NCJ Number
100622
Date Published
1985
Length
260 pages
Annotation
This text examines social definitions of and attitudes toward justice within a cyclical framework of shifts between due process and control models of justice.
Abstract
Following a discussion of the relativity of the definitions of and attitudes toward justice as a function of power and personal interest (i.e., as a form of social control), the American system of justice is discussed in terms of its attempt to balance the need to protect the public while also protecting individual autonomy and rights. The influence of capitalistic ideology on conceptions of moral and legal rights and wrongs also is discussed. The swing of American justice from a due process model in the 1950's to a control model in the 1980's is traced. The characteristic features of both models are delineated, as are their respective costs and benefits. The theory of general deterrence then is discussed in terms of the effects of punishment certainty and severity on crime control. The paradox that mild penalties are more likely to be imposed than are severe penalties is then examined. The roles of justice and social accountability within the cyclical model are highlighted, and civil disobedience is considered as a means of effecting change in the cycle. It is concluded that justice system reforms can only buy time, and that what is needed is change in society. Chapter references.