Discussion 1

Drawing upon course readings, your prior course work, and your personal experiences, which theory of criminal justice from Criminal theory summaries, Theories of crime and delinquency (chapters 6-7), and Chronological theory on the web, do you believe best reflects how the U.S. criminal justice system functions? Point out the strengths and weakness of this theory and provide recommendations to improve the current system to "fit" the theory in its purest form.

Guided Response: The focus of this activity is to start a conversation with your peers about the function of today's criminal justice system. Start with a substantial initial post of 250 words.Explain the difficulty of applying theory to "real-world" situations and how that difficulty might impact your classmates' recommendations for improvements. Also, consider why such difficulties might exist.

Carefully review the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate this Discussion Thread.

Discussion 2

Explain which of the landmark federal criminal justice cases below is the most significant for promoting social justice in our present day. You may use historical examples of "wrongs righted" to supplement your positions. Be sure to explain the basis of your position and why you find the opinion or case to be most significant. Reference the Landmark Supreme Court Cases website for summaries of each case.

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
Terry v. Ohio (1968)
Texas v. Johnson (1989)

Guided Response: Your initial post should be 250-300 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. Review several of your classmates' postings and substantively respond, in 150 words to at least two of your classmates' who have chosen a different landmark case than your own. Provide an argument to convince your classmates that your case is more significant than their choice.