Part 1 Flashcards
3 main pillars of criminal justice
- corrections
- courts
- police
define Canadian justice system
- system of actors and agencies
- prevention of crime
- response to crime
- justice is served and respect to offenders and victims
- definitions are subjective because every person’s reality is different
purpose of the CCJS
- prevent crimes
- respond to crimes
- ensure safety and protection
define crime
- an act or omission that is prohibited by criminal law
- made up of 2 parts:
1. actus reas
2. mens rea - the defintion of crime can change
actus reas
commission of an act
mens rea
mental intent to commit the act
constructionist perspective (berger and luckmann)
- our social world is constantly being constructed and interpreted
- all meaning and societal norms are social created
- importance of context
- the role of power of well established in the criminal justice system
social construction of crime and deviance
- this is a process by which same behaviour may be considered criminal in one society and an act of honour in another society or in the same society at a different time
- importance of social responses
thinking critically about the CCJS
- the criminal justice system is a reflection of a dynamic, changing society
- there are different definitions of justice and whats wrong between people
- we are led to believe that over time the CCJS is changing alongside society
deviance
not adhering to social norms but not breaking the law
value consensus model
- crime and punishments are imposed and reflect our limited tolerance
- reflects the values of our society
- this can be problematic because the values of society can be subjective and can change
conflict model
- reflections of those in power and their effect of laws
- political and economic systems in place that dictate law and criminal law
- conflict theorists see the rich and privileged as having an advantage in influencing law reform and in what happens to persons who become involved in the criminal justice system
criminal law
- the body of law that deals with conduct deemed harmful to society, prohibited by statute, and punished by the government
- stream of public law
- 2 primary sources:
1. legislation
2. judicial decisions
substantive law
law that sets out the rights and obligations of each person in society; includes the Criminal Code
procedural law
the legal processes that protect and enforce the rights set out in substantive law
common law
law that is based on customs, tradition and practice and is generally unwritten
precedent
- judicial decisions that may be a standard in similar cases thereafter
- judges and courts have a lot of discretion
rule of law
- requirement that the government and all individuals subjected to and must abide by the law
- white collar crime does not necessarily follow rule of law
stare decisis
principle by which the higher courts set precedents that the lower courts must follow
statute law
written laws that have been enacted by a legislative body such as the Parliament of Canada
case law
law that is established by previous court decisons and is based upon the rule of precedent
2 main legislations of the CCJS
- to protect (canadian charter of rights and freedoms)
- to punish (the criminal code of canada)
the flow of CCJS
- police → courts → corrections
- realistically not that seamless due to systemic issues
roles at the federal level
- determines what is a criminal offence
- responsible for the criminal code
role at the provincial/territorial level
- administers the justice system
- responsible for law enforcement
justice
- quality of fairness
- equitable outcomes
- open to interpretations
- abstract
law
- set of formal rules
- establishes orders
- concrete
purpose of the CCJS
- prevent and respond
- access to justice
- uphold rights of victims and offenders
- safety and security
the adversarial system
- both the prosecution and defence get to present their cases as a way to determine guilt or innocence
- our current system in Canada
- involve crime control, due process, burden of proof
the flow of adversarial system
presumption of innocence → burden of proof → innocent or guilty
crime control
protection of community and apprehension of offenders are paramount
due process
legal rights of all members of society held in high regard
the frameworks of criminal justice
- retributive justice
- restorative justice
- transformative justice
retributive justice
- less concerned with mending to community and alternative forms of justice
- there is a crime, and there is an offender and a punishment must be determined
- punishment focussed
restorative justice
- problem solving approach/response to crime
- responding to offenders based on the principle that criminal behavior injures victims, communities and offenders
- all parties come together to devise a solution to the problem
- mediation
transformative justice
- looking at systems at work before the outcomes of offenders
- focussed on healing and crime prevention through root causes of crime
measuring crime
- uniform crime reporting survey
- crime severity index
- general social survey (GSS)
dynamics and values of the CCJS
- discretion
- ethics
- task environment
- accountability
discretion
the power or right to decide or act according to one’s own judgment
task environment
cultural, geographic and community setting in which the criminal justice system operates and justice personnel make decisions
ethics
foundation of knowledge that describes right/wrong or better/worse and applies to harm/care and fairness/reciprocity
accountability
- officials must adhere to the rule of law and the law generally
- CCJS personnel may be subject to criminal or civil prosecution as well as internal and external review bodies
ethical standards
- integrity
- impartiality
- objectivity
- duty to follow the law
- appropriate personal conduct
