1. Extra Credit Assignment
Students can select up to five questions to answer for extra credit. The essay must be at
least one page, single space, 12 font. The essay must have at least 2 sources utilized.
Each answered question is worth 5 pts each for a total of 25 pts for the semester.
For preapproved absences for quizzes, student will answer one question for each missed
exam with the same requirements as above.
1. Imagine that you have just been released from prison after a five-year term. What are the
first things you will do? What problems do you expect to face?
2. What is a civil disability? Name at least 3 civil disabilities convicts face upon release.
How do each of these influence the possible success of a released prisoner? Which do
you think is the most difficult to bear? Why?
3. Should we have a separate juvenile justice system? Why or why not?
4. Compare and contrast the terms “delinquent child,” “neglected child,” and “dependent
child.”
5. How would you respond to the argument that the American prison is becoming a place
where the urban poor receive better housing, health care, education, and job training than
they do on the outside?
6. Name at least 3 unintended the consequences of an ever-increasing prison population?
Give examples and discuss the political and social affects of such costs.
7. When you think of a “criminal” what do you picture? Tell the truth. Why do you think
this is? Do you think your vision is typical of most Americans? Why or why not? What
could we do to change the picture that pops into most people’s head?
8. Describe the three prevailing themes that characterize the various explanations for racial
disparities in the criminal justice system. Discuss each one in detail and identify the one
that best captures your view. Explain your choice?
9. What do you think the role of capital punishment is in contemporary society? Be sure
and address both the stated and subtle functions.
10. Why is there support for the death penalty in the United States when it has been abolished
in other western democracies?
