The Role of Criminal Justice System in Handling Cases of Domestic Violence, Rape and Abortion - Term Paper Example

? Comparison of the United s and England’s criminal justice system in handling cases of Domestic violence, rape and abortion. (Course) (Date) Abstract A system of criminal justice in a nation state is made up of three entities. These entities are normally a faction of interdependent entities that end up forming a collective body. The three entities are the legislature, executive and the judiciary. In this paper, the criminal justice system in England and the US will be evaluated and compared, focusing mostly on domestic violence, rape and abortion issues. The criminal law in England is under the common law, which is supported by a very strong judicial system. The justice systems employ a punitive system that utilizes a court system, police and regional prisons. England and the United States are home to some the best justice systems in the world. Both countries have justice systems that aim at controlling crimes against women. The two systems seem similar on the surface, but have obtrusive differences when analyzed critically. The following report is a comparison of the justice systems of the two countries, their similarities, differences, as well as the efforts that each country has put in place to put an end to such crimes. Introduction to Justice Criminal Systems There are numerous types of criminal justice systems around the world, all aimed maintaining peace and order in their jurisdiction area. These justice systems forces individuals to abide by law in an attempt to deter them from disrupting peace and order. The systems achieve this by pressuring the individuals with the notion of punishment, which is either punitive or rehabilitative1. All criminal justice system is divided into three main parts; policing, courts and corrections. Policing refers to where the investigations are held, the courts are where judgment takes place whereas correction is where correctional authorities overlook the punishment passed in the courts. Every nation state varies in the criminal justice system that it employs on various issues such as rape, abortion and violence. This paper seeks to compare the systems of criminal justice in the US and the UK on the issues of domestic violence, rape and abortion. Globally, women have the right to undergo the justice system whenever they face sexual assault or even rape. Additionally, such women have the right to be safeguarded by the law and be offered any payment for the harm done to them by the offender2. In America, rape is regarded as the climax of any sexual offence and it is punishable by the laws of the land. This law of rape was adopted by the US colonies in the 17th and 18th century. However, each state in the US has a different definition of what rape is. All the states agree that when a man coerces a lady to have sex with him without her agreeing to it, then that may be deemed as rape. Currently, diverse states have been able to pass various laws of reform on what rape is. For instance, they have made the rape law to consist of certain occurrences that are nonconsensual, that need no coercion. Furthermore, marital rape has been included in the state laws3. Additionally, the laws state that any sexual activity performed on a child is rape. According to the law, any girl who is from the age of 14 to 18 that is coerced to have sex may file for rape. This is even in instances whereby the girl has agreed to perform the sexual act. Rape also may be charged on a person who has intercourse with a woman who is considered by the law to lack the ability to consent to the act. For example, in instances where the individual is drugged, mentally handicapped or even drunk. In most American states, rape shield laws have been enacted to safeguard the victims from the emotional trauma that may occur especially during court questioning on their sexual history. This is because most witnesses feared being put down and were demoralized from whether reporting rape or pursuing the charges. Hence, on a federal level, the American Congress passed Rule 412 of the Federal Evidence’s rule. The act purports that the evidence given to prove that the victim carried out the sexual act or evidence that prove the sexual predisposition that show asserted sexual misconduct can never be admitted in both the criminal, and the civil proceedings4. In some states, the complaint that an individual has been raped has to be made within a specific period. This means that each state may differ in how the fresh doctrine may be applied. The victim can make a fresh complaint against the offender voluntarily after the rape. This is because most victims of rape have the rape trauma syndrome that has challenged the rule of fresh complaint. This rule is premised on the supposition any rape complaint that was delivered late is not reliable. The UK and the US laws agree on the jail term for rape cases. In both nation states, the jail term is life imprisonment. This is like spending years in jail. Like in the US, rape is a serious crime that is punishable by the common law in the UK. In the US and the UK, the term rape is employed to define this kind of sexual assault. This is whereby an individual undergoes a sexual assault against them without agreeing to it. In the UK, rape may be tried on an indictment after a preliminary hearing. However, in the UK, under the 2003 Sexual Offence Act, the defendant is only guilty if he penetrates the anus, mouth or the vagina with his penis intentionally5. If the complaint does not consent to this action and the offender does it, then this act is punishable by the common law. In the US, the rape law varies from one state to another and it is still is still forced sexual intercourse. The two nation states do agree on what the victim’s incapacity means6. For instance, in the UK, the circumstances that may make an individual lack the ability to consent to the sexual act are disability, being asleep, being threatened or drunk. In the US, being unconscious and being sleepy are not covered under the rape law. However, section 179 of the abuse of individuals is unable to resist and covers it. This law states that individuals who are incapable physically or who may have a mental disability can be perceived to be sexually assaulted without any evidence. There is also a difference in who may be charged with rape. In the UK, the perpetrator is mainly male because the common laws address the offender as ‘he’. However, in the US, the perpetrator may be female or male. Domestic violence comprises any psychological as well as acts of threatened violence on an individual. They may also comprise of various physical acts like battery, rape, stalking or even homicide. Domestic violence is normally characterized as any attempt to control another person through a trend of intimidation7. Originally, domestic violence referred to any act of violence that was carried against another spouse. With time, this definition has been able to change as the legal definitions differ from one state to another. In the US, domestic violence does not just mean fighting, hitting or even arguments. It is defined as power abuse. This is when a person dominates or even tortures their victim by a series of intimidation, physical violence or threats. This act was passed after the World Health organization purported that this act was an issue of concern in the society. In both the UK and US, this act is punishable by law. In the UK, this law is under the 2004 domestic violence crime and victims act. Its main concern is with the criminal justice and safeguards the victims of such actions. In the US, most states have made it compulsory to report various wounds and injury of adults. The individuals safeguarded by this law are not specific but anyone who has been assisted by the health care professional. This law differs from one state to another. In the US, the victim may seek for an order mandated by the courts to safeguard them from the abusers. Whenever violation occurs, the abuser will be charged. The penalties of the crime may include incarceration or even heavy fines. The federal laws also prevent individuals who are named in the orders of protection from owning firearms. However, this law is different in the UK. There is lack of one common definition of what domestic violence is and this has resulted in many misinterpretations. In the 1970s, there were only civil remedies like the 1976 Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings act and the 1978 Domestic proceedings and magistrate court act8. The courts gave protection equally for both the man and woman. In addition, the 1977 Housing (Homeless) persons act had a domestic violence clause added to it. The domestic violence victims were referred to as people in priority need. This made it necessary for the local authority to give accommodation to them. Abortion may refer to the end of any pregnancy by either removing or ejecting the embryo from the uterus. Either an abortion can happen without notice in the form of a miscarriage or it can be induced. Hence, the word abortion refers to the termination of any pregnancy through induction. In both the US and the UK, safe procedures have been put in place to ensure that abortion takes place in a healthy environment (Time Magazine, 1970). Nevertheless, there are many abortions that are unsafe that have taken place in the world. The current medical world employs surgical procedures or other medications that can ensure that induced abortions occur. The legality of abortion in both nation states, abortion relies on the cultural, religious as well as how prevalent the act is. In addition, in both nation states, the legality of abortion may rely on certain factors like rape, incest or in instances where the mother’s health may be at risk. This has triggered many debates around the globe on both the legal and ethical issues concerning abortion. Historically, abortion has been a part of planning planning methods. Women were given great penalties for aborting. This was the case in both the US and UK in which abortion was illegal. This is especially in situations where the fetus can be noticed in the woman’s body. The rule of born alive deemed fetus not as humans hence in the UK laws, such abortion was not treated as murder. This legal principle in the common law purports that diverse criminal acts like assault and homicide can only take place when a child is born alive9. In the fiscal year 1996, the UK Law Lords enacted the law to be executed in the English common laws. This law was a principle that existed in England but was later adopted by the Americans and other UK colonies. The law was formed by William Stauntford and laid down by Edward Coke. This was done in the Laws of England Institute. The language employed in this law is the language of murder cases that are under the English law. The law has three characteristics like a creature that is reasonable, in a natural human form (rerum natura) and the in the peace of the king. In this case, reasonable creature comes from the doctrine of the Catholic Church on the human soul’s nature. This means that the fetus of a human being is naturally infused with the soul of a human being. Staunford purports that the thing being murdered must be something living in this present world10. In the UK, this rule acts as the basis upon which the laws on fetus stand. However, in the US, this law is employed but at a lesser extent. Many federal courts have argued that it is not under their jurisdiction to change the law of statute by removing the rule of born alive. They argue that these changes should be enacted by the legislature. In the US, from 1995, the Congress has moved a motion that sought to ban various procedures like extraction and intact dilation. These procedures are referred to as partial birth abortion. Consequently, the president Clinton vetoed this law, as it did not comprise of exceptions in health. In the fiscal year 2003, the congress approved an act dubbed Partial-birth abortion ban. In this act, any doctor could face a maximum of two years in jail together with a number of civil suits for carrying out such abortions11. However, any woman who goes on with such procedures may not be subjected to any punishment by the law. A number of states in America have enacted various laws on abortion. In some states, these laws are known as feticide For instance, in the fiscal year 2006; a pro-life status law was signed in South Dakota State. This law ensured that carrying out abortions was a felony. However, in the fiscal year 2007, this law was abolished. In the fiscal year 2006, Mississippi Congress approved an abortion ban. However, this bill could go through because the legislature did not succeed in having a compromise on the bill. In 2009, North Dakota passed an act dubbed Personhood of children act which wanted to give unborn children rights to live. However, this law was overruled. In addition, various states in the US have amendments dubbed personhood amendments that define the conception moment as the beginning of personhood12. In the UK, the fiscal year 1967 abortion act does not make any person guilty under the abortion law in an instance where a medical practitioner ended the pregnancy. Like in the US, abortion is legal whenever the life of the mother is in danger or if the child would be in danger if born alive. Like in the US, the abortion offenses are placed under the fiscal year 1967 criminal act laws under an act of felony. Historically, Britain placed their crimes under three categories, felony, treason or demeanor. Conclusion As of such, the criminal justice system in the US and the UK are similar in various ways on the issues of rape, domestic violence and abortion. Their citizens adhere to the various arms of the criminal justice system all work together in the two nation states to ensure that the laws concerning these issues are enacted to the letter. The justice systems employ a punitive system that utilizes a court system, police and regional prisons. This assists in maintaining law in both nation states. References BBC News Magazine. Assange Case: How Rape is defined? Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19333439 on 13th December, 2012. Gerard Casey (2005). Born Alive: The Legal Status of the Unborn Child in England and the U.S. Southampton: Barry Rose Law Publishers Limited. Jones, Rachel K.; Zolna, Mia R. S.; Henshaw, Stanley K.; Finer, Lawrence B. (March 2008). "Abortion in the US: incidences and access to services, 2005". Perspect and Sex Reprod Health 40 (1): 6–16. Richards, L., Letchford, S. & Stratton, S. (2008). Policing Domestic Violence. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Walker, S. (1980). Popular Justice: A History of American Criminal Justice. Oxford University Press, Inc. New York, NY. Sexual Violence Chapter 6. World Health Organization. 15 April 2011 Retrieved from http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2002/9241545615_chap6_eng.pdf on 13th December, 2013. Time Magazine. (1970). Medicine: Abortion on request. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878789,00.html on 13th December, 2013. Read More