Kimberly Acreman
Cultural Diversity in Criminal Justice CJA/423
Brian Bugge
January 25, 2010 Today’s criminal justice system encounters several difficult and problematic circumstances. However, the following paper will refer to involvement in disparity and discrimination within court procedures and law enforcement. Each situation discussed will pertain to disparity and discrimination within today’s criminal justice system. In some situations disparity can result from discrimination. The following paper will provide examples, definitions, contrast of disparity and discrimination, and comparison. Disparity is based on two elements known as legal and extralegal and …show more content…
Discrimination is composed of four types known as systematic, contextual, institutionalized, and individual discriminating acts. Systematic is the discrimination within the criminal justice system, contextual pertains to particular crimes, institutionalized pertains to the criminal record and behavior, and finally the individual acts of discrimination is the individual’s own actions. For instance, law enforcement officials notice a woman on a street that is known for prostitution but what the law enforcement officials do not know is the woman is walking home from the bar. The law enforcement officials pull over, stop the woman, and arrest her based on the outfit she is wearing. Therefore, the result was based on the woman’s appearance and location she must be a prostitute. Another instance of discrimination would be a Middle Eastern woman who is accused of making terroristic threats. The judge does not base his decision on lack or quality of evidence, but rather bases his decision on nationality and history. Therefore, the judge decided the Middle Eastern woman was guilty based on assumptions or stereotypes of Middle Eastern individuals. The end of result of the judge’s determination led to people on the outside looking in and wondering if we as a country have any unity among individuals of different …show more content…
Both disparity and discrimination assist in determining on whether or not an individual is guilty or an assumption that an individual is guilty. When contrasting disparity and discrimination an individual is sentenced on a separate scale that is typically harsher. Discrimination separates into several difficult situations that compare to disparity, but are limited in the area. Discrimination can be possible and yet ending in results. However, they are not the