Reflection paper about criminal justice system

This unit gives you more insight into the consequences of victimization as well as the advocacy of victims. The consequences of victimization can include physical, mental, social, financial, and even health issues. Though the violent crime rate has been dropping since the 1990s, the medical consequences and long-term effects suffered by victims are still a focus in the area of victimology. Review the 2011 Crime Clock Statistics that show an average of how often violent crimes occur daily: 2011 Crime Clock Statistics A Violent Crime occurred every 26.2 seconds One Murder every 36.0 minutes One Forcible Rape every 6.3 minutes One Robbery every 1.5 minutes One Aggravated Assault every 42.0 seconds A Property Crime occurred every 3.5 seconds One Burglary every 14.4 seconds One Larceny-theft every 5.1 seconds One Motor Vehicle Theft every 44.1 seconds The most obvious consequence suffered by victims is typically physical, as these are easily observed and need treatment (Wallace & Roberson, 2015). Physical injuries are broken down into four categories as outlined by Wallace and Roberson (2015):

immediate injuries,

injuries that leave visible scars,

unknown long-term physical injuries, andlong-term catastrophic injuries (p. 63).

UNIT II STUDY GUIDE The Consequences and Advocacy of Victimization (Wallace & Roberson, 2015, p. 64) CMJ 3307, Victimology 2 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title From a medical standpoint, the physical trauma victims suffer varies, as some injuries are less severe like cuts and bruises, whereas others can be deadly, like gunshot wounds. There are also mental consequences. These can be different for every victim as every person reacts differently to situations and has a different meaning behind the word trauma (Wallace & Roberson, 2015).

There are sociological, criminological, medical, psychological, and legal definitions of crisis, all of which vary. For our purposes, we will define crime as a “specific set of temporary circumstances that results in a state of upset and disequilibrium, characterized by an individual’s inability to cope with a particular situation using customary methods of problem solving” (Wallace & Roberson, 2015, p. 66). After reading this definition, reflect on what you think the term crisis means, and try to remember some situations where you felt in crisis. Having your own definition or perhaps recalling past events will allow you to relate to how a victim or person in crisis may feel.

Despite the differences in meaning, most people experience three stages of crisis: impact, recoil, and reorganization (Wallace & Roberson, 2015). Each stage allows the person to move away from fear and rage and instead become balanced and attempt to return to normal. Some may experience acute stress disorder in the aftermath and others may have a long-term crisis reaction, otherwise known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Also, depending on the crisis, victims may become depressed or suffer from substance abuse.

Victims may also have financial and/or social consequences (Wallacee & Roberson, 2015). The financial consequences can be tangible like loss of property or medical costs, or intangible like grief, shock, and trust issues. It is easy to place a monetary figure on things stolen or medical costs, but think of how to compensate a victim for his or her grief or stress. The intangible costs are typically the ones where victims suffer long-term effects as it is difficult for the criminal justice system to deal with this aspect of crime. For example, if someone had a family member killed, how is the criminal justice system going to help with the intangible effects? The criminal justice system cannot bring the person back. The system cannot offer an amount of money to make the family feel better. Sometimes, they cannot get a conviction for the case. In situations like this, what can the criminal justice system possibly do to make the victim’s family better? Is it even possible?