Define “community” and its role in the justice system.

3. Explain and apply the concepts of power, privilege, discrimination and

community justice to the development and administration of the justice system.

4. Examine conceptions of justice and fairness from the perspectives of victims,

offenders, community members and justice system professionals.”

This first opinion paper aims at fulfilling the above learning objectives. The paper will be between 3-4 pages including the reference page, with at least 4 scholastic references (one of the references can be the textbook); the goal is to assess the students’ ability to make a rational, logically organized and well-founded argument regarding a topic. The paper is expressly intended to be critical and analytical.

The grading criteria are annexed to the syllabus, and they are — introduction/thesis, quality of research, support of thesis and analysis, conclusion and writing. Scholastic references are from scholastic and peer-reviewed publications. Online publications must be reputable, meaning that they follow journalists’ ethical code, have fact-checkers and an editorial board. Wikipedia or only newspaper references are not acceptable.

This paper will follow APA style (2 line spacing, font size 12, Times New Roman), with a title page (not included in the 3-4 pages cited above), but without the need for an abstract. Make sure your writing is elegant, because that is one of the grading criteria. SOLID BLOCKS OF TEXT ARE NOT ACCEPTED, BECAUSE IT IS NOT COLLEGE LEVEL WRITING.

Alternative topics for the first paper:

1. What is justice and injustice? How do you define these terms and address one theory of social justice. Identify the implications for the criminal justice system in all its elements — law, enforcement, courts, corrections.

2. What values do you see as dominant in American society? Compare these values with the values consecrated in the foundational documents of the republic, and discuss the implications for the criminal justice system.

3. Two examples: Stand Your Ground laws and Three Strikes laws. Select one of these laws and evaluate if this type of law is just or injust accordingly to the theories of justice — utilitarianism, libertarianism, egalitarianism and virtue-based theories to explain why. Do you agree that ethnicity plays a role in the writing and implementation of the law you selected?