Course Description
Provides an overview of the basic principles, philosophy, organization, policies, ethics, and functions of the U.S. criminal justice system as well as the basic patterns and distribution of crime and victimization in the United States.
Syllabus
Student Learning Outcomes, Goals, Objectives:
Students successfully completing this course will be able to:
- Critically analyze claims, arguments, artifacts or information.
- Construct coherent, evidence-based arguments.
- Understand philosophies and practices of policing and punishment including plea bargaining, prisons and jails, probation, parole, capital punishment, law enforcement, and the general process of criminal justice.
- Recognize the basic distribution and patterns of traditional street crime and victimization as well as crimes of the powerful.
- Apply basic sociological facts and approaches to understanding crime and justice from a sociological perspective.
- Understand the concept of justice in general and specific applications to select issues.
- Explore alternative forms of justice and criminal justice reform.
Course Grading Information:
| Activity/Performance Measure | Percentage/Points |
|---|---|
| Exams (4 @ 50 points each) | 200 points |
| Assignments (4 @ 30 points each) | 120 points |
| Quizzes (10 @ 10 points each) | 100 points |
| Discussion (1 semester-long discussion requiring 8 posts) | 80 points |
| Source document | 50 points |
| Quiz on class rules, AI, and late work | 17 points |
| Quiz on scholarly sources & other class items | 15 points |
Final grades will be determined by dividing the total amount of points earned by the total amount of points possible. The resulting percentage will be converted into a letter grade according to the following scale:
Grading Scale
| Percentage | Letter Grade |
|---|---|
| 94-100% | A |
| 90-93.99% | A- |
| 87-89.99% | B+ |
| 83-86.99% | B |
| 80-82.99% | B- |
| 77-79.99% | C+ |
| 73-76.99% | C |
| 70-72.99% | C- |
| 67-69.99% | D+ |
| 63-66.99% | D |
| 60-62.99% | D- |
| 0-59.99% | F |
Attendance/Participation:
Attendance/participation is not a graded component included in the student's final grade for this course.
Course Materials Purchased by the Students:
The required text is Fichtelberg, A. (2025). Criminal (In)Justice (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc. (US). This is an ebook available to you through the “Course Materials” tab on our Canvas page. This is the main reading item for the course.
Scholarly Perspectives
This course engages diverse scholarly perspectives to develop critical thinking, analysis, and debate and inclusion of a reading does not imply endorsement.