The Need for Ethics in the Administration of Criminal Justice

Ethics are very fundamental in law, particularly in the criminal justice system. Ethics are the foundations upon which we have built a legal structure to determine acceptable and unacceptable behaviors in society. The strength of a criminal justice system is largely dependent on its value for ethics. Therefore, ethics are essential in accessing justice in any clime.

First off, law enforcement agencies play essential roles in the administration of criminal justice. Particularly, the police are usually the first point of call to the regular person in the administration of justice. The police are important because they are often at the forefront of safeguarding lives and property. Therefore, ethical standards must be strictly enforced within the police, and they must be reflected in their operations.

Ethics often determines how the police interact or relate to people it is determined to protect. When people are convinced that the police operate ethically, they are more likely to trust the police and cooperate in administering justice. For example, when people trust the police, they might get involved in crime prevention and assist the police in crime investigation.

Similarly, ethics also require that the police or other law enforcement personnel not shield or cover up a colleague who has acted illegally or violated professional ethics. For instance, the internal affairs officers must investigate, without bias, complaints regarding specific police officers.

Further, ethics are critical in how an attorney behaves or conduct themselves. It is expected that both the defense and prosecution attorneys behave ethically while representing their respective clients. For instance, the attorney for the prosecution will be said to have violated ethical standards if they do not take reasonable steps to ensure that the accused accesses an attorney.

Likewise, the defense attorney also has ethical responsibilities laid down by the American Bar Association. Defense attorneys must act in good faith while representing their clients before a judge. They should not lie or misrepresent facts before the court, seeing as perjury is a criminal offense. Therefore, there are no justifications for why an attorney should behave unethically.

Judges are also expected to behave ethically in the criminal justice system. The expectation placed on judges to conduct themselves ethically is relatively higher. Therefore, they are usually more careful about what they say, the kind of company kept, and the places they visit. Because they are expected to administer justice without any form of bias, they are often expected to be without flaw.

Consequently, ethics require the judiciary to be accountable to the public, seeing it’s the arm of government saddled with the responsibility of interpreting the law. Therefore, there are established judicial ethics that the public is required to utilize in holding judges accountable.

The role of citizens in the administration of criminal justice should not be overlooked. A criminal justice system will thrive, and crime will be reduced to the barest minimum if citizens consider themselves a part of the system and participate accordingly. The jury system is a critical mechanism through which citizens get involved in criminal justice administration.

Like other stakeholders in the criminal justice system, people called up to serve as jurors at trials are ethically bound and obligated to understand the trial’s facts and be familiar with the applicable laws. Ethics also require that they pay close attention to the trial proceedings and give fair verdicts.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/RTKj6hG
via IFTTT