Evaluate past, present, and future trends of the Court System
The modern criminal justice system is a product of constant appraisals, reappraisals, and adjustment of practices, policies, and programs of the past. Today, the police departments across the US are adopting new technologies such as “body cameras” worn by police officers and automated license plate readers to analyze where crime is likely to take place. Police are also confronting cybercrime today, and acquiring the tools to succeed is necessary. These trends are expected to continue to evolve, as is the tradition with the police across the world. Police departments will always deploy modern tools at their disposal to improve service delivery. In the past, it used radio communication because that was the most advanced technology of the day. Today, it is using analytical software to predict where and when crimes are likely to occur in a city or a region and deploy resources appropriately. Therefore, the lessons of the past informed the changes that the modern police departments are enjoying and may transform in the future as technology and community needs evolve.
It was evident in the 1980s that the rates of crime were increasing from the 1960s, meaning that previous measures were ineffective in coping with crime. In the 1960s, the crime rate was 1,887 per 100, 000 people. The numbers almost quadrupled in the mid-1980s. From the 1960s to the 1980s, there were many attempts to try to lower the crime rates in the United States. However, it was clear that random patrol, hiring more police officers, routine criminal investigations, foot patrols, and rapid response calls for service. The use of these measures proved that police do not prevent crime.
However, 2008 statistics showed that crime had been declining since the 1990s. The drop was by approximately 34 percent. As the rates of traditional crimes came down, new challenges, such as terrorism, an increase in illegal immigrants, an increase in accountability, and racial discrimination began to emerge. In the past, local police did not find it necessary to enforce it. However, the problem has become a significant issue catching the attention of federal and local government agencies. In the past, racial discrimination was a huge problem that persists to date.
Violent crime in the United States is lower than it has been in many years. The criminal justice system is always changing to adopt emerging trends to help secure society. Changes take in an organization based on the mindset of the people that live in a community.
The police are the people who enforce the law on behalf of the government. The police exist in various forms in different countries, but play critical roles in creating order in society. What makes them unique is their empowerment by the law to use force to create social order. In most communities, people view law enforcement agencies as crime fighters. According to Banton (1964), the role of the police is peacekeeping and not law enforcement.
Most police patrol work is concerned with different matters, such as looking for missing people, handling accidents, other social emergencies, and dealing with mentally ill people. When people call the police, they expect to listen to “a philosopher, guide, and friend.” Most people view the police as a “secret social service” (Punch, 1979). According to Waddington (1993), large proportions of the calls that the police received in the 1980s suggested that the bulks of their requests were not about crime.
Although the police are called to perform social functions, most of the requests force them to use force. According to Jean-Pual Brodeur (2010), the police have coercive powers that are not legally available to the rest of society.
Policing has a future in society as the world discovers new ideas. Safety organizations are working hard to develop tools that police officers can use to serve new communities. Modern society needs to deliver the 911 system further so that it can receive text messages, videos, and photographs to enhance the response mechanism.
In the past, policing was harsh than it is today. In the past, punishment included hanging, execution using electric chairs, and other forms of punishment that were supposed to inflict pain on the criminal. However, law enforcement agencies have changed that approach to the criminal justice system, and society concentrates on rehabilitation and not causing pain to a person. Henceforth it became necessary to have patrol officers in the streets. The use of patrol officers began with some officers patrolling the streets one at a time without dispatches. The officers were to either stumble upon criminals or are waved down by citizens. Therefore, many criminal activities were not noticed or received delayed action that did not assist the community. Officers would also patrol on foot, and their cars did not have the sirens and lights that modern ones have.
Changes began to take place the moment the government realized that law enforcement officers are a critical component of governance. The 911 system came up, and officers could respond immediately after receiving a complaint from the public. The availability of a radio communication system connected the dispatch centers with the officers in the field. It made it easy for the office to direct the activities of police officers in the area. The changes were possible because law enforcement agencies received funding from the government. It became possible to house criminals in remand.
Law enforcement processes are always changing. Communication technologies are continually improving, and law enforcement agencies adopt them to improve service delivery. The delivery of justice is a circle that involves other stakeholders, such as the court system and the correctional facilities. The government needs to provide the resources that the three departments can use to ensure the will of justice are always rolling to minimize crimes. The provision of adequate budgets is critical in getting the correct tools for policing and in the process of reducing crimes. Bigger cities have the power to acquire sufficient resources to finance their police departments. They equip their departments with the best technologies and have more workers to join the law enforcement sectors. At the same time, smaller cities may experience few crimes and may need less sophisticated techniques and workforce to police their territories. Therefore, governments need to provide resources to respective regions, cities, and municipalities according to their unique needs.