Criminology Program

CRIM 3303 Section 001 (82130)

Advanced Criminal Justice
Course Syllabus
Fall Semester 2011
MWF 9:00 am – 9:50 am
Room: GR 2.530
Syllabus revision date: 4/04/2011

Professor Contact Information: Dr. O. Elmer Polk, Green Hall, Office #2.408, elmer.polk@utdallas.edu, telephone
972-883-2983. Students are strongly encouraged to use email as the primary method of communication. Your professor
checks email several times per day and you can normally expect a response within 24 hours or sooner.

Office Hours: Students may feel free to contact the professor at any time before or after each class meeting, at the
above telephone number or email address, or at any other time available to both the student and the professor.

Graduate Teaching Assistant: Your teaching assistant for this class is not assigned at the time of the posting of this
syllabus. Name and contact information for your TA, if any, will be provided during the first week of class.

Pre\Co-requisite: CRIM 1301.

Technical Support: If you experience difficulties with your UTD account you may send an email to assist@utdallas.edu
or call the UTD Computer Helpdesk at 972-883-2911.

I. Course Description: Analyzes the major agencies, personnel, and decision-making points which comprise
the criminal justice system. Explores some of the major theories and research about the roles that the various
agencies and actors play in the criminal justice system. Includes discussion of the problems and current
issues facing legislatures, police, courts, corrections, and the community, as they respond to crime.

II. Course Objectives

a. Students will be able to identify and describe the major agencies, personnel, and decision-making points
that comprise the criminal justice system.
b. Students will be able to identify and describe the roles and processes of each criminal justice component
and describe how they are organized into the criminal justice system.
c. Students will be able to describe the most important research in criminal justice that has led to policy and
mission reformulation of the constituent agencies within the system.
d. Students will become familiar with the criminal justice literature and the interrelationship between
research, policy, and process.
e. Students will be able to identify and discuss current issues in preventing and\or controlling crime and the
role of the community in the criminal justice system

III. Required Texts and course materials:

a. Required Text: Criminal Justice, 9th ed. (2010). By James A. Inciardi. Boston, MA: McGraw Hill
Publishing. ISBN #: 97800735279763. Available at the University Bookstore, the Off Campus Book Store
on Campbell Road, or from the publisher at www.mhhe.com.
b. Required Text: Forty Studies that Changed Criminal Justice: Explorations into the History of Criminal
Justice Research. (2010). By Amy B. Thistlewaite & John D. Wooldredge. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall Publishing. ISBN#: 978-0-13-234975-8. Available at the University Bookstore, the Off
Campus Book Store on Campbell Road, or from the publisher at www.pearsonhighered.com.

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 Additionally, students are required to read appropriate, current criminal justice journal articles and court
decisions as required to complete the assigned Discussion Essays and each student who does not
already have one, is encouraged to purchase an APA writer’s manual. The APA manual is available in the
bookstore, in any bookstore near your residence, or online.

IV. Grades will be posted based on the following scale: A+=98-100, A=94-97, A-=90-93: B+=87-89, B=84-86, B-
=80-83, C+77-79, C=74-76, C-=70-73, D+=67-69, D=64-66, D-=60-63, F=0-59. Grades are based on the
following four events (due dates are in the course calendar and assignment schedule in Section XV of this
syllabus). Please note that there is no extra credit work available in this class and each student should
strive to do his or her best work on each and every grading event.
a. Examination I (25% of course grade).
b. Examination II (25% of course grade).
c. Examination III (final) (25% of course grade).
d. Discussion Question Essays (25% of course grade).

Examinations: There are three examinations that will consist of 30 to 70 objective items each along with
possible short answer or essay items. Questions are taken from your textbook, classroom lectures, class
handouts, and the internet sites identified in the syllabus. Your score will be posted in percentage scores in
your gradebook on WebCt with a maximum score of 100% on each. Make up exams are permitted in
emergency situations. Make up exams will be on the same content but may consist of essay and short
answer questions only rather than the objective questions in the original exam. Much of the material
on the exams comes directly from the classroom lectures and will not be covered in the same detail in
the text. Students aspiring to do well in the class should plan on attending class regularly and
punctually as there will be material presented in lectures that is not covered in the text. Students will
be excused for religious holiday purposes.

Discussion Question Essays: All students must formally answer ten essay questions during the course of
the semester. The questions will be provided via a class handout by the professor. Each answer must contain
a minimum of 250 words with proper grammar and sentence construction. You must answer each question
from your textbook AND find two additional reference sources and list all three sources as bibliographic
entries at the end of your answer. You must include a word count that does not include the question or the
three bibliographic cites. Due dates are listed for each question in section XI of the syllabus and students
should feel welcome to work ahead on these questions if they wish. Each question is worth 10 points for a
cumulative total of 100 points for the assignment. Late questions will be reduced in grade by one
point per day for 10 days. Early submission is encouraged to avoid concerns about late penalties.
Students who do not submit any or all of the questions will receive a grade of zero for each essay not
submitted.

Each individual essay must have the following parts:

1. The number of the essay you are answering
2. Repeat the question you are answering and only answer one question per week per essay
although you may work ahead as long as each essay is submitted separately.
3. Write your answer indicating through internal cites exactly where you use each of your three
sources.
4. Provide properly formatted bibliographic cites for three sources for each and every essay.
5. Then put the words Word Count = and indicate how many words are in your answer.

V. Writing Standards
a. Examinations will be objective in format with the professor’s option of one ten point essay question on
each. Students should anticipate having to write in this course on the required reaction paper and any
essays that may be included on exams...
b. All written work will be graded on quality of writing as well as substantive content. Written work must be
grammatically correct and correctly spelled. Additionally, papers must comply with an accepted style of
writing such as Turabian, APA, MLA or Uniform System of Citation.
c. Plagiarism: Any work, oral or written, that a student does for this course must be his/her original work or it
must be properly credited to the original source. Plagiarism includes any form of cheating on
examinations, tests, or quizzes, and the taking of ideas or words of another, whether published or
unpublished, without properly citing the source. A student who plagiarizes will receive a grade of zero

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 for the test or paper. Students found guilty of plagiarism are subject to a variety of punishments,
including expulsion.

VI. Academic Integrity: It is the philosophy of The University of Texas at Dallas that each student is
responsible for following the Student Code of Conduct and students should read the Code in their Catalog
pertaining to all aspects of academic integrity, especially the provisions regarding plagiarism and academic
dishonesty. Academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in
any form. All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University
regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension from the University or other resolutions as
required by the University. Academic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion,
the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person,
taking an examination for another person, or any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student.

VII. University Drop Policy: It is the responsibility of the student to process the official drop and add forms.
Faculty/staff cannot drop students from class. Please be aware the professor cannot drop a student for never
attending or missing too many classes and can only assign grades based on the work submitted. For this
reason it is important to your grade that if, for any reason, you decide to not complete the course, to complete
the appropriate paperwork to drop the class officially or to withdraw from the university.

VIII. Classroom rules: Pagers and cell phones must be turned off or to vibrate/silent settings. Laptops are
permitted in silent mode for note taking purposes only. Comments from students should be directed to the
entire class or to the professor and all comments must show appropriate respect and/or tolerance for
opposing viewpoints. No person not enrolled in the class is permitted to attend the class without prior
permission and no child may be brought to class under any circumstances. No extra credit work of any type
for any reason will be permitted in this class unless such credit is extended to each and every student in the
section. Students are encouraged to be concerned about their course grade throughout the semester.

IX. Incomplete Grade Policy: As per university policy, incomplete grades will be granted only for work
unavoidably missed at the semester’s end and only if 70% of the course work has been completed. An
incomplete grade must be resolved within eight (8) weeks from the first day of the subsequent long semester.
If the required work to complete the course and to remove the incomplete grade is not submitted by the
specified deadline, the incomplete grade is changed automatically to a grade of F.

X. Students wishing information on the following topics and policies should visit the website following the list.
Student Conduct & Discipline, Student Grievance Procedures, Incomplete Grade Policy, Disability Services,
Religious Holy Days, Academic Integrity, Copyright Notice, Email Use, Withdrawal from Class, and Off-
Campus Instruction and Course Activities: http://go.utdallas.edu/syllabus-policies.

XI. COURSE CALENDAR AND ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE

Please note that all reading assignments made in this assignment schedule refer to readings in the required textbook,
internet sites, or class handouts. Additional outside readings are required for the essays.

The Professor reserves the option of spending more or less time on each topic than is indicated on the course outline. To
stay abreast of topics, and to enable class discussion, required readings for each topic should be completed before the
class session devoted to the topic. Each student is responsible for the material in the assigned readings in addition to all
materials and discussions in the classroom. Remember that material will be presented in lectures that is not covered to
the same level in the text or the internet sites. Attendance and punctuality is important to your grade. Please feel free to
bring questions to class weekly as you progress on your readings and/or essays. Assignments below that refer to
Chapters are to be found in the Inciardi text and assignments referring to Study # are found in the Thistlewaite and
Wooldredge text.

Session 1 Wed. Aug. 24: Welcome to the class and professor resume. Introduction to the course. Review of the
syllabus. Discuss writing assignment.
Assignment: Read preface and Chapter 1

Session 2 Fri. Aug. 26: Pretest. The emergence of criminal justice. From a victim based system to the criminal justice
system.
Assignment: Read Chapter 1.
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Assignment: Read study on p. 13, “Why are there Differences in Police Behavior Across communities?”

Session 3 Mon. Aug. 29: Due process and crime control models. Societal and policy implications.
Assignment: Read Chapter 2.

Session 4 Wed. Aug. 31: Crime as a social construct, as a legal construct. Types of law. Terrorism and the Constitution.
Assignment: Read Chapter 3.
Assignment: Read study on P. 23, “Why are Police Officers Different from the Rest of Us?”

Session 5 Fri. Sept. 2: Overview of crime causation

Assignment: Read Chapter 3.

Session 6 Mon. Sept. 5: Labor Day Holiday.

Assignment: Read Chapter 3.

Session 7 Wed. Sept. 7: Theoretic paradigms, crime typology, & major forms of crimes.
Assignment: Read Chapter 4.

Session 8 Fri. Sept. 9: Incidence and prevalence of crime and delinquency. If a crime occurs in the jungle and no one
sees it – Did a crime occur? How do we know? Policy implications?
Assignment: Read Chapter 5.
Assignment: Read study on p. 40, “The Minneapolis Domestic Violence Experiment: Does Arrest Deter Crime?”

Session 9 Mon. Sept. 12: Essay #1 due. Criminal due process, the criminal justice process. A walk through the system
noting the impact of one agency upon the next agency in the process.
Assignment: Read Chapter 5.

Session 10 Wed. Sept. 14: Completing the walk through the system.
Assignment: Read Chapter 6.
Assignment: Read study on p. 48, “The Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment: Can the Police Prevent Crime and
Make Us Feel Safe?”

Session 11 Fri. Sept. 16: Emergence of modern police.

Assignment: Read Chapter 6.

Session 12 Mon. Sept. 19: Essay #2 due. Federal, state, and local structure of police organizations.
Assignment: Read Chapter 7.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 92, Broken Windows: Does Urban Blight Lead to Crime?”

Session 13 Wed. Sept. 21: Police units and mission.

Assignment: Read Chapter 7.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 65, “The Newark Foot Patrol Experiment: Should the Police Patrol in Cars or on Foot?”

Session 14 Fri. Sept. 23: Order maintenance and law enforcement.

Assignment: Read Chapter 7.

Session 15 Mon. Sept. 26: Essay #3 due. Community policing.

Assignment: Read Chapter 8.

Session 16 Wed. Sept. 28: Constitutional rights and the police. Arrest, search and seizure.
Assignment: Review Chapters 1-8.

Session 17 Fri. Sept. 30: Exam 1 on Chapters 1-8 plus required studies and class notes.
Assignment: Read Chapter 9.

Session 18 Mon. Oct. 3: Essay #4 due. Return and discuss Exam 1. Police misconduct and integrity..
Assignment: Continue to read Chapter 9.
Assignment: Read study on p. 100, “Deadly Force: what Explains the Variation in Police Shootings Across Departments?”

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Session 19 Wed. Oct. 5: Brutality, use of force, and Tasers
Assignment: Read Chapter 9.

Session 20 Fri. Oct. 7: Use of force continuum.

Assignment: Read Chapter 10.
Handout #1: Force Continuum.

Session 21 Mon. Oct. 10: Essay #5 due. The dual court system in America. Criminal v. civil. trail v. appellate. General v.
limited..
Assignment: Read Chapter 11.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 153, “The Defense Attorney’s Role in Plea Bargaining: Are Defendants Pressured by
their Own Attorneys to Plead Guilty?”

Session 22 Wed. Oct. 12: Structure and role of the federal courts.
Assignment: Read Chapter 11.

Session 23 Fri. Oct. 14: The Courtroom Work Group, The right to counsel (Powell v. Alabama)
Assignment: Read Chapter 12.

Session 24 Mon. Oct. 17: Essay #6 due. Methods of obtaining counsel.

Assignment: Read Chapter 13.

Session 25 Wed. Oct. 19: Court processing: bail, grand jury, the plea, pretrial motions,
Assignment: Read Chapter 13.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 183, “Jury Decision-making: why Do Juries and Judges Sometimes Disagree?

Session 26 Fri. Oct. 21: The jury and trial organization

Assignment: Read Chapter 13.

Session 27 Mon. Oct. 24: Essay #7 due. Sentencing objectives and range,
Assignment: Continue to read Chapter 13.

Session 28 Wed. Oct. 26: Statutory structures, fines, imprisonment, intermediate sanctions, disparity, and sentencing
reform.
Assignment: Read Chapter 14.

Session 29 Fri. Oct. 28: The death penalty sentence.

Assignment: Read Chapter 14.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 224, “Sentencing Guidelines: Can a Sentencing Scheme be Developed to Reduce
inequities in Prison Sentences?”

Session 30 Mon. Oct. 31: Essay #8 due. Modes of execution

Assignment: Read Chapter 15.

Session 31 Wed. Nov. 2: Early prisons and corporal punishments.

Assignment: Read Chapter 15

Session 32 Fri. Nov. 4: Pennsylvania and Auburn Systems. Prison Industries. Penitentiaries, Reformatories and Prisons.
Assignment: Read Chapter 1.

Session 33 Mon. Nov. 7: Types of prisons. Classification of facilities and offenders. Correctional organization and
administration.
Assignment: Read Chapter 16.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 250, “What Works? Questions and Answers About Prison Reform.”

Session 34 Wed. Nov. 9: Women’s issues in prisons. Prisonization. Jails and detention centers. The Martinson Study.
Assignment: Read Chapter 1.

Session 35 Fri. Nov. 11: Prison conditions and prisoner rights.

Assignment: Review Chapters 9-16.
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Assignment: Read the study on p. 312, “The Society of Captives: A Study of a Maximum Security Prison.”

Session 36 Mon. Nov. 14: Exam 2 on Chapters 9-16, assigned studies, and class notes.
Assignment: Read Chapter 17.

Session 37 Wed. Nov. 16: Return and discuss Exam 2. Criminal justice diversion. Probation with or without adjudication,
conditions of supervision
Assignment: Continue to read Chapter 17.
Assignment: Read the study on p. 345, “Inmate Victimization: Are Prisons Safe for Inmates?”

Session 38 Fri. Nov. 18: The PSI

Assignment: Read Chapter 18.

Session 39 Mon. Nov. 21: Essay #9 due. Shock probation, ISP, EM, HA, restitution, modification and violation.
Assignment: Read Chapter 18

Session 40 Wed. Nov. 23: The origins of parole, eligibility, conditions, parole supervision, violation, discharge, RCR,
furlough. The question of whether parole should be abolished. Juvenile aftercare/parole.
Assignment: Continue to read Chapter 18.
Assignment: read the study on p. 280, “Granting Felons Probation: Public risks and Alternatives.”

Session 41 Fri. Nov. 25: Thanksgiving Holiday.

Assignment: none.

Session 42 Mon. Nov. 28: Essay #10 due. Parens Patriae, the emergence of juvenile justice, status offenders,
delinquents and bootstrapping.
Assignment: Read Chapter 18.

Session 43 Wed. Nov. 30: A walk through the juvenile system,

Assignment: Read Chapter 18.

Session 44 Fri. Dec. 2: Return Essays and discuss them.

Assignment: Review Chapters 17-18 and assigned studies.

Session 45 Fri. Dec. 5: Last day of regular class. Review for final Examination.
Assignment: study for final exam.

Final Exam: As per university schedule Dec. 9-Dec. 14. Comprehensive Final Examination, Primarily on chapters 17-
18 plus questions from previous exams, assigned studies, pretest and class notes.