Organization of the US Justice System - Coursework Example

I- Introduction A government’s judicial system is the system of law courts which administer justice and which constitute the judicial branch of government ( Barnett, 2008). Worldwide, there are three major legal or judicial systems, and which consist of civil law, common law and religious law, from which each country develops variations of each system or incorporates many others into one system (Ibid.). The United States (US) legal system is originally based on the English common law but diverged significantly in the 19th century, with substantial indigenous innovations, as well as borrowing of some civil law practices such as codification (Slapper & Kelly, 2008). This paper looks into the US judicial system in terms of its administration and organization, as well as the various issues and concerns that beset it. Further, this paper presents possible solutions to the issues and concerns, along with an organizational model that would best answer the department’s prevalent concerns. II- Review of the US justice system A. General overview The US federal courts comprise the Judiciary Branch of the government, which is organized under the US Constitution and the laws of the US federal government. The federal government as well as each of the forty-nine states has its own criminal justice system, which all respect the rights of the individual as set forth in the court interpretation of the US Constitution, and as defined in case law (Barnett, 2008). State constitutions and laws provide the definition of the criminal justice system of each state, and delegate the authority and responsibility over criminal justice to various jurisdictions, institutions and officials, as well as provide guidelines and definitions of criminal behaviors, groups of children and acts under the jurisdiction of juvenile courts (Ibid.). Further, for the processing of criminal justice that were not established by the State, municipalities and counties define through local ordinances prescribing the local agencies responsible for such cases. The US Congress, on the other hand, has also established a criminal justice system at the federal level to respond to such crimes as bank robbery, kidnapping, and even transporting stolen goods across states (Ibid.). The US justice system has three main components – the police, the courts and the corrections, reflecting the basic processes that justice is served under the US government. Each component functions a vital part in the whole system and is essentially indispensable. In other words, the system is not complete if any of the three components missing. B. Components 1. The Police The US Police Department is responsible in ensuring that the federal justice system operates effectively, efficiently and securely by protecting judicial proceedings; ensuring the safety and security of the federal courts’ environment; apprehending the fugitives from justice; promoting the victims’ participation at every level and stage of criminal and juvenile proceedings; and, administering the country’s bankruptcy laws (Department of Justice, 2003). The US justice system knows about crimes from citizens’ reports to the police, or from police officers who discover crimes on field, from police investigation, and from intelligence work. Once it is established that a crime has been committed, the police is responsible to identify and apprehend the suspect or suspects (Department of Justice, 2008). The role of the police is crucial, as the identification and apprehension of crime suspects is critical in the whole process which is founded primarily on protecting the rights of every individual in the US. A wrong identification and apprehension of crime suspect or suspects already spoils the whole judicial process as well as seriously violates certain individual rights (Ibid.). Various controversies of police mishandling and brutality have resulted from reckless police operations based on wrong information. Further, the police also takes charge in gathering and presenting case information to the prosecutors who shall decide whether formal charges will be filed with the court of not. This is another critical role of the department which requires careful consideration of a wide array of concerns (Ibid.). According to the Villa & Morris (1999, pp56-63), the police have a unique role and position in the society, especially in maintaining a peaceful society where everyone does not have to live in fear, yet police abuses continue to be major concerns, especially in poor and multicultural communities. For instance, the police seem to misuse the public drunkenness law to arbitrarily arrest people of color (i.e., Latinos) and fine them exorbitantly. Further, the police are also being questioned for the unregulated use of the Taser or stun gun during arrests, which advocacy groups claim to have caused deaths in many cases (Ibid.). There are still a number of issues and controversies that beset the US police, which all redound to the question of lack of transparency of police records and lack of self-regulation, especially on manners of handling individuals - whether they are victims, suspects or ordinary civilians (Ibid). 2. The Courts The federal courts, comprised of the US Supreme Court, the US Courts of Appeals, the US District Courts, and the Bankruptcy Courts, are often called the guardians of the Constitution due to the fact that their rulings protect the rights and liberties guaranteed by it, and also interpret and apply the law to resolve disputes through fair and impartial judgments. The courts do not make the laws, nor have the power to enforce them (Barnett, 2008). The US Constitution creates an independent judiciary to ensure fairness and equal justice for all citizens of the US, as well as promotes judicial independence through two essential provisions that protect an independent judiciary to decide on cases without being influenced by popular or political passions: 1) that federal judges are appointed for life, and can only be removed from office through impeachment or conviction by Congress on grounds of treason, bribery or other such high crimes and misdemeanors; and, 2) that the compensation of federal judges be not diminished during their continuance in office, wherein not even the President nor the Congress can reduce the salary of a federal judge (Ibid.). Each of the states also has its own state court systems, wherein most criminal cases, contract cases, tort cases including personal injuries, family law including marriages, divorces, etc. are heard. State courts are considered the final arbiters of state laws and constitutions, and their sometimes unique interpretation of federal law or of the US Constitution may be appealed or further resolved with the US Supreme Court, which in turn may choose to hear or not. The judges may also be appointed for life or by term of office, or a combination of both, depending on the state constitution (Ibid.). The US courts, which must remain fair and impartial all the time, have the following issues which, according to the Justice at Stake Campaign (2009), threaten the whole judiciary system and endanger the citizens’ constitutional rights: a. Federal Court issues: 1) improper impeachment threats wherein politicians from both sides of the spectrum have threatened judges who make controversial decisions; 2) court-stripping or banning court from hearing specific cases which means that the Congress has sought taking away certain disputes off the courts by denying the latter’s jurisdiction over them; and, 3) partisanship over judicial appointments which wherein judicial appointments are increasingly influenced by political affiliations. b. State Courts issues: 1) special interest money flooding state court elections in the form of bribery; 2) unnecessary pressure on judicial candidates to commit to specific rulings; and, 3) the need for key reforms on public financing and on appointment or retention. 3. The Corrections The third component that completes the US justice system is the corrections or the Bureau of Prisons, which was established in 1930 within the Department of Justice, with the main responsibility of managing and regulating all federal penal and correctional institutions, which mainly includes administering federal prisons (US Justice Department, 2007) . As reforms were brought to the federal law enforcement, new legislations dramatically altered sentencing in the federal justice system, with the Sentencing Reform act of 1984, which established determinate sentencing, reduced good time and completely abolished parole. As society keeps changing, so do the trends in this bureau, which absorbs all that the justice system have found to be offenders. Population increase at a pace that the corrections facilities as well as the staffing cannot cope with, have become the most pressing issues for this department (Ibid.).   C. General assessment The US justice system, although replete with issues and continuing controversies, is still one of the best and most efficient in the world. The citizens’ vigilance and active involvement in the whole judiciary process has been notably increasing as more and more US citizens are becoming aware of their rights and duties in bringing justice to those who deserve it. The pressing concerns, however, especially on police abuses, lack of transparency in the police records, the increasing political pressures in the courts, and the burgeoning needs of the corrections facilities, cannot be denied nor ignored if the US government wants to serve its people. The organizational set-up of the whole judicial system, which has evolved into a complex web of small agencies and sub-agencies, with more or less almost similar or repetitive roles, has made the whole system a bureaucratic mass within which any ordinary citizen easily gets lost and entangled in some bureaucratic mess that discourages further pursuit of justice. The vulnerability of the system to political maneuverings or influences is a disturbing fact, and such vulnerability must be corrected at all costs. II – Recommendations to improve the system The following are the basic recommendations to address the pressing concerns within the US justice system: 1. To minimize if not totally eliminate the problems on contentious judicial nominations, the senators must establish bipartisan commissions in their respective states to evaluate the qualifications of prospective nominees to the US courts. These commissions then would recommend nominees whom the senators could suggest for the President’s consideration, since ultimately, any nominating decision belongs to the President. It will also help for the administration to use a consultative process involving home state senators of both parties, along with the Senate leadership, before any decisions on the nominees. 2. A multi-sectoral group representative of the minorities, women, and other such sectors of the community, must partner with the state as well as federal police in drawing out policies and mechanisms to help the department become more self-regulating and thus minimizing if not eliminating cases of police abuses. Further, the same multi-sectoral group can provide for mechanisms to make police database more accessible to the community. 3. The Bureau of Corrections’ problem on inadequate facilities and other resources can only be addressed by lobbying for bigger government funds, unless a total shift in its nature is made. For instance, prisons and jail management and administration may be fully privatized, with the government subsidizing according to what it can afford, and the private administration can run the facilities in self-liquidating or income-generating manner, similar to drug rehabilitation facilities or homes for the aged, where the families of the prisoners will pay certain board and lodging fees on a monthly or quarterly or annual basis, depending on the court sentences. Works Cited American Bar Association, 1971. The Urban Police Function. New York. Barnett, H., 2008. Constitutional & Administrative Law. London: Routledge-Cavendish. Bittner, E., 1970. The Functions of Police in Modern Society. Washington D.C.: National Institute of Mental Health. Slapper, G. and Kelly, D., 2008. The English Legal System. London: Routledge-Cavendish. US Department of Justice, 2003. Available online at www.ojp.usdoj.gov, accessed 16 November 2009. US Department of Justice, 2007. Available online at www.ojp.usdoj.gov, accessed 16 November 2009. US Department of Justice, 2009. Available online at www.ojp.usdoj.gov, accessed 16 November 2009. Vila, B. & Morris, C., 1999. The Role of Police in American Society: A Documentary History. Read More