Conformism In The Criminal Justice System

Submitted By reeooww
Words: 2394
Pages: 10
Open Document
Length: 2367 words (6.8 double-spaced pages)
Rating: Red (FREE)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The criminal justice system views any crime as a crime committed against the state and places much emphasis on retribution and paying back to the community, through time, fines or community work. Historically punishment has been a very public affair, which was once a key aspect of the punishment process, through the use of the stocks, dunking chair, pillory, and hangman’s noose, although in today’s society punishment has become a lot more private (Newburn, 2007). However it has been argued that although the debt against the state has been paid, the victim of the crime has been left with no legal input to seek adequate retribution from the offender, leaving the victim perhaps feeling unsatisfied with the criminal justice process.
Furthermore can formal social control institutions such as the criminal justice system and the government provide the best aspect of producing conformity and law abiding behaviour? Hirschi’s (1969) social control theory is concerned with what effect formal institutions have on conformity in individuals and in particular, how law abiding behaviour is produced due to these institutions (Walklate, 2005). However Wilson (2007) argues that formal methods of social control such as the criminal justice system are merely there to control and segregate delinquents and offenders who have not had adequate socialisation, which is where social mores are learnt and when conformity is produced, and that an alternative form of social control such as restorative justice might produce more effective results.

The concept of restorative justice was heavily shaped by the work of John Braithwaite (1989) who in turn was inspired by indigenous practices in New Zealand and Australia, whereby the significance of family values was recognised and introduced into criminal and restorative proceedings in helping the offender be reinstated within society (Newburn, 2007). Braithwaite was working with offenders and victims and focusing on ways to reintegrate them back into society through restorative means instead of going through the criminal justice system and the stigmas attached to being labeled a criminal. Before Braithwaite began to develop this idea the punitive justice and penitentiary system had been formerly established since the eighteenth century, when before that informal control measures such as the church, saw communities police themselves (Sharpe, 2002). However with the creation of Thames Valley police force in seventeen ninety-eight, Britain’s first official police force, crime and punishment now become a matter of the state rather than just a community concern. This saw a change in how crime was perceived and criminals dealt with as there were now trained professionals deciding on how best to punish the offender as well as punishments becoming less corporate and more restrictive.

Newburn (2007) state that there are four forms of restorative justice practices victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing as well as healing and sentencing circles and citizen panels. In nineteen-seventy the first official victim- offender mediation programme was established in Canada through a Christian sect with the purpose of aiding the healing of the victims through bringing them together with the offenders and hopefully resolving an appropriate solution. The offender acknowledging and assuming responsibility for their actions and the subsequent consequences is a key aspect of the restorative approach.
Another aspect of restorative justice is family group conferencing which was already being implemented in New Zealand and Australia and concerns the whole family as well as professionals to help make amends to the victim. The Children, Young Persons and their Families Act 1989 officially gave this more precedence and highlighted the relative significance of its effects
Show More

Related Documents: Conformism In The Criminal Justice System

Criminal Justice System

The criminal justice system within the United States was created in order to serve and protect, to control crime and most importantly to deliver justice. In order to deliver justice, individuals that violate the law must be convicted and found guilty so they can be punished for their crime; in order to stop the individual from being a danger to society and to send a message. Although the criminal justice system within the United States was created to benefit society it is instead detrimental due…

Words 1746 - Pages 7

The Criminal Justice System

the ever-increasing study in criminal justice structure behavior areas within the workforce. It is imperative to know the forces of modification and approaches to managing organizational change in criminal justice agency, together with distinguishing noticeable aspects of organizational cultures. The criminal justice field is in an exceedingly constant state of evolution. As there continues to be change in both outward thinking and technology, the criminal justice system should…

Words 843 - Pages 4

Restorative Justice In The Criminal Justice System

Restorative justice is a very popular topic in the criminal justice system and deserves to stay relevant for the sake of victims and offenders. The 3rd week of this course is when we covered the principles of restorative justice. The principles of restorative justice focuses on repairing the harm that a crime has caused. Restorative justice also focuses on getting everyone who was involved or affected by crime to participate in solving the problems caused by the crime. Lastly, community members should…

Words 241 - Pages 1

Criminal Justice System Essay

Criminal Justice System Branden Johnson CRJ100 Prof. Harney 1/15/2012 Criminal justice system is a nationwide system of federal, state, and local agencies dealing with criminal problems. A criminal justice system has the standard foundation of the three branches of government (judicial, legislation, and executive). Criminal justice system, simply an analytic system; where officials are in charge of arrests, prosecution, and sentencing criminals. All of these components operate in a sequence…

Words 530 - Pages 3

Prejudice In The Criminal Justice System

2017 there is still a presence of racism and classism and this affects one field that’s supposed to rely on fairness: the American Criminal Justice System. The American Justice system is heavily and unfortunately affected by classism and racism. It has been from the very beginning, and can affect future generations. Prejudice in the American criminal justice system can be traced back to the beginning. An example would be slavery. To suppress riots and runaways, harsh punishments were carried out…

Words 964 - Pages 4

Criminal Justice System Essay

Criminal Justice System xxxxxxx CJA/204 January xxth, xxxx xxxxxxxx Criminal Justice System The criminal justice system is one of the most important tools available to a society to help control and prevent anti-social behavior. The structure of the criminal justice system is split between the police departments, courts, and corrections. Each component of the criminal justice system plays a part in an individual’s experience with the criminal justice system. There are different theories and assumptions…

Words 896 - Pages 4

Criminal Justice System Analysis

The core components of todays American Criminal Justice System include the police, the courts, and corrections. All three components have many different daily duties and responsibilities. Police Officers and Law Enforcement Agencies are typically the most informed in detail due to them having the knowledge of the incident itself that put the “accused” in the position to be apprehended. When reports of a crime have been made the Police or Law Enforcement Agency of that jurisdiction must conduct the…

Words 2123 - Pages 9

The Corruption In The Criminal Justice System

the time. But does this mean that each and every one recruit that finishes academy, starts working in the system as federal law enforcement officer, whose main purpose is not to enforce the law, but it is mostly involvement in bribery? There are always two sides of the coin, and we can also recognize them in our criminal justice system, where on one side are honest cops, who fight for the justice, and on the other side are those who intend to make extra money no matter what. Those two opposite views…

Words 363 - Pages 2

Purpose Of The Criminal Justice System

central purpose of the Criminal Justice System is to deliver an efficient, effective, accountable and fair justice process for the public” (The Purpose of the Criminal Justice System, 2008). Providing what is perceived to be the greatest good for greater society by means of law enforcement, courts/judicial review, laws, and corrections, the criminal justice system is designed to provide “equal treatment and consideration of those persons rights who are engaged in the system whether directly, indirectly…

Words 260 - Pages 2

Recidivism And The Criminal Justice System

Our criminal justice system was set in place to help stop crimes, and to punish those who commit these crimes. Even though the criminal justice system punishes those individuals that choose to break the law, there are still some individuals that repeatedly keep committing these wrongdoings, which is known as recidivism. Recidivism is the repetition of criminal behavior by those already involved in crime (Schmalleger; Pg. 68). A recidivism rate is the rate in which is used to measure those individuals…

Words 315 - Pages 2