Introduction to Criminal Justice is a course that is a pre-requisite course for any student who has the dream of being a part of the criminal justice system in the United States. Many students have different aspirations about what they would like to do if given the opportunity to serve their communities in the wide field of crime and law enforcement. Like most college programs, criminal justice majors are required to take introductory courses in order to proceed to the higher level courses.
Taking students on a journey throughout the justice system, this introductory course covers a wide spectrum. Students will learn the different motivations for crimes, as well as the processes by which a crime is dealt with in the court systems. In this pre-requisite course students are also given background knowledge on the functions of the police and corrections department. They will also examine the many different controversial issues that affect how law enforcement executes their mission in the 21st century.
The first part of the program is the introduction to what the students will be studying within the class. The first thing students must do is learn the definition of exactly what criminal behavior is. Students will then learn about the different types of criminal offenses, along with the duties of the many different personnel who are responsible for helping enforce law and order within the many jurisdictions of the different states.
The first set of personnel that students will learn about is police officers. Police officers are the front line of defense against crime. They will learn about the history of the police force as well as the many laws and policies which govern policing. In addition, they will explore what the role of the police officer is within the community.
After learning about the police, students are next exposed to the court system. There are many personnel within the court house and those in this class are responsible for learning the duties of the district attorney, the judge, the jury and the defense attorney. Students will also learn about the way a case progresses through the court system and how each party has different responsibilities depending on where the case is at the time.
The court system may be intriguing, but another area of fascination is the corrections department. When learning about corrections, students are learning about the punishment phase of law enforcement. They will learn about the lives inmates lead behind bars as well as the different levels of punishment and how they correspond to the varying levels of criminal acts.
The last part of the Introduction to Criminal Justice class is the discussion of the controversial issues that plague law enforcement. These issues can be simple ones, such as how drug abuse affects motivation to commit crime or tough issues such as what is the proper level of punishment for violent juvenile offenders.
Most students have an idea of how they would like to serve the community and classes through criminal justice colleges offered on-campus and online can answer this need. Scholarships and grants can often allow students to attend college for free and in this field these monies from the government and the community are a great investment.
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