Sample Report On The Criminal Justice Tree

Cybercrime has become on the fastest growing areas of criminal activity however, the response from law enforcement has not been very comprehensive until recently (PERF, 2104). At the federal level, where fighting cybercrime has become a priority, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was created a dedicated all-in-one cybercrime unit that is responsible for investigating complex and often international cybercrimes. A typical FBI cybercrime case might involve a cybercrime collective whose members are located in different parts of the country and world that deal in the illegal sale of stolen identities, drugs, or weapons. The FBI broad jurisdictional authority over the nation, it worldwide footprint and contacts make it an ideal base not only to conduct an investigation but to coordinate similar investigations into the group anywhere there is evidence that it exists.
At the state level, there is the State Patrol’s Computer High Crime Unit (CHCU) which technical investigative and digital forensic support for a wide range of computer crimes including Internet fraud, child pornography and embezzlement to state police cybercrime investigations or the similar investigations by outside agencies (WSP, 2008). For example, the CHCU might play an important role in the investigation of a particular group of cybercriminals from the cybercrime collective mentioned above that are operating within the state. Evidence and information gather by the CHCU may be used by state authorities to bring a charge against the group’s members or used in the larger FBI investigation.
Lastly at the local level, the local police department’s Internet Crimes against Children Unit (ICCU) has cybercrime unit that is dedicated to the cybercrimes most likely to affect the local, namely those involving children (SPD, 2015). In addition, the local police department serves as a base for referral of more serious cybercrimes to state or federal authorities. Accordingly, the ICCU might be called to investigate a local resident that is suspected of being involved in child pornography from his home with local school children. If that investigation, my lead to evidence, that the individual is involved, such as his distribution of videos he made locally, in the state-wide group being investigated by the CHCU or the international collective being investigated by the FBI, then he might be liable for local, state and federal charges.
The similar and contrasting; overlapping and unique areas that federal, state, and local law enforcement are involved in for cybercrime is also present in a number of criminal activities such as terrorism. Terrorism, like cybercrime, is at once local, national and international. Accordingly police at all levels not only must be aware of the threat but also must have the ability to communicate with other levels of law enforcement authority in order for there to be an effective deterrence.
For example, at the city level, the duty of the local police is to enforce the city’s criminal laws and protect the community from harm, whether the perpetrator is domestic or international terrorist. Accordingly, if they are informed or have reason to believe that a suspect is about to set off a bomb, they need to respond just as if he were an average criminal set to do harm. They are focused mainly on what local laws he has or will break in trying to carry out the act. At the state or county level, law enforcement officials are concerned with the safety to the citizens of the state or county. If they have reason to believe that the terrorist suspect, identified by the local police, is operating across city lines, then they would need to deploy their personnel to track down or investigate links or evidence tying the suspect to activity or other around the state. For example, maybe police found that attack a state highway, port or train station which would require the use of state police involvement. Lastly, the FBI would become involved if the case showed that the suspect had links to an international terrorist organization or terrorist groups located in other parts of the country. As in the investigation of a cybercrime, the FBI’s jurisdiction to investigate nationwide and international crimes gives it the authority and expertise to investigate such potentially broad, complex cases involving an number of people and place spread across the country and world.

References

Barlow, H. (2000). Criminal Justice in America. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Bureau of Justice Statistics – BJS (n.d.).What is the Sequence of Events in the Criminal Justice System. Retrieved on April 7, 2015, from http://www.bjs.gov/content/justsys.cfm
Federal Bureau of Investigation – FBI. (n.d.). Addressing Threats to the Nation’s Cybersecurity. Retrieved on April 7, 2015, from, http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/cyber/addressing-threats-to-the-nations-cybersecurity
Police Executive Research Forum – PERF. (2014, Apr.). The Role of Local Law Enforcement Agencies in Preventing and Investigating Cybercrime. Retrieved on April 7, 2015, from http://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Critical_Issues_Series_2/the%20role%20of%20local%20law%20enforcement%20agencies%20in%20preventing%20and%20investigating%20cybercrime%202014.pdf
Seattle Police Department – SPD (2015). Internet Crimes Against Children. Retrieved on April 7, 2015, from http://www.seattle.gov/police/units/investigations/ICAC.htm
Washington State Patrol –WSP. (2008). Investigation. Retrieved on April 7, 2015, from http://www.wsp.wa.gov/crime/iad.htm