Criminal Justice (CRJ)

CRJ-101. Introduction to Criminal Justice. (3 Credits)

No other judicial system on earth is as unique and as interesting as the American criminal justice system. This course will discuss a multitude of criminal justice topics and inquiries such as: What causes crime? What are the social factors that often lead to crime? How should society respond to criminality? What is the true function of law enforcement and should the focus always be on incarcerating offenders? Is rehabilitation a societal priority and does it ever work? Should policing involve dealing with the social problems of the community? The student will also be introduced to the American court system, including corrections, and those individuals that play important roles within our system of justice. This course is an important starting point for the criminal justice program. It provides a foundation for other courses in specific criminal justice topics. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-105. Criminology. (3 Credits)

This course studies criminal behavior and the typologies of crime, including violent, political, organized, and property crimes. It analyzes and discusses the major explanations and theories of crime, societal perspective, efforts made toward criminal desistance, policing strategies, and how the criminal justice system has adapted and evolved over time. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-106. Introduction to Corrections. (3 Credits)

This course examines the correctional system in America, including a thorough review of punishment from colonial America to the present. The student will be introduced to a variety of correctional theories, ideologies, the evolution of penological objectives, in addition to a focus on the retreat from America's "get tough on crime" policies and whether that effort will prove beneficial or harmful to our local communities. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-107. Juvenile Delinquency & Procedures. (3 Credits)

This course studies the American juvenile justice system, its history, objectives, and adaptation to societal changes. The very first juvenile court system was developed in Chicago in 1899. Students will be introduced to the theoretical causes of juvenile crime, behavioral theories, policing responses, and how the focus of juvenile courts differs from adult courts. The functions of juvenile agencies, juvenile processing, detention, case disposition, and contemporary issues in juvenile justice will also be the subject of discussion. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-109. Introduction to Domestic Violence. (3 Credits)

This course offers a wide-ranging study of domestic violence. It merges theory with practical responses to victimization with an emphasis on the experience of victims. This course will also address the indication of violence, either in the home, to the individual or family unit, and how such violence impacts society. The course will survey various types of violence and study the offender-victim relationship, related criminological data, and situational aspects that influence domestic violence events, including the dangers to responding police officers. Professional skill development and tactical response of first responders will also be addressed. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-110. Introduction to Homeland Security. (3 Credits)

The focus on terror and the need to keep America safe has spawned substantial change in the world of public safety. This course will provide an overview of homeland security and the many organizational and governmental facets that require skilled personnel, vast multijurisdictional coordination, and substantial training. The emergency management system, including public health issues, and private sector involvement will also be discussed. A historical overview, post-9/11 governmental response, legislative changes, civil liberty and privacy concerns, counter-terrorism initiatives, and the future landscape of homeland security will also be discussed. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-111. Homeland Security Incident Command. (3 Credits)

This course provides an overview of incident command and how disaster response impacts all first responders. It provides a historical perspective and introduces many major themes and integral issues in the public safety world, including the necessity of incident command, disaster operations, personnel issues, organizational concerns, risk assessment, mitigation techniques, and training. This course will also highlight the roles of first responders, including police, fire, EMS and public health, and how the private sector and community participants also play an important role is disaster response. A review current legislation, civil liberties, currently accepted best practices, and local political concerns will also be addressed. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-112. Disaster & Blood Borne Hazards. (1 Credit)

This course provides an overview of many of the risks faced by first responders. Bullets and violence are not the only concerns of first responders. There are a multitude of dangers, including many unseen, that plague today's first responders. This course will introduce the student to the necessity of first responder safety, the ability to recognize issues of concern, prevention of blood-borne respiratory pathogens that often accompany crime and accident scenes, legislative initiatives, civil liberty concerns, and the various best-practice mitigation techniques currently employed throughout the country. A discussion of the roles of first responders, including police, fire, EMS, and public health will also take place. (1 contact hour)

CRJ-113. Emergency Preparedness & Response. (3 Credits)

This course will study the science of emergency management and how those who work within the emergency preparedness profession must effectively prepare for threatened or actual disasters, man-made disasters, and acts of terrorism. All aspects of emergency preparedness will be addressed, including identification of mission and vision objectives, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-114. Public Safety Leadership. (3 Credits)

The success of disaster response and emergency preparedness often comes down to who might be at the helm. This course explores what separates effective preparedness operations from disastrous operations, and what common denominators exist within successful operational schemes. Themes such as management, strategic planning, communication, multi-jurisdictional and multi-agency coordination, and practical challenges will all be the subject of study. Important skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, group thinking, and leadership within stressful environments will also be addressed. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-201. Police in American Society. (3 Credits)

No other time in history has there been such public discourse on the role of policing in society. This course addresses the history and evolution of policing in America, including the changing objectives of policing, police-citizen relations, community policing, racial perspectives on policing, civil rights, privacy issues, ethics of policing, criminal and civil liabilities, and political, social, and cultural influences on policing issues will all be the subject of discussion and debate. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-202. Investigation & Criminal Evidence. (3 Credits)

This course examines the art, science, collaboration, and skills of police investigations and its intersection with the use of evidence in the courtroom. Topics discussed will include the protection of the crime scene, forensic techniques utilized to recover evidence, the significance of good report writing, forensic laboratory examination, death investigations, violent crime prosecutions, criminal procedures, and examples of how poor investigations can lead to poor and unintended results in a criminal courtroom. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-203. Forensic and Crime Scene Investigations. (4 Credits)

This course will provide a foundation in basic crime scene investigation and will highlight the interplay with forensic analysis and the criminal justice system. Students can expect to gain a real world understanding of how crime scenes are processed, forensic evidence is recovered, and the proper chain of custody is maintained, thereby leading to a more professional form of policing and a greater assurance of due process. (6 contact hours)

CRJ-204. Crimes That Changed Our World. (3 Credits)

This course will provide a form of case study permitting students to better understand how our present law is not the product of a straight line, but rather is an evolutionary process. Each of the cases selected will be factually dissected and then reviewed and analyzed through a sociological, cultural, historical lens, and ultimately, the students will be called upon to critically think how that specific case has altered our cultural and legal perspectives. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-206. Substantive Criminal Law. (3 Credits)

Tragic events sometimes occur, but injury or death does not always lead to criminal charges. Why? Understanding the culpability of parties and the elements of crimes is the study of substantive criminal law. This course will introduce students to the definitions, mental states, elements, and classification of Illinois crimes. Significant criminal law concepts that define culpability, including the law of accountability and transferred intent will also be addressed, as well as legal defenses, mitigating circumstances, punishment, and sentencing. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-207. Procedural Criminal Law. (3 Credits)

What the public believes the police can do is largely shaped by television and the movies. This course identifies how wrong television can be when it comes to real-life crime, police investigations, and criminal prosecutions. Important constitutional concepts such as the laws behind search and seizures, custodial arrests, interrogations, pre-trial identifications, constitutional rights of the accused, the legalities of wiretaps and electronic surveillance, and how police activities are always under constitutional scrutiny and evolve within the American judicial system will all be the subject of discussion. (3 contact hours)

CRJ-208. Serial Killers and Mass Murderers. (3 Credits)

This course will provide an in-depth study of a unique subset of criminal offenders known as mass murderers and serial killers. The course will review the extant literature and review some of the common traits that many of these offenders share, and also review what actions or motivations make them unique from each other, as well as traditional murderers. The currently accepted criminological, psychological, and sociological theories will also be explored. Many of the unique forensic challenges that are encountered by law enforcement during the investigation and prosecution of these offenders will also be the subject of discussion. (3 Contact Hours)

CRJ-210. Special Topics in Criminal Justice. (1 Credit)

This course is provided on an "as needed" basis. Students will work individually or in small groups on special projects related to criminal justice. Students will also be called upon to meet regularly with instructor to assure project objectives are being met. This course can be taken up to four times for credit. (1 contact hour)

CRJ-219. Contemporary Issues: Criminal Justice. (2 Credits)

This course has been recently expanded to encompass many of the social justice issues that have been the subject of recent public debate, discourse, and in some cases controversy. A wide spectrum of contemporary criminal justice topics will be addressed, including use of force, police violence, execution of search warrants, racial perspectives on policing, social violence vs. peaceful protests, efforts to defund the police, decriminalization of traditional crimes, ethics in law enforcement, need for training, bail reform, "progressive" law enforcement officers, legislative efforts to limit incarceration, are just a few of the many contemporary topics that will be discussed and debated. This course may be taken four times for credit. (2 contact hours)

CRJ-233. Internship. (3 Credits)

This internship opportunity provides students a unique field experience in order to better prepare them for a career in public service, consistent with their degree program. Students who are selected to participate in this internship will be placed within criminal justice or public service agencies who will monitor, oversee, and guide students during a specified term. Attendance, active participation, accepting direction, competently fulfilling assigned tasks, and meeting deadlines will be expected throughout the course of the internship. Fee is required. (15 contact hours)

CRJ-237. Seminar. (1 Credit)

This seminar course is meant to compliment and act as a co-requisite to the Internship experience, CRJ-233. It would be anticipated that the student participating in the internship would meet regularly with a Criminal Justice faculty member who would oversee the internship experience. The instructor and student would discuss the internship, ways to maximize its value, what has been learned, what skills have been effectively applied, and at the instructor's discretion, whether any type of formal assessment would be required, given the unique circumstances of the internship experience. (1 contact hour)