Criminal Justice Policy Process

Document Type:Essay

Subject Area:Law

Document 1

This paper will review the criminal justice policy process in the United States of America, listing the key actors involved in ensuring that the law is upheld and stating the procedure followed when serving justice. Criminal justice policy is a strategy used by public institutions of the government to process offenders of set laws by charging them with penalties, as a method to maintain order in the society, to avoid anarchy and reduce astronomical levels of crime rates, while rehabilitating those guilty of crimes. In the United States of America, offenders are provided with rights as stated in the constitution, therefore ensuring that their basic rights are not violated during interrogations and prosecutions (Fattah, 2016). Unlike other countries, America protects all citizens, including offenders, from harm by law enforcers and prosecutors, whereas other countries prosecute suspects without a trial before the court.

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This is a threat to human rights as suspects can be harmed without enough proof of the crimes they are charged with. Members of the Senate and Congress help to ease the criminal justice by legislating bills that help the poor to equally be represented in courts. The Sixth Amendment provides for the availability of representation to a defendant for equal and professional counsel such as the complainant. The Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act by Senators Rand Paul and Kamala Harris passed the grant program to the Department of Justice so that the cash bail approach would be abolished, and poor defendants would not be incarcerated due to lack of funds for posting bails. The act also authorized states to oversee the program, thus proving the influence of elected representatives on the criminal justice policy formulation.

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Justice Reinvestment Initiative seeks to boost state governments in formulating policies that seek to help in the rehabilitation of petty offenders from repeating their crimes while developing incarceration spaces for major offenders within the state. Courts arbitrate between conflicting parties to serve justice to the oppressed individuals. Judges are appointed by the government on the basis of their knowledge of law, and their major function is to listen to the defendant and the complainant and determine a fair solution to solve the impasse. The judiciary system ensures criminals are charged legally and rehabilitated to avoid future disruption of order by the same offenders and others who may be influenced to commit such crimes by issuing sentences and penalties and providing for plea bargains offer and terms of release, such as cash bails, by the state government.

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The criminal justice policy process undergoes phases before it is established (Schmalleger et al. The problem is identified, in that, the factor that promotes individuals to participate in disruption of order. The policy is analyzed to measure its effect on affected institutions and how to manage the change. While passing the policies, policymakers from different parties tend to have indifferences because of party influence, hence causing a strain on the implementation of justice policies that promote fairness to all citizens. Therefore, it is necessary for legislators to be considerate of good human conditions. Policymakers should ensure policies curb crimes over a long period to create an orderly community. Congress should approve bills that remain firm to tackle dynamic crimes committed in long periods, or repetitively.

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