Three Main Components - Essay Example

Running Head: The Three Components of the America Criminal Justice System. The Criminal Justice System. College DateAmerica is world’s largest democracy and therefore the rule of law as anchored in the constitution is extremely important to the American society. Law enforcement is ensured through a number of mechanisms and one important such mechanism is the criminal justice system. Criminal justice is of great importance to any democratic society and America entrusts the criminal justice system with the role of ensuring justice for all as well as maintaining law & order thorough fair administration of the goals of punishment.

As such the government expends a significant amount of per capita income on the criminal justice system. It is therefore important to understand the functions, structure and how the criminal American criminal justice system works. The criminal justice system three main components charged with different roles that ensure justice and order. These are the police, courts and corrections working synergistically to serve the intended purpose. Police component of the criminal justice system is composed of state and special service police.

State police arm is charged with the roles of patrolling highways, enforcing law & order in rural locations and assisting in the investigative function of local police. Special service police ensure law enforcement in institutions such as the transport sector, school districts, housing etc. The court system in the United States is divided into two i.e. state and federal courts. There is in that states have their own independent court systems. Three levels exist in most state court systems which are the court with limited jurisdiction, courts with general jurisdiction as well as appellate courts.

Courts majorly are charged with guarding the constitution in addition to assurance of law and order. Corrections are those functions of the criminal justice system aimed at rehabilitating offenders. Programs include paroles, probation, and prisons. Prisons are also of two types; detention and correctional facilities. The court system is the most effective component of the criminal justice system when it comes to discharge its duties. This because it involves adversaries; defense attorney and prosecutor work as opponents while defending their clients’ rights.

Victims and the state are represented by the prosecutor while accused persons are represented by their attorneys. The courts are at all times mindful of the individual rights of both accused persons and victims as they are guardians of the constitution. They are obliged to follow “Due process right” as envisaged in the bill of rights as well as Supreme Court’s interpretation of the constitution. Defendants can also seek redress in a higher court if they are not satisfied with judgment given.

Police component can be seen to be the most ineffective owing the myriad of issues that surround it. Corruption when enforcing law has been a major problem for a long time now. Abuse of police powers, brutality on citizens, racial profiling as well as discrimination of minorities when it comes to recruitment into the force are some issues the affect the faith of citizens in the police adversely. There is need for deliberate efforts of reforming the police service in order to have a representative team.

Proper training, decent housing, good remuneration and more empowerment are some things that would restore dignity in the police force. Also ensuring fairness and inclusivity in recruitment will go a long way in restoring public trust in our police services. In conclusion therefore the American criminal justice system is an important aspect of the rule of law considering we are the largest democracy in the world and in a democracy the rights of individuals must be upheld. The three components work hand in hand to ensure law and order in the society while safeguarding the intentions of the American constitution.

The police function should be reformed and empowered more to enable them make accurate decisions on whether to prosecute or not and thus prevent miscarriage of justice at the earliest possible time.References.1. Freda Adler, Gerhard O. W. Mueller, and William Laufer (2002). Criminal Justice: An Introduction. (3rd ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill.