The Internationalization of Criminal Justice

• NCJ Number: 185526
• Author(s): Richard H. Ward
• Date Published: 2000
• Length: 57 pages
• Agencies: NIJ
• Publication Type: Issue Overview

Annotation

This examination of the trend toward criminal justice as an international enterprise considers the international character of crime in the United States, the American criminal justice response to it, and international cooperative efforts in combating international crime.

Abstract

At the turn of the century, international implications for America's criminal justice system have never been greater. Globalization is producing new challenges for criminal justice practitioners and researchers. Among the more significant aspects of this change are the international dimensions of crime, the impact of legal and illegal immigration, transnational organized crime, technological influences on global criminality, and the influence of a more diversified American culture. In this changing environment, the American criminal justice system -- largely police, courts, and corrections -- is facing and adapting to new forms of criminality, a growing recognition of the importance of international cooperation, threats on America's borders, and the proliferation of new types of crime. America's response to globalization in the criminal justice arena will require major changes in both law and policy, placing greater emphasis on the education and training of practitioners at all levels of government. In addition to culture and language, tomorrow's criminal justice practitioner must have a broader understanding of the legal systems of other countries and respect for the customs and practices of immigrants, as well as an increasing number of international visitors. Recognizing the future threat of global crime, the U.S. Government adopted an International Crime Control Strategy (ICCS) in 1998 to provide "a framework for integrating all facets of the Federal Government response to international crime." In response to the threat of international crime, the U.S. Government's ICCS has identified 8 broad goals and 30 implementing objectives to "combat international crime aggressively and substantially reduce its impact on the daily lives of Americans." This chapter presents these eight goals. 12 notes and 115 references