- Published: January 16, 2022
- Updated: January 16, 2022
- University / College: Heriot-Watt University
- Level: Intermediate School
- Language: English
- Downloads: 10
Plagiarism in the criminal justice field How could this be problematic in your major field of study? Plagiarism is very real in the professional work place (Ferree & Pfeifer, 2013). In the past few years, there have been highly publicized cases of professionals losing their jobs because of passing off other people’s work as their own. In the criminal justice field, plagiarism is not only unethical but also illegal and may lead to criminal charges (Ferree & Pfeifer, 2013).
Explain the difficulties of someone presenting another individual’s hard work as their own if this occurred on the job or where you intend to work after obtaining this degree
It is very difficult for someone to present the work of another individual because with modern technology, it is quite easy to detect plagiarized work. In the criminal justice field, one may encounter a situation of analyzing results or statistics of investigations (Gaines & Miller, 2014). The relevancy of the information presented tends to prove or disprove facts. In some cases, the officer conducting the data analysis may decide to produce work acquired by another colleague for a different investigation that is similar. This is illegal and the person in question will lose their job and face possible prosecution (Gaines & Miller, 2014).
In a prosecution case, the prosecutor attempts to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt. In cases where the prosecutor is lazy, and attempts to present plagiarized information in front of a jury, the jury might not be convinced. This is because the prosecutor will not have facts or will contradict him/herself or maybe the judge/ jury may recognize the facts as those presented in a different case. The guilty person may end up walking free because of the prosecutor’s laziness (Gaines & Miller, 2014).
When it comes to preparing witnesses for cross-examination, the defense attorney and the attorney ought to sure that the witnesses produce work based on their own knowledge and not something they heard (hearsay). The prosecutor and the attorney should also avoid coaching the witnesses as this may lead to perjury, which is an offense (Gaines & Miller, 2014). The perjury comes in when the witness lies after taking an oath. The lies might be factual though not based on the witnesses’ knowledge especially by giving information experienced or witnessed by another individual. If the court finds out that the lawyer and prosecutor were part of this, they may lose their license (Gaines & Miller, 2014).
References
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Ferree, C. W., & Pfeifer, H. L. (2013). Write & wrong: Writing within criminal justice : student workbook. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Gaines, L. K., & Miller, R. L. R. (2014). Criminal justice in action: The core.
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