Despite the fact that the insanity defense is raised in less than 1% of all criminal
indictments, one poll found that people believed nearly __% of all criminal defendants
used it.
a. 95
b. 66
c. 87
d. 40
An evaluation of Operation Cease Fire found
a. no change as the policy was not implemented as intended
b. a decrease in the unemployment rate and a reduction in the level of drug activity
c. a decrease in both violent and property crime in the treatment areas
d. a decrease in youth homicides and number of calls to police regarding shots fired
Evidence of the effectiveness of drug court programs shows that
a. offenders who complete the programs have lower recidivism rates than those who do
not participate
b. offenders who complete the 8-week program have lower recidivism rates than those
who complete the 26-week program
c. the reason why so many fail is because the programs are not implemented and funded
as they are intended to be
d. nearly all of the offenders who are offered the option of a drug court program take it
Select the drunk driving myth from the following list
a. people with a serious drinking problem and many arrests frequently beat the system
b. alcohol related does not mean alcohol was the cause of the accident
c. most drivers killed in alcohol-related crashes do not have a history of drunk driving
d. the criminal justice system is tough on drunk drivers
The announcement effect may change the behavior of
a. the public, but not the police
b. the public and the police
c. the police, but not the public
d. neither the public or the police
Solving crimes depends more on _____(1)_____ than on _____(2)_____.
a. (1) faster response time (2) the number of sworn officers in a department
b. (1) the policing strategy (2) existing relationships between the victim and offender
c. (1) characteristics of the crime (2) the number of detectives
d. (1) the clearance rate (2) blood samples and hair specimens
When criminal laws become out of step with the views of society, the result is
a. a society of outlaws
b. a sense of disconnect between citizens and the police
c. a loss of legitimacy of the legal system
d. an overall lack of morality among citizens
Wolfgang’s Delinquency in a Birth Cohort research uncovered some important
offending trends including which of the following?
a. a small percentage of delinquents are responsible for the majority of all crimes
b. reasons why most delinquents stop committing illegal acts at some point
c. that most young males have at least one officially recorded act of violence
d. failing liberal policies contributed to increased rates of chronic offending in the
1960s
Explanations for the recent crime drop
a. have not yet been considered due to the newness of the trend
b. are complex and difficult to assign to one factor
c. suggest that the addition of many new police officers and zero tolerance policies have
been more influential than tough new sentencing laws and increased incarceration
d. pinpoint one single factor that the majority of criminologists agree on
The restorative justice movement draws heavily on
a. community persecution
b. hot spots
c. broken windows theory
d. peacemaking traditions
Those who believe in a drug legalization strategy involving the elimination of penalties
for adult possession of marijuana and other less dangerous drugs are known as
legalization
a. maximalists
b. moderates
c. minimalists
d. agnostics
The elderly are particularly vulnerable to certain crimes, such as
a. sexual assault
b. car theft
c. burglary
d. healthcare fraud
Predictions of future dangerousness in the Texas death row inmate study
a. were wrong in 95% of the cases
b. were right in 20% of the cases
c. resulted in 155 wrongful executions
d. incorrectly gave 8 life sentences for each correct death sentence
One example of a policy designed to keep guns out of the hands of “bad” people is
a. the Brady Bill
b. the Kansas City Gun Experiment
c. the Bartley-Fox Law
d. all of the above
e. none of the above
Victims’ service programs are partially funded by
a. the 1987 Booth v. Maryland case
b. the 1984 Victims of Crime Act
c. the 1983 Office for Victims of Crime
d. the 1982 President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime
The most significant result of the ban on plea bargaining in Alaska was that
a. it increased the number of trials for defendants charged with serious crimes
b. it increased sentence length for defendants charged with serious crimes
c. it had no impact on defendants charged with serious crimes or substantial criminal
records
d. it closed the loophole and got tough on prior offenders charged with serious crimes
The factors that criminal justice officials consistently use to classify cases include
which of the following?
a. the race and class of the victim and the offender
b. the relationship between victim and offender and the suspect’s prior record
c. the number of cases on the docket and the offender’s remorse
d. none, criminal justice officials do not handle cases consistently or predictably
Reentry programming embraces the operating principles that guide
a. community prosecution and restorative justice
b. broken windows theory and problem-oriented policing
c. problem-oriented policing and community prosecution
d. community crime control and restorative justice
Stop-and-frisk policies have the following impact on the social ledger:
a. they erode trust in the police c. they contribute to community growth
b. they increase poverty and homelessness d. they improve police-community relations
The risk of arrest for drug sales is
a. 1 in every 45 sales
b. 1 in every 10,000 sales
c. 1 in every 4,500 sales
d. 1 in every 500 sales
Many people believe the __________ establishes a right to own a gun.
a. First Amendment
b. Second Amendment
c. Fourth Amendment
d. Fifth Amendment
By the early 1990s every state had
a. passed victims’ rights laws
b. laws permitting victim impact statements
c. legal challenges against the victim’s rights laws
d. amended their constitution to include some victims’ rights
A systematic review of all available research studies on a particular topic is known as
a. evidence-based policy
b. replication
c. meta-analyses
d. contextual enalyses
A study of protective orders in one state found that
a. victims who made protective orders perceived a greater likelihood of being stalked
and threatened
b. they did not lead to reduced fear of violence against those who placed the orders
c. it reduced reoffending due to surveillance of offenders
d. as a whole, the subjects experienced lower rates of violence
It is important to distinguish between
a. the costs and benefits of deterrence based policies in the criminal justice system
b. the deterrent effect of the criminal law and the effect of other social institutions
c. ineffective traditional forms of deterrence and effective modern forms of deterrence
d. the deterrent effect and the effects of prevention-based criminal justice policies
Examples of the courtroom work group’s ability to thwart justice system reforms can be
seen in
a. the defense of life rule and Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines
b. Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines, but not federal Sentencing Guidelines
c. the granting of legal counsel under In re Gault and Gideon v. Wainwright
d. there are no examples, because the courtroom work group lacks the power to
influence reforms
Locking up large numbers of offenders regardless of their criminal histories is
a. deterrence
b. mandatory sentencing
c. selective incapacitation
d. mass incarceration
A federal ban on handgun possession
a. would be supported by the majority of Americans
b. would have similar consequences to bans on alcohol and drugs
c. is predicted to be the best way to reduce crime
d. would be supported by conservatives and liberals
The difference between traditional crime control policies and procedural justice policies
is
a. procedural justice policies demand rigorous evidence-based evaluations of their
effectiveness whereas traditional crime control policies did not
b. liberals and conservatives conflicted over traditional crime control policies but are
largely in agreement when it comes to procedural justice policies
c. traditional policies rely on external coercion to get people to obey the law whereas
procedural justice policies seek to cultivate voluntary compliance with the law
d. traditional crime control policies tend to be expensive to implement and subject to
evasion by the courtroom workgroup whereas procedural justice policies are not
The pulling levers strategy focuses on
a. all potential offenders of property and violent crimes
b. offenders and associates known to police
c. offenders in prison who committed a gun-related crime
d. offenders who are sex offenders
According to BJS data from 2009, although only 36% of all convicted felony
defendants were sentenced to prison, an additional __________ percent were sentenced
to jail.
a. 27
b. 33
c. 35
d. 59
As a result of the plea bargaining ban in Alaska
a. the rate of dismissals remained consistently low
b. the rate of dismissals remained consistently high
c. the rate of dismissals increased as predicted
d. the rate of dismissals decreased surprisingly
Select the most accurate statement
a. courtroom work groups are surprisingly similar no matter what jurisdiction they are
in
b. less stable membership in the courtroom work group promotes consensus resulting in
efficient case processing
c. efficient processing of cases is more dependent upon caseload and resources than
relationships among members of the courtroom work group
d. stable courtroom work groups characterized by a sense of mutual respect process
cases more efficiently than unstable work groups
GBMI is a bogus reform because
a. research demonstrates that the courtroom work group evades it
b. it allows defendants to claim they are incompetent to stand trial and essentially beat
the rap
c. it affects defendants who would have been found guilty, not defendants who would
have been found NGRI
d. successful use of the insanity defense actually results in time spent in a mental
hospital that is similar to what a guilty offender would serve in prison
Studies have proven that the mandatory arrest of domestic violence offenders results in
a reduction of crime.
List the factors used by the courtroom workgroup to informally classify cases on the
basis of their seriousness and show your understanding of the impact on case processing
by discussing specific offenses.
Assess the usefulness of strategies that seek to keep guns out of the hands of “bad”
people.
Findings from Wolfgang’s landmark Delinquency in a Birth Cohort study contributed to
a shift in crime control policy from specific to general incapacitation.
Summarize the rationale for decriminalization and its potential consequences.
Selective incapacitation proved to be a better crime control measure than gross
incapacitation.
Restorative justice is dependent upon informal social control which is not as evident in
a diverse and largely anonymous modern society.
If there were success in substantially reducing illegal drug use, there would be a
reduction in crimes associated with drug usage to the same degree.
There is reason to believe that the exclusionary rule has professionalized police.
Offenses against people with disabilities are reported to the police less often than
offenses against non-disabled people.
Limiting appeals positively impacts the rate of serious crimes.
Properly managed drug court programs are effective in reducing both drug use and
criminal behavior.
Compare and contrast the actual effects of Alaska’s plea bargaining ban and King
County’s reform of plea negotiations.
Minorities use illegal drugs more heavily than Caucasians.
Justify the suggestion that ours is an administrative rather than an adversarial justice
system.