Preview

Racial bias in the criminal justice system

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
641 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Racial bias in the criminal justice system
Numerous study have found widespread racial bias in US criminal justice system. A new report issued by a coalition of civil rights organizations calls the "massively and pervasively biased" treatment on blacks and Hispanics by the US police and courts the major civil rights problem of the twenty-first century entitled "Justice on Trial : Racial Disparities in the American Criminal Justice System." The study finds that minorities in the US face discriminatory treatment at every stage of the judicial process, from arrest to incarceration. The 95 page report was issued by the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights based in Washington DC. It's findings show that blacks, Hispanics and other minorities face unfair targeting by police and other law enforcement officials, racially biased charging and plea bargaining decisions by prosecutors and discriminatory

sentencing by judges.In a report released from Washington DC- Amnesty International criticized Us Federal and state justice systems as riddled with racial discrimination. The report, Racism and the Administration of Justice, cites

as evidence the disproportionate rate of minorities incarcerated, sentenced to death, and executed in the US. In its report, Amnesty International cited cases of racial profiling, unlawful use of force, unlawful shootings, and

deaths in custody affecting minorities from at least 10 states in the US. African Americans and other minorities suffer disproportionate rates of incarceration, accounting for 60 percent of the 1.7 million people currently in jail or prison in the US. African American men are imprisoned at more than eight times the rate of white men, and one third of all young African American men are in jail or prison, on parole, or on probation. African American women are imprisoned at eight times, and Hispanic women at four times, the rate of white women.The overwhelming majority of victims of police brutality, unlawful shootings and deaths in custody are members of racial

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    While working for the American Civil Liberties Union, Michelle Alexander’s perspective changed as she gained insight on the racial bias in our criminal justice system and how it has been altered throughout time. In The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindless, Alexander compares our current justice system to the Jim Crow laws of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, which enforced racial segregation, by calling our system “The New Jim Crow.”…

    • 849 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Sentencing Project also illustrates that the black community is intentionally targeted through mass incarceration. Their article, entitled “The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in State Prisons” states that in sixteen states, black people are more than seven times more likely to get imprisoned than their white counterparts (“The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in State…

    • 1407 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    A stage-level analysis is the examination of disparities at each different stage in the judicial process. Wooldredge argues that disparate treatment of races during the stages of their case processing may help account for large variation in incarceration between different racial/age demographics. Over 5,000 felony cases from urban areas in Ohio were included in his study. Specifically, Wooldredge analyzed how race’s impact on sentencing changed when controlling for legal and extra-legal factors such as age, sex, employment status (2012). The study found that there was no significant difference in sentencing between African Americans and Caucasians when controlling for the severity of the crime committed. However, Wooldredge argues, that does not mean there is no racial bias in the process as a whole. Disparities in the treatment of minorities’ early stages of their case process could certainly account for differences in sentencing severity and rates. Black males between the ages of 18 and 29 receive much harsher treatment in the pre-trial stages. They are less likely to be released on their own recognizance and their bail is likely to be higher than their white counterparts. The author concludes hypothesizing that the differences in pre-trial treatment of black and white defendants are likely connected to sentencing disparities.…

    • 3561 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Race-based theory plays a major role in predicting substantial and institutionalized discrimination that is always aimed at minorities within the systems of criminal justice. Racial discrimination in the criminal systems is mainly carried out by police, judges in the courts and agencies which carry out corrections in the United States. Evidence of criminal discrimination against African Americans and Hispanics found in the United States highlights some of the discrimination incidences that the minorities go through. Discrimination against minorities is popularly explained as a purpose of little position of their socioeconomic actions rather than indigenous or racial status. There are two race-based conflict theories which address the discrimination…

    • 139 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Annotated Bibliography

    • 615 Words
    • 3 Pages

    This book provides detailed accounts where the judicial system shows discrimination toward minorities, proving persons of color are sentenced to mandatory jail terms more than any other race.…

    • 615 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The majority of civilians killed are Latinos, African Americans, and Native Americans, according to author AJ Vicens from the American Magazine Mother Jones (Vicens, 2015). Yvette Smith, Darrien Hunt, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Timothy Russel, Ezell Ford, Larry Jackson Jr., and Gary Hatcher are all only a miniscule fraction of the people of color murdered by officers of the law in recent times. Since the beginning of 2015, 1077 people have been murdered by police officers, according to KilledByPolice.com, which is a site where the families of victims of police brutality list the names of their deceased loved ones (Killed By Police,…

    • 958 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It should be noted, the criminal justice system in the United States of America is represented by a picture of a balanced scale. In theory, the scales of justice is supposed to be fair, and impartial, the scales are balanced, which signifies it’s equallity. However, the earlier example reveals that justice is not fair, and that minorities are unjustly targetted more than the majority group. The Critical Race Theory in a sense qualifies and quantifies the role race plays in every aspect of the American life. It qualifies it from the perspective that it explains systems of oppression and discrimination are purposely given to people based on race/ethnicity/gender and class. It quantifies it the statistical data that shows an unfair distribution of wealth and power that excludes the same group of people forcing them to deal with systemic inequalities and systems of oppression.…

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Racial disparity in sentencing continues to be a long time culmination in the criminal justice system. The disparity in criminal sentencing is seen when individuals who commit similar or the same criminal act results in acquiring different sentences upon conviction (Jones-Brown, 2002). The paper will take a look at racial disparity in sentencing today, do an examination of reasons for racial disparity in sentencing, and possible solutions to racial disparity in sentencing.…

    • 2143 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Statistics continue to reflect issues of disparity and discrimination within the American criminal justice system. The issues that affect the enforcement of laws and government policy can result in justice for the safety of society and/or justice that will single out members of society. With the diverse population living in the United States, stereotypical judgments and attitudes can influence and possibly overwhelm the direction of the criminal justice system. The American system of criminal justice is thought to…

    • 901 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The intersection of racial dynamics with the criminal justice system is one of longstanding duration. In earlier times, courtrooms in many jurisdictions were comprised of all white decision-makers. Today, there is more diversity of leadership in the court system, but race still plays a critical role in many criminal justice outcomes. This ranges from disparate traffic stops because of racial profiling to imposition of the death penalty based on the race of the victim or the offender. A particularly important aspect of the role of race in the criminal justice system relates to sentencing because the prospect of a racially discriminatory process violates the ideals of equal treatment under law under which the system is premised (The Sentencing Project [], 2004, p. 1).…

    • 1728 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the 2011 statistics, Blacks and Hispanics make up the highest population in America’s prisons (Prison Population Statistics). Today African Americans make 1 million of the United States 2.3 million prison population (NAACP). It is recorded that Blacks are more likely to be incarcerated at a rate six times that of Whites (NAACP). Information reported on Prison Population Statistics state that this rate is that of nine times. This information is staggering considering African Americans and Hispanics only make up one quarter of the US population (NAACP). As stated by the NAACP,…

    • 556 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As the Federal government is now doing, all state agencies as well need to continually document and collect statistical data that identifies the race of those individuals processed through the criminal justice system. In the areas of administering justice (police, courts, and prison authorities), we need to pay specific attention to and hold accountable individuals for any instances where racial discrimination exists. As a society, we need to be concerned¡Xand express this concern, at the all-encompassing patterns of racial discrimination. By pressuring our governments to take urgent action to stop racial discrimination in our country¡¦s justice system, perhaps we can begin to prevent or reduce the incidence this practice. By effectively acknowledging that there is a problem in the criminal justice system, we can clearly communicate the expectation that discrimination on the grounds of race or ethnicity is unlawful and a violation of an individual¡¦s…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Black people face a tremendous amount of injustice in the criminal justice system. White and Black people use drugs at similar rates, however Black people are jailed on drug charges ten times more often than White people are. (Hinger) In addition, Black Men sentences are on average 10% longer than those of their white peers for the same crime. (Kahn) From initial charging decisions to plea bargaining, to sentencing African Americans are treated more harshly when they are the defendants. (Death)…

    • 905 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The judging of an individual’s character by their race did not become relevant because of the Rodney King beating, the attacks on the World Trade Center, or the illegal aliens crossing the Mexican border. Racial Discrimination has been a reoccurring issue for centuries. Throughout time, these judgments and discriminations have led to unwarranted searches, racial riots and unjust prosecutions. Racial Profiling not only adds to this overwhelming issue but is upheld by the U.S. government and prominent leaders. Racial profiling has caused divisions between black men and the police, negative effects on immigration and race relations, and false imprisonment, further proving that racial profiling is not defensible public policy.…

    • 1356 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Jim Crow

    • 2047 Words
    • 9 Pages

    In the book “The New Jim Crow” author Michelle Alexander talks about numerous issues of racial inequality in our criminal justice system. Alexander’s book is something every person who even has an interest in the criminal justice field should read, as it really looks beyond the color of a person’s skin. Alexander points out the vast majority of the problems our criminal justice system faces in racial inequality and discrimination. These problems have really formed our country to what it is to this day. Most people feel that society as a whole is past discrimination and that it is no longer a problem anymore. In reality, it is still a major problem in many aspects of our criminal justice system as well as the everyday lives of Americans. In all honesty I was one of them, but “The New Jim Crow” really opened my eyes on the discrimination that occurs within minorities in the United States. Reflecting back on this issue I had realized that I have witnessed this first hand with one of my close friends who is an African American male. I will get into more detail about this later on in my paper, but for now I am going to address some of the issues of racial inequality in the criminal justice system that Alexander mentioned.…

    • 2047 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays