The Pros And Cons Of The Criminal Justice System
To live in a world where there are rules, and controls can be beneficial. Many people could argue about the strictness, or amount of required discipline within a society, but there aren't many arguments to live unsafely in general.Many people live in fear and always worried about what could happen, or what if. Everyone wants to feel safe and to be able to sleep at night knowing there are people responsible for protecting you. Whether it’s police department, to the United States army, it is always good to know people are fighting to protect you. The Criminal Justice System will always be a part of U.S. society, however its major flaws can weigh out the good it is trying to bring. The criminal justice system,is something people rely on and
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is a huge part of our society. Still there are many disagreements in how the criminal justice system really works. Dating back to colonial times, when citizens were under British rule and law, our system has been very relevant in people's lives leading up until today (History). Until the early part of the twentieth century, the American criminal justice system had slowly come together start the inclusion of courts, a more professional policy, and more prisons at a federal and state level (A.E.). As this system has grown and developed it has also started to fall apart. There are many representatives of the criminal justice system in everyday life, such as lawyers, police forces, judges, etc. But in every single department their seems to be repeating issue. Weather discrimination, bias decisions and just plain injustice, the system has become something the colonist wouldn't have expected.
Since 2007, Marvel Studios has produced 18 films, collectively making over $14.8 billion at the global box office, “making it the highest-grossing film franchise of all time” (Goldman) . People love and cherish these stories of villains and heroes, and get to leave the theater with this “bad guys never win” feeling. And yes, when someone does something wrong it is great to know they can’t get away with it, but in movies the villans and the monsters, are defeated, or trapped or killed, so what do we do in real life with our real bad guys? Those “bad guys” are called criminals and are regularly occurring in society. In any civilization the goal is to be happy, healthy and safe. The safety aspect is mainly the spark to this villian and hero stereotype. The difference between these heros and villans is that they aren't real! This is real life and in real life you don't just get to kill off the bad guys. One of the biggest issues that seems to occur is this thought of a bad guy could become good. Once people are incriminated there is a permanent record. Maybe for something big, maybe for one silly mistake, but this record can prevent many people from finding homes, getting jobs, and supporting their families. Yes, people who kill and purposefully try to put harm in to society and should be punished. But for those with crimes not nearly as bad, as soon as people hear or see the word “jail” there is an automatic judgement on you. You could have been arrested at age 14 for an accessory to some crime you didn't even know was happening, and as your life has nearly started, you have been defined as a bad guy. There are many crimes that go on throughout life, and some happen without you or anyone knowing, but if you were to get caught the penalties and punishments can flip your life upside down.
So after this whole process of the decision and incrimination you begin to think, how you will be living you life, for however long, in jail? The facilities, the food, the health care, the sanitation, where does all of this money come? The answer is society, meaning you. There are taxes set in place to bring money in for the housing and feeding of criminals. Some people have even taken advantage of the justice system and personally decides to incriminate themselves with the hope for a shelter and food and a place to sleep. Jail might seem like the worst punishment in the world for some people, but for many Americans without a safe civilization, food, and a roof to live under, this is often their only option.
Other than economic issues, there seems to be more than just that wrong with this system. One of the biggest issues within the system, is false incrimination within America. Researchers found that “149 people were cleared in 2015 for crimes they didn’t commit” which was more than any year in history (Ferner). The amount of people who are found innocent is one of the biggest flaws that draws attention to the decision of judges on cases. How did judges come so fast to a decision to put them away or even kill them when years later they were found not guilty? Who did they believe? Trust is one of the biggest issues throughout the justice system. To figure out who is telling the truth or who is lying, isn’t easy. But for cases when the word “not guilty” is almost in your face for someone who is wrongly convicted it is hard to know if the judges are even trustworthy.
When a person is falsely incarcerated, they lose many years, valuable moments and memories of their lives. Especially in cases where someone took the blame for something they didn't admit to do, it is heartbreaking to give up that much of your life. When someone is found innocent, after being wrongly accused, they are given a specific amount of money. There's a common saying within the justice system which is “innocent until proven guilty”, but there are many cases within American history where it is the exact opposite. The United States, leading the world's largest incarceration of its citizens, and has about “2 million people behind bars”. With a wrongfully convicted rate of 1 percent it would translate to 20,000 people punished for crimes they didn't commit. (Ferner)
In Fayetteville, North Carolina a man named Henry Mccollum spent 30 years of his life incarcerated on death row. After his 30 years wasted, he was complicated $750,000 in 2015, which wasn’t nearly enough for how much time he lost. After seven months, Steven was broke. He was intellectually disabled, and having been in jail his changes of jobs had decreased insanely. He ended up owing $130,000 on $65,000 original loans. Steven has spent his life depressed and with the feeling he doesn't belong. This is one of the thousands of stories of falsely incarcerated people (Neff). How can you put a value on time lost?
So if you are in this situation, what does happen to you?
Who decides the rest of your life? What if this was a mistake, what if you didn't mean for this to happen? What if you want forgiveness and could work on these issues? What if you never got a chance to learn from your mistakes. Since you were a child your parents would put you in time-outs, grounded you, and took away your toys or free time and many other punishments. After watching Adam Foss’s Ted Talk something interesting I found was how this prosecutor was able to work with a criminal. The base of the story was that instead of throwing these people in a cell, you could work with them to still find that good in them and to not be defined by one mistake. You could make one little mistake or decision that could not only ruin you life but your mental physical and social abilities. 1 in 4 jail inmates leave jail facilities with a mental disability that had occured during their time their (Board). Mental effects such as “overcrowding, various forms of violence, enforced solitude or conversely, lack of privacy, lack of meaningful activity, isolation from social networks, insecurity about future prospects,” and many more have become a result due to incrimination. 1 in 4 jail inmates leave jail facilities with a mental disability that had occured during their time their (Board). These terrible conditions and effects is something that people have gotten used to and even expected. It is shocking to think that people are being punished, tortured and tormented every single day of their
lives.
There are many people out there who believe the death penalty is too harsh for anyone. There are people out there that believe something so simple as a robber could lead to death. It's mostly a 50/50 subject, and be very sensitive for some people. But the biggest issue is deciding which half of an opinion is the “right one”. The death penalty has not been a constant in American history. It has had major reforms and changes with public favor in mind. It has undergone numerous changes and reforms in the past two centuries, falling in and out of public favor. After the American Revolution, legislators decided to remove the death penalty as a punishment for many specific crimes (Gale). The death penalty is an extreme punishment for criminals that has become outdated, although 31 it is used in many states today (History).
The most important factor in any criminal case is deciding how and what the verdict will be. To determine a verdict must take some time and some major thinking, so how does one really decide what happened to this person? To become a judge is not as easy as some may think. There are six major steps that can lead to the possibility of becoming a judge and are difficult and time consuming. You must attend and undergraduate school, earn a law degree, pass the bar exam, work as an attorney, obtain judgeship and complete training (Study). Judges go through a very long process, it takes several years to reach that high of a point serving in the justice system. The hope is that after all of this work, testing, and studying a judge will know right from wrong. And to become a “good judge”, judges will have many people that stick behind their decisions. Like in any case, people who testify are sworn in to “tell the truth and nothing but the truth”. People have this hope that people who testify will tell the truth as a moral or “right thing to do”.
One of the questions we seem to ask ourselves more often now than in the past is how does race play a role in the criminal justice system? Some could argue it does not play a role at all, and “Although blacks and Latinos together comprise just 30 percent of the general population, they account for 58 percent of the prison population” (Neff). With everything that has been happening with police brutality and gun control, you begin to wonder what really is the criminal justice system doing to protect us? Is it really protecting us or themselves?
To be bias in the justice system is a very touchy subject. Many people, mostly those involved in the system have a very strict view that there is no bias opinions within decision making. But that's exactly my point. Most people who are involved in the justice system believe there's no business within it but not all people, especially people from experience agree. And I bet I am not the only person to wonder does outside experiences affect their decisions or opinions?
The justice system in almost any country, could be one of the most powerful systems. Especially in the United States, it plays a huge role in who we are and how we are seen as a country. The Criminal Justice system is something that will always make the big decisions in order to protect people and the way we live. Although checks and balances are supposed to maintain equality throughout the branches, the Judicial has a higher standing. For all of our lives to have rules, restrictions, and such discipline can be a lot to handle yet it is what we know, and we are used to. The criminal justice system does its duty to protect people and keep everyone safe. But if these flaws will not be able to be improved or changed, it outways the good in this system. The flaws of the criminal justice system have caused heartbreak, loss of time and many lives. There must be a way to fix these issues for true liberty and justice for all.
is a huge part of our society. Still there are many disagreements in how the criminal justice system really works. Dating back to colonial times, when citizens were under British rule and law, our system has been very relevant in people's lives leading up until today (History). Until the early part of the twentieth century, the American criminal justice system had slowly come together start the inclusion of courts, a more professional policy, and more prisons at a federal and state level (A.E.). As this system has grown and developed it has also started to fall apart. There are many representatives of the criminal justice system in everyday life, such as lawyers, police forces, judges, etc. But in every single department their seems to be repeating issue. Weather discrimination, bias decisions and just plain injustice, the system has become something the colonist wouldn't have expected.
Since 2007, Marvel Studios has produced 18 films, collectively making over $14.8 billion at the global box office, “making it the highest-grossing film franchise of all time” (Goldman) . People love and cherish these stories of villains and heroes, and get to leave the theater with this “bad guys never win” feeling. And yes, when someone does something wrong it is great to know they can’t get away with it, but in movies the villans and the monsters, are defeated, or trapped or killed, so what do we do in real life with our real bad guys? Those “bad guys” are called criminals and are regularly occurring in society. In any civilization the goal is to be happy, healthy and safe. The safety aspect is mainly the spark to this villian and hero stereotype. The difference between these heros and villans is that they aren't real! This is real life and in real life you don't just get to kill off the bad guys. One of the biggest issues that seems to occur is this thought of a bad guy could become good. Once people are incriminated there is a permanent record. Maybe for something big, maybe for one silly mistake, but this record can prevent many people from finding homes, getting jobs, and supporting their families. Yes, people who kill and purposefully try to put harm in to society and should be punished. But for those with crimes not nearly as bad, as soon as people hear or see the word “jail” there is an automatic judgement on you. You could have been arrested at age 14 for an accessory to some crime you didn't even know was happening, and as your life has nearly started, you have been defined as a bad guy. There are many crimes that go on throughout life, and some happen without you or anyone knowing, but if you were to get caught the penalties and punishments can flip your life upside down.
So after this whole process of the decision and incrimination you begin to think, how you will be living you life, for however long, in jail? The facilities, the food, the health care, the sanitation, where does all of this money come? The answer is society, meaning you. There are taxes set in place to bring money in for the housing and feeding of criminals. Some people have even taken advantage of the justice system and personally decides to incriminate themselves with the hope for a shelter and food and a place to sleep. Jail might seem like the worst punishment in the world for some people, but for many Americans without a safe civilization, food, and a roof to live under, this is often their only option.
Other than economic issues, there seems to be more than just that wrong with this system. One of the biggest issues within the system, is false incrimination within America. Researchers found that “149 people were cleared in 2015 for crimes they didn’t commit” which was more than any year in history (Ferner). The amount of people who are found innocent is one of the biggest flaws that draws attention to the decision of judges on cases. How did judges come so fast to a decision to put them away or even kill them when years later they were found not guilty? Who did they believe? Trust is one of the biggest issues throughout the justice system. To figure out who is telling the truth or who is lying, isn’t easy. But for cases when the word “not guilty” is almost in your face for someone who is wrongly convicted it is hard to know if the judges are even trustworthy.
When a person is falsely incarcerated, they lose many years, valuable moments and memories of their lives. Especially in cases where someone took the blame for something they didn't admit to do, it is heartbreaking to give up that much of your life. When someone is found innocent, after being wrongly accused, they are given a specific amount of money. There's a common saying within the justice system which is “innocent until proven guilty”, but there are many cases within American history where it is the exact opposite. The United States, leading the world's largest incarceration of its citizens, and has about “2 million people behind bars”. With a wrongfully convicted rate of 1 percent it would translate to 20,000 people punished for crimes they didn't commit. (Ferner)
In Fayetteville, North Carolina a man named Henry Mccollum spent 30 years of his life incarcerated on death row. After his 30 years wasted, he was complicated $750,000 in 2015, which wasn’t nearly enough for how much time he lost. After seven months, Steven was broke. He was intellectually disabled, and having been in jail his changes of jobs had decreased insanely. He ended up owing $130,000 on $65,000 original loans. Steven has spent his life depressed and with the feeling he doesn't belong. This is one of the thousands of stories of falsely incarcerated people (Neff). How can you put a value on time lost?
So if you are in this situation, what does happen to you?
Who decides the rest of your life? What if this was a mistake, what if you didn't mean for this to happen? What if you want forgiveness and could work on these issues? What if you never got a chance to learn from your mistakes. Since you were a child your parents would put you in time-outs, grounded you, and took away your toys or free time and many other punishments. After watching Adam Foss’s Ted Talk something interesting I found was how this prosecutor was able to work with a criminal. The base of the story was that instead of throwing these people in a cell, you could work with them to still find that good in them and to not be defined by one mistake. You could make one little mistake or decision that could not only ruin you life but your mental physical and social abilities. 1 in 4 jail inmates leave jail facilities with a mental disability that had occured during their time their (Board). Mental effects such as “overcrowding, various forms of violence, enforced solitude or conversely, lack of privacy, lack of meaningful activity, isolation from social networks, insecurity about future prospects,” and many more have become a result due to incrimination. 1 in 4 jail inmates leave jail facilities with a mental disability that had occured during their time their (Board). These terrible conditions and effects is something that people have gotten used to and even expected. It is shocking to think that people are being punished, tortured and tormented every single day of their
lives.
There are many people out there who believe the death penalty is too harsh for anyone. There are people out there that believe something so simple as a robber could lead to death. It's mostly a 50/50 subject, and be very sensitive for some people. But the biggest issue is deciding which half of an opinion is the “right one”. The death penalty has not been a constant in American history. It has had major reforms and changes with public favor in mind. It has undergone numerous changes and reforms in the past two centuries, falling in and out of public favor. After the American Revolution, legislators decided to remove the death penalty as a punishment for many specific crimes (Gale). The death penalty is an extreme punishment for criminals that has become outdated, although 31 it is used in many states today (History).
The most important factor in any criminal case is deciding how and what the verdict will be. To determine a verdict must take some time and some major thinking, so how does one really decide what happened to this person? To become a judge is not as easy as some may think. There are six major steps that can lead to the possibility of becoming a judge and are difficult and time consuming. You must attend and undergraduate school, earn a law degree, pass the bar exam, work as an attorney, obtain judgeship and complete training (Study). Judges go through a very long process, it takes several years to reach that high of a point serving in the justice system. The hope is that after all of this work, testing, and studying a judge will know right from wrong. And to become a “good judge”, judges will have many people that stick behind their decisions. Like in any case, people who testify are sworn in to “tell the truth and nothing but the truth”. People have this hope that people who testify will tell the truth as a moral or “right thing to do”.
One of the questions we seem to ask ourselves more often now than in the past is how does race play a role in the criminal justice system? Some could argue it does not play a role at all, and “Although blacks and Latinos together comprise just 30 percent of the general population, they account for 58 percent of the prison population” (Neff). With everything that has been happening with police brutality and gun control, you begin to wonder what really is the criminal justice system doing to protect us? Is it really protecting us or themselves?
To be bias in the justice system is a very touchy subject. Many people, mostly those involved in the system have a very strict view that there is no bias opinions within decision making. But that's exactly my point. Most people who are involved in the justice system believe there's no business within it but not all people, especially people from experience agree. And I bet I am not the only person to wonder does outside experiences affect their decisions or opinions?
The justice system in almost any country, could be one of the most powerful systems. Especially in the United States, it plays a huge role in who we are and how we are seen as a country. The Criminal Justice system is something that will always make the big decisions in order to protect people and the way we live. Although checks and balances are supposed to maintain equality throughout the branches, the Judicial has a higher standing. For all of our lives to have rules, restrictions, and such discipline can be a lot to handle yet it is what we know, and we are used to. The criminal justice system does its duty to protect people and keep everyone safe. But if these flaws will not be able to be improved or changed, it outways the good in this system. The flaws of the criminal justice system have caused heartbreak, loss of time and many lives. There must be a way to fix these issues for true liberty and justice for all.