Topic > Criminal Justice - 2367

Criminal Justice as a Socially Constructed Theoretical Perspective by Kraska (2004) emphasizes the idea that emotions influence criminal justice. To understand lawbreaking we must look at the process by which we define behaviors as illegal, as well as the reactions of the criminal justice system. “It is not the quality of the act the person commits, but rather a consequence of others applying rules and sanctions to an offender” (Kraska, 2004). There are criminal justice actors that influence definitions of criminal behavior which are the police portraying the idea of ​​the impossible mandate to cure crime, criminal statistics, and organizations that work to maintain justice. Criminal justice through "moral panic" is "a condition, an episode, a person or groups of people that emerges to be defined as a threat to social values ​​and interests; its nature is presented in a stylized and stereotyped way by the mass media ; moral barricades are managed by editors, bishops, politicians and other right-thinking people; socially accredited experts pronounce their diagnoses and solutions; coping methods are developed or (more often) resorted to; it deteriorates and becomes more visible. (Kraska, 2004) So, creating this moral panic, which is an emotion, involves the media, government officials, public, politicians and stakeholders exaggerating the problem from how big the problem really is.” The idea of ​​emotion as a kind of cognitive shortcut explains why jurors, like children, are more likely to make emotional judgments than judges.” (Bandes, 311, 1999) Society alone has many emotions towards criminals and of the victims ranging from hatred, to anger, to fear towards... the center of the card... the ruling class. Radical conflict theory believes that conflict comes from economies of class-divided societies, which can be capitalism which creates a privileged class or socialism which is an alternative to elite formation. Feminist theory suggests that patriarchy and gender shape everything, including the criminal justice system (Kraska, 2004). Like Black, this type of criminal justice aims to control certain people in society; it is through the three strikes law that oppresses criminals. Who commits crimes? Due to the war on drugs, criminals are predominantly from the lower classes and minorities. The three strikes law dictates who we will continue to incarcerate, namely individuals of low socioeconomic status and minorities. Oppression is an unfortunate but inevitable result of law because with power comes corruption and with corruption comes oppression.