Deck 4: Racial Discrimination in the Criminal Justice System

Question 1

In a political context, what means equal access to public office and equal treatment under the law?

A) Justice
B) Equality
C) Rights
D) Non-discrimination

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Most research suggests that while there is an absence of systematic racial discrimination in the U.S. criminal justice system:

A) There is systematic ethnic discrimination.
B) Jim Crow laws still result in discrimination against minorities.
C) Grand apartheid is evident everywhere in the country.
D) There is discrimination in some places at specific decision-making points.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which group found that there are two justice systems at work in their state's court; "one for whites, and a very different one for minorities and the poor"?

A) Christopher Commission
B) New York State Judicial Commission on Minorities
C) Warren Commission
D) Rodney King Commission

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Social practices which attribute merits or allocate values to members of racially categorized groups solely because of race are:

A) Ethnicity
B) Race
C) Racism
D) Discrimination

Question 5

With regard to the contention of systematic racism in the criminal justice system:

A) There is no consensus among the researchers
B) There is a strong consensus that systematic racism pervades every jurisdiction
C) There is a strong consensus that racism is rare and not systematic
D) There is very little research available

Question 6

With regard to racism in police decision-making, including arrest and use of force the research results:

A) Almost unanimously show the influence of racial factors
B) Almost unanimously show that race has no influence
C) Are mixed
D) Are not worthy of discussion because the research is poorly done

Question 7

It has been argued that any within the juvenile justice system should be considered separately from the adult system.

A) Arrests
B) Discrimination
C) Interrogation
D) Charges brought

Question 8

"Ethnicity" is a cultural feature and refers to a person's:

A) Identification with a particular group.
B) Primary language.
C) Country of origin.
D) National identity.

Question 9

Discriminatory laws against Blacks enforced by the courts until the mid-1900s were known as:

A) Slavery laws
B) Jim Crow laws
C) Apartheid laws
D) Black laws

Question 10

In one study of police employed by the Cincinnati Police Division, they discovered that more ended in arrest than black officer-suspect interactions.

A) White officer-suspect interactions
B) Native American officer-suspect interactions
C) Hispanic officer-suspect interactions
D) Asian officer-suspect interactions

Question 11

Petit apartheid is:
a. Racism by high ranking government officials
b. Overt racism.
c. Racism by the community
d. Racism between police and minorities

Question 12

The term "race" refers to groups of persons who are relatively alike in their biological inheritance and:

A) Maintain a distinct subculture.
B) Share the same mitochondrial DNA.
C) Are distinct from other groups.
D) Cannot reproduce with other races

Question 13

It is morally impermissible to treat people differently unless there are _________ differences between them.

A) Racial
B) Factual
C) Economic
D) Religious

Question 14

Much interaction between police and minorities may involve "petit apartheid." This term means:

A) Overt racism.
B) Legally sanctioned racism.
C) Jim Crow laws.
D) Informal, low-visibility racism.

Question 15

Information collected by the organization Building Blocks for Youth (2000) revealed that African Americans represent % of juvenile arrests and % of the population nationwide.

A) 15; 26
B) 44; 15
C) 26; 15
D) 44; 58

Question 16

What census year was used to justify discriminatory laws regarded by Whites as necessary until Blacks were able to overcome legacy of slavery through their own efforts?

A) 1870
B) 1880
C) 1890
D) 1900

Question 17

Which of the following aspects to racism involves policies and practices of institutions operate to produce systematic and continuing differences between racial groups?

A) Personal prejudice
B) Ideological racism
C) Institutional racism
D) Practical racism

Question 18

In which United States Supreme Court case did the Court rule that the "separate but equal" doctrine in public schools?

A) Brown v. Topeka
B) Topeka v. Board of Education
C) Bartholomew v. Board of Education
D) Brown v. Board of Education

Question 19

The concept of "grand apartheid" (as distinguished from "petit apartheid") refers to ____________ racism in police interactions with members of minority groups.

A) Occasional
B) Overt
C) Daily, informal
D) Rare

Question 20

Race is factor in the juvenile justice systems not only for blacks but also for Latino and American Indian youth.

A) Not a relevant
B) A minor relevant
C) A moderately relevant
D) Is a relevant

Question 21

Although disputes about the causes remain open, which of the following statements about incarceration rates (per 100,000 persons in the general population) in the U.S. is correct?

A) The Black rate is higher than either the Hispanic or white rate
B) The Hispanic rate is higher than either the Black or white rate
C) The White rate is higher than either the Black or Hispanic rate
D) There are no statistically significant differences in rates between the three groups

Question 22

In which United States Supreme Court case was Baldus' research rejected by the Court?

A) Strauder v. West Virginia
B) McClesky v. Kemp
C) Brown v. Board of Education
D) Plessy v. Ferguson

Question 23

Which court case dealt with the issue of using race as sole reason for excusing potential jurors using peremptory challenges?

A) Strauder v. West Virginia
B) McClesky v. Kemp
C) Brown v. Board of Education
D) Batson v. Kentucky

Question 24

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Batson v. Kentucky (1986) that prosecutors engage in unlawful discrimination when they exclude blacks from jury service through the use of:

A) Inflammatory arguments
B) prosecutorial misconduct
C) challenges for cause
D) peremptory challenges

Question 25

In the aggregate, tend to be convicted less than .

A) Whites; blacks
B) Whites; Hispanics
C) Blacks; Hispanics
D) Blacks; Whites

Question 26

Some have argued that the has been the cause of high ranking enjoyed by drug enforcement.

A) Rise of drug arrests
B) Comprehensive Crime Act of 1984
C) Drug Abuse Act of 1968
D) None of the above

Question 27

Research studies continue to find that _______ has a dramatic effect on reducing criminal behavior.

A) use of force
B) imprisonment
C) education
D) age

Question 28

Research on the death penalty tends to show that:

A) Race of the offender plays a role but race of the victim does not
B) Race of the victim plays a role, but race of the victim does not
C) Race of both the victim and offender play a role
D) Neither the race of the offender or of the victim plays a role

Question 29

When asked what the penalty for murder should be in a national poll, 61% chose _____.

A) Death, but only if it is carried out swiftly
B) Something other than death
C) Life without parole
D) The death penalty

Question 30

According to Doerner and Demuth (2009), which of the following factors was found to have a significant effect on sentencing and makes them suggest that stereotypes may be influential?

A) Age
B) Level of education
C) Prior history
D) Type of offense

Question 31

Research on discrimination in the sentencing process has found that:

A) Blacks are disproportionately given more severe sentences than whites.
B) Past criminal record affects sentencing more than race
C) Blacks receive proportionately more "three-strikes" sentences than whites
D) Blacks receive proportionately fewer sentences of probation than whites

Question 32

A study of federal criminal cases found that when federal prosecutors request a sentence lower than stipulated minimum for those they seemed "salvageable" and "sympathetic" they were likely to request lower sentences for blacks and Hispanic males than for white males.

A) Less
B) Twice as
C) More
D) Three times as

Question 33

In the 2002 General Social Survey, % of blacks favored the death penalty.

A) 24.3
B) 42.1
C) 69.8
D) 74.3

Question 34

Social factors examined by researchers include:

A) Role of poverty
B) Urbanization
C) Macro-social factors
D) All of the above are factors examined

Question 35

A number of studies have concluded that defendants are offered plea bargains more frequently and obtain better deals.

A) Black
B) Hispanic
C) Asian
D) White

Question 36

According to Spohn, Gruhl, and Welch (1987), one analysis showed cases against blacks and Hispanics were likely to be prosecuted than cases against whites.

A) Less
B) Twice as
C) More
D) Three times as

Question 37

In which case did the court strike down a statute limiting jury service to white men on grounds it violated the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution?

A) Strauder v. West Virginia
B) McClesky v. Kemp
C) Brown v. Board of Education
D) Batson v. Kentucky

Question 38

Historically, race and the have been closely associated.

A) Level of education of inmates
B) Death penalty
C) Drug War
D) None of the above

Question 39

According to the results of criminal justice research, which of the following statistics or factors do not evidence the effect of racism against blacks in police-citizen encounters?

A) The frequency of arrests of blacks for sale of cocaine and heroin in proportion to whites
B) The frequency of arrests of black in proportion to whites
C) The neighborhoods in which arrests take place
D) The frequency of police shooting of blacks in proportion to whites

Question 40

Stereotypes concerning jurors of different races, especially in relation to judgments that are made on the basis of limited knowledge:

A) Render it precisely the type of judgment most likely to be biased by race
B) Lead to the conviction of innocent defendants
C) Require the prosecutor to get special permission to question the juror
D) All the defense attorney to file a motion of in re delimited

Question 41

Mauer (2006) notes that in 1980 Blacks accounted for 21% of drug possession arrests rose to 36% by 1991 and then declined to % in 2000.

A) 26
B) 32
C) 36
D) 44

Question 42

Ethnicity is a nonspecific term that means nothing until applied to a particular context.

Question 43

Moore (2015) found that between 2004 and 2009, eleven major sentencing reform bills were introduced, and out of the forty five reform measures, only were enacted.

A) Two
B) Four
C) Seven
D) Ten

Question 44

A difficulty in prosecutions for hate crimes is proving the defendant's:

A) purpose
B) intent
C) motive
D) knowledge

Question 45

In the aggregate, blacks tend to be convicted less than whites.

Question 46

Crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, or ethnicity are known as:

A) Race crimes
B) Hate crimes
C) Bias-motivated crimes
D) Both b and c

Question 47

Prosecutors and defense lawyers are able to use peremptory challenges to excuse potential jurors without identifying any cause or explanation and without any accountability to the court, so it is therefore possible to employ peremptory challenges in the practice of racial discrimination in jury selection.

Question 48

The essence of hate crimes is that they are motivated by bias against the victim's race, ethnicity, religion, etc.

Question 49

Consensus theory believes punishment is based on rational factors such as the seriousness of the offense and prior convictions.

Question 50

Mauer (2006) contends that since the no policy has impacted Black incarceration more than the War on Drugs.

A) 1960s
B) 1970s
C) 1980s
D) 1990s

Question 51

Biologically, the term "race" has a very clear, specific meaning.

Question 52

Disparity in sentencing over the past couple of decades has been highlighted by differing sentences for possessing equal amounts of crack cocaine versus powder cocaine.

Question 53

There is no difference between white and black views about the death penalty.

Question 54

What can be said of racial disparities within the criminal justice system?

A) While there is some evidence, they largely do not exist
B) They have been clearly identified, but nevertheless persist
C) They do not qualify as moral issue due to the government being above common people
D) It is not for policy makers to get involved in eradicating racial inequalities

Question 55

In _______________ theory, criminal law is viewed as an instrument for the protection of the powerful and the elite, and punishment is based on nonrational factors such as race and social class.

A) consensus theory
B) symbolic aspect of social conflict
C) conflict theory
D) moral panics

Question 56

According to conflict theorists:

A) Individuals share values with state
B) Society is comprised of groups of who work together to solve common problems
C) Criminal law is viewed as an instrument of protection for the powerful elite
D) Punishment is based rational factors

Question 57

Petit apartheid encompasses overt racism.

Question 58

Tonry (2010) discounted both racism and inadvertence as cause of racial disparities in the criminal justice system.

A) Psychological
B) Social
C) Discretionary
D) Blatant

Question 59

The institution of slavery reinforced the idea that there were superior and inferior races.

Question 60

Tonry (1998):

A) Argues that the targeting of Black drug offenders was unconsciously done
B) Those who promoted drug policies were not aware that they would disproportionately affect Blacks
C) Points to the reality of ghetto life that entices young Black males into selling drugs
D) Found that it was not easy for drug agents to infiltrate disorganized Black urban drug markets

Question 61

Describe the role that drug laws have played in discrimination in the criminal justice system.

Question 62

It has been argued "that police and minorities should be viewed as distinct groups dynamically and intractably opposed, and that police brutality is an outcome and a symptom of that relationship." How does this situation exacerbate discrimination?

Question 63

Discuss the evidence on the influence of the race of the offender and the race of the victim on the imposition of death sentences? Explain why you think the race of the victim is a factor.

Question 64

Discuss, describe, compare and contrast the results of the New York City and Memphis studies on police use of deadly force and race. What might account for the difference between the two cities?

Question 65

Discuss the evidence on racial discrimination at the major stages of a criminal case.

Question 66

What is the most discussed disparity in drug sentencing in recent years?

Question 67

Define "hate crime."

Question 68

Define "race."

Question 69

In general, what is the difference between Black and White attitudes toward the death penalty?

Question 70

Discuss two theories that attempt to explain racial discrimination in the American criminal justice system. Give a specific example for each theory.

Question 71

What practices would you implement to reduce the discrimination that takes place when making bail decisions?

Question 72

What is the importance of Brown v. Board of Education?

Question 73

Grand apartheid encompasses what type of racism?

Question 74

Define "ethnicity"

Question 75

Historically, and the death penalty have been closely associated.

Question 76

If you were in charge of creating a pool of potential jurors, from where would you draw the names? Why? How might that method be discriminatory?

Question 77

What is a "peremptory challenge?"