Criminal Justice System Structure - Research Paper Example

 Topic: “Criminal Justice System Criminal Justice System in a Glance: The criminal justice system in a country is a combination of all the law enforcement agencies that supports all the criminal justice functions. The criminal justice departments are comprised of several governing bodies such as law enforcement bodies, law courts, correctional institutions and other departments that are linked with criminal justice functions (Friedman, 1993). The main aim behind establishing a uniform criminal justice system is to mitigate crimes, to maintain social control and to provide justice to the victims of criminal activities. Criminal Justice System in America: The basic goal behind the establishment of a uniform criminal justice system in America was to maintain social control. The criminal justice system in America is comprised of different components that work together to maintain justice in the society. The main aim is to provide justice to criminals, victims of crimes and to bring law violators in a fair trial through upright and legitimate system (U.S Government, 1967). U.S criminal justice system is unique in its own way. According to this system, a person under trail remains innocent till the time he is proven guilty. As a result, criminals or offenders hold the right to defend themselves under fair and regular trial. U.S criminal justice system ensures that criminals receive justice without being abused or punished brutally. The History of the U.S Criminal Justice System: Criminal justice systems are implemented to ensure the protection of citizens. Religion and philosophers had established a great influence on the U.S criminal justice system during colonial American times. Ever since from its inception, the U.S criminal justice system has ensured that any person accused of an offense would receive a fair trial. With the passage of time, the U.S criminal justice laws have become more defined and standardized for the entire citizens. Today criminals in U.S receive more benefits and rights as compare to the early days of its inception. Basic Components of the Criminal Justice System: There are five main components of the U.S criminal justice system. These components play their significant role when local law enforcement bodies are failed to resolve the crime. These five components are: 1- Local Law Enforcement: Local law enforcement bodies constitute of police and other crime controlling authorities. Anyone who faces crime reports to these bodies. Police play an important role in providing initial justice to the victim. Police also play an effective role in dealing with low level crimes such as high speeding or trespassing. These low level crimes can be resolved directly by the involvement of the police (Walker, 1977). For severe offenses, the police precede the victims of the crimes and the offender to the court system for fair smooth trial. 2- Court Trial: Court trial is considered as the second important step after the criminal enters into the legal system. The police, the investigative bodies or the witnesses present the evidences, documents or other facts to the prosecutor. It depends on the prosecutor what to decide for the offender. If the violator is charged for his criminal actions then it is preceded by a court case. 3- Court Case: Court case is the most important component of the U.S criminal justice system. The case is brought before a judge in a court. If the offender is proven guilty and his offenses are minor then it depends on the judge what he decides for the offender. Sometimes the judge offers a small punishment and the case is over. However, if the offender is involved in a severe crime or if the offender pleads “not guilty” then the entire case is followed (Walker, 1980). 4- Trial and Role of Grand Jury: Grand jury also plays an important role in differentiating the guilty souls from the innocent. Grand jury hears from both sides and decides which party should be proven guilty or not guilty after analyzing and making their own observations. Grand jury does not have any involvement with any law enforcement body or any relation with the victim or the offender (Walker, 1980). 5- Decision and Punishment: After hearing the case, jury members then decide whether the offender is guilty or innocent. If the offender is proven guilty then the judge decides the punishment whereas in some cases, the jury also holds the right to decide the punishment which depends on the severity of the crime. However, it is a known fact that American Criminal Justice System holds a significant position in maintaining the social order and control without any discrimination and biasness. Different countries have different criminal justice functions and systems. In this paper, we have compared the criminal justice system of America with the criminal justice system followed in Canada and England and Wales. This comparative analysis enables a person to distinguish between the various criminal justice systems and functions implemented in different countries to develop a better understanding of how justice is granted to a victimized soul and how a guilty soul is punished for his misdemeanors. Comparison of U.S Criminal Justice System with Canadian Criminal Justice System: Canadian Criminal Justice System: The Canadian Criminal Justice System is designed in such a way that it ensures to provide safety and security to its citizens. The punishment on violating the laws or committing an offense depends on the severity of the crime committed. It may include fines, probation, and imprisonment or sometimes the offender is set to do community services. Even the Canadian Criminal Justice System grants the rights of holding legal representation to the offender which is followed by a fair trial. The criminal justice system in Canada is comprised of Youth Criminal Justice Act, The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom and the Corrections and Conditional Release Act along with other important parts of legislation (Schmolka). Important Elements of the Canadian Criminal Justice System: The Canadian criminal justice system is comprised of some of the important elements that are related with each other that ensure the safety and protection of the citizens from crimes and the violators. These components are: Police or law enforcement bodies Law Courts Correctional institutions Parole Each component is an integrated part of the Canadian Criminal Justice System which is governed by legislation. Each component holds its own role and responsibilities but each of them has the power to influence one another < http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/pblct/sb-go/03-eng.shtml>. Comparison of U.S Criminal Justice System with Criminal Justice System in England and Wales: Criminal Justice System in England and Wales: Criminal Justice System in England and Wales plays a significant role in maintaining and stabilizing the security conditions in the society. This system is considered as the most important mainstream public service which is committed to provide peace, security and justice to the citizens. Important Elements of the England and Wales Criminal Justice System: Criminal Justice System of England and Wales is comprised of five main elements. Such as: The Police The Crown Prosecution Service The Law Courts The National Offender Management Service Youth Justice Board The above mentioned five components are considered as the most important elements that constitutes the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales. Along with these elements, some other groups such as Victim Support group and the National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (Nacro) also play an important role within the criminal justice system Local Justice Boards also play a vital role as a strong supporting group that shares equal responsibilities and effectively co-ordinate with Criminal Justice System in providing justice and security to the citizens at local level. Criminal Justice System in England and Wales also shares a strong network with the mainstream agencies and the groups which provide justice and maintains peace at different in-home levels. These include: The Ministry of Justice, The Legal Services Commission, The National Offender Management Service, The Home Office, The Attorney General's Office The Serious Fraud Office and, The Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office The basic aim of CJS is to deliver justice to all the citizens without any discrimination and to help the person accused of a crime in getting the justice if proven innocent or to face the punishment, if proven guilty on his actions < http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/criminal_justice_system.htm> Conclusion: The main goal behind the implementation of a criminal justice system in a country is to provide justice to the guiltless, to mitigate the criminal activities, to safeguard the rights of innocent citizens and to punish the offenders for their unethical and immoral actions. The comparative analysis of CJS among the countries enables the authorities and the citizens to understand and improve their justice system, to overcome the loopholes and to establish a more flexible and flawless system. All the countries have one main purpose in common which is; to minimize crime rate, to provide justice to more offenses and to infuse confidence in people that they can seek justice through a fair system. The basic similarity among the CJS of all the three countries is to serve justice to their citizens without any discrimination. On the other hand, if we comparatively analyze the criminal justice system between Canada and America, it is evidently clear that both the countries share same economical, cultural and social system that is based on serving the citizen with equality and justice. Both countries share the common law system and their supreme law is based on their constitution. In both the countries the justice system was derived from their British rulers. While the criminal justice systems are common in both the countries which were stemmed by the European rulers, still both the systems differ from each other. The Canadian court system is comprised of various courts which differ from each other according to their legal superiority. However, jurisdiction is the key component that separates them. While some courts are operated under federal supervision the rest of the courts are either provincial or territorial. In Canada, the constitution grants the power to the federal courts to make decisions for the criminal cases while the provincial courts are authorized to deal with the civil cases. The US court system is however complicated in many ways. In America, state courts are not under the authority of federal courts. Selection of judges is however another key difference between the justice systems of both the countries. England shares many similarities in terms of cultural and governmental traditions. English law has its strong influence and deep impact on US law. However, the key differences between the criminal justice systems of both the countries make them unique in the world. In America, the US Supreme Court is a separate entity of government. It possess final jurisdiction on all the state and federal courts all over in America. This right of Supreme Court was granted in the year 1787 whereas on the other hand, British established their separate judicial entity in 2005. The United Kingdom’s court enjoys limited authority unlike US courts. In United Kingdom’s courts the jurors are selected randomly. On the other hand, in American courts the jurors are selected on the choice of attorneys from both the sides after a thorough analysis. In US courts, both the criminal and the civil cases are treated equally. Criminal cases in American justice system are given more priority according to the Constitution. However, in UK the criminal cases are dealt by less professional judges. Britain does not have a formal written constitution. Despite various differences and fewer similarities among the justice systems, all the three countries have one goal in common; to serve justice to their citizens on the basis of equality. List of References: The Criminal Justice System, Retrieved from http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/criminal_justice_system.htm on 20th April 2012 Correctional Service Canada (2010) Retrieved from http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/pblct/sb-go/03-eng.shtml on 20th April 2012 Schmolka, V. Principles to Guide Criminal Law Reform, Retrieved from http://www.justice.gc.ca/en/cons/roundtable/nov102/appendixb.html on 20th April 2012 on Department of Justice, Government of Canada. Friedman, M. L. (1993) Crime and Punishment in American History, Basic Books. New York, NY. President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice (1967). The Challenge of Crime in a Free Society. [Available Online ] Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/42.pdf on 20th April 2012, U.S. Government Printing Office Walker, S. (1977). A Critical History of Police Reform: The Emergence of Professionalism. Lexington, MT: Lexington Books. pp. 143 Walker, S. (1980), Popular Justice: A History of American Criminal Justice. Oxford University Press, Inc. New York, NY. Read More