Criminal Justice and the rule of law Research Paper

Criminal Justice and the rule of law - Research Paper Example Substantive law controls the behavior of the governed and procedural fairness controls the behavior of the government and each of its organs and agents. In this regard, average citizens and the government have a responsibility to contribute to safety and security by complying with the rule of law which is the cornerstone of the criminal justice system. This research paper analyses individual and state responsibility within the rule of law underlying criminal justice by discussing substantive law and procedural fairness. In discussing individual responsibility, St. Leo University’s core value of responsible stewardship will be discussed to exemplify how an individual can avoid criminal behavior by acting responsibly and at the same time meet the ends of criminal justice contemplated by the rule of law: social control for community safety and security. Substantive Law and Individual Responsibility The substantive law within the criminal justice system, defines criminal conduct a nd prescribes punishment for committing criminal offenses (Siegel, 2009). For example, it is a crime of murder to intentionally kill another human being and the punishment for the crime of murder can be life imprisonment or state execution, depending on the jurisdiction in which the offence is committed. However, not all criminal offences are that well known. For example, an individual may know that criminal trespass is a crime, but may not know what constitutes criminal trespass. The individual may think it is perfectly lawful to enter a seemingly abandoned home and remove items of interest. In other words, ordinary citizens, who may not be familiar with all prohibited or criminal conduct and might without knowledge of the law, commit an offense. This is unfortunate, because it is a well-established principle of criminal law that ignorance of the law or mistake of the law is not a defence to criminal behavior (Loewy, 2009). A valid defense however, will be founded on the basis of i ntention. If an individual lacks criminal intent to commit a crime, the individual can be exonerated (Loewy, 2009). Criminal laws are constructed from public morals and public opinions (Siegel, 2009). Individuals can therefore simply choose to conduct themselves in accordance with public morals and public opinions of what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Even so, Marxist criminologists argue however, criminal justice and the rule of law is designed to protect the middle classes and the wealthy. While the wealthy amasses wealth, it is said that the â€Å"poor gets prison† (Vito & Maahs, 2012, p. 217). For example, conduct on the part of the wealthy for the purpose of amassing wealth is usually treated as a regulatory mishap or a minor offence, despite the harm this conduct brings to others. As Vito & Maahs (2012) explains, environmental damages caused by wealth industrial giants in the pursuit of greed has caused significant damages to others, their properties and has even caused the death of a many more. Similarly, fraud, embezzlement and other white collar crimes committed by the wealth or the middle classes hardly gets the king of punishment that poor criminals obtain for what is known as â€Å"street crimes† (Vito & Maahs, 2012, p. 217). In fact, many of the white collar crimes are never prosecuted (Vito & Maahs, 2012). Yet, it can still be up to the individual who is