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Essay / Corruption in a Criminal Justice System
The purpose of a criminal justice system is to reprimand those who have broken the law while maintaining societal order. However, nothing man-made is flawless. There have been countless cases of corruption in the criminal justice system, which has dramatically altered the outcomes of many cases. In recent decades, government officials in various countries have begun to recognize the problems caused by corruption and have created anti-corruption plans and institutions as a result. Despite these efforts, corruption remains an infamous force around the world. The presence of corruption in criminal justice systems around the world endangers the safety of people, perpetuates the cycle of crime and challenges the idea of what a fair system fundamentally is. It is reasonable to conclude that the more widespread corruption is in a given country, the more dangerous the nation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay The 2017 Global Peace Index (GPI) report analyzed the degree of peace of various nations based on various factors such as safety and security, militarization, internal conflicts, and even relations with neighboring countries, to name a few. These indicators were carefully measured, and each of the 163 countries included in the report were assigned scores and rankings determined by these measurements. The top five ranked countries were, in descending order, Iceland, New Zealand, Portugal, Austria and Denmark. The lowest ranked countries are Yemen, South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and finally Syria. In order to draw conclusions about whether peace and corruption actually correspond, the aforementioned Global Peace Index results can be compared with those of Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). Individuals from around the world have reported the perceived level of corruption in their home countries while experts have made various assessments of nations. The scale on which the 176 countries were rated ranged from zero to one hundred. Zero represented the highest prevalence of corruption while one hundred represented the lowest. The nations were then ranked from highest to lowest based on their respective scores. Denmark and New Zealand were tied for first place, followed by Finland, Sweden and Switzerland. The countries at the bottom of the list were Libya, Sudan and Yemen, tied for 170th, followed by Syria, North Korea, Sudan and Somalia. Clearly, countries do not show an exact correlation between their GPI and CPI rankings. There were, however, some distinct similarities. Denmark and New Zealand rank in the top five on both lists, while Yemen, Sudan and Syria remain among the lowest ranked countries on each list. Iceland, the most peaceful country, ranks in the top twenty in the CPI. Although the majority of countries are in similar positions in terms of peace and corruption, there is one notable exception to the rule. The United States, ranked eighteenth on the CPI, is ranked 114th on the GPI. This latter score, eleven positions lower than the country's 2016 ranking, is attributed to an increase in internal conflicts, homicide rates and "a decline in the level of trust in the government and other citizens which has generated a deterioration of the level score”. perceived criminality in society. However, almost all other countries included in both reports have very high rankings.similar, demonstrating a significant correlation between the extent of corruption in a nation and its peace and security. One of the ways corruption can make societies more dangerous is by continuing the cycle of crime. Because of their fundamental similarities, each nation's criminal justice system should be able to function as long as the population obeys the present. There are a few theories to explain why people generally comply with authority, one of them being the public legitimacy principle. This can be defined as the perceived effectiveness of authority figures by members of the public, or citizens, of a given country). However, since there is currently no proven reason for why people tend to comply with the law, this theory remains just one theory among many. What is certain is that the population's obedience to law enforcement officials is beginning to decline as corruption increases. “…even a small number of corruption cases…will have a negative impact on the public because it is precisely this system that punishes corruption in other sectors. This leads to a decrease in public confidence…and reinforces doubts…”. In a corruption-free criminal justice system, the criminal procedure will proceed in the expected manner, that is, approximately eleven steps will be followed, depending on the complexity of the case. Simply put, if an investigation takes place and a person is charged with a crime, the accused can either take a plea deal or go to trial. The accused's lawyer, called the accused during the trial, will defend him against the prosecutor, who has the task of proving that the accused committed the crime in question. Members of a jury, or a judge, will then find the accused innocent or guilty based solely on the evidence and testimony presented. Even though the United States' criminal justice process is not used by other countries, it can be used as an example of a fundamentally just system. Even if a system may be fundamentally fair and equitable, as is the case in a large number of countries, in practice it may deviate from this theoretical configuration. Often this discrepancy is due to various forms of corruption. The most precise definition of corruption is “the abuse of entrusted power for personal gain.” The four main types of corruption that appear during the criminal trial are political interference; extortion of victims, witnesses or officials; nepotism which benefits those close to the case; and misuse of court funds and resources. One of the most common forms of corruption is bribery. Corrupting someone or accepting a bribe is a crime in itself; According to 18 USC §201, being convicted of a single count "may result in fines of up to triple the amount of the bribe, up to 15 years in prison, and a penalty depriving the accused of holding public office in the future.” Officials who engage in these illicit activities undermine the precise goal of criminal justice. The criminal justice system should discipline and then rehabilitate those who have committed a crime. However, bribery and other forms of corruption prevent the proper execution of justice. Criminals who bribe a judge or jury members are more likely to obtain a verdict of innocence, whether or not they were the actual perpetrators of the crime. Going against the established procedures of the justice system creates injustice, which becomes apparent once corruption is exposed to the public eye. be at least somewhat widespread. As corruption increases, citizens begin to distrust the system ofcriminal justice, leading to a range of problems for both citizens and officials. People will begin to believe that using corrupt tactics is an effective way to achieve the desired result. “…and it will give the impression that corruption is the only way to obtain high quality services, thus encouraging the public to resort to it more… which will weaken the very concept of democracy.” Once a few people begin to view the use of corrupt methods as an effective way to achieve the desired result, others will use them as well. As for public officials, rather than attempting to correct corruption, they may place blame on those who directly contributed to the corruption, rather than using the revelation of a corruption scandal as a pretext. entire system. “Blaming a few bad apples can become an excuse for commanders to deny the existence of a more systemic problem.” This is just one of the incorrect ways of dealing with corruption, but it is not the worst. Ignoring the problem may be worse than blaming another person or group of people. Failing to recognize corruption only encourages it to persist, and a justice system filled with corruption engages in the very type of activity it is supposed to correct: the criminal. A number of countries have begun to address corruption in their criminal justice systems, including France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Romania, Kenya and Malaysia, to name a few. some. France recently established the French Anti-Corruption Agency, called AFA. This agency was created as part of a new anti-corruption law called the Sapin II Law, adopted on November 8, 2016. In 2014, the United Kingdom published its anti-corruption plan. The report details the implementation of four basic principles: pursue, prevent, protect and prepare. There is also a focus on informing other countries about the risks of corruption and seeking to eliminate corruption in countries other than the UK. In the United States, there are internal affairs units of police departments that "...investigate resident complaints and administrative rule violations alleged against police personnel and report the results of these investigations to the Chief of Police." ; and defend residents’ and administrators’ complaints at department hearings and boards.” Various principles and laws have been put in place with the aim of targeting more specific branches of the justice system. In Frank Schmalleger's book, Criminal Justice: A Brief Introduction, he describes various principles that govern the actions of criminal justice officials. For example, the exclusionary rule prevents illegally seized evidence from being used in a trial, thereby preventing many police officers from unfairly charging a person. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized document now from our expert writers. Get a Custom EssayCorruption poses a huge threat to the criminal justice system. This endangers public safety, perpetuates the cycle of crime and calls into question the idea of a fundamentally fair system. By eliminating this threat, the justice systems of different countries will be able to function properly and in a fair and just manner. Criminals will be punished for their actions, innocent people will not be unfairly reprimanded, officials will do their jobs according to regulations, and the system as a whole will be able to function as intended. The criminal justice system should eliminate crime, not make it..