The criminal justice profession implies fulfilling duties that meet the needs of various populations. All individuals and societal groups need security and protection, and meeting those needs make this profession valuable and rewarding. It makes both professionals and people feel proud and honorable. The functions of the criminal justice are not limited to arresting, instituting legal proceedings, and punishment. It has a greater purpose to meet the expectations of various citizens who need safety, protection, security, ethical behavior of judges, and an unbiased and non-discriminatory criminal justice system.
Safety in courtrooms is one of the needs of those people who are charged. Criminal justice professionals are responsible for the protection of every citizen under the Constitution and have to examine every case individually and without biases. People need to be guaranteed their security and protection by criminal justice professionals. They have to be sure that they will not be exposed to any harm, and any threats to their lives will be eliminated (Souryal & Whitehead, 2019). For example, residents of a particular criminal area may expect to be protected from possible gang attacks by the police. Similarly, citizens of a particular country need to be protected from terrorist attacks by the military officers.
Citizens also expect criminal justice professionals to be unbiased and non-discriminatory. They have to perform their duties based on the principles of rapid response, inclusiveness, and representativeness at all levels. People expect judges and lawyers to be just in their duties, and punishment must be fair, proportionate, and consistent for all groups of the population. A victim would expect from criminal justice professionals to give a fair judgment without any prejudice (Egharevba, 2016). All people need equal and fair treatment when seeking justice and expect criminal justice professionals to behave following moral and ethical principles.
People want judges to estrange themselves from immoral acts such as bribery or giving unfair treatment. Citizens expect criminal justice professionals to conform to the values and norms of the society they serve. Assuring rights of all populations to protection based on the law places high demands on the moral qualities of criminal justice professionals (Souryal & Whitehead, 2019). Judges, lawyers, and prosecutors have to meet these needs and behave properly. Many of them strive to make the general operation of the system more unbiased and unimpeded. This allows more cases to be resolved smoothly and without violations.
Citizens also want to be served by well-educated judges and lawyers who can critically analyze the case and offer reasonable solutions to the issue. Those society members that deal with insecurity need the professionals to implement proper solutions to this problem, for example, adopting policing strategies instead of using traditional strategies to combat crime in society (Egharevba, 2016). Thus, people require criminal justice professionals to be knowledgeable, and they want constant and widespread strengthening of ethical principles of judges in modern conditions.
Criminal justice professionals address the needs of citizens guaranteeing that they perform their duties as expected by various populations. They act following the established regulations, such as the code of conduct that govern their actions. They strive to assure that their behavior is guided by ethics and legislation provided by the corresponding departments (Souryal & Whitehead, 2019). For instance, judges act according to the code of conduct declared by the courts. Besides, they are continuously engaged in professional educational programs that allow them to deal with the needs of modern society. Professional development helps them to get new skills and acquire new knowledge that helps to deal with the challenges in society and the diverse needs of the populations.
Criminal justice professionals also try to increase their awareness of various cultures and get acquainted with different traditions and values of the diverse communities. They are becoming more flexible to the norms and beliefs of various groups of society. For example, they try to be more concerned with such controversial issues as gender, race, and sexual discrimination, as well as gun control, which enables them to be more efficient in making decisions (Egharevba, 2016). This also enables them to achieve productivity and develop trust in them among the diverse population.
Criminal justice professionals work in demanding conditions, and their actions are difficult to understand by people not related to this occupation. Thus, there are different stereotypes associated with the criminal justice system. One of the ways to combat negative perceptions of this profession in society is the proper education of citizens. It is possible to conduct awareness campaigns to allow people to learn about the profession and deeper understand its duties (Souryal & Whitehead, 2019). For example, educational programs can enlighten community members about the role of police and criminal justice in crime prevention. Besides, the engagement of citizens in criminal justice activities will make people appreciate this profession and decrease negative stereotypes about it. For example, people can be involved in crime control through community policing. This will benefit society and eliminate negative perceptions such as the incompetence of criminal justice.
People expect criminal justice professionals to protect and secure them, be knowledgeable, and make ethical and unbiased decisions. The perceptions of citizens toward criminal justice are related to both individual and social factors. Many society members are not fully aware of the responsibilities and duties criminal justice professionals have to perform. People only know that they control crime, but they do not realize the risks they take. However, professional development for criminal justice professionals and awareness campaigns for the population can help to build trust in this profession and eliminate negative stereotypes.
References
Egharevba, S. (Ed.). (2016). Police brutality, racial profiling, and discrimination in the criminal justice system. IGI Global.
Souryal, S. S., & Whitehead, J. T. (2019). Ethics in criminal justice: In search of the truth. Routledge.