This is the capstone course for the Criminal Justice Studies Program. The purpose of this course is to integrate all academic criminal justice learning, knowledge, and skills in order to provide a total understanding of the criminal justice system and how it applies to the future of the students. Students will demonstrate their abilities to conduct scholarly academic research, employ critical thinking skills, use deductive reasoning. Students will address current issues in criminal justice using analytical skills to frame problems and suggest solutions will be stressed. Oral and written presentations in class will emphasize problem solving techniques and analysis. Ethical, political and social issues that impact criminal justice research will also be examined.
The course examines the patterns, causes, and consequences of crime, and the ways in which the criminal justice system attempts to deal with the crime problem in the United States. Topics include characteristics of offenders, patterns of criminal behavior, theories of crime causation, and social forces affecting crime and criminal justice.
This course provides an overall view of the techniques involved in investigating crimes, basic interviewing of victims and witnesses, identifying and questioning suspects, organizing investigations. Specific topics covered are crime scene procedures, searches, surveillance, sources of information, use of scientific aids, recognition of evidence, and ethics in criminal investigations. The course is designed to provide a foundation of criminal investigation procedures and techniques. Emphasis is on a logical scientific approach to crime scene investigations since investigation is in large part a science. Through discussion and hands-on exercises the student practices the application of the scientific method to criminal investigations. Students will be exposed to actual criminal investigations and processes through lectures, slides, videos, and reviews of actual past cases.
This course will examine the topic of organized crime, its emergence in American Society, its activities, and its relationship to other principal social institutions and components of the criminal justice system. It will include a consideration of the historical, economic, social, legal, and political events that led to the generation of organized crime. There will be a review of the precedents of organized crime and its history; the relationship of organized crime to federal, state, and local politics; the activities of organized crime figures; policies designed to combat organized crime; and some explanations for the persistence of organized crime. Also included will be a consideration of the new groups and forms of organized crime. In addition, the history of gangs and gang violence in society, gangs as organized crime groups, and the present-day problem of gangs will be examined.
This course is an entry-level study of fire science, standards, laws, and guidelines for proper fire scene investigation. Topics studied include fire science, arson laws and evidence, organic chemistry, fire investigation methodology, and scientific arson investigation.
This course provides an examination of the latest methods and techniques of photographic documentation of a crime scene, a victim, a suspect, and criminal evidence. Usage of photography in criminal surveillance operations is also addressed. Topics will include the fundamentals of photographing a crime scene from general to specific. Practical exercises will demonstrate methods for documenting various types of crime scenes.
This course will study the convicted criminal defendant of the criminal justice system in the post-conviction setting. Areas explored will include the development and use of probation and parole as correctional alternatives to incarceration, the evolution of the correctional system, the relationship of the prison administration and the other components of the criminal justice system, and the operations of the correctional system and its impact on punishment and rehabilitation.
This course provides a thorough overview of career opportunities within the field of criminal justice. A wide range of occupations that demand very different levels of experience and education will be examined. Working professionals representing a wide range of career fields will introduce students to local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, corrections, probation, parole, forensics, court systems, victim/witness services, counseling positions, an other special government opportunities. Topics covered for all employment positions will include educational requirements, entry requirements, training processes, career development paths, salary and benefit ranges, and present employment opportunities.