Course Descriptions

Criminal Justice

CJ130 INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE (4). A basic overview of crime and justice in America. Includes the criminal 136 process, problems and prospects of policing, the courtroom workgroup, prisons, and correctional policy.

CJ201G INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE (4). This course will examine crime and criminal justice from a global perspective. Issues surrounding the definition, incidence, trends, control, treatment and prevention of crime will be explored using theoretical and empirical resources from mainstream and international criminology.

CJ231 JUVENILE JUSTICE (4). Introduces the juvenile justice system in the United States. Includes classifications of juvenile offenders, the family and the offender, the role of the juvenile court, and the legal approach to combating juvenile crime. Causation models are outlined, as well as current treatment methods used in juvenile rehabilitation. Prerequisite: CJ130 recommended.

CJ234 POLICE, LAW, AND SOCIETY (4). A study of the history, structure, and function of police in America. Includes police management and supervision; constitutional limitations on police; law enforcement and community relations; and the sociological implications of contemporary policing.

CJ331 CORRECTIONS (4). This course will focus on forms of supervised release including probation and parole, home confinement, electronic monitoring and halfway houses. We will also examine the institution of incarceration as it exists in American society. Includes many of the current issues in the field such as overcrowding, prison violence, rehabilitation, and prison construction. [Skill: W] Prerequisite: CJ130 and CJ231 are recommended.

CJ336 VICTIMOLOGY (4). This course addresses the victim’s experience in the justice system. Using case studies of individual and organizational victims, examines the costs of crime, prevention services, intervention, and public compensation. Students will also explores the concepts of vulnerability, culpability, and intra-family crime. Prerequisites: CJ130 and CJ234.

CJ339 CRIMINAL LAW AND INVESTIGATION (4). An analysis of substantive criminal law and criminal investigation, including crimes against the person, crimes against property, defenses to criminal liability, and fundamentals of forensic investigation. Prerequisites: CJ130, CJ234 or PS231G recommended.

CJ350 TOPICS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE (4). Exploration of areas of special interest in criminal justice. Potential topics include organized crime, computer crime, criminal evidence, legal issues in corrections, women in the criminal justice system and others.

CJ430 HOMICIDE AND THE DEATH PENALTY (4). The narrow topic of homicide is covered in a range of other courses, but what is not covered in as much depth, and is of serious social and international concern, is that people accused of homicide face the most serious penalty our government provides. Even though all countries have homicide, the U.S. is a global outlier (especially compared to similarly situated democracies) in our retention of the death penalty. Therefore, the focus of this course will be on the legal, social, and political issues around the death penalty and its application for those convicted of homicide. Additionally, the course will retain an exploration of homicide more generally especially on the patterns of homicide, international rates, and the social, legal, political and economic correlates related to both offending and sentencing. Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing.

CJ435 FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY (4). This course is designed to provide a general understanding of the interface of psychology and the law and the difference between the two fields of study. In so doing, we will examine the roles and responsibilities of Forensic Psychologists, such as the selection and training of police officers, police interrogating and confessions, criminal profiling, criminal investigation, eyewitness accounts, trial preparation, jury selection, mental defenses and issues of competency, other types of defenses, sexual abuse issues, child custody disputes, discrimination, sexual harassment and death penalty cases. Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing.