How Technology Affects Criminal Justice Systems (Research Paper Sample)

How Technology Affects Criminal Justice Systems Name: Institution How Technology Affects Criminal Justice Systems In general, the criminal justice systems involve processes and agencies that have been established to control crime as well as impose penalties on violators. There are several components that make up the criminal justice system, though this varies from one state to the other. However, some of the common components of the criminal justice system take account of courts, defense attorneys, law enforcement, prosecution and corrections. Nonetheless, the system has evolved over time especially due to technological advances. As a matter of fact, technology has incorporated itself into every component of the criminal justice system as well as general life. Altogether, the advancement of different technologies affects the manner in which criminal justice system operates in the end. In this article, an in-depth analysis of how technology affects criminal justice system will be provided from a broad point of view. Without a doubt, the technological uprising that is affecting various systems of the government has not spared the justice system as of its wide sweep. Like other sectors of both the private and public enterprise, court systems, the work of the police agencies, community groups, correctional facilities, and other organizations that jointly make up our reaction to the increasing challenges of justice and crime are all bogged down in the storm of technological change. The evolution that has been witnessed in the field of technology directly impacts the manner in which criminal justice system functions at the fundamental levels (Chan, 2001). This is because a wide variety of technologies are utilized in support of this system including telephony, computers, weapons, database management software as well as automobiles. What is more, the integration of such technologies directly shapes practices and policies associated with the justice system. As an example, the development of transportation and development of modern communication technologies throughout the 19th century increasingly changed the response capability of law enforcement officers. Computers and cellular innovations have only bettered the criminal justice system environment as a result of increased data capacity in the processing, transmission/information sharing as well as communication across agencies. In turn, these developments have increased the quality of services associated with the justice system. Most law enforcement departments across this country supply the officers with in-car computers that are often referred to as mobile data terminals (Byrne & Rebovich, 2007). In fact, others are utilizing mobile phone technology. Indeed, the rapid growth in modern technology in the area under discussion can therefore be said to have brought in numerous changes accordingly. On the whole, these forms of technology have greatly affected the justice system in one way or the other. Patrol officers are using mobile data processor/in-car computers to carry out their everyday functions. For instance, arrests reports are easily documented, transmitted and are stored through the technology after law enforcement officers key it in their mobile peripherals. This is a different approach to the conventional method involving handwritten materials that had to be transported from one point to the other, often causing inconveniences. In addition, in-car technologies mean that police officers can do traffic citations and produce them electronically with the printer inside the automobile supplying a copy for the offender. Such basic operations are handled online, and thus enhancing the efficacy of the justice system. In addition, technology affects the justice systems through the fact that criminology professionals are increasingly taking advantage of automated case tracking programs or systems. These programs are mostly online systems that allow judges, attorneys, law enforcement officers and clerks to gain quick access to vital case as well as docket information. As a matter of fact, the professionals are able to access the necessary information from different locations and thus enhancing case management. Public defenders and prosecutors can also access the required arrest affidavits as well as witness information instantly after it is input in such technologies as embedded computers. It is worth noting that collection of information by criminology professionals using technologies contribute to important statistics about crime and criminal justice. In fact, they are used by the central government to assess as well as monitor the conditions and trends related to crime (McQuade, 2005). With this in mind, it becomes evident that the collection of reliable and wide-ranging criminal justice statistics is of immeasurable significance to every person involved with the justice system. Technologies such as in-car computers and other mobile data terminals ensure that relevant data is easily and accurately captured. Consequently, this enhances the overall quality of the criminal justice system. Furthermore, each component of the justice system predictably generates large quantities of records. It is only after such raw data is converted through resolute collection and organized into statistical formats that the records provide information important for criminal justice decision-making. Technology, and particularly the computers, is used during this process (Byrne, 2009). Data that is collected by various criminology professionals ought to be processed by computers in order to make sense. Time and again, criminal justice system raw facts are input into computer programs in order to process them and generate meaningful information. The process usually happens in a relatively short duration and generally produces accurate results thus increasing accuracy and efficacy of the justice system. The generated information from computers essentially runs the criminal justice system. This is information about incidents involving criminals as well as information over potential defendants. In addition, the processed information is about persons who are imprisoned either serving their rulings or awaiting trial. In addition, there is information concerning the court process including programmed events and results of past events. All in all, all of the above information affects the manner in which persons are treated in the justice system and probably affects the ultimate ending of any individual case. Additionally, the quality, quantity as well as timeliness of information is critical to participants in the justice system. Information flows is also capable of affecting the manner in which the entire justice system functions (Reichert, 2001). The efficiency of the justice system as well as the quality of justice bestowed is highly interrelated. Criminal justice administrators ought to be able to comprehend the flow of cases via their system. Additionally, technology helps administrators in today’s world as society and the complexity of crime grows. In fact, technology is increasingly used because the structure of the data necessary to properly administer the justice system becomes more complex. The complexities overwhelm the capacity of a conventional manual system, and even more elementary computer systems. Thus, today’s technology used in criminal justice is essentially a system of interconnected peripherals meant to accomplish specific goals. In total, the manner in which information is applied in criminal justice has changed as a result of technology. Moreover, criminal justice officials are looking beyond staff interpreters for cost-effective and creative ways to eradicate the language barrier. Technology presents a promising approach in language assistance technology (Rahman, 2007). This related to a computer and networking innovation that can assist persons who do not share a common ...