Robert Louis Stevenson Contribution To Criminal Justice

Stevenson’s work has helped many inmates, wrongfully accused or wrongly sentenced, and family of inmates and changed the way of thinking when it comes to racial and poverty divides into what should be the legal justice system. His work has inspired me and what I assume many others. But Stevenson didn’t get to inspire many or even help many without acquiring the educational means to do so. By taking the first step and taking courses such as; Race, Poverty and Criminal Justice, Race and Poverty Litigation, Capital Punishment Law and Litigation, and Equal Justice and Capital Defender Clinic, Stevenson was able to attain the specific knowledge necessary to help those in needs, those wrongfully accused on death row such as Walter McMillian as …show more content…
I also hope that my future education will help me help the police, judges, and lawyers put the right people behind bars making sure that the person behind bars is truly the perpetrator of the crime and not an innocent victim of accusation themselves. By taking courses that are necessary for attaining a major in Psychology, a minor in Sociology and a Certificate in Criminology, I hope I will be able to gain the knowledge necessary to help interpret the motivation behind the crime, in the process, making sure the accused is truly the accused, as well as help the perpetrator of the crime understand their actions and counsel them if necessary. The courses further allow me to be able to interpret the victim’s side of the crime and counsel them through what they have just experienced in the hopes of preventing a life of consistent trauma, as well the ability to communicate with both victim and perpetrator. By taking the courses I will only gain the knowledge necessary, but by taking part in internships such as Association for Individual Development and Adult Day Program, I will gain the experience necessary in dealing with victims of crimes and their families as well as working with inmates who have mental or cognitive disabilities and themselves cannot fully understand the crimes. This experience is going to be crucial to me, just like Stevenson’s internship experiences were to him. These internships will, hopefully, at least in part, prepare me for what I might have to face with my job. I also hope to gain experience by volunteering at centers for violent crime victims such as the Center for the Study of Family Violence and Sexual Assault at Northern Illinois University, where I will be able to help those in need and gain experience in the