Criminal Justice Fields

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Criminal Justice has numerous avenues in which to follow so making the choice of what specific field to choose a difficult decision. This is not a choice that should be taken lightly nor in haste but one that should be contemplated and examined closely. I have done an enormous amount of research on many of the fields of criminal justice narrowing it down to three: Forensics, Probation/ Parole and Homeland Security. For me personally, these are the best three choices given their potential for being challenging.

Forensic science is the application of a broad spectrum of sciences to answer questions of interest to a legal system. Forensics is used in place of forensic science in modern times and is considered to be an effective synonym for “legal” or “related to courts”. The term, however, is closely associated with a scientific fields related to the solving of crimes. The earliest forms of forensic sciences were first used in 16th century Europe by medical practitioners in the army and universities to gather information on the cause and manner of death, though writings on these topics did not begin to appear until the 18th century. (Kind S, 1972)

The science of forensics is now recognized as a critical ingredient in law enforcement and in the solution of crimes. Protecting a crime scene from contamination, gathering and interpreting evidence accurately have become some of the most critical parts in crime solving. With today’s technology, law enforcement is able to solve many crimes that once would have been deemed unsolvable. Now in the 21st century with more unconventional crimes being committed such as terrorism, forensic science must continue to develop and mature. Leading the efforts to develop new scientific crime-fighting c...

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...n/ parole set forth by the courts and to provide services to assist the offender’s rehabilitation and reentry into the community. This is not an easy task, unfortunately with budget cuts and a shortage of officers; therefore offenders are often left to fend for themselves, only to reoffend and incarcerated yet again. (Champion, 1999)

Works Cited

Champion, D. J. (1999). Probation, Parole, and Community Corrections. Prentice hall.

Justice, U. D. (2004). Probation and Parole in the United States.

Kind S, O. M. (1972). Science Against Crime. New York: Doubleday.

Punja, S., & Mislan, R. (2010). Mobile Device Analysis. Small Scale Digital Device Journal.

Watanabe, M., Shiohara, M., & Sasaki, S. (2005). Palm vein authentication technology and its applications. Proceedings of the Biometric Consortium Conference. Fujitsu Laboratories.

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