Criminal Justice Models Cjs/220

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Criminal Justice Models Paper Lisa Waldschmidt CJS/220 January 12, 2012 Amy Griner Criminal Justice Models Paper The criminal justice process is a very difficult process and is different from state to state. There are three models which are used to describe the criminal justice process. These models are known as the wedding cake, funnel, and the net models each model shows the three makings of the criminal justice system which are the police who arrest and accuse you, the courts who decide your guilt, and the corrections who carry out your punishment. The first model would be the wedding cake; this is a basic model that shows how cases are organized into layers. The cases are layered with the most serious on top and less serious on the bottom. The top of the wedding cakes are the famous cases that have much publicity. An example of the top layer could be the criminal proceedings of the Casey Anthony case. The second layer involves serious felonies. This layer has a less likely chance of getting released on bond. The third layer has lesser felony type cases and last the bottom of the cake which has misdemeanor cases (Copyright 2003). The second model would be the funnel model; this model shows how decisions are made in each level of the criminal justice process. It categorizes people and cases as to which should go to court and which should not. There is a misunderstanding of the funnel process. People tend to believe it let lets the criminal off without punishment. This is so not the case. Most cases are thrown out or a plea bargain is reached because of the lack of evidence (Copyright 2003). The third model is the net model; this model helps with understanding why some crimes do not make it to court. It reminds us of a net with features that allow some criminals to go free while others with the same crime struggle for their freedom but they only tangle

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