NCJ Number
87735
Journal
Police Journal Volume: 56 Issue: 1 Dated: (January-March 1983) Pages: 7-14
Date Published
1983
Length
8 pages
Annotation
More effective approaches for dealing with crime rest not primarily in police reform but in a responsive government that makes practical laws, revises outdated laws, and initiates enlightened, comprehensive criminal justice reform.
Abstract
When crime appears to be increasing, the public assumes that some unprecedented flaw has appeared in the social fabric; however, society has always had a criminal element which has exploited weaknesses in the system. It is the task of government to devise and revise laws that will meet the needs of society in a particular period. Because of their position in the criminal justice system, lawyers are in an ideal position to question the validity of the current criminal justice system, but judges and lawyers tend to see the law and its administration as a system to be conserved regardless of its social consequences. While there have been efforts within recent years to make the police conform to legal requirements for obtaining evidence and detaining citizens, little attention has been given to reforms in court approaches for ascertaining truth in criminal cases. There is a need for pretrial inquiry where a suspect may be required to answer questions that tend to expose guilt or innocence. In the area of police operations, that balance between police powers and individual rights must be regulated so that committing crime is seen to be a very risky business that makes the arrest, conviction, and punishment of the guilty likely, while the innocent are protected.