Restorative Justice
In criminal justice, new interventions targeting crime control and reduction are constantly being developed and implemented. Three recent interventions are notable:
The Brady Act
Mandatory sentencing
Restorative justice
The Brady Act, requiring waiting periods and background checks for prospective firearms purchasers, has major policy implications for law enforcement. Mandatory sentencing has profound effects on the operations of the courts. Restorative justice is an innovation that has a critical impact on corrections.
Please select one of the above interventions to critique for your Final Project.
If you select restorative justice:
Please read Case Study 1-3 in the text (pages 68–80).
Log on to the Restorative Justice website of the PFI Centre for Justice and Reconciliation Restorative Justice (www.restorativejustice.org) and the U. S. Department of Justice website (search for “restorative justice”).
REQUIREMENTS
Completing this assignment requires covering the following four general areas:
Thesis. Your first task is to find and clearly state the thesis of the case study. The thesis is the main point the case study is trying to make. Sometimes the thesis is difficult to ascertain. If you have to hunt for the thesis of the article, comment about the clarity of the author’s presentation of the thesis. Before proceeding with the remaining elements of your critique, consider the significance of the topic or problem.
Methods. What methods did the author use to investigate the topic? In other words, how did the author go about supporting the thesis? Were appropriate methods used? That is, did the author’s approach to supporting the thesis make sense? Did the author employ the selected methods correctly? Did you discover any errors in the way the research was conducted?
Evidence. What evidence did the author present in support of the thesis? What are the strengths of the evidence presented by the author? What are the weaknesses of the evidence presented? On balance, how well did the author support the thesis?
Evaluation. Summarize your evaluation of the case study. Who will benefit from reading this case study? What will the benefit be? How important and extensive is that benefit? What is your evaluation of the case study? What suggestions do you have for repeating this study or one like it?
The critique must meet the following minimum requirements:
The critique must be a minimum of 15 and a maximum of 20 pages in length, excluding the title page, table of contents, executive summary, and citations.
The critique must have a title page. The title page must include the title of the critique, the student’s name, the course name and number, the name of the instructor, the name of the college, and the date.
The critique must have a table of contents consisting of the main section titles as well as the subheadings within sections, along with their page numbers.
The critique must have an executive summary. The executive summary is a brief summary of the content of the critique and should be no more than one page in length.
The critique must have a clear system of headings. Each major section of the critique must have a separate heading. Subheadings within these main headings are also advised. Placing a heading at the beginning of each main section of the critique makes the discussion in the paper easier to follow. Headings also improve the paper’s visual presentation. Your main headings can be taken from the four general areas presented above, from the headings provided by the “A Seven Stage Checklist for Program/Policy Planning and Analysis” in the Appendix to your text, or from a combination of the two.
The critique calls for citations and a bibliography. Please cite your references and set up your bibliography in APA style.
The critique must use proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
The critique requires that you use a checklist (in the Appendix to the text) as an aid to thoroughly and comprehensively critiquing the case study. Make sure that you cover all seven stages of the checklist.
