This assignment is to demonstrate your mastery of how the criminal justice system works. This assignment is designed to give you an opportunity to display your knowledge of the parts and processes of the criminal justice system. The more specific and detailed the paper is, the more effective it will be in demonstrating your understanding of the system.

Step 1. Select a current events case, in the last ten years, to analyze in the American criminal justice system. The case should be one where a life sentence or death sentence was the outcome.

Your case must be submitted to the instructor for approval in week four. Please submit your topic and briefly explain how the topic meets the project criteria. Topics must be approved before moving forward with the project.

Step 2. Describe the details of the case, including the nature of the offense, background of the offender, and an analysis of each component in the criminal justice system: advantages/disadvantages of police procedures, details and/or issues with court proceedings, and whether the correctional sentence was appropriate based on the nature of the offense and background of the offender.

Step 3. Conclude your paper by thoroughly analyzing the impact this case has had or will have on future criminal justice outcomes. Careful critical thinking is required here. Invest considerable effort in thinking about what you have learned over the course of the term in addressing this final aspect of the mission.