criminal process

Criminal Process (Your Name (Your University

2008

Two Models of the Criminal Process

Subject of controversy and lively debates , is an apparent dichotomy in the objectives of the criminal justice system . One of the two goals is the responsibility to implement and enforce laws to ensure peace and in a society (Peak , 2001 . On the other hand , the second goal is to protect the people from being victims of injustice (Peak 2001

In the 1960s , it was Herbert Packer who devised the crime control model which emphasizes the arrest , prosecution

and conviction of the guilty (Schmalleger , 1999 . This model defends and supports the act of police officers and prosecutorial officials in their fight against crime . Thus , activities like profiling , patrolling areas known to have criminal activity , sting operations are justified under the crime control model . These activities signify aggressive identification of possible criminals , hot pursuit of fleeing suspects , and bringing the criminals to court for prosecution and imposition of appropriate penalties and punishment (Schmalleger , 1999 . The crime control model justifies and admits of collateral damage or losses which are deemed acceptable including the loss of human lives life (Perron , n .d . It accepts as credible the police fact finding processes as absolute as well as justifies the use of deadly force by the police in to prevent crime

The central issue in the Due Process Model is the protection of the rights and liberties of the defendant in criminal proceedings . The primordial goal of this model is protect the innocent from wrongful conviction (Perron , n .d . This models holds the view that it is better to set a guilty person free than to incarcerate an innocent man . It recognizes the innocence of the accused and makes it imperative the respect and observance of the rights of persons under criminal investigation and prosecution as provided for under the Bill of Rights of the U .S . Constitution (Perron , n .d

Both models have inspired and shaped criminal procedure policies through time . For instance , the Due Process Model was read into the exclusionary rule prior to 1961 (Thomas III , 2005 . This was evident in the criminal procedure policy as applied in the case of Boyd v . U .S where no valid subpoena or search warrant could be directed against any private document unless the government showed that it possesses a superior legal interest in the property (Thomas III , 2005 . An evolution in time occurred and soon the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary rule was restricted as to erode its true essence and meaning . Thus the Fourth Amendment should , but largely fails to , protect the innocent . The Court has constructed a Fourth Amendment that not only has parsimonious protection but also lacks a coherent theory (Thomas III 2005 . A succinct example was when the Court justified the police in preventing a crime even if the police did not have probable cause [Terry v . Ohio , 392 US 1 (1968 )]

The Due Process Model inspired the change in the decision in the case of Gideon...