Reference no: EM133547814
Assignment: Criminal Law
I. Crime Measurement Focus
Answer the following questions in separate paragraphs. Provide the question, then your answer.
A. Name three logistical obstacles to the effective and efficient measurement of crime and briefly explain each one.
B. Define the term "Dark Figure of Crime" and provide a brief summary of how it works in practice.
C. Calculate the crime rate in a city of 519,415 people that reported 44,896 criminal offenses in 2018. Explain how you came to the answer you provided.
D. List three problems with using the NIBRS to report crime.
E. What is the advantage of using the following three types of crime measurements?
1. UCR
2. Victimization survey
3. Self-report studies
II. History of Law Enforcement Focus
Answer the following questions in separate paragraphs. Provide the question, then your answer.
1. Correctly identify the early English policing system that led to modern U.S. policing. Briefly summarize its background and structure.
2. Explain the importance of the Metropolitan Police Act. What impact did the act have on professional policing?
3. What was the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1833? Why was the act created?
4. What three ways did the September 11, 2001, attacks alter the law enforcement's mission in the American criminal justice system?
5. Describe Wilson's three styles of policing.
III. The Court Focus
Answer the following questions in separate paragraphs. Provide the question, then your answer.
A. What do we call the criminal court process whereby a prosecutor and a defense attorney represent opposite positions and argue their cases in court?
B. What law from Old England developed a proper judicial procedure and led to the development of the grand jury system?
C. What is the only provision of the U.S. Bill of Rights that is also covered in all fifty state constitutions?
D. Which article and section of the U.S. Constitution created the U.S. Supreme Court and gave Congress the authority to create the lower federal courts?
E. What type of federal court hears criminal cases related to federal Indian reservations?
IV. Eyewitness Testimony
View the Al Jazeera video, "How Eyewitnesses Get It Wrong in Criminal Cases", provided here and answer the questions noted below. Answers for each question are found in specific excerpts of the film. I encourage you to take notes while watching the documentary. Example:
Findings concerning the unreliability of eyewitness accounts have led researchers to devise methods for improving retrieval. One of these methods is known as:
A: Cognitive Interviewing
Questions:
A. In computerized facial recognition tests like the one administered by psychologist Nancy Franklin, what is the percentage of people who falsely identify the wrong person? What happens when the individual being identified is a person of color?
B. As of this video, how many states have already reformed their way of handling eyewitness evidence?
C. According to cognitive neuroscientist ItielDror, what is the biggest danger when dealing with eyewitness testimony in a criminal court of law?
D. Since forensic examiners work closely with the prosecution team, what is the procedure cited by Dr. Dror that needs to change if the criminal justice system is going to eliminate courtroom bias?
E. With regard to forensics examiners, what is the solution to biased testimony in court?
V. Probation/Parole Focus
Answer the following questions in separate paragraphs. Provide the question, then your answer.
A. Explain the three universal functions that define the probation officer's occupation.
B. Provide a summary of the pre-sentence investigation and the type of information found in a presentence report.
C. Differentiate between the nature of probation and parole.
D. Explain three competing principles when there is a decision to grant parole.
E. Outline three major adjustments that parolees face in their attempt to successfully re-enter society.