Running

head: MODERN CRIMINOLOGY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES 1

Modern Criminology and Criminal Justice Issues

Steven Shea

University of San Diego

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In examining papers prepared for the Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership

program, four stand out as exemplifying issues of modern criminology and criminal justice.

Policies for Dealing with Legal and Illegal Drugs provides specific data to help understand the

influence of drugs and alcohol on society. Responding to Cybercrimes demonstrates the

modern issues surrounding cybercrimes and security. The Effect of Immigration on Violent

Crime Rates provides data to contradict common modern myths regarding immigration and

crime. Crisis in Ferguson shows modern criminal justice agencies must engage the community

and promote diversity before tragedy strikes.

The criminal justice system as a whole must be willing to consider substance abuse by

way of scholarly data. The war on drugs began almost forty-six years ago, but the National

Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) estimated that in 2013 there were 24.6 million people aged 12

and over who had used illicit drugs in the one month previous to the survey (NIDA, 2015).

Therapeutic courts offer an alternative to prison from drug users who commit non-violent

crimes, saving money and treating addiction more as a medical concern than a crime (National

Association of Drug Court Professionals, n.d.) Data also indicates 2.4 million people over the

age of eleven began drug abuse with prescription drugs (National Governors Association, 2012).

Contrary to common perception, alcohol is a factor in deaths nearly six times that of illicit

drugs, in one-third of all arrests, in seventy-five percent of robberies, and in eighty percent of

homicides (Walsh, 2012). Targeting prescription drug abuse and alcohol abuse in addition to

illicit drugs is critical to modern criminology and criminal justice.

In the twenty-first century, individuals, corporations, governments, and criminals use

electronics means to conduct business. A modern criminal justice agency must be aware of
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current cybercrimes trends and practices. Much of modern police investigation can be

conducted through aggressive online surveillance, replacing some of the need to infiltrate

criminal organizations. Other employees of criminal justice agencies must remain vigilant to

avoid the introduction of malware to agency computer systems. Modern investigations often

involve searches of smart phones, such as the 2015 San Bernardino attack (Hanisee, 2016).

Modern criminal justice agencies must be able to conduct investigations using modern methods

and be prepared to defend against a cyberattack.

Todays politicians, and much of the public, often vilify immigrants as criminals, but over

a century of studies contradict that myth (Ewing, Martinez, & Rumbaut, 2015). Modern

criminal justices must avoid accepting common rhetoric and utilize scholarly data that clearly

shows immigrants are imprisoned at a much lower rate than native born Americans (Ewing et

al., 2015). Modern criminology has a duty to be blind to race, ethnicity, religion, and other

factors. Immigration is no exception.

Paramount to local criminal justice agencies is interacting with the community. As Crisis

in Ferguson demonstrates, relationships with the community must be cultivated before the

critical incident occurs. African-Americans make up sixty-five percent of the population, but

eighty-five percent traffic stops, ninety percent of citations, and ninety-three percent of arrests

involve African-American defendants (US Department of Justice, 2015). The death of Michael

Brown combined with a disenfranchised community ignited riots and demonstrations with

national implications. The Ferguson situation serves as a warning to all modern criminal justice

agencies to engage the community and include diversity before tragedy strikes.

Modern criminology and criminal justice must rely on facts to support their vision for
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providing safe communities. By looking at actual causes of crime, such as alcohol and

prescription drugs, resources can be directed in a way to reduce crime. Being prepared to deal

with modern electronic devices and internet capabilities can help a criminal justice agency

respond to modern crime. Understanding the relationship between crime and immigration can

help a criminal justice redirect resources to better serve the community. Finally, having a

strong community relationship and a diversified workforce can help criminal justice agencies

avoid strife such as happened in Ferguson, MO.

For additional information, please click: http://shea167.weebly.com/

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REFERENCE

Ewing, W., Martinez, D., & Rumbaut, R. (2015, July 8) The Criminalization of Immigration in the

United States. American Immigration Council. Retrieved from

http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/docs/the_criminalization_of_imm

igration_in_the_united_states_final.pdf

Hanisee, Michelle (2016) Your life or your privacy? Retrieved from

http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?ca=a24ad0ca-10cc-4381-a143-

57ce0df0bc2e&c=05324730-4cb9-11e5-8a04-d4ae52710c75&ch=067cefa0-4cb9-11e5-

8b31-d4ae52710c75

National Association of Drug Court Professionals. (n.d.) What are Drug Courts? Retrieved from

http://www.nadcp.org/learn/drug-courts-work/what-are-drug-courts

National Governors Association. (2012) Six Strategies for Reducing Prescription Drug Abuse.

Retrieved from http://www.nga.org/cms/Rx

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2015) Drug Facts: Nationwide Trends. Retrieved from

http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/nationwide-trends

United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (2015, March 4) Investigation of the

Ferguson Police Department. Retrieved from

https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-

releases/attachments/2015/03/04/ferguson_police_department_report.pdf

Walsh, A. (2012) Criminology: The Essentials. Los Angeles, CA: Sage