Factsheets: Overview of the Criminal Justice System

• Overview
• Components of the Criminal Justice System
• Bibliography
• For Additional Information...

Overview

The criminal justice system can be overwhelming, confusing and intimidating for anyone who does not work within the system on a regular basis. Imagine the response of a crime victim as he or she attempts to navigate the very imposing "criminal" justice system.

Many individuals -- including victims and their advocates -- believe that the justice system focuses on the criminal to the detriment of the victim. Since the passage of the Wisconsin Victims' Bill of Rights in 1980, victim advocates have promoted the passage of victims' rights legislation to balance the justice system. All states have now, to some degree, passed laws to protect the rights and interests of crime victims, but the scope and extent of these provisions can vary greatly from state to state. In some states, these rights have been extended to also benefit victims of juvenile offenders. Twenty-nine states have passed constitutional amendments to guarantee the rights of crime victims in that state. (For further information concerning victim legislation, see the Get Help Series bulletins entitled, "Constitutional Rights for Crime Victims" and "Rights of Crime Victims.")

This bulletin provides a generic overview of the criminal justice system. Due to regional, state and local differences in how criminal cases are handled, it is recommended that the reader consult his or her local victim assistance program, local prosecutor's office, state Attorney General's office, local or state bar association, or local law library for information specific to each area or jurisdiction.

Components of the Criminal Justice System

The justice system can be divided into four components:

1. Law enforcement;
2. Prosecution;
3. Judiciary; and
4. Corrections, which includes both adult and juvenile institutions, as well as probation and parole (community corrections).

Although these four components have distinct purposes, responsibilities and legal duties, the criminal justice system fails if they do not effectively work together.

In most instances, it is the law enforcement community that has the first contact with a victim of crime.

• Receiving and documenting reports of crime within the agency's jurisdiction;
• Investigating the reported crimes;
• Gathering and holding evidence of the crime;
• Arresting the alleged offender; and
• Conducting follow-up investigations as needed.

Depending upon several factors, including the size of the department and how divisions are arranged, the officer that responds to the scene of a crime may not be the individual to conduct the follow-up investigation. After the initial report is taken, a detective may be assigned to pursue the investigation.

Once the alleged offender has been identified, he or she is most often arrested and taken to the local jail, or corrections facility, for processing. In some cases -- depending upon the nature of the crime -- the alleged offender may be eligible to receive a citation to appear in court, and therefore, would not be taken into a facility for processing. In other cases -- normally involving more sensitive and/or serious crimes -- the evidence may be presented to a grand jury by the prosecutor. After hearing the evidence, the grand jury decides whether or not to indict (charge) the alleged offender. When the grand jury votes for the indictment, it is referred to as "returning a true bill."

The law enforcement officer's role does not end with the arrest of the alleged offender. Officers are routinely called upon to testify in the prosecution of a case. They may be involved in grand jury hearings, preliminary hearings and as witnesses at the actual trial.

The prosecutorial phase is perhaps the most critical stage of the criminal justice process, as it is at this point that many of the rights of an alleged offender and crime victim are brought into play. The offender's rights in the court proceedings include:

• The right to have legal representation;
• The right to a speedy trial;
• The right to be informed regarding the proceedings; and
• The right to be heard.

Each of these rights should be guaranteed to both parties, but currently only the alleged offender is unconditionally guaranteed these rights, in every court, by the United States' Constitution.

It is the role of the prosecutor to represent the interests of the state in every criminal proceeding -- from the first court appearance when the release or detainment of the accused is determined, during any plea negotiations, through the numerous preliminary hearings, throughout the trial and, finally, at the sentencing stage. The prosecutor also has the power to decide whether a case will be prosecuted or dismissed.

A prosecutor can assist crime victims by placing into practice many of the recommendations of the Final Report of the 1982 President's Task Force on Victims of Crime. These recommendations for policies and procedures for prosecutors include such basic services as:

• Keeping victims apprised of the status of their case;
• Notifying victims of all court proceedings in their case;
• Representing the victims' interests in all court appearances, plea negotiations, restitution and at sentencing; and
• Prosecuting anyone who attempts to threaten witnesses.

The President's Task Force also recommended that prosecutors should establish within their office a victim/witness assistance program to work directly with victims and witnesses in order to provide vital services and assistance. The 1990 National Assessment Program survey of criminal justice systems in state and local jurisdictions nationwide -- sponsored by the National Institute of Justice -- found that eighty-six percent (86%) of prosecutors' offices had such victim/witness assistance programs in some form, with available services and assistance varying somewhat from one jurisdiction to another (Webster and McEwen, 1992).

Essentially, the role of the judge is to oversee the court proceedings associated with the prosecution of any criminal case. The judge is responsible for ensuring that the law is followed at all stages of the criminal justice process. The judge makes the final decision, or ruling, at each stage. The judge will:

• Decide the release status of an offender;
• Decide whether or not to accept a guilty plea or a negotiated plea by an offender;
• Oversee the trial where the indicted offender is determined to be guilty or not guilty; and
• Determine the final sentence of the court for a convicted offender.

The Final Report of the 1982 President's Task Force on Victims of Crime also outlined recommendations for the judiciary. The ten recommendations included such basic practices as:

• Allowing victims and witnesses to be on call for court proceedings;
• Establishing separate waiting rooms for victims and state's witnesses -- away from the defense witnesses and the defendant's family;
• Considering the interests of victims and witnesses when ruling on case continuances;
• Allowing written and oral victim impact statements at sentencing hearings; and
• Ordering restitution in all cases when the victim has suffered a financial loss.

The final component of the criminal justice system is corrections. The term "corrections" can be used to describe either institutional supervision or community supervision -- which is known as probation when granted by a judge on a suspended prison sentence, and which is known as parole when granted by a parole board after a portion of a prison sentence has been served. Each division of the corrections system has specific responsibilities to the sentencing court, the victim, and the community.

Probation is used as an alternative to incarceration. A person may be supervised directly by the court -- known as court probation -- or he or she may be supervised by a probation officer from the community or state corrections division. Probation is utilized for those offenders not perceived as a threat to the community and who would benefit from community supervision in lieu of incarceration. In many communities, the probation officer is responsible for preparing a pre-sentence investigation (PSI) report for the court. This report provides the judge with extensive information about the defendant's background. It is also an opportunity to provide a victim impact statement and/or detailed information on the victim's financial losses.

A sentence of probation allows offenders to remain in the community where they can pay restitution, fines, court fees, and attend alcohol or mental health counseling. If offenders violate any of the conditions of probation, they can be brought back to court for revised or further sentencing. The court may increase conditions or revoke the probation and sentence the offender to jail or prison. When convicted offenders are sentenced directly to jail or prison, they become the responsibility of the staff of the facility to which they are sent. For the duration of the sentence, the corrections staff provides such legal duties as:

• Maintains the security of the facility;
• Provides internal supervision of inmates, which may include counseling or educational programs;
• Provides medical care for inmates; and
• Processes inmates for release from the institution, either on parole (conditional release) or when the inmate has served the maximum time he/she must serve before release (unconditional release).

When an inmate is released from an institution with time remaining on his or her sentence, he or she is considered paroled and is supervised in the community by a parole officer. A parolee is subject to conditions of parole -- set by the paroling authorities -- similar to the conditions of probation. If parolees violate any of the conditions of their parole, they may be taken into custody, and may ultimately be returned to the institution to serve out the remainder of the original sentence. The corrections staff should take responsibility for notifying the victim about the inmate's status and upcoming release. If the inmate is appearing before the paroling authority, the victim should be notified of the hearing and allowed to prepare a statement for the board, or testify at the actual hearing.

Bibliography

American Association of Retired Persons. (1990). The Criminal Justice System: A Guide For Citizens. Washington, DC.

Bard, Morton and Dawn Sangrey. (1986). The Crime Victim's Book. (2nd ed.). Secaucus, NJ: Citadel Press.

Bourque, Blair and Roberta Cronin. (1991). Helping Victims and Witnesses in the Juvenile Justice System: A Program Handbook. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Brown, Charles. (1993). First Get Mad, Then Get Justice: The Handbook for Crime Victims. Secaucus, NJ: Carol Publishing Group.

National Center for Victims of Crime. (1996). "Constitutional Rights for Crime Victims," FYI, Arlington, VA.

National Center for Victims of Crime. (1993). Crime Victims and Corrections: Implementing the Agenda for the 1990's -- A Training and Technical Assistance Project. Arlington, VA.

National Center for Victims of Crime. (1994). Focus on the Future: A Systems Approach to Prosecution and Victim Assistance -- A Training and Resource Manual. Arlington, VA.

National Center for Victims of Crime. (1998). "Rights of Crime Victims," FYI, Arlington, VA.

National Center for Victims of Crime. (1992). "Working with Criminal Justice Agencies." The Road to Victim Justice: Mapping Strategies for Service, A Training Series. Washington, DC: National Center for Victims of Crime and National Organization for Victim Assistance.

Stark, James and Howard Goldstein. (1985). The Rights of Crime Victims. New York: Bantam Books , Inc.

United States. (1982, December). President's Task Force on Victims of Crime, Final Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Webster, Barbara and J. Thomas McEwen. (1992, August). "Assessing Criminal Justice Needs." National Institute of Justice Research in Brief. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice.

For additional information, please contact:

American Correctional Association
4380 Forbes Boulevard
Lanham, MD 20706-4322
(800) ACA - JOIN
(301) 918-1800

American Jail Association
2053 Day Road, Suite 100
Hagerstown, MD 21740-9795
(301) 790 - 3930

American Probation and Parole Association
P.O. Box 11910
Lexington, KY 40578-1910
(606) 244 - 8000

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Victim-Witness Assistance Program
J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building, Room 3150
Washington, DC 20535
(202) 324 - 5968

Federal Bureau of Prisons
Victim-Witness Assistance Program
U.S. Department of Justice
320 First Street, NW
Room 536
Washington, DC 20534
(800) 359 - 3267
(202) 307 - 0884

International Association of Chiefs of Police
515 North Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
(800) THE - IACP
(703) 836 - 6767

National Association of Attorneys General
Hall of States
444 North Capitol Street, NW
Suite 339
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 434 - 8000

National District Attorney's Association
99 Canal Center Plaza, Suite 510
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 549 - 4401

National Sheriff's Association
1450 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-3490
(800) 424 - 7827
(703) 836 - 7827

Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center
Box 6000
Rockville, MD 20850
(800) 627 - 6872

Your state Attorney General, county/city prosecutor, or county/city law enforcement:

Check in the Blue Pages of your local phone book under the appropriate section heading of either "Local Governments," "County Governments," or "State Government."

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Copyright © 1997 by the National Center for Victims of Crime. This information may be freely distributed, provided that it is distributed free of charge, in its entirety and includes this copyright notice.