Criminal Justice Management Information System Research Paper

Criminal Justice Management Information System - Research Paper Example Criminal justice system information is critical in influencing how people are treated in the system, and may have a bearing on the outcome of the individual cases. The quantity, quality, and timeliness of information are crucial to the operations of the criminal justice system. Moreover, a criminal justice system indicates a significant interrelationship between efficiency and the quality of the justice dispensed. The automated systems provide a one-time entry of data and an efficient access to justice information to all agencies that are in need of it via shared files and system resources, while at the same time restricting unauthorized access to certain criminal history and other confidential information as maybe stipulated by applicable laws and regulations. Criminal justice management systems facilitate multijurisdictional information sharing across the criminal justice system (Allen & Sawhney, 2010). Integration of management information systems demands adoption of common standa rds in data entry, policies, software, protocols, and hardware systems. Management information systems form a critical component of criminal justice system. ... For instance, management information systems such as â€Å"offender management system† impact and interact with organizational development and human behavior. Today, more and more state criminal justice systems employ statewide computing systems to keep track of criminal offenders as well as to enhance rehabilitation. The offender management information systems often employ integrated record tracking from diverse information sources (Welsh & Harris, 2012). The need for criminal justice officers and organizations to share data increases commensurate with the crime. Much of the typical data captured in a criminal justices system often has utility to multiple organizations. One of the essential contributions made by management information system encompasses areas of statistical data analysis models, graphical, and spatial forms of analysis (Siegel, 2010). The stated methodologies demand speed, access, and dimensionality of data, which cannot be facilitated by manual systems. Pote ntial Reasons for Computerization One of the prominent reasons for the introduction of information technology in the administration of criminal justice system revolves around the ability of the system to enhance the quality and the timelines of information; this leads to enhanced decision making. Furthermore, higher quality information translates into better information for policy analysis, besides availing timely information. As a result, there is increased system efficiency of the criminal justice system. Manual systems hinder attainment of high quality, timely, and accurate information. Moreover, as the society and the nature of crime become increasingly complicated, the need for structured

Impacts of Technology on Civil Liberties

Impacts of Technology on Civil Liberties The Impact of the Widespread Use of Information and Communication Technologies on Civil Liberties Abstract Advances in information and communication technologies have presented new opportunities and problems for the society. The opportunities that have become obvious with regard to the application of these technologies include meeting the changing demands of the public for enhanced service delivery, an ability to communicate instantaneously over vast distances and being able to store or retrieve vast amounts of information as well as being able to interact with a large number of individuals or organisations by providing them with information over the internet etc. However, these new developments often leave the public sector actors confused because they are often bound by legacy values and outdated socio – economic morality. As democratic societies debate the ethics of the new situation with which they have been confronted, a potential exists for the occurrence of a large number of cases involving a serious misunderstanding of computers and computer based communication with implica tions for civil liberties in a society. Such misunderstandings can mean that a large number of individuals may have their privacy encroached upon, their computing equipment seized and their lives hampered for no real reason. Although governments do have a duty to ensure that various actors are not indulging in activities that are harmful to the society as a whole or to members of a society, it is also important that innocent individuals are not maligned. Information and communication technologies have placed an awesome power in the hands of those who have the imagination to dream up new uses for such technologies and lawmakers have to some how balance the rights of the individuals and those of the society as a whole. This brief essay takes a look at some of the implications of the widespread use of information and communications technologies on civil liberties. Contents (Jump to) Introduction Advances in Technology Provide a Wider Range of Options on Civil Liberties Conclusions Bibliography/References   Introduction Civil liberties refer to the freedoms that are enjoyed by the citizens of a state without interference from governments. Examples of civil liberties include freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right to privacy, right to self defence and the right of due process in law as well as the right to a fair trial by a competent court (Wikipedia, 2006, Civil Liberties). The previously mentioned freedoms and rights are usually granted to citizens by virtue of legal enactments that have been written into the laws of a country, including its constitution. The constitutions of various states provide a varying degree of emphasis to civil liberties that can be enjoyed by citizens, but nearly all countries of the world today do offer some degree of protection against interference by a government or others in the lives of a private citizen. As an example, the Australian Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, the South Korean Constitution requires that the government prot ect the privacy as well as dignity of its citizens and the Constitution of the United States of America, through the first ten amendments that are called the Bill of Rights, requires that the government guarantee freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of assembly, freedom of religious worship, the right to bear arms, prevent search and seizure without just cause, cruel and unusual punishment and self incrimination as well as ensuring that a citizen is provided the rights to due process and a fair trial by an impartial jury. Any powers related to civil liberties or human rights that have not been explicitly granted to the Federal government in the United States Constitution are reserved by the citizens or the States of the Union. Although the United Kingdom lacks a codified constitution, this country along with many European countries are signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights, which stipulates the standards related to civil liberties and human rights in Europe an countries that are signatory to this instrument. The Human Rights Act of the United Kingdom has been the vehicle for incorporation of many of the European Convention rights into United Kingdom law (Answers.com, 2006, â€Å"Civil Liberties†). Thus, many counties around the world have laws that extend guarantees associated with civil liberties to its citizens. Proliferation of computers, information technology and communications in the present pervasive computing age has made it very convenient to maintain records related to persons and to indulge in surveillance as well as identification of individuals. Maintaining detailed records about all aspects of an individual’s private life, rapid searching and retrieval of information related to an individual, tapping of phone conversations and identification of suspicious communications from keywords as well as relatively foolproof identification of individuals from fingerprints or other biometric signatures such as dental records, DNA or the unique patterns of the iris and the transmission of very detailed records over vast distances in an instant are now quite possible (Akdeniz, 2001, Pp. 1 – 10), (Ashbourn, 2006, Pp. 1 – 20) and (Hassan, 2004, Pp. 1 – 7). It is, therefore, possible for a state or other vested interests to defame and abuse or try to take advantage of individuals as well as to deny them opportunities or to malign them in many ways through the power of information that can be manipulated by technology. This brief essay takes a look at the impact of the widespread use of information and communication technologies on civil liberties in a society. Advances in Technology Provide a Wider Range of Options on Civil Liberties Whereas the menace of international terror and the activities associated with organised crime have meant that governments do have a duty to be vigilant about the safety and security of its citizens and the nation, it is also important that a state, its functionaries or other powerful or mischievous interests in a society desist, or be prevented from undue interference in the private activities of an individual (Greenberg, 2004, Pp. 165 – 168). Such interference may have an appeal for many who may want to try and take undue advantage of information about a citizen that can be readily gathered, stored, transmitted and analysed using the new information and communication technologies. However, technology not only provides a potential for abuse, but it also provides benefits and enhanced safety for all in a society (Campbell, 1998, â€Å"The Social Impact of New Communications Technologies†). Thus, the advent of technology has given a society and individual members of a soc iety a greater power and a lot more options about what can be done to gather detailed information about an individual and to use such information in a number of ways by making it known to others. However, protecting civil liberties requires that such powers be controlled and that the gathering or release of information about individuals be restrained, unless sanctioned by competent and responsible members of a society in the wider interests of other members of the society, so that an individual is not unduly disadvantaged, threatened, abused or taken advantage of by the state or other vested interests in the society. The protection of civil liberties is essential for the evolution and development of an individual’s personality as well as for the protection of any advantages that may have been made available to an individual through their ingenuity, hard work, force of circumstance, manipulations by nature or as a result of a gift from the Divine (Tabata, 2006, Pp. 10 – 20 and 79 – 80), (De Boni, 2001, Pp. 1 – 3) and (Hutson, 2005, Pp. 7). However, it is equally important to safeguard the interests of all members of a society so that the activities of individuals or a group of individuals do not have a destructive impact on others (Lau, 2002, Pp. 1 – 3). Technology has, therefore, provided a greater number of options to a society about the values that it may want to maintain. It is obvious that advances in technology do make it possible for the government of a nation, or other vested interests, such as private telecommunication companies or ISP providers etc, to take advantage of these advances in order to either liberate or to oppress the masses. Thus, the society is presented with choices and depending on what the interested powers want, a balance is struck between what may amount to oppression and what may be considered to be the legitimate authority of the state or others to protect their interests. Debates about civil liberties have always been carried out in democratic societies, even though such debates may have been discouraged or censored in the more authoritarian countries (American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU, 2000, â€Å"Letter to the Senate on Legislation to Increase Law Enforcement Electronic Surveillance†). The more advanced nations have attempted to promote universal standards associated with civil liberties and human rights, but de spite such efforts, what is acceptable as public law varies from one country to the other (Statewatch, 2006, â€Å"Current Lead Stories†). A dictatorial regime in a third world country will not feel any remorse about using all the technology at its disposal to neutralise its opponents or to repress the masses. However, in the more developed world, civil rights groups, public interest groups, the judiciary, business interests and various branches of the government come to some sort of an agreement about how the civil liberties of citizens ought to be protected and what can be considered to be acceptable conduct on the part of the government and other interests. Certainly, the widespread use of information and communications technologies has provided greater opportunities to abuse the civil rights of individuals (Taylor, 2001, â€Å"The Council of Europe Cyber crime Convention: a civil liberties perspective†). However, the previously mentioned technologies can also be us ed to safeguard civil liberties, educate the masses and provide better service to the community. In the United Kingdom, a very substantial increase in the number of phone tapping warrants has been observed in recent years and although this can be attributed to the war against global terrorism and organised crime, it has to be appreciated that no one can intercept private communications in the United Kingdom without a judicial warrant (Akdinez, 2001, Pp. 1 – 5). Disclosure of any data that is considered to be private is also an offence against the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. Although the use of covert human intelligence gathering about suspects is not illegal under the previously mentioned Act, such activities can be challenged under the Human Rights Act. Thus, the British and European societies in general have placed a reasonably high value on the protection of civil liberties and human rights in matters that are associated with the proliferation of information and communication technologies. In the lesser developed nations, such high standards are less l ikely to be maintained (Waters, 1997, â€Å"Telecommunications interception — extending the reach or maintaining the status quo?†). Surveillance is not just limited to law enforcement authorities, but in the United States such activities may also be carried out by an employer or others with a vested interest, without the consent of an employee or the individual (National Science Foundation, 1998, â€Å"Privacy Issues†) and (Hutson, 2005, Pp. 7). Apart from an enhanced threat of surveillance or monitoring and threats to an individual’s privacy, advances in technology have also produced new problems related to what can be done to prevent interested parties from violating the human rights of others. The awesome power of the internet makes it possible to libel anyone anonymously by writing messages about them as web content. Also, any information that ever makes it to the web can be readily copied and distributed all over the world (Electronic Frontier Foundation, 2006, â€Å"Free Speech†). In addition to activities that are designed to bring persons into disrepute, it is also necessary to control the so called investment companies, online gambling websites and the High Yield Investment Pools that seem to regularly rip off individuals by tantalising them with huge returns on their investment of E-Gold or other similar electronic currency (Pokerpulse.com, 2006, â€Å"Internet gambling and the Patriot Act†). D espite warnings about financial scams that are posted on law enforcement websites by governments of the so called developed world, it appears that the regulators of the World Wide Web have little interest in ensuring that any web content is not fraudulent. It also appears that law enforcement agencies, even in the developed countries, are unable or unwilling to locate financial scam websites despite these being registered by authorised web registrants (Goldpoll.com, 2006, â€Å"HYIP Ratings†). Not a single HYIP has ever delivered anything resembling the investment that an unsuspecting individual makes as a payback, yet these websites are operating with great impunity under the very noses of the global law enforcement agencies and regulators of the World Wide Web. Surely, civil liberties which include freedom of speech and freedom to engage in commerce do not extend to activities that are harmful to other members of the community. However, it has been observed that governments of the great democratic nations are willing to do precious little to regulate financial scams on the web, even though they have tried to control what can be posted on the web (Center for Democracy and Technology, 2006, â€Å"Reports and Articles CDT Sends Letter Opposing Mandatory Labelling†). Thus, many new problems with a potential to damage members of a society by persons or groups with a vested interest have been created by advances in information and communication technologies. Although issues related to these new problems are being debated within societies and legislation is being gradually introduced to regulate new technologies, the process seems to be too slow and cumbersome to protect many who have already been victimised. Because of the global nature of the World Wide Web and the global reach of information and communication technologies, global cooperation is essential to regulate these new technologies in an ethical manner (Brosseau, 2002, Pp. 24 – 32). However, despite a dire need for cooperation, practical results have been exceedingly slow in materialising. Conclusions From the previous discussion it can be concluded that the widespread use of information and communication technologies has created new opportunities as well as new dangers for the protection of civil liberties and human rights. Technology offers power which can be used to do good or to do evil and societies around the world are grappling with the issues of just how to balance civil liberties in relation to protecting the broader interests of the society at large and those of its other members. 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The Principal Characters of Shakespeares Sonnets :: William Shakespeare, Sonnets

One of the many intriguing aspects of Shakespeare's Sonnets is the identity of the principal characters within them, of which there are three: - The Young Man - The Dark Lady - The Rival Poet Nowhere in the Sonnets are these people explicitly identified and their anonymity has spawned much debate as to who these people could have been. The content of the Sonnets that refer to these people however, undoubtedly show that these were indeed real, living people and not imaginary inventions by the author for the sake of literary exercise. Many poets of the Elizabethan and Jacobean age wrote verse to others and did not refrain from identifying who they were addressing. Some poems were clearly dedicated to the addressees, such as Spenser's Prothalamion which is dedicated "in honovr of the dovble marriage of the two Honorable & vertuous Ladies, the Ladie Elizabeth and the Ladie Katherine Somerset, Daughters to the Right Honourable the Earle of Worcester and espoused to the two worthie Gentlemen M. Henry Gilford, and M. William Peter Esquyers". And Spenser makes clear that the poem is about the Somerset ladies within the poem itself by punning on their names in the 4th. stanza: "But rather Angels or of Angels breede: Yet were they bred of Somers-heat they say". Where poems were not explicitly dedicated to the addressee their identity could still be found in the poem's verse, such as in Sidney's Astrophel and Stella: "Doth euen grow rich, meaning my Stellaes name" and "Rich in all beauties which mans eye can see; Beauties so farre from reach of words that we Abase her praise saying she doth excell; Rich in the treasure of deseru'd renowne, Rich in the riches of a royall heart, Rich in those gifts which giue th'eternall crowne; Who, though most rich in these and eu'ry part

U.S. Holiday Shopping

Sales among U. S. stores went stronger than expected over the weekend causing a relief for most retailers who were expecting a bleak shopping period due to overall slowdown of the economy. However, even though the figures are up, signs of more troubles were evident. Apparently, the bargain prices which helped drove shoppers to buy were so shocking that some analysts predicted that these stores will see a much worse profit slashing from their sales in the long run. Most retail experts consider the Friday after Thanksgiving Day as the overall barometer of retailing performance for holiday sales which basically account for at least 25 percent of their annual sales. The very indicator for these retailers came out when ShopperTrak released a report indicating a 3 percent increase of sales last Friday compared with last year’s performance. Moreover, the National Retail Federation (NRF) added that shoppers spent at least 7% more this year compared to 2007 with an average shipper spending about $372. 7 from Friday through Sunday. According to Kathy Grannis of the federation, â€Å"It seems that not only did retailers do a good job of attracting shoppers but it seems that shoppers were also excited again to take part in the tradition of Black Friday weekend. † Friday’s store sales which ranged from 50 to 70 percent will not provide better profits for retailers in the long run experts said. It was such an indicator that â€Å"retailers are somewhat desperate to sell†, according to Hana Ben-Shabat, of A. T. Kearney's retail practice. NRF reported that 172 million shippers visited shops and online stores after Thanksgiving weekend which is up from 147 million shoppers last year. In general, shoppers bought low-cost items like clothes, DVDs, video game CDs and other accessories. Gift card were not as popular having a 10 percent decrease in sales.

Analysis of “Uphill” by Christina Rossetti Essay

â€Å"Uphill† by Christina Rossetti is an allegory about life and death. Rossetti is considered one of the finest religious poets of her time and her many spiritual beliefs are conveyed in her poem â€Å"Uphill†. H.B. de Groot said, â€Å"Undeniably, her strong lyric gifts are often held in check by her moral and theological scruples† (Groot). The dialogue style Rossetti uses mimics the parables told by Jesus in The Bible. In â€Å"Overview of Christina (Georgina) Rossetti† one author stated that during her adult life, Rossetti turned down two marriage proposals, due to her strong religious convictions. Instead of marrying, she used her convictions to script eloquent poetry that reaffirms faith for the faithful and provides faith for the hopeless. Rossetti’s use of metaphors, symbols, and biblical allusions in â€Å"Uphill† conveys the idea of life and death and represents the difficult journey to salvation and the promise of eternal life in heaven. In â€Å"Uphill,† Rossetti uses metaphors to invite the reader to draw comparisons between one’s journey through life, death, and eternal rest. The first question and answer the speaker mentions is a metaphor to depict the road being traveled, conveying that it is difficult and long, much like life: â€Å"Does the road wind up-hill all the way?/Yes, to the very end† (Rossetti 1-2). In lines five and seven the speaker develops the metaphor of night and darkness to mean death: â€Å"But is there for the night a resting-place?/May not the darkness hide it from my face† (5/7)? The speaker seems doubtful and unsure about the process of death and provokes the speaker to ask questions about the after-life. Assurance of such a place is found in line eight when the inn is used as a metaphor to describe heave, a place that: â€Å"You cannot miss†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (8). The author uses symbols to assist the reader by evoking a deeper subconscious meaning of one’s uphill trek towards heaven. The title of the poem â€Å"Uphill† serves as a symbol for the difficulties encountered along the speaker’s journey. In lines six and eight the words _roof_ and _inn_ are symbols for the security felt, â€Å"†¦when the slow dark hours begin./You cannot miss that inn† (6/8). Rossetti uses the word _bed_ in lines fifteen and sixteen to  represent the final resting place for those seeking eternal life in heaven: â€Å"Will there be beds for me and all who seek?/Yea, beds for all who come (15-16). Beds invoke feelings of comfort and warmth and peace. The speaker hopes to find the same comfort and peace in heaven with an eternal place to sleep. The Biblical allusions Rossetti uses in the poem help the reader understand what happens after death. Matthew 7:14 explains that the path to salvation will be difficult and long and is referenced in line three when the speaker asks how long the day’s journey will take: â€Å"But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it† (_New International Version_, Matthew. 7.14). In the Bible, Christ teaches that there are two ways; right and wrong, good and evil. The road to the narrow gate is not only constricted, but also uphill. It is a struggle and often not the easy way, which is why only few endure it. But it is the only path that will lead you to eternal life. All other ways may be easier, but lead to destruction. In lines eleven and twelve, the speaker receives assurance that by knocking, the doors will be open at the end of the journey, a Biblical allusion to Matthew 7:7. This verse states that if one asks, seeks, and knocks that the door will be open: â€Å"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened† (Matthew 7.7). In John 14:2 Jesus comforts his twelve disciples by saying: â€Å"There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come get you, so that you will always be with me where I am† (John 14.2). This verse serves as a point of reference to lines fifteen and sixteen in the poem: â€Å"Will there be beds for me and all who seek?/Yea, beds for all who come† (15-16). Christians believe that there is a dwelling-place in which devout believing souls would abide forever. Believers gain comfort in knowing that He has already prepared such a special p lace that is vast and sufficient in room for all his people. Rossetti’s poem is a beautiful illustration of ones journey through life as illustrated by the questions the speaker asks throughout the poem. In the  beginning the speaker is anxious about the journey that lies ahead and asks: â€Å"Does the road wind up-hill all the way† (1), but by the end of the poem the speaker is peaceful and assured about the final resting place: â€Å"Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak† (13)? Rossetti links one’s journey to life, death, and eternity by using metaphors throughout the text. Symbols are layered throughout the text to assist the reader with identifying heaven. Rossetti’s use of Biblical allusions allow the reader to grasps what eternity will be like for those that believe and stay the course of the _uphill_ journey. The difficult life and death decisions made along the journey towards salvation and eternity in heaven are made evident throughout the poem with the use of metaphors, symbols, and Biblical allusions. Works Cited â€Å"Christina Rossetti.† _Contemporary Authors Online_. Detroit: Gale, 2006. _Literature Resource_ _Center_. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. _English Standard Version_. Bible Gateway. Web. 26 Mar. 2014. Rossetti, Christina. â€Å"Uphill.† _Literature; An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing_. Seventh Edition. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013.