Criminal Justice and Society

1.  Describe the "Golden Age of the Victim" and explain how the status of victims differs today from that age. Describe how a changed view of the nature of crime has impacted the status of victims.

          The status of a victim in today court is more challenging and victims are more compensated financially for their emotional and physical pains.A victim is any person against whom an offense has been committed. For certain procedural purposes, a parent or legal guardian is considered to be the victim if the actual victim is below the age of eighteen years or is incompetent. A victim may also be one or more family members or relatives designated by the court if the actual victim is deceased or incapacitated.( Schmalleger,2012).In the “Golden Age of the Victim” Victims are empower to take part in the legal procedure and to make recommendation about the sentencing of the offender.During the “Golden Age of the Victim,” which blossomed a few hundred years ago in England, victims had well-recognized rights, including a personal say in imposing punishments on apprehended offenders.( Schmalleger,2012). The nature of crime has depends on the magnitude of the offence and that determines  how much compensation that will be paid to victims affected.

2.     Explain what is meant by "victims' rights" and assess whether today's crime victims have sufficient rights. Going along with this assessment, summarize the impact that a victims' rights amendment to the U.S. Constitution might mean for the American justice system.

It is really mandatory that every victim must have right to fair trial and justice. Every victim must be protected from the offenders. I totally believes that today crime victims have sufficient rights law is law and nobody is above the law. The Crime Victims' Rights Act (CVRA) was signed into law on October 30, 2004. 18 U.S.C. § 3771 (2004) by Bush Administration to protect the right of victim of a crime in the United States.” Section 3771(a) of the CVRA provides crime victims with the following rights:

• The right to be reasonably protected from the accused.
• The right to reasonable, accurate, and timely notice of any public court proceeding, or any parole proceeding, involving the crime or any release or escape of the accused
• The right not to be excluded from any such public court proceeding, unless the court, after receiving clear and convincing evidence, determines that testimony by the victim would be materially altered if the victim heard other testimony at that proceeding.
• The right to be reasonably heard at any public proceeding in the district court involving release, plea, sentencing, or any parole proceeding.
• The reasonable right to confer with the attorney for the government in the case.
• The right to full and timely restitution as provided by law.
• The right to proceedings free from unreasonable delay.
• The right to be treated with fairness and with respect for the victim's dignity and privacy. (Offices of the United States Attorneys, 2013).

 

 

 

3.     List and explain the purposes of criminal sentencing and identify those sentencing strategies that are most closely associated with each purpose.

    Criminal sentencing is an act of passing judgement or verdict by a court judge to purnish the offender and also to serve as a deterrent to other criminals. There are two major criminal sentencing that includes minor sentences and serious sentences.A criminal sentence refers to the formal legal consequences associated with a conviction. Types of sentences include probation, fines, short-term incarceration, suspended sentences, which only take effect if the convict fails to meet certain conditions, payment of restitution to the victim, community service, or drug and alcohol rehabilitation for minor crimes. More serious sentences include long-term incarceration, life-in-prison, or the death penalty in capital murder cases.(Legal Information Institute,2013).A minor sentences may involves minor crimes that can be given instant bail or short probation.A long term sentences are major crimes that includes murder,rape, espionage and kidnapping. Some major crimes carry capital punishment and the alleged offender is sometimes consider as a flight risk.

 

 

4.     Define what is meant by three-strike laws and explain if they can be an effective deterrent to crime or not.

  The main feature of the Three Strikes law is the imposition of a life sentence for any felony conviction, no matter how minor, if the defendant has two prior "serious" felony convictions. "Serious" felonies are defined by the California Penal Code and range from murder and rape to non-confrontational residential burglary and purse-snatching(Stanford Law School,2013).The three –strike laws was passed into law in the state of California,United States in 1994.I think they can be effective deterrent to crime to certain extent if the alledge offenders learn from his or her mistake.The only problem I have with three-strike laws is that it does not give repeated offenders the opportunity to get pardon for a minor crimes such as purse-snatching or “pick-pocket”,shoplifting and swearing at judge.

 

 

 

 

 

5.     Do you believe that capital punishment should continue to remain a viable sentencing option for especially heinous crimes? Write your essay on this volatile subject. Take into consideration the ability of crime labs to determine DNA evidence and other improvements in technology for producing conclusion.

 

     Capital punishment has been a detriment to human kind and does not give offender second chance to live a good life. Before the evolution of DNA technology many offenders or convicted felony has been sentenced to death by lethal injection or electrocuted and some of the sentences are characterized by human errors or evidence contamination. Capital punishment in Texas has been arbitrary, biased and prone to error,” said Brian Evans, director of Amnesty International USA’s campaign to abolish the death penalty.(Amnesty International,2013). I think capital punishment should be abolished in this modern age because capital punishment is cruel and horrible act against humanity.

 

 

 

 

 

References

Amnesty International.(2013). USA: Texas must halt 'shameful' 500th execution.Retrieved on June 27,2013 from http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/usa-amnesty-calls-texas-halt-shameful-500th-execution-2013-06-26

Legal Information Institute.(2013) .SENTENCING. Retrieved on June27,2013 from http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/sentencing

 

Schmalleger, F.(2012).Criminal Law Today. An Introduction with Capstone Cases.Third Edition. Pearson Publishing. Retrieved on June22,2013 from http://wps.prenhall.com/chet_schmalleger_crimlaw_3/36/9379/2401143.cw/-/2401180/index.html

 Stanford Law School.(2013). Stanford Three Strikes Project. Retrieved on June 27,2013 from http://www.law.stanford.edu/organizations/programs-and-centers/stanford-three-strikes-project/three-strikes-basics

 

Offices of the United States Attorneys.(2013). Crime Victims Rights Act. Retrieved on June 25,2012 from   http://www.justice.gov/usao/briefing_room/vw/rights.html