Criminal Justice Models

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Criminal Justice Models The three models of criminal justice that I will compare include the wedding cake, funnel, and the net models. However before any of the models take effect there are four decisions that have to be made before the criminal process can begin. Starting with the state legislatures and congress that are responsible for passing laws and determining what is a crime and what penalties that crime would have. Other decisions or actions that would have to be made before the crime process begins include: offenders committing crimes, victims deciding to report the crimes, and the police officers deciding on whether or not to arrest an offender (Samaha, 2005). The wedding cake model is layered in four different ways starting with the top layer which is the smallest portion. The cases in the top layer of the wedding cake model acquire a great deal of media attention because the crimes are remarkable, or the defendant is known as a famous person also known as the celebrated layer. In these types of cases usually cameras, and crowding take place that would not take place in other criminal cases. A recent example of the top layer of the wedding cake model include the criminal proceedings involving Casey Anthony, accused of murdering her daughter Caylee Anthony and the case of Conrad Murray found guilty in Michael Jackson’s Trial. The second layer consists of “high-profile” or serious felonies such as murder, rape, or burglary. In this layer the person who committed the crime usually has a criminal past such as a criminal history including serious injury to a person or the use of a weapon when the crime occurred. This layer of the wedding cake model uses the standard procedures of the criminal justice system as the cases are not considered as a celebrated case. However, cases in this second layer have a less likely chance of being released on bail.

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