The Relationship Between Ethics and Criminal Justice Administration

Professional behavior and ethics are integral aspects of the criminal justice administration. Ethics define the moral integrity of the criminal justice administration decision-making process. Ethics refer to the moral duty of making judgments about what is right or wrong, good or bad (Crowder & Turvey, 2013). Professional ethics are important because they are a set of standards and regulations that guide the work environment within a profession. There are certain attributes that define a person of good moral character that includes honesty, responsibility, and integrity. The criminal justice professionals should be ethical in fulfilling their obligations. However, the criminal justice administration encounters various ethical issues and moral dilemma that may affect the efficiency of the justice system. The criminal justice professionals are expected to have the capacity to make moral judgments irrespective of the ethical dilemmas that may pose as obstacles in the decision-making process (Jacobs, 2011). As a result, good ethics define the professional behavior of the criminal justice administration. Likewise, law enforcement plays a significant role in ethical and professional behavior conduct. Law enforcement agencies are required to exercise ethical principles because unethical behavior may conflict with integrity in the decision process (Banks, 2017). Therefore, professional behavior should be practiced on a daily basis in the criminal justice system (CJS). The lack of ethical principles promotes the lack of professional behavior leading to a weak criminal justice administration.

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Ethics are the moral judgments or moral values which every human makes to determine what is right or wrong (Crowder & Turvey, 2013). The criminal justice administration professionals should be of sound mind and oblige with the professional code of conducts in the implementation of justice. The criminal justice professionals should represent the highest level of ethical behavior on and off duty. The building block of the real world ethics should emanate from the management aspect of every organization. Ethical dilemmas in the criminal justice administration test the ability of the system to use discretion in making difficult decisions. Since every obstacle the criminal justice administration faces is unique, the decisions made determine whether or not an arrest should be made. The faults in the law enforcement agencies and the court systems have led to thousands of people being put behind bars for crimes they never committed, a situation that has tarnished the US justice system (Crowder & Turvey, 2013).

The comprehension of the relationship between professional behavior and ethics addresses the importance of understanding the moral philosophy. The ability to identify good from evil, right or wrong is fundamental components of ethical judgments. The ethical deliberation in the criminal justice administration entails making essential decisions that involve discretion, the due process, and force (Banks, 2017). The utilization of ethics by the criminal justice employees facilitates them to evaluate the assumptions and blind spots that are not questioned in both politics and criminal justice. Raising concerns about the relationship between the characters and roles of law enforcement, crime, and justice, state authority, limits of punishment and the duties of incarcerations are fundamental components of implementing ethics in the criminal justice administration. With this note, ethics is very important in all the levels of justice otherwise the naivety of the criminal justice professionals about ethical concerns would affect the efficacy of the system (Jacobs, 2011).

The study of ethics helps the criminal justice employees to comprehend the moral consequences of particular behaviors and the ethical codes involved. Therefore, ethics is essentially relevant in the criminal justice administration and policy decisions that touch on punishments. Furthermore, ethics are used as the building blocks for the sentencing, rehabilitation, deterrence, or punishment choices in criminal justice. Professionals in the CJS have the ability to exercise power over others. The application of law imposes ethical regulations and duties on the criminal justice professionals. The criminal justice employees should be aware of ethical principles because they determine their professional behavior. The understanding and practice of ethics alleviate the temptations for the abuse of power by criminal justice professionals (Cheeseman, San, Frantzen, & Nored, 2016).

The Role of Critical Thinking, Ethics, and Professional Behavior

Critical thinking capabilities are fundamental in the decision process of the criminal justice. Critical thinking denotes the ability to evaluate assumptions, facts, and theories and to make sound moral and ethical judgments (Dioguardi, 2016). Ethics, critical thinking and the decision process play a major role in the development of professional behaviors in the CJS. Ethics stipulate the ability for a criminal justice professional to employ critical thinking in policy-making. According to criminal justice studies, the intuitive aspect of moral thinking helps professionals to solve ethical dilemmas in their field of expertise (Jacobs, 2011). Professionals utilize the simple standards of conducts derived from their socialization and past experiences in the decision process. Critical thinking facilitates an in-depth analysis of the moral decisions. Critical thinking is different from intuition-driven thoughts. Criminal justice professionals should be guided by critical thinking and ethics as opposed to one's intuitions to avoid bias in judgments. The combination of critical thinking, ethics, and the criminal justice improves the skills of law enforcement officers because they are able to make more informed decisions based on the truth and factual evidence. Furthermore, critical thinking helps police officers to factor out unknown and irrelevant factors and provide the truth vital in the conviction of a suspect. Criminal justice studies should emphasis on the need to train law enforcers about the usefulness of critical thinking and ethics because they contribute to their positive professional behavior development (Dioguardi, 2016).

Seminar Proposal for Training Law Enforcement in Ethics

Training the law enforcement officers on the importance of ethics overrules other training needs because ethical principles are the fundamentals of the justice process. Ethical training emphasizes on the significance of thinking before implementing actions (Cheeseman, San, Frantzen, & Nored, 2016). It is through ethical training that law enforcers can recognize and address unethical practices. Therefore, ethics training would provide officers with the development of tools necessary to nurture their decision making. In addition, ethical studies help to promote the development of reasoning and analytical skills required for the comprehension of the practical and theoretical aspects of the CJS (Stephens, & Downs, 2012). The law enforcement agencies should organize regular training seminars on ethics. There are five areas that should be emphasized in the ethical training seminar.

• Recognition of the ethical problems or dilemma
• Ethical tools and how to solve ethical challenges
• Sound judgment and decisions
• The importance of critical thinking and analysis in criminal justice
• The importance of ethics in developing a positive professional behavior

The above areas of the proposal are essential because they benefit both the law enforcers and the society. Ethical training equips the law enforcement officers with the knowledge to assess and recognize ethical problems. Moreover, the training prepares the officers with the tools necessary to promote ethical conducts at both the professional and personal lives (Stephens, & Downs, 2012). It is through ethical training that law enforcers understand the importance of employing integrity, accountability and transparency in their professional conducts. Individuals in the criminal justice department should make sound, moral, and ethical judgments because their actions can negatively or positively impact the society. Positive impacts entail the elimination of crime and criminal characters in the society while negative consequences imply the abuse of power, racial profiling, discrimination, and the sentencing of the innocent (Stephens, & Downs, 2012). The application of fair justice as per the ethical principles is win-win situation for both the law enforcement and the society.

Conclusion

In conclusion, ethics is a fundamental component of the criminal justice system. The criminal justice administration has the responsibility of acting professionally and ethically to ensure that they do not negatively interfere with the justice system. When there is an absence of ethical decisions in the criminal justice system, unethical behaviors emerge and could lead to the conviction of the innocent while the guilty remain in the streets. Therefore, there is a close connection to the relationship between ethics and professional behavior in criminal justice. Ethics and critical thinking are also intertwined and essential for the criminal justice administration. As such, it is important to organize ethical training seminars for the law enforcers to equip them with the tools and knowledge about the contribution of ethics to criminal justice. A highly trained law enforcement on matters to do with ethics benefits both the society and the entire criminal justice system. When there is fairness in justice, the society's welfare is addressed and the justice system fulfills its legal mandate.

References

Banks, C. (2017). Criminal Justice Ethics: Theory and Practice. (4th Edition). Sage Publications Inc.

Cheeseman, K., San, M. C., Frantzen, D., & Nored, L. S. (2016). Everyday Ethics for the Criminal Justice Professional. Carolina Academic Press (CAP).

Crowder, S., & Turvey, B. E. (2013). Ethics in the Criminal Justice Professions. Ethical Justice, 1-19. Doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-404597-2.00001-2

Dioguardi, S. (2016). Critical Thinking in Criminal Justice Ethics: Using the Affective Domain to Discover Gray Matters. Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 27(4), 535-548. Doi:10.1080/10511253.2016.1145709

Jacobs, J. (2011). Criminal Justice and the Liberal Polity. Criminal Justice Ethics, 30(2), 173-191. Doi:10.1080/0731129x.2011.592678

Stephens, F. E., & Downs, J. U. (2012). Ethics in Law Enforcement. Ethics in Forensic Science, 215-254. Doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-385019-5.00008-7