• Information about the criminal justice system in America.Legal Law Justice image by Stacey Alexander from Fotolia.com
  
  America has a long criminal justice history, dating back to the Colonial period. Law enforcement was established to arrest offenders and investigate crime, while the courts were established to hear cases and sentence the guilty parties. Today, America still uses law officials and courts to deal with crime and punishment. Many law officials are now looking at crime prevention rather than focusing only on sentencing and punishment.
  
  

Crime Control

• Repressing crime and preventing future crimes is one principle of the criminal justice system. The proponents of this model believe that policing can deter crime, with a large focus placed on screening suspects, determining guilt and securing appropriate dispositions of people convicted of crimes. This type of criminal justice model focuses on supporting the police in their efforts to detain, arrest and get criminals convicted. The crux of this model is to protect the innocent from harm and retain overall public order and safety. This model holds the belief that a person accused of a crime is guilty until proven innocent. The main goals of this model are prevention and police protection, both designed to help make neighborhoods and communities safer.
  
  

Due Process

• Due process is more concerned with the structure and efficiency of the law, than with punishing criminals for crimes committed. This model places emphasis on using evidence to solve crimes, impartial fact-finding and finding justice for both the accused and the victim. This model is concerned with constitutional rights and the idea that the accused should be treated fairly and assumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Due process is a principle that prosecutors, defense attorneys and legal rights groups focus on, as due process usually means a fair and speedy trial for the accused. Whether innocent or guilty, the process of investigation, court trial and sentencing is as important as preventing crimes.
  
  

Systems Approach

• This model of criminal justice focuses on the systems that surround a criminal, a victim and the judicial system. The system's model of criminal justice shows the interlocking relationships among all three of the systems, with proponents of the approach believing that all three components are important in to preventing crime, reducing recidivism and providing fair trials and fair outcomes for the accused and the victims. The thought behind the systems approach is that when a piece of the system is not working properly, other parts of the system will fail as well, causing disruption in the entire criminal justice system. This approach isn't as focused on innocence or guilt as it is on community involvement, prevention and crime awareness.