Module 1: Foundations of Justices

1. The Ideal of Legal Justice

In theory, a modern legal system is built on principles of due process, equality before the law, and proportional punishment. These ideas trace back to:

• Roman Law: “Innocent until proven guilty” (In dubio pro reo)

• Magna Carta (1215): No person shall be deprived of liberty without “the judgment of peers”

• U.S. Constitution: Right to counsel, fair trial, protection from cruel punishment

These principles form the moral core of criminal justice — the belief that no matter how powerful or powerless a person is, the system will treat them fairly.

2. Components of the Criminal Justice System

Modern criminal justice systems typically include three core institutions:

• Police: Enforce laws and maintain public order.

• Key tension: Over-policing in marginalized communities vs. under-protection in vulnerable areas.

• Courts: Determine guilt or innocence, interpret laws, and ensure rights are protected.

• Key tension: Bias in judicial rulings, overreliance on plea bargains, and unequal access to legal representation.

• Corrections: Administer punishment or rehabilitation after conviction.

• Key tension: Mass incarceration, high rates of recidivism, and debates over the true purpose of imprisonment.

Critical Question: Can these institutions truly deliver justice, or are they merely enforcing law—fair or not?

3. Systemic Failures & Inequalities

Despite noble ideals, criminal justice systems often fall short in practice:

• Racial Disparities: Black and Latino individuals are incarcerated at significantly higher rates in the U.S.

• Economic Inequality: Wealthy defendants can afford elite defense attorneys, while the poor rely on overworked public defenders.

• Wrongful Convictions: DNA evidence has revealed systemic flaws in eyewitness testimony, forensic science, and prosecutorial conduct.

• Plea Bargaining: Over 90% of criminal cases are resolved through plea deals, often under coercion or misinformation.

“A system can be legally consistent, yet morally bankrupt.”

4. Justice as Force vs. Justice as Legitimacy

Justice as Force

• Justice becomes whatever the state has the power to enforce.

• Example: Political dissenters punished under vague “anti-terror” laws.

Justice as Legitimacy

• Justice earns trust, even from those it punishes.

• Example: Germany’s prison system focuses on reintegration, in contrast to the U.S. model of long-term punishment.

5. Philosophical Reflections

• Legal Positivism (e.g., H.L.A. Hart): The law is the law—justice is following legal rules, regardless of morality.

• Natural Law Theory: Unjust laws are not true laws and can be morally disobeyed.

• Critical Legal Theory: Law is not neutral; it reinforces existing power structures and systemic oppression.

“When the law becomes a tool of injustice, resistance becomes a moral duty.”

Discussion Questions

1. Can a legal system ever truly be neutral?

2. Should we obey laws we believe are unjust?

3. Is rehabilitation a better goal than punishment?

4. Is justice possible without forgiveness?

Assignment (Optional)

Choose one high-profile legal case (e.g., George Floyd, the Central Park Five, Julian Assange). For your analysis:

• Summarize the legal facts of the case

• Evaluate whether justice was served

• Reflect on what the case reveals about the criminal justice system

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Lesson 3 – Theories of Justice: From Bentham to Rawls and Beyond