Response 2 530

100 word response 1 reference due 9/30/2023

Rice

1. As K. Babe Howell states, the two most significant problems in the criminal justice system are over-policing minor offenses and zero-tolerance policing policies. I agree with Howell because over-policing often leads to petty arrests where defendants sit in jail cells awaiting trial, clogging up the court system. I also agree with Howell that prosecutors have to seek justice and decline to prosecute, which would result in social inequities. Unfortunately, not only are social inequities present in the criminal justice system, but racial disparity is another common problem. Over-policing is often a problem, especially in Communities of Color; in the case of  Brown v. City of Oneonta, this was the exact problem. In this case, police stopped African Americans who fit the bill to detain a subject for questioning. They stopped African American students at Oneonta State University for questioning and physical examination and stopped African Americans from boarding buses until they submitted to examination. This case is an example of over-policing because they searched areas without connection to the crime scene. On another side of the argument against Howell, some might state that prosecutors have a job to convict because something has happened and needs to be corrected. Prosecution often spend time with either the family of the victim or so immersed in a situation that they feel they must seek justice to make things correct for the community. While I believe that justice must be sought in some cases, it does not necessarily mean that it should come along with lengthy prison time or unjust rulings that far exceed the crime's deserve. The Ultimate goal of the persecution is to seek justice and provide a solution to a problem that has been created. Prosecutors play a significant role in applying and defining criminal policy by using their discretion and adapting to social and societal changes. They have to think concisely about how they prosecute in specific communities. The prosecution is meant to seek justice to better the community they serve while also maintaining sensibility and the law. 

 

1. According to Florida Statute 893.135, I would charge “A” with selling oxycodone. The reason why I would only choose to charge with selling is because it does confirm he has the product, but I could not confirm if “A” bought them. At the same time, I would not charge “A” with trafficking because they do not go over the limit of 28 grams; because I know that the informant is not reliable, I would not charge “A” with anything that could not be confirmed by law enforcement at the time of the arrest.  

 

1. If I decided to use the tactic of “hard bargaining,” I would structure my plea offer to “A,” tell me who and how you bought the oxycodone and negotiate that we could give “A” less time or a lighter sentence. I would also use “hard bargaining” to get “A” to understand what they are doing to their community, and if they told me about their supplier, we would be getting more drugs off the street, and the community would be safer. I believe that “hard bargaining” would scare “A” into confessing and giving me the information I need to convict their supplier and other sellers who put drugs in the community. I also believe that “hard bargaining” could also go wrong and have “A” be more fearful of retaliation from other suppliers and could potentially stifle “A” from giving up other suppliers. Hard bargaining is tricky because it could go one of two ways: the first could lead to the defendant's counsel using that as coercion of a confession for less time, or the second is that the suspect confesses. The prosecution can build evidence for another case.