Criminal Justice System Paper

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Criminal Justice System Paper Your Name CJA/204 April 6, 2014 Rudy Pichardo Criminal Justice System Paper When I think about the criminal justice system I think about corruption, the falsely accused, inmates who aren’t given the proper sentence, and how awful it is for the people. In this paper I’m hoping to give a better understanding of the criminal justice system by identifying the goals of the criminal justice system, describing the components and the criminal process of the criminal justice system and some of the other components in the system. The criminal justice system is built on a few important principles; Presumption of innocence, due process, independent judiciary, openness and accessibility of court and equality before law. (Merriam Webster: An Encyclopedia Britannica Company, 2014) defines crime as an illegal act for which someone can be punished by the government. Meaning, if you break the law of which has been given you will be punished. The relationship is simple, most laws are created based on crimes that are or have been committed. Because society evolves and changes there will always be new laws created based on the fact that new crimes are committed daily. The consensus and conflict model are the two most common models of how society determines which act s are criminal. The consensus model defines criminal behavior as acts that conflict with the values and beliefs of society as a whole. The conflict model is the content of criminal law determined by the groups that hold political, economic and social power in a community. Police departments, courts and corrections on a federal, state and local level are all part of the structure of the government. The main responsibility of any police department agency is to enforce laws, provide service to the people and keep order. To protect and serve is their motto. The courts are where those
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