Chapter 13 The Role of Social Work in the Criminal Justice System

Chapter 13:
Criminal Justice

Copyright © 2012 Cengage Learning, Brooks/Cole Publishing

Social Work: A Competency-
Oriented Education

 Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)
- Defines Educational Policy and Accreditation
Standards (EPAs)
- Developed 10 “Core Competencies” and 41
Related “Practice Behaviors”
 Every student should master the Practice
Behaviors and Core Competencies before
completing the program


Resources Aligned to EPAS 2008

 The Textbook –
- “Helping Hands” icons call attention to content that
relates to Practice Behaviors and Competencies

- “Competency Notes” at the end of the chapter
help put the Practice Behaviors and Competencies
in practical context

Resources Aligned to EPAS 2008 (cont’d)

 The Practice Behaviors Workbook developed
with the text provides assignable exercises that
assist in mastering the Practice Behavior and
Competencies

 Additional on-line resources can be found at:
www.cengage.com/socialwork


The criminal justice system
The criminal justice system in its broadest sense
refers to the means used to enforce those standards
of conduct required to protect individuals and property
and to maintain a sense of justice in the community

EP 2,1.7a, b

Components of the criminal justice system
• Legislative
• Law enforcement
• Judicial
• Corrections

EP 2,1.7a, b

Legislative component: The legislative component deems
certain acts to be criminal

Law enforcement component: The law enforcement
component seeks to deter crime and to apprehend and
prosecute lawbreakers

Judicial component: The judicial component determines if
the laws are valid under our Constitution and prescribes
penalties for illegal behavior

Corrections component: The corrections component
administers penalties and performs rehabilitative
functions

EP 2,1.7a

Criminal courts
• Lower criminal courts
• Trial courts
• Appellate courts

EP 2.1.7a

Corrections options
• Probation
• Intermediate punishment
• Incarceration

EP 2.1.7a

Juvenile delinquency
Refers to a youth who has committed a crime; a
status offense such as truancy, underage drinking,
curfew violation, or running away; or both

EP 2.1.7a

Juvenile justice agencies
• Legislatures
• Police
• Prosecutors
• Defense attorneys
• Halfway houses
• Social service agencies

EP 2.1.7a

Juvenile courts
Have several and often-competing goals:
• helping children in need
• treating or punishing juveniles who commit
crimes
• protecting society from juvenile crime

EP 2.1.3b

Juvenile court process
• Intake
• Adjudication
• Disposition

EP 2.1.3b

Juvenile corrections
Can be divided into community corrections, such as
probation, and institutional corrections

EP 2.1.3b

Juvenile correctional institutions
• Foster homes
• Shelters
• Group homes
• Halfway houses
• Ranches and camps
• Detention centers
• Training schools

EP 2.1.3b

Dual system of justice
• Every jurisdiction in the United States operates
separate systems for responding to juvenile and
adult criminal behavior
• However, recent “get tough” policies have resulted
in upwards of 250,000 youth under the age of 18
being sent to the criminal justice system to be
adjudicated as adults

EP 2.1.3b


Differential treatment of minority youth
in the justice system
Many have addressed the issue of the differential
treatment of minority youth in the juvenile justice
system

EP 2.1.3b

“Cumulative disadvantage”
Overrepresentation of minority youth in the juvenile
justice system tends to accumulate as youth are
processed through the system

EP 2.1.3b

Alternatives to get tough policies
policies and programs that help juvenile offenders
acquire empathy for those whom they have affected
by their actions and make changes in their lives so
they are less likely to re-offend.

EP 2.1.9b

Alternatives to get tough policies (cont’d)
• Prevention in early childhood
• School-based prevention
• Effective child welfare
• Intervening with behaviorally troubled children

EP 2.1.9b

Rehabilitation programs
• Reduce further criminal activity
• Improve prison management
• Help accomplish the mission of humane
punishment
• Give prisoners something to do

EP 2.1.7a

Types of rehabilitation programs
• Vocational training
• Work release
• Financial assistance
• Prison industries
• Treatment

EP 2.1.7a

Crime Prevention
• In communities
• In schools
• In families
• In labor markets
• By criminal justice agencies after arrest
• In places
• By police

EP 2.1.9b


Views of Criminal Behavior
• Psychological
• Social
• Economic
• Interaction of personal characteristics
and the environment

EP 2.1.3a, 2.1.7a

Social work and the criminal
justice system
Social workers most frequently work in juvenile
courts, rehabilitation centers, prisons, and parole
programs

EP 2.1.1a, 2.1.9b
.Copyright © 2012 Cengage Learning, Brooks/Cole Publishing

Social work and law enforcement
• Crisis intervention
• Victim assistance
• Child abuse or sex crimes
• Youth crime prevention
• School dropout prevention
• Drug and alcohol education

EP 2.1.1a, 2.1.8a, 2.1.9b

Chapter 13 The Role of Social Work in the Criminal Justice System

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