American Criminal Justice Study Guide Questions
Course Introduction
This course offers an in-depth exploration of the American criminal justice system, examining its fundamental components: law enforcement, the courts, and corrections. Students will gain an understanding of the historical development, structure, and functions of each segment while considering the interplay between justice, public policy, and social issues. The course also addresses contemporary challenges such as policing practices, judicial processes, correctional institutions, and the impact of crime on communities, emphasizing the importance of due process, rights of the accused, and current reforms shaping the future of criminal justice in the United States.
Recommended Textbook
Criminal Justice 5th Edition by
Jay S. Albanese
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15 Chapters
836 Verified Questions
836 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Perspectives on Criminal Justice
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Sample Questions
Q1) High levels of fear can turn otherwise law-abiding citizens into outlaws? How so and why?
Answer: -Citizens arm themselves (sometimes illegally),focus on events that feed their fears,and sometimes act violently,convinced that they are acting in self-defense. -Throughout many parts of the nation,the perception that the government is not adequately keeping the public safe has contributed to the arming of the citizenry.When this occurs,more people take the law into their own hands,and instances of wrongful shooting,vigilantism,and lawlessness among otherwise law-abiding citizens increase.Fear of crime also enhances fear of strangers and promotes stereotyping and scapegoating.Attacks against Japanese,Canadian,German,and other tourists,immigrants,and residents offer evidence of this problem.This situation contributes to a self-fulfilling prophecy in which criminal incidents lead to fear,which then leads to more criminal incidents as people react incautiously to perceived threats brought about by fear.
Q2) Seeking justice through lawless violence is called __________.
Answer: vigilantism
Q3) A code that categorizes all crimes and punishments by type is called __________.
Answer: criminal law
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Chapter 2: Defining and Analyzing Crime
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Sample Questions
Q1) Crimes in which property is taken unlawfully and misused are considered to be
A)offenses against morality
B)crimes against persons
C)crimes against property
D)crimes against public order
Answer: C
Q2) Crime profiling involves analysis of criminal incidents to isolate the precise characteristics of ___________ in order to better understand and prevent crime.
A)offenders
B)victims
C)situations
D)All of the above
Answer: D
Q3) When does deviant behavior become criminal behavior?
Answer: -Deviance becomes crime when laws are passed or courts apply existing laws that make a social norm into a legal norm by allowing the government to sanction the behavior.
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Chapter 3: Criminal Law and the Criminal Justice Process
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Sample Questions
Q1) The term 'jurisdiction' refers to the authority of a state,county,or city to apply its own laws within its own territory.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) The term __________ refers to the 'guilty mind' or conscious decision to commit a criminal act.
A)mens rea
B)actus reus
C)concurrence/causal link
D)liability
Answer: A
Q3) A(n)__________ is a formal accusation of a crime based on the vote of a grand jury.
A)arraignment
B)information
C)indictment
D)acquittal
Answer: C
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Origins and Organization of Law Enforcement
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Sample Questions
Q1) A system of community self-responsibility that existed in Britain during the Middle Ages,in which residents were held responsible for the conduct of their neighbors was called a(n)___________.
Q2) The first organized police department in London,established in 1829,was called 'preventive police'.The popular English name for police officers,"bobbies," comes from Sir Robert Peel,a founder of the Metropolitan Police.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Police officers are increasingly female and minorities,although there continue to be cases of harassment and discrimination within some police departments,despite the fact that performance studies and victim interviews show that females and minority officers perform well and are accepted by the public.Why do you think this is?
Q4) An official appointed by the British Crown who was responsible for overseeing the constables and several hundred families in a given area was called a 'constable'.The modern word sheriff is derived from this term.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 5: Criminal Procedure and the Police
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Q1) A majority of Americans do not believe racial or ethnic profiling is __________,but opinions vary depending on the specific situation.
A)unfair
B)justified
C)unfounded
D)groundless
Q2) After an arrest and search have been carried out,the police have the authority to interrogate the arrested person.Interrogations are not specifically mentioned in the Constitution,but the limits of official interrogations are implied in the Fifth Amendment.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The landmark case that applied the provisions of the Fourth Amendment to searches was decided in __________.
A)1959
B)1961
C)1963
D)1967
Q4) What protections are provided by the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution?
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Chapter 6: Issues in Law Enforcement and Police Behavior
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Q1) The 'predispositional model' is the view that holds that police officers learn their attitudes and values from socializing experiences such as education and experience on the job.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The __________ refers to the now obsolete common law rule that police can use deadly force against any felon who flees the scene of a crime.
A)socialization model
B)predispositional model
C)deviant police subculture hypothesis
D)'fleeing felon' rule
Q3) A form of police corruption involving commission of an illegal act is called
Q4) A form of police corruption involving commission of an illegal act is called
A)nonfeasance
B)misfeasance
C)malfeasance
D)unfeasance
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Chapter 7: Origins and Organization of the Courts
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Q1) __________ is the study of crime victimization,as well as the interactions between victims and the criminal justice system
Q2) The __________ can hear on appeal any case involving federal law,suits between states,and cases involving interpretations of the U.S.Constitution.
A)U.S.district courts
B)U.S.courts of appeals
C)U.S.Supreme Court
D)felony drug courts
Q3) Courts that divert misdemeanor or non-violent felony offenders with mental illness to treatment programs and court supervision are called __________.
A)juvenile courts
B)mental health courts
C)drug courts
D)domestic violence courts
Q4) The term 'merit selection' refers to a method for selecting judges that involves a combination of appointment and election.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 8: Trial Defense and Prosecution
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Sample Questions
Q1) ___________ are laws under which conviction for a third felony results in an extended sentence,up to life imprisonment.
Q2) Prosecutors are not granted considerable discretion in the manner in which they enforce the law.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Overreliance on plea bargaining can result in its abuse.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Courts with low caseloads have been found to have lower plea rates than courts with high caseloads.
A)True
B)False
Q5) __________ occurs when a prosecutor agrees to press a less serious charge,drop some charges,or recommend a less severe sentence if the defendant agrees to plead guilty.
Q6) __________ is a type of diversion program in which a prosecutor suspends prosecution of a case pending the fulfillment of special conditions by the defendant.If these conditions are met,the case is dismissed.
Page 10
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Chapter 9: Trials and Sentencing
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Q1) What is the key distinction between 'justification defenses' and 'excuse defenses'?
Q2) Specific deterrence is directed at preventing crime among the general population.
A)True
B)False
Q3) When a judge sentences for purposes of retribution,punishment is applied simply in proportion to the seriousness of the offense.
A)True
B)False
Q4) In rare circumstances the jury is ___________: Jurors are housed in a hotel for the duration of the trial,and their access to newspapers,television,and other media is closely monitored.
Q5) In _____ the U.S.Supreme Court ruled that for the crime of rape the death penalty is excessive and disproportionate and therefore unconstitutional.
A)1937
B)1957
C)1977
D)1997
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Chapter 10: Origins and Organization of Jails and Prisons
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Q1) The ___________ is a prison management approach that maintains order by agreement between inmates and staff on the validity of rules.
A)control model
B)responsibility model
C)consensual model
D)therapeutic community model
Q2) A __________ studies crime,criminals,and criminal behavior;conducts,analyzes,reports,and applies research on crime and social policies relating to crime,teaches courses in college,and provides investigative or forensic or prison support services (e.g. ,research and evaluation).
A)probation officer
B)parole officer
C)corrections officer
D)criminologist
Q3) The therapeutic community model is a prison drug treatment approach based on the notion that a person's attitudes,values,and self-esteem must change together with the targeted drug use behavior in order to create lasting change.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 11: Probation, Community Corrections, and Reentry
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Sample Questions
Q1) Restitution is a process providing a forum in which the offender and the victim meet in a neutral setting where they can ask questions,communicate feelings of anger or remorse,and discuss ways in which the balance of justice can be restored in a fair and equitable manner;this may involve an apology,restitution,community service,or other alternative.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The '__________' strives to reduce drug abuse and drug-related crime,but long prison sentences for drug offenders have not had a major impact on the drug trade,given continued high rates of offending for drug law violations.
Q3) How may house arrest be effective? Please explain.
Q4) Release from incarceration after the offender has served the entire sentence without ever being granted parole or accumulating enough good-time credits to justify early release is called __________.
A)sanctions
B)net widening
C)maxing out
D)furloughs
Q5) __________ are residential centers for ex-offenders in the community.
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Chapter 12: Justice and Punishment in the Twenty-First Century
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Q1) Corrections officers and prison officials use a combination of rewards (better job assignment,better cell location,positive reports to the parole board)and punishments (solitary confinement,failure to take official action in violent incidents,negative reports to the parole board)to control inmates and maintain custody.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Genetic risk assessment builds upon the discoveries in the area of DNA and genetic mapping.Genetic predispositions toward certain kinds of behaviors could be profiled and behavioral or pharmacological strategies employed to suppress undesirable behaviors such as violence or sexual deviance.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Male inmates adapt to inmate life using different types of coping mechanisms or role orientations.What are these coping mechanisms/role orientations? Please describe and explain.
Q4) Specialized courts that focus on treatment and rehabilitation of mentally ill offenders who land in the criminal justice system are known as __________ courts.
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Chapter 13: Crime and Justice in the Twenty-First Century:
White-Collar Crime, Organized Crime, and Terrorism
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Q1) Offenses designed to intimidate or coerce a government or civilians in furtherance of political or social objectives is/are called __________.
A)racketeering
B)terrorism
C)trafficking
D)laundering
Q2) Crimes of fraud,crimes against public administration,and regulatory offenses that are usually carried out during the course of a legitimate occupation are called
A)white-collar crimes
B)crimes of fraud
C)crimes against public administration
D)regulatory offenses
Q3) Statistics for hate crimes were not collected before the 1990s.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The number of terrorist incidents in the United States has declined since the 1980s,but the crimes committed are becoming more deadly.Why do you think this is?
Q5) What are 'crimes against public administration' and what do they include?
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Chapter 14: Juvenile Justice
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Q1) The purpose of juvenile justice,therefore,is to correct the way young people respond to those influences,rather than to punish them.
A)True
B)False
Q2) __________ have not been very useful in the study of juvenile delinquency.This is because most delinquent acts are victimless crimes
A)Uniform Crime Reports
B)Self-reports
C)Victimization surveys
D)Incident-based reporting programs
Q3) A __________ is a short-term secure facility that holds juveniles awaiting adjudication,disposition,or placement in an institution.
A)detention center
B)shelter
C)reception/diagnostic center
D)group home
Q4) A training school is a long-term secure facility for adjudicated juveniles.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 15: Comparative Criminal Justice
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Sample Questions
Q1) 'Transnational crime' refers to crimes against the peace and security of mankind as defined by international agreements between countries,such as genocide and torture.
A)True
B)False
Q2) What does the transnational provision of illicit services involve?
Q3) The sale,distribution,or large-scale possession of property obtained in violation of the law is referred to as __________.
A)drug trafficking
B)human trafficking
C)trafficking in stolen property
D)extortion and racketeering
Q4) The term ___________ refers to intentionally destroying an ethnic,racial,national,or religious group in a systematic manner. .
A)synnomie
B)anomie
C)genocide
D)anarchy
Q5) What is the International Crime Victim Survey and what do we use it for?
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