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    Criminal Justice
     

    Criminal Justice Program

    101 Jack Vowell Hallz
    Phone: (915) 747-7943
    E-mail: crimjust@utep.edu

    DIRECTOR: Roy S. Malpass
    PROFESSOR EMERITUS: Randolph H. Whitworth
    PROFESSORS: Daudistel, Graves, Hosch, Malpass
    ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR: Rodríguez
    ASSISTANT PROFESSORS: Lucas, Smithey
    LECTURER: McCleary

    The Criminal Justice Program offers an interdisciplinary major leading toward a BA degree designed to provide students with a broad social science background for understanding crime, criminal behavior, and the criminal justice system and to offer the opportunity to prepare for a professional career in criminal justice.

    Requirements for the BA Degree in Criminal Justice

    1. Complete a minimum of 131 semester hours, including at least 54 hours at the advanced (3000 or 4000) level.
    2. Fulfill the general education core requirements for the Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Liberal Arts
      1. Criminal Justice majors are encouraged to take ENGL 3359 Technical Writing in addition to the Communication Skills sequence.
      2. Criminal Justice majors are encouraged to fulfill the mathematics requirement by taking PSYC 1303, SOCI 2312, or STAT 2380.
      3. Criminal Justice majors are encouraged to take Sociology and Psychology courses to fulfill the social/behavioral science requirements.
    3. Complete 33 hours of criminal justice courses including the following required courses: CRIJ 1301, CRIJ 1302, CRIJ 2306, CRIJ 3300, CRIJ 3302, CRIJ 3313, and CRIJ 4390. A minimum of 24 credit hours in the major must be taken at the advanced (3300-4300) level.
    4. Complete a minor of at least 18 hours, nine of which must be at the advanced (3000-4000) level. The minor field must be selected from a discipline different from that of the major field. Credit for courses taken to fulfill the minor may not be used to satisfy the major or general education core requirements. See the general BA minor requirements for a list of acceptable minors.
    5. Complete electives as needed to bring the total semester hours of credit to 131. Elective credit cannot be used in meeting any other degree requirement. Electives of advanced (3000 or 4000) level may, however, be applied toward satisfaction of the requirement of 54 advanced hours.
    Minor in Criminal Justice
    Students who wish to minor in Criminal Justice should complete CRIJ 1301, CRIJ 1302, CRIJ 2306, CRIJ 3300, CRIJ 3302, and CRIJ 3313 for a total of 18 semester hours.

    Criminal Justice (CRIJ)

    General Prerequisite: Junior standing for all 3300 or 4300-level courses.

    1301 Introduction to Criminal Justice I (3-0)
    (Common Course Number CRIJ 1301)

    Development and philosophy of criminal justice in a democratic society; introduction to agencies involved in the administration of criminal justice.

    1302 Introduction to Criminal Justice II (3-0)
    An introduction to the American legal system with a particular emphasis on situating the criminal justice system in the larger United States legal context. Prerequisite: CRIJ 1301 with a grade of "C" or better.

    2300 Criminal Law (3-0)
    (Common Course Number CRIJ 1310)

    History and philosophy of modern criminal law, including the structure, definition, and application of statute and leading case law; the elements of crimes and penalties.

    2306 Introduction to Corrections (3-0)
    A tracing of the evolution and the philosophical underpinnings of institutional and community based correctional practices.

    3300 Effectiveness Assessment in Criminal Justice (3-0)
    An overview of the process of effectiveness assessment in the development, application, and administration of criminal justice policy. Prerequisite: CRIJ 1302 with a grade of "C" or better.

    3301 Criminal Investigation (3-0)
    Fundamentals of criminal investigation, including theory and history, and collection and preservation of evidence. Prerequisite: CRIJ 3350 or consent of instructor.

    3302 Police Systems and Practice (3-0)
    An overview of the structures, functions, and operations of law enforcement agencies in the United States, with emphasis on municipal police departments. The course surveys police operations, staff functions, personnel policies, and current innovations utilized in delivering police services. Covers such topics as police discretion, ethics, police-community relations, and the future of policing in American society.

    3303 The Private Sector and Criminal Justice (3-0)
    The roles of nongovernmental actors in the justice process, with a focus on the legal and sociological implications of their existence in a democratic society. Both volunteer and profit-making agencies will be examined in relation to the traditional criminal justice agencies of police, courts, and corrections. Private security and loss prevention operations will be surveyed along with private adjudicatory systems and correctional programs.

    3306 Community Corrections (3-0)
    An examination of the role of the community in the reintegration of offenders. Analysis of those correctional programs which are designed to be administered in a community setting, including probation, parole, halfway houses, restitution, and community service.

    3308 Juvenile Justice (3-0)
    The law of juvenile delinquency and the administration of the juvenile justice system. The historical development of the concept of delinquency, the special status of juveniles before the law, and juvenile justice procedural law will be examined in detail.

    3309 Correctional Counseling (3-0)
    Methods used by correctional officers in rehabilitating criminal offenders. Prerequisite: 6 hours of Psychology.

    3311 Crime Control and Prevention (3-0)
    An examination of those activities undertaken by public and private organizations to control and prevent crime. Those programs which have been successful in reducing the amount of crime will be analyzed, as well as attempts which have been made at predicting and deterring criminal behavior.

    3312 Psychology and Law (3-0)
    A review of the relationship of psychology to the legal system. Topics include theories of crime, identification and evaluation of criminal suspects, rights of victims and rights of the accused, forensic assessment, jury processes and decision making, punishment and sentencing, and psychological assumptions of legal systems and processes.

    3313 Criminology (3-0)
    This course surveys historical perspectives on crime, contemporary criminological theory, penological theory, current trends in crime, and critical thought on current criminal justice practices and procedures. Particular emphasis is given to the development and application of theory in regard to different types of crimes, "crime waves," and appropriate penal policy. Prerequisite: CRIJ 1302 with a grade of "C" or better.

    3321 Family Violence (3-0)
    This course surveys definitions, prevalence, and theories of family violence in the United States. Special emphasis is given to 1) the impact of variation in definitions of family violence on scientific research and conclusions; 2) the societal response to family violence; and 3) the effectiveness of policing strategies of domestic violence.

    3322 Research Methods in Criminal Justice (3-0)
    Assessment of data collection and interpretation strategies in criminal justice research, including hypothesis formation, research design, types of data, and data analysis. Prerequisite: CRIJ 2301 with a grade of "C" or better.

    3350 The Courts and Legal Process (3-0)
    Focuses on the role of the courts in the administration of criminal justice, with special attention to the legal processing of criminal defendants. Topics include the structure of the American courts, due process, right to counsel, pre-trial release, plea bargaining, trial proceedings, and sentencing.

    3351 Criminal Justice on the United States-Mexico Border (3-0)
    An examination of the nature and scope of crime on the United States-Mexico border and an evaluation of the strategies and programs employed by both governments to control criminal activity on the border.

    3370 Victimless Crime (3-0)
    This course examines those crimes commonly called "crimes without victims" or vice crimes," particularly drug use, prostitution, and gambling. The course examines whether these behaviors are victimless and what social costs and benefits may result. In addition, the course examines criminalization and its alternatives.

    3389 Criminal Justice Ethics (3-0)
    This course identifies and examines the complexity of ethics pertaining to the practice of criminal justice. It focuses on applied ethics and the reasoning process justice practitioners can use to analyze and evaluate ethical dilemmas.

    4300 Selected Topics in Criminal Justice (3-0)
    Focuses on those selected issues and problems confronting the various components of the criminal justice system. Topics covered may change each semester. May be repeated for credit upon change of topic.

    4301 Readings in Criminal Justice (3-0)
    This course is designed for the advanced student who is capable of independent study. Existing regulations, both formal and informal, which govern practitioners in the area of criminal justice will be examined. This course may be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Department approval.

    4310 Internship in Criminal Justice (0-0-3)
    A program in which the student is assigned two days (or 16-20 hours) each week to a criminal justice agency. A weekly seminar is also required. Designed to provide the student with an opportunity to apply academic training in practical situations. Prerequisite: Consent of the Program Director.

    4311 Immigration Law and Administration (3-0)
    An examination of federal regulations pertaining to legal and illegal immigration into the United States. Among the topics discussed are legalization, employer sanctions, amnesty, and constitutional rights of aliens.

    4320 Criminal Justice Organization and Management (3-0)
    The structures, functions, and operations of criminal justice agencies, including the police, the courts, and corrections are analyzed from an organizational and managerial perspective. Particular attention is given to supervision, decision-making, and policy analysis in the administration of justice.

    4325 Moot Court (3-0)
    Substantive and procedural problems encountered in a criminal court proceeding. Focus will be on the role of the law enforcement and correctional officer in the judicial process. Prerequisite: CRIJ 2300 or department approval.

    4390 The Interdisciplinary Nature of Criminal Justice (3-0)
    A critical examination of selected problems and issues in the criminal justice system from an interdisciplinary perspective. Emphasis on theory and research, using comparative and integrative approaches, and case studies. Prerequisites: CRIJ 1302 (with a grade of "C" or better); CRIJ 2306; CRIJ 3300 (or concurrent enrollment); CRIJ 3302 (or concurrent enrollment); CRIJ 3313 (or concurrent enrollment); 6 hours of advanced CRIJ courses.

    4399 Research Practicum in Criminal Justice (0-0-3)
    A course designed to give students supervised experience in conducting social science research on criminal justice problems. May be taken for a maximum of 9 credit hours. Prerequisites: Either (1) CRIJ 3322, (2) PSYC 3201 and PSYC 3101, or (3) SOCI 3311 and instructor approval.

    See the Graduate Studies Catalog for graduate courses.

     

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