FACTORS INFLUENCING CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSONNEL BEHAVIOR

Provide a 900-words summary to podcast transcript below. FACTORS INFLUENCING CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSONNEL BEHAVIOR


FACTORS INFLUENCING CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSONNEL BEHAVIOR

Narrator: Welcome to the Podcast, Legal Issues in Justice and Security. Each weekly podcast is a discussion with a Subject Matter Expert who will provide a brief overview of the weekly topics, and how you can apply them in the field of criminal justice and security. This week, we will discuss factors influencing criminal justice personnel behavior.

Narrator: Can you talk about some of the concepts that will be covered this week?

SME: This week, we examine issues related to official behavior. We focus primarily on criminal justice practice models, corruption within the criminal justice system, civilian oversight, and criminal justice interaction with other professional personnel.

Criminal justice has become more open to the public in terms of interaction, observation, and understanding. Community policing, for example, focuses on introducing law enforcement personnel to human understanding of life issues for the people they serve. The goal of such programs is to remove the line between the criminal justice agencies and the community under the theoretical view that this will build community confidence. The uniqueness about open and community-based models is that each community has an opportunity to develop a model that best supports the unique configuration and character of the community itself.

Narrator: What are this week’s key points that students need to focus on most?

SME: This week, students will analyze issues related to corruption within the criminal justice system. Corruption is misconduct involving the use of a professional position for some personal benefit. As we all know, corruption imposes high costs on the entire criminal justice system, as well as society. Some specific examples of police corruption are favoritism, bribery, extortion, kickbacks, falsifications, theft, and perjury.

This week also explores civilian oversight. Civilian oversight is a concept designed around the idea of professional accountability. Civilian oversight allows for a readily accessible process and is intended to build increased public confidence in how criminal justice agencies handle personnel matters. There are two opposing views on civilian oversight. Proponents of civilian oversight maintain that it provides citizens in the community with input into the complaint review process. Opponents maintain that civilians, who are not, for example, police officers, are not qualified to review police operations.

Finally, students will examine the interaction of criminal justice personnel with other professionals, such as medical personnel. Confidentiality required by law is found in criminal justice and security situations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, known as HIPAA, so the sharing of information in professional interactions becomes very important.

It’s essential for students of criminal justice and security to understand the issues related to official behavior. The trend in many criminal justice agencies across the United States is toward community openness and civilian oversight, along with the stated goal of reducing corruption. This week’s readings are designed to provide students with an eclectic array of viewpoints. Read the assignment materials carefully, and then go beyond the assigned readings. Search online and investigate what the latest trends are in community orientation of criminal justice agencies, civilian oversight, corruption, and interaction with other professional fields.

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