Criminal Justice. The justice system (Essay Sample)

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The justice system is supposed to dispense its services to the citizens in a fair manner. The system should not allow the judgment of an individual on a basis, other than proof of or no proof of guilt. This paper explains the relationship between the criminal justice system and race. It explores whether and how case judgments are influenced by people's race.
For each step of the justice system, racial data is used. Police stops, drug use, arrests, legal representation, jury selection, parole, sentencing and prison, are among the procedure in which racial information is used.
Statistics prove a lot about this take. African Americans comprise only 13 % of the US population and 14 percent of monthly drug users. However they make 37 percent of people arrested for drug offenses (King, R. S., & Mauer, M., 2005). The number of people of Latino descent and blacks stopped and frisked was statistically un-proportional in comparison to whites which increases the probability of more people of color being prosecuted and sentenced. In New York, blacks are 33 percent more likely to be detained, while awaiting felony trials than whites. (Bill Quigley, 2010)
Jury selection is also another area in which black have been given less opportunity to participate. More than half of African Americans who qualify for jury service have been struck out from participating in cases involving the death penalty. Getting a legal representative is also quite a challenge for people of color. They often end up opting for a plea bargain, often for a shorter jail time instead of going to full trial and risking longer jail time.
The sentencing is also more stringent for blacks than whites. The Mauer journal states that, blacks are more likely to receive mandatory minimum sentences than whites. It is also statistically evident that more than two thirds of long term convicts are non-white, despite the fact that whites constitute the largest percentage of the population. (Glater, 2007)
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