LCJS 1700 - ETHICS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE (CAPSTONE)

Minimum Credits: 3
Maximum Credits: 3
This is a capstone course for LCJS majors in their final year. This writing-intensive course will employ a combined practical and theoretical approach to the study of ethics in relation to the American criminal justice system. We will examine ethical dilemmas at all levels of the criminal justice system from policing and investigations to prosecution and adjudication, paying particular attention to those that lead to discrimination based on race, class and gender and abuse of authority. To that end, we will examine in-group/out-group dynamics and noble cause corruption in both policing and prosecution. We will consider prosecutorial discretion and the ethical mandate of the public prosecutor as well as judicial conduct and oversight. Additionally, we will examine the role of structural biases in the criminal justice system in perpetuating race, class and gender inequality. Above all, we will ask how the criminal justice professional can operate ethically within a morally imperfect system. We will consider not only what is ethical behavior, but also common barriers (cognitive, interactional, organizational) to ethical action. The course will revisit topics introduced early in the major such as the nature of crime, the decision to criminalize and the purpose of punishment in the American criminal justice system, and it will ask students to assess the legitimacy and fairness of these approaches.
Academic Career: Undergraduate
Course Component: Seminar
Grade Component: LG/SNC Elective Basis
Course Requirements: PREQ: ENG 0102 or ENGCMP (0002 or 0006 or 0020 or 0200 or 0203 or 0205 or 0207 or 0208 or 0210 or 0212 or 0213 or 0214) or ENGFLM 0210 or FP (0003 or 0006) *Applies to all WRIT Courses*
Course Attributes: DSAS Phil. Think or Ethics General Ed. Requirement, SCI Polymathic Contexts: Ethical/Policy GE. Req., Writing Intensive Course (WRIT)

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