The United States federal government Research Essay

The Federal Government of the United States

The executive, legislative, and judicial departments make up the federal government of the United States. The Supreme Court and the other nine justices comprise the judicial department. (Branches of Government, 2017). The President, who is chosen by voters to lead the Executive branch, is also the head of the Legislative branch, which includes both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The President is in charge of the executive branch, which carries out the legislature’s creation of federal legislation. In addition, the President has the authority to propose new laws, direct foreign policy, and oversee the national defense. (Branches of Government, 2017). The judiciary is responsible for interpretation of the Constitution, evaluation of federal statutes, and deciding on states’ rights related cases.

The Separation of Powers

Notably, the federal government is divided into the three branches so that the central government is not controlled by an individual or a group with too much power (Branches of Government, 2017). The three branches are structured in a manner that either of them can change the actions of the other. For instance, the Executive, through the President, can veto the laws that the Legislative passes. Similarly, the Congress is in a position to reject or confirm the Presidential appointments, and under exceptional circumstances, remove the President from power. To check the control of the Judiciary, the Supreme Court Justices are Presidential appointees and then confirmed by the Senate. Separation of powers as a concept entails the division of the responsibilities of the government so that the powers exercised by either of the branches is limited (Branches of Government, 2017). As a result, the branches provide balance to the concentration of powers in which no single branch can exercise the core responsibilities of the other.

Federalism and Criminal Justice

Federalism is the governance in which two levels of government control the same territory (Barkow, 2011). The national government, in this case, is mandated to exercise federal governance on issues affecting the entire country. The local political subdivisions can make laws that deal with issues affecting the states, and cities. In the United States, for instance, the federal government and the various state governments are autonomous so that each government can have jurisdictions over different issues through the Constitution (Barkow, 2011). Federalism, about criminal justice, provides the law enforcement with a multi-jurisdictional perspective with which justice can be attained. Having prosecution from both the state and the federal government allows for the law enforcers to possess the necessary power to handle criminal charges. Furthermore, the decentralization of the law enforcement offers an opportunity for the criminal justice to be attained through both the Attorney General and County Attorneys (Barkow, 2011).

The Criminal Justice System

Law enforcement has a duty to act as impartial investigators through taking reports on crimes to ensure public safety (The Criminal Justice System, 2017). Besides, the officers have a role to gather evidence through investigation that leads to the arrest of offenders. Also, the officers have to give testimony in court process besides conducting follow-up investigations when necessary. Moreover, the criminal courts, in the criminal justice systems, has the role of bringing the offenders to justice. The judges who run the courts have the responsibility to ensure that the court upholds law. Furthermore, the court judges reject or accept pleas besides convicting offenders. In peculiar circumstances, the judges decide on whether to release the offenders or detain them before trial.

The Corrections Component and Civil Courts

The corrections component which is headed by the correction officers is responsible for supervision of convicted offenders when in jail, prison, or in the community on parole or probation (The Criminal Justice System, 2017). Notably, the correction officers are liable to the preparation of pre-sentencing reports that are useful for the judges in the ruling. Moreover, the civil courts determine the liability in cases involving a combination of businesses, private citizens, government institutions, among other parties (The Criminal Justice System, 2017). Notably, the civil courts seek to establish the party liable for an injury that is suffered by the other party.

Interdependence of Components in the Criminal Justice System

The components of the criminal justice system can function independently and at times depend on each other (The Criminal Justice System, 2017). For instance, the both criminal and civil courts rely on the law enforcement to make arrests of the offenders. Similarly, the correction officers rely on the ruling of the courts to determine whether an offender will be placed on parole or probation. However, the laws governing the components make each of them independent from each other as neither of them restricts the duties of the other. For instance, the law enforcement officers may arrest a suspect, but it does not imply that the officers will influence the decision of the court regarding the arrested offender (The Criminal Justice System, 2017).

Disparities in Federal and State Courts

In both the federal courts and the state courts the defendants are guaranteed a right to a jury and a trial through the due process. Also, the defendants are allowed to hear the sentence and be given the opportunity to address the court, and present an appeal if necessary (Branches of Government, 2017). However, there exist disparities in a manner that the federal courts are established under the Constitution while the state courts are created by individual states. Moreover, the federal courts have limited jurisdiction and can only hear cases constitutionally listed while the state courts have a broader jurisdiction to handle most of the cases involving citizens.

References

Barkow, R. E. (2011). Federalism and criminal law: what the feds can learn from the states. Michigan Law Review, 519-580.

Branches of Government | USAGov. (2017). Usa.gov. Retrieved 21 August 2017, from https://www.usa.gov/branches-of-government

The Criminal Justice System. (2017). Victimsofcrime.org. Retrieved 21 August 2017, from http://victimsofcrime.org/help-for-crime-victims/get-help-bulletins-for-crime-victims/the- criminal-justice-system