NCJ Number
182239
Journal
Maryland Law Review Volume: 59 Issue: 1 Dated: 2000 Pages: 1-128
Editor(s)
Jennifer K. Squillario
Date Published
2000
Length
129 pages
Annotation
This legal analysis tests Charles Silberman's generalizations about crime and the criminal justice system through one aspect of that system, the relationship between the arrests of individuals pursuant to State laws and prosecutions for the criminal offenses for which they are arrested.
Abstract
An examination of that relationship reveals at least two false assumptions in terms of the general public's perceptions of crime: (1) Individuals are arrested because they are guilty of crimes; and (2) Cases in which prosecution does not occur usually involve victims of technical criminal procedure rules. The legal analysis considers the language and the judicial interpretation of the fourth amendment and its relationship to State arrest laws. The operation of State arrest laws is discussed, with statistics provided on arrests and prosecutions. Also examined are the roles of the police, prosecutors, and the criminal justice system in creating a volume of arrests that jurisdictions cannot effectively handle. Consideration is also paid to the ratio of arrests to prosecutions by the reasonableness standard of the fourth amendment and the requisite standard for determining reasonableness. Finally, the legal analysis identifies possible solutions by courts, legislatures, administrative agencies, and litigants. The author concludes that the criminal justice system is relatively ineffective in the face of crime, at least in part because it does not address the phenomenon of the loss of liberty experienced by millions of people without benefit of the constitutional protections the public assumes accompany criminal prosecution. Statistical data on arrests and convictions are appended. 578 footnotes, and 12 tables