CRJ 422 Week 3 assignment - Essay Example

CRJ 422 Week 3 Assignment Introduction Terrorism is an international problem that demands an international response. America is a country that has been at the forefront of fighting terrorist activities both domestically and internationally. Nevertheless, the fight against terrorism took a dynamic change following the terrorist attack on the world trade center in 2001. The anti-terrorism unit and the existing law enforcement agencies in the country advocated more specific modalities with which the war against terrorism can be fought.

In respond to the need for a provision of more specific tools to fight terrorism, the United States Congress passed the Patriot Act in October 2001 as a mitigation measure to strengthen the security situation in the country. Following the implementation of the Patriot and the homeland security acts, there have been divergent opinions on the implication of the acts on the rights of the citizens. In an attempt to understand the operational modalities of the patriot act and the homeland security act, this paper will explore them with reference to their impact on social justice (Ebenger, 2008).

The patriot act Following an attack on the world trade center and the anthrax attack of 2001, the Congress passed the Patriot Act to control the security situation in the country. Application of the patriot act authorized the detention of immigrants indefinitely, the act at the same time gives the law enforcement officers permission to search a person’s home or business without the individual’s permission. The act allows the FBI to search emails, telephone records, and financial records of suspects without a court order (Ebenger, 2008).

Homeland security act The Homeland Security Act was signed into law in 2002 by President George Bush, creating the position level to cabinet under the title of secretary of homeland security. The establishment of the department of homeland security was for the core purposes of preventing terrorist attack within the United States, to reduce the vulnerability of the country to terrorist attack and to minimize damage as well as enhance recovery in instances of a terrorist attack. The act provides the law enforcement agencies with the authority to direct and control information that is needed to prevent a terrorist attack.

The authority extends to where the law enforcement agencies can request for a person’s personal health information without the patient or the guardians consent (Mccreight, 2010).Proponents of patriot and homeland security acts In support of the patriot and the homeland security acts, the proponents of the two Acts point out to the desperate situation of the security system in the country as the need for enforcement of the acts. Withholding of the operation of the acts would thus mean a suspected terrorist is informed of his or her right and request of the court order for the detention of the suspect.

The proponents of the acts see this as a means with which loopholes to management of terrorism situations in the country could be created, thus the security system must be armed with the entire arsenal at their disposal for the management of terrorism (Flynn, 2011).Critics of patriot and homeland security acts Basing of the bill of right, the constitution provides for the fundamentals of human rights that the critics of the Patriot and Homeland Security Acts base their argument. The Constitution protects all individuals from arbitrary search, which the patriot act violates according to the critics.

In relation to detention of an immigrant indefinitely, critics of patriot and homeland security acts cite Miranda rights, thus pointing to the acts as one that violates the natural system of social justice. Homeland security act on its part reduce the privacy of citizens as well as increasing the secrecy of the government that is seen as a violation of the rights of the citizens (Ebenger, 2008).ReferencesEbenger, T. (2008). The USA PATRIOT Act: Implications for Private E-Mail. Journal of Information Technology & Politics. Flynn, S. (2011).

Recalibrating homeland security. Foreign Affairs.Mccreight, R. (2010). Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Journal Of Homeland Security And Emergency Management, 7, 10–12.