Courses

Criminal Justice

  • SPEA-J 101 The American Criminal Justice System (3 cr.) Introduction to the criminal justice system of the United States and its function in contemporary society.
  • SPEA-J 150 Public Safety in America (3 cr.) The protection of persons and property involves a number of public and private organizations. This course examines the roles that agencies working within the fire service, emergency management, criminal justice, and the private security sector play in securing public safety in the United States.
  • SPEA-J 201 Theoretical Foundations of Criminal Justice Policies (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. This course examines the impact of sociological, biological, and economic theories of crime and the practice of criminal justice. Focus is on the nature and importance of theory, context of theoretical developments, methods for the critical analysis of theoretical developments, and policy implications of the varying perspectives considered.
  • SPEA-J 202 Criminal Justice Data, Methods, and Resources (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Course examines basic concepts of criminal justice. Students become familiar with research techniques necessary for systematic analysis of the criminal justice system, offender behavior, crime trends, and program effectiveness. Students will learn to critically evaluate existing research. Students will become familiar with existing sources of criminal justice data and will learn to assess the quality of that data.
  • SPEA-J 215 Concepts of Forensic Science (3 cr.) Forensic science and the criminal justice system. Evidence collection and analysis. Forensic chemistry including drugs and trace evidence, biology including blood spatter and DNA, pathology, entomology, anthropology, and forensic science and the law. Credit not given for both SPEA-J 215 and J 322.
  • SPEA-J 222 Murder in America: Causes and Consequences (3 cr.) An investigation of homicide in the United States. Focus on the level and nature of homicides as well as domestic homicides, serial and mass murder, race, ethnicity and gender, drugs and alcohol, school and workplace homicides, investigation, profiling and the death penalty, and homicide prevention and intervention programs.
  • SPEA-J 260 Topics in Criminal Justice (1-3 cr.) Study of selected issues in criminal justice. Topics vary from semester to semester. May be repeated for credit.
  • SPEA-J 272 Terrorism and Public Policy (3 cr.) This course surveys terrorism in democratic societies, with an emphasis on public policy responses designed to combat terrorism. Overviews of terrorist organizations in various countries are interspersed with analyses of significant terrorist events and public policies, and legal and public safety responses the events create.
  • SPEA-J 275 Diversity Issues in Criminal Justice (3 cr.) This course examines the influence of diversity issues such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender on crime and the treatment of the underrepresented groups throughout the American criminal justice system.
  • SPEA-J 278 Principles and Practices in Homeland Security (3 cr.) (Kokomo only) Examination of the basic operations, functions, and issues involved in securing our homeland from domestic and international threats, and proactive and reactive measures against such threats.
  • SPEA-J 301 Substantive Criminal Law (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101; R: SPEA-J 201 and SPEA-J 202. The development, limitations, and application of substantive criminal law, utilizing the case- study method.
  • SPEA-J 302 Procedural Criminal Law (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Criminal law application and procedure from the initiation of police activity through the correctional process, utilizing the case-study method.
  • SPEA-J 303 Evidence (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. The rules of law governing proof at trial of disputed issues of fact; burden of proof; presumptions and judicial notice; examination, impeachment, competency, and privileges of witnesses; hearsay rule and exceptions—all related as nearly as possible to criminal, as opposed to civil, processes.
  • SPEA-J 304 Correctional Law (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Legal problems from conviction to release: pre- sentence investigations, sentencing, probation and parole, incarceration, loss and restoration of civil rights.
  • SPEA-J 305 Juvenile Justice (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. This course is designed to provide an overview of the justice system's response to abused, neglected, and dependent children; juvenile misconduct; and delinquent behavior. An extensive review of the development of recent legal changes to the court, options for prevention, treatment of juvenile offenders, and possible system reforms.
  • SPEA-J 306 The Criminal Courts (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101; R: SPEA-J 201 and SPEA-J 202. An analysis of the criminal justice process from prosecution through appeal. The organization and operation of felony and misdemeanor courts are examined. Topics include prosecutorial decision making, plea bargaining, judicial selection, and the conduct of trials, sentencing, and appeal.
  • SPEA-J 310 Introduction to Administrative Processes (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Introduction to principles of management and systems theory for the administration of criminal justice agencies. Credit not given for both SPEA-J 310 and SPEA-V 270.
  • SPEA-J 312 White Collar Crime (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. White collar crime is an examination of the definitions, theories, laws, and policy responses that shape crimes by corporations, government agencies, professionals, and others engaged in legitimate occupations.
  • SPEA-J 320 Criminal Investigation (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Theory of investigation, crime scene procedures, interviews, interrogations, surveillances, and sources of information; collection and preservation of physical evidence; investigative techniques in specific crimes.
  • SPEA-J 321 American Policing (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101; R: SPEA-J 201 and SPEA-J 202. This course will examine the history, evolution, and organiza­tion of policing in the United States. Emphasis is placed on such major contemporary issues as the police role, discretion, use of force, corruption, accountability, and community policing.
  • SPEA-J 322 Introduction to Criminalistics (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101; R: SPEA-J 301. The broad range of physical evidence developed through the investigative process, and methods of identifying and establishing validity and relevance through forensic laboratory techniques.
  • SPEA-J 324 Technology, Crime, and Public Safety (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Focuses on role of technological systems in criminal justice, system types available, evolving applications, usages by public safety organizations, technology use by criminals and terrorists, the management and organizational effects of technologies, training, cost issues, anticipated impacts of technologies, and the political and legal implications for citizens and the public.
  • SPEA-J 331 Corrections (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101; R: SPEA-J 201 and SPEA-J 202. This course examines the historical development of the U.S. correctional system; the study of administration of local, state, and federal corrections programs, including jails, probation, community corrections, and prisons. Includes the study of punishment rationales, current correctional policies, and possibilities for reform.
  • SPEA-J 355 Global Criminal Justice Perspectives (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. An international review of select criminal justice perspectives and systems within the primary legal traditions of common, civil, Islamic, and socialist systems, as well as those that do not fit into established categories, such as Native American and African tribal justice.
  • SPEA-J 369 Private Justice: Police, Courts, and Corrections (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. This course examines the role of private policing and security, courts and adjudication, and corrections. Includes legislative and ethical issues and the economics of criminal and juvenile justice privatization. Principles of loss prevention, protection of assets, relationship between public and private services, and current issues in privatization will be discussed.
  • SPEA-J 370 Seminar in Criminal Justice (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101 Selected contemporary topics in criminal justice. May be repeated for credit.
  • SPEA-J 376 Principles of Public Safety (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Examination of threats to public safety and of governmental response at various levels to those threats. Treatment of areas such as transportation and highway threats; occupational safety and health; criminal threats; emergency and disaster planning; consumer protection; and fire control and suppression. Discussion of techniques to identify and measure risk, the acceptability of risk, and governmental attempts to control risk.
  • SPEA-J 380 Internship in Criminal Justice (0-6 cr.) P: Permission of instructor. Open to interested students who qualify upon approval of the faculty. Students may be placed with various criminal justice agencies for assignment to defined tasks relevant to their educational interests. Tasks may involve staff work or research. Full-time participants may earn up to 6 credit hours. Course is graded S /F (Satisfactory /Fail). May be repeated for credit.
  • SPEA-J 381 Professional Experience (1-6 cr.) Students will be  required to fulfill a minimum of 120 hours of relevant professional work experience Course is graded S /F (Satisfactory /Fail).
  • SPEA-J 382 Foundations of Emergency Management (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 150 and SPEA-J 101 A history of emergency management and the four phases-mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. An examination of the concepts of hazard, risk and vulnerability and the history, current issues, alternative career paths, roles of local, state, and federal governments in emergency management, and the future outlook of emergency management.
  • SPEA-J 387 Foundations of Homeland Security (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 150 and SPEA-J 101 (Indianapolis and Kokomo only) Examination of the theory and research driving homeland security and emergency management measures and an analytical look at the practices and principles of homeland security from an empirical perspective.
  • SPEA-J 426 Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101 or J 150. The use of geographic information systems to map locations of events and analyze patterns for decision making in areas of public safety including criminal justice, fire services, emergency management, and homeland security.
  • SPEA-J 429 Public Safety Management and Leadership (3 cr.) This capstone course is designed to examine the major public management principles, policy concerns, and leadership theories learned in an undergraduate management curriculum as they relate to how public safety is achieved in the field and in the policy making arena.
  • SPEA-J 433 Institutional Corrections (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. The history and development of the jail, penitentiary, prison, and reformatory. Analysis and evaluation of contemporary imprisonment.
  • SPEA-J 439 Crime and Public Policy (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 201, J 202, K 300. Senior standing or consent of instructor. A detailed examination of the major efforts designed to control or reduce crime. A review of existing knowledge is followed by an investigation of current crime control theories, proposals, and programs.
  • SPEA-J 440 Corrections in the Community (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. A detailed analysis of correctional alternatives to incarceration that focus on the reintegration of the offender while remaining in the community. Because of their extensive use, considerable attention is given to probation and parole. Other topics include diversion, community residential programs, restitution, halfway houses, and home detention.
  • SPEA-J 445 Trends in Corrections (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. Analysis and evaluation of contemporary correctional systems. Discussion of recent research concerning the correctional institution and the various field services.
  • SPEA-J 460 Police in the Community (3 cr.) P: SPEA-J 101. In-depth examination of crime as an urban policy problem, focusing on the role of police and victims in defining crime as a policy problem, and their role in seeking to reduce the incidence of crime.
  • SPEA-J 470 Seminar in Criminal Justice (1-3 cr.) P: Senior standing. Emphasizes current developments in legal, administrative, and operational aspects of the criminal justice system.
  • SPEA-J 480 Research in Criminal Justice (1-6 cr.) P: Junior standing and consent of instructor. Individual research under guidance of faculty member.

Academic Bulletins

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