overview of criminal justice in canada (lec 1) Flashcards
what is crime? (3 definitions)
legal: behavior prohibited by criminal code
social: behavior that violates social norms
social-constructionist: behavior so defined by those that have
power to
What is Canada’s CJS Framework? What does it mean? What is the goal/purpose?
Adversarial system:
- 2 parties looking to win case
-trial heard by judge
-purpose: truth
Advantages and limitations of adversarial system
Pros: -division of actors + agencies
- evidence examined as much as possible
-promotes legitimacy of CJS
Cons: -need cooperation of parties
-lengthy trials
-sometimes exclusion of relevant evidence
What is substantive justice? Procedural justice?
substantive: accuracy of outcome
procedural: fairness of outcome
why is substantive and procedural justice important?
ensure decisions are fair, equal and non-discriminatory
no fair procedure=no fair trial
rule of law
clear legal rules rather than by arbitrary
personal wishes and desires
sense of orderliness, subjection to legal rules
and accountability to legal authority
Basic elements of law
Scope: equality
Character: public, easy to understand
Institution: fairness+justice
What is access to justice?
-individuals equal under the law
-treated without discrimination
What is the legitimacy of institutions? What happens without it? What do supporters of it believe?
agreement with efforts of institutions to control crime
without it: rule of law is questioned
supporters: have perceptions of fairness and equality from institutions
What rights does Due process model (Herbert Packer 1968) focus on? What does it look to prevent and ensure?
-rights of suspect
-preventing abuse of power
-ensure innocent not convicted
What is the goal of the Crime control model (Herbert Packer 1968)? How does it acheive that goal? What are the punishments associated?
-control/suppression of crime
-reduce crime by lengthy incarceration
-punishments: mandatory sentences, longer prison terms,
elimination of parole
Focus of medical(rehab) model? (King 1981) What stages of the does it system occur?
-rehabilitate convicted
-occurs at latter stages of the system
What is the concept of bureaucratic model? (King 1981)
-CJ constrained by limited resources + pressure to solve crimes
-defendants tried and sentenced efficiently as possible
What is the concept of punitive model of victims rights? with respect to what rights conflict (Roach 1999)
-rights of victims and potential victims conflict with rights of accused
-punitive: meaning inflicting or intended as punishment
Concept of the non-punitive model model of victims rights? (Roach 1999)
successful crime prevention thru:
-family+community building
-restorative justice
What are Ruth and Reitz’s Unified Goals (5 goals)
- reduce crime
- confront fear
- justice include: victim, potential victims + offender
- justice system: create+maintain faith in its legitimacy
- proportianate punishment
What is criminal justice in canadian society today? What are the 3 assumptions of the CJS? What must it take into account?
justice: fairness of criminal law system
Assumptions:
1. guilt, innocence + sentence determined fairly
- proportianate punishment
- similar cases treated similarly, vice versa
available evidence taken into account
Structure of CJS- Police. What are the 3 main levels of police, what do they focus on?
municipal: city police (ex. toronto police)
provincial: -jurisdictions outside municipal control (ex. OPP)
- 3 departments; Ontario, Quebec , Newfoundland
Federal: enforce laws created by parliament (ex. RCMP)
Structure of CJS- Courts. What are the 4 levels of court?
Provincial, Superior, Appeal, Supreme
What does each level of court mainly deal with?
Provincial: criminal cases
Superior: most serious criminal + civil cases
Appeal: -review of lower court decisions or proceedings by a higher court
-matters of federal law
-highest level in province/territory
Supreme: -civil law of Quebec + common law in canada
-greatest authority
Structure of CJS- Corrections. What are the 3 main branches of corrections? What kind of sentence does each one cater too?
province/territory: -sentences under 2 years
-non-custodial sentences (alts to prison)
federal: sentences of 2+ years
community: -determined/sentenced by government
-parole and probation
What is criminal procedure?
how CJ agencies operate
-during interrogation of suspects, gathering of evidence, and processing accused thru courts
what are the two trials in criminal procedure?
Pretrial and trial
What does each trial address?
Pretrial: -arrest
-initial appearance
-detention
-bail/custody
Trial: -first court appearance
-formal charge or preliminary inquiry
-trial
