Contemporary criminal justice issue

Answer

Drug Rehabilitation versus Incarceration

                Incarceration is a long-standing practice within the criminal justice system and it mainly entails the institutionalization of offenders in jails and prisons. A major factor that has increased the rate of incarceration in the US is the institutionalization of individuals for drug-related offences. In numerous occasions, courts have ruled that the said individuals be sent to jails and prisons. This has not only heightened the rate of recidivism thus increasing crime rates, but it has also meant that billions of dollars will be spent on running the prisons and jails. In light of the foregoing, it is imperative that focus is placed on ensuring that drug offenders are rehabilitated as opposed to being incarcerated. The research paper will provide an in-depth evaluation of the extent to which drug rehabilitation should be the primary tool used by the criminal justice system (with respect to drug-related cases) as opposed to incarceration.

                I selected this topic because I believe that a fundamental role that ought to be played by the criminal justice system is the provision of rehabilitation to offenders. This is an inexpensive and effective way of handling drug-related charges. The aspects of the topic that I anticipate pursuing in my research relates to the ineffectiveness of incarceration in relation to drug-related offences; the extent to which incarceration in fact leads to recidivism and heightened crime rates; and the effectiveness of drug rehabilitation. I intend to make reference to empirical studies that have been conducted by scholars in the field; statistical information that has been provided by government agencies; as well as, books and peer reviewed journal articles.

6

The science of life measurement

QUESTION

ANSWER

Biometrics

Biometrics are used in detecting and recording the unique physical features and other traits of individuals. The reliance on biometric information is based on the accuracy of the biometrics. Whereas some of the biometrics have high accuracy, others have low and esoteric levels of accuracy (Saini & Rana, 2014). Apart from fingerprints, some other biometrics include iris, facial, handwriting, voice, and signature recognition.

One of the high biometrics is iris recognition. Notably, iris recognition has been widely considered to be one of the most accurate and fastest methods for the identification of biometric information. Specifically, this biometric can capture the eyes of an individual and even map out their unique iris patterns and hence, verify their identity (Kaur, Singh, & Kumar, 2014). In criminal justice, iris recognition is used in prisons in the identification of inmates especially, during movement between the facilities. Additionally, before release, iris recognition is used to ensure that the correct inmate is identified. The use of iris recognition in criminal justice is based on its high level of accuracy especially when it comes to one-to-one matching.

Apart from its use in criminal justice, iris recognition biometrics can be used in the real world in the verification of people’s identities. Notably, by mapping the unique iris pattern of a person, an iris scan can ensure that people are granted authorization for certain activities (Saini & Rana, 2014). For instance, in places such as hospitals, iris recognition is increasingly used to identify patients because of the need to provide accurate care and the protection of the privacy of such persons. (Kaur, Singh, & Kumar, 2014) Moreover, in other highly secure environments such as bank vaults, passport checks, military bases, and data centres, iris recognition has proved useful in the identification of individuals

One of the low biometrics is facial recognition. Facial recognition technology is used to measure and match an individuals’ unique characteristics for both authentication and identification. The use of facial recognition in the real world is based on the ability of the biometrics of an individual to be obtained without touching or even interacting with the individual (Bakshi, Singhal, & Malhotra, 2014). One of the uses of facial recognition in real life is real-time policing as well as in securing crowded venues (Saini & Rana, 2014). Also, in conjunction with iris recognition, facial recognition is used by security companies in securing their premises. Also, at immigration border points, the low biometrics of facial recognition is used in addition to iris recognition to identify people. Moreover, fleet management companies have used face recognition in ensuring the security of their vehicles

One of the limitations of facial recognition biometrics is a relatively low accuracy rate compared to iris recognition. Specifically, in an ideal situation, facial recognition can have an accuracy of 99 per cent; however, this could drop to the low of 95 per cent (Bakshi, Singhal, & Malhotra, 2014). The other limitation of facial recognition is racial bias. Specifically, recent studies have established that facial recognition has the possibility of racial bias because it is not as effective in the identification of the people of colour and women as it identifies whites and male persons. Moreover, due to relatively low biometrics, facial recognition has a high degree of unreliability due to some false positives and misidentification associated facial biometrics.

In conclusion, iris recognition is one of the biometrics with high accuracy rates and is used in prisons when moving inmates or releasing some of them. However, facial recognition has relatively low biometrics and is used in conjunction with iris recognition to identify people in crowded places such as border points and airports.