Why Do We Need a Criminal Justice System?

Why do we need a criminal justice system?

The criminal justice system (CJS) is the foundation of law and order in Australian society. It serves as an important form of social control and its contribution to the socialisation process helps to regulate and prevent antisocial behaviour within the community.

The separation of powers within the CJS and its components gives it an often fractured image, lending people to argue that it does not resemble much of a system at all. Though despite its composition the CJS remains of central importance to a healthy and functioning community. This fact is evident in instances whereby the CJS has failed to function effectively in society.

Before one considers the functions or goals of the CJS one must understand the concept of socialisation. Leading classical sociologists such as Durkheim and Parsons emphasised a process known as socialisation, and the role it played in grooming people to conform and contribute to the community.

Socialisation is a word given to the process of becoming a member of a particular society. It involves a lifelong process of learning to think, feel and behave in regular, predictable ways deemed appropriate to the demands and interests of society (Besant & Watts, 2007 p.147). The CJS plays a major role in this so-called socialisation process through the use of social control.

The concept of social control can be interpreted and used in any number of different ways. At its most general sociological level, it simply describes those processes directed at or associated with the regulation of human behaviour (White & Perrone p.278-279).

Both formal and informal social controls operate within society to regulate the behaviour of individuals so that it does not conflict with the interests of society as a whole (Bryett et. al. 1993 p.8). One of the principle functions of the CJS is the use of formal social controls, which are used when informal forms of social control such as families, schools and the church may not have adequately socialised an individual.

It is on the basis of formal social control that the CJS seeks to impose what standards of behaviour are acceptable and in the best interests of society. This is largely done through the application of laws passed by Parliament. In theory, as parliament is representative of the communities' views this is where the CJS derives its legitimacy.

The aims and functions of the CJS are subject to many differing perspectives and no simple explanation would be effective at satisfying everyone's expectations. However, broadly speaking we can differentiate two separate purposes of the CJS.

The first is instrumental or utilitarian: the state responds to crime to secure benefits to the wider society such as crime prevention and crime reduction. The second is symbolic or non-utilitarian: the state must redress the imbalances caused by those