A sociologist by the name of William Wilbanks rejected the notion very strongly after reviewing a lot of studies about racial bias in the criminal justice system. This was shown in his book called , “The Myth of a Racial Justice System”. He mainly focused on the imbalance between Africans and Whites in jail probation, arrest rates, parole, and many other sections of the judicial systems (Wilbanks, 1987). He argued that the imbalance was the result of other factors that were not linked to racial discrimination. It included negligence , poverty, and defendant's prior criminal records. Many other researchers like Willbanks observations suggested that the disparity in the legal system had to do more with poverty levels and not so much towards race (Cole, Smith, & DeJong, 2013). Wilbanks also argued that crimes like drug trafficking, assault, and robbery mostly popular in the crime news, are often committed by individuals with criminal backgrounds or street gangs. In 1990s, this argument was supported because of the drop in poverty levels was marked with reduced crime rates. An interaction between poverty and crime has long been noted(Quigley, 2012). After World War 1, many whites were poor, and a bigger percentage of street crimes were committed by whites in the U.S (Constitutional Rights Foundation, 2013). During that time, there were at least 80 percent of white people in prison. The subject of negligence and poverty may well account to the inequalities in the criminal justice system, and as time went by, racial injustices spread (MacDonald,
A sociologist by the name of William Wilbanks rejected the notion very strongly after reviewing a lot of studies about racial bias in the criminal justice system. This was shown in his book called , “The Myth of a Racial Justice System”. He mainly focused on the imbalance between Africans and Whites in jail probation, arrest rates, parole, and many other sections of the judicial systems (Wilbanks, 1987). He argued that the imbalance was the result of other factors that were not linked to racial discrimination. It included negligence , poverty, and defendant's prior criminal records. Many other researchers like Willbanks observations suggested that the disparity in the legal system had to do more with poverty levels and not so much towards race (Cole, Smith, & DeJong, 2013). Wilbanks also argued that crimes like drug trafficking, assault, and robbery mostly popular in the crime news, are often committed by individuals with criminal backgrounds or street gangs. In 1990s, this argument was supported because of the drop in poverty levels was marked with reduced crime rates. An interaction between poverty and crime has long been noted(Quigley, 2012). After World War 1, many whites were poor, and a bigger percentage of street crimes were committed by whites in the U.S (Constitutional Rights Foundation, 2013). During that time, there were at least 80 percent of white people in prison. The subject of negligence and poverty may well account to the inequalities in the criminal justice system, and as time went by, racial injustices spread (MacDonald,