WEEK 6: AT A GLANCE
SOCIAL CHANGE
INTRODUCTION
Criminal investigation is an area that is a natural fit for a social change mind-set. Because an investigation can result in extreme effects for both suspects and victims, it is important to scrutinize current practices, policies, and laws that may be discriminatory, biased, or simply ineffective.
From the work of the Innocence Project to free wrongly convicted individuals to grassroots efforts for ending the rape kit backlog, and from legislative advocacy to financial donation, the seeds of social change have been planted. However, there are many other avenues within the discipline that are ripe for social change.
This week, you reflect on how a practical change you have proposed may advance greater social change.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students will:
Evaluate the social change implications of process, policy, or legal changes in criminal evidence and investigation
PROPOSING A CHANGE IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION PRACTICE
Last week, as part of your Assignment, you proposed a process, policy, or legal change to address a legal or ethical issue in criminal investigation. You return to that change here by discussing it with your colleagues and connecting it to a wider social change. As you engage in this Discussion, use your personal and professional experiences to enrich your responses.
Post a response to the following:
Briefly summarize the legal or ethical issue you wrote about in the Week 5 Assignment.
Explain the process, policy, or legal change you proposed in your Week 5 Assignment.
Explain how this change contributes to social change.
