Overview

Sean, Maria, Terry and Camryn have been meeting informally at the campus coffee shop after their Introduction to Criminal Justice class. This time together permits them to get to know each other in a social atmosphere, being connected by their interest in criminal justice. They have even considered forming a “Criminal Justice Club” to encourage others in their class to join them to enhance their discussions.

Today, Maria remarked, “I was surprised at how many issues face the police these days. A protest in our city called out for defunding the police, yet when my neighbor had an emergency, it seemed like it took a long time for the police to respond. We learned later it was because they were on a higher priority call. Who knew their jobs could be so demanding?” Terry added, “And it isn’t just the police! The public is demanding accountability for criminals too, but prosecutors and the courts are limited because of the outcry across the country that the laws treat some people unfairly. Then you see chronic violators, some with previous felony charges and convictions, being released, then victimize someone else hours later. What’s up with that?” Sean had already drawn some conclusions of his own, based upon the recent victimization of his father. Sean decided to suspend his comments until others had spoken, but he was glad to hear their perspectives. As for Camryn, they had been interviewed by the police as a witness to a crime about six months ago. The experience for them wasn’t satisfying, in that it seemed the police officer showed bias and displayed a dismissive attitude in their recollection of facts. The officer was curt with them, and did not seem to want to ask follow-up clarifying questions. Camryn hoped that, longer term, the police force in the community might receive some focused training in the area of effective interviewing techniques to be used in diverse communities. In that regard, Camryn is now motivated to gain necessary knowledge, skills and training so as to make a difference in how criminal justice delivery occurs in the community, particularly to BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ members.

After reading Chapter 6, the reader now has an understanding of the history of law enforcement until 1960. This institutional memory is important to properly recognize and learn from the early efforts of pioneers in the discipline of law enforcement. From these experiences, today’s police at all levels can develop “best practices” approaches from the “lessons learned” in history. Chapter 7 intends to introduce examples of current mission, philosophy and objectives of law enforcement to show a more contemporary view.

Our American system of justice faces many issues, none of which are simple to solve. When one examines anything consisting of so many different, yet connected parts, it is easy to see that any “fixes” to the criminal legal system will need to consider the intersection of many interrelated sections of society, psychology, technology, cultural and economic values, and emotional intelligence, to name a few.

This chapter identifies many of the issues facing criminal justice practitioners today and in the foreseeable future. Such a discussion is challenging to both author and reader in that we both have viewpoints. These opinions are forged from experience–our time on this earth, how we were raised and the value systems we acquired early in life. Knowledge is gained through observation and interaction with relatives, friends, classmates, instructors, and members of our communities. Within these persons we have varying levels of power and privilege. In the end, each individual has their own unique perspective as to what works well, what needs modification, and how they, or someone they know, has been influenced by certain issues or flaws in the administration of justice.

Attributions

1. Chapter opening image: A Demonstrator Jump On A Vandalized Seattle Police Car by Hongao Xu is released under CC BY 4.0