Criminal and Juvenile Justice Chapter 20

Types of Crime Crimes Against People Crimes Against Property White-Collar Crime Victimless Crimes Crimes Against the Government

Causes of Crime Poverty Social Change and Changing Values Poor Parenting Drug Use and Mental Illness Permissive Courts Not Enough Money for Police Violence in the Media

The Arrest and Pretrial Process Probable Cause: a good reason to believe that a suspect has been involved in a crime Warrant: a legal paper, issued by a court, giving police permission to make an arrest, seizure, or search The Preliminary Hearing The prosecutor must show the judge that a crime has been committed and that there is enough evidence against the defendant to go ahead with the case Bail: money that a defendant gives the court as a kind of promise that he or she will return for the trail

Grand Jury- must review cases involving serious federal crimes Indictment: a formal charge against the accuse—or refuse to indict Arraignment: a court hearing in which the defendant is formally charged with a crime and enter a plea of guilty, or not guilty, or no contest Pretrial Motions- steps taken if the defendant pleads not guilty Plea Bargaining Bargaining: agreeing to plead guilty in exchange for a lesser charge or lighter sentence

Going to Trial Jury Selection- citizens are called to serve on a jury. They are questioned to determine who will listen carefully to evidence and then make a fair decision. The Trial- must be speedy and public, the attorneys will call their own witnesses, and ask them questions in court. The jury must decide whether the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. If they cannot agree, it is called a hung jury. Sentencing- the law sets a maximum and minimum sentence for each crime

Correctional Institutions Cities and countries run jails They hold people waiting for trial Both state and federal governments run prisons. People convicted of serious crimes, are usually sent to prisons. Parole: letting an inmate go free to serve the rest of his or her sentence outside of prison

Proposals for Fighting Crime Preventing Crime Being Tougher on Criminals Rehabilitation

Important Criminal Vocabulary Assault: placing someone in fear without actual physical contact Battery: physical contact occurs, as with a weapon or foot, where one person is trying to physically harm another person Burglary: when a person breaks into a building and plans to do something illegal inside Embezzlement: stealing money that has been entrusted to your care Treason: the betrayal of one country by helping its enemies or by making war against it Terrorism: crime in which people or groups of people use, or say they will use, violence in order to get what they want from the government or society

Juvenile Courts Most states identify a juvenile as a person under the age of 18, although a few states set the age at 16 or 17 Delinquent: a juvenile who is found guilty of a crime Status Offender: a youth who is found guilty of running away, disobedience, or truancy (skipping school without permission)

Juvenile Court Procedure Arrest- police have the power to decide what to do with juvenile– return to parents or give to a social service agency Intake- decide if case should be sent to juvenile court Initial Hearing- the judge must be convinced that a law was broken and that there is good evidence that the young person was the one who broke it The Adjudicatory Hearing- takes the place of the trial, and there is no jury, but may have an attorney The Dispositional Hearing- the judge decides the sentence, and considers the youth’s school situation, family, and past behavior Aftercare- each youth is assigned to a parole officer who can give advice and information about what to do once released from an institution

Strengthening Juvenile Justice Community-Based Programs Community Residential Treatment Center- youths live in small group homes instead of being committed to a large state institution Diversion Programs Educate youths and show them possibilities other than crime Tough wilderness programs Preventing Juvenile Crime A large percentage of adults convicted of crimes first got in trouble with the law when they were youths Instead of being rehabilitated, they went on to commit more crimes To better society we must prevent juvenile crime