Assignment 1
Juvenile misconduct retains its position as one of the most flexibly policed crimes, leaving law enforcement with various processual options. Children caught by the police often receive a warning, rather than having an official case opened, but this depends on the severity of the crime (Taylor, 2017). In the case of shoplifting, the first process undertaken by the police could be to question the criminal on site, followed by contacting their legal guardians, referring them to a community agency, or arresting them (Taylor, 2017). Thus, four possible processes may be outlined as questioning, identification, record overview, and, finally, either custodial or non-custodial arrest.
The police force has a variety of options when dealing with juvenile shoplifters, their arrest relying on the existence of a previous criminal record, which mostly decides the processes’ course. Questioning and identifying under-age offenders may require contacting legal guardians, which may be used as a tactic to avoid detainment that is often outlined “as a last resort” (Taylor, 2017, p. 146). Finally, police may bring juvenile offenders into the police department for custodial arrest or serve court summons at home, as a form of non-custodial arrest, both options resulting in the opening of a court case.
Assignment 2
The citizens of any country maintain a right to a certain degree of secrecy, with the constitution of the United States supporting US nationals. Therefore, any actions taken by the government to track the activities of its citizens are met with outrage and negativity even from law-abiding residents (White, 2017). However, preventing the occurrence of crimes may be possible through monitoring those citizens who partake in suspicious behavior, allowing judging their actions as illegal and, therefore, arresting them if enough evidence is amassed. This method could permit reducing the number of transgressions committed and increase domestic safety. Despite the balance between individual rights and national security becoming precarious, this approach may allow reducing the number of crimes.
Organized crime, cyber-crime, and terrorism have become the face of modern-day law violation, requiring modernized solutions to prevent their occurrence. From virtual to real-life attacks, terrorism in its various forms may become the “dominant mode of conflict,” necessitating all levels of law enforcement to be prepared to respond to it (White, 2017, p. 376). Therefore, since the nature of government involvement in crime prevention could be positive, securing countrywide safety may excuse infringing on individual rights, maintaining community safety over merely personal security.
References
Taylor, M. (2017). USA. In S. H. Decker & N. Marteache (Eds.), International handbook of juvenile justice (2nd ed., pp. 135-154). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
White, J. R. (2017). Terrorism and homeland security (9th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.