Criminal Justice Test 1

Front 1

criminal justice system

Back 1

the aggregate of all operating and administrative or technical support agencies that perform criminal justice functions. The basic divisions of the operational aspects of criminal justice are law enforcement, courts, and corrections.

Front 2

crime-control model

Back 2

a criminal justice perspective that emphasizes the efficient arrest and conviction of criminal offenders.

Front 3

due process model

Back 3

a criminal justice perspective that emphasizes individual rights at all stages of justice system processing.

Front 4

crime

Back 4

conduct in violation of the criminal laws of a state, the federal government, or a local jurisdiction, for which there is no legally acceptable justification or excuse.

Front 5

clearance rate

Back 5

a traditional measure of investigative effectiveness that compares the number of crimes solved through arrest or other means (such as the death of the suspect).

Front 6

robbery

Back 6

the unlawful taking or attempted taking of property that is in the immediate possession of another by force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.

Front 7

burglary

Back 7

by the narrowest and oldest definition, the trespassory breaking and entering of the dwelling house of another in the nighttime with the intent to commit a felony.

Front 8

larceny-theft

Back 8

the unlawful taking or attempted taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property, from the possession or constructive possession of another. Motor vehicles are excluded. Larceny is the most common of the eight major offenses, although probably only a small percentage of all larcenies are actually reported to the police because of the small dollar amounts involved.

Front 9

anomie

Back 9

a socially pervasive condition of normlessness. Also, a disjunction between approved goals and means.

Front 10

conflict perspective

Back 10

a theoretical approach that holds that crime is the natural consequence of economic and other social inequities. Conflict theorists highlight the stresses that arise among and within social groups as they compete with one another for resources and for survival. The social forces that result are viewed as major determinants of group and individual behavior, including crime.

Front 11

labeling theory

Back 11

a social process perspective that sees continued crime as a consequence of the limited opportunities for acceptable behavior that follow from the negative responses of society to those defined as offenders.

Front 12

psychopath

Back 12

a person with a personality disorder, especially one manifested in aggressively antisocial behavior, which is often said to be the result of a poorly developed superego. Also called sociopath.

Front 13

social learning theory

Back 13

a psychological perspective that says that people learn how to behave by modeling themselves after others whom they have the opportunity to observe.

Front 14

actus reus

Back 14

an act in violation of the law. Also, a guilty act.

Front 15

mens rea

Back 15

the state of mind that accompanies a criminal act. Also, a guilty mind.

Front 16

element of a crime

Back 16

in a specific crime, one of the essential features of that crime, as specified by law or statute.

Front 17

felony

Back 17

a criminal offense punishable by death or by incarceration in a prison facility for at least one year.

Front 18

misdemeanor

Back 18

an offense punishable by incarceration, usually in a local confinement facility, for a period whose upper limit is prescribed by statute in a given jurisdiction, typically one year or less.

Front 19

precedent

Back 19

a legal principle that ensures that previous judicial decisions are authoritatively considered and incorporated into future cases.

Front 20

tort

Back 20

a wrongful act, damage, or injury not involving a breach of contract. Also, a private or civil wrong or injury.