criminology

• First Reading


  Name of the bill and main aims read out. Formal vote taken.
• Second Reading


  Main debate of bill followed by another vote.
• Committee stage


  A group of representatives look at the bill to address any issues and suggest possible changes.
• Report stage


  Committee report back to the House who then vote on any proposed amendments.
• Third Reading


  Final vote on the Bill takes place.
• Royal Assent


  The Monarch signs the bill. She cannot refuse as it is now only a symbolic stage as the Head of State.
• The Bill then becomes an Act of Parliament.
• Parliament is made up of

  • House of Commons: made up of MP's voted in by the public from their constituency
  • House of Lords: contains heredity peers whose families are born lords as well as individuals who have been appointed Lords i.e Lord Sugar
  • Monarch: The Queen/King who is head of state in the UK. All bills have to get approval from the monarch before being passed as a law.
• To create a new law, it starts with

  1. A Green Paper: Allows public consultation on a potential new law to be discussed

  2. White Paper: After consultation a White Paper is created with formal proposals. This allows a draft act (a bill) to be created & presented to Parliament.
• Judicial precedent


  Law made by judges in courts. When a case appears before them they must make a judgement and this forms the law. It must be followed in similar cases in the future.
• Common law


  Judge made law
• There is a court hierarchy system and lower courts (magistrate courts) must abide by the decisions and rules made by higher courts.
• Statutory Interpretation


  Where judges in superior courts (Court of Appeal) are called upon to interpret words and phrases within a law. They have the ability to interpret the meaning of the law and make a verdict on the case.
• Police


  • Work with courts to ensure defendants, in custody are brought before them
  • Give evidence in court
  • Work with probation in managing an offender nearing release
  • Work closely with the CPS in trying to charge and prosecute offenders
• Ministry of Justice


  • Oversea the work of Courts
  • Oversea the work of probation services
  • Oversea the prison systems
  • Deal with legislation and guidelines for working in different organisations of the CJS
• Courts/Sentencing Council


  • Contributes to law creation through judicial precedent and statutory interpretation
  • Liaise with police and prisons to ensure the safe delivery of prisoners to court
  • Arrange video links if a prisoner cannot attend court
  • Prisoners held in court cells pending their court hearing & return to prison
• Crown Prosecution Service


  • Advise the police on charging a suspect
  • Work with the police to check evidence collated & if there is enough evidence to charge a suspect
  • Appear in courts to conduct the advocacy of a case
• Prison Service


  • Work with probation services when a prisoner is to be released
  • Lawyers may ask for prison visits to have legal consultations with client
  • Defendants denied bail by courts and police are remanded to prison
  • Judge & courts decide prison term for offenders
• Probation service

  • Arrest a prisoner recalled to prison whilst on probation
  • Liaise with police should there be any issues whilst a person is on probation
  • Work with other charity organisations to help prisoners leave prison successfully & have support
• Law Creation: Criminal law is made in parliament

  • Police enforce the law by investigating criminal activity. They arrest, detain and interview suspects
  • Crown Prosecution Service: will advise the police on the appropriate charge
  • Suspect brought before the court
  • Defendant released on bail or remanded into custody
  • If convicted, formal punishment is given by the judge. Sentencing council provides guideline. May be sent to prison
  • Prison service oversees welfare of prisoner & enforces punishment
  • When released, a prisoner is usually on licence & supervised by the probation service
  • A guilty plea results in sentencing & a plea of not guilty results in a trial. This includes a judge & jury
• Crime Control Model


  • Seek to deal with criminal cases quickly and efficiently. Seeking a conviction at any cost
  • Aim is to punish criminals and stop them committing further crimes
  • Focus on 'Zero Tolerance' approach. Links to Right Realism theory
  • Focus on protecting the rights of the victims rather than the defendant
  • Argue police should have enhanced powers to ensure a conviction is achieved
  • Doesn't address the causes of crime or that crime can be deterred through detection and conviction
• Due Process Model


  • Opposite of crime control. Focuses on innocent until proven guilty
  • Promotes fairness & protecting the defendant's legal rights
  • Argues that police powers should be limited to prevent oppression of the individual
  • Argues the justice system should safeguard an individual's rights to avoid miscarriages of justice & wrongful convictions
  • An investigation should be thorough to ensure a correct verdict can be reached
  • Relates to the Left Realism approach
• Internal forms of social control

  • Rational Ideology: Your conscience guides you to follow laws and rules due to experiencing feelings of guilt, anxiety or worry from within
  • Internalisation of social rules: When a person agrees and believes in social norms and therefore internalises them & follows them
  • Tradition: Conforming to social norms and rules through a person's traditions and upbringing teaching you and re-enforcing you to not break the law
• External forms of social control

  • Coercion: Can be physical or non-violent. Examples incl. imprisonment, bodily injury, strikes and boycotts
  • Fear of punishment: Using punishment as a deterrent to stop people from offending
• Aims of sentencing


  • To punish offenders
  • To reduce crime
  • To rehabilitate offenders
  • To protect the public
  • To repatriate victims when needed
• Retribution (Punishment)


  • Based on the idea an offender needs to be punished
  • Does not seek to alter future behaviour of the offender, only to inflict a punishment for the crime
  • Aims to provide an adequate level of justice to the victims of the offenders' crimes
  • Contains an element of revenge, whereby the victims and society are avenged for the wrong done by the individual
• Rehabilitation


  • Aim is to reform offenders and reintroduce them to society
  • Presumes criminal behaviour is due to free will & choice. Believe criminals can change their behaviour
  • Rehabilitation can be seen in community sentences & probation orders
• Deterrence


  • Aim of individual deterrence is to ensure an offender does not reoffend
  • Aim of general deterrence is to prevent potential offenders from committing a crime
• Public Protection


  • Punishment must serve the purpose of protecting society from dangerous criminals
  • Through incapacitation, an offender is prevented from having their freedom
• Repatriation


  • Often involves compensating the victim of a crime by ordering the offender to pay a sum of money to the victim
  • Also aims to ensure offenders 'pay back' and repatriate society by completing unpaid community work
  • Restorative Justice schemes also created whereby offenders and victims meet
• Imprisonment


  • Long sentences incl. life sentences achieve the aim of protecting society
  • Anyone who has a sentence of less than 2 years is released on licence, having to conform to bail conditions and supervision. This helps the aim of rehabilitation to be achieved & hopefully stop re-offending occurring
  • Has been an increase in the number of people recalled to custody. Numbers have increased by nearly 1000 people
  • The high rates of re-offending and high numbers of those being recalled to prison could show that prisons do not rehabilitate individuals
• Community Sentences


  • Combines the aims of punishment & repatriation with individuals being punished by working unpaid & also paying/giving back to society
  • Community sentences are nearly 9% more effective at reducing one-year re-offending rates compared to imprisonment
  • However, in 2013 more than ¾ of those sent to prison the previous year had already at least one community sentence. This suggests that community sentences do not meet the aim of rehabilitation fully. Plus, it doesn't always act as a deterrent to not commit further criminal activity
• Fines

  • Main purpose is to provide deterrence and punishment for the offender. Financial punishment given through payment of fine
  • Fines can be escalated if not paid. Possible prison time can be given for non-payment of fines
  • Many fines are written off (61%) if the offender cannot be traced & there is no realistic chance of collection. Due to the figures, fines are not an effective method of achieving retribution or deterrence. Furthermore, the threat of prison for failing to pay does not seem to have an impact
• Discharges


  • Can be either conditional or absolute. Conditional discharge is used frequently for first time minor offences. Aims to stop re-offending & deterrence by having the cavate that if re-offending occurs, a more severe punishment can be given
  • Absolute discharge is rare but is when no penalty is imposed. It's the lowest level of punishment. A court believes the process and experience of being arrested, court etc is enough deterrence to ensure no further crimes are committed
  • This would not work for those who do not respect the system as they would likely be back in court for re-offending
• Police


  • Aim is to arrest, detain, search and interview suspects
  • Funding & main income comes from central government. Some income is also raised through council tax
  • Working duties include responding to emergency/non-emergency calls, general beat duties. Specialist teams deal with more specialised areas of crime incl. anti-terrorism, firearm teams & dog handler teams
  • PCSOs work on the front line dealing with anti-social behaviour
  • Special constables are trained volunteers who provide additional policing support
  • Police & Crime Commissioners regionally elected who hold the police to account & aim to cut crime within their regional areas
• CPS


  • Must decide which cases should be prosecuted, determine the charge in serious & complex cases and advise the police
  • Have the aim of preparing cases and presenting them at court as well as provide information and support to victims/prosecution witnesses
  • Funding comes from Parliament. CPS also gains funding through recovering criminal assets
  • CPS consists of 13 geographical areas across England & Wales. CPS Direct is available 24/7 with charging advice
  • A code of practice is used to help decide if a prosecution should take place. Evidential and public interest test must be satisfied for a prosecution to take place
• Judiciary


  • Judiciary divided into superior & inferior judges. Role of a judge is to make decisions about the law through interpretation, apply the law and manage a trial
  • At the end of a trial, they will sum up the evidence for the jury & pass a sentence if appropriate
  • Funding is decided by the Salaries Review Body (SSRB) who provide recommendations to the government
• CPS


  Must decide which cases should be prosecuted, determine the charge in serious & complex cases and advise the police
• CPS


  Have the aim of preparing cases and presenting them at court as well as provide information and support to victims/prosecution witnesses
• CPS funding


  Comes from Parliament and also gains funding through recovering criminal assets