Term Paper On Criminal Justice

The US does not have a single criminal justice system, but rather many similar justice systems depending on the different areas in the US (NCVC, 2012). The jurisdiction that is in charge of the case determines the procedure of the criminal justice system. These jurisdictions include county, federal, military installation, tribal government, state, and city. These various jurisdictions have their own laws processes and agencies that manage criminal proceedings. Some of the main systems include federal criminal justice and the state criminal justice. The state criminal justice system handles criminal activities that are committed within the state. The federal criminal justice system handles criminal activities that are committed across several states or on federal property (NCVC, 2012). The criminal justice system has three parts that include police; courts, and corrections. These parts base their roots on the English customs and laws.
The US criminal justice is still clinging to the death penalty whereas most nations in the world have done away with this capital punishment. There have been plenty of debates concerning the issue of death penalty in the US. One of the reasons has to do with the public concern (Hughes and Fenster, 2011). The US is a free country where people are allowed to exercise their freedom. Sometimes this freedom can be abused and people end up living in fear because they do not know if the other person will use his freedom to commit crimes that include murder. The justice system holds onto the death penalty so as to prevent people from committing murder. Most people value their lives and will desist from engaging in activities that may leave them with a death sentence.
The use criminal justice system in the US also has the highest numbers of prisoners compared to the prisoners in other parts of the world. The policies in the US make it very easy for people to be incarcerated. The policies in other countries use other ways that help in reducing the number of people who find themselves in prison. These countries use community based actions that help former prisoners to stay out of prison. An example is the provision of treatment towards a person who has an addiction (Hughes and Fenster, 2011). Proper treatment of that person will enable the person to recover and engage in activities that will not land him back in prison.
The prisons in other countries avail education to the prisoners on skills that can enable them to earn a living. Some prisoners are taught how to make handicrafts. These skills prove to be very helpful once they get out of prison. They can utilize these skills to start a successful business. People engage in criminal activities because they are lacking something in their lives or they have a condition that requires treatment. Most countries prefer to give sentences in form of fines, probation, treatment, or community service (Hughes and Fenster, 2011). On the other hand, the criminal justice in the US prefers to put people in prison. The prison sentences in other countries are also shorter compared to the length of prison sentences in the US. Basically, the US is driven by the needs of its law abiding citizens who prefer to be safer rather than be exposed to criminals.
The US criminal justice system is retributive in nature compared to the restorative nature of the criminal justice system in Scandinavian countries. A good example is the Norwegian case of Anders Breivik who was only given a prison sentence of 21 years after killing 77 people (Fisher, 2012). The criminal justice system in Norway has a restorative nature where the focus is on healing of the victims, the society, and the criminal. The criminal is imprisoned not as a punishment, but as a way of transforming that person to be good or restoring that person to a good state. The restorative justice system allows the victims to confront the criminal through trial. On the other hand, the retributive nature of the criminal justice system in the US involves only the hearing and evaluation of the case held against the victim. The retributive justice system focuses on punishing the criminal by measuring the weight of the damage suffered by the society (Fisher, 2012).

Works Cited

NCVC. The Criminal Justice System. 2012. Web. 11 Apr. 2015. http://www.victimsofcrime.org/help-for-crime-victims/get-help-bulletins-for-crime-victims/the-criminal-justice-system
Hughes Zerline & Jason Fenster. Finding Direction: US Should Consider Other Nations’ Justice Policies. 20 Apr. 2011. Web. 11 Apr. 2015. http://www.justicepolicy.org/news/2321
Fisher Max. A Different Justice: Why Anders Breivik Only got 21 Years for Killing 77 People. 24 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 Apr. 2015. http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/08/a-different-justice-why-anders-breivik-only-got-21-years-for-killing-77-people/261532/