CJS Flashcards
The criminal Justice System consists of 3 principal components?
police, courts & corrections
Two types of Justice:
social, criminal
Describe Social Justice
Focuses on how society should be organized so that justice can be served, is a form of distributive justice
Describe Criminal Justice
Focuses on how society should respond, is a form of corrective justice
Define Crime
An act that violates criminal law and is punishable
Define Deviance
Behavior that departs from social norms and that is not always subject to formal social sanction
How do we measure crime?
UCR (uniform crime reporting)
What is a “Dark figure of crime”?
crimes that have occurred but not have been reported, this is a limitation to the UCR
What is the “Hierarchy rule”?
This is when a criminal incident has caused multiple serious crimes, but for statistical purposes only the most serious crime is counted
issues with the Hierarchy rule?
- deflates crime rate
- less serious crimes are not counted
- increased violent crimes
benefits of victimization survey
- provides a greater understanding of the nature of crime
- useful in identifying categories of people most at risk
limitations of the victimization survey
- not all crimes are captured
- depends on memory, honesty
benefits of Self report studies
-the people who broke the law know the most about the crime that has been committed
limitations of self report studies
-respondants tend to report minor infractions and downplay more serious infractions
What is telescoping?
Recalling events being sooner than it was in reality
How to Calculate crime rate?
divide the number of crimes by the population, then multiply by 100,000
what is meant by the term “if it bleeds, it leads”?
This term means that more violent serious crimes are more likely to be leading media stories rather then less serious crimes
Who proposed the crime control model & the due process model?
Herbert Packer
Goals of the crime control model?
- deter crime
- incapacitate criminals
- protect citizens
Goals of the Due Process model?
- protect individuals from the unbridled powers of the state
- enhance and ensure the legal rights of all accused persons
- promote fairness and equality
- limit bias and discretion
What are the two most important pieces of Canadian Legislation?
The Canadian Criminal code, and the Charter of rights and freedoms
What is substantive Law?
Defines criminal acts and the legal elements that must be present for conviction. Part of the CCC
Explain the difference between specific deterrence and general deterrance
specific deterrence is focused on deterring the offender of a crime from committing future crimes, while general deterrence focuses on deterring the general public from committing crimes
Define Denunciation
A formal expression that a crime is unacceptable
Define Retribution
punishment for transgressions, you will be punished for an act of crime that you have committed
Explain the difference between policing, and the police
policing is the act of maintaining and reproducing social order, while the police are individuals given the right by state to use force to maintain this order
Who established the “Bow street runners” also known as the thief takers
Henry Fielding
What are the 3 different jurisdictional levels?
Federal, provincial, and municipal
What is community policing?
the act of allocating certain police officers to certain areas so they become familiar with the inhabitants
What does Section 26 of the criminal code talk about?
everyone who is authorized by law to use force is criminally responsible for any excess force
What are the two models of policing?
Traditional, and community policing
Describe the traditional model
- crime is the excusive domain of the police
- police rely on motorized patrol, and technology driven strategies
- police form a “thin blue line” against crime
Describe the community policing model
- police form a coalition with the public against crime
- police rely on a variety of different strategies
- police form a “broad blue line” against crime
what are the two main limitations of the UCR
“the dark figure of crime”, and the “hierarchy rule”
Define procedural justice
The interaction and treatment by the police is more important than the outcome
Define Carding
refers to the police practice of recording highly detailed information derived from citizens in primarily non-criminal encounters
MMS is an example of which CJS model?
crime control model
Explain the Consensus perspective
Criminal laws represent a consensus within a society about what acts should be prohibited
Explain the Conflict perspective
Rejects the idea that laws reflect a consensus in society, believe that laws are the result of political processes
What are the 4 main police functions
Community control, criminal investigation & prosecution, order maintenance and social service
What does the term “window dressing” refer to?
term created to portray the police as more socially interactive
