Paper Example on Crime, Juvenile Delinquency and Corrections

Of all the readings and assumptions we discussed in class, the most common idea is the degree of crime and the continuous increase in crime in the country. The chapter is particularly interesting because it combines theoretical approaches to enable students to better understand the causes of crime. Therefore, the chapter has a great deal of information that can be used to handle criminals through the judicial system.

One of the most important points in the reading is crime and law. Crime is defined as an act committed or omitted in violation of law. Law is defined as a formal social rule that is enforced by a political authority in a given society. Thus all acts that violates our values and norms are considered crimes by the state. However, it is important to note that not all actions that violates our norms and values are considered crime. In recent years crime has become a major problem, making it a number one enemy in our nation. Crime has made most Americans feel unsafe in their neighborhood. This owe to the large number of American who own guns for self-protection. The United States is therefore considered the country with the highest rate of crime globally.

Majority of individuals arrested for crimes are males from a minority group or city residents. Males are arrested three more times than females because of their sex and the police and the courts are more lenient to females than males. African Americans are three times arrested compared to their whites counterparts. Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans have the lowest arrest rates in the US. More crimes are also committed by people of lower social and economic status.

The chapter also discusses a number of crime theories and theories that suggest a correctional plan of preventing recurrence of the offenses. Citizens have to follow the laws put by our judicial system. When they do not uphold the laws, the judicial system intervenes and punish individuals for their intentionally committed offenses. Therefore, crime is a social evil or social wrong punishable by law. It involves prosecution through a prosecutor initiating a suit for intentionally performed crimes. Murder is among the most severe charges, and it comes with the firmest of penalties. In the criminal justice system, murder is referred in law as causing death with the intention to kill or cause bodily harm. In most states, murder is an unlawful killing that is both premeditated and willful. State laws categorize murder into first, second and third-degree murder, which can further be broken down into elements that the prosecution must ascertain beyond a judicious doubt. Punishment is an important part in the criminal justice system. First-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter and corporate manslaughter require an expression of the moral outrage in the society. Most state laws consider morality and justice before convicting someone on such crimes. The punishments that come with such penalties help in deterring all forms of murder. Deterrence is the prevention of crime through criminal sanction. Such punishments deter crime by applying a criminal sanction to dissuade an offender from reoffending. Thus, punishment redress the moral imbalance caused by crime that an offender sanctioned to the harm he/she caused. However, it is important for the judicial system to consider