Deck 1: Crime and Criminal Justice

Question 1

Approximately ____ percent of the people arrested on felony charges are eventually convicted in criminal court?

A)30
B)40
C)50
D)60

Answer 1

A

Question 2

If someone were to comment to you that crime in the United States is a contemporary problem, you would respond by saying:

A)Crime is not a contemporary problem but has been evolving since the nation was founded.
B)Crime rates today are higher than they were in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
C)In a historical sense, crime peaked during Civil War times and has been diminishing since that era.
D)Crime today is comparable to the lawlessness of the Old West.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Discretion by police officers occurs during the first four stages of the criminal justice process. In order, what are those stages?

A)Initial contact, arrest, charging, custody
B)Initial contact, investigation, arrest, charging
C)Initial contact, investigation, arrest, custody
D)Initial contact, arrest, investigation, charging

Answer 3

C

Question 4

At what stage of the formal criminal justice process does the defendant enter a plea of guilty or not guilty?

A)Arraignment
B)Criminal trial
C)Preliminary hearing
D)Bail hearing

Question 5

Criminal justice can be viewed as a process that takes an offender through a series of decision points, beginning with arrest and concluding with reentry. Which of the following is an extralegal factor that critics argue may be involved in this process?

A)Offender's race
B)Offender's prior record
C)Seriousness of offense
D)Available evidence

Question 6

Which of the following crimes would be placed in the top layer (layer 1) of the criminal justice "wedding cake"?

A)A noted celebrity is arrested for shooting her bodyguard.
B)A burglary occurs at a local tavern.
C)An individual is arrested for public drunkenness.
D)A first time offender assaults a friend.

Question 7

According to this justice perspective, the proper role of the justice system is to prevent crime through the judicious use of criminal sanctions. It demands an efficient system that hands out tough sanctions to those who violate the law.

A)Crime control
B)Rehabilitation
C)Due process
D)Equal justice

Question 8

Almost ____ percent of all cases end in a plea bargain, rather than a criminal trial.

A)60
B)70
C)80
D)90

Question 9

The use of the term "criminal justice system" reflected a view that justice agencies could be connected in an intricate yet often unobserved network of decision-making processes. When was the term "criminal justice system" first used?

A)After the findings of the Chicago Crime Commission
B)After the findings of the American Bar Foundation project
C)After the findings of the Wickersham Commission
D)After the findings of the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice

Question 10

In the 1950s, the American Bar Foundation project discovered that:

A)Most citizens were fearful of the police.
B)Racial profiling was a serious problem.
C)Most crime was not reported to the police.
D)The justice system kept many procedures hidden from the public.

Question 11

What is known about the correctional population in the United States over the past decade?

A)The correctional population has been consistently decreasing with 7 million people currently under the control of the correctional system.
B)The correctional population has been consistently increasing with 7 million people currently under the control of the correctional system.
C)The correctional population has fluctuated widely over the years with 7 million people currently under the control of the correctional system.
D)The correctional population has remained steadily constant with 7 million people currently under the control of the correctional system.

Question 12

What commission, appointed by President Herbert Hoover, made a detailed analysis of the U.S. justice system and helped usher in the era of treatment and rehabilitation?

A)Chicago Crime Commission
B)American Bar Foundation Commission
C)Wickersham Commission
D)President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice

Question 13

Which of the following statements is true?

A)From 1900 to 1935, the U.S. experienced a sustained increase in criminal activity.
B)Organized gangs flourished in the largest cities of the U.S. in the early 1900s.
C)The first criminal gangs formed before the Civil War in urban slums.
D)All of the above statements are true.

Question 14

For every 1000 crimes, approximately ____ people are sent to prison.

A)20
B)40
C)60
D)80

Question 15

Which courts review whether the judge conducted the trial in an approved manner?

A)Magistrate courts
B)Special courts
C)Appellate courts
D)There is no court to review the conduct of the judge during trial.

Question 16

If the prosecution can present sufficient evidence, the grand jury will issue a(n) ____, which specifies the exact charges on which the accused must stand trial.

A)true bill of indictment
B)information
C)charging bill
D)nolle prosequi

Question 17

Which of the following statements is false?

A)Crime control advocates call for harsh punishment as a deterrent to crime.
B)Crime control advocates do not want legal technicalities to help the guilty go free and tie the hands of justice.
C)Crime control advocates argue the more efficient the system, the greater its effectiveness.
D)Crime control advocates do not question the criminal justice system's ability to rehabilitate offenders.

Question 18

The contemporary criminal justice system can be divided into three main components:

A)Law enforcement, the courts, and the legislature.
B)The courts, the correctional system, and the legislature.
C)Law enforcement, the courts, and the correctional system.
D)Law enforcement, the correctional system, and the legislature.

Question 19

The criminal justice system is vast and costs federal, state, and local governments:

A)About $65 billion per year.
B)About $115 billion per year.
C)About $165 billion per year.
D)About $215 billion per year.

Question 20

According to this justice perspective, the justice system serves as a mechanism of caring for and treating people who cannot manage themselves. It assumes people are at the mercy of social, economic, and interpersonal conditions.

A)Crime control
B)Rehabilitation
C)Due process
D)Equal justice

Question 21

Criminal justice is defined as the system of law enforcement, adjudication, and correction that is directly involved in the apprehension, prosecution, and control of those charged with criminal offenses.

Question 22

The case of an intoxicated teenager who committed a burglary and netted $50 would most likely be found in the third layer of the wedding cake model of criminal justice.

Question 23

The core of the equal justice perspective is that all people should receive the same treatment under the law.

Question 24

Less serious felonies make up the bottom layer (Level 4) of the criminal justice system wedding cake.

Question 25

Proponents of this justice perspective are concerned about the effect of the stigma that criminal suspects bear when they are given negative labels such as "rapist" or "child molester." They believe that justice agencies should limit their involvement with criminal defendants.

A)Rehabilitation
B)Nonintervention
C)Equal justice
D)Restorative justice

Question 26

If you believe that procedural fairness, civil rights, and the rule of law are inviolate principles, which justice perspective do you favor?

A)Crime control
B)Due process
C)Equal justice
D)Rehabilitation

Question 27

Most criminal cases are processed through the entire formal justice system.

Question 28

Adherents of this justice perspective believe that the greatest concern of the justice system should be providing fair and equitable treatment to those accused of committing a crime.

A)Crime control
B)Rehabilitation
C)Due process
D)Equal justice

Question 29

Crime is higher today than it was in the 19ᵗʰ and early 20ᵗʰ centuries.

Question 30

Which of the following statements is false?

A)Ethical issues transcend all elements of the criminal justice system.
B)It is often difficult to determine what is fair and just and balance this concern with the needs of the public.
C)Ethical issues stop with the arrest of a suspect.
D)Ethical behavior is important in law enforcement because officers have the authority to deprive individuals of their liberty.

Question 31

Advocates of this justice perspective argue that resolution of the conflict between criminal and victims should take place in the community in which it originated and not in a distant prison.

A)Crime control
B)Due process
C)Nonintervention
D)Restorative justice

Question 32

Which justice perspective advocates mediation rather than coercive punishment?

A)Rehabilitation
B)Nonintervention
C)Equal justice
D)Restorative justice

Question 33

Ethical issues are no longer a concern once a defendant has been convicted of a crime.

Question 34

Advocates of which justice perspective believe criminals are society's victims?

A)Crime control
B)Due process
C)Equal justice
D)Rehabilitation

Question 35

Which of the following is false regarding teh ethical role of the prosecutor?

A)S/he has an obligation to uphold the law and obtain convictions as vigorously as possible
B)S/he must share all evidence with the defense
C)His or her dual role as representative of the people and officer of the court is ethically challenging
D)S/he may use scare tactics and intimidation

Question 36

Advocates of this justice perspective point out that the justice system remains an adversarial process that pits the forces of the state against those of a solitary individual accused of a crime.

A)Crime control
B)Due process
C)Nonintervention
D)Rehabilitation

Question 37

The contemporary criminal justice system is society's instrument of formal social control.

Question 38

Police officers can arrest someone if they have a "gut feeling" that the person is guilty of a criminal offense.

Question 39

The crime control perspective views the justice system as a means of caring for and treating people who cannot manage themselves.

Question 40

Ethical issues transcend all elements of the justice system. Why are ethical standards so important in criminal justice?

A)Without ethical decision making, it is possible that individual civil rights and liberties will suffer.
B)Agents of the criminal justice system have access to citizens' most personal information, raising concerns of privacy and confidentiality.
C)Justice system personnel may work in an environment where moral ambiguity is widespread.
D)Ethical standards are important in the justice system for all these reasons.

Question 41

The ____________________ perspective has influenced the development of sentencing policies that emphasize mandatory punishments.

Question 42

The "wedding cake" model is an alternative to the traditional criminal justice flowchart. Using specific examples, elaborate the wedding cake model. Address how society and the justice system respond to crimes committed at each level.

Question 43

The ____________________ is comprised of the prosecutor, defense attorney, judge, and other court personnel who function to streamline the process of justice.

Question 44

Explain how the formal criminal justice system differs from the informal criminal justice system. What factors in the formal system of criminal justice impact and influence the informal criminal justice system?

Question 45

Discuss how the criminal justice assembly line results in the concept of a "criminal justice funnel." What are the potential consequences of this model on society?

Question 46

Describe the main components of the contemporary criminal justice system. Include a discussion of the size of the system.

Question 47

The term ____________________ became prominent around 1967 when the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice began a nationwide study of the nation's crime problem.

Question 48

Explain why Herbert Packer describes the criminal justice process as an assembly line process.

Question 49

Why are ethics important in criminal justice? Choose a component of the justice system and discuss ethical issues of importance.

Question 50

____________________ is the term used to describe the process through which large numbers of cases are systematically filtered out of the formal criminal justice process.

Question 51

Illustrate, through the use of examples, that crime is not a recent phenomenon.

Question 52

The ____________________ stage of justice gathers sufficient evidence to identify a suspect and support a legal arrest.

Question 53

The goal of the ____________________ perspective is to enable the offender to appreciate the damage caused, to make amends, and to be reintegrated back into society.

Question 54

Millions of misdemeanors, such as disorderly conduct, shoplifting, public drunkenness, and minor assault, comprise ____________________ of the criminal justice "wedding cake." Lower courts handle these cases in an assembly-line fashion.

Question 55

Compare the crime control perspective of criminal justice to the due process perspective of criminal justice. How do these two perspectives differ and why? Elaborate how the use of one of the alternate perspectives on justice might change society's view on crime and criminals.

Question 56

Decriminalization, deinstitutionalization, and pretrial diversion are favored by those adhering to the ____________________ perspective.

Question 57

Compare and contrast the rehabilitation perspective of criminal justice to the restorative justice perspective of criminal justice. How do these two perspectives differ and why?

Question 58

Discuss the role of ethics in the monitoring of sexual offenders from the perspective of two different personnel in the criminal justice system (police officer, corrections officer, defense attorney, prosecutor, etc.).

Question 59

When prosecutors decide to take no further action after conducting a preliminary investigation of the legal matters of a case it is referred to as a(n) ____________________.

Question 60

The first police agency was developed in 1829 in ____________________.