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 overview of the American criminal justice system, emphasizing the three system components; the police, the courts, and corrections. Topics will include the role of police in a democratic society, the relationship of the various courts within the system, the processes of punishment and rehabilitation, and the roles and interactions of the Federal and State systems of criminal justice.