lecture five - policing

Question 1

two reasons for growth in american gangs

Answer 1

1. economic restructuring and deindustrialization that eliminated many working-class jobs
2. increased demand for illegal street drugs

Question 2

youth gang incentives

Answer 2

initially attracted to gang life because of the protection it provides from an unsafe and intimidating neighbourhood

Question 3

law-and-order platform

Answer 3

supports a strict criminal justice system

the threat of certain punishment will deter people from engaging in criminal behaviour

Question 4

tough-on-crime approach

Answer 4

it requires a criminal justice system where all components are strict and punitive (aka mandatory minimums, longer sentences and zero tolerance policing)

Question 5

policing in canada

Answer 5

federal
provincial
municipal
first nations

Question 6

racial profiling

Answer 6

members of the police systematically target members of racial groups on the basis of a perceived criminal proclivity of the whole group

Question 7

criminal profiling

Answer 7

Satzewich and Saffir

argue that police view profiling as necessary for efficient and professional policing but insist on calling it criminal profiling

Question 8

indigenous people in canada

Answer 8

indigenous people have experienced social exclusion from the early days of colonization

while only 3% of the population. is Indigenous, and they make up between 1/5 and 1/4 of the prison population.

Question 9

homeless youth

Answer 9

any youth whom the street their habitual abode or source of livelihood, and who is inadequately protected, supervised, or directed by responsible adults

homeless youths’ illegal activities have more to do with the youths’ current adverse situations than with their disadvantaged backgrounds

Question 10

the youth criminal justice act (YCJA)

Answer 10

introduced in 2003

extra-judicial measures: youth are diverted away from the criminal justice system

police can issue the youth a warning, charge them, or invoke an extra-judicial measure

Question 11

quasi crimes

Answer 11

crimes must fit within a criminal statute
- a regulatory or welfare offence that resemble criminal offenses but are not formally classifed as such

Question 12

actus reus

Answer 12

an illegal action or omission is always a criminal or quasi-criminal offence

Question 13

three types of offences

Answer 13

1. summary offense
2. indictible offences
3. hybrid offeces

Question 14

hydrid offences

Answer 14

prosecutors have discretion to treat some charges as summary or indictable
- prosecutor will enter choice of conviction before accused is asked to enter plea

Question 15

arrest powers

Answer 15

S. 9 of the charter protects public from arbitrary arrest

The criminal code provides legal justifications for arrest

Question 16

arraignment process

Answer 16

first appearance in court to face criminal charge(s) is called an arraignment

An arraignment involves reading the information, which outlines allegations

Individuals facing indictable charges must appear personally at the arraignment

Question 17

videos as compelling evidence

Answer 17

video evidence is increasingly common, and especially so in trials concerning the excessive use of force by law enforcement