Reference no: EM132154213

The Criminal Justice System

Writing Assignment

You will write a reaction paper based on the material covered in class and one scholarly research article pertaining to any aspect of the American court system. The scholarly research article must come from one of the following academic journals:

Criminology, Criminology and Public Policy (not a reaction essay, introduction or response), Journal of Quantitative Criminology, Justice Quarterly, or the Journal of Criminal Justice.

The article you select must have been published in 2008 or more recently.

For this writing assignment, you will select a scholarly article related to the functioning of courts in the United States.

You are expected to write a four paragraph essay in which you will provide your thoughts on the research and its implication for the general understanding of the functioning of American courts.

You will

1) briefly describe the background of the topic/article, the importance of the topic, the research question/hypotheses guiding the research, and why this topic needs to be addressed through research (approximately 1 paragraph);

2) discuss the results of the study and the implications discussed by the authors as well as how it relates to what you have learned/not learned through your other course readings and lecture (approximately 1 paragraph); and

3) provide your reaction to this research (approximately 2 paragraphs).

Your reaction could be your thoughts on additional research that is needed for you to better understand these findings and conclusions, critiquing the findings, the implications of the research for policy and practice, or suggestions for changes to current courtroom functioning.

Be creative and provide your opinions! You should not simply restate the arguments made by the authors.

The lack of original thoughts will result in a loss of points. You should think more broadly about the impact of this research and its implications for the overall functioning of the Criminal Justice System.

Assignment requirements:

- 2-3 page double-spaced essay (anything over three pages will not be read)

- Essay in APA format

- One inch margins, size 12 Times New Roman font

- Title page with your name and date (not counted as one of 3 pages)

- A pdf copy of the article that you read

The goal of this assignment is to help the student understand how and why research articles are written, promote academic writing, which includes proper grammar, clarity, and succinctness, and provide the student with additional information on the court system in the United States.

As such, you will be evaluated not only on your ability to follow the guidelines of the assignment but also in your writing ability.

Please take advantage of the Tomas Rivera Learning Center on the downtown campus if you would like grammatical/editing assistance.