This briefing document outlines a criminal justice issue or controversy and analyzes a related program or policy. It begins with an overview of the issue and why it is currently relevant. A theoretical framework is then applied to connect the issue to concepts like intersectionality. The main program or policy aimed at addressing the issue is described and analyzed in terms of its goals, strengths, and weaknesses. The briefing concludes with recommendations for policymakers and a references section.

1. [INSERT BRIEFING TITLE]
This Briefing
Overview & Current Relevance P.1
Theoretical Connection & Program Analysis P.2
Program Strengths & Weaknesses P.3
Recommendation(s) A Closer Look
References P.4
Overview and Current Relevance
This section should give a summary of the criminal justice issue
or controversy, address what factors protect certain people from
this issue or controversy and explain what factors put certain
other people at risk of being affected by the issue or
controversy. This section should be at most 960 characters
long.
This section should explain why this issue is important to
address today and describe one example of how this issue
impacted someone. Use a real life story. The example could be
one from the media or one that was described in a scholarly
article, but may not be a personal account. This section should
be at most 740 characters long.
AUTHOR: [Insert Your Name]
HEADLINE:
This section should be a one or two sentence description of
what your issue or controversy is and what program or policy
you have identified to address the issue or controversy. This
section should be at most 470 characters long (approx.. 75
words).
An example is “Too many individuals released from prison

2. remain jobless and hopeless due to their status as felon.
Banning the Box is one program that creates an avenue of hope
for many released from prison.”
Theoretical Connection
This section must relate the issue or controversy to one of the
major theories covered in the first part of class (i.e. white
privilege, intersectionality, matrix of domination, equality vs.
equity, systems theory). This section should be at most 770
characters (115 words).
An example is “One collateral consequence of serving prison
time is joblessness. A prison sentence considerably reduces the
lifetime wage, employment and annual income of a person.
Adding this to the framework of intersectionality, there is no
surprise minorities struggle to integrate back into society.
Intersectionality looks at how multiple levels of discrimination
interact with one another. Thus, being Latino, a woman, and a
felon increases your likelihood of experiencing joblessness and
difficulty finding a job.
Use all three columns for the Program Analysis Section. This
section should describe the program or policy that you have
researched. The program must aim to address the criminal
justice issue or controversy you first provided an overview for
on the first page.
Program Analysis
This section should be 2,000 characters in length. That is an
estimation of 370 words in total.
In this section describe the program or policy, talk about who is
being served by the program or policy, and identify the goals of
the program or policy.

3. Use all three columns for the Program Strengths and
Weaknesses section of the brief. This section must discuss both
the strengths of the program or policy (for example, describing
what makes the policy or program work) and the gaps/
weaknesses of the program or policy (for instance, how could
this program or policy be improved.) When describing the gaps,
please explain how you would address the gap/ weakness and
make this program or policy better.
When describing the gaps, please explain how you would
address the gap/ weakness to improve the program or policy for
the better.
This section should be 2,000 characters in length (about 310
words.)
Program Strengths and Weaknesses
This section should be 770 characters or about 110 words in
length.
Utilize both columns for the recommendation(s) section. This
section should briefly talk about at least one recommendation
you have for policy makers and criminal justice practitioners/
employees to help further address the criminal justice issue or
controversy.
A Closer Look: Recommendation(s)
This section should simply cite at least 5 sources or articles
used in writing this brief. References should be in APA format.
1. Alexander, M. (2010). The New Jim Crow. Ohio State
Journal of Criminal Law, 9 (1), 7-26.
2. Cespedes, G., & Herz, D. C. (2011). The City of Los Angeles
Mayor’s Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development
(GRYD) Comprehensive Strategy; Los Angeles: GRYD Office
3. Collins, P. H. (2000). Black feminist thought: Knowledge,
consciousness, and the politics of empowerment (2nd ed.). NY:
Routledge.

4. 4. Greene, R. (1991). Ecological Perspective For Social Work
Practice (2nd Ed.) p. 259-308. New York Aldine DeGruyyer.
5. La Vigne, N. et al. (2017). How Do People in High-Crime,
Low Income Communities View The Police. Urban Institute.
Justice Policy Center.
6. Ratts, M. et al. (2016). Multiculturalism and Social Justice
Counseling Competencies: Guidelines for the Counseling
Profession. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and
Development. Vol. 44 28-48.
References
pg. 4