Does the Criminal Justice System Discriminate?

Does the criminal justice system discriminate based on race?

           The struggle is real in America for many of the minority population. This rings true especially in the American justice system. Discrimination refers to the denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and-groups because of prejudice. Race refers to the physical characteristics of individuals that make them different from other individuals (e.g., African-Americans, Caucasians, Asians, etc.).

            The criminal justice system includes law enforcement, the courts, and corrections. When an individual commits a crime, the police make an arrest, the defendant stands trial in court and, if convicted, the judge sentences the defendant to prison (corrections) where he or she is required to serve the sentence.

           Although racial discrimination is viewed as morally wrong, several studies on racial disparity in the criminal justice system conclude that African-Americans are affected by such discrimination. In fact, while African-Americans comprise 12% of the population in the United States, more than 50% of them are currently incarcerated in United States prisons.

Racial disparity is also linked to racial policies and politics. Policies that contributed to the increase in racial disparity in the criminal justice system include the war on drugs started by the Bush and Reagan administrations in the 1980s, which sought to enforce stricter punishments in an effort to fight drug-related street crime.

         The direct fallout from the war on drugs was the incarceration rate of African-Americans increasing abruptly. Drug-related arrests of African-Americans increased from 20% in the 1970s to 42% in the 1980s. Drug-related arrest rates of Caucasians, on the other hand, increased by 27%. Inner-city and socially disorganized communities are the ideal target for drug-related arrests as opposed to middle-class non-black neighborhoods. The resulting sentences at the federal level tend to be longer for African-Americans (40%) compared to that of Whites. Racial disparity is also evident in bail decisions. Criminal justice actors are more likely to grant bail to middle-class defendants rather than to poor, minority defendants.

            Racial discrimination has also affected juvenile offenders. According to Scott &Steinberg (2011), a study on racial attitudes and the confinement of minority youths revealed that probation officers hold stereotypes. In fact, they are more likely to attribute different factors,depending on the race of the offender. For example, probation officers tend to blame internal factors, such as poor character and attitude for the criminal behavior of African-Americans. By contrast, they tend to attribute the criminal behavior of Caucasian youth offenders to external factors, such as the social environment.

            In another study on racial discrimination and law enforcement concluded that police and probation officers often perceive African-American youth as dangerous. As a result, police and probation officers believe that African-Americans should receive harsher punishment as opposed to Caucasian youth offenders. It should also be noted that discrimination against African-Americans and other minorities also apply to police officers recruits. Only 5% of law enforcement officers were minorities in the late 1960s.

            Following the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in the 1970s, however, these rates increased: in 2002, 27% of police officers were minorities. The racial animus and the dislike for minorities have often paved the way for tough crime control policies. Discrimination based on one’s race violates the principle of equality. Racially based discrimination, however, is evident in the criminal justice system. African-Americans(adult and youth) are more likely to be arrested and sentenced to longer prison sentences than Caucasian offenders.

Works Cited

1. Scott, E., & Steinberg, L. (2008) .Rethinking juvenile justice. Harvard University Press.
2. "Addressing Racial Disparities in Incareration." Web. 22 Oct. 2014. <http://sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/Prison%20Journal%20-%20racial%20disparity.pdf>