Criminal Justice Today - Essay Example

Two most common models of how society determines which acts are criminal The two most common models used by the society in determining which acts are criminal are the consensus model and the conflict model. The consensus model holds that each of the component parts of the criminal justice system works towards a common goal and that the movement of people and cases through the system is good due to corporation between different components of the system. From these, the society is able to establish what actions are criminal in nature.

The conflict model on the other hand, holds that the interest of the criminal justice agencies strives towards making actors within the system serving them. This is a good model used by the society for determining which acts constitute a crime (Schmalleger, 2011). The government structure as it applies to the criminal justice system. The government structure consists of the legislative, executive and judicial system. The legislative arm makes the laws which are applied by the judiciary in administering the criminal justice to the people. . Sociological theory holds that the society is the one to blame for criminal acts witnessed in the world today.

Physiological theory, on the other hand, holds that the personality of an individual is what leads him or her to commit a crime. Psychobiological holds that crime is a result of an individual’s DNA and trauma to the brain. Social-psychological, on the other hand, believes that a person’s way of life and lack of direction are what lead them to criminal like activities, while biological theory holds that an individual commits crime due the evolutionary stages that he or she passes through (Schmalleger, 2011).

The components of the criminal justice system and the criminal justice process The criminal justice system consists of three main components: the police, criminal courts and the correction agencies. These criminal justice systems are established mainly because crimes have no boundary. As such, the government makes laws and the police are meant to enforce these laws, apprehend offenders and investigate crimes. Criminal courts, on the other hand, conduct trials, ensuring due process in the administration of justice by determining the innocence or guilt of the accused person.

The main reason why criminal courts trials were designed was to aid in reviewing of all evidence before the accused person can be declared guilty or innocent. The work of the correctional agencies is to carry out the rulings given by the courts, reforms, rehabilitate and reintegrate the convicted criminals back into the society (Schmalleger, 2011). The three components are supposed to work in unison as they abate criminal activities and maintain normality in the society and the world at large.

It is noted that each of