ involves physically contacting another person with the intent to do harm.

Battery

Public Order Crime

Behavior that has been labeled criminal because it is contrary to shared social values, customs, and norms.

Deviance

Behavior that is considered to go against the norms established by society.

According to the ______ model of criminal justice, the most politically powerful segments of society have the most influence on criminal laws and are therefore able to impose their values on the rest of the community.

Conflict

Belinda created a fraudulent online shopping website for footwear. To make purchases on the website, customers were required to pay by submitting their credit card details. Belinda misused these details and did not deliver any products to customers. In this scenario, which crime did Belinda commit?

Cyber crime

List the essential elements of the corrections system.

Depending on the seriousness of the crime and their individual needs, offenders are placed on probation, incarcerated, or transferred to community-based correctional facilities.

_____ is behavior that is considered to go against the norms established by society.

Deviance

_____ is defined as acts of terrorism that take place on U.S. soil without direct foreign involvement.

Domestic terrorism

Identify one common misperception concerning domestic terrorism

Domestic terrorism, despite a common public perception, does not include only extremist acts by radical Muslims in the United States.

Which of the following is true of the formal criminal justice process?

Each step of the formal criminal justice process involves a series of "routinized operations."

Which statement best describes the role that ethics play in a criminal justice professional's discretionary decision making?

Ethics is an important factor of discretion but must be balanced against the demands of the formal criminal justice system process.

Which of the following is most likely a pitfall of discretion in informal decision making?

Individual judgment is tainted by personal bias.

Which of the following is true of the crime control model?

It places primary emphasis on the right of society to be protected from crime and violent criminals.

Identify a true statement about the due process model.

It rests on the belief that it is more desirable for society that 99 guilty suspects go free than that a single innocent person be condemned.

Genelia walks into a jewelry store. She hides a pair of earrings in her pocket and walks out of the store without paying for them. In this scenario, which criminal offense did Genelia commit?

Larceny

Outline the three levels of law enforcement.

Local, State, and Federal Law Enforcement

Biometrics

Methods to identify a person based on unique physical characteristics, such as fingerprints or facial configuration.

describe the role that ethics plays in discretionary decision making

Most criminal justice professionals have a great deal of discretionary leeway in their day-to-day decision making, and their ethical beliefs can help ensure that they make such decisions in keeping with society's established values.

White-Collar Crime

Nonviolent crimes committed by business entities or individuals to gain a personal or business advantage.

Which of the following is true of parole?

Parolees must conform to certain conditions of freedom.

Morals

Principles of right and wrong behavior, as practiced by individuals or by society.

Public drunkenness, illegal gambling, and prostitution are categorized as ______ crimes.

Public Order

Discretion

The ability of individuals in the criminal justice system to make operational decisions based on personal judgment instead of formal rules or official information.

Burglary

The act of breaking into or entering a structure (such as a home or office) without permission for the purpose of committing a felony.

Recidivism

The act of committing a new crime after having been punished for a previous crime by being convicted and sent to jail or prison.

Battery

The act of physically contacting another person with the intent to do harm, even if the resulting injury is insubstantial.

Robbery

The act of taking property from another person through force, threat of force, or intimidation.

Larceny

The act of taking property from another person without the use of force with the intent of keeping that property.

Civil Liberties

The basic rights and freedoms for American citizens guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, particularly in the Bill of Rights.

____________ holds that criminal law is shaped by the shared norms and values of a society, and is designed to prevent behavior that is unacceptable to most members of that society.

The consensus model

Which statement is true of local law enforcement?

The duties of local law enforcement agencies are split between counties and municipalities.

Criminal Justice System

The interlocking network of law enforcement agencies, courts, and corrections institutions designed to enforce criminal laws and protect society from criminal behavior.

Formal Criminal Justice Process

The model of the criminal justice process in which participants follow formal rules to create a smoothly functioning disposition of cases from arrest to punishment.

Ethics

The moral principles that govern a person's perception of right and wrong.

Justice

The quality of fairness that must exist in the processes designed to determine whether individuals are guilty of criminal wrongdoing.

Murder

The unlawful killing of one human being by another.

Terrorism

The use or threat of violence to achieve political objectives.

Identify a true statement about jails.

They hold those convicted of minor crimes with relatively short sentences.

Why did the framers of the U.S. Constitution choose federalism as America's form of government?

They were fearful of tyranny and a too-powerful central government.

The moral principles that govern a person's perception of right and wrong are called ethics.

True

The consensus model of criminal justice assumes that:

a diverse group of people can have similar morals.

Offenders placed on probation are:

allowed to return to the community and remain under supervision.

A person who willfully and maliciously burns down a home would most likely be arrested for _____.

arson

When state criminal law and federal criminal law are incompatible, federal law enforcement agents are _____________________.

authorized, though not required, to disregard state criminal laws while enforcing the contradictory federal criminal statutes

Methods to identify a person based on unique physical characteristics, such as fingerprints or facial configuration, are collectively called ______ .

biometrics

A criminal act that makes an offender eligible to receive the death penalty is called a _____.

capital crime

The criminal justice model that places primary emphasis on the right of society to be protected from crime and violent criminals is the ________ model.

crime control

Brian, a police officer, encounters two teens who are out after the city's curfew. He could send them home by themselves, escort them home, or take them to the precinct and call their families to come pick them up. Exercising his ______ , he decides to escort them home and chat briefly with their families about the curfew.

discretion

Even if a prosecutor believes that a suspect is guilty, she or he may decide not to bring charges against the suspect if the case is weak or the police erred during the investigative process. This shows that the prosecutor is allowed to exercise her or his _____.

discretion

The United States has a _____ court system, which in practice translates into 52 different court systems.

dual

The Department of Homeland Security is a part of the _____ of law enforcement.

federal level

The form of government in which a written constitution provides for a division of powers between a central government and several regional governments is ______ .

federalism

The power-sharing system of government adopted by the United States, in which individual states have the ability to adopt laws not necessarily favored by the majority of Americans, is called ________.

federalism

The quality of fairness that must characterize the processes designed to determine whether individuals are guilty of criminal wrongdoing is called ______ .

justice

Valerie has been arrested for shoplifting, which is a form of ______.

larceny

Prostitution is an example of a _____.

public order crime

Unlike the consensus model, the conflict model of criminal justice argues that:

the criminality of an act is determined by whichever group happens to hold power at any given time.

Ethics is defined as:

the moral principles that govern a person's perception of right and wrong.

A bank teller stealing funds from a bank is involved in a(n) _____.

white-collar crime

Conflict Model

A criminal justice model in which the content of criminal law is determined by the groups that hold economic, political, and social power in a community.

Consensus Model

A criminal justice model in which the majority of citizens in a society share the same values and beliefs.

Due Process Model

A criminal justice model that places primacy on the right of the individual to be protected from the power of the government.

Crime Control Model

A criminal justice model that places primary emphasis on the right of society to be protected from crime and violent criminals.

Federalism

A form of government in which a written constitution provides for a division of powers between a central government and several regional governments.

Informal Criminal Justice Process

A model of the criminal justice system that recognizes the informal authority exercised by individuals at each step of the criminal justice process.

System

A set of interacting parts that, when functioning properly, achieve a desired result.

Assault

A threat or an attempt to do violence to another person that causes that person to fear immediate physical harm.

In general, federal law enforcement officers are responsible for the "nuts and bolts" of law enforcement work.

False

_____ is a form of government in which a written constitution provides for a division of powers between a central government and several regional governments.

Federalism

Sexual Assault

Forced or coerced sexual intercourse (or other sexual acts).