Asking The Right Questions, Complaint And Warrant

Asking the Right Questions

Overview

Including the right information in your criminal justice reports depends on many things. It is very important that you develop a habit of asking the right questions in order to collect the right information, taking detailed notes, and always keeping your information organized. You must ensure that the information you put in your reports is specific and accurate in order to ensure individuals are readily identified, facts regarding possible criminal activity lead to or show the necessary probable cause and that any action by law enforcement during the incident or post-incident investigation does not violate anyone’s civil rights or Constitutional protections.

Instructions

To complete this assignment, write a 2–3 page paper in which you:

• Select one of the criminal justice reports you reviewed in the Week 2 assignment, Create a Criminal Justice Report Job-Aid.
• Prepare a summary of the essential questions you will need to ask in order to gather the information that must be included in the report.
• Describe an organizational or note-taking strategy that would facilitate the creation of this report.
• Explain how the information in the report you have selected would be used to form the basis for a presentation to the District Attorney’s office, or for any arrest or follow up investigation.
• Use the Strayer Library to find at least two academic resources. Note: Wikipedia and similar websites are not considered quality references.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Identify the most essential pieces of information that should be included in criminal justice reports1

   

   

   

   

   

   

  Criminal Justice Report Job-Aid

  Matthew Jung

  CRJ150: Criminal Justice Report Writing

  Professor George Ackerman

  07/13/2021

   

   

   

   

   

   

  Report Name	Used by	Explanation of Report’s Purpose
  Incident Report	Police officers, lawyers, and judges	It is identified as the primary document acquired after a victim reports a felony committed against them. It helps identify a basis for all information law enforcement officers on how the specific occurrences happened, witnesses, and the individual attributes reported to have committed the felony (Bohm & Haley, 2015). Notably, after the victim files the incident report, the law enforcement officers are responsible for keeping the original incident report specifically for documentation within the police department.
  Search Warrant Report	Detectives and judges	They are issued to permit law enforcement officers to search the house, items, business, vehicle, and any location associated with the crime to gather evidence to prove the accused’s involvement in the crime. They are useful as they mandate the law enforcement officers to present a signed statement issued under oath to persuade the magistrate or judge of their adequate collection of information on a particular crime committed (Goldstein, 2017). Additionally, if the magistrate or judge is convinced that there is a connection with the felony, a signed warrant is granted, permitting law enforcement officers to search the specific locations and items dictated in the search warrant.
  Complaint and Warrant Report	Lay judges and civil officers	It entails the name of the individual accused and the associated criminal involvement. The complaint and warrant report mandate the law enforcement officers to present a signed affidavit to a neutral judge containing the accused’s information. After the report is reviewed, the evidence presented is highly influential in the judge’s decision to issue an arrest warrant to the officer on the suspect (Orfield, 2015). Hence, the law enforcement officers are permitted to convict the offender and adequately notify them of the crimes they are accused of.
  Presentence Report	Prosecutors and lawyers	It is issued shortly following an offender’s conviction of a felony they are associated with. It is helpful as it presents an investigation concerning the suspect’s history before sentence to establish their sentence’s nature (Carter, 2018). Here, the probation officer is tasked to investigate the convict’s criminal record to determine whether the accused deserves a light sentence or heavy conviction based on previous attributes. After this report is accomplished, it is presented as a tool for use by the judge during sentence hearings.
  Order of Probation Report	Judges, lawyers, and probation officers	It is useful in presenting a description of the conditions or rules to be adhered to by the convict upon release from incarceration. It provides details on the reason and period of probation and when or where they should report when mandated to. However, if the convicted does not abide by the regulations, a violation report is filed by the probation officer (Gagliardo, 2018). Besides, the violation reports are presented to the sentencing judge where upon review and ascertaining that the information, a violation of probation warrant is issued. From that, the law enforcement officer is allowed to re-arrest the convict, and sentencing is given based on failure to adhere to abide by the court orders.

   

   

  References

  Bohm, R. M., & Haley, K. N. (2015). Introduction to criminal justice. Crime and justice bulletin, (92), 1-12.

  Carter, R. M. (2018). Presentence report handbook. Department of Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice.

  Gagliardo, A. J. (2018). Probation report and the Law. Clev.-Marshall L. Rev., 2, 129.

  Goldstein, A. S. (2017). The Search Warrant, the Magistrate, and Judicial Review. NYUL Rev., 62, 1173.

  Orfield, L. B. (2015). Warrant of Arrest and Summons Upon Complaint in Federal Criminal Procedure. U. Cin. L. Rev., 27, 1.