“In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separates yet equally important groups: The police, who investigate crime, and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories” (Wikiquote, 2023). This of course is the opening line that begins the hit Television show law and order. Is the full story really be told on these shows, especially when it comes to the defendant. In these terms I am speaking of what makes them commit criminal offenses, where do they come from and how does the system in a sense work against them.
The first thing to realize in the criminal justice system is that it works against those who let’s say have a poor socio economic background. What I’m referring to in this case is a persons’ economic, educational and cultural background (Gruman, 2016. We all know that one of the reasons the U.S. is so diverse is because of the differences between all of us. Depending on how we are brought up may determine if we travel down the wrong path in terms of justice. If we have laxed parents or those that believed they are owed something they are not getting it can project on the children. They may think they have to take to get what they deserve. No money leads to boredom and survival which may also lead to crime. A lack of education in the same manner can lead to crime. What is needed here is help financially and putting programs in communities that can help members with employment and give them the necessary tools to improve their lives.
Every situation does not require a police presence as many other first responders can handle what is going on. To many times when the police arrive at an emergency, they antagonize and make things worse. Should they not be called at all? I would not agree with that however the overall situation needs to dictate when their presence is needed. You may not be aware but there are times when first responders are needed and are never called. The reason is people are “scared, fear the police and have a believe that they may be arrested” (Maslow, 2022). Once in the system things like high bail and minimum sentencing come into play. Many times, cash bail is needed to be released and this is simply not possible as the offender especially those from a minority group do not have the means. In the case of mandatory minimum sentences in most cases the person is going to jail whether they plead guilty or have a prosecutor that presses the issue. Of course, in many cases the offender is not rehabilitated and ends up speeding more time than is necessary for the crime.
I realize that we must have a judicial system otherwise there may be no law and order. It is a fact that people can’t police themselves. The system however can be improved to not work against those that come from poor socioeconomic conditions. Money and education seem to always be a fixer for situations like this. The more money we spend leads to the more we can educate communities. Although many are not rehabilitated while incarcerated, things can change and bringing educational programs is key to the rehabilitation.
References
Applied Social Psychology : Understanding and Addressing Social and Practical Problems, Pg. 374. Edited by Jamie A. Gruman, et al., SAGE Publications, Incorporated, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/pensu/detail.action?docID=5945490.
Maslow, J. (2022). “5 Biggest Problems with the Outdated Criminal Justice System”. Retrieved March 1, 2023 from: https://www.legalscoops.com/5-biggest-problems-with-the-outdated-criminal-justice-system/.
Wikiquote. (2023). “Law and Order”. Retrieved March 1, 2023 from: https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Law_%26_Order#:~:text=4%20External%20links-,Opening,These%20are%20their%20stories.
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