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Criminal Justice Trends 1

RUNNING HEAD: Criminal Justice Trends











Criminal Justice Trends
Steven Griffiths
CJA394
Jeremy Barnett
University of Phoenix
21 APR 13






Criminal Justice Trends 2

The world is ever changing, and as such so is the criminal justice system, much like a creature
being described by Charles Darwin as evolving into something else, so is our criminal justice system. It is
not uncommon to see a system follow trends from one era to another in order to become better than it
once was.
The criminal justice system of today is the end result of numerous adjustments, and re-
evaluations of past policies and practices. At the end of the century, we entered a distinct era of law
enforcement and crime that has endured for a little more than 30 years. During the 1960s for reasons yet
to be identified the downward spiral the crime rates had been marking since the 30s screeched to a halt.
Reports of crime rose, more arrests were made by law enforcement officials, and cases prosecuted by the
state exploded, as did the amount of people in prison and jail. In the past (early 1920s) the biggest trend
in crime was robbery, be it bank, or corner store, and the trend of the time was to sentence the accused to
an immediate jail or prison sentence in hopes that would deter them from future involvements in crime
(Boba 2005). By the 80s serious crimes (including crimes of violence) being committed by youth was on
a very steady increased rate. This rate climb was fueled by the expanding cocaine market, and the newly
created market for crack (a cocaine derivative). Sentencing the youth offenders to a term in a juvenile
detention center was the norm for that era, much like the adult offenders of the 20s. What the system
didnt count on was the youth offenders developing a hate for law enforcement, as well as learning new
skills in the criminal world to put to use once they were released. The system was creating a better
criminal at the tax payers cost (James 2002). The reliance of jail or prison time peaked at all-time historic
highs. The biggest contributor to this trend was the big war on drugs where just say no and crack is
whack was born. With drug use at an all-time high, so was the drug trade. White collar crimes also
peaked in this era, since the revolution of computer based practices in businesses and corporations so was
the revolution of computer based crime, and the sudden over burden of techno thieves invading the
court system, with no idea on how to sentence them. In the future we cannot be certain as to what the
criminal justice system will attempt to endure through. Overcrowded jails and prisons, plague the system
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with accidental releases of murderers and rapists. Corrupt law enforcement officials lie and cheat the
system to their own beneficial gain, while turning a blind eye to crime. Rampant drug use and dealing on
every corner in every city, slowly making its way into your home or your childs school. Perhaps the
criminal justice system will be upended with the elimination of a prosecution or defense, and leave the
decision to the judge on the bench. Whatever the future holds for the criminal justice system, we will take
the good from the bad, and improve on it in an attempt to create a better system, that not only works for
the offender but for the greater good of society as well.
References
Boba, Rachel (2005). Crime Analysis and Crime Mapping. Sage Publications. pp. 56

James, Dorris J Profile of Jail Inmates, (2002). July 18, 2004. NCJ 201932. U.S. Bureau of Justice
Statistics

Segessenmann, Tanya Section 2 - International Comparisons of Recorded Violent Crime Rates for 2000
Research & Evaluation Unit,Ministry of Justice, Wellington, New Zealand. 11 June 2002 Retrieved 23
June 2007.

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