In this assessment, you will research a criminal justice program or policy to assess whether the corrective and/or preventative goals of the program are effective.
Preparation
Select 1 criminal justice program or policy to research and assess. Example topics include:
- Police funding
- Police body cameras
- Social workers/mental health professionals versus police
- No bail policy/bail reform
- Preventive detention of suspects
- Early-release programs
- Recidivism programs
- Crime prevention
- Red flag law
- Victim/witness advocacy
- Court interpreter programs
Research 1 criminal case related to your selected criminal justice program or policy.
Assessment Deliverable
Write a 800 word assessment of the effectiveness of your selected criminal justice program or policy. The analysis will be included in a report to a legislative committee in your state. The committee members are interested in learning the challenges and benefits of the program/policy.
Use the following headings and prompts below to guide your thinking and the information you include in your analysis:
Criminal Justice Program/Policy Overview
Summarize your selected criminal justice program/policy. Include the following components:
- What criminal justice agency or subdomain (i.e., law enforcement, courts, corrections) is affiliated with the program/policy?
- What is the rationale behind the selected criminal justice program/policy?
- What are the intended outcomes for the selected criminal justice program/policy?
- What are some benefits of the program/policy?
- How does the selected criminal justice program/policy reduce or manage risks in criminal justice contexts?
- How does the selected criminal justice program/policy solve a problem related to criminal justice?
Criminal Case Analysis
- Describe a criminal case that illustrates either intended or unintended outcomes of the criminal justice program/policy. Consider the following guiding questions:
- What were the events of the criminal case? What was the problem that needed to be addressed?
- What agencies were involved in the criminal case? What role did criminal justice professionals play?
- Did criminal justice professionals assess or manage risk in the criminal case? Why or why not?
- Did criminal justice professionals use RCA to solve a problem(s)? Why or why not?
- How was the criminal case resolved?
Program/Policy Assessment
Analyze the effectiveness of the corrective and/or preventative approaches of the criminal justice program/policy in relation to the criminal case you described. Consider the following guiding questions:
- Did the outcome(s) of the criminal case and the actions of the criminal justice professionals align with the intended goals of the program or policy?
- If yes, explain how the outcomes support corrective and/or preventative goals of the program/policy. Include details about strategies criminal justice professionals used to produce a successful outcome.
- If no, identify key problems with the corrective and/or preventative goals of the policy/program and recommend 1 or 2 changes that could improve outcomes in the future.
Cite at least 3 scholarly sources, in addition to the textbook, to support your analysis.
Format your summary according to APA guidelines.