Getting into the rhythm ofCJ 299 – Associate Capstone projects

Sentencing Project

There are several types of sentencing.

Each is designed to help reduce recidivism while serving as a general and specific deterrent.

Terms to know:

Sentencing: When a judicial authority imposes a criminal sanction.

Recidivism: The repetition of criminal behavior.

Deterrent: Inhibiting criminal behavior through fear of punishment.

Your assignment

In a paper, define, describe and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of indeterminate, determinate, and mandatory sentencing.

Define: State the meaning of these kinds of sentences.

Describe: Give an account of these kinds of sentences by telling more about them, such as when and where they are used.

Discuss: Give examples of these kinds of sentences currently and historically, talk about how they are used, and any benefits or drawbacks they may have.

Sentencing terms to know:

Indeterminate – relatively unspecific terms (one to 10 years, for example) meant to encourage rehabilitation.

Determinate - a fixed term of imprisonment that may be reduced by good time.

Mandatory – Required sentence with no leeway. Clear-cut punishments are mandated for specific offenses, and also for habitual offenders convicted of a series of crimes.

Find at least five outside references.

Articles from academic journals, or peer-reviewed journals, are preferred.

Your paper must have 5-7 pages of content – what you have gathered from the journal articles.

Also, you need title, abstract and reference pages, which means the paper will be at least eight pages long.

Submit your paper by Tuesday, January 25th, in the basket titled Unit 3: Sentencing Project.

RememberI am here to help you!

Ask for help in advance of the deadline not after.

Midterm Project – Search and Seizure

For this project, you will read a story, or scenario – that is, a description of an event and what happened afterward – and you will write about it by answering four questions.

The event is a homicide.

The Scenario Mary Ellis, a widow, lives in a townhouse

that she shares with her adult son, William, who does not pay rent.

Mrs. Ellis wakes up Saturday morning, goes to her walk-in closet, and finds a man she recognizes as a neighbor, Clyde Stevens, lying on the floor unresponsive.

Mrs. Ellis calls 911, and soon police and EMS personnel arrive.

Mr. Stevens is pronounced dead from an apparent stabbing. A large butcher knife is sticking out of his back.

Mrs. Ellis, a senior citizen, is transported to the hospital for observation because she is so upset.

Police establish a crime scene and call for detectives and crime scene specialists.

Detectives begin a canvass and interviewMr. Stevens' wife, Sheila. Mrs. Stevens tells police that William Ellis has entered her townhouse several times unannounced. On one occasion, he appeared to be trying to get into her bed.

Mrs. Stevens gives the police consent to search the house for any potential evidence that might identify her husband's killer.

In William’s bedroom, technicians develop a blood fingerprint adjacent to a light switch, using an amino acid stain, after locating the print using the absorptive properties of blood and a portable argon laser.

The crime scene investigator photographs the print and recovers a sample of the blood for DNA analysis.

The print is from the right index finger of William Ellis, and DNA analysis matches the blood to Clyde Stevens.

On the basis of this and associated evidence from the Stevens and Ellis residences, an arrest warrant is issued for William Ellis.

William is arrested in Utah and extradited to Illinois to stand trial. His lawyer files a motion to exclude evidence.

Now that you know the scenario, you will write a paper based on 4 questions.

1. How would William's lawyer argue to have the physical evidence excluded? (In other words, what will the lawyer base his or her argument on - which facts of the case will be used?)

2. Will the exclusion pertain to all the evidence, or is there a difference between the evidence collected from the Ellis and Stevens homes? (One consideration is who has “standing,” which is the power to grant the authorities the right to search without a warrant).

3. Discuss the exclusionary rule and the "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine, and determine whether these concepts apply to this scenario. Support your answer by citing legal cases and other research, such as:

Flippo vs. West Virginia determined that police do not have a “crime scene exception” that allows them to conduct a broad warrantless search of a homicide crime scene. The Supreme Court reversed a West Virginia court’s conclusion that officers acted properly when they conducted a thorough search of a murder scene without a warrant.

Thompson vs. Louisiana. The Court affirmed its unanimous decision in Mincey v. Arizona in 1978: There is no “murder scene” exception to the Fourth Amendment.

Search of a homicide scene requires consent or a warrant.

Mapp v. Ohio, in 1961, held that the exclusionary rule was binding on the states through the Fourteenth Amendment, which guarantees due process. Until this case was decided, most states had rejected the exclusionary rule.

4. Describe what steps you would have taken if you had investigated this case.

What would you have done differently, and why?

Canvass – go door-to-door to gather evidence in a neighborhood.

Amino acid stain – substance used to detect fingerprints.

Argon laser – gas laser used to detect fingerprints. “Fruit of the poisonous tree” – means illegally

gathered evidence is inadmissible in court. Extradite – surrender of a suspect from one

jurisdiction to another. Exclusionary rule – incriminating evidence must

be gathered according to due process or it cannot be used in a criminal trial; that is, it will be excluded.

Your paper should be 5-7 pages of content you find in your research. You also need a title page, abstract page and reference page. That means your paper will be a total of at least 8 pages.

Use 5-7 outside references, preferably from original court cases, along with academic journal articles.

Submit your paper by Tuesday, February 8th in the basket titled Unit 5: Midterm Project.

RememberI am here to help you!

Ask for help in advance of the deadline not after.

Over the last several decades police agencies have been working to gain the respect and the cooperation of the communities they serve. 

Now you will write a paper about Community Oriented Policing (COP). That is the project.

Your paper will be based on 5 questions.

Your assignment

Describe, define and discuss Community Oriented Policing (COP). Include in your discussion the various methods of implementing the program.

Base your paper on these 5 questions

1. What are some of the most important concepts of COP?

2. Define Problem Oriented Policing (POP). 3. How is it related to Community Oriented

Policing? 4. Can the physical structure of the

organization help or hinder COP and POP? 5. What are the challenges of COP?

Your paper must include 5-7 outside references, with at least one peer-reviewed journal article.

Your paper must contain 5-7 pages of content, along with a title, abstract, and reference pages.

This means your paper will be at least 8 pages long.

Submit your paper by Tuesday, February 22nd in the basket titled Unit 7: Community Policing Project.

RememberI am here to help you!

Ask for help in advance of the deadline not after.

The Professional Development Journal

marks the end of your capstone course, and for many the successful conclusion to the first two years of your academic journey.

The Professional Development Journal serves three functions:

1. It’s a place for you to record critical reflections on your education, and to define its value in relation to your personal and professional growth.

2. The journal serves as a valuable tool in assessing your comprehensive knowledge of the field of criminal justice.

3. Based on your critical reflections and learning assessment, the journal helps you outline a plan for lifelong learning and development that meets your goals for academic, professional, and personal success.

Rather than waiting until the end of the class, you should work on the journal throughout the course, adding and refining your thoughts as part of a process of discovery.

A Professional Development Journal is like a diary in which you reflect on current events – in this case, your education here at Kaplan – as a way to put your thoughts down in writing.

It allows you to look at what you have written, assess what you have learned and how to apply it to your work, your life, and your future.

Using the journal this way, you will be surprised how easy it is to do goal-setting activities and organize your efforts towards those goals.

Your journal should include at least 5 short-term (6 months to a year) and 5 long-term (5 years) goals, with a plan on how to reach those 10 goals. You are strongly encouraged to include any thoughts about your Kaplan experience and especially this class. 

You may use the “journal” function that is part of the class, or you may submit your journal through the Dropbox as a Word document. Also, you can use a PowerPoint presentation with at least eight slides.

Remember that one page will not fulfill the requirement. A minimum of 3, well-written, double-spaced pages will be fine. 

You’re ready to begin! Watch your grammar and spelling,

because, as a professional in training, your professional communication skills are important. Do enjoy writing the journal – it should not be a burden.

Submit your Professional Development Journal by Tuesday, March 8th in the basket titled

Unit 9: Professional Development Journal .