Analysis 2

SOC/CRM 3770 Punishment Without Crime Critical Essay

Due: 4/7 at 4:30 p.m. on D2L

For this assignment, you will write a 750-1000 word paper critically analyzing the problems associated with misdemeanors in our criminal justice system, as outlined in the book Punishment Without Crime.

For the paper, you may choose one topic from the following options:

1) Further research one of the topics from Chapter 1 of Punishment Without Crime and its relationship to charging people with misdemeanors in the American criminal justice system. This is referring to those topics in bold headings, e.g. probation, warrants, immigration, etc. Discuss the impact of your chosen topic (in relationship to misdemeanors) on creating inequality in the criminal justice system.

2) Find a real case (not mentioned in the book) in the media of a person who has experienced this phenomenon of being negatively impacted through being charged with a misdemeanor in the United States. Make sure the case is current (last 5-10 years). Discuss how the topics outlined in Punishment Without Crime apply to this person’s case. How can this case be connected to larger issues of inequality in the criminal justice system?

3) Research the use of fines and fees as related to misdemeanors in your hometown, a town you’d like to live in, or Charleston. (These fees will probably be set at the county level.) Craft your essay into a memo to the county council in that area discussing the major concerns related to those fines and fees (and connect this to the Punishment Without Crime book). Outline a 3-5 step (well-researched and feasible) plan to combat those issues in that town.

All papers must:

• Clearly discuss and incorporate information from Punishment Without Crime. • Be original. Do not simply summarize the issues we’ve discussed in class. Provide your own analysis

with unique ideas/information. • Incorporate at least two peer-reviewed journal articles as sources. (These should have been

published within the last ten years.) • Be well-supported with credible research and not simply based on opinion. • Be written using APA or ASA style with appropriate references. • Be double-spaced with Times New Roman 12 point font. • Focus on the misdemeanor system in the United States. • Be clear, concise, and well written. • Have a clear argument/thesis statement. • Be 750-1,000 words long. • Be original arguments and contain no evidence of plagiarism, use of artificial intelligence, or lack of

citation.