Research Paper on Racial Disproportionality in Criminal Justice System: Causes and Impacts

Introduction

Researchers have tried to determine the causes and impacts of racial disproportionality in the criminal justice system. Racial disproportionality in the criminal justice processes has always been a controversial topic for an extended period. However, due to the increased use of media platforms that focus on racism, the topic has become more prevalent in the community. Criminal activities have led to an increased rate of racial discrimination in the United States due to the overrepresentation of the minority groups in the criminal justice systems. Among the most constant and historical evidence in criminal justice systems is the disproportionate arrest and incarceration of black Americans. Police characters motivate hostility and violence in communities with few people, including black Americans. The cases of unfairness, racism, and ethnic disparities are present in the criminal justice systems despite the reform movements that racial discrimination unconstitutional. Minorities are still victimized and offended in all the processes of criminal justice. Compared to whites, minorities like blacks have a high possibility of arrest, murder, rape, robbery, sexual assault, and imprisonment (Burch, 2015). Statistics show that one out of three black Americans expects life incarceration compared to one out of seven whites. Thirty-seven percent of the inmates confined in local prisons are African Americans, and thirty-six percent of the prisoners are imprisoned in the federal and state prisons (Smith, Levinson & Robinson, 2014). Discrimination is founded on ethnic origin and racism, which is immoral, and it is a violation of the equality principle. The principle of equality states that people should be treated the same regardless of their race. Mostly, people affected by police mistreatment are minority communities. Research indicates that racial disproportionate in criminal justice is caused by the rate of criminal activities, law enforcement activities, and corrective sentencing guidelines (Novak & Chamlin, 2012). These conditions lead to the question of racial disproportionality. To address the issue, the research paper analyzes the role of racial bias and prejudice to explain racial disproportionality in the criminal justice system.

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Literature Review

Previous studies indicate the treatment received by minorities through the criminal justice systems. Some researchers found severe treatment towards minorities, while others did not find any difference (Novak & Chamlin, 2012). Various factors contribute to the severity of sentencing regardless of the race, including the severity of the offense, number of charges, degree of violence involved, failing to apply for bail, ownership of weapons, and gravity of the first charge. Rocque (2011) states that the processing of a case is determined by the record of the defendant, evidence quality, and severity of the offense.

Race and Criminal Justice

Racism in the criminal justice system in the U.S. is amongst the critical problems that ought to be addressed as the country makes an effort to eliminate racial conflicts. The minorities, particularly blacks, are overrepresented; thereby, indicating unfairness in the criminal justice processes. Racial disproportionate in the criminal justice system was discovered in the 19th century. Reference provided indicated racial discrimination, with African Americans having higher crime rates than Whites (Burch, 2015). The relationship between the criminal justice system and the race is a predominantly significant feature of racial challenges in the U.S. There is a significant disproportionate representation of African Americans, comprised in every part of the criminal justice system, and the disproportionality indicates an evident feeling of injustice to the overrepresented communities irrespective of the legitimacy. Rocque (2011) states that there are evident differences in the involvement of various racial groups and the criminal justice system.

Police Contact and Arrests

Past research indicates the continuity of racial disparities due to the increased number of black Americans than Whites. Data regarding the usage of the death penalty throughout the United States shows a high rate of racial bias and prejudice because there is a high possibility of giving the death penalty to Blacks than Whites (Smith, Levinson & Robinson, 2014). Additionally, it is vital to understand that the utilization of informal punishment adds to racial discrimination towards Blacks. Research states that an investigation body known as Uniform Crime Report has continuously practiced racial bias and prejudice in arrest. A report from the UCR showed that more than 20% of the total people arrested were the blacks (Steffensmeier et al. 2011).

Also, recent information state the same pattern, with more than 28% of the total population arrested being Blacks (Smith, Levinson & Robinson, 2014). The type of crime determined the association between arrest and race. For instance, the UCR report showed that over 50% of the Blacks were arrested due to robbery and homicide, while ten percent were arrested due to driving under substance abuse (Steffensmeier et al. 2011). Generally, Blacks are overrepresented for high crimes and less arrested for white-collar offenses or property crimes because of a lack of opportunity. During the war on drugs in the 1980s, the number of arrests for illicit substances increased for the African Americans because more than 34% of the total arrests were Blacks (Steffensmeier et al. 2011). This means that changes in criminal activities indicate the overrepresentation of Blacks during arrests.

Additionally, research shows minorities are disproportionally affected in other modes of police contact, including traffic stops because African Americans males are more stopped on the traffic than other races. The national-based studies display that minorities have a high possibility of being stopped and arrested than Whites. Steffensmeier et al. (2011) researched to determine personal opinion on racial disproportionality indicated that black Americans believe police stop and arrest is based on racism, whereby they arrest more Blacks than Whites. Over 40% of black Americans believed that the police stopped them due to race compared to 5% of the Whites (Steffensmeier et al. 2011).

Sentencing and Courts

Various studies have been conducted on racial disproportionality in court systems. Black people are more vulnerable to severe sanctions in the criminal justice system than Whites. The behavior is evident in both juvenile and adult courts, thereby suggesting that racial bias and prejudice in one system is connected to a disparity in another system (Peck & Jennings, 2016). Commonly, Blacks face more incarceration and long sentencing than other races. For instance, the United States Sentencing Commission discovered that Blacks males' jail sentencing is 23.3% longer than for White males. If this pattern continuous, one out of three Black men born will end up spending time in jail during their lifetime. Additionally, the race is a significant factor in capital punishment with white victims murdered by Black Americans' perpetrators have a possibility of being sentenced to death. Also, Hispanics have been treated the same way as Blacks in sentencing consequences (Rocque, 2011). Nevertheless, the connection between courts and race sentencing or ruling is complex. This is because the courts take into account many factors before making decisions.

Additionally, sequential decisions are linked to one another, and court-room members usually form the most significant court personnel, including the attorneys, defense, and the prosecutor, and all impact the decision that influences a person's outcome. Therefore, to determine the racial disparity in the court system is very challenging. For instance, regarding the bail results, studies are unclear whether racial disproportionality occurs after regulating all the other determinants. There are high chances of denying bail to the Blacks, and they are later disadvantaged on the other stages of the court processes. The disadvantages include the possibility of incarceration and prolonged sentencing than Whites. Also, studies show that there is heterogeneity concerning the consequences in the minority communities (Peck & Jennings, 2016). Racism in the criminal justice system interacts with other social factors, including gender, socio-economic status, and age.

Variations in sentencing policies have aimed to reduce unwarranted inequalities by national origin-religion, race, and belief due to discretion in sentencing. Nonetheless, significant evidence shows that ethnicity and race have considerable responsibility in contemporary sentencing practices. Studies outcomes conclude that the primary determinants of decisions made during sentencing are legally vital factors (Smith, Levinson & Robinson, 2014). Study evidence demonstrates that minorities with fewer crimes, convicted of substance crimes, represented by a public defender instead of a private one, convicted at trial instead of a plea, or have accumulated past criminal records receive harsh treatment (Rocque, 2011).

Cause of Racial Disproportionality in the Criminal Justice System

(Novak & Chamlin, 2012) made efforts to explain the racial disproportionality in the criminal justice systems and have come up with three categories that provide the explanations. The three categories include differential behavior, differential treatment, and both. Differential behavior seeks to explain the differences in the rates of CJS contacts between Whites and Blacks. For instance, high arrest rates for Black Americans lead to longer sentencing. References argue that black Americans less severe crimes than the crimes committed by Whites. Burch (2015) indicate that explanations on racial disproportionality in the criminal justice processes can be provided through differential criminal activities. Victimization and self-report research, while indicating reduced disparity, still display that black Americans are engaged in severe criminal activities and have a more occurrence of offenses than Whites. In the criminal justice system, racial disparity can be caused by the frequency and severity of the crime concerning arrest.

Concerning sentences, several reforms have tried to eliminate discretion from judges so that disproportionality resulting from unlawful factors ought to reduce. It is essential to consider legitimate factors such as the severity of offenses when determining racial disproportionality to examine whether the disparities are warranted. Studies have indicated that the most critical elements in sentencing decisions are the severity of the crime and the history of the convicted person. The argument indicates that extralegal factors like discrimination do not cause racial disproportionality in the criminal justice system (Beaver et al. 2013).

The second category is the differential treatment, which supports that minorities are discriminated against in the criminal justice system than the Whites. Research indicates that the level of unwarranted racial disproportionality in the court's decisions and police contacts (Tonry, 2010). Tonry (2010) argues that although the criminal justice system is founded on the promise of justice and equality, the system is still exploiting inequality. Referring to police contact, studies show that police on the traffic and streets have the likelihood to stop more Blacks than Whites (Novak & Chamlin, 2012). Novak & Chamlin (2012) argue that looking black increases the possibility of the death sentence. Finally, it is okay to mention that recent research argues that racial disproportionality in the criminal ju...