The Evolution of the Criminal Justice System in America
Early settlers came to America in search of religious freedom and freedom from oppression in many forms. In England members of other religions, such as Quakers, were often arrested on various charges and received unjust punishment. Although attempting to flee the often heavy handed laws and unjustified punishments, for the most part settlers brought the same practices of English common law to the new land.
Around the 1670s, William Penn organized the first reform of these early criminal justice practices when he wrote a charter of liberties for the settlements of West New Jersey and Pennsylvania. This charter promised freedom of religion, fair trial by jury, and freedom from unjust …show more content…
Interesting fact, The Crimes Act of 1790 detailed only seventeen crimes that could be committed against the federal government. (Unknown, A New Criminal Court System, 2016) Despite these new systems and laws, the individual states still had a great deal of freedom and leeway in developing their own justice system. The states used the army, federal marshals, and volunteers to police the citizens. The first recognized and paid police force was not formed until 1844 in New York. (Unknown, Professional Policing, 2016) But still the states did not start to adopt the Bill of Rights within state justice systems until the 1930s. (Hendrix, 2013) This means that individuals tried in state courts, as opposed to federal courts, weren’t always accorded the rights and privileges laid out within the Bill of …show more content…
LEAA had several goals, but possibly one of the most successful and beneficial efforts was the provision of funds for the Law Enforcement Education Program (LEEP). LEEP initiated the first academic programs in criminal justice, which helped with the beginning of the systemic analyses of the processes of justice. With these analyses and the greater role of the Supreme Court in matters of criminal justice, two competing models of the American justice system have arisen that possibly best describe the philosophies inherent in this system. The due process model and the crime control model. The due process model focuses on the necessity of following the procedures required in the system, even if doing so prevents the legal system from operating at maximum efficiency. The crime control model, on the other hand, stresses efficiency and the repression of criminal conduct. The crime control model assumes it is ok to suspend an individual’s rights in the interest of protecting
Early settlers came to America in search of religious freedom and freedom from oppression in many forms. In England members of other religions, such as Quakers, were often arrested on various charges and received unjust punishment. Although attempting to flee the often heavy handed laws and unjustified punishments, for the most part settlers brought the same practices of English common law to the new land.
Around the 1670s, William Penn organized the first reform of these early criminal justice practices when he wrote a charter of liberties for the settlements of West New Jersey and Pennsylvania. This charter promised freedom of religion, fair trial by jury, and freedom from unjust …show more content…
Interesting fact, The Crimes Act of 1790 detailed only seventeen crimes that could be committed against the federal government. (Unknown, A New Criminal Court System, 2016) Despite these new systems and laws, the individual states still had a great deal of freedom and leeway in developing their own justice system. The states used the army, federal marshals, and volunteers to police the citizens. The first recognized and paid police force was not formed until 1844 in New York. (Unknown, Professional Policing, 2016) But still the states did not start to adopt the Bill of Rights within state justice systems until the 1930s. (Hendrix, 2013) This means that individuals tried in state courts, as opposed to federal courts, weren’t always accorded the rights and privileges laid out within the Bill of …show more content…
LEAA had several goals, but possibly one of the most successful and beneficial efforts was the provision of funds for the Law Enforcement Education Program (LEEP). LEEP initiated the first academic programs in criminal justice, which helped with the beginning of the systemic analyses of the processes of justice. With these analyses and the greater role of the Supreme Court in matters of criminal justice, two competing models of the American justice system have arisen that possibly best describe the philosophies inherent in this system. The due process model and the crime control model. The due process model focuses on the necessity of following the procedures required in the system, even if doing so prevents the legal system from operating at maximum efficiency. The crime control model, on the other hand, stresses efficiency and the repression of criminal conduct. The crime control model assumes it is ok to suspend an individual’s rights in the interest of protecting